Rio Ferdinand has announced that he’s retired from professional football.

The former Manchester United, Leeds and West Ham centre-back spent the season just gone with QPR, but played infrequently as the Super Hoops slipped to relegation.

Following the drop, the London club announced that they would not be keeping the 36-year-old on, and Ferdinand has made the decision to end his long and glittering career.

He broke the news on BT Sport, and his official statement reads: “After 18 years as a professional footballer, I now feel it’s the right time for me to retire from the game that I love,

“As a 12-year-old boy, kicking around a football on the Friary Estate in Peckham, I never dreamt that I would play for my boyhood club West Ham, captain Leeds United, win the Champions League with Manchester United, or re-join my first manager Harry Redknapp at Queens Park Rangers.

“I will always regard the 81 times that I played for England, with immense pride. These are all treasured memories that will last a lifetime.

“Starting a career, every young man needs mentors. I found mine in Dave Goodwin, the district manager at Blackheath, and Tony Carr, the youth team manager at West Ham. They installed in me personality traits that lasted throughout my career. I will always be grateful to them.

“I’d like to thank Chris Ramsey, Harry Redknapp, David O’Leary and David Moyes who managed me at various times in my career, all the backroom staff who looked after me over the years, and the players that I played with. I would also like to thank the team who managed me off the pitch, Jamie Moralee and everybody at New Era.

“Winning trophies over my 13 years at Manchester United allowed me to achieve everything that I desired in football. From a young child to today, that was all I cared about.

“None of that would have been possible, without the genius of one man, Sir Alex Ferguson. His greatest accomplishment in my eyes will always be how he developed us as men, not just as footballers. He will in my opinion, always be the greatest manager in British football history.

“I’d also like to thank and pay tribute to my wife Rebecca and my family, including my mother and father, for their sacrifices, their encouragement and their advice throughout my career.

“And finally, I’d like to thank all the fans from all the clubs – for without them professional football would not exist. I will miss each and every one of you on my Saturday afternoons.”

Ferdinand won six Premier League titles, the Champions League, the FA Cup and three League Cups during an illustrious time at the very top of the game, and also made 81 outings for England, playing in World Cups and European Championships.

The centre-back missed much of the end of the 2014/15 season to be with his wife, Rebecca Ellison, who died after a battle with cancer earlier this month.

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Ferdinand is considered to be one of the finest defenders to have represented United and the Three Lions.

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One of the biggest transfer stories of the summer isn’t even taking place in England. Or in Europe.

But our neighbours across the pond got a fantastic surprise Saturday when Liverpool icon Steven Gerrard was officially introduced to his new LA Galaxy home crowd.

Gerrard is just the latest Premier League player to move to Major League Soccer, and to LA, after David Beckham and Robbie Keane – for his part, Keane bagged a hat trick in Saturday’s 4-0 win over Toronto FC.

Although Gerrard won’t make his on-field MLS debut until the Galaxy’s July 17 contest against the San Jose Earthquakes, the former Reds captain was unveiled at half-time and gave a speech to fans.

Oh, and he bought beer for 500 of them.

Most were pretty grateful.

But, understandably, many LFC supporters are still just a tad bitter…

Some people questioned if Americans even know what they’re getting with Gerrard.

Regardless, MLS fans are excited to see what Stevie G will bring to the pitch.

… And then there’s this guy.

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Tuttosport reports, via the Daily Express, that Liverpool have made an offer for Lazio’s Dutch defender, Stefan de Vrij.

Liverpool are allegedly keen on providing Klopp with defensive recruitment in the forthcoming January transfer window.

What’s the story?

It is reported that Jurgen Klopp is hopeful of signing more defenders in the upcoming window, and his defence has been an area of considerable concern this season. Accordingly, the Reds have allegedly approached Lazio’s Stefan de Vrij. The 25-year-old’s contract expires at the end of the season and Liverpool are therefore able to sign the Dutchman on a pre-contract agreement next month.

Nevertheless, it seems that the Merseyside club require immediate defensive reinforcement and thus they’ve made a bid to sign the Dutchman on a permanent basis.  In addition to Liverpool, Atletico Madrid have also made an offer, while de Vrij is allegedly attracting the interest of Juventus and Barcelona.

Would he be a good signing?

Liverpool’s need for defensive recruitment is strikingly apparent as they’ve conceded 23 goals in 20 league games this season, an average of more than a goal every game in England’s top flight. For a team that are itching to be considered as one of the best in the division, this is utterly unacceptable.

The addition of de Vrij  – who is valued at £24.3m by transfermarkt.com – would unquestionably increase the quality of Liverpool’s defence, and it would serve to help negate some of the issues that have thwarted the Reds’ defence this season.

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The 25-year-old is lauded for his unwavering concentration and his propensity to score goals. In 18 Serie A games for Lazio this season, the centre-half has scored three goals. Thanks to his experience and defensive guile, his arrival would augment the standard of Klopp’s defence.

Few players light up the Premier League like Christian Eriksen when he’s on form. But there’s always a frustration around the corner for Tottenham fans when a player with so much talent often slows games down or fails to put his stamp on the game.

But the Dane isn’t just a wisp of a player who drifts in and out of games. He is a truly world class talent who can run them when he’s on form. And in a Premier League which is enduring the increasingly wide gap between the haves of the top six and the have-nots of the rest, that can be a potent weapon.

Against West Ham on Thursday night, Eriksen, like the rest of his Spurs teammates, may not have had the best night of their footballing lives, but he was still effective. And when looking at the stats, it’s clear that he was involved in the best things that his side did.

Eriksen, playing in an advanced role, had more shots than anyone else on the pitch and more touches than anyone other than Ben Davies. What’s impressive is that the players having the shots aren’t usually the ones getting all the touches. The Danish playmaker was given space to play in front of the Hammers defence, which is why he was able to drop deeper and get so much time on the ball, but his attacking instinct when he got it was important, too.

With 74 passes made throughout the game, Eriksen’s evening was mostly about recycling possession and making his team tick. With three key passes – more than anyone except Dele Alli – he certainly did that.

But in a game where the opposition sits deep and attempts to stifle your creativity and hit you on the break – just as the Hammers did to Manchester City and Chelsea before Christmas – every attack can be dangerous to your own team if you give the ball away. The fact that Christian Eriksen made more interceptions than any Spurs player tells you just how instrumental he was to his side’s defence, too. For each of the chances he created with a key pass at one end, he stopped one at the other. And as contributions in a tight game against a bitter rival, where a point is sealed through a wonder goal from your winger go, that could well have been vital.

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As reported by The Daily Record, Rangers are set to step up their interest in Scotland international Russell Martin, if they can get rid of Bruno Alves during this month’s transfer window.

What’s the story?

The Light Blues have already been fairly busy in the transfer market this month, offloading the likes of Carlos Pena and signing left winger Jamie Murphy from Brighton & Hove Albion.

Now their defence is set to come under the spotlight and fans could be soon saying goodbye to another Pedro Caixinha signing.

The Daily Record reports that the club are looking to free up wages before firming up interest in Norwich City centre-back Russell Martin.

The paper say that Bruno Alves is attracting interest from Qatar and should a bid materialise, it would be welcomed by the Ibrox club, prompting Graeme Murty to pursue a loan move for the Scotland cap.

Martin may not have as illustrious a career behind him as Alves, but would he be a more functional choice for the Ibrox side?

Is Martin a better option than Alves?

When Bruno Alves signed for Rangers it was an exciting time for supporters to see such a decorated international defender make a move to Glasgow, however it’s fair to say the move hasn’t quite worked out.

Whether it’s been because of injury or poor form, Alves has disappointed fans who were hoping he could be the kind of leader their defence needs to compete for major honours in Scotland.

At his peak, Alves is a far more accomplished defender than Martin, but the prospect of him having a successful Rangers career now seems remote and the Light Blues could do worse than the Norwich City man.

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Rated at £2.25m by Transfermarkt, Martin has excellent experience of his own to draw upon having been a regular in the English Premier League and Championship for the last seven seasons before this one, alongside making almost 30 appearances for Scotland.

The Record say he is eager to sign on at Ibrox, which is the kind of attitude Rangers badly need if they’re to ever close the gap on Celtic. Martin could be to Rangers what Alves wasn’t, a reliable leader that can excel in their defensive line.

According to reports by Russia media outlet soccernews.ru, Southampton have been dealt a huge blow in their pursuit of Spartak Moscow forward Quincy Promes with the player not wanting to join ‘one of the worst clubs in the Premier League’.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Saints completed the club-record £19m signing of Monaco striker Guido Carrillo on Thursday night, and Sky Sports reported on the same day that they are keen to bring Quincy Promes to St Mary’s before the January transfer window slams shut as well.

However, soccernews.ru says that while the south coast outfit appear unwilling to pay the Dutchman’s €35 (£30.6m) price tag, the 26-year-old also isn’t keen on joining a team that currently lies in the relegation zone in the English top flight.

How has Promes done this season?

He has been in fine form, as he has been ever since he joined Spartak from FC Twente in 2015.

The Netherlands international has scored 15 goals – including two in the group stages of the Champions League – and provided a further eight assists in 25 appearances in all competitions this term, while he has 58 goals in 115 outings in total for the Russian Premier League side.

The 26-year-old is also direct and loves to run at opposition defenders, while the fact that he has played on both wings and as a centre-forward this season shows his versatility.

Could Saints still sign him?

Given the south coast outfit have never spent more than £20m on a player it was always difficult to see them spending more than £30m on one, but in the predicament they currently find themselves in they need as much attacking quality as possible in their team.

If that means smashing their transfer record for Promes then so be it, but it looks to be a difficult task to persuade the player that it would be a good move for him even if they are willing to do that.

Who could they target instead?

Links with Atletico Madrid’s Nicolas Gaitan have continued throughout the month, and it seems as though the Argentine winger is Southampton’s back-up if a deal for Promes doesn’t work out – as looks to be the case as things stand.

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Rangers are back on the right track after Tuesday night’s Scottish Premiership action after they comfortably defeated Partick Thistle 2-0 at Firhill.

Josh Windass and James Tavernier scored in each half to secure the three points, just days after a disappointing loss to Hibernian at Ibrox.

Having found themselves again adrift of Aberdeen in second, it was vitally important they win their game in hand and having done so move to within three points of Derek McInnes’ outfit.

Fans were pleased with the result but still found some frustration in the performance of the team and the decisions made by Graeme Murty.

One big talking point coming out of the evening was the lack of action for new signing Greg Docherty, who had to settle for five minutes off the bench in place of Daniel Candeias.

The promising Scotland U21 international is seen as an exciting prospect within the Rangers support and they’re calling on the Rangers boss to give him his first start away to Ayr United in the Scottish Cup on Sunday.

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Fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts…

Aleksandar Mitrovic struggled to hold down a regular place in the Newcastle United team, which led to his exit in the January transfer window.

The Serbian dropped down the pecking order under manager Rafael Benitez, with Dwight Gayle and Joselu being preferred.

On transfer deadline day last month, Mitrovic completed a loan move to Fulham, which is due to last until the end of the season.

The 23-year-old has made three appearances for the Cottagers, but is yet to play a full 90 minutes.

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On Wednesday night, Mitrovic opened his scoring account by poking the ball into the back of the net from close range.

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Fulham did not manage to take all three points, but their bid for promotion to the Premier League continues as they recorded a 1-1 draw with Bristol City.

Mitrovic’s impressive performance caught the eye of Newcastle fans, some of whom never wanted the forward to leave in the first place.

If you were to mention Ezgjan Alioski’s name to Leeds fans at the start of last summer, you can bet that almost all of them would never have heard of the Macedonian.

Signed from Lugano in Switzerland in July of 2017, Alioski was one of a number of relatively unheard foreign players arriving at Elland Road during the transfer window.

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However, almost eight months later, Alioski has shown the Leeds faithful exactly what he is capable of…in flashes anyway.

A truly versatile player, the 26-year-old, who is valued at £3.6 million by Transfermarkt, has been used in a number of positions across the field.

Despite his attacking pedigree, it is actually Alioski’s defensive work this season that has earned him plaudits.

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On Wednesday, @LUFCData posted a stat confirming that no other player in the Championship had won more tackles than Alioski during the current campaign thus far.

Upon seeing the post, Leeds fans took to Twitter to praise their player for this impressive statistic…

The Telegraph are reporting that Everton managerial target Paulo Fonseca is being lined up as a replacement for Arsene Wenger at Arsenal.

What’s the story?

There have been several conflicting reports over potential managerial changes for both Everton and Arsenal, and it looks like the two clubs could square off over three main candidates.

According to the Mirror, Arsenal and Everton will battle it out for Mikel Arteta, but the Telegraph report now claims Arsenal are lining up Fonseca.

Fonseca has impressed since taking over at Shakhtar Donetsk – his side’s free flowing football has them on the brink of the Champions League quarterfinals.

The third name being mentioned is ex-Barcelona boss Luis Enrique, who the Daily Star claim is on Everton owner Farhad Moshiri’s wish list. Enrique is now a heavy favourite to take over at Arsenal, with Chelsea another name linked to the Spaniard.

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Who should go where?

The first name on Everton’s list is presumably Fonseca, but they might find more success looking closer to home with Arteta. Everton fans have clashed with several managers for not “getting” the club. Arteta wouldn’t have this problem, having spent most of his playing days at Goodison Park.

Arteta has been an assistant to Pep Guardiola at Manchester City since 2016, and any semblance of City’s incredible style would quickly endear him to the Everton fans.

Arsenal will no doubt want a big name to replace Arsene Wenger, but Luis Enrique is not the answer. The 47 year-old was heavily criticised at Barcelona for relying too much on individual talent, which is something that Arsenal… don’t have.

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Paulo Fonseca could be the ideal man for the Gunners, showing what he can do in Europe with Shakhtar this season. The 45 year-old is charismatic, enigmatic, and would breathe new life into the Arsenal squad. Most importantly though, he has an incredible 78% win ratio as manager of Shakhtar.

Arsenal and Everton fans, who do you want as manager next season? Let us know in the comments below…