in his maiden season in English football, which saw him net 22 goals for Swansea. He was thought to have been the bargain of the century, costing the Swans just £2 million – but he soon wanted to leave the Liberty Stadium for bigger things, which is when his career hit a standstill. An unconvincing spell in the Serie A on loan at Napoli, coupled with a refusal to play for Swansea, means Garry Monk has shown him the exit door.

Celtic are looking to strengthen ahead of their potential Champions League campaign alongside their title defence and the 29-year-old striker could do a job in Glasgow if a deal can be agreed.Steve Hansen has insisted that the back-to-back world champions New Zealand are the underdogs for the rematch with Ireland in Dublin on Saturday.

Hansen boasts a 92% win record in his four years as the All Blacks head coach, but he believes that Ireland’s historic win in Chicago alters the complexion of the Aviva Stadium game on Saturday.

Ireland claimed their first win against New Zealand at Soldier Field on 5 November, their 40-29 victory breaking a 111-year duck.

New Zealand will field the fit-again lock duo Brodie Retallick and Sam Whitelock for the Dublin Test on Saturday, with Israel Dagg selected on the wing to counter Ireland’s exacting aerial kicking threat.

“As expected, there is huge excitement and anticipation within our squad ahead of this weekend’s Test against the Irish,” Hansen