Arsenal’s Mustafi and Aubameyang encourage togetherness
Hopefully this mindset trickles down to the fans and all areas of the club, because Arsenal need a renewed sense of unity now more than ever.
Hopefully this mindset trickles down to the fans and all areas of the club, because Arsenal need a renewed sense of unity now more than ever.
Some Newcastle United supporters were left fuming at Steve Bruce’s wasteful decision making as the Toon were held to a score draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers on Sunday.The Magpies took the lead eight minutes before the break when captain Jamaal Lascelles nodded home his first goal of the season, but could not see out the result as Jonny equalised midway through the second-half before Sean Longstaff found himself sent off.It was the first red card of Longstaff’s senior career, and sparked Bruce to make his first change of the game by bringing Jonjo Shelvey on for Joelinton as he looked to regain some control in the centre of the pitch.Fans were confused as to why it took Bruce so long to make a change, though, as they could see the game was heading in the way of the visitors who were searching for a late winning goal, and appeared to be unhappy overall with his use of substitutions throughout the match.Find out what happened when a world-record-holding freestyler attempting skills with the worst pair of boots available on eBay in the video below…Nuno Espirito Santo in the opposing dugout had already made a series of changes after seeing his side head into the interval a goal down, with Diogo Jota replacing Pedro Neto in the 70th-minute, Adama Traore moving forward to support Raul Jimenez and Matt Doherty going out wide as Leander Dendoncker replaced the Irishman in defence.The half-time changes immediately seemed to take effect and act as a catalyst for Wolves’ comeback, as the travelling side enjoyed 65.7 per cent of possession after the break and fashioned ten shots to Newcastle’s four, per WhoScored data.United were also forced into clearing the danger in the 64th-minute when Martin Dubravka could only parry Jota’s effort following a mazy run from the 22-year-old.Bruce, meanwhile, left it until stoppage-time to make his final two changes of the afternoon, with striker Dwight Gayle brought on for Matty Longstaff and Allan Saint-Maximin replaced by Christian Atsu.Here are some of the messages shared from Newcastle fans left perplexed and somewhat livid with Bruce’s reluctance to use his substitutes on Sunday…
This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…
Tottenham Hotspur are prepared to listen to offers for four defenders in January, per Football Insider.
Spurs have endured a miserable start to the 2019/20 Premier League campaign, winning just three games, and were beaten 2-1 by Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.
That result leaves the club eight points behind third-placed Leicester City and fourth-placed Chelsea.
And Spurs are ready to undergo a massive overhaul in the January transfer window, with Jan Vertonghen, Toby Alderweireld, Serge Aurier and Danny Rose all for sale.
Indeed, Mauricio Pochettino is said to rate Davinson Sanchez as the jewel of his back four.
Spurs should have done this in the summer.
Now, it must be noted that they did try. Danny Rose was at Watford’s training ground on deadline day, while sources have told Football FanCast that Alderweireld would have been sold had an acceptable bid been tabled.
But as it is, they are facing up to the prospect of trying to sell two central defenders who have contracts that expire at the end of the season, along with two full-backs labelled “dumb and dumber” by former Manchester United captain Roy Keane.
It smacks of mismanagement and a failure to plan ahead effectively.
Had they moved on in the summer, reinforcements could have been purchased with the funds, but instead, Spurs find themselves in a position where they are effectively hawking their goods to anyone who will listen.
That is no way to run a football club and it does not instil confidence that they will be able to buy replacements either.
According to The Mirror (November 6, page 7 of the pull-out), Chris Coleman is being lined up as a potential candidate to replace Ralph Hasenhuttl in the Southampton dugout.
The former Wales and Sunderland manager has been unemployed since he was sacked by Chinese Super League side Hebei China Fortune, leaving them rooted to the bottom of the table with just one win from his last nine matches in charge.
Hebei China Fortune’s supporters made banners reading: “Hello Mr Coleman, please go home! You’re fired!!!”
Another banner read: “Coleman, your mum wants you home for dinner.”
It’s safe to say that the 49-year-old wasn’t a success with the Chinese side.
Despite that, he has still been linked to replace Hasenhuttl with Southampton currently languishing in 18th place in the Premier League, having won just twice in 11 games this season.
The Saints have also conceded the most goals in the league with 27 concessions.
So, should Coleman replace Hasenhuttl? Football FanCast’s writers have their say…
“If I could just write the word no, I would. Apart from his successful spell in charge of the Wales national team, where he guided them to the semi-finals of the European championships, Coleman has done absolutely nothing to suggest that he could drag Southampton out of the mud.
“He was also sacked by Sunderland following their relegation to League One, and with absolutely no Premier League experience in the last decade since his spell at Fulham from 2003-2007, this would be a monstrous risk from the Saints. Surely, having become accustomed to the playing staff, it would make much more sense to allow a manager with Champions League experience in Hasenhuttl to attempt to overturn this dreadful run of form.”
“It would be catastrophic. Southampton must consider the long-term as well as the danger they’re currently in – if Hasenhuttl leaves they will be searching for their fifth permanent manager in three years.“The Austrian did well to turn the Saints around last year, thus proving he is good enough for the Premier League, and if given a little more time and backing in January to improve in key areas then he could manage the team to safety. For the most part he has got the best out of his players, and judging from Coleman’s Premier League career there is nothing to suggest he is the man Southampton need.“The Welshman managed a win percentage of just 34% during his spell at Fulham, and has since failed at Sunderland in the Championship. Though he did well at Wales, he had the likes of Gareth Bale and Aaron Ramsey to call upon – the kind of quality Southampton could only dream of.”
“A million times no. Coleman’s managerial reputation should be in the toilet after getting Sunderland relegated from the Championship in 2017/18, yet he’s still being linked with Premier League sides.
“He was carried to a European Championship semi-final by Gareth Bale in 2016, and that simply isn’t enough to have a punt on him in the top-flight 12 years on from his last job at that level with Fulham.
“He’s simply not a manager cut-out for this level, and he’s certainly not as good as Hasenhuttl – if the Saints make this appointment they can kiss goodbye to their hopes of survival.”
“A managerial veteran, Chris Coleman would certainly bring a wealth of experience to Southampton, particularly from his time in English football with Fulham. The former Wales boss finished in ninth in his first full season in charge at Craven Cottage, but that was way back in 2004.
“Since then, he has bounced around from club to club, with his most recent experience turning sour when he was sacked by Hebei China Fortune in the Chinese Super League – just 11 months after taking the reins. Not exactly the greatest resume to take over the Saints. The south coast side could do a lot better, and turning to someone like Coleman would be waving the white flag when it comes to relegation. They would simply be better off sticking with Ralph Hasenhuttl for the time being, because quite frankly, out of the two, he is the lesser of two evils.”
Aston Villa striker Wesley has been called up by Brazil for their upcoming international fixtures against Argentina and South Korea (via @villareport).
The 22-year-old has replaced Ajax forward David Neres in the squad following his withdrawal due to injury and becomes the second Villa player in the squad alongside Douglas Luiz.
It is the first time in his career that Wesley has been called up into the Brazilian squad (Birmingham Mail). He will be competing with some top strikers for a place in the team, including Roberto Firmino, Gabriel Jesus and Richarlison.
This is Wesley’s first season with Aston Villa having joined in the summer from Club Brugge, and he has made an ok start to life in the Premier League.
Indeed, he has scored four goals and provided one assist in his 12 appearances so far, although he has failed to find the back of the net in his last four (Transfermarkt).
Villa fans have been reacting to the news of Wesley’s call-up, with several confused as to how he has been included as they haven’t been too impressed with his performances. Here is what some said on Twitter…
Aston Villa fans, do you think Wesley deserves his call-up for Brazil? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…
As things stand, Southampton have the leakiest backline in the Premier League.
The Saints have conceded a staggering 29 goals in just 12 games so far this season, and a huge reason for that is the fact that Ralph Hasenhuttl just can’t seem to stop altering his backline.
Questionably, the former RB Leipzig boss still hasn’t settled on a consistent defence despite having a third of the Premier League campaign to do so.
Let’s take a look at just how indecisive Hasenhuttl has been…
In 12 Premier League games this term, Hasenhuttl has changed his backline ten times, which is quite ridiculous in all honesty – this can be seen by taking a look at each of the club’s individual fixtures on Transfermarkt.
Only for the game against Leicester did the Austrian retain the same backline of Ryan Bertrand, Jannik Vestergaard, Jan Bednarek, Maya Yoshida and Yan Valery he had started in the previous fixture against Wolves, although it saw Southampton lose 9-0 to the Foxes with Vestergaard and Valery being substituted, while Bertrand was given a straight red.
All in all, Bertrand, Vestergaard, Bednarek, Yoshida, Valery, Cedric Soares, Moussa Djenepo, Kevin Danso, Jack Stephens, Stuart Armstrong, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and James Ward-Prowse have all played in either the centre-back, full-back or wing-back roles in the top flight this term.
It is genuinely quite appalling of Hasenhuttl to have changed his defence so frequently – he is giving his defenders absolutely no chance of building up a good understanding with each other.
Something needs to happen fast for Southampton as they enter a potentially season-defining run of fixtures.
After the south coast side face Arsenal next, they have games against Norwich, Newcastle, West Ham, Watford and Aston Villa, fixtures that they must get points from.
We have previously detailed how Hasenhuttl can set his side up to be more expansive, with both suggestions showcasing a back-four – the Saints should definitely drop the five-man backline and add an extra body higher up the field.
Incidentally, this shouldn’t consist of Cedric Soares, who recently gave an interview revealing his desire to leave before being subbed off at half-time against Everton – his head simply isn’t in it and he doesn’t deserve to start.
Hasenhuttl should play Bertrand at left-back, Vestergaard and Bednarek in the centre, and Valery at right-back, without feeling the need to push the reset button at the first sign of something going wrong.
Things may well go array, for this is a Southampton side low on confidence, but by allowing four first-team defenders to develop a relationship together, that could well be the start of an upturn of fortunes at the back.
This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
Arthur Masuaku has spoken to Manuel Pellegrini about his role and future at West Ham United, according to Football Insider.
The 26-year-old is said to have been left frustrated by his lack of game time in recent months, after being omitted from the side in all of their last six league games, apart from the Everton match which Aaron Cresswell missed through injury.
Pellegrini has reassured the Democratic Republic of Congo international about his status at the club, indicating he can be reinstated into the team if he impresses in training.
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While there is a chance Masuaku could find himself back in the starting lineup, Pellegrini has been right to leave him out due to the events following the careless red card picked up against Aston Villa.
This is the case even if his performances before then, specifically the Man of the Match performance against Norwich City in which he assisted Sebastien Haller, are taken into account.
Cresswell, who hadn’t played in the league since the 5-0 mauling against Manchester City, came in against Manchester United and made himself undroppable.
Upon his return, Cresswell beat David de Gea with a sublime free-kick to secure a 2-0 win and he followed that up with a volley against AFC Bournemouth to steal a point.
His level has since dropped in tandem with the rest of the team, but the 29-year-old still has an average of 1.6 tackles, 0.9 interceptions and 1.1 clearances per game, while maintaining a pass success rate of 81.4%.
Since the two yellow cards at Villa park saw Masuaku given his marching orders, he has had two opportunities to impress Pellegrini but slipped up both times.
The first of those was in a literal sense, as he lost his footing, allowing Tarique Fosu-Henry to run through and score Oxford United’s third goal on what was a humiliating evening for the club.
His other chance came against Everton, but he didn’t cover himself in glory there either, as his weak attempt at a tackle on Bernard allowed the Brazilian to skip through and score the game’s opener.
When all of the above is considered, it is very difficult to argue that Masuaku has deserved to start ahead of Cresswell.
Barcelona are seemingly on a hunt for a new forward, more precisely, someone who could give Luis Suarez some much-needed competition and rest, according to the recent reports coming from 10sport.com (via Sport).
And Arsenal’s Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is someone who’s definitely piqued their interest.
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The now 30-year-old Gunner is quite impressive in front of goal.
Just this season alone, the pacy Gabon striker has scored eight goals in just 12 Premier League games and is showing no signs of stopping.
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Despite his team struggling a bit, seeing how they’re sitting in sixth and are still unable to break that deadlock and move up in the table, Aubameyang has still been prolific in front of goal.
The same report emphasises how the interest might be mutual as the player is reportedly holding out on signing a new contract precisely because of the Catalan giants’ interest.
Upon seeing the update, however, many Barcelona fans didn’t like it as they seem to think he is too old and doesn’t really fit their system in the first place.
You can see some of their replies down below:
This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
January is just around the corner, and that means that it’s the start of bizarre transfer story season.
Of course, Leeds aren’t safe from these types of stories as last summer they were linked with a move for Gianluigi Buffon (Corriere della Sera, via SportWitness), but another ridiculous story has now formulated.
Indeed, CalcioMercato have reported that Leeds are amongst the clubs interested in Cagliari midfielder Nahitan Nandez alongside the likes of Inter, Napoli and PSG.
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The Uruguayan is valued at £19.8m by Transfermarkt, and with Victor Orta recently admitting that it’s going to be a quiet January window, and Angus Kinnear’s previous updates on Leeds’ precarious FFP position, it’s fair to say that this one simply isn’t going to happen.
However, if we lived in a world where Leeds had the cash to get this deal done they still wouldn’t be making the right choice in signing Nandez.
When you look at his stats it’s clear to see that he doesn’t really offer much of what Marcelo Bielsa requires from his midfielders as his pass success rate of 76.7% is lower than both Mateusz Klich’s and Adam Forshaw’s.
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Of course, that would be fine if it was offset by assists and key passes, but the 23-year-old has only two assists to his name this season while averaging just 1.1 key passes per game.
Defensively he isn’t much to shout about either as he averages just 1.5 tackles per game with just 0.5 interceptions per match.
Serie A is obviously a higher standard than the Championship, but Nandez doesn’t seem to excel in any of the areas Bielsa requires, so not only is this deal seemingly an impossible one, but it’s the wrong one for Leeds.
In other news, one Leeds star has been praising Marcelo Bielsa’s “carnage” training strategy…
According to an exclusive report by Italian media outlet AreaNapoli, Tottenham Hotspur are ‘strong’ on Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard.
The crux of the report is actually about the interest in Napoli centre-forward Arkadiusz Milik by Spurs’ Premier League rivals Everton, before it goes on to say that the Toffees and the north London outfit are also both interested in the Scottish Premiership star.
Indeed, it is no surprise that he is receiving admiring glances from elsewhere given he has scored 60 goals in 126 games for Celtic, and at 22 years of age looks to have a high ceiling to improve and get even better in a top European league.
Tottenham certainly need another striker option given they only have Harry Kane and Troy Parrott available, with Jose Mourinho clearly not ready to trust in the latter given he has barely featured at all in the absence of the injured England captain since the start of January.
Here, FFC writers give their verdict on whether Edouard would be a good addition…
“There is absolutely no question Edouard is good enough to play deputy to Kane and even displace him depending on form and fitness.
“The French starlet is an end product machine, racking up 46 goals and assists in 45 appearances this season. What is even more impressive for a striker is that 19 of those 46 are assists, so he could replace Christian Eriksen’s creativity.
“If fans are concerned about the standard of the Scottish Premier League they shouldn’t be, as he has dominated Europe this season, grabbing four goal involvements in five Champions League games and seven in eight Europa League showings.
“At 22 years of age with no injury issues to report, Edouard could genuinely be Kane’s successor.”
“The potential arrival of Odsonne Eduoard would be bad news for Parrott with the teenage sensation barely getting a look-in as it is, but ultimately, it is a move that Jose Mourinho just has to make.
“Celtic’s leading talisman would become the perfect foil for Kane, and let’s be honest, he needs some kind of support having carried the weight of Spurs on his back for quite some time. As soon as the Englishman got injured this season, their season turned sour – knocked out of all cup competitions and some seven points adrift of the top four.
“27 goals in 46 appearances this campaign is an impressive tally and despite plying his trade in Scotland, he’s managed to look just as impressive in UCL qualification as well as in the Europa League. Spurs fans can forget Parrott, Eduoard is the long-term heir to Kane’s golden throne.
“It would be an absurd decision from Levy to avoid landing him.”
“There is no doubt that Edouard has proven that he is a good player during his time at Celtic, but I think Tottenham need to buy a player more established and experienced if they are going to get a new striker this summer.
“Asking the 22-year-old to step in for a large Harry Kane absence – like the one that is currently ongoing following his serious hamstring injury suffered on January 1 – would be a risk, given he has only scored goals regularly in Scotland.
“Spurs would be much better off going for another older player like Fernando Llorente, who won’t moan about a lack of game time and can be relied on to step in and do a job when needed.
“Who’s to say that Edouard would be happy to sit on the substitutes’ bench for a prolonged period of time anyway? He could easily get unhappy very quickly.
“Tottenham should look elsewhere.”
In other Tottenham news, Tanguy Ndombele has responded when asked whether he prefers PSG or Barcelona, amid recent exit links…