Scottish Gossip: Challenge Cup shake-up, Sow, Celtic

FOOTBALL GOSSIP

Scottish football bosses are to hold talks with Uefa this week as they seek permission to implement a radical overhaul of the Challenge Cup to include teams from Northern Ireland and Wales, plus some of Britain's top youth players. Scotland's lower league clubs could be joined by two teams each from Northern Ireland and Wales, while the SPFL also hope to attract English Premiership under-20 sides. ()

Birmingham City are lining up a move for Hearts striker Osman Sow having watched the Swede in action against Motherwell on Saturday. ()

Celtic are eyeing Croatian holding midfielder Ljuban Crepulja, who arrived in Glasgow before Tuesday night's 8-1 demolition of Hamilton Academical. ()

Linlithgow Rose manager David McGlynn has vowed to root out fans who threw flares as the club's Scottish Cup tie with Forfar Athletic was abandoned. ()

Hibernian chief executive Leeann Dempster hopes the loan signing of striker Anthony Stokes can help pilot the Easter Road side to the Scottish Championship title. (Sun, print edition)

Image source, SNS

Image caption, Osman Sow is reportedly the subject of interest from Birmingham City

Rangers academy chief Craig Mulholland has set the Ibrox outfit the target of becoming one of the top 15 academies in Europe after being handed 拢175,000 by The Rangers Youth Development Company. (Daily Star, print edition)

Kilmarnock have launched a bid to land 20-year-old Crystal Palace attacker Sullay Kaikai on loan. ()

OTHER GOSSIP

After knocking Rafael Nadal out of the Australian Open, Fernando Verdasco called for tennis betting to be banned as he was quizzed about match-fixing. ()

Andy Murray has spoken passionately about his fear sport is being wrecked by match-fixing and doping, declaring "no sports are clean" of either practice, and revealing he has watched replays of suspicious matches to see if fixing allegations have substance. ()