All posts by n8rngtd.top

Tottenham Hotspur slipped to a second Premier League defeat in five days earlier this afternoon.Jose Mourinho’s struggling side were well-beaten by Leicester City in north London as they sunk six points adrift of the league leaders.Jamie Vardy opened the scoring for the visitors from the spot after Serge Aurier brought down Wesley Fofana on the stroke of half-time before Toby Alderweireld made matters worse by turning the ball into his own net on the hour mark.Both Serge Aurier and Moussa Sissoko were the key disappointments from a Spurs perspective, but so was Eric Dier, who is usually a player that the ‘Special One’ has been able to hugely rely on this term.Journalist Alasdair Gold was particularly critical in his post-match ratings for football.london, grading his performance a five out of ten, he said:”Would have been caught out for Maddison’s ruled-out goal. Again some really sloppy moments in possession and dithering on the ball, including gifting Leicester a chance late on.”Indeed the England colossus, who earns around £85k-per-week in N17, was wasteful to the point of costing Spurs dearly.The 26-year-old lost possession a whopping 24 times, which was more than any other player on the pitch, via SofaScore.Dier also made just 75% of his 92 passes, had 103 touches without any positive influence, and made just three of 14 of his 12 long ball attempts (21%) – that practically handed the possession back to the Foxes.Despite Brendan Rodgers’s side registering 12 of their 17 shots from inside the box, the long-serving Spurs defender could only muster up one tackle and two blocks all game.The £27m-rated powerhouse truly let his manager down, especially as he struggled to thwart a player he should know all too well in Jamie Vardy.

Dier was rather lucky that it was only a two-goal defeat, as had James Maddison’s finish counted, the spotlight would quite rightly have been thrust onto him, instead of Sissoko, Aurier or even Alderweireld.

He was abysmal today.

AND in other news,ÂSpurs exclusive: Pundit baffled by latest contract update…

Former Scotland international Alan Hutton believes that Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths could make the difference in the Old Firm clash against Rangers.

Griffiths is a key piece of Bhoys puzzle

The two sides will lock horns once more at Ibrox just after the New Year and all eyes have been on the Bhoys’ poor start to the 2020/21 campaign.

After winning the quadruple-treble, Neil Lennon’s side have hit a run of form having gone undefeated in their last seven matches in all competitions.

Celtic’s number nine, Griffiths, has played a huge part in this, having scored twice in his side’s last three Scottish Premiership encounters (Whoscored).

As a result, Hutton believes that this could play into the hands of the green half of Glasgow.

“Their form has turned. They’re hitting the heights at the right time,” he told Football Insider.

“If you see some of the movement for some of the goals in recent games, it’s been between those two boys [Griffiths and Edouard], so they seem to be clicking at the right moment.

“I’ve been very impressed. I’ve spoken throughout the season about what a miss Griffiths has been. He’s a great goalscorer, he’s that guy who, who normally only needs one or two opportunities before he scores a goal.”

Transfer Tavern Verdict

The old saying goes, the form book goes out of the window going into a huge game such as this one.

With their arch-rivals sitting 16 points clear with three games in hand, getting a victory here could be a huge momentum shift in terms of this season’s league title.

Because of this, Hutton is spot on. Griffiths has hit form just at the right time and the motivation of securing 10-in-a-row will be ringing in his ears. The Scot will not need reminding.

In other news, Celtic receive potential transfer boost in pursuit of ‘excellent’ young star.

Glasgow Rangers eased to a 2-1 win over Aberdeen on Sunday to move 22 points clear at the top of the Premiership table, but the fans were far from happy with a tweet from pundit Michael Stewart.

The Gers started the game poorly, but they were given a fantastic opportunity when Ryan Hedges was sent off for a foul on Alfredo Morelos. James Tavernier missed the resulting penalty, but Morelos scored either side of half-time to put the Ibrox outfit in total control. Matthew Kennedy did pull one back for the Dons, but it was not enough.

While Hedges did receive his marching orders in the first-half, Curtis Main was arguably lucky to stay on the pitch after a high tackle on Borna Barisic. Stewart, though, was adamant it wasn’t a red card – which only infuriated the Gers supporters.

They took to Twitter to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say to Stewart below

“Former footballer, former scribbler. You’re an actual embarrassment.”

Credit: @GingerMammoth1

“You are an absolute embarrassment and it’s so obvious your hate towards Rangers is unreal!! Red card anywhere on the pitch and in the world, you’re as good a pundit as you were a pretend footballer. Fraud”

Credit: @JuniorC1872

“Absolute rubbish.”

Credit: @Acloserlook1993

“Joke of a pundit and a player. Embarrassing man”

Credit: @carlbruce86

“Are you that serious bitter? Red card all day long.. high, studs showing, forceful.”

Credit: @DrewMcc07

“Utterly clueless”

Credit: @bluewatch51

In other news, Rangers fans hammered this journalist’s comments.

With their prospects of an unbelievable 10-in-a-row in the Scottish Premiership looking bleaker than ever before, Celtic will be searching for crumbs of comfort over these coming months.

Neil Lennon’s side just need to hit the reset button and plan a rebuild, and the one thing that can always help is blooding some fresh, young talent.

The Hoops were forced into doing that last time out against Hibernian, with the likes of Stephen Welsh and Cameron Harper both getting an opportunity to start from the off.

And whilst Harper fluffed his lines on the day – he finished with the lowest match rating of any player on the pitch as per Sofascore (6.1) and couldn’t get involved in the game with just 30 total touches (no Celtic outfield player who started the game had less) – a second chance should be handed out to the 19-year-old.

The young American started the game up front against Hibs, but he can play on either flank too, and that can give Lennon an extra attacking weapon in the years to come.

In fact, sources have told The Athletic that “both Neil Lennon and the first-team core have been impressed by Harper’s work rate and technical quality in training”, showing how highly-rated he is behind the scenes.

And Harper hasn’t just been impressing those at club level either, with his coach for the USA U20s, Anthony Hudson, saying: “He’s different. You don’t normally get out-and-out wingers, players that really love to get down the outside and beat defenders and put crosses in, and he’s got the quality to be able to do it. He loves doing it.

“Not only has he got quality, but also he’s a great kid. He’s incredibly determined, incredibly focused. There’s something different about him.”

And that temperament is exactly what will be required for the rest of this season as Celtic scramble around for some positives to take away from what has been a horrible and difficult campaign.

If Harper can prove his worth amid these trying times, then the Hoops will know they’ve got someone for the future who they can actually rely upon when the going gets tough.

So whilst he did have a disappointing display against Hibs, Lennon should consider giving Harper another chance over these coming weeks and months so that one bad game doesn’t play on his mind for too long.

One bad performance doesn’t make a player, and certainly not a young one at that and before the Scottish Premiership season is over, Harper needs to have been given a proper opportunity to shine over a longer period of games.

Celtic have been linked to a number of fresh faces this month as the January transfer window continues to deliver its promise of exciting rumours and updates. The holding Premiership champions are in desperate need of bolstering their squad after 2020/21 proved to be highly unkind to them.

With an early exit from the Europa League and next to no chance of catching up to Rangers in the Premiership, Peter Lawwell and his team must shift focus to next season. The Hoops will not be able to bounce back from this disappointing campaign without a haul of new recruits.

One player who Celtic have been linked to is rising Sheffield Wednesday star Liam Shaw. According to Joe Crann of the Sheffield Star, the interest shown from the Glaswegians is very genuine but no official talks have yet been held between the two parties.

Would Shaw fit in at Celtic?

Whether Neil Lennon remains at Parkhead for the upcoming season remains to be seen. But nothing can take away his contribution to the development of summer signing David Turnbull. The former Motherwell midfielder has blossomed into a player that Celtic truly rely on in their engine room.

The 21-year-old had to wait until October for his first senior start for his new club, but since then he hasn’t turned back. Turnbull has been a leading force in Lennon’s midfield, contributing six goals and three assists across all competitions so far this season, as per Transfermarkt.

With Lennon taking a chance on Turnbull despite having more senior players like Scott Brown on his books proves he is eager to develop those in transition to the first team. History could repeat itself if Celtic sign Shaw, who is showing promise in his performances for Wednesday.

The 19-year-old popped up with a crucial goal against Middlesbrough at the end of December, helping the Owls bank a vital three points with 2-1 win. Shaw has also proven he can play both in midfield and at centre-back, which is a huge plus for Celtic who are also struggling in defence.

The teenager is currently on a £500 per week contract, which will be very attractive to Lawwell, as it means he won’t have to shell out big bucks to entice him to make the move.

In other news, Carlton Palmer believes Benitez would be good coup for Celtic…

Ed Woodward must cash in on AC Milan’s interest in Manchester United’s Diogo Dalot as he has fallen out of favour under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer at Old Trafford.

What’s the word?

Reports have emerged over the past week that Norwich City starlet Max Aarons finds himself on the Red Devils’ radar.

Solskjaer himself is reportedly eyeing a move for the Canaries defender as he seeks cover and competition for first-choice right-back Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

And such a move could push Dalot closer towards the Old Trafford exit door, with the Portugal U21 international currently on loan at AC Milan.

Get rid

While it is noted the Red Devils are yet to reach a decision on Dalot’s future amid the Rossoneri’s interest in signing him in a £15m deal, Woodward must accept that the time is right to give the right-back the boot once and for all as he will never be the perfect backup to Wan-Bissaka.

Solskjaer has shown throughout his time at Old Trafford that he doesn’t think much of Dalot’s talents as he has been constantly overlooked by the club legend, having made just 29 appearances across all competitions in the past three seasons alone.

The Norwegian manager has even restored to fielding the likes of Axel Tuanzebe and Timothy Fosu-Mensah at right-back at times this season whilst Dalot himself has been shipped out the door.

It’s no surprise then that Solskjaer has been linked with a number of replacements after deciding to use the winter transfer window to find an alternative to Wan-Bissaka, with Aarons and Atletico Madrid’s Kieran Trippier among the names mentioned.

Dalot faces a difficult road back to Old Trafford, and AC Milan’s firm interest in the loan signing could be their best bet of getting him off their books for a reasonable fee.

AND in other news, Manchester United handed huge Jadon Sancho boost as Dortmund reduce demands…

Many Crystal Palace fans are reacting to a tweet which shows that striker Connor Wickham looks to be back in training following a recent injury.

Twitter account @cpfc_xtra posted pictures which showed the Englishman back on the training pitch, and this has been a rare site recently.

It hasn’t gone exactly to plan at Selhurst Park but the forward showed promise before his move to the club as he had featured in the past for the England under-21 side, for whom he scored six goals in 17 appearances.

Wickham’s biggest issue is his injuries. He has eleven goals for the South London side but he has missed at least 96 games in total due to injury, with a cruciate ligament rupture causing him to miss 470 days of football at one point (Transfermarkt).

When he has been fit, the 27-year-old has made 50 appearances for Palace in all competitions, which is not a lot bearing in mind he has been at the club for five years. His scoring tally is not great either as he has only managed 11 goals for the Eagles.

Here is how Palace fans reacted to the photos:

“I give him one week back in training then he’ll be injured for the 1,000th time since he’s been at the club”

Credit: @Phil_Sampson46

“Would genuinely love for him to get a new contract, reckon he’s still got a lot to give”

Credit: @danpaulwastaken

“He’ll probably pull a muscle signing his contract extension! Even if he is on his way back, it won’t last. I really feel for him with his injury record but he surely can’t be allowed to stay beyond this season. Best wishes to him for the future.”

Credit: @danielskipsey

“Zero excitement about this, be injured again soon, probably twist his ankle in the snow”

Credit: @Parker_316

“He will not get in the side”

Credit: @NaikAmul

“Groundhog Day…”

Credit: @Inked_Eagle

In other Palace news, have a read of a bizarre statistic about the club which fans aren’t happy with here!

Many Crystal Palace fans are reacting to the latest update on the future of current manager Roy Hodgson, as reports suggest he might not leave at the end of the season.

According to TEAMtalk and tweeted out by @cpfc_xtra, Crystal Palace remain open to the idea of Roy Hodgson staying on for another season, although the interest in the job has never been higher.

Hodgson’s contract was due to run out at the end of last season, but the club extended it by a further year. Now, with only a few months left until that deal expires, his future has been getting discussed a lot in the media.

The 73-year-old has been at the club since September 2017 and has taken charge of 148 matches (Transfermarkt). In these games, he has managed 1.24 points per game and has kept the South London side comfortably in the division. Clearly many have respected his time at the club, with one calling him a ‘class act’.

However, the Eagles’ form recently has been far from impressive. A Hodgson side is typically known for its stern defence, but this campaign they have only managed four clean sheets. They have also only won three games in the last fourteen and this emphasises that the manager has struggled this season.

Here is how Palace fans reacted to the news:

“I don’t know how I’ll cope if this happens”

Credit: @BMCPFC

“Can’t keep watching this boring rubbish football we pay money to be entertained and were not”

Credit: @MarkDre44138040

“I’ll give up if that happens.”

Credit: @Swanny_32

“I haven’t even got the energy for this right now”

Credit: Machutuck

“If they do then I’m not watching one game till he’s sacked”

Credit: @cpfcjj89

“Think Parish might just be the only Palace fan who wants Roy to stay on.”

Credit: @Nyerider

In other news, CPFC fans were fuming at one-star during a recent loss. Have a read who it was here!

With Neil Lennon out of the picture at Parkhead, Celtic have been putting the feelers out for their new permanent manager. Assistant head coach John Kennedy will stand in as interim manager for the time being, but big names are being linked to the Scottish giants.

Heavyweights like Roberto Martinez and Rafael Benitez have been discussed, along with the still fairly new Frank Lampard and Thierry Henry. However, one man who makes a lot of sense is current Scotland manager Steve Clarke.

Bookmakers are all over this situation right now and many have tipped the 57-year-old as the shock favourite to take the job at Celtic, according to the Glasgow Times. Should these rumours come to fruition, his appointment could hugely benefit one man in particular and that’s Scotland international Leigh Griffiths.

Steve Clarke appointment could help Leigh Griffiths

The 30-year-old Celtic veteran slipped heavily down the pecking order this season under Lennon. Things started to turn bleak for Griffiths when the former boss slammed him for returning to camp out of fitness and “overweight”. He has made just 16 appearances out of a potential 30 this campaign and was part of the starting lineup on only seven occasions, as per Transfermarkt.

Lennon opted to start the likes of Albian Ajeti, Mohamed Elyounoussi and even Ryan Christie alongside Odsonne Edouard over the Scottish striker. His lack of game time will have undoubtedly knocked his confidence, but Clarke could help resurrect this if he joins the Glaswegians.

The Scotland manager named Griffiths as part of his international team which secured an emphatic and historical qualification into the European Championships, so Clarke clearly sees something in the Edinburgh-born striker that. perhaps, Lennon did not.

If he takes the move to Celtic Park, he could work closely with Griffiths and potentially guarantee him more time on the pitch both domestically and internationally.

This would not only benefit Griffiths but equally the club. He recently spoke out about wanting to make it into the top 20 highest scorers for the Bhoys, which shows his passion and determination.

Equally, if Edouard leaves, Celtic will need a tried, tested and reliable man to operate at the forefront of the attack. Griffiths may well be the man for the job still, under the right manager.

In other news, Dean Windass makes claim over Odsonne Eduard future under potential new Celtic manager…

Former Celtic player Kris Commons has accused the club’s board of ‘twiddling their thumbs’ after their city rivals secured the Premiership title on Sunday.

The Hoops’ run of nine consecutive crowns was officially ended as they were held to a goalless draw by Dundee United at Tannadice, their last lingering hopes of a historic 10-in-a-row banished for good.

The club are currently without a full-time manager after Neil Lennon’s departure, with John Kennedy taking over in the interim.

Commons says Celtic rebuild ‘should already be underway’

Commons fears that the Celtic board are dithering, potentially handing their arch-rivals Rangers a lasting advantage.

“It’s nearly a fortnight since Neil Lennon left Celtic. Yet we still don’t know who the next permanent manager might be,” he told the print edition of the Scottish Daily Mail (via 67 Hail Hail).

“The silence from the boardroom is deafening. The rebuild has to start now. In fact, it should already be underway.

“The longer Celtic sit twiddling their thumbs, the more they risk being behind the eight-ball by the time next season comes around – and handing Rangers an advantage right from the start.”

Transfer Tavern Verdict

For Celtic, this season has long had the feel of a write-off. Rangers are a full 20 points clear of the Hoops after 32 matches and have not lost a league game all season.

Unlike their city rivals, the Parkhead side failed to progress to the knockout stages of the Europa League and the gap in the table has grown enormously. The Scottish Cup, which resumes this month, is their only chance of consolatory silverware.

With that in mind, there isn’t necessarily a need for Celtic to rush when it comes to appointing their new coach. They can afford to take time to comprehensively scrutinise the pool of candidates and pursue the more ambitious targets.

However, what Commons is really calling for is more transparency, and some reason to be optimistic about the future – and that is sorely needed after a wretched season.

In other news, Danny Mills tips Celtic to utilise this player next season.