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With the arrivals of Diego Fabrini from Watford and Christian Stuani from Espanyol, there seems to be no end to Middlesbrough’s summer spending.

Aitor Karanka has seemingly taken the approach of spending big to get promotion back to the Premier League after losing the play-off final last season against Norwich.

That defeat had hit Boro hard but it looks as if Boro chairman Steve Gibson believes in Karanka, and with some investment Mourinho’s protege could get the North East club to the top division.

Stuani and Fabrini follow some top players that already have been brought in so far. The signing of Stewart Downing from West Ham would have raised a few eyebrows as the England man has taken the unusual step down to the Championship from the Premier League, and the £5.5m fee for the England international shows Boro’s intent as they seek promotion back to the top-flight.

Thomas Kalas has been signed on loan as well, along with Alex Baptitse. And with a possible move for Jordan Rhodes in the pipeline, it is fair to say the North East club are going to spend big for the prospect of Premier League football.

However, it isn’t really the norm in the Championship. There isn’t usually a lot of  big spending, as clubs tend to cut down in wages and go for lower risk, lower fee signings as the money is far less than that in the Premier League.

There have been some exceptions, of course, such as last season when Fulham spent £11m on Ross McCormack but little elsewhere, which left the Londoners horribly short and their over reliance on youth meant Fulham struggled and never got close to challenging for promotion.

Another example of some big spending to get promotion was in 2011/12 season, when West Ham spent little over £4million on Kevin Nolan, who took the step down from the Premier League to join the Hammers. That summer window saw the East Londoners spend over £10m on new players as they attempted to bounce straight back up to the Premier League.

And it was successful for Big Sam’s men as they gained promotion to the Premier League via the play-offs, but failure to do so could’ve cost the Hammers dear. Those are the risks you take when spending big and, Boro will be all too aware of those risks.

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Furthermore, these two examples perhaps highlight how spending big doesn’t always guarantee promotion. Nevertheless, with the right investment, Boro could certainly get back to the Premier League and maybe it could be the push the North East club needs to finally get over that line after a five year exile.

Only time will tell, but with the big investment the Boro board will certainly expect Karanka to deliver promotion. But the question is; can Boro’s manager deliver the goods?

As reported by Portuguese outlet A Bola, Rangers defender Fabio Cardoso is a target for Estoril in the January transfer window.

What’s the story?

Cardoso has featured little for the Light Blues since October when he broke his nose during the League Cup semi-final defeat to Motherwell. Despite having long recovered from that injury, he’s played just 45 minutes of football since, with the likes of David Bates, Danny Wilson and Ross McCrorie all getting game time in the Rangers defence ahead of him.

Now he could be offered a lifeline back to his homeland by Estoril.

That’s according to A Bola, who say the Portuguese side are interested in adding him to their squad, high up on the list of defensive targets drawn up by manager Ivo Vieira.

Is it time for Rangers to call short his Ibrox career?

Caixinha strugglers

Cardoso isn’t the only summer signing struggling to get game time at Rangers right now with the likes of Dalcio and Eduardo Herrera also failing to make the grade at Ibrox so far.

While some of Pedro Caixinha’s signings have undoubtedly been a success so far, chiefly Alfredo Morelos and Daniel Candeias, there’s no point in having some of the deadwood brought to Glasgow hanging around beyond January. Their value is only going to decrease with less playing time and interim manager Graeme Murty appears to have a settled core to his team selections.

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Rangers need to maximise their resources and sorting out moves away for some should be seen as a big priority before they invest in any more players.

According to reports in the Daily Mail, Newcastle United have switched their attentions from Paris Saint-Germain goalkeeper Kevin Trapp to Sparta Prague’s Martin Dubravka as Rafa Benitez looks to bring a new stopper to the club before the January transfer window slams shut.

What’s the word, then?

Well, the Daily Mail says that after Trapp decided he was going to stay with PSG until at least the end of the season, the Magpies are now targeting Dubravka, with Benitez keen to tie up a deal for the Slovakia international in time for his side’s crucial Premier League clash against bottom side Swansea City at St James’ Park on Saturday.

The Daily Mail explains how Karl Darlow and Rob Elliot have rotated between the sticks so far this term, but Benitez is now keen to bring in an established number one and he has identified the 28-year-old as the perfect fit.

How has Dubravka done this season?

He has done well.

Despite having a short spell on the substitutes’ bench for Sparta earlier in the campaign following his summer move from Slovan Liberec, the Slovakian stopper has since established himself as the Czech outfit’s first-choice goalkeeper, and he has kept seven clean sheets and conceded 12 goals in 15 appearances in all competitions.

The 28-year-old also impressed in the latter stages of his country’s World Cup qualifying campaign, although they were the unlucky team to miss out on a play-off place despite finishing second behind England in Group F.

Would he be a good signing for Newcastle?

It’s difficult to say.

If Benitez and the Tyneside outfit’s scouts have watched him and are impressed then you have to trust them, but it is always hard to predict how a goalkeeper will do when he arrives in the Premier League having never played in England before.

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Rob Elliot and Karl Darlow have both had their bad games between the sticks this season, and if Dubravka can prove to be a little more reliable and consistent than they have been then the Magpies will be delighted as they look to avoid being sucked into a relegation battle.

Lucas Moura has been one of the names being linked with a switch to Manchester United this month.

The Paris Saint-Germain winger is no stranger to speculation involving the Premier League giants given that he was wanted by the club when Sir Alex Ferguson was in charge in 2013.

Moura ended up joining the French outfit from Sao Paulo that year and has gone on to win 11 trophies, including four Ligue 1 titles.

This season, though, the Brazilian has struggled for game time under head coach Unai Emery.

In fact, the winger has not played since December 13 and has only been included in a matchday squad once in the last month.

In total, Moura has played just 72 minutes of league action across five substitute appearances, but he did manage to score a goal in that time.

According to Sky Sports, United manager Jose Mourinho is keen on bringing Moura to Old Trafford, and the player has suggested that he wants to move to England.

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The winger told L’Equipe:

“It feels the end of a story for me unfortunately. Can I stay? It will be very difficult. Manchester United? There are topics I cannot talk about. English football I like a lot, it is the most competitive championship.”

The appointment of Sam Allardyce provided the bounce Everton needed to escape the relegation battle, but his influence on results has dramatically waned since. The Toffees haven’t won any of their last seven games across all competitions, have suffered elimination from the FA Cup at the hands of Liverpool and scored just three goals.

There are some mitigating factors behind that run, particularly an imbalanced squad and a string of games against high-quality opponents, but the current signs aren’t encouraging and Allardyce’s pragmatic style of play certainly hasn’t convinced everybody at Goodison Park.

Last week, Marco Silva – who Everton tried to appoint ahead of Allardyce – became available after being abruptly sacked by Watford, so we asked Toffees supporters whether they want Big Sam or the 40-year-old Portuguese in the Goodison hot seat.

According to our poll, a whopping 73% of Everton fans would back the club parting with Allardye and replacing him with the former Hornets and Hull City gaffer. Has Allardyce been a disappointment, Everton fans? Let us know by commenting below…

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According to reports in The Guardian, Everton director of football Steve Walsh is facing the sack with his position coming under review from owner Farhad Moshiri, and Toffees fans have been quick to have their say on the rumour.

The Guardian says that Walsh is coming under increased scrutiny for the new players he has identified over the course of the last two transfer windows, with the Merseyside outfit lying just seven points above the relegation zone despite spending almost £200m on signings during that period.

Players like Sandro Ramirez and Davy Klaassen have so far failed to make the grade – with the former joining Sevilla on loan until the end of the season last month – while another new boy Cenk Tosun looks as though he will take time to adapt to Premier League football.

Everton supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on the story, and while one joked “I hope he’s not finding his own replacement”, another said it “has to be his last job in football this”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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Arsenal are back in Europa League action on Thursday night as they face Swedish outfit Ostersund in the first leg of their round of 32 clash.

Winning the Europa League might be Arsenal’s only chance of playing Champions League next football when considering that they are currently sixth in the Premier League table – eight points off fourth-placed Chelsea.

The Gunners are the overwhelming favourites to beat Ostersund, who are playing in their first ever European season.

Arsenal midfielder Mohamed Elneny, who is valued at £9m by transfermarkt.co.uk, posted an image on social media ahead of the flight to Sweden, with the 25-year-old pictured alongside Mesut Ozil.

As expected, the Arsenal fans filled the response section with comments about the Egypt international, who has made 21 appearances in all competitions this season.

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It would be fair to say that the club’s supporters are split when it comes to Elneny, with the midfielder producing some decent performances, but some poor ones also.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Since arriving with the Hammers in 2012 from Aston Villa, centre-back James Collins has established himself as a firm fan-favourite.

It appears, though, that age is catching up with the 34-year-old Welshman, who has missed the majority of this season with a malleolar injury.

Collins’ contract in East London expires in the summer, and with Winston Reid, Aaron Creswell and Angelo Ogbonna cementing themselves as David Moyes’ preferred three at the back, time could be up for the Newport-born centre-half once valued at £7m during his time at Villa but now reckoned to be worth only £1.5m.

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Collins has said he wants to end his career at the club where it all took off for him back in 2005, but with Brighton reportedly lining up a £2m offer for the defender in the January transfer window, he could be headed to pastures new in the summer.

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What do Hammers fans think? Should West Ham renew his contract or not? Have your say in the poll below…

Everton paid Ajax just under £24m to sign Davy Klaassen during the summer transfer window.

The Netherlands international arrived at Goodison Park off the back of scoring 20 goals in 49 appearances during the 2016-17 season, and it would be fair to say that the Everton supporters were excited with the acquisition.

It has just not happened for Klaassen in England, however, with the 25-year-old only making four Premier League appearances this term.

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Klaassen has not even been in the Everton squad for a Premier League match since the end of October, which is an indication of his current standing on Merseyside.

Klaassen was in the Everton Under-23s side that beat Swansea City Under-23s 2-0 on Monday night, and the club’s supporters have been reacting to the situation that the Dutchman currently finds himself in.

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It is not quite what the midfielder, who is believed to pick up £100,000 a week at Goodison Park, would have had in mind.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be found below:

According to an exclusive report in The Telegraph, Mark Hughes is the leading candidate to replace Mauricio Pellegrino as Southampton manager after the Argentine was sacked by the club on Monday night.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Saints relieved the 46-year-old of his duties following a dreadful run of just one win in 17 Premier League matches that has left the south coast outfit just one point above the relegation zone and in real danger of going down to the Championship.

The Telegraph says that Hughes is the favourite to get the role, with the club working to finalise an appointment in the next 24 hours.

The Telegraph adds that the club is looking for a manager that will make a big impact in the short-term, but also fit with their philosophy in the long-term of giving younger players a chance.

Would Hughes be a good appointment for Southampton?

Considering the position they are in they won’t have loads of options, even though the St Mary’s faithful are hopeful they can attract someone like Carlo Ancelotti, and can’t afford to be too picky, with some candidates probably not wanting to potentially tarnish their name with a relegation on their CV.

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While things didn’t go too well for the Welshman at the end of his reign at the Britannia Stadium and with QPR previously, he did lead the Potters to three successive ninth-place finishes before they ended the previous campaign in 13th.

The 54-year-old knows the Premier League well and that is exactly what the south coast outfit need right now as they face eight matches – including against Arsenal, Chelsea and Manchester City – to try and save their skins.

Will he save them?

It’s difficult to say.

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The players looked to have no confidence and almost gave up in the 3-0 defeat against Newcastle United at St James’ Park on Saturday, and Hughes will need to lift the mood in the dressing room ahead of another crucial top flight encounter against fellow strugglers West Ham United at the London Stadium on March 31.

If he can do that then Southampton do have the quality in their squad to get the points they need to survive, but it could be a rollercoaster ride.