[ad_pod ]Barcelona attacker Philippe Coutinho sent a come-and-get-me plea to Manchester United according to a report by The Mirror in March, but Red Devils fans weren’t impressed with what they saw from the Brazilian against former club Liverpool on Wednesday night.While the La Liga giants recorded a 3-0 victory over the Reds in the first leg of their Champions League semi-final tie, the 26-year-old was largely ineffectual before being replaced on the hour-mark to jeers from the Camp Nou crowd.Coutinho hasn’t had the impact that he would have liked in Spain after deciding to leave English football, and it will be interesting to see what happens in the summer.
The Mirror reported in March that the South American playmaker has talked to a number of United players about a £100m switch to Old Trafford, having failed to settle in the Catalan capital.
Should a move happen, he would likely be competing with the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Anthony Martial for a spot in the starting XI.
Will the real David De Gea please stand up! The Flying Pig wonders what’s happened to the world’s best keeper in the video below…
He hardly did himself any favours if he was trying to impress Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Co. on Wednesday however, and the Old Trafford faithful clearly aren’t fond of a potential deal either.
While one described him as an “older version of Martial”, another individual said he “looks just like Sanchez”.
Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…
Arsenal’s season is hanging by a thread after a draw with Brighton all but confirmed the Gunners’ finish outside the top four.
Unai Emery’s men looked in pole position to secure Champions League football on April 1st when they beat Newcastle 2-0 and seemingly had the easiest run-in out of the four chasing clubs.
However it wasn’t to be and many players have come under fire from fans who are demanding a revamp of the squad this summer. The likes of Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Alex Iwobi, Granit Xhaka and Shkodran Mustafi continue to divide opinion, and there’s hope that Emery will invest in the coming months to upgrade a group that’s gone stale.
Unfortunately for the Spaniard, recent reports from France Football via Sports Witness are claiming Arsenal’s transfer budget will be in the region of €30m-€40m (£25.66m-£34.22m), figures that won’t afford the Gunners the quality they’re desperately lacking.
Fans were rightly furious by the prospect of their side having such a small budget, and took to Twitter to vent their frustration…
Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Leeds United midfielder Danny Pugh has had his say on which players will be important for his old club if they are to reach the Premier League.
The Port Vale midfielder joined the Whites in 2004 from Manchester United and came back for a second spell in 2011.
Although Pugh failed to earn promotion during his time at Elland Road, he believes that if Kalvin Phillips and Pablo Hernandez are at their best, then the Yorkshire club have a great chance.
What’s been said then?
The former Stoke City player has highlighted the two players he believes will be essential if the Whites are to be victorious at Wembley later this month.
“(Pablo) Hernandez is obviously a big player with the goals and assists he brings,” Pugh told Football FanCast.
“But one player I’ve been massively impressed with is (Kalvin) Phillips, he was just a young lad when I was there, and he has come on leaps and bounds recently. The work he does in midfield will be vital for them.”
Hit the nail on the head
Pugh couldn’t be more right in choosing Phillips and Hernandez as Leeds’ two most important players for these final games.
The Spaniard won the club’s Player of the Year award for a reason. He has scored 12 goals and provided 12 assists, and if he can continue that type of form, then it will go a long way towards helping the Whites return to the Premier League.
Phillips has occupied the defensive midfield position for Marcelo Bielsa this season, and in his system, there may not be a more important role.
The 36-year-old highlighted Pugh’s work in the midfield, and that may be what ends up getting Leeds promoted.
Just watch their game against Aston Villa last month, and it is obvious what Phillips brings to the table. The 23-year-old did a great job of dealing with Jack Grealish that day, and if he can continue to be a strong defensive presence, then the Whites may well be back in the top flight next season.
Loads of West Brom fans have been reacting to some transfer news, as Burnley are reportedly interested in Craig Dawson.
According to The Sun, Burnley are ready to make a whopping £15m bid for Dawson.
The Clarets made a combined bid of £25m for both Dawson and Jay Rodriguez last summer, but both players remained at the Hawthorns.
Pl>ymaker FC Exclusive: Jermaine Jenas reveals he often received racist abuse after North London Derbies – Check out the video below…
And while Rodriguez proved exactly why the Baggies kept him on board with a fantastic season in the Championship, Dawson was less convincing.
The 29 year-old did start 42 league games, but tends to split opinion amongst the fans.
Now, with Burnley seemingly ready to flash their Premier League riches once more, the Hawthorns faithful are urging the club to cash in on Dawson.
Mason Holgate and Tosin Adarabioyo both being at the club only on loan means selling Dawson would leave any potential new manager with a massive job to overhaul the defence, but nonetheless that is what the Twitter reactions down below are crying out for…
Signed for £11m from Charlton back in 2017, Ademola Lookman appeared to be a player of real promise and one that would go on to do great things at Goodison Park.
He had hit 12 goals for the Addicks in 49 appearances after coming through their academy, where Lookman seemed set to follow in the footsteps of a number of great south London talents such as Joe Gomez and Wilfried Zaha.
However, Everton simply haven’t nurtured his talents.
In 48 appearances for the Toffees, most of which have come in the cup competitions and from the bench, Lookman has registered just four goals and two assists.
In this era of ‘big 6’ dominance, has finishing 7th become as good as winning a trophy? The Pl>ymaker FC squad have their say in the video below…
Those number simply aren’t an accurate representation of his vast array of skills.
The England Under-21 international is a diminutive figure who excels with the ball at his feet, where his directness and dribbling ability are the two main features of his game.
We saw just what Lookman was capable of during a loan to RB Leipzig in the second half of the 2017/18 campaign, where he starred under the current Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl.
The youngster hit five goals and four assists in just 11 games for the Bundesliga side – finding the back of the net more times than he has throughout his entire Everton career – before arriving back on Merseyside in the summer.
Unsurprisingly, the German side wanted to keep the attacker and made a number of bids for his signature, all of which were rebuffed by Everton; the highest offer was £25m, and it was rejected after the Toffees said they wanted £28m.
Marco Silva was determined to keep him, revealing that he felt the south Londoner was the ‘present and the future of the club’.
If that was the case, why did the former Hull boss give Lookman just three Premier League starts in the season just gone?
Soccer Football – Bundesliga – Borussia Moenchengladbach vs RB Leipzig – Borussia-Park, Moenchengladbach, Germany – February 3, 2018 RB Leipzig coach Ralph Hasenhuettl celebrates with Ademola Lookman after the match REUTERS/Thilo Schmuelgen DFL RULES TO LIMIT THE ONLINE USAGE DURING MATCH TIME TO 15 PICTURES PER GAME. IMAGE SEQUENCES TO SIMULATE VIDEO IS NOT ALLOWED AT ANY TIME. FOR FURTHER QUERIES PLEASE CONTACT DFL DIRECTLY AT + 49 69 650050
To make matters even more baffling, the Charlton academy graduate now finds himself up for sale and Southampton are one of the clubs eyeing a £20m deal, cheaper than he would’ve cost last summer due to the fact he has just two years remaining on his contract.
Lookman has impressed on the rare occasions that he has made it out onto the pitch in an Everton shirt, so the reasons behind his exclusion from the side are a mystery.
If Silva and Marcel Brands previously held a clear vision on the 21-year-old’s status in the squad and what they wanted to do with him, they could’ve shipped him off to Germany for a tidy £14m profit.
Instead of doing that, they have left an apparently miserable prospect sat on the sidelines all season, and will now be looking to sell him on for cheaper than what they were offered last summer.
In a time period where Brands has worked wonders on Merseyside when bringing in the likes of Lucas Digne, Richarlison, Andre Gomes and Kurt Zouma, this is a rare blunder from the Toffees’ Director of Football and one that looks set to cost the club a few million pounds.
Manuel Pellegrini has done a steady job at West Ham United since being appointed as the manager.
It hasn’t been remarkable by any stretch of the imagination, however, the Chilean has brought an attractive style of play to the London Stadium and has made the Hammers a force to be reckoned with despite his early troubles.
In recent years, the Irons have had to keep looking over their shoulder regarding the possibility of relegation, but European football could have been on the cards this season if the club could have been more consistent with their performances – that’s something Pellegrini can look to work on this summer.
Provided he is still at West Ham.
According to a report by Mundo Deportivo this weekend, Pellegrini’s future at the Hammers is thought to be far from clear, which is having a knock-on effect regarding their interest in Alaves’ Guillermo Maripan.
The Spanish media outlet state that the manager has ‘given his name’ to the West Ham hierarchy, a claim that can be backed up by The Daily Mail who stated he had no intention of leaving the club a few weeks ago.
However, there have been reports in the past (namely by RMC Sport in France) that have suggested his future is in doubt at the club and they could look to replace him with Bruno Genesio.
Whilst Mundo Deportivo may have picked up on that rumour and have decided to continue to carry on that particular narrative remains to be seen, but if there is any truth in the doubts about his future, then West Ham fans should be worried.
Pellegrini has arguably turned the Hammers into an attractive club for players to join; it would have been hard to see the likes of Felipe Anderson and Andriy Yarmolenko donning the Claret and Blue just a few years ago.
As mentioned, he has brought an exciting style of play to the London Stadium as well and has made watching them a lot easier on the eye than the likes of Slaven Bilic, Sam Allardyce and David Moyes in the past.
Hopefully, it is just a story to drive up the views and one that fans should not take too seriously.
West Ham fans, what do you think Pellegrini’s future entails? Do you think he will still be at the club for next season? Let us know below!
Harry Winks has been excluded from the England Nations League squad, somewhat controversially having proven over the years that he’s a talent that comes around very rarely in this country.
The 23-year-old Spurs midfielder has ultimately been let down by regular injuries which means England manager Gareth Southgate cannot be guaranteed of his fitness and therefore his availability for the end of season tournament.
Southgate has always had a firm policy on these matters, opting not to include Jack Wilshere in various squads as he couldn’t prove hit fitness and obtain regular football at the Emirates. There are some exceptions to this though, one of them being talisman Harry Kane, who’s vital to England for their trip to Portugal for the finals.
Winks’ exclusion has been rightly met by some furious fans demanding his place in the squad over the likes of Eric Dier and Fabian Delph. There’s no player who can receive possession and distribute from one third of the pitch to the other quite as well as the Tottenham midfielder can.
However, other Spurs fans have a different outlook on the decision, and actually see the benefits for their club in having one of their star players get a proper rest over the summer, after so many of them played a huge part in England’s World Cup run…
Great news: the Daily Mail have reported that England defender Harry Maguire would snub Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United for a move to rivals, City.
It’s surely unsurprising that the man affectionately known as Slab Head apparently prefers a move to Premier League champions Manchester City, who secured an impressive domestic treble last month with a 6-0 victory over Watford in the FA Cup final, while United slumped into sixth place following another disastrous post-Ferguson year, which has left them without a Premier League title since 2013 – their longest drought since the 26 year stretch between 1967 and 1993.
City are reportedly chasing two new centre-backs this summer with Atletico Madrid apparently keen on taking Nicolas Otamendi off their hands and Vincent Kompany recently departing after 11 years with the club to take over as Anderlecht’s player-manager.
And while the Sky Blues have two very capable players in John Stones and Aymeric Laporte, we’re absolutely sure that the quality of Maguire wouldn’t simply be used as a backup – especially as WhoScored ranks the Leicester higher than Stones in tackles, interceptions and clearances made on average per game. Strength in depth and all that, right?
In fact, it’s probably fair to say that no one at City has a place guaranteed in the starting line up. Laporte might widely be considered the first choice – making 15 more appearances than Stones – but even the likes of Sergio Aguero, Riyad Mahrez and Leroy Sane have been rotated by Guardiola, so the idea that Maguire would be coming solely as a back-up could be wide of the mark.
Alongside Stones (as well as Kyle Walker), the former Sheffield United man has proven effective when playing either in a back three or a more conventional two-man central unit for England, so there’s little doubt he’d afford the Spaniard a decent amount of tactical versatility. Yes, the apparent world-record fee the Foxes are thought to want might be off-putting, but there are obviously pros in this potential deal.
Manchester City fans, would you be happy to see Maguire join? Who would you play him alongside? Let us know in the comments below…
Maurizio Sarri’s imminent Chelsea exit could prove to be more disruptive than first expected.
Amid speculation about the Italian’s likely move to Juventus (via Sky Sports), Emerson has also been linked with a switch to the Allianz Stadium, something the 24-year-old has since spoken about.
“Sarri to Juve? Ask Chelsea or Juve. I have a contract with Chelsea and I’m happy, especially after the we Europa League won. Anyway, I haven’t been told anything,” Emerson was quoted as saying by Calciomercato.
“Allianz Stadium my new home? They all say so, but I am calm; I work hard and I try not to think about these things.”
Emerson has not exactly moved to quash those rumours, but it is hard to imagine Chelsea selling the Italy international this summer. After a very strong end to the season and, considering Marcos Alonso’s struggles last term, he is undoubtedly the west London club’s most in-form left-back right now.
In both halves of the pitch, Alonso was nowhere near as reliable as his rival. For example, in that Premier League campaign that has just gone by, he was dribbled past 0.8 times per game and had an 85 pass success percentage (as per Whoscored).
Meanwhile, Emerson was only beaten 0.4 times while he was also a much more safer option in possession, having a pass success percentage close to 90%.
A factor behind a manager who demands his team to keep hold of the ball ditching Alonso for Emerson? Perhaps. But overall, Alonso has been poor, admitting himself that he has struggled to adapt under Sarri.
Based on that, with that transfer ban in play, many Chelsea supporters would probably be left feeling surprised if Emerson was allowed to go in this window.
Chelsea fans, can you see Emerson being sold this summer? Let us know what you think by commenting below!
Aston Villa are plotting a swoop for Huddersfield’s Terence Kongolo according to Football Insider.
What’s the word?
Villa’s attention in the transfer market now looks as though it’s turning to defence. After confirming the addition of Kortney Hause on Monday, they’re now in the market for another defender.
Kongolo, who is Huddersfield’s most expensive signing, is the subject of interest from the club with Football Insider suggesting they could swoop for the Dutchman this summer.
The Daily Mail have since backed up those reports by claiming that the Villans have enquired about the 25-year-old.
Kongolo was a member of the Terriers’ relegated side last season but it now appears as though he could be heading straight back to the Premier League.
No fee is mentioned, but Transfermarkt rate the player at £13.5m.
Hause success to be repeated?
One of the main benefits of signing a player like Kongolo would be his versatility. For the Yorkshire club he played at both left-back and in the centre of defence but after a solid first season his performances last term were far from convincing.
However, that cannot distract from the potential and talent he has, an aspect of his game that saw him move to Monaco before swapping French shores for English ones.
In the Premier League in 2018/19, Kongolo played in the middle 24 times but also featured as a full-back on eight occasions.
As a result, there is a large degree of similarity with Hause, another player who can play in both positions. It’s clear the Villans benefit from players with versatility and therefore a move makes perfect sense.
Kongolo doesn’t boast the heading and aerial ability that Hause possesses but in terms of duels on the ground he’s far more successful.
He won 2.3 tackles per game and also made 2 interceptions per match last season. In comparison, Hause made 0.8 tackles and just 0.5 interceptions.
Although the pair play in similar roles, they are different players and therefore their attributes could perfectly complement each other if Kongolo joins.
The success Hause had playing in adapting to two roles in the Villa side means that a similar trick could be repeated with Huddersfield’s number five if he joins.
After all, he’s already been able to do it in the Premier League and that experience would be invaluable.