Bernd Leno has won Arsenal’s Player of the Month award, per Arsenal’s official website.
The goalkeeper enjoyed a superb showing in the north London derby in March, making a brilliant double save from Christian Eriksen and Moussa Sissoko as the Gunners earned a 1-1 draw at Wembley.
Arsenal beat Manchester United in the Premier League and defeated Rennes over two legs in March.
Leno was key to the first victory, making an excellent save from Romelu Lukaku as the Gunners won 2-0 to inflict Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s first league defeat as United boss.
Fans voted for the Germany international to win the award in the droves, with the club’s website reporting that he gained 70% of the votes.
Midfielders Aaron Ramsey and Granit Xhaka came in second and third.
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Leno has made a total of 29 appearances in all competitions thus far this season, keeping eight clean sheets in total.
And fans have expressed their delight at Leno being rewarded for his performances. Take a look at the best of the reaction on Twitter below!
Crystal Palace receive Huddersfield this weekend at SE25 and fans will surely accept nothing less than three points from the Premier League’s punching bag, although they know that it is a game they cannot afford to take for granted.
The Eagles’ home form is down there with the worst in the league – in fact, they would be in the relegation zone if not for some great away wins. Despite the efforts of the Palace faithful, Selhurst Park is anything but a fortress and that has to change.
On the chalkboard
Ahead of the Terriers’ visit, Max Meyer has stressed the importance of getting results and scoring goals at home – two things that often evade Palace – and this weekend presents the German and his teammates with the perfect opportunity to get some form going.
Jan Siewert’s side looked certain to take a fantastic three points from the London Stadium last time out but West Ham came back from 3-1 down with just 15 minutes to go and won – a result which pretty much summarises Huddersfield’s season – so if Palace cannot get a win then there will be outrage from supporters.
How then, can the Eagles finally transform Selhurst Park into a ground worthy of its’ atmosphere?
Play to all of their strengths, not just one
The glaring issue from the loss to bitter rivals Brighton – aside from the individual mistakes which led to goals – was the lack of quality decision making. The Eagles a fortunate to have a top player in Wilfried Zaha that other clubs in their position could only dream of having, but sometimes the players seem to forget that they aren’t just there to give the ball to the Ivorian.
Is the FA Cup distracting Crystal Palace fans from their EPL issues? Pla>yamker FC’s Sam thinks so in the video below…
For example, there were numerous occasions when Michy Batshuayi was making an excellent run in behind the Seagulls defence but wasn’t spotted by the man on the ball, who instead shifted it wide to Zaha. Perhaps this is partly due to the fact that the Belgian striker hasn’t been there all that long, but these are professional footballers who should know when to look up for a centre-forward rather than instinctively turning and sliding it to the left wing.
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When Palace are not forced into making decisions, then they tend to rely too heavily on Zaha to work opportunities out of nothing; they play on the counter on their travels, meaning they are forced to think and pass quickly, and are far better for that reason.
The sooner the Eagles realise that there are other players in their ranks who can cause damage going forward, then the sooner their home form will improve – it’s up to Roy Hodgson to make them realise that, though.
Real Madrid are lining up a move for West Ham winger Felipe Anderson as an alternative to Chelsea’s Eden Hazard, per Sky Sports News.
The Spanish giants are reportedly hoping to land the Belgium international but have earmarked Anderson as a potential fallback option.
What’s the word?
Real, who reappointed Zinedine Zidane as manager earlier this month, have made Hazard their top target, the report claims.
However, they have already seen one £60million bid rejected, while a transfer ban for Chelsea, which affects this summer, means that the Blues may simply force Hazard to stay at Stamford Bridge.
And Sky Sports claim that, as a result, Anderson has been identified as a possible summer signing.
A deal, they state, would cost the Spanish giants around £65m.
Anderson joined West Ham from Lazio last summer for a club-record fee of £36m.
He has since scored eight Premier League goals for the club but has not scored in 2019 and is currently on an 11-game scoreless streak in east London.
Bite their hands off
If this report is true, which does seem unlikely, then the Hammers should be rubbing their hands together in glee.
Owners David Gold and David Sullivan can basically name their price to Real for a player who has thus far flattered to deceive in England.
Clearly a skilful player, Anderson’s form has fallen off a cliff since the turn of the year and he is not showing any kind of consistency at the club.
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As a result, any bid north of what they paid for him should be accepted on the spot by the Irons.
Real could surely do better – their budget is such that they may well be able to buy any player in the world – but West Ham do not need to let them know that.
Instead, they should encourage their supposed interest. It is not every day that the prospect of £65m landing in one’s bank account comes along, after all.
Tottenham Hotspur fans have insisted that they do not want to sign Fulham left-back Ryan Sessegnon after a Daily Mirror report claimed they were interested in the defender.
Sessegnon has yet to sign a new contract at the west London club, who are surely doomed to relegation from the Premier League.
Nevertheless, the report claims that Manchester United and PSG are also interested in signing the 18-year-old, despite a rocky season in the top-flight, though he wants to remain in London.
Indeed, Sessegnon has made 30 appearances in all competitions this season, scoring two goals and laying on five assists, but he was last involved in either scoring or providing a goal on New Year’s Day, when he made a setup in the 4-1 loss to Arsenal.
And Spurs fans are not keen on the prospect of signing a player who the club are reportedly rating as a £50million target, meaning the potential deal would set a new club-record transfer fee. Take a look at the best of the reaction on Twitter below!
Sheffield Wednesday full-back, Liam Palmer is in line to make his debut for Scotland in Kazakhstan on Thursday — seven years after last pulling on his national side’s under-21 jersey.
Palmer has been in brilliant form for the Owls, and has played every minute of Championship football for the side since the arrival of Steve Bruce.
Speaking to the Sheffield Star, the defender said his thoughts would be firmly on his late grandmother, if he gets the nod tomorrow, and it is through her Lanarkshire roots that the 27-year-old is eligible to represent Scotland.
Referring to her influence on him, he said: “My nan was a massive part of my life. She lived on the road opposite the school I went to as a little boy so every day after school I went there until my mum finished work.
“She loved football and she loved sport. If I had a game for the school she used to walk up the road and come and watch and then get me some food after and things like that.
“She never saw me play for the Scotland youth teams. She passed away just before that. My family on my mum’s side are all obviously really proud and she would have been really proud as well.
“I will definitely think of her. It was a shame towards the end. I went every day to visit her in intensive care. But it would be a great moment if I did make my debut.”
Like the rest of the Sheffield Wednesday side, Palmer has had a resurgence of confidence in the current unbeaten run that the Owls find themselves on and topping it all off with a Scotland cap is thoroughly deserved for the hard-working former academy graduate.
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That Wednesday players are being recognised for their scintillating form in the Championship is thanks to the Bruce effect, but the Geordie manager will be hoping that his right back comes through the international break unscathed with such an important stretch of games ahead.
What do you think of your latest international player Wednesday fans? Join in the debate below…
In a matter of weeks, Spurs have fallen headfirst out of the title race and been plunged into the deep end of a top-four battle.
After losses to both Burnley and Chelsea, Spurs somewhat steadied the ship with a 1-1 draw against Arsenal. However, on Saturday, with manager Mauricio Pochettino in the stands, serving the first of his two-game ban for an altercation with referee Mike Dean, the club fell to a 2-1 defeat to Southampton at St Mary’s.
Having taken the lead through Harry Kane, the back-four took leave of their senses to allow Yan Valery to equalise, before James Ward-Prowse smashed home a free-kick to give the relegation candidates all three points.
The result against Southampton will perhaps have hurt more than any other; Spurs were well on top in the first half and could have been out of sight at the interval. Instead, they went in with a goal advantage and seemed to conspire to throw it away through a combination of terrible decisions and poor game management.
Now they sit only a point ahead of Arsenal, three in front of Manchester United and four clear of Chelsea. There is a very real possibility that Tottenham could end the season in sixth.
This after challenging Liverpool and Manchester City at the top of the table for so long.
The problem, and it is an unpopular one to point out, is the return of Kane.
Now, this is not to say that the England captain, the winner of the World Cup Golden Boot and perhaps Spurs’ best striker in a generation is by any means a harmful presence. Not at all.
But his return has coincided with a severe drop-off from Son Heung-min, who was playing some of the best football of his career when Kane was injured. Trusted as the focal point of the attack, the South Korea international scored in every Premier League game that Kane missed, helping his side to victories over Watford, Newcastle United and Leicester. He has not scored since the Englishman was restored to the line-up, nor has he provided an assist.
Christian Eriksen, too, appears to be in the midst of his once-a-season run of dismal form; he, too, was last involved in a goal when Kane was injured.
Perhaps, then, the problem is expectation.
Pochettino does not alter his formation all that much, his system tends to remain the same regardless of the personnel on the pitch. Kane has routinely been on the field when Son has enjoyed a fantastic performance, ditto Eriksen.
Yet their dips come at a time when they are not being relied upon to provide the spark. The problem with Kane is the inverse to that of many players: it is not that he isn’t good enough for the team, it’s that he’s actually too good.
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Kane has come back in and scored against Burnley, Arsenal and Southampton. He is half-fit, that much is plain to see, but he continues to score goals at a terrifying rate of knots.
Those around him, then, are all too happy to sit back and watch. Perhaps it is not even deliberate, perhaps this is a subconscious attitude that even Son, Eriksen and others are not aware of.
But Tottenham do appear to have a team-wide inferiority complex. They believe, whether they want to or not, that Kane is their saviour, the player through which everything good must be funnelled.
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This works more often than not; Kane has ridiculous scoring statistics and relishes big games. But this season, there has been a notable downshift from those around him since his return.
Eriksen and Son perhaps believe they no longer need to produce the goods with Kane in the team, so good is the striker.
The opposite, of course, is true. Kane cannot do it all on his own.
A trip to Anfield looms large on the horizon following the international break, which means a clash with a Liverpool team that boasts perhaps the most fluid and coherent front-three in England.
Pochettino has to solve the riddle and ensure that Son, Eriksen et al are reminded of their responsibilities. If they leave it all up to Kane, he runs the risk of burning himself out, and with that comes the likelihood of a slide down the table at the worst possible time.
Another loan spell is surely beckoning Harry Wilson at the beginning of next season as the promising Welshman looks to barge his way into a crowded and competitive Liverpool team.
It has been an extremely positive first experience in senior football for Wilson, who has been the standout player in Frank Lampard’s promotion hopeful Derby County side, scoring 12 goals in all competitions.
Indeed, the 21-year-old has evidently outgrown the Championship and his return to Derby, or any other club in the competition for that matter, seems unlikely.
Rather, according to goal.com, Jurgen Klopp prefers the option to find him a club in the Premier League to continue his development, readying him for the future challenges at Anfield.
But who with?
Brendan Rodgers; Leicester City is one of the reported likely locations.
Rodgers, who was reportedly interested in taking the player to Celtic last term, missed out because Klopp felt he had too little faith youngsters (as per goal.com)
However, now with the financial clout of the former Premier League winners, there is every chance the Foxes boss could come bounding back with a permanent offer. And we think the move makes perfect sense.
Here are two reasons why…
Youth and development
Contrary to Klopp’s belief, Rodgers will be of immense benefit to Leicester’s fledgeling players.
After all, this is where it all started for the former Chelsea youth coach – developing talent.
For example, though he cannot claim the introduction of Kieran Tierney, he has overseen the full-backs progress into one of Scotland’s most promising talents. The same could be said for Raheem Sterling. Rodgers gave him his chance at Liverpool and look at him now: one of the best players in the Premier League.
Leicester have an impressive roster of young, up and coming talent, including the likes of Demarai Gray, Harvey Barnes and Ben Chilwell, and Harry Wilson should want to join their ranks next season.
No budging current starters
It is unlikely that Wilson will get anywhere near the current Liverpool team for some time, despite how well he has performed.
There is too much quality in the forward positions, where he naturally operates, with Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino and Mohamed Salah all irreplaceable.
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Furthermore, the midfield, a region he has occupied more regularly for Lampard, may be relatively weak at Liverpool, but the emergence of Fabinho as a serious contender has considerably limited the available spots, as Milner and Henderson are no longer needed to cover.
You would also imagine that Klopp will want to reinforce his midfield with some serious, world-class talent this summer.
Disgruntled Real Madrid maestro Isco, for example, is one of the major targets (as per Tuttosport).
An easy choice as far as we are concerned.
Liverpool fans, would losing Harry Wilson be a catastrophe? Join the discussion by commenting below…
Crystal Palace star Aaron Wan-Bissaka has been identified as a summer transfer target by Manchester United, who have reportedly drawn up a shortlist including the full-back, Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly and Barcelona’s Ivan Rakitic according to talkSPORT.
What’s the word, then?
Well, the Eagles’ academy graduate has not put a foot wrong since breaking into the first team at the start of 2018, going on to make the right-back berth his own ahead of former first choice Joel Ward.
As a result, a number of clubs have taken a shine to the England Under-21 international, including the likes of Chelsea, Manchester City, Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund and now the Red Devils.
The 21-year-old is arguably the best defender in Europe right now, even earning the nickname of ‘The Spider’ as a result of his uncanny ability to use his long legs to wrap around the opponent and win the ball back.
Palace must tie him down to a new contract
Wan-Bissaka currently has three years left on the contract that he signed in April of last year, but given his rise in the game since then, it is imperative that Palace lock him into a monster new deal.
The aforementioned clubs who have taken an interest in him are giants of the game, and all possess the financial power to turn the youngster’s head.
Additionally, Wan-Bissaka is allegedly earning just £15,000-a-week right now, which is well below what he deserves – to compare, second-choice right-back Ward earns £35,000-a-week.
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One would assume that Wan-Bissaka’s agent will be pressing the club to offer his client a much improved contract, and could easily point to the fact that a number of heavyweights in the game could easily offer him a significant rise on his current salary.
The south London-based side have a real gem on their hands and arguably one of Europe’s best young players right now, so they must tie him down as soon as possible to avoid losing him in the summer.
Manuel Lanzini made his comeback from a serious knee injury in West Ham United’s Premier League clash with Fulham at the London Stadium on Friday night.
Indeed, the attacker replaced Felipe Anderson in the 76th minute of the clash, which ended in a 3-1 home win.
Ryan Babel actually sent Fulham into an early lead in the London derby, but goals from Javier Hernandez, Issa Diop and Michail Antonio secured the points for West Ham.
For many, though, the big story was the return of Lanzini.
Indeed, the 29-year-old had been on the sidelines since suffering a serious knee injury last June, which saw him miss out on the chance to play in the 2018 World Cup for Argentina.
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Lanzini has also missed the entire 2018-19 Premier League campaign to date, but made his return to action against Fulham on Friday night.
And it would be fair to say that the West Ham fans were absolutely delighted, with a selection of their Twitter reaction available to view below:
Arsenal are facing a midfield crisis following reports that Paris Saint Germain are interested (as per the Express) in poaching their French wonderkid Matteo Guendouzi after only one year in the Premier League.
Having already lost Ramsey, who recently signed a five-year deal with Juventus, and Mesut Ozil desperately out-of-favour, ill, missing or injured, Unai Emery simply cannot afford to lose the talents of young Frenchman Guendouzi.
The midfield ace was only signed from Ligue 2 outfit Lorient at the beginning of this campaign but following a string of quality performances have become the subject of “big team” attention. And quite rightly so.
This isn’t the first time PSG have expressed interest in signing the player either. Apparently, before his move to move to north London, Guendouzi had the option to make his move to the French capital.
“It is true that PSG were very interested, like other teams, there were a lot of discussions, but for me the best decision I could make was to join Arsenal,” he admitted to Canal Football Club ( via GFFN ).
Would he do it again now he’s a far more developed player?
If he did make the move, Arsenal should look at signing this man…
This wouldn’t be the first time Emery has tried to bring in the Argentine, having already failed in the summer and January transfer windows due to a lack of funds according to the Mirror.
But it seems with Arsenal’s midfield options shrinking and their future European status in doubt the boardroom will be willing to part with the reported £17m it will cost to secure his services.
Despite his age (31 when they have the option to buy) we think Banega would be a quality acquisition.
Firstly, it would likely spark the end of the Ozil saga and introduce a far more positive environment conducive to success. You’d also have to say that there’s every chance Arsenal would have more of a player in the Sevilla man. Whilst Ozil has really let him form dip recently, in more ways than one, Banega is starting at the top level of Spanish football.
It’s a no brainer.
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Secondly, Emery would have a player he’s very familiar with, having already combined at Valencia and Sevilla. The in-depth knowledge of the midfielder’s skillset, traits and abilities will surely help him finetune his tactics.
Finally, should Guendouzi move back to France, Banega is versatile enough to operate in the centre of midfield and perform a very similar role. He’s a dogged in his defensive efforts, much like the Frenchman, and has supremely better passing and technical ability as an experienced player.
Would you be willing to exchange prodigy Guendouzi for an ageing but experienced Banega?