All posts by h716a5.icu

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Loads of Leeds fans have been reacting to a shocking deadline day revelation, as their deal for Swansea attacker Daniel James fell through at the last minute.

Leeds fans have been absolutely desperate to sign James this month as they look to improve the depth in an injury-hit squad.

However, the deal is 100 per cent off, as reported by Phil Hay, after the Swans quite literally stopped responding to Leeds’ calls.

The young winger was set to join on an initial loan deal with a view to a permanent move in the summer, reported The Yorkshire Evening Post on Thursday afternoon, but the turmoil at the south Wales club has clearly played its part.

Who are the best away fans in the Championship? Pl>ymaker FC’s Thogden gives his top 10 in the video below…

James, 21, can play in various positions across the attack, but is probably most comfortable on the left wing, where he was seen as the long-term successor for Pablo Hernandez.

The youngster scored eight goals and added 12 assists for Swansea’s Under-23 side before graduating to the senior side, where he has found the net three times and chipped in with four assists, per Transfermarkt.

Victor Orta has taken plenty of stick since he took over the transfer dealings at Elland Road, but the Spaniard surely can’t be blamed for this one, and you can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

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According to Sky Sports, West Ham United have rejected a £7m bid from Valencia for Javier Hernandez.

What’s the story?

To be fair, Hernandez being linked with a move away from West Ham is not exactly fresh news.

The 30-year-old has scored five times for the Hammers this season, but largely struggled to settle since arriving from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer of 2017.

Hernandez’s contract with West Ham will expire at the end of next season and it does seem likely that the Mexican will leave sooner or later.

According to Sky Sports, Valencia had hoped to tempt West Ham with an offer of £7m, but the bid was rejected by the Premier League club.

Why must West Ham keep Hernandez?

There were fears that Marko Arnautovic had suffered a potentially long-term injury during Tuesday’s 3-0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers in the league.

However, scans have revealed that the Austrian only suffered bruising to his foot and should therefore not be on the sidelines for too long.

Lucas Perez looks to be heading for Real Betis, however, while the much-anticipated arrival of Celta Vigo’s Maxi Gomez might have to wait until the summer.

Add in the fact that Andy Carroll is really struggling in the final third and there is a situation where West Ham probably cannot afford to lose Hernandez at this juncture.

West Ham need numbers in the final third at the moment and are right to have rejected Valencia’s £7m offer, which was not really enough to be tempting.

Check out the video below to see Pl>ymaker FC’s American Soccer Fan give his take on all six ‘field goals’ in West Ham v Burnley…

[ad_pod ]Loads of Leeds fans have been reacting to a scheduling change that could have major impacts on the title race, as the Whites will play three games in the space of six days later this month.Leeds United’s Championship match against QPR has been moved, after Steve McClaren’s side reached the fifth round of the FA Cup with a 2-0 victory over Portsmouth.The two sides, who also met in the FA Cup’s third round, were supposed to square off on Saturday February 16, but the game will now take place on Tuesday February 26, per The Yorkshire Evening Post.Who are the best away fans in the Championship? Pl>ymaker FC’s Thogden gives his top 10 in the video below…This means that Marcelo Bielsa’s side will now play three Championship games on a Saturday, Tuesday and Friday in a week that could well decide the title race.The Whites will host Bolton on Saturday February 23, travel to QPR in mid-week and then return to Elland Road on the Friday night to take on West Brom.

With nine points up for grabs in the space of six days, the title race could be an awful lot clearer by the end of what will be an intense week for Bielsa’s small squad.

You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

After losing Mousa Dembele in January, Tottenham Hotspur’s midfield has thinned down. Injuries to Eric Dier, Moussa Sissoko and Victor Wanyama haven’t really help Mauricio Pochettino’s men as they push to win the Premier League title.

Indeed, while impressive, Harry Winks is still learning and the Lilywhites certainly need an appropriate replacement to Dembele.

It seems like they’ve acknowledged a need for an experienced candidate in midfield. According to reports from Corriere dello Sport (via Calciomercato), Spurs are looking to sign FC Porto’s Hector Herrera after his contract expires in June. The Mexican midfielder is having a prolific season with Dragoes, having impressed in the league as well as the UEFA Champions League.

Herrera’s been a solid figure in Porto’s midfield and in 21 league appearances, he’s kept almost 85% passing accuracy (via WhoScored). He’s scored only two goals but averaged 1 key pass every game as well as 2.3 tackles and 1.3 interceptions every game. After having a solid World Cup campaign with Mexico, the midfielder’s picked up form in club-level.

Potentially being available for a free, Herrera could be a valuable asset for Spurs midfield. He’s also proven himself in the Champions League, scoring twice this season in the group stages. A hard-tackling midfielder who is precise with his tackles and winning back possession, Herrera keeps a calm head and can help Spurs dominate games more smoothly.

Pochettino needs a similarly strong, dominant midfielder to replace Dembele. Knowing how consistent the Mexican’s been for Porto, Spurs should start tabling a big offer for Herrera, who can solve their midfield woes and solidify their team even further.

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Liverpool visit Old Trafford on Sunday for their highly-anticipated clash with Manchester United and will be hoping to get back to their sumptuous best after a disappointing – yet somehow also respectable – draw with Bundesliga champions Bayern Munich on Tuesday.

The Reds were made to rue their wasteful finishing – Sadio Mane, in particular, was guilty – and now face a difficult trip to Allianz Arena in March. More immediately, though, the Merseysiders must square off with bitter rivals United and Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson thinks Jurgen Klopp’s side might bottle it.

What did he say?

Discussing his predictions for the weekend’s football on Sky Sports, Merson predicted a 2-1 win to the Red Devils, saying:

“If Liverpool get anything from this game, I think they have had a result. I am not saying that because I think Man Utd are a better team, but I think the pendulum has swung.

“You have a team that is very confident and a team that is very nervous and are snatching at chances. Look at Liverpool’s game against Bayern Munich – two months ago, they would have scored two or three of those chances.

“I think United will have a go. They are not a team under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that will sit back. They will take the game to Liverpool, and I think the nerves of Liverpool will be too much.”

Nervy Reds

While the Reds hit a stumbling block in midweek, United bounced back from their Champions League defeat to PSG with a 2-0 win over Chelsea in the FA Cup and look to have recovered from that first blip extremely quickly.

The Liverpool players must surely feel that they should never have let Bayern walk away from Anfield with a clean sheet, and the pressure may be getting them ahead of the weekend’s huge clash.

Would you rather your club won the Premier League or Champions League? In the video below, Pl>ymaker FC’s Matty believes English clubs have already decided…

Other than the bad blood between the two clubs, the tie is hugely important for the Merseysiders considering a win would ensure they go three points clear of leaders and champions Manchester City, who have a game in hand. Will the nerves be Liverpool’s biggest obstacle, as Merson predicts?

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Loads of Leeds fans have been running the rule over their defeat at Loftus Road, and one post-match image of Marcelo Bielsa is hitting fans right where it hurts.

After recovering from a poor run of form with consecutive 2-1 wins over Swansea and Bolton, this week presented a huge chance for Leeds to try and replicate the winning spree that made them clear title favourites before Christmas.

QPR had not won a Championship game since Boxing Day before Tuesday’s clash, and West Brom, who Leeds play this Friday, just took a wounding 1-0 home defeat to Sheffield United at the weekend.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side were unable to capitalise on the former’s horrific patch of form though, as Luke Freeman popped up with the winner for Steve McClaren’s side just after half time.

The Whites were really poor in the match, controlling 64 per cent of the possession but mustering one less shot on target than their hosts managed, per BBC.

After the game, Bielsa was spotted slouched down on his haunches in the tunnel, and fans are heartbroken by the thought of not earning promotion under their enigmatic gaffer.

You can see the image here, and find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

Heading into the game against Cardiff City, Everton were in desperate need of a win to save Marco Siva’s reign.

The Toffees had only won two out of eight games in 2019 preceding it, losing the other six. In what could have been seen as a do-or-die scenario for Silva, Gylfi Sigurdsson emerged as the hero to save Everton from further doom.

Playing against a Cardiff City side looking to bounce back at home, Everton played like the old days under Silva. They dominated a poor Cardiff side, playing incisive, attacking football to showcase their devastating potential. Sigurdsson proved as the key to unlocking their potential.

The Iceland international’s – now rated at £27m by Transfermarkt – movement in the final third was excellent, as he often wandered astray to find himself in promising positions.  He scored his first thanks to intelligent movement, before adding another with a thumping finish from out of nowhere. Recording an 80% passing accuracy (stats via Fotmob) and even creating a good chance for Dominic Calvert-Lewin, he pumped Everton forward at every opportunity.

With the fantastic brace, Sigurdsson took his tally to eleven for the season, having also assisted three times for Everton. Even in this difficult season, he’s maintained swagger in his gameplay and kept on creating chances, only to see poor finishing foil his good work.

However, he took things into his own hands into helping Everton get back to winning ways on Tuesday night. With the Merseyside derby next, Sigurdsson and company will aim to keep up their inspired form to give Silva new lease in life at Everton.

The club might have overpaid for his services initially but the man who once rejected a move to Liverpool now looks to be Everton’s first hero in a long time.

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The weight of expectation will be on the shoulders of Birmingham City duo Che Adams and Lukas Jutkiewicz to deliver when Brum welcome Aston Villa to St Andrew’s on Sunday, but centre-back pairing Michael Morrison and Harlee Dean have as big a role to play.

On the chalkboard

The Blues’ attacking pair have struck up a strong partnership and have 12 goals (all from Adams) and seven assists (all from Jutkiewicz) between them in the Championship since mid-December, helping spearhead an unlikely play-off bid.

All eyes will be on them to shine again for the visit of their arch-rivals this weekend, but Garry Monk’s defenders need to be at their best as well.

Morrison and Dean have been part of a backline that has conceded the same number of goals as leaders Norwich City, and two less than Midlands neighbours West Bromwich Albion, although they would have been disappointed to concede four in the reverse fixture at Villa Park in November.

Big job on their hands

While the Villans have the worst defensive record in the top half of the Championship, they propose a significant threat at the other end of the pitch with only the Canaries and the Baggies finding the net on more occasions.

Their strength was shown when they beat fellow promotion hopefuls Derby County 4-0 at home last weekend, and in Tammy Abraham they have arguably the best striker in the division – he has scored 21 goals in 29 league fixtures during the current campaign.

If Morrison and Dean can deal effectively with the Chelsea loanee it will help to stop their opponents in their tracks, and they could be their team’s derby heroes on the day.

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Marcelo Bielsa’s arrival has galvanised a multitude of individuals who can now all make a genuine case for the club’s most improved player of the season accolade. The award is typically the least glamorous of all those on offer but widespread improvement throughout the Leeds squad has added a layer of prestige to this particular honour.

Discussion over exactly which Leeds player has showcased the greatest level of improvement this season has been rife at Football FanCast towers of late, but a consensus remains elusive. Read a handful of our writers’ verdicts below…

James Beavis – Liam Cooper

“While he may have been captain last season under Thomas Christiansen and Paul Heckingbottom, the 27-year-old was seen as one of Leeds’ weak links – not helped by some of the errors he made. However, he has been a completely different animal under Bielsa, and like many of his teammates his game has come on leaps and bounds under the Argentine. A brilliant leader who isn’t afraid to put his body on the line for his side, he has improved massively from a technical point of view in recent months, and is arguably more important than Pontus Jansson now.”

Billy Myers – Kemar Roofe

“Admittedly, the diminutive forward was very good last year, but he seems to have stepped it up a notch this season and already has three more Championship goals than he managed in the previous campaign. Roofe bagged 15 Championship goals during the course of the previous two campaigns, and his 14 so far this term prove that he is always improving and working on his game.”

Ben Goodwin – Gjanni Alioski

“The Macedonian international was best known for getting caught offside last season, and likely would have been shown the door if fans had their way in the summer. He is now one of the first names on the teamsheet due to his engine, drive and versatility. In fact, his transformation is perhaps the best of all the Marcelo Bielsa success stories at Elland Road this season. With Barry Douglas struggling for form and fitness, Leeds may not even be in the title race without Alioski filling in at left-back.”

Southampton are hoping to survive by the skin of their teeth yet again this season, which absolutely must result in a spending spree this summer. Every fan reading this know that those behind the scenes have been useless when it comes to spending the kind of money required to get back to where they were, but surely Ralph Hasenhutt will demand it. 

Indeed, the Austrian has done a brilliant job in recent games that looks to have moved the Saints away from trouble, at least temporarily. With quality flowing and a reliance on youth back on the agenda, the initial signs are looking promising in the Hasenhutt era.

It’s up to the players to now continue the good form they’re in if they want to remain in the biggest league in the world next season.

A number of the current players may no longer be with the Saints next season after drab campaigns but Southampton must ensure the right players are brought in, to avoid another season of disappointment and fearing the worst.

With that in mind, Bordeaux’s Francois Kamano was a player who reportedly (Noticias de Gipuzkoa) interested Southampton during the January transfer window and he seems to be on their radar again, which could transpire to make a brilliant signing.

Kamano, (who is valued at £12.6 million on Transfermarkt) is another very talented forward that has been developed with Bordeaux and the Saints would count themselves very lucky if they manage to get their hands on him.

It’s no wonder Kamano was a target either because with 11 goals and four assists this season, the Saints could have been far more threatening to play against with him in their side.

Already with games to go until the end of the season, this is Francois Kamano’s most prolific season in-front of goal and although fans may fear being stung by another one-season-wonder, Kamano looks to have the ability to compete amongst the best in the Premier League.

Saints fans, would you back a move for Kamano? Join the discussion by commenting below…