Last night saw Unai Emery gift Aaron Ramsey with a rare start, and the Welshman failed to make good on his opportunity. After the game, whilst the Gunners were picking apart the loss on Twitter, one fan account tweeted claiming the Welshman had a good game, just to receive dozens of tweets disagreeing about Ramsey’s outing.

The Gunners were fuming at Ramsey after the loss to Spurs. Whilst the 27-year-old has been at the club for over ten years now, the fans will still be quick to slate him if he falls below expectations, and last night saw him do exactly that. Overall, he was off his game and tried too many fancy flicks and touches in a game where they simply weren’t necessary.

The fans would much rather have seen Henrikh Mkhitaryan stay on the pitch after half-time and Aaron Ramsey make way for Laurent Koscielny, as that would have seen Granit Xhaka come out of the back four and into midfield, although it seems Unai Emery got that one wrong as his instinct to give Ramsey the full 90 minutes backfired spectacularly as the Gunners fell to a 2-0 defeat against the old enemy.

You can see what the Gunners thought of Ramsey’s display here:

The Gunners were far from happy with Ramsey yesterday and will be keen to see the Welshman improve significantly in the next few weeks if he wants to try and earn a new contract and stay at the club.

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Everton have certainly come a long way in a short space of time since the end of last season, but it will be a huge test of their progress under Marco Silva when Tottenham visit Goodison Park on Sunday.

The Lilywhites have been in fine form in recent weeks and will be on a high after their North London derby win in the quarter finals of the Carabao Cup on Wednesday evening. History would also give them a strong advantage over the Toffees, as in the Premier League era they have won 25 of the 52 league meetings between the two teams, with Everton only winning eight times.

Everton though will be hoping to use the extra rest they have been afforded to their advantage, having not played since their 3-1 loss to Manchester City at the Etihad last weekend. With Silva at the helm and some strong summer business though Everton are now a completely different prospect.

Ahead of the 4:00pm kickoff on Sunday, we’ve asked two experts for their opinions on the clash. In the blue corner is chief editor of Read Everton and Toffees fan Elliott Cuff, whilst Tottenham fan and TT writer Josh Raisey will be supporting Mauricio Pochettino’s cause…

After their North London derby win during mid-week and the huge result against Barcelona, are we starting to see the best of this Tottenham team?

Josh: “I think so. The majority of the team looked slow and sluggish at the beginning of the season, which could have been down to the intense summer. But they now look re-energised, and Pochettino must be praised for that and the way he has rotated his squad. With the likes of Davinson Sanchez, Jan Vertonghen and Mousa Dembele to return, they will only get stronger.”

Elliott: “I think we are (seeing the best of Spurs). Tottenham certainly have so much quality, and now they are building up that momentum that will carry them through the busy festive period. Tottenham are blessed with one of the best managers in world football, and with the confidence they must have currently, they’re a threat to any side.

“Everton will have a tough task on their hands, and are probably playing the London side at the worst time.”

Everton look transformed under Marco Silva, what has impressed you most about them so far this season?

Elliott: “Attitude, without question. Whether Everton have had the strongest team or not, the club’s defining trait in recent years has been their inability to step up to the plate in the more difficult games. Too often Everton have cowed under pressure, and happily rolled over against tough opponents. We saw this last year under Sam Allardyce, where he’d go into a tough game aiming only for a draw.

“Under Silva, we’ve seen Everton fight tooth and nail for every point on offer, and they’ve believed they can win in every game. They’ve no longer accepted being second best, and if anything, the only thing you can judge a team on is its willingness and drive to be better and to do the fans proud, and thankfully that’s what Silva has brought out of this team.”

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Everton tried to play out from the back against Manchester City and were caught out, do you expect them to play the same way against Spurs and could this play into the visitors’ hands?

Elliott: “I would still expect Everton to play out from the back, but a formational change is what I’m anticipating. Silva likes to build from back to front, and that has often worked in Everton’s advantage, however against City the set-up proved to be ineffective. Everton looked to flood the midfield while using three centre-halves to create a sort of defensive wall, but as many teams have found out this season, it’s difficult to neutralise City’s threat.

“Added to that how Everton’s defensive three struggled positionally in a formation they hadn’t played before, I think Silva will bring it back to the drawing board positionally, but will still look to keep his style consistent.”

Do Spurs have any obvious weaknesses that Everton can exploit?

Josh: “In the first North London Derby of the season, Arsenal highlighted that Eric Dier and Moussa Sissoko were not that composed on the ball and exposed them a bit. With Dier out, Winks is likely to start, and is much more comfortable with the ball at his feet, and may alleviate that problem.

“Also, in the absence of Juan Foyth, Sanchez and Vertonghen in recent matches, Ben Davies has been deployed as a centre-back. Without Dier in midfield, Tottenham are left looking pretty weak when it comes to defending set-pieces, particularly if Everton opt to field Kurt Zouma, Yerry Mina and Michael Keane again.”

Where might Tottenham get their joy against this Everton side?

Elliott: “Definitely in Everton’s final third. If Everton decide to absorb Tottenham’s possession football and sit back instead of coming flying out of the starting blocks, then Spurs should have some joy dealing with Everton’s back-line. Keane, Zouma and Mina have all been pretty solid this season, but after a run of disappointing results Everton have found themselves in a slight slump, and Harry Kane possesses enough quality to bully Everton’s defenders.

Seamus Coleman has also struggled considerably in recent weeks, so Heung-min Son could well do some damage on the left flank for Tottenham.”

So, where will this game be lost and won?

Elliott: “It all comes down to the midfield for me. Everton have a pretty strong midfield trio in Idrissa Gueye, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Andre Gomes, but Tottenham also have strong options in those positions. Whoever can control that area will likely dictate the tempo of the game, and that will prove to be essential in dictating how the game will likely turn out.

“Tottenham will be favourites to do so, given the quality they possess in that area, but Everton are strong too, particularly with Gomes who is in the form of his career right now. It’ll be interesting to see which way the paradigm will shift, and whether Everton will be able to steal the spotlight from Spurs who will be expecting to dominate the lion-share of possession.”

And finally, what are your score predictions?

Josh: “3-1 to Tottenham.”

Elliott: “Everton don’t have a good record against Tottenham, and I don’t look forward to such games. Although I hate to sound negative, I’d lean towards a Tottenham win, 2-0. Fingers crossed I’m wrong!”

According to Sky Sports, Liverpool attacker Sadio Mane will face Manchester City in their pivotal Premier League clash at the Etihad Stadium on Thursday night following his altercation with Arsenal defender Stephan Lichtsteiner during his team’s 5-1 win at Anfield on Saturday.

On the chalkboard

Well, Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mo Salah once again all started against the Gunners, and manager Jurgen Klopp would have been desperate for them to all come through the clash unscathed ahead of the visit to Pep Guaridola’s men on Thursday.

While that happened in terms of them staying injury-free, the fact that Mane placed his hands around the throat of Lichtsteiner in the seventh minute meant that retrospective action was always a possibility, with a potential ban seeing him miss the vital title fixture.

However, Sky Sports have now confirmed that the Senegal international will not face any FA action, which won’t be well received by one person in particular.

Bad news for Kyle Walker

Following a less than convincing display littered with errors in the defeat to Crystal Palace last month, the England international was only a late substitute against Leicester City and then didn’t come on at all against Southampton on Sunday with Danilo starting at right-back.

However, it is surely expected that he will return to the starting XI for the visit of Klopp’s men given his experience in huge games like these, and he would have been desperately hoping that Mane would be banned given the ability he has and the fact that he scored his eighth Premier League goal of the season against Arsenal.

Instead, the speedy 26-year-old is now available and will cause Walker plenty of issues with his pace and skill, and could easily play a key role in which way the result goes on Thursday night.

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After it was revealed recently that Barcelona boss Ernesto Valverde has told Philippe Coutinho that he must fight for his place at the Nou Camp (quotes sourced from the Daily Mirror), it looks as though the Brazilian could be leaving soon. 

Coutinho joined the Catalan club from Liverpool last year, but has struggled for form of late, and may well be departing soon. There is surely a host of European clubs interested in his signature, so it won’t be hard for him to find a new club.

That should put Liverpool on red-alert, and they should not hesitate to re-sign the midfield magician for their title push this season. Here are two reasons why Liverpool should re-sign Coutinho:

They’ve never replaced him

A lot has been said about Liverpool’s signings over the past year. They were extremely weak defensively, so they brought in big money signings such as Virgil van Dijk and Alisson in goal, and it has turned them into one of the hardest teams to break down in Europe.

Likewise, they have strengthened their midfield defensively with the signing of Fabinho. However, for all their defensive strength and attacking firepower with the likes of Mo Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mané, they still have failed to bring in an attacking midfielder to replace Coutinho.

Naby Keïta arrived this summer, but has failed so far to thrive at Anfield or emulate the form of the Brazilian. Liverpool, therefore, have looked slightly turgid at times offensively this season, and have had to rely on individual brilliance to help them out of games. There’s still a Coutinho-shaped hole at Anfield.

Statement to the rest of Europe

When The Reds sold Coutinho last January, many fans were disappointed but also accepted that they could not stop anything from happening. They were defenceless against a team with the power of Barcelona, and many felt Liverpool were just a feeder club.

Since then, Liverpool have made the Champions League final, and are on course for their first Premier League title. By beating the likes of PSG for Coutinho, they suddenly are catapulted to the elite and most powerful in Europe. If they want to maintain their dominance, it’s statements like these that must be made, and there’s little doubt that the fans would welcome him back.

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Manuel Pellegrini says that Andy Carroll faces a “challenge” to win a new contract at West Ham United.

The striker is once again back to full fitness, but the former Liverpool striker is too big of a risk for the Hammers to take.

What’s the word?

Carroll returned to the goal trail again versus Birmingham City at the weekend, as the Hammers won 2-0 to progress to the fourth round.

It was his first strike of the season, having previously made seven Premier League appearances.

Carroll’s current contract expires at the end of the season, and the Hammers hold the option to extend that deal by a further year.

Pellegrini, though, says the 30-year-old must prove his worth between now and the end of the season, telling Football.London: “Well I think that Andy has a big challenge from now until the end of the season to try and renew his contract because he’s a player that during his career he demonstrated his level.

“I think he did very well against Birmingham. Now we are in the second round (sic) and continue in the FA Cup we will see his performances.

“It was important for him to start having more minutes but not immediately 90 minutes, that’s why I gave him 25, 30, 60, 70, that is important to him not to risk any new injuries.

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“Now he is coming back he demonstrated that he can play without problems, now we hope that he will be fit for the rest of the season.”

Football FanCast reported earlier this week that West Ham would accept an offer for Carroll this month were they to receive one, and that remains the case, despite Pellegrini’s praise.

As it stands, there seems little point even contemplating the prospect of handing Carroll a new deal.

Injury-prone and overpaid 

Carroll cost West Ham £15million in 2013, per the BBC, with the Hammers breaking their transfer record at the time to acquire a player who had struggled at Liverpool.

FFC understands that the striker earns £85,000-per-week at the London Stadium, and remains one of the highest-earners at the club.

That is despite the fact that Carroll has struggled immensely for fitness since joining the club permanently.

Since the 2013-14 season, Carroll has missed a total of 94 Premier League games.

He has only played more games than he has missed in two seasons, 2015-16, and 2017-18.

Despite that, he has never hit double figures in the Premier League for the club, with his highest-scoring season coming in his most consistent season; he netted nine times in 2015-16.

At West Ham, he has averaged 4.3 goals per season. For a striker who continues to earn a hefty pay packet, that simply isn’t good enough.

Pellegrini seems to know that, and there should be little debate if Carroll deserves a new deal; quite simply, he doesn’t.

The only issue faced by the Irons is finding a buyer this month. After all, what club in the world would deem Carroll the answer to any scoring woes?

Come the summer, however, it won’t be the Irons’ problem if they do what they must, and allow the striker to leave on a free transfer.

Roy Hodgson’s search for a new striker is on-going after Dominic Solanke’s move to Selhurst Park collapsed recently.

It’s no secret that the former England manager is in the market for a new forward to add some much-needed firepower to his side. Christian Benteke has struggled for both fitness and form in recent weeks with Connor Wickham also failing to show any sort of consistency. Palace have been overly reliant on Wilfried Zaha with summer signing Jordan Ayew yet to display his talents during his loan spell.

Hodgson targeted a move for former Liverpool forward, Dominic Solanke, but the move collapsed due to concerns over his fitness. Instead, it was Bournemouth who won the race for his signature, paying £19m to lure him from Anfield. With Solanke ruled out, Hodgson must now turn to alternatives.

One man who should be on his shortlist is Chelsea forward – Michy Batshuayi. Valued at £27m by Transfermarkt, the Belgium international has failed to nail down a starting role with the Blues since joining in a big-money move from Marseille in 2016. Batshuayi impressed last season during his loan spell with Borussia Dortmund last season but was once again sent out temporarily, joining Valencia in the summer.

However, the forward has struggled in Spain and could be off to Monaco, though this still could hand Palace the perfect opportunity to lure him to Selhurst Park. Batshuayi has a proven goalscoring record and has never been given the chance to display his talents in the Premier League. The 25-year-old finally hand Hodgson a top option in attack and will be desperate to prove Chelsea wrong for allowing him to leave.

The Eagles would be in no danger of relegation if they secured the services of the talented Belgian.

Crystal Palace fans, thoughts?

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According to BBC journalist Adam Pope, Leeds United have rejected an approach from Crystal Palace for 18-year-old attacker Jack Clarke.

Clarke, who came through the youth system at Leeds, is widely regarded as one of the brightest young talents in English football.

The versatile attacker has scored twice in 12 Championship appearances this season, whilst he starred in Leeds’ 2-0 win over Derby County last time out.

Palace have seemingly made an attempt to land Clarke, but it would be a huge surprise if Leeds allowed the wonderkid to leave.

The Leeds fans have caught wind of the rumours involving Palace and it would be fair to say that they are not overly concerned.

Palace would be able to offer Premier League football right now, but Leeds are going very well at the top of the Championship as they look for a return to the top flight.

And it would also be fair to say that, with respect to Palace, Leeds are the bigger club.

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the Leeds fans can be seen below:

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According to The Mail Online, West Ham have contacted Chelsea about potentially signing Olivier Giroud. 

This comes in light of Marko Arnautović possibly facing another spell on the sidelines after injuring his foot against Wolves yesterday.

With his contract expiring at the end of the season, as well as the recent arrival of Gonzalo Higuain at Stamford Bridge, The Blues could surely be tempted into selling the World Cup winner. Additionally, at the age of 32, it is not as if the Frenchman has a long-term future in west London.

However, from West Ham’s perspective, there is not much point in signing a player like Giroud. The Hammers are not going to get relegated this season, likewise, they are unlikely to make the top six- they will finish somewhere in between. There’s no point buying a player of his age at this stage of the season, they would be better off looking to recruit a younger player that has a longer future. Of course, Giroud is good, but this would be a short-term option they don’t need.

Chelsea signed Giroud last season, but that was a club that were chasing a top four place and were struggling with their strikers. With West Ham out of the FA Cup and League Cup as well, there is little need for an emergency signing like Giroud.

Furthermore, the Frenchman is not necessarily a player that brings a team a lot of goals. He worked well for France because he had the likes of Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappé around him to find the back of the net. Outside of Felipe Anderson, West Ham do not really have other goalscorers to depend upon. It’s time West Ham look to the future.

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According to a recent report from Football.London, Tottenham Hotspur’s Jack Roles is struggling to break into the first-team under Mauricio Pochettino.

On the chalkboard

The departure of Mousa Dembele in January has left Spurs short of a key midfield lynchpin, but the stellar midfield partnership of Moussa Sissoko and Harry Winks have shown they are capable of coping without the Belgium international.

Winks, in particular, has been outstanding this season, defying his doubters with every passing fixture. The 23-year-old’s quality is obvious but sceptics have often pointed towards his lack of penetration and goal scoring prowess as a reason to doubt his talent.

Neither Sissoko or Winks possess a clinical goalscoring ability in the final-third – a claim which is vindicated by the fact the midfield pairing have scored just one goal between them in 41 Premier League appearances this season.

That is hardly a problem which is desperately in need of addressing, but with Victor Wanyama and Eric Dier also offering defensive quality it’s fair to say that Pochettino is lacking a plan B in this area.

However, that problem could well be addressed if the Argentine is willing to offer a route into the first-team for Jack Roles, who has showcased a potency at youth level which points towards a bright future in the senior squad.

Roles could offer a greater attacking threat than Winks

So far this season the 19-year-old has scored six goals and provided six assists from 22 appearances for the U23s, including two goals from six games in the UEFA Youth League. By comparison, Winks scored just three times from 32 U23 outings before he made the step up to the first-team.

The problem for Roles is that his glowing performances at youth level are yet to convince Pochettino to either promote him to the senior squad or offer him a new contract.

The teenager’s current deal is due to expire in June and, despite the fact he is banging on the door for a first-team opportunity, it appears that his long-term future is hanging in the balance.

There is hope for Roles in the fact that Spurs are clearly lacking a more attacking-minded alternative to Winks, and Pochettino’s policy on internal development and the promotion of youth suggests an opportunity could be just around the corner.

The flair and goalscoring threat the Cypriot youth player could offer in midfield should be playing on the minds of Tottenham’s decision makers ahead of the summer.

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Tottenham will surely be set to splash the cash in the summer after two transfer windows without spending a penny.

Spurs are well in truly in the Premier League title race despite their lack of spending which is an extremely commendable achievement. Mauricio Pochettino has placed his faith in his current crop of players who have duly delivered. With their new stadium nearing completion, the Lilywhites are likely to spend big to improve the squad in the summer.

Pochettino should finally be backed heavily in the transfer market to improve their chances of challenging at the top of the table yet again. The Argentine’s budget should be bolstered by the sale of many fringe players. As Kieran Trippier has struggled to replicate his form of the World Cup, a new right-back could be targeted.

One man Pochettino should be watching is Napoli defender – Kevin Malcuit. Valued at £11.25m by Transfermarkt, the Frenchman is a new arrival after joining from Lille in the summer for just over £10m. The 27-year-old has been an instant hit at his new employers, making 13 appearances in all competitions so far this season.

With Carlo Ancelotti choosing to rotate his defenders, Malcuit could be tempted in the offer of first-team football in England. Malcuit loves to get forward to help out the attack, averaging 1.5 successful dribbles per game, but doesn’t neglect his defensive duties. A strong, powerful defender, he should have no issues adapting to the physicality of the Premier League. He loves to get stuck in, averaging two tackles per game and reads the game superbly – making 2.2 interceptions per game (WhoScored).

Landing the former Monaco man in the summer could prove to be a masterstroke.

Tottenham fans, thoughts?