All posts by h716a5.icu

Steven Gerrard has suffered a big blow at Ibrox after it was revealed that Rangers defender Nathan Patterson will be suspended for four games after he and five other teammates broke lockdown restrictions earlier in the season.

With James Tavernier only making a return to training recently, the manager faces a real headache as to who to select at right-back for upcoming fixtures, with Patterson set to miss the games against Cove Rangers, Hibernian and St Johnstone, as well as the Old Firm derby, although that could change depending on whether or not the Light Blues progress in Sunday’s cup tie.

After being internally punished by the club, the 19-year-old has managed to work his way back into Gerrard’s good books with recent strong performances and has really stepped up in the absence of Tavernier.

The teenager impressively scored his first goal in Rangers colours in the 5-2 Europa League win against Royal Antwerp and has been a regular in the first team since then, starting four of the last five games before the international break.

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After that goalscoring return, Gerrard was full of praise for Patterson, saying: “He’s got an opportunity and he needs to learn from this and make sure it doesn’t happen again. He’s a wonderful footballer with a big future ahead of him.”

With Tavernier unlikely to be thrown straight back into the fray, it seems as if Gerrard has a huge decision to make. He may have to put his faith in Leon Balogun in the right-back position for upcoming fixtures, although the Nigerian struggled there in the Old Firm derby and against Royal Antwerp recently.

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Although the title is already wrapped up, Gerrard will be desperate to finish the season unbeaten, so the lack of a natural right-back for upcoming fixtures could prove to be a blow for the 40-year-old manager.

In other news… Wilson should reignite Rangers interest in 27 y/o gem who’s “got all the attributes”

West Bromwich Albion fans have been reacting to comments from Sam Allardyce on whether he will stay with the Baggies if they are relegated to the Championship.

As it stands, the Midlands outfit are staring the drop in the face. They are currently 19th in the Premier League table and, with just nine matches left to play, they are 10 points away from safety (Sky Sports). They will need a big turnaround in their form if they are to survive more than one campaign amongst the elite.

On Saturday, the Baggies face a difficult clash against Chelsea, who are unbeaten in their first 14 games under Thomas Tuchel. Speaking ahead of the match, Allardyce was asked whether he would stay with West Brom if they were relegated. He revealed that he would, but only if the club aspire to return to the top flight immediately.

The comments were shared on Twitter be reporter Joseph Masi, and the fans took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the comments from Allardyce below

“Get rid”

Credit: @davesmith442

“Late April fools? Please?”

Credit: @wba_mitch

“Should be getting rid of him now to be honest.”

Credit: @L330M

“Willing to stay! He has failed, we are his last pay check he will never get another job in the prem. Time to move on”

Credit: @stu_lighty

“We all know its 45m at best again.. sales of Pereirra and Johnston to clear Covid debt. ..bye Sam !”

Credit: @grorty_dickos

“What arrogance, he’s failed, has a better team than Slav to choose from and only 3 points better?Now I know where the @MatheusPereira rumours have come from 17 million so we can get another snodgrass then be staring down the barrel again in 18 months when struggling in prem spam out”

Credit: @Achieving_Goalz

In other news, West Brom fans are far from happy with news on this forward.

A claim has been dropped on Eddie Howe by his representative after the Daily Record recently linked him with Newcastle United.

Speaking to Sky Sports, the representative of the former AFC Bournemouth manager quashed rumours that Howe is close to joining Celtic:

“Talks of any deal being close are extremely premature.

“His plan remains to not return to management until the summer at the earliest.”

Howe has also been linked to both Celtic and Crystal Palace, with the former his most likely destination given that John Kennedy is only in interim charge at the Hoops and Roy Hodgson is still in charge at Selhurst Park.

Steve Bruce is still of course in charge at St. James’ Park, but with the North East club currently stuck in a battle to avoid being relegated from the Premier League down to the EFL Championship, the former Aston Villa and Sunderland boss may find his managerial position under threat come the end of the 2020/21 term.

Newcastle should appoint Howe if Bruce leaves

If Bruce were to leave the Tyneside club at the end of the season, then they should look no further than appointing Howe as his replacement if he is still available at that time.

Former top-flight striker now pundit Noel Whelan described him as a ‘fantastic’ manager back in March, and he certainly has the CV to prove it, bringing the little Cherries all the way up to the Premier League and keeping them there for five straight campaigns.

At just 43 years of age as well, Howe is still relatively young as a coach, and can only develop in his next few years in management.

In other news, find out which £25.9m-valued speedster NUFC want to sign here!

Charlton Athletic have a pretty good record when it comes to developing young talent.

Most recently, Alfie Doughty swapped The Valley for Championship outfit Stoke City, whilst the likes of Jonjo Shelvey and Joe Gomez have gone on to become Premier League regulars.

Addicks boss Nigel Adkins may not know which division his side will be competing in next season, with there still plenty of matches left to seal a League One playoff spot but it will be an important summer in the transfer window either way.

And he could well save owner Thomas Sandgaard a lot of money if he looks to continue that promising academy trend.

One player who could certainly make the full step up to the first-team next season is 18-year-old defender Charlie Barker, who has already enjoyed a little taste at senior level.

The right-back, who can also play centrally, has made nine appearances this season. He started Chalton’s opening three league games but has been restricted to appearances in the domestic cups, where Lee Bowyer looked to rotate his side.

A goal against Swindon Town and a clean sheet against Crewe Alexandra isn’t the worst way to kickstart your career in southeast London.

Speaking about his debut, Bowyer heaped praise on Barker, he told the official website:

“As a positive, I thought young Barker was outstanding, outstanding. He didn’t put a foot wrong all night, in possession and out of possession. He defended properly when crosses came in, goal kicks, competing and fighting. I would say he was the biggest positive.”

Barker has seen meteoric progress in recent years, having been without a club just four seasons ago but the Addicks took a punt on him and academy chief Steve Avory has transformed him into a potential first-team star.

“Charlie came into the club quite late. He’s a good learner, he genuinely, I feel, loves the game and loves defending,” explained Avory. “He’s such a strong-willed competitor and on the whole, I feel he did then, and does now, dominate the one-v-one battles he comes up against on the pitch.”

Adkins has a few options at right-back but both are coming towards the end of their careers in Chris Gunter, 32, and Adam Matthews, 29. Of course, the pair could easily play for another three or four years but it’s not as if their form has been good enough to warrant such an opportunity.

Both are amongst Charlton’s poorest performers, as per WhoScored ratings, neither has managed above a 6.52.

Barker could well be a bargain solution this summer, should Adkins also see his huge potential.

AND in other news, Gallen must ruthlessly axe “outstanding” Addicks man this summer, he’s not good enough…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Wolves Hall of Famer, Steve Bull has revealed that one of the lowest points of his career was when Wolves lost in the play-offs to Bolton Wanderers in 1995.

Bull is Wolves’ all-time top scorer having netted 306 times in 561 appearances, but never quite achieved his dream of playing in the top flight with his former side, losing out in the play-offs twice.

Wolves reached the play-offs in 1995 where they were beaten over two legs in the semi-finals by Bolton Wanderers 3-2 on aggregate, and they were beaten for the second time in 1997 against Crystal Palace, once again in the semi-finals as they were beaten 4-3 by the Eagles.

Speaking on one of the saddest moments of his life and how that Wolves team could not have done any more, Bull told FFC:

“People always ask me what is one of those saddest times of my career and it was against Bolton in the play-offs, because I thought we had come so close, yet so far.

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“We just couldn’t push any harder than what we did, trust me. We couldn’t push anymore and it was one of the saddest days of my life.

“There’s a picture in the paper of me in the centre circle with my head down thinking, ‘can things get better?'”

Bull scored the first goal against Bolton which set up Wolves for a 2-1 first-leg victory at Molineux, however a 2-0 defeat in the second leg after extra time knocked them out.

That season, Bull finished the season as Wolves’ top scorer with 16 goals as they finished fourth, just one point behind Bolton.

Many football fans across the world have been sharing their appreciation for Aston Villa midfielder Marvelous Nakamba on social media.

Nakamba, who made the move to Villa Park in 2019 from Club Brugge in a deal worth £10.8m, has paid the school fees of 1,000 pupils in his native country of Zimbabwe.

The 27-year-old made the gesture through his eponymous foundation, which was launched in 2019, with his goal to reach 100,000 pupils’ fees paid by the end of the year. Nakamba is also hoping to hit one million in four years’ time, and it’s safe to say that his charitable gesture has drawn a glowing response on social media.

The midfielder is on £34,000 per week at Villa Park and has made 13 appearances in all competitions during the current campaign.

Nakamba praised for his philanthropy

@AfricaStoryLive shared the news on Twitter on Saturday evening and their post received plenty of interaction from fans of various clubs, with one describing the Aston Villa man’s gesture as ‘beautiful’.

“Legend!”

Credit: @GichanaKephers

“Incredible”

Credit: @Awwalgimba

“Class”

Credit: @Jornwathe4

“This is beautiful”

Credit: @usuflasa

“Act of class”

Credit: @_MR_MAYOR

“God bless you” 

Credit: @YusufOAhmed_

In other news: Villa keen on versatile international with a £21.5m price tag, find out more here. 

Goals from Gareth Bale and Heung-min Son ensured a winning start to Ryan Mason’s caretaker spell in charge of Tottenham Hotspur as they came from behind to defeat Southampton in the Premier League.

Spurs looked toothless in the first half and were gifted their two strikes in the second as the Welsh superstar, starting for the first time since the north London derby, capitalised on a defensive mistake before the South Korean converted from the spot, having had an earlier effort ruled out via VAR.

The 29-year-old has hardly had much time to implement his own ideas but you could certainly see a change in spirit and energy, and it certainly felt like the side played with more freedom.

And this was most notably seen in just how much possession Mason’s full-backs enjoyed despite playing in a back four, rather than a back five.

Both Sergio Reguilon and Serge Aurier recorded the most touches of the 22 players that started, with the latter edging it with a whopping 108 touches of the ball, as per SofaScore.

The 28-year-old deserves as much credit as the two goalscorers as he responded to our calls to see him axed with a pretty impressive display – by comparison, he only normally manages 65 touches each league game.

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For once, he was far from being his usual calamitous self and actually proved to be a defensive beast at the back, as well as contributing further up the pitch with some nice link-up play with Bale.

No one recorded as many tackles as Aurier (seven), to emphasise just how good that was, the other Spurs players on the pitch combined for 11 between them, four of which was from the right-winger.

Aurier’s usual average is just 2.9 tackles, so he certainly exceeded expectations.

The £18m-rated star, who earns a reported £120k-per-week in north London, also won 13 duels and provided a single block, interception and clearance – young Nathan Tella really struggled to contribute, as a result.

Further up the pitch, Aurier made 100% of his crosses, won two free-kicks and delivered in terms of passing, making 88% of his 68 attempts, which is nearly 10% above his usual average.

We may have been slightly critical of his recent performances, but Aurier should also be handed praise when it’s due.

He was Mason’s unsung hero along that right-flank and he certainly will not get the plaudits, with Son and Bale finding the net to clinch a valuable three points in their race to secure a top-four finish.

AND in other news, Levy heading for disaster if he appoints 50 y/o who has an ‘excellent’ relationship with Kane…

Keith Gillespie has told Football FanCast that Manchester United must buy a striker this summer, because Anthony Martial isn’t good enough to play through the middle for the club.

Martial has struggled at times this season, though he has been ruled out for the last five games with a knee injury.

Still, the France international has not managed to score a goal since February, when he netted twice in the 9-0 win over Southampton.

That means he has two goals in his last 10 games, while in total, he has scored four times in 22 league games in 2020/21.

Gillespie doesn’t think he’s anywhere near good enough to be the main striker at United.

And he has urged the club to make it a “priority” as the club look to strengthen the squad this summer.

Speaking exclusively to FFC, Gillespie has claimed that Martial has been given plenty of chances to become the out-and-out striker at Old Trafford, but simply hasn’t done enough to make it stick.

He said: “I think it is a priority, because nobody thinks Martial is the answer.

“Given his poor return this season in terms of goals, but also his performances anyway have been very poor at times.

“He’s been there a while, you want him to have that chance of being that number nine. And he hasn’t taken it.”

Martial did enjoy a decent season last term, scoring 23 goals in all competitions, but Gillespie thinks he has been in a real rut this season.

He added: “I think last season, he had a good season in terms of returns of goals that he scored, but this season just hasn’t happened for him.”

After a torrid time attempting to bring a new manager to Celtic, it looks as though the Bhoys are finally moving closer to the news we’ve all been waiting for.

It’s been nine arduous weeks since Neil Lennon left his post but the chips are now falling into place for the Hoops hierarchy.

What’s the word?

Earlier this week, the Daily Mail revealed that Celtic were busy finalising a deal to bring Eddie Howe to Glasgow, with a deal now closer than ever before.

It’s at the stage where Howe is now preparing the members of backroom staff that he wants to join him at Paradise. However, this may have come about courtesy of one big twist at a club in the Premier League.

The former Bournemouth boss has had no shortage of suitors, with Brighton keeping a close eye on his movements and the 43-year-old also on Crystal Palace’s shortlist

However, Football Insider have reported that Sean Dyche is now the Eagles’ number one target. That has opened the door for Celtic to move in and conclude a deal for Howe.

Desmond will be delighted

At one stage it looked as though Dermot Desmond’s plan to bring the former Cherries manager to Parkhead was going to fall flat on its face. Howe was in advanced talks with the club’s board nearly a month ago and, since then, they’ve encountered a whole host of issues.

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First of all, the coach didn’t want to return to management until the summer, while his agent was trying to convince him he could still get a job in the top flight of English football.

What followed was a number of complications relating to his backroom staff. Howe was against seeing Fergal Harkin appointed as Celtic’s director of football and instead he wanted someone he could trust working alongside him on recruitment, namely Richard Hughes.

Howe has seemingly loosened his stance on that matter, with Hughes no longer crucial to a deal, although it is thought that Desmond has sanctioned deals for the manager to bring other members of backroom staff with him.

The negotiations here have embodied a chess match. It has been back and forth but finally agreements are being reached.

That Palace are now distancing themselves from Howe is a monumental boost to Celtic’s chances of securing him. Hopefully the Bhoys will now have a free run and can appoint him as soon as possible in what would be a huge relief for Desmond.

AND in other news, Forget Mourinho: Celtic can dominate again if Desmond hires 42 y/o with “big emotions”…

Leeds could solve one of Marcelo Bielsa’s major problems at Elland Road by signing Fenerbahce midfielder Ozan Tufan this summer.

What’s the story?

The Whites have been heavily reliant on Kalvin Phillips as the club’s sole, quality holding midfielder, and Robin Koch’s involvement in that role at the weekend against Brighton just highlighted the glaring lack of depth in that position.

And now, according to Turkish publication Fotomac (via Sport Witness), the Premier League side have got their sights set on Tufan, although they are set to face competition from the likes of Crystal Palace and Norwich City too.

Solving Bielsa’s problem

Some of the big issues that has plagued Bielsa’s side this season, is the lack of cover for Phillips, and the real dearth of goals from central midfield, with the likes of Patrick Bamford and Raphinha having to shoulder much of the burden.

That issue with having no Phillips is something Leon Osman laid bare after Leeds’ 4-2 defeat at the hands of Arsenal earlier this year.

He said: “They didn’t know how to operate without him (Phillips). When they got into good positions, Kalvin Phillips is the one who dictates play. He passes the ball forward and he sits. We call it a quarterback position.

“You see Raphinha getting frustrated that they are moving it and they are playing a backwards pass. It’s nothing against Struijk, he is just a centre-back playing in those positions – they weren’t quite sure how to get around that in the first half.”

But in the versatile Tufan, Bielsa could plug two gaps with one move.

The Turkey international is capable of playing in holding midfield as he is playing further forward, and has this season, really added a goal-scoring touch to his game – in 34 league games for Fenerbahce, he’s scored five goals and provided a further nine assists (both of those totals are significantly higher than anything any of Leeds’ midfield options have produced this campaign).

Dubbed as “quality” by Turkey legend Emre Belozoglu, the 58-cap ace’s manager at Fenerbahce, Vitor Pereira, has lauded him with considerable praise, saying: “He still has a lot to learn and that is my job, but the world will soon have a central midfielder on the level of (Yaya Toure) on their hands.”

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Comparisons with Premier League and Champions League great Yaya Toure is certainly a lofty comparison to make, but Tufan’s ability to break into the box and get onto the end of things is very much reminiscent of the Ivorian.

And, given that he averages more than one tackle, interception, shot, key pass and dribble per game in the Turkish Super Lig for Fenerbahce, Tufan has got the all-round midfield ability that Bielsa could desperately do with.

Meanwhile, Leeds must land this Premier League striker after Noel Whelan’s claim…