Pompey and Derby County eye transfer reunion | Rivals to sign Norwegian midfielder | Stoke City linked striker heads elsewhere

Pompey are being linked with a move for Middlesbrough defender Matt Clarke, according to reports on social media.

Former Sunday Mirror sports news editor Darren Witcoop, has developed a reputation as a transfer specialist, and he broke the news about the player possibly making a return to Fratton Park. Witcoop said in a post on X on Saturday night that Pompey were 'keen' on signing Clarke. They face competition however from their relegation rivals Derby County, who also had Clarke on their books before.

Pompey are in the process of finalising a move for Hayden Matthews, who plays in the same position as Clarke. Matthews will cost Pompey £1.2m, which is the largest amount of money they have spent on a player since returning to the Championship.

They have already one centre-half this month, with Rob Atkinson joining from Bristol City. Conor Shaughnessy is expected to make a return to action shortly, however Regan Poole has suffered an injury setback. Despite being well stocked in the position, there would be some excitement among some supporters to see one of their heroes return.

Matt Clarke profiled

Clarke is a 28-year-old centre-back, currently with Middlesbrough. He's played 17 times across three competitions for the Boro this season. Michael Carrick started the season with the Barham-born defender, but for the last six consecutive league matches, he has been an unused substitute. His last start for middlesbrough in the league came in a 3-1 defeat to Leeds United in mid-December.

Ipswich Town is where the six foot one defender began his career, but it was at Pompey where he had his longest playing spell. He initally joined on loan, but that was later made in to a permanent deal with Adam Webster going the other way.

Over four seasons, Clarke made a total of 175 appearances, scoring nine goals, and helped them win promotion from League Two in 2017. In 2019, he joined Brighton from Pompey on a four-year-deal in 2019 for an undisclosed fee – believed to be around £4m.

Seagulls fans didn't see much from Clarke though, as he joined Derby County on a season-long loan a month after. He had two separate loan spells at Pride Park, playing 81 times for the East Midlands outfit. Brighton once again shipped him out on loan again, giving him to West Brom for the year.

In August 2022, Middlesbrough signed Clarke for an undisclosed fee, which was rumoured to be around £2.5m. Unfortunately due to Brighton selling him at a loss, Pompey didn't receive any sell-on fee from the deal.

Cardiff City to sign Ajax midfielder

The Bluebirds claimed a vital win over Derby on Saturday, thanks to goals from Callum Robinson and Anwar El Ghazi. Omer Riza's men are four points clear of the relegation zone, with the win providing some breathing space ahead of their trip to Leeds United next week.

In the aftermath of their win against the Rams, the Dutch press linked Cardiff with a move for Ajax midfielder Sivert Mannsverk. Netherlands newspaper De Telegraaf is reporting that the Norweigan international is heading to South Wales on a loan deal until the end of the season. FC Nurnberg in the German second-tier made an offer, but it's Cardiff where he will be playing his football over the next couple of months.

The 22-year-old has made two appearances for Ajax's first-team this season, but that was at the start of the campaign. Mannsverk, capped 12 times for Norway's under-21s team, has been nursing an ankle injury and so now the Dutch giants are hoping that he can prove his fitness at another club, before returning in the summer.

Stoke City linked striker heads to Austria

Fally Mayulu, who was linked with a move to Stoke City this week, has joined Austrian side Sturm Gaz. The Frenchman had only joined Bristol City in the summer, but the Robins were happy to allow the 22-year-old to leave, after he found it difficult to get to grips to English football.

Mayulu made 15 appearances for Bristol City, scoring two goals, but they came in their first two matches of the campaign, and since then he's had to settle for a place among the substitutes bench.

It appears Stoke went in a different direction anyway, having signed Ali Al-Hamadi on loan from Ipswich Town. The Iraqi forward played 11 times for Ipswich Town in the Premier League but failed to find the back of the net. The 22-year-old will now hope that he can make an impact at the bet365 Stadium.