All posts by h716a5.icu

Celtic returned to form in midweek by reminding supporters of their credentials.

Neil Lennon’s side battered Kilmarnock 4-0 but there was one disappointing aspect.

On the chalkboard

Ryan Christie had a vibrant opening 15 minutes against Killie but beyond that, his impact on the game was minimal. As has been the case in his last seven matches, he failed to provide a goal or register a single assist.

It has been a torrid time for the winger who since being linked with the likes of Arsenal and Leeds, has desperately dropped off in terms of his performances.

He has netted just once in his previous 19 outings and even Lennon is beginning to grow tired of his abject displays.

He started on the bench against both Hamilton and St Mirren but returned to the starting line-up on Tuesday night.

Though, Christie was poor once more and was described as “non-existent” by Frank McAvennie in the following days.

It’s hard to argue with that point either. He completed just a solitary key pass which in a 4-0 rout, is pretty underwhelming. The Scotland international failed to attempt a single dribble and completed only 77% of his passes.

McAvennie added: “He is such an amazing player but if somebody touches him he falls down. Just take a tackle, stay on your feet. It is not going to damage you.”

If anything summed up Christie, it would be that assessment.

On his day, he has a wand of a left foot. His goal in the Scottish Cup final can testify for that. Though, when he’s poor, there is little helping him. Christie’s form has dropped off meteorically and when the Bhoys play Motherwell on Saturday, he must be back on the bench.

The man to prosper from the £8k-per-week winger’s omission could be Mo Elyounoussi. The Norwegian was among the subs in midweek but simply has to come back into the fray.

After all, he is Celtic’s second top scorer this term on 13 goals. Elyounoussi has fewer assists than Christie but the latter has only created one goal for his teammates in his last ten appearances.

Lennon certainly has his favourites at Parkhead and Christie is one of them. However, if he wants to stay in the job, he must get ruthless with his team selection.

AND in other news, Celtic could fix a big problem by hiring manager who left Rodgers “really impressed”…

According to The Daily Mail, Southampton could move to sign free agent Ahmed Musa as West Bromwich Albion struggle to get a deal over the line.

Saints eye Musa

It seemed the 28-year-old was on the verge of completing a move to The Hawthorns – he was said to have even had a medical (Football Insider) – but it now seems the Midlands outfit do not have the funds to get the deal done.

As the Baggies flounder, Ralph Hasenhuttl and co are said to be interested in signing the Nigeria international just a number of days after bringing in Liverpool’s Takumi Minamino on loan.

Interesting option

With Danny Ings and Che Adams to rely on up front, you would think that Hasenhuttl would be happy with his forward options. However, the arrival of Minamino indicates that the Austrian wants to improve things in the final third, and Musa could be an astute bargain signing.

While he had a disappointing spell with Leicester City, Musa has 88 career goals to his name (Transfermarkt) and has netted four times across two World Cups. Capable of playing on either wing as well as centre-forward, he would provide Southampton with some versatility that could be welcome as they look to kick on again after defeats to Manchester United and Newcastle.

Should the deal to take Musa to West Brom fall apart completely, the Saints should be waiting to pick up the pieces.

In other news, Southampton fans slammed this man against Newcastle.

West Ham United centre-back Issa Diop delivered a defensive masterclass to emerge as David Moyes’ true unsung hero of Sunday’s 2-1 win over London rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

The Frenchman earned his first successive Premier League start since September for the visit of Jose Mourinho’s Spurs to the London Stadium, having returned from the cold to replace Angelo Ogbonna against Sheffield United on Monday night.

Diop had only featured for 117 minutes of top-flight action over the past five months after losing his place in the side following the return of a positive test for coronavirus, and saw his Irons future thrown into doubt in January amid links with a possible move to Liverpool.

Moyes kept Diop in his starting line-up against Tottenham as West Ham continued to be without Ogbonna, with the Italian sidelined after sustaining a high ankle sprain in his side’s FA Cup fifth-round defeat to Manchester United earlier this month.

Diop had big shoes to fill by replacing Ogbonna, who had started all 23 available Premier League games this season, but the £18m-rated titan more than lived up to the challenge against Spurs and the threat posed by the top-flight’s third-top-scorer Harry Kane.

Yet Craig Dawson, Declan Rice and Jesse Lingard earned the best match ratings for a West Ham player on Sunday from football.london, who awarded each of the trio an eight out of 10, while Diop was given a seven alongside six of his teammates who started.

Rice’s pivotal clearance in the 77th-minute played a key role in the England international securing his grade, having miraculously made up the ground and turned the ball away without inadvertently scoring an own goal.

Meanwhile, Diop was praised for producing a ‘fine performance’, to leave the 24-year-old the unsung hero having provided a key role – often superior to Dawson’s – in keeping West Ham’s lead intact.

Diop made five clearances altogether against Tottenham, above his average 3.0 per game this season, along with recording two successful tackles and one interception – both also above his average 1.3 and 0.7 respectively, per SofaScore.

He also blocked two shots, more than any of his teammates, with Aaron Cresswell (one) the only other Irons player to stop a shot from testing Lukasz Fabianski or leaving the Poland goalkeeper with a decision to make.

While Dawson only completed 65% of his 17 passes, Diop additionally found teammates with 86% of his 14 attempted balls, no Hammers player completed a higher percentage, with Rice second with 83%.

The £67k-per-week Frenchman further picked out a claret and blue shirt with two of three long passes, while the Watford loanee – his defensive partner – misplaced all four of his attempts.

Not even Ogbonna has boasted such a strong pass success rate (80%) this season or completed as many long balls per game (1.9, 37%), while also offering fewer clearances (4.7), successful tackles (0.9) and the same number of interceptions (1.0) on average.

Therefore, it’s clear that Diop outperformed his fellow central defender on the afternoon, helping keep Kane and co largely silent.

Moyes will have been delighted with Diop’s defensive showing to help West Ham stay ahead and claim a 2-1 win over their London rivals while pulling nine points clear of Spurs and into the top-four.

AND in other news, West Ham have been tipped to sign a 21-year-old talent his manager feels “personally let-down” by…

After securing yet another clean sheet in a 1-0 victory over Leeds United in the Premier League at the weekend, it’s fair to say Aston Villa goalkeeper Emi Martinez has been one of the signings of the season.

Speaking after his arrival, Dean Smith declared: “We know how highly Arsenal rated him and we watched his outstanding performances last season in a trophy-winning top side.

“We moved for Emi when we saw the opportunity, as it is rare to be able to buy a top-class goalkeeper who hasn’t yet reached their peak age and who can therefore be a key player for our club for the long term.”

And it’s fair to say that Martinez has been more than just a good signing. The Argentine has been the cornerstone of Villa’s impressive defensive record this season, keeping 13 clean sheets in just 24 Premier League games – only Ederson of runaway leaders Manchester City has kept more with 15.

Valued at £13m by CIES, the 6 foot 4 shot-stopper has arguably been Villa’s talisman this season, not Jack Grealish. Martinez has cut an imposing figure in between the sticks, and has already racked up a highlight reel of incredible stops and flying saves with the tips of his gloves – you’ve only got to look at his one-man show against Brighton to see just how good he is.

It’s no surprise that more people seem to have caught onto Martinez’s ability, with Argentinian World Cup winner Daniel Bertoni, saying: “Any Italian team looking for a goalkeeper should watch Emiliano Martinez, who Arsenal relinquished last summer.

“Now he plays for Aston Villa and is a phenomenon: he guarantees 10 points per season.”

The shut-out against Leeds at Elland Road was the eighth time Villa have kept the opposition out in their 13 away games thus far this season, which already equals their club record from the 2009/2010 campaign.

A lot of that comes down to having a goalkeeper who can bring a bit of composure to the defence, not making any silly mistakes and doing the simple things well – he’s committed just one error leading to a goal in the Premier League, while he’s also much more of a throwback in terms of his style of goalkeeping.

He’s made just the one punch in 24 league games, instead being a much more relieving sight for his defenders by choosing to go up for the ball and hold it when the ball is in the air – he’s made 30 high claims.

Having that kind of number one behind you, is surely hugely welcomed by the likes of Tyrone Mings and Ezri Konsa, who know that their goalkeeper is there to take the pressure off their shoulders rather than add to it.

It’s exactly why Johan Lange struck a dream deal for Villa when he signed Martinez from Arsenal last summer.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Dean Windass believes Jesse Lingard has been the signing of the season.

Lingard has been in scintillating form under David Moyes, registering three goals and two assists in just five appearances for West Ham United.

The 28-year-old has found a new lease of life under Moyes and is enjoying some of the best form of his career after failing to make a league appearance for Manchester United this campaign.

West Ham came close to earning a point against Manchester City on Saturday with Lingard setting up Michail Antonio, before seeing his cross headed wide by Issa Diop in the final minutes of the game.

Moyes has instilled confidence back into the England international, something a lot of people have not seen since the 2018 World Cup and Lingard is thriving being responsible to link the midfield and attack.

The Hammers have enjoyed a spectacular campaign with a serious challenge for the top four on the cards with them currently occupying fourth spot ahead of Chelsea, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur.

Windass was full of praise for both Moyes and Lingard as he exclusively told Football FanCast:

“Signing of the season, well done David Moyes. I think that’s what he needed. Obviously, he had him before when Manchester United manager.

“To start off with two goals, every centre forward in the country will tell you, when you go to a new club and score two goals supporters there or not, people go wow.

“David Moyes will be sat at home with his wife having a coffee saying, ‘not a bad signing that’.”

West Ham face Man United, Leicester City and Chelsea in their next seven fixtures which could define who claims a spot in the Champions League next season.

Moyes has achieved above many people’s expectations considering the Hammers were battling against the drop last season and a lot fo that is down to smart recruitment which includes a shrewd acquisition of forgotten man Lingard.

Ozan Kabak and Roberto Firmino should both be back in contention for Liverpool’s Champions League round of 16 second leg against RB Leipzig on Wednesday, according to The Athletic’s James Pearce.

The pair were missing on Sunday as Liverpool slumped to a sixth consecutive home defeat against Fulham. However, their injuries were understood to be minor, and Jurgen Klopp should have them available again as he plots a route into the last eight of the competition.

Liverpool’s domestic path to Champions League qualification is narrowing, and so they might have to win the competition to avoid the huge financial blow of missing out on it next season. They carry a 2-0 lead into the second leg, nominally their ‘home’ fixture.

Firmino and Kabak both started the first meeting in Budapest three weeks ago. The struggling Brazilian has yet to score in Europe this season, while Kabak is battling to win over some doubtful Reds fans, as well as his manager, as the club decide whether to exercise their option to buy the on-loan defender.

Liverpool fans take little encouragement from Firmino/Kabak return

“Is it compulsory for Kabak to play in that Liverpool squad…”

Credit: @mister_laolu

“We will still lose…”

Credit: @No4troublemaker

“Firmino? NO”

Credit: @lcfpxnj

“Start Nat and not Kabak, he’s been brilliant”

Credit: @harooncr171

“So you’re saying we’ll lose again”

Credit: @NewhouseT

“Firmino hasn’t been fit for over 2 years.”

Credit: @T_bird_6

“And what changes?? Trash”

Credit: @Manlikegidi

In other news, some Liverpool fans were critical of one midfielder during Fulham clash

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Glasgow Rangers manager Steven Gerrard provided an update on the fitness of Gers’ midfielder, Ryan Jack, ahead of the club’s Europa League fixture on Thursday evening.

So far this season, Jack has impressed over his 19 Scottish Premiership fixtures for Rangers, scoring two goals, providing one assist and averaging a WhoScored match rating of 7.03.

However, after missing the Gers’ last two league fixtures due to a calf problem, the £2.7 million-rated midfielder remained a doubt for the club’s Europa League clash with SK Slavia Prague on Thursday, and, speaking in his pre-match press conference, Gerrard confirmed the fixture will come a little too soon for the Scotland international.

He said: “Jack could be ready but I have decided to hold back and he will be available for the second-leg, I don’t want to push him too quick.”

Transfer Tavern Take

Jack’s absence is likely to come as a rather large blow for Gerrard ahead of the Round of 16 clash, as the 40-year-old has played the midfielder in every fixture in which he has been available for selection so far this season.

However, the Gers manager did state his belief that Jack will be back for the second leg of the tie, meaning that there is at least some positive news regarding the return of the 29-year-old.

In other news: some Rangers fans slammed this politician’s comments – find out more here!

Sheffield Wednesday will be looking to stop a run of seven straight defeats when they welcome their local rivals to Hillsborough Stadium this evening.

Darren Moore simply has to start picking up victories otherwise his new Owls side will be preparing for life in the English third division for the first time since the 2011/12 season.

The performance against Championship leaders Norwich City on Sunday afternoon was encouraging, but ultimately it was another match without any return, meaning the Yorkshire giants are now seven points adrift of safety with only 11 matches to play.

So, what sort of side will we see against Huddersfield Town tonight? Here’s our predicted XI…

There could be as many as three changes from the weekend as Moore could revert back to his usual 4-2-3-1 formation that worked so well at Doncaster Rovers.

Veteran goalkeeper Keiren Westwood made a shock return to the starting XI last time out, and he should remain between the sticks over Joe Wildsmith, whilst Moore is now able to welcome back Julian Borner from suspension.

The 30-year-old comes straight back in to partner Tom Lees at centre-back in a move that sees Osaze Uhoghide switch to right-back, with natural left-back Matt Penney returning to the line-up over the versatile Liam Palmer.

It also means that Sam Hutchinson goes back into his natural midfield position, alongside Barry Bannan as Joey Pelupessy makes way in Moore’s second change.

Adam Reach and Kadeem Harris should occupy the wide positions but there may be no place for Josh Windass, who is among WhoScored’s worst performers with an average rating of 6.44.

Instead, top goalscorer Calum Paterson will come in behind Jordan Rhodes. The 26-year-old has bagged six goals this season and should be starting for the Owls and could be the third and final change.

AND in other news, Darren Moore must drop “explosive” Owls star tonight…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Steve Bull, who scored 306 goals for Wolves, believes Pedro Neto can push himself to the levels Cristiano Ronaldo has reached during his career.

Neto has been Wolves’ main man since Raul Jimenez fractured his skull, and the Portugal international has registered five goals and five assists in just his second season in the Premier League.

During Ronaldo’s second season with Manchester United, he registered five goals and six assists, meaning Neto requires just one assist this season to equal what began to get Ronaldo the attention he received in England.

Wolves legend Bull believes Neto is already at a big club so doesn’t think he will be leaving any time soon either and can develop into a similarly important player for Wolves, as Ronaldo was for the Red Devils.

Speaking on Neto’s potential and whether he could replicate what Ronaldo has during his career, Bull told FFC exclusively:

“I think he can stretch to those levels, I really do.”

He added: “He’s absolutely class, he just floats across the grass and the way he stretches his legs past players is absolutely unbelievable.

“I know there’s a lot of talk saying he’ll go to a big club, but he is at a big club now with a big manager.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/exclusive-andreas-sondergaard-wolves-premier-league” title=”Exclusive! Andreas Sondergaard talks all things Wolves”]

“I’d say in the next 18 months to two years we will be in the top five or six.”

Neto is currently Wolves’ joint top scorer with five goals alongside Ruben Neves, but the winger is leading the way in assists with Daniel Podence closest in second with two.

The 21-year old signed a new deal in November last year to keep him at Molineux for another five years so if he was to leave like Jamie Carragher believes he will do, Wolves will be able to command a large fee.

Aberdeen have been linked with a move for Celtic striker Leigh Griffiths, as reported by the Sunday Post.

Scott Brown recently agreed a summer switch to Pittodrie, and it now seems as if Griffiths could possibly be joining the midfielder under the Dons’ new manager Stephen Glass.

Griffiths’ Celtic struggles

Griffiths has hardly featured for the Hoops this season and is out of contract in just 14 months’ time.

He has started seven Premiership fixtures under Neil Lennon during the current campaign. The 30-year-old has scored six times in 732 minutes of action but has only played seven minutes under interim boss John Kennedy.

Transfer Tavern take

Based on this season, we feel as if this summer could be the right time to move Griffiths on. He is earning £15,000 per week at Parkhead, money which could be put towards a new addition in a summer rebuild.

Griffiths has been a brilliant servant to the club, making 256 appearances and netting 122 times. However, based on the last 12 months, it appears as if now could be the time for him and the Hoops to part ways.

In other news: Celtic face competition for possible Frimpong replacement, find out more here.