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Adamu, Arthur & Mvuka join Celtic on loan

Celtic have signed Austria striker Junior Adamu from Bundesliga club Freiburg, Brentford centre-half Benjamin Arthur and Lorient winger Joel Mvuka, all on loan to the end of the season.

The Scottish champions, who have sent fellow striker Johnny Kenny on loan to Bolton Wanderers and allowed centre-half Stephen Welsh to return to Motherwell, have an option to buy Adamu and Mvuka in the summer.

Born in Nigeria, 24-year-old Adamu came through the RB Salzburg academy and scored 23 goals in 84 appearances for the Austrian side.

Adamu, who has nine caps for Austria, moved to Freiburg in 2023 and has found the back of the net seven times in 67 matches.

He has made 18 appearances this season, 14 of them starts, scoring once.

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But Celtic manager Martin O’Neill was attracted to his “experience of high-level football”.

“He has also been involved in European competition, so we are bringing in a talented, experienced, international forward to really enhance our attacking options,” he told Celtic’s website.

Adamu is eyeing a league and Scottish Cup double while scoring “a lot of goals” and wants “to improve as a player”.

Asked what kind of player Celtic fans will see in action, he added: “I’m dangerous in the box and hungry for goals. That’s what the manager sees in me and I want to show that on the pitch.”

The announcement of 22-year-old Mvuka’s signing came eight minutes after the closure of the January transfer window.

However, the Norwegian is no stranger to the Scottish champions, having played against them in the Conference League in 2022 for Bodo/Glimt, where he was a team-mate of Celtic winger Sebastian Tounekti.

He joined Lorient in 2023 but has made only five starts and 10 substitute appearances for the side sitting ninth in Ligue 1.

“Joel is a talented player who has a very good level of experience achieved at some really good clubs,” O’Neill said.

“He will give the squad another option, he is very quick, able to play on both wings”

The 20-year-old Arthur has made just three appearances for Premier League outfit Brentford, including two starts in his season’s League Cup.

However, O’Neill thinks the England youth international is “an excellent player, with real attributes, good height, strength and speed”.

His arrival allows Stephen Welsh to return to Motherwell on loan after being recalled as cover during January.

Meanwhile, Kenny heads for the side sitting third in League One having failed to become a first pick since O’Neill’s return to Celtic.

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Rangers buy striker Naderi from Hansa Rostock

Rangers have signed striker Ryan Naderi from German third-tier club Hansa Rostock for an undisclosed fee.

The Dresden-born 22-year-old, who has signed what the Ibrox club describe as “a long-term deal”, has scored 13 goals, and contributed nine assists, in 45 appearances since joining Hansa from Borussia Monchengladbach in August 2024.

Eight of those goals, and five of the assists, have come in 18 appearances this season for a side sitting sixth in 3 Liga.

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“He is someone who has a lot of potential and I believe we can help take his game to the next level.”

Now he has taken what should be a step up to the Scottish Premiership, the striker told Rangers’ website: “I plan to make the most of this opportunity.”

Naderi has dual German and Bulgarian citizenship through his father, while he also qualifies for the Czech Republic through his mother.

He started with local club Dynamo Dresden as a youth before joining Monchengladbach’s academy, playing for their second team before his move to Hansa.

Naderi becomes Rangers’ fourth signing of the January transfer window following the arrival of winger Andreas Skov Olsen on loan from Wolfsburg, midfielder Tochi Chukwuani from Sturm Graz and defender Tuur Rommens from Westerlo.

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Just seven signings – the Premier League’s quiet deadline day

The Premier League had its quietest ever winter transfer deadline day as just seven deals were completed on Monday.

Not a single arrival was confirmed until 19:04 GMT – four minutes after the window in the English top flight closed – with Crystal Palace announcing the signing of striker Jorgen Strand Larsen from Wolves in a deal worth up to £48m.

Clubs can make signings for up to two hours after the official deadline, as long as a deal sheet is submitted before 19:00 to provide extra time for the necessary paperwork to be completed.

There were five further deals confirmed after the deadline – among them, Sunderland brought in Ecuador winger Nilson Angulo from Anderlecht in a deal worth £17.5m, while Wolves signed midfielder Angel Gomes from Marseille on loan and replaced Strand Larsen with Adam Armstrong from Wolves for £7m.

That took the overall spending in the Premier League during the winter window to £390m.

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What else happened on deadline day?

The day’s two big talking points involved Crystal Palace – Strand Larsen’s arrival from Wolves and the calling off of fellow striker Jean-Philippe Mateta’s move to AC Milan because of issues with his medical.

Otherwise, it was a day largely devoid of transfer drama as none of the top-six clubs did any business.

One of the more interesting moves was a Premier League exit, as former England midfielder Kalvin Phillips moved from Manchester City to Championship side Sheffield United on loan for the rest of the season.

That move comes four years after City signed Phillips from Leeds in a deal worth £45m.

Why was deadline day so quiet?

A record £3.1bn was spent by Premier League clubs in the summer – significantly more than in the winter window.

The figure of £390m for this window isn’t hugely down on previous winters, with January always more low key than the summer as it is a notoriously difficult time for clubs to recruit effectively.

It is even harder to do that on deadline day, but this one was particularly quiet, for a variety of reasons.

The big outlay last summer will be one, while another could relate to a new system of Financial Fair Play (FFP) that will come in from next season.

Squad Cost Ratio (SCR) will replace Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), meaning overall squad costs in the Premier League from 2026-27 will have to be limited to 85% of a club’s revenue.

“There’s always going to be a degree of anxiety as to keeping your financial house in order ahead of a far more active market [the summer window],” Paul Macdonald of FootballTransfers.com said.

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Who were the biggest spenders in the winter window?

Antoine Semenyo celebrates scoring for Manchester CityAFP via Getty Images

Manchester City made the biggest moves in this window as they looked to give themselves the best chance of challenging Arsenal for the Premier League title.

They signed forward Antoine Semenyo from Bournemouth for £64m on 9 January, while defender Marc Guehi joined from Crystal Palace for £20m on 16 January.

“The scenario now is Manchester City are chasing down Arsenal and the points gap is getting a little bit bigger, so you need those players who are ready to go and know what the intensity of this Premier League is like,” former England and Manchester City defender Steph Houghton told BBC Radio 5 live.

“It’s been a smart move from the club in terms of getting Marc Guehi and Antoine Semenyo. They’ve slotted in really well, which is testament to them.”

Crystal Palace’s deadline day move for Strand Larsen meant they spent £83m in the winter window, having signed Brennan Johnson for £35m from Tottenham.

Premier League leaders Arsenal did no business during the winter window, with Manchester United, Chelsea and Liverpool – fourth, fifth and sixth respectively – also quiet.

While Manchester City spent money to bolster their squad for a title fight, at the other end of the table West Ham splashed out in a bid to avoid relegation to the Championship.

The Hammers, who are third from bottom and six points adrift of safety, spent a reported £21.8m on Brazilian striker Pablo Felipe from Portuguese club Gil Vicente and around £25m on striker Taty Castellanos from Lazio.

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How Premier League spending compared to rest of Europe

Despite a quiet deadline day, Premier League clubs still spent more overall in the winter window than sides in other major European leagues.

The next-biggest spending league was Serie A, with their clubs paying out a combined £205m in transfer fees.

Sassuolo were one of the most active Italian clubs, paying £22m for Marseille duo Ismael Kone and Darryl Bakola.

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West Ham sign Chelsea defender Disasi on loan

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West Ham have signed Chelsea defender Axel Disasi on loan until the end of the season.

The 27‑year‑old centre-back was involved in a turbulent deadline day, which ended in a move to the London Stadium for a £1.7m loan fee.

However, despite the France international beginning his medical on Friday morning, confirmation of the transfer ran late after West Ham submitted a deal sheet to earn a two-hour extension to complete the signing.

Disasi arrives to strengthen Nuno Espirito Santo’s defence as they attempt to avoid relegation. The Hammers are third bottom in the Premier League after 24 matches – six points off safety.

“It’s an exciting challenge. We know that the club is not at the place that it should be, but I’m here to help the team and to bring what I can to achieve our goal.”

Disasi has not played for more than a year for Chelsea and was placed in the club’s so‑called “bomb squad” after failing to secure a move last summer and deemed surplus to requirements by former head coach Enzo Maresca.

He later worked his way back into the under‑21s and first‑team training, although he did not make a senior appearance.

Disasi joined Chelsea from Monaco in 2023 in a £38m deal and spent the second half of last season on loan at Aston Villa.

But he is determined to prove his worth at West Ham as he added: “The club has given me the opportunity to show my quality on the pitch. I spoke with all the people here, and I feel that they really wanted me, so that’s why I’m here.

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‘Pure genius’ – who has made Troy’s Premier League team of the week?

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After every round of Premier League matches this season, BBC football pundit Troy Deeney will give you his team and manager of the week.

Troy Deeney's team of the week graphic with: Kelleher, Gabriel, Senesi, Ajer, Fernandez, Madueke, Wirtz, Scott, Diarra, Ekitike, Solanke
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Marcos Senesi (Bournemouth): Arguably one of the players of the season for me. He is really solid, goes about his business, gets everything done. Nothing is forced.

Gabriel (Arsenal): Leeds weren’t poor, but Gabriel was solid and reassuring. He got the job done and knows the threat he poses from set-pieces. It was probably his best defensive display of the season.

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Enzo Fernandez (Chelsea): Obviously he scored the goal that completed the great comeback. He gets a lot of stick, unjustifiably in my opinion. People don’t think he’s that good and maybe it’s the price tag and because he won a World Cup that means they expect more. He is a good midfielder and a really good captain, and he looks after the ball when they are in difficult moments.

Florian Wirtz (Liverpool): I have been saying for weeks and months that with a player of that quality, it was only a matter of time before he settled into it. These past six weeks we have seen the real Florian Wirtz – dictating games, his passing range is unbelievable. The goals and assists have started to come now and he is looking really strong.

Alex Scott (Bournemouth): It was a tough day for him because Wolves were decent. He has had a tough time after going away with England but has come back and has found his mojo. It’s going to be an interesting back end of the season for him trying to make the World Cup squad.

Noni Madueke (Arsenal): From thinking you are on the bench to finding out you are starting less than five minutes before kick-off is a massive turn of events. To be mentally focused to deliver, that is credit to Mikel Arteta and Madueke. They somehow gave the goal to him even though it was an own goal, but with a goal and assist he gets in the team.

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Dominic Solanke (Tottenham): It was probably the weirdest two goals he will score in his life. The first one is questionable but the second one is pure genius. To not only backheel it but to lob Gianluigi Donnarumma who is 6ft 6in is unbelievable. It is great to see him back playing. Can he have a late push now for the England squad? That is the question if he can stay fit.

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Rashford wants to stay at Barca – Tuesday’s gossip

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Marcus Rashford eyeing permanent Barcelona switch, Raheem Sterling rejects Bundesliga move, and Tottenham miss out on Maghnes Akliouche.

Marcus Rashford, 28, does not want to return to Manchester United when his loan deal at Barcelona expires and the England striker is prepared to take a pay cut to stay. (Mirror)

Former Liverpool midfielder Xabi Alonso is expected to feature on a three-man shortlist of potential successors to Pep Guardiola amid growing belief that this will be the Manchester City head coach’s final season in charge. (Telegraph – subscription required)

France centre-back Dayot Upamecano, 27, is set to sign a new contract with Bayern Munich. (Fabrizio Romano)

Manchester United‘s Dutch defender Tyrell Malacia, 26, is angry with the club’s director of football Jason Wilcox for blocking a deadline-day move away from Old Trafford. (Mirror)

Malacia was about to board a plane bound for Turkey before completing a move to Besiktas only for Wilcox to tell the left-back he must stay with Manchester United. (Talksport)

Former Chelsea and England forward Raheem Sterling, 31, was offered to Bundesliga club Union Berlin in the past few days but they opted not to pursue a deal. (Florian Plettenberg)

France striker Karim Benzema, 38, is set to leave Al-Ittihad for fellow Saudi Pro League club Al-Hilal. Benzema joined Al-Ittihad on a three-year deal upon leaving Real Madrid in the summer of 2023. (The Athletic)

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