All posts by h716a5.icu

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The Mirror reported on Sunday that Southampton are looking to sign Birmingham City attacker Che Adams before Thursday’s transfer deadline, as backed up by The Daily Echo on Monday, and Saints fans have been quick to react to the rumour.

Despite sending out the likes of Steven Davis, Manolo Gabbiadini, Wesley Hoedt and Cedric Soares already this month, Ralph Hasehuttl is yet to sign a player for the south coast outfit, although it appears as though Adams is a target.

The Daily Echo report that the prolific 22-year-old, who has scored 14 goals in 30 appearances in all competitions for the Championship club this season, as per Transfermarkt, is valued at around £10m, and his arrival would potentially see Charlie Austin leave before the window slams shut.

Should Adams arrive at St Mary’s he would likely be competing with the likes of Danny Ings, Nathan Redmond and Stuart Armstrong for an attacking spot in Hasenhuttl’s preferred 3-4-2-1 system to date, although he could also play up top with Ings in the 4-2-2-2 formation that the Austrian has preferred to use with his previous clubs in the past, according to Transfermarkt.

Southampton supporters have taken to social media to give their thoughts on the link with the former Sheffield United forward, and while one said “this would be a massive steal”, another simply said “love it”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Check out the video below for Emma Conybeare’s rundown of which clubs need what in the January transfer window…

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Aston Villa are desperate to sign Newcastle United’s Isaac Hayden before the transfer deadline, according to the Birmingham Mail.

The club are reportedly hoping to sign three players before the end of the transfer window and have made Hayden their top priority.

What’s the word?

Hayden is keen to leave Newcastle this month, according to the Birmingham Mail.

They quote him as saying, at the weekend: “The clubs that are interested in me are waiting, and the clubs that I want to go to are waiting.

“It’s just a case of whether Newcastle say: ‘Yeah, you can go’. If they say that, I can go. That’s where it is really.”

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

Villa are keen to bring in a number of players, as per the Birmingham Mail, before Thursday’s deadline, but Hayden is their top target and contact has been made between the two parties.

Newcastle have so far refused to sell the defensive-minded midfielder but he could be allowed to leave if the Magpies are able to sign a replacement; they are closing in on signing Andreas Samaris, according to Sky Sports.

West Bromwich Albion are also said to be interested, but the Birmingham Mail claim that the Villans are at the front of the queue to secure his signature.

Shore up leaky defence

Villa have struggled to keep clean sheets this season.

They are currently four points adrift of sixth-placed Derby County in the play-offs.

However, they have conceded 46 goals thus far this season, with only Rotherham (48) and rock-bottom Ipswich Town (50) letting in more.

Hayden, though, would go a long way to remedying the issue.

He is a defensive-minded midfielder and he has the ability to get stuck in without picking up too many cards.

Bringing him in is a logical move and will help Villa fix one of their biggest problems: conceding goals.

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Crystal Palace completed the loan signing of Chelsea’s Michy Batshuayi on deadline day, keeping Palace fans up until the early hours of the morning to hear the news that the deal had crossed the line. The striker massively boosts their survival hopes to the point where relegation looks almost impossible, but how did they manage this coup?

What’s the word?

Well, The Sun reports that the Eagles only paid Chelsea around £1m, while Spurs and West Ham, who were both in dire need of reinforcements up front themselves, were quoted £8m and £4m respectively.

Palace boss Roy Hodgson believes that the good relationship between the two clubs paid a huge part in the success of their move for Batshuayi; Frank de Boer took Ruben Loftus-Cheek on loan from the Blues while he was still at the Selhurst Park helm last season and the midfielder was hugely impressive.

The 23-year-old’s value surely sky-rocketed considering the performances he put in when given considerable game-time and therefore, as Hodgson puts it, Palace put a lot of money into Chelsea’s pocket. This bodes well for any future dealings they may wish to do with their London neighbours.

Michy may stay?

The Daily Mail reported last month that Everton were keen on signing Belgian Batshuayi after Chelsea recalled him from a disappointing loan spell at Valencia and were keen on a permanent deal, considering they had already secured the temporary services of Kurt Zouma in the summer (Premier League rules state that a club may only loan one player from another at one time).

However, Chelsea’s likely astronomical valuation was surely a sticking point for the Toffees, who were beaten to the hitman’s signature by Palace, who will now be hoping he can fire them to safety – or even the top half – in his six months at Selhurst Park.

The Eagles were unable to keep Loftus-Cheek at the club beyond his loan spell and will surely not want to repeat that failure with Batshuayi – could their positive relationship with the Stamford Bridge outfit mean they might be able to negotiate a cut-price deal in the summer for their new number 23 and thus give themselves a huge upper hand in what will surely be another race for his signature?

Which player with “no potential” has just been named Crystal Palace’s worst ever January signing? Find out in the video below…

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Aston Villa host bitter Midlands rivals West Brom at Villa Park on Saturday. Dean Smith will be keen to see his side get back to winning ways having been defeated by his former club Brentford last time out.

The home advantage may give the Villans a boost, but the Baggies will still fancy their chances of getting a positive result. Villa’s best chance is to target the Baggies’ weak point – the middle of the park.

Bolton edged closer to the Championship drop zone with defeat at home to Preston on Saturday. Check out Thogden’s matchday vlog below…

The likes of Gareth Barry and James Morrison – should either be selected in the starting XI – offer plenty of technical quality but they lack pace and mobility. Smith could select a midfield unit capable of outrunning West Brom’s. 

Players such as John McGinn, Conor Hourihane and Tom Carroll have the physical attributes to overrun and outmanoeuvre their midfield opponents. By bringing this extra pace and energy to the middle of the park, Villa give themselves their best chance of taking all three points on Saturday.

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According to The Sun, Bayern Munich are readying a £40m bid for Crystal Palace’s Aaron Wan-Bissaka as they look to become the next German club to lure a young, English star across the channel. Could the Eagles sell?

What’s the word?

Well, The Sun reports that the Bundesliga champions have added the 21-year-old to their summer wish-list, on which he will join Chelsea starlet Callum Hudson-Odoi, whom the Bavarian outfit tried to sign in January.

The Palace right-back is having an excellent season and has been, by far and away, the Selhurst Park outfit’s best player having ousted Joel Ward from the starting lineup.

With other big clubs surely interested in acquiring his signature, there could be a real battle for his services in the summer and Palace may be forced to accept if the eye-watering figure mentioned is accurate.

The Sun also understands that Eagles boss Roy Hodgson has already begun preparations and plans for next season and is keen to revamp the ageing squad. Wan-Bissaka is contracted until 2022 and the SE25 outfit will surely be reluctant to let him leave, but could they cash in in order to make some much needed upgrades?

A Palace martyr

Having spent just £9.5m this season – Max Meyer and Vicente Guaita came free, while Michy Bathsuayi and Jordan Ayew are on loans, meaning Cheikhou Kouyate takes up the transfer fees – Palace were one of the lowest spenders in the Premier League.

However, The Sun reports that they could use the Wan-Bissaka money to fund a squad overhaul before the 19/20 season begins. Indeed, the Eagles possess a wealth of experience but have very few players that are yet to reach their ceiling, with Meyer and Wan-Bissaka the only two with real room to grow.

Despite only having made his debut just under a year ago, the number 29 is a firm fan favourite and his departure would be met with outcry from the Selhurst Park faithful. Could he become a martyr in Palace’s quest to escape season after season of relegation battles?

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

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Loads of Wolves fans have been reacting to a big update from the club, as Romain Saiss has signed a new contract at Molineux.

Saiss has penned a new deal that will keep him at the club until 2021, the club confirmed on Thursday.

The 28 year-old, who joined from French outfit Angers in 2016, was a crucial part of last season’s promotion campaign, and he has been no slouch this term either.

With Wolves sitting pretty in seventh place in the Premier League – perhaps what some may call “the best of the rest” – the 27-cap Morocco international has featured 13 times in the league, scoring twice, and also made five cup appearances.

Similarly to talisman Conor Coady, Saiss can play in various positions in midfield and defence, and his toughness, professionalism and versatility make him a very useful player to have around the squad.

Fans are delighted with the news, and you can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

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Mark Lawrenson has told BBC Sport that he believes that the reason Everton have struggled so much in recent months is down to the last-gasp 1-0 defeat they suffered in the Merseyside derby against Liverpool in December, ahead of the reverse fixture at Goodison Park on Sunday.

What’s the word, then?

Well, the Toffees went into the clash against Jurgen Klopp’s men last year in sixth position, eight points adrift from the top four and above Manchester United on goal difference.

They were high in confidence and would have fancied their chances of taking something at Anfield, and they almost did before Jordan Pickford’s mistake led to Divock Origi’s 96th-minute winner.

Since then, Marco Silva’s men have only taken 14 points from their 14 Premier League fixtures – including three in the 3-0 win against Cardiff City during the week – and lie in ninth position, 20 points from the Champions League qualification spots and significantly closer to the relegation zone than they are to sixth-placed Chelsea.

Lawrenson feels the lost against their local neighbours had a big part to play, telling BBC Sport: “I was at Anfield when Liverpool beat Everton in November as Jordan Pickford’s injury-time error let in Divock Origi for the winner.

“Everton had played really well, from front to back. They created some really good chances but lost because of a piece of bad luck, and there is an argument that result has seriously affected their season.”

Is he right?

The evidence is pretty damning, and Everton certainly haven’t been the same since that moment.

Considering the money they have spent and some of the players they have at their disposal, the fact that they have lost eight of their previous 12 top-flight fixtures is unacceptable, and it is fortunate that they started the campaign well otherwise they would be in big trouble right now.

Home advantage and the motivation to cost Liverpool in the title race means the Sunday clash will be intriguing though, with Lawrenson tipping the hosts to take a point.

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On March 4th Bradford City appointed Gary Bowyer as their new manager, on an initial agreement until the end of the season. The 47-year-old took the place of David Hopkin, who stood down as Bantams boss in February. 

The new man is stepping into a difficult situation at Valley Parade, as Bradford are currently mired in the League One relegation zone. However, Bowyer faced tough tests in the past during his time in charge of Blackpool and Blackburn Rovers, and clearly believes he has what it takes to guide the club out of trouble.

What he said

As quoted by the official Bradford website, Bowyer said: “I wouldn’t be here if I didn’t believe I could keep this club in League One.”

There’s still hope for Bradford. They’ve not been cut completely adrift from safety and survival remains a genuine possibility, especially considering they have 11 league games left to play. However, performances have been incredibly lacklustre recently and they are without a win in their last eight outings.

Bowyer certainly needs to inject some cohesion and confidence into the squad. If he does keep them up then he will certainly deserve to have his stay at Valley Parade extended beyond the end of the current campaign.

West Ham United suffered a rather disappointing 2-0 defeat at Cardiff City on Saturday afternoon, which saw the Hammers struggle to work their magic in front of goal, ultimately failing to create any worthy goal scoring opportunities.

The result, however, also emphasised that midfielder Manuel Lanzini still has a lot of work to do to get back to his best following his long injury layoff, which only saw him make his first appearance of the campaign against Fulham at the end of February.

Since then, manager Manuel Pellegrini has tried to ease the 26-year-old back into the team, starting him in their previous two matches.

But, it was evident on Saturday that Lanzini has to get used to playing in a team environment again and will need to adapt as soon as possible to the type of game Pellegrini wants him to play.

Of course, the only way for a player who was out for such a long period of time to get back into the thick of the action is to play and get as many minutes under the belt as possible.

However, he will need to work closely with the manager at the training ground to get the full grip of tactics that Pellegrini wants to implement in the team.

Lanzini started in the centre of the midfield, next to captain Mark Noble on Saturday, but was replaced in the 58th minute of the match, shortly after Cardiff scored their second goal.

Michail Antonio was the man who replaced him as Pellegrini clearly felt Lanzini wasn’t being creative or effective enough for his team to get on the score-sheet.

The manager also threw on Samir Nasri for Noble at the same time, trying to be more attacking but it was all in vain as Neil Warnock’s men hung on for the remainder of the match.

Pellegrini will now have a difficult task in deciding how he is going to use Lanzini for the final stages of the season in order to get the best outcome for both the player and the club.

West Ham welcome Huddersfield Town to the London Stadium this coming Saturday and their fans will expect them to not have a lot of troubles seeing off the Terriers.

West Ham fans, do you think Manuel Lanzini will ever get back to his best? Join the discussion by commenting below… 

Sheffield Wednesday have yet to taste defeat in the Championship since Steve Bruce took charge at Hillsborough, a run that has stretched back to January and includes 11 games.

During that run Wednesday have kept a superb seven clean sheets, thanks in no small part, to goalkeeper Keiren Westwood, who has played in every game since Bruce’s arrival.

The keeper, who has had spells at Manchester City and Sunderland on his CV, is “delighted” at his form and says there has been a “great turnaround” at the club in 2019.

He told the Sheffield Star: It has been a great turnaround and that is credit to everybody at the club,

“I think I have kept nine [clean sheets] from 14 games. I’m delighted. If you were a striker and you scored nine goals in 14 games, you would be absolutely buzzing.”

The Owls’ win at a blustery Bolton on Tuesday means that they now sit just four points off a play-off spot, but still have a number of clubs to overhaul in the remaining weeks of a season in a race that is sure to go down to the wire.

But Westwood’s focus is on the next game — Blackburn Rovers are the visitors to Hillsborough on Saturday — and stressed that all games between now and the end of the season are “massive”.

He said: “We have to keep plugging away. We have another big game on Saturday.

“Every game we have now is massive. If we can manage to get a win at the weekend going into the international break, that would be big.”

“Let’s just get to this international break and see where we are at.”

Certainly, along with fellow play-off chasers Preston, Wednesday are the form team in the Championship, but it is a run that needs to continue if promotion is to be a realistic target.

It would be a fantastic achievement from where the club sat prior to Bruce’s arrival. It cannot be understated the influence the former Manchester United player has had on the squad, and the players are clearly responding.

Whether the Owls can see it all the way through to May is another question, but regardless if they do or not, Bruce has breathed life back into a sleeping giant that was simply treading water beforehand.

What are your thoughts on the impressive run that Wednesday have been on? Are they realistic contenders for a play-off spot now? Let us know your thoughts…