All posts by h716a5.icu

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Crystal Palace knocked London neighbours Spurs out of the FA Cup on Sunday and, in doing so, progressed to the fifth round; the game could have been very different had the visitors not been hit with a string of injuries to a number of key players, but Spurs fans were more concerned with one of Palace’s players rather than their own.

Andros Townsend netted his seventh goal of the season in all competitions via the penalty spot and could have had a second but failed to fire either side of Paulo Gazzaniga, instead hitting the cutback straight at the Argentine.

The Eagles winger has played for an incredible twelve English clubs, including Newcastle and Championship leaders Leeds, but seems to have found a home at Selhurst Park after spending much 0f his Spurs career out on loan and is currently enjoying what is surely his best season in the Prem.

Naturally an energetic wide-man, the 27-year-old has been converted into an unorthodox striker this season by Roy Hodgson and is becoming quite good at arriving in the box – meanwhile, Spurs’ Fernando Llorente struggled to get any breathing room and took just 38 touches in ninety minutes as he failed to threaten Palace’s stand-in backline.

After netting from the spot, Townsend’s celebrations were muted, the reasoning for which was explained by the man himself on Twitter, leading to many Spurs fans applauding the number 10 for his class; others took it a step further by stating that they wish he was still in white.

Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin may be out for the season but it’s given him a chance to show off his new accessory. Check out the video above to see for yourself…

You can check out the best of the reaction below…

Mike Ashley has been under scrutiny for a while, owing to his lack of investment at Newcastle, but this week, Rafael Benitez has really ramped up the pressure. As per the Telegraph, Benitez has refused to commit his long-term future to Newcastle, noting that he “cannot guarantee” that he’ll even be at the club by the time the end of the season rolls around. 

The message from the manager here, then, is clear: invest in the team, or he’s going to leave. Regardless of whether it’s in the summer or beforehand, that spells bad news for Newcastle, but certainly, by intimating that he could leave shortly; Ashley will be put under a fresh wave of pressure.

Of course, Newcastle are already in a relegation battle as it is, and it’s largely been down to the tactical nouse of Benitez that they’ve managed to keep their heads above water. If he were to leave, however, that would put the club back more than a few steps, and from that point on, you’d have to say that Newcastle would be one of the favourites to go down in the Premier League.

Ashley, then, at this point, simply must act. The Newcastle owner surely can’t risk increasing his team’s chances of falling back into the Championship. And he must not view a win against Man City as reason enough to settle.

You can certainly understand the frustration of Benitez. He’s put in all this work and tried so hard to make things happen, but his hands have been completely tied. He can only do so much, and whilst he’s given Ashley more than enough time and chances, the owner, somehow, continues to underwhelm.

It’s now or never for Newcastle. If Ashley doesn’t head this warning, it could lead to disaster.

Thoughts?

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Liverpool have a strong collection of midfield players but their options extend beyond those who are currently available to Jurgen Klopp.

On the chalkboard

The arrival of both Naby Keita and Fabinho in the summer added an extra dimension to an already fantastic set of midfield options.

The double signing effectively made Marko Grujic surplus to requirements at this stage in his career, and he completed a loan move to Hertha Berlin as a consequence.

A series of impressive performances on loan at Cardiff City last season hinted that he had the potential to make a step up this season, and that’s exactly what he’s done.

Glowing performances in the Bundesliga hint that he could be ready to fight for his place in the starting eleven at Liverpool next season.

According to SportBild (via Sport Witness), however, Klopp is eager to loan him out once again in the 2019/20 season to a club playing in either the Europa League or the Champions League.

Grujic could be a ready-made Henderson replacement

Well, Klopp may not be short of options but the club’s stance on Grujic could deprive him of a long-term replacement for Henderson.

Forcing Grujic to embark on another loan move could force the 22-year-old to consider his future and instead search for a permanent move to give his career some much-needed stability.

Hertha’s head coach, Pal Dardai, labelled him as the best midfielder he has seen at the club during a 22-year period, per Bundesliga.com – an admission which suggests the physically commanding Croatian is destined to play at the top level.

Henderson may well be captain at Liverpool but he has struggled to convince the supporters that he is worthy of that responsibility during his time with the club, and he is not of the standard which the club require to consistently challenge for the Premier League title.

Grujic is not yet ready to step into Henderson’s shoes, but the form he has showcased in Germany this season combined with Dardai’s comments hint that he has the quality to replace him in the long-term.

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Liverpool fans have been reflecting on the week’s Champions League action and they’re all saying the same thing – sign Jadon Sancho!

Tottenham romped past Bundesliga leaders Borussia Dortmund on Wednesday night, as goals from Son Heung-min, Jan Vertonghen and Fernando Llorente gave them a comfortable lead to take back to Germany in three weeks time.

Son was absolutely electric as always, and Mauricio Pochettino’s side were quite superb in the second half.

Roberto Firmino has thrown a party themed around the colour of his teeth! Watch the video below to find out what we’re talking about…

It wasn’t all plain sailing despite what the result suggests though, and Liverpool fans liked what they saw from Sancho, who dominated the first half.

Tottenham had Vertonghen at left wing-back, and the 18 year-old Englishman made the Belgian’s life miserable in the first 45 minutes.

The ex-Manchester City teenager, who has seven goals and nine assists in 21 Bundesliga appearances so far this season, made one key pass and completed three dribbles, and he may have had a tap-in if Christian Pulisic had squared his chance in the first half.

Jurgen Klopp is one of the best in the business at nurturing young, attack-minded talent, and fans are urging the Reds to splash the big bucks on Sancho this summer…

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Following the devastating 2-1 home defeat by Cardiff City last time out that saw Southampton slip into the relegation zone, the need to pick up points regularly from here on in has become even more of a priority – they can do exactly that if Ralph Hasenhuttl makes a risky call at Arsenal on Sunday.

On the chalkboard

Well, despite favouring a 4-2-2-2 formation at the previous clubs he has managed, the Austrian has had to adapt to the situation the clubs finds itself in and the players he has at his disposal at St Mary’s, and  he has often favoured either a 3-4-2-1 or 3-5-1-1 system.

However, while it may have made them sturdier at the back – on paper at least – they haven’t looked great from an attacking point of view, which hasn’t been helped by regular injury issues for Danny Ings and Michael Obafemi.

The latter was pictured in training during the training camp in Tenerife however and may well be in contention to start at the Emirates Stadium, which presents Hasenhuttl with a big opportunity.

What should he do?

Normally a five-at-the-back formation for a tough-looking trip to north London would make sense, but Unai Emery’s men have shown time and time again that they are there to be got at defensively with players like Shkodran Mustafi prone to errors and lack of concentration.

By lining up with a 4-2-2-2 formation – something the 51-year-old Saints boss was surely working with his players on during the break in the Canary Islands – he could utilise the pace, pressing and never-say-die attitude of Obafemi and Shane Long to really put the hosts’ defence under pressure.

Arsenal have the players to hurt Southampton at the other end, so it makes sense to give them a big problem to think about in their weak spot.

With Redmond on one wing and potentially Stuart Armstrong on the other, they would have a better chance of sneaking a positive result.

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In Rangers’ recent 4-2 win over Aberdeen, star man Alfredo Morelos hit a first-half double which turned out to be the difference between one point and three for Steven Gerrard’s men.

However, he picked up yet another straight red card, which will have been certain to leave a bitter taste in the Gers supporters and his manager’s mouth despite the result.

Staggeringly, the Colombian international’s dismissal was his fourth of the season so far, and it goes without saying that Morelos has a few disciplinary problems that are costing his teammates dearly, as Chris Sutton has also suggested – Rangers have won just once from the six games that the 22-year-old has been absent for through suspension.

“I blame Morelos for Rangers’ season and where they’re languishing. Steven Gerrard says ‘we are here to win trophies’ but why did they get knocked out of the League Cup? Morelos wasn’t playing in the semi final.

“You look yesterday, you look against Dundee, you look at other games against Aberdeen this season where he has been sent off twice and that’s nine points they have dropped with no Morelos.

“The influence he has on the field is great for Rangers but he can’t control himself. That’s the reason Rangers are where they are – he has let his manager down.”

Undoubtedly, Morelos is a fans’ favourite at Ibrox thanks to his full-blooded displays and impressive knack of finding the back of the net, although there comes a time when his determination to get stuck in and assert himself crosses a line in terms of his professionalism.

His value to the team is clear – Morelos has scored 21 goals across all competitions so far this season, and Rangers wouldn’t be where they are in the table without him.

On the flip side, he has also cost them the chance to be better placed. Morelos’ temper cost him his place in the Scottish Cup semi-final, a game that Rangers lost to Aberdeen that they would’ve had a much better chance of winning with him on the pitch.

This may be unpopular, but it is definitely worth cashing in on a troublesome player who would certainly bring in a significant amount of money, and then look to reinvest that in a squad that is lacking a match winner aside from the young forward.

Second choice keeper Wes Foderingham looks set to leave in search of first team football, whilst first choice stopper Allan McGregor is 37 years of age and will surely need replacing soon.

It has been suggested that the Scottish giants are ‘spending money they don’t have’, and if that is the case, a large income from a player sale will be needed to fund an overhaul of a squad lacking top-class ability and one miles off the quality of table-topping Celtic – the Bhoys are now eight points clear of the Gers as a result of Morelos’ failure to behave himself and be available for the big games.

As previously mentioned, it won’t be a popular departure from Ibrox, but Rangers would be better placed cashing in on the temperamental Colombian forward and spending that money on reinforcing the team.

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Ahmed Elmohamady is likely to be handed the right-back spot at Aston Villa for the remainder of the season with Alan Hutton suffering a knee injury in the early stages of Saturday’s 1-1 draw with Stoke City at the Bet365 Stadium.

What’s the situation?

Hutton is facing a lengthy lay-off after suffering a knee injury just three minutes into the league match with Stoke at the weekend.

Villa are yet to learn the extent of the problem, but the Birmingham Mail have claimed that the defender could be facing a long spell on the sidelines.

The fact that Hutton will see his contract with Villa expire this summer means that he may well have made his last appearance for the club.

Villa’s main focus for now, however, will be on choosing a replacement for the 34-year-old, who has worn the captain’s armband in recent weeks and has put in a string of impressive performances.

It seems likely that Elmohamady will be handed the right-back spot, despite the fact that he has not operated in that position since the turn of the year.

How has Elmohamady performed this season?

Elmohamady started the clash with Stoke on the right of midfield, which has been the case in Villa’s last three Championship matches.

The Egyptian is no stranger to playing right-back, though, having operated in that position throughout December.

In 27 Championship appearances this season, Elmohamady has contributed two goals and four assists.

The 6ft ace is not the most creative of wide midfielders, but his work-rate and commitment to the cause simply cannot be called into question.

The initial signs when it comes to Hutton are not great, but Elmohamady will be looking to profit as he moves back into his best position with Villa desperately requiring a strong run of form if they are to make the top six.

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Leicester City tasted defeat in their first game under new manager Brendan Rodgers on Sunday.

The Foxes lost 2-1 to Watford at Vicarage Road, with striker Andre Gray scoring the winner in the final throes of injury time.

The loss was Leicester’s fourth in their last five games, their only success coming against Brighton & Hove Albion last week.

Rodgers’ men appeared to have earned a point against the Hornets, with experienced star Jamie Vardy cancelling out Troy Deeney’s fifth-minute opener.

However, their bad luck under Claude Puel appears to have followed Rodgers to the King Power Stadium, as a defeat was snatched from the jaws of a draw.

Foxes fans were understandably ticked off about the result but many do not expect the appointment of the former Liverpool and Celtic manager to be a quick fix.

Take a look at some of the best of the reaction on Twitter below!

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Everton fans on Twitter want ex-player and current Manchester City assistant Mikel Arteta to replace Marco Silva as manager at Goodison Park, with the former Hull City boss having underperformed in his first season at the club so far.

Just eight matches of the 2018/2019 campaign remain and the Toffees are down in 11th place in the Premier League far from where they want to be – a full seven points off Wolverhampton Wanderers in the final possible European spot. Furthermore, they are out of the FA Cup and also exited the Carabao Cup in an early round.

This poor term to date has caused some supporters to call for the head of Silva, in spite of him being in the job under a year, and the latest Twitter cries for someone to replace him came after a Tweet from Everton’s official account, reminiscing about a famous UEFA Cup goal.

Arteta plied his trade at Goodison for six years between 2005 and 2011 before moving to Arsenal. His 209 appearances and 39 goals make him a firm fan favourite even to this day with fans calling for him to be brought home and demanding that the 36-year-old be made manager.

Clearly, Everton fans want change. Check out some of the best Tweets from Toffees supporters pining to see Arteta return to Merseyside below…

Aston Villa have been in superb form in recent weeks.

Dean Smith’s side have won three games on the bounce in the Championship and are now just two points behind Derby County who currently occupy the final play-off position.

The likes of John McGinn and Jack Grealish have delivered brilliant individual performances in victories over Nottingham Forest and Birmingham City whilst defensively they have improved considerably since their 2-0 loss to West Bromwich Albion.

Whereas as the majority of players at the club have only produced on sporadic occasions this season, the one constant has been the form demonstrated by Chelsea loanee Tammy Abraham.

With 21 goals in 31 league games, the forward is the joint-third top-scorer in the second tier and without his firepower Villa would be nowhere near the play-offs at all and therefore be facing a fourth consecutive season away from the Premier League.

Yet with Abraham leading the line, they still have a realistic chance of achieving promotion via a trip to Wembley Stadium in May if they finish in the top six.

If the club do find themselves back in the top flight of English football for the 2019/20 season they will receive a significant windfall of money which they could spend on purchasing the 21 year-old striker on a permanent deal from Chelsea.

However, if they do decide to buy Abraham they could be making a costly mistake.

The England under-21 international has yet to prove himself in the Premier League and was largely ineffective whilst on loan at Swansea last season, scoring just five goals in 31 games as the Jacks were relegated to the Championship.

Furthermore, when you consider that he produced similar stats (23 goals in 41 appearances) during his time at Bristol City in the second tier, it can be argued that he is very good at this particular level but not yet good enough to compete with England’s elite.

Abraham is far from the only example of a player who thrives in the Championship but struggles to adapt to the pace and physicality of the Premier League. Dwight Gayle was an integral part of the Newcastle United side which achieved promotion in 2017, scoring 23 goals yet last season he only managed to bag six for Rafael Benitez’s side.

Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon and Cardiff City’s Callum Peterson both enjoyed impressive campaigns last year but have yet to replicate their form in the Premier League, scoring just six goals between them in a combined total of 54 games.

Although it is naive to completely write off Abraham’s capabilities for the future giving that he is still developing as a striker, he is arguably too inexperienced to carry the hopes and expectations of Villa supporters next season if they achieve promotion. It would therefore be wiser if the NSWE group would invest their money in a forward who has a track-record of producing when it matters in the Premier League.

What do you think Villa fans? Should your club sign Abraham on a permanent deal if you get promoted? Who else do you think Smith should target in the summer? Let us know below.