All posts by z3u9t.icu

[ad_pod ]

According to Soccer Link, AC Milan have approached Tottenham Hotspur over a potential move for Serge Aurier before the end of the month.

Aurier’s future has been the subject of speculation over the last week or so with Paris Saint-Germain said to be interested in bringing the defender back to the club.

Now, according to Soccer Link, Milan have approached Spurs to determine whether they would be able to sign the Ivory Coast international on loan with the view to a permanent deal at the end of the 2019-20 campaign.

Tottenham are currently very short at right-back when considering that Kieran Trippier was sold to Atletico Madrid earlier this summer.

Juan Foyth, meanwhile, is currently on the sidelines with an ankle problem, leaving Kyle Walker-Peters as the clear choice in that area of the field.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

The Spurs fans have been on social media reacting to Soccer Link’s report – a selection of which can be seen below:

[ad_pod ]

Rovers had a very tough start to the season. They lost their opening two games against high-flying Charlton Athletic and pre-season promotion hopefuls Fulham, but since then they’ve hit a bit of form.

They’re unbeaten in their last three against some tough sides as they’ve played Middlesbrough, Hull and Cardiff, winning two and drawing one.

They’ve also kept three clean sheets in a row, and while Adarabioyo is buzzing with the performances his new team are putting in, this defensive resilience doesn’t bode well for his first-team ambitions.

If Tony Mowbray’s side continue to be so defensively sound the Man City loanee may find it hard to break into the squad, but at the moment he seems to be happy watching from the touchline as long as his team keep up the good form.

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Tony Cascarino believes that there is “uncertainty” at Tottenham Hotspur, per talkSPORT.

What’s he said?

Spurs have won one, drawn one and lost one of their opening three games of the season, including a dispiriting 1-0 loss to Newcastle United at the weekend.

Mauricio Pochettino opted against starting either Christian Eriksen or Jan Vertonghen at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, with both set to see their contracts expire at the end of the season.

And Cascarino believes that there is too much uncertainty in north London for the club to truly thrive.

He said: “There’s a lot of uncertainty with a lot of players at Spurs. You’ve touched on [Jan] Vertonghen and if you asked any Spurs fan who they believed was their best defender, they would say Vertonghen.

“There’s Kyle Walker-Peters at right back – uncertainty as he’s just got into the team. Hopefully he’ll be a really good player for Spurs.

“Then you look at [Harry] Winks in midfield and I think he’s still got a long way to go.

“And you look at Danny Rose, Eriksen, Vertonghen – even Lucas Moura, who’s starting games and not doing so good but comes on much better.

“I’ve got a real sense that something personal is going on within the squad with Pochettino at the moment.

“Spurs have achieved a hell of a lot from where they were and where they are today under Pochettino.

“But there are certain things I’m seeing and I’m not convinced it’s a happy camp there at the moment.”

Knee-jerk

This is a knee-jerk reaction.

Spurs have an exceptional squad and already deciding to dig some of those players out – notably Harry Winks and Lucas Moura – after just three games is hyperbolic at best.

They have not really had a chance to gel and bed in the new signings, Giovani Lo Celso, Tanguy Ndombele and Ryan Sessegnon.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Cascarino may well be right that there is an air of uncertainty at the club but everything could look a great deal rosier if they beat Arsenal in the north London derby at The Emirates this weekend.

Pinning his colours to this mast so early could backfire on the talkSPORT pundit, particularly if the club put a run of form together.

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

Joao Moutinho turned 33 on Sunday, and as expected, Wolverhampton Wanderers’ official Twitter account was on hand with a birthday message.

The midfielder, who joined Wolves from Monaco in the summer of 2018, has made 54 appearances for his English club in all competitions.

The Portugal international will see his current deal expire at the end of the season, though, and there are no signs of a fresh contract for the moment.

In response to Wolves’ official post, a number of the fans called for their club to sort out an extension for Moutinho as soon as possible.

Meanwhile, others simply took the chance to lavish praise on the experienced professional – some calling him the best player to ever play for the club.

Watch Wolverhampton Wanderers Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

It will certainly be interesting to see what happens with the midfielder’s future as he is very much a key player at Molineux.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Darren Bent has described Trent Alexander-Arnold as one of the best right-backs around.

What did he say?

Alexander-Arnold caught the eye of the former striker with his display for England against Kosovo on Tuesday night, and Bent suggests that both him and Kieran Trippier are very good right-back options for Gareth Southgate.

As well as those two, Kyle Walker and Aaron Wan-Bissaka are also candidates for the national team role, but Bent points to the Liverpool full-back’s all-round game as a factor which makes him so impressive.

The 20-year-old has a growing reputation as an attacking threat for the Reds, registering an impressive 12 Premier League assists last year, but he has so far been unable to reproduce that for Southgate’s side.

Despite that, Bent told Football Insider that his ability on the ball makes him stand out, and also highlighted the defensive side of his game:

“On the ball, he’s very, very good, technically he’s very good. Him and Kieran Trippier are technically the best right-backs out there, probably.

“What I really like about him is his defensive positioning, he never seems to get caught out. It was a very good performance from his as well.”

Complete package?

Bent may have been impressed with Alexander-Arnold’s performance on Tuesday, but the fact he was completely out of position for Kosovo’s second goal suggests that he needs to work on his defensive positioning, as well as his crossing as we highlighted earlier this week.

It is not an aspect of his game which he often has to worry about due to Liverpool’s dominance of the ball, and he can rely on the hard-working Jordan Henderson or the experienced Joel Matip to help him out.

Although he has impressed going forward, there are times where he has been caught out defensively. One such example was Alexander-Arnold’s poor positioning in a 2-1 defeat at Old Trafford in 2018, which resulted in Marcus Rashford being allowed too much space before striking the opening goal.

Watch Liverpool Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Jurgen Klopp appears to have the same worries about the defensive side of his game, leaving him out of Liverpool’s trip to Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final, opting instead for Joe Gomez.

As a result, the youngster will need to improve defensively if he is to become the complete full-back Bent suggests he is, particularly if he wants to cement a place in the England team for Euro 2020.

[ad_pod ]

The star striker ensured fans that the team are ready to face Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side this weekend.

Leicester are certainly good enough to get the better of the Red Devils as the Manchester club have been out of form for a while now – failing to win any of their last three matches in the league.

Vardy’s scoring record against the top clubs in the Premier League is impeccable as well, so don’t be surprised to see the former England international on the scoresheet when Saturday rolls around.

[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Real Madrid began their 2019/20 Champions League campaign in the worst possible way, with a 3-0 defeat to PSG in France.

The key battle in the game, of course, came in midfield – but Real lost it.

On the chalkboard

It’s true that it was Angel Di Maria who ran the show for Paris Saint-Germain as they hosted the Galacticos in the City of Lights. After all, it was the 31-year-old Argentine winger who scored two goals on the night, completely dominating his opposition.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

But how exactly did it come to that? Bad defending? Perhaps. After all, that’s one of the problems this Real Madrid team is facing this season.

They still haven’t been able to keep a clean sheet in the ongoing campaign. But perhaps more concerning was the lack of control in midfield.

Toni Kroos, Los Blancos’ midfield general, lost his battle with ex-Everton star Idrissa Gueye and it immediately meant Real struggled to gain a foothold in the game.

A brilliant display

Zidane really needed his 29-year-old midfielder to best Gueye but it just didn’t happen.

Statistically, the Senegal ace edged out the German in almost all categories, establishing dominance in the centre of the pitch.

He registered 93.2% passing accuracy, while also notching three key passes, three dribbles and three tackles. By all accounts, he was a huge presence in both attack and defence, which can’t really be said for Kroos. The German recorded 93.3% passing accuracy, one key pass, two dribbles and two tackles.

Even though it wasn’t really a horrible night for Kroos, either, it was just not enough to stop Gueye’s dominance in the centre of the pitch.

Of course, Real Madrid were without Luka Modric, who is still recovering from his injury, and that meant that the German simply had to step up.

But he didn’t, he was outmatched, and his team paid for it.

[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast’s One to Watch series, which focuses on those players we think are particularly worth keeping an eagle-eye on as the 2019/20 season unfolds.

Leeds haven’t really had any reason but not to focus on themselves in recent months, especially since the window slammed shut.

They’ve welcomed in their six new arrivals by soaring to the top of the Championship, sitting best placed for automatic promotion as things stand.

The Whites have been a joy to watch in terms of their possession, amassing over 60% of the ball from their eight matches in 2019/20.

Issues have arisen surrounding their ability to finish and that was the case last Saturday as they hit the post and missed a penalty in a 1-1 draw with Derby.

The Rams drew against the odds but despite attentions also being on Charlton this week, there may also be an eye on Coventry.

That isn’t just for Victor Orta who is seemingly in charge of transfer negotiations, but also for the club’s supporters.

This is because a potential new recruit could be in action for the Sky Blues.

Last week, Sam McCallum was reported to be on Leeds’ radar, a player who has more than caught the eye in League One this term.

It’s so far been a breakthrough campaign for the 19-year-old who has featured at right back and left back, proving himself to be a versatile option.

The teenager has appeared five times in 2019/20 and will be one of the players Coventry look to have an influence on proceedings against Rotherham.

McCallum is someone who can get up and down the flanks and that’s influenced in the number of times he’s fouled at 1.8 times per outing, according to WhoScored.

For a full-back that’s considerably high and proves he’s a livewire worth keeping tabs on.

Strong in the air, he’s won two aerial duels per game but he also has a no-nonsense nature to him with three clearances on average every match.

At the moment, the Coventry man is in fine form and saved one of his best performances for Burton Albion last weekend, winning 3 aerial duels and 4 interceptions, via WhoScored.

If he continues in that manner, it wouldn’t be a great surprise if Leeds did try to further their interest.

[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

A long-term target of Manchester United fans’ ire, Ashley Young has had a rocky relationship with the Old Trafford faithful. The make-shift full-back has struggled in defence and was part of a back line that conceded 54 goals in the Premier League last season.

Young has once again been tasked with filling in at left-back following an injury to Luke Shaw earlier this campaign. The United boss confirmed in his pre-match press conference the England international is a doubt to face rivals Arsenal on Monday night, and so it seems highly likely the Red Devils will have to rely on their veteran defender once again.

Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

As such, Young will be the man to come up against £72m star Nicolas Pepe. The latter has hardly set the world alight at the Emirates, only breaking his goal-scoring duck with a penalty against Aston Villa last weekend. However, the under-lying stats show he will prove to be a formidable opponent for United’s full-back, and it will be a contest that could well define the outcome of the game.

On the chalkboard

Despite scoring just the one goal for his new club, Pepe has shown he really does like to get amongst the action going forward. The Ivory Coast international averages three shots and 1.8 key passes per game, and it will be up to Young to make sure he doesn’t cut onto his favoured left-foot.

Perhaps the most worrying stat for United is the Arsenal winger’s apparent directness. The 24-year-old is a prolific dribbler, completing 3.7 of them per game, and coupled with Young’s 1.8 fouls per match, it could be a match-up that sways the game in Arsenal’s favour. If Pepe commits the veteran defender into making a clumsy challenge early on and forces him to pick up a booking, the former Lille man will enjoy a field day.

But if the Red Devils man can take the game to the opposition and get Pepe to constantly track back and defend, United may well have a shrewd counter to Arsenal’s plans. More than anything however, it promises to be one of the most defining head to heads of a crucial clash in the race for top four.

In our Loan Watch feature series, the Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at how a selection of players from a particular club are faring whilst they are away from their parent side, and provide a brief update regarding their form.

This week, the focus is on three full-backs who are currently loaned out by Celtic, two of whom have returned to their homeland on the other side of the Atlantic Ocean.

Anthony Ralston

The 20-year-old right-back moved to St Johnstone on loan from Celtic on transfer deadline day and, after struggling for minutes with the Hoops, he is now seeing plenty of action in Perth.

His appearance in the 2-2 draw against Ross County on Saturday was his fourth consecutive start for the Saints, although he has yet to taste victory with his new club. [via TransferMarkt]

He was booked in the game at Victoria Park, the second yellow card he has picked up already in just over a month at St Johnstone – against whom he featured on the opening day of the league season for Celtic. [via TransferMarkt]

Andrew Gutman

The American left-back signed on loan for FC Cincinnati at the start of August and will stay there until the end of the 2020 Major League Soccer season pending international clearance, as reported by fccincinnati.com.

Having started five of Cincinnati’s first six MLS games upon arriving in Ohio, he has had to be content with a token minute off the bench in his two most recent appearances, including the 0-0 draw with DC United on Sunday. [via WhoScored]

The 23-year-old has provided one assist and been booked twice so far in his loan spell at Cincinnati, who are cut adrift at the bottom of the MLS Eastern Conference.

Manny Perez

The 20-year-old right-back has been on loan at North Carolina FC in the USL Championship since signing for Celtic at the end of January. Like Gutman, his move has been made with a view to earning his International Transfer Certificate, as reported by northcarolinafc.com.

Playing in a wide midfield role, he featured for almost all of his team’s 2-0 win over New York Red Bulls II at the weekend, earning the penalty which indirectly led to North Carolina’s opening goal. [via northcarolinafc.com]

That was Perez’s 19th league appearance of the year and his eighth in the team’s last 10 games, with four assists to his name this season. [via TransferMarkt]

It will probably be some time yet before the American duo of Gutman and Perez get to play for Celtic, given their requirement for international clearance, and the former will surely be hoping to regain his place in Cincinnati’s line-up after recently giving way.

Ralston is at least getting the gametime of which he was being deprived at Celtic, although two yellow cards in four games for St Johnstone is not the best way to make a convincing case to Neil Lennon for future inclusion in the Hoops’ starting line-up.

Celtic fans, what are your thoughts on the loan spells of Ralston, Gutman and Perez? Will the latter two manage to feature for the club in the future? Let us know your views in the comments section below!