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Derby County lost their first game of the 2021/21 Championship season on Saturday afternoon, with Wayne Rooney’s side putting in a rather turgid performance against newly-promoted Peterborough United.

In what was a particularly cagey affair, with both sides managing just two shots on target over the first 45 minutes, Derby looked to have stolen all three points when Ravel Morrison set up 19-year-old Jack Stretton shortly before the 80-minute mark.

However, a Harrison Burrows goal in the first minute of injury time, as well as a 100th-minute Siriki Dembele strike, ensured that it would be the hosts who secured victory at the Weston Homes Stadium, sending the Rams back to Derbyshire empty-handed.

Indeed, there were not too many standout performers in the Derby County ranks, with goalscorer Stretton, who only managed 38 minutes on the pitch, receiving the highest SofaScore match rating of any of Rooney’s players on the day, with the centre-forward earning a score of 6.9.

A rather damning sight.

On the other hand, there were plenty of below-par displays, with Festy Ebosele earning a 6.2 match rating and Max Bird a 6.1. However, the worst of the lot was Nathan Byrne, who received an extremely disappointing 5.8.

It is not difficult to understand why the 29-year-old was given this rating, as, over his 90 minutes on the pitch, he completed just 62% of his passes, won just four of his nine duels (a 44.4% win rate), gave away possession of the ball on a whopping 23 occasions (joint-most) and made one error that led directly to one of Posh’s goals.

Indeed, The Athletic’s Derby correspondent Ryan Conway said that Byrne was “caught at the back” for Burrows’ equaliser, as well as making an “absolute pig’s ear” of trying to defend Dembele’s late winner – even dubbing the right-back, as well as his fellow Rams defenders, “appalling.”

As such, should Rooney wish to have any hope of his side remaining in the Championship come next summer, he will certainly need Byrne to up his game over the coming weeks and months, as the defender should be one of the 35-year-old’s most reliable players.

In other news: Morris heading for grave Derby error over “excellent” beast, Rooney would be fuming

As quoted by Sky Sports’ transfer centre (Tuesday, 18:45), journalist Dharmesh Sheth has dropped a West Ham United transfer claim involving long-time target Jesse Lingard.

The Lowdown: West Ham in Lingard hunt…

Since the very beginning of the summer transfer window, manager David Moyes has had his eyes set on a move to sign Lingard permanently from Manchester United.

A report by club insider Claret & Hugh detailed that the attacker was one of three transfer priorities this summer alongside moves for a new striker and new centre-half.

At one point, the move looked to be all but off, with Sky sources claiming West Ham believed they had just a ’10 per cent’ chance of doing a deal this summer.

However, ExWHUemployee’s recent update that Lingard may be open to a return after all has provided fresh hope – coupled with his information that a fresh bid is expected (Patreon).

The Latest: Sky reporter makes Lingard claim…

As quoted by Sky Sports, Sheth has told the transfer show that West Ham do indeed retain an interest in Lingard despite Red Devils boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer saying the player is in his plans for 2021/2022.

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The reporter also believes Moyes and co could go back in for the Englishman before August 31.

“Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been quoted as saying that Lingard is in his plans for this season. However, West Ham do remain interested in re-signing Lingard.

“Remember what he did at the back end of last season. He joined on loan for the second half of last season and broke into the England squad before the end of the season. He almost got into the final Euro 2020 squad as well.

“I just think there’s every chance West Ham will go back in for him before the window is out and then there will be a decision to make, not only for Man Utd but for Jesse Lingard as well.”

The Verdict: Get it done…

Now that alternative attacking midfield target Matheus Pereira is off the table, with the Brazilian joining Al-Hilal, we believe it is make or break for West Ham to bring in Lingard and back Moyes with some attacking depth.

The club have been busy trying to secure a new centre-half over this last fortnight but they could also be one or two bad injuries away from a real crisis in the forward areas.

If the Hammers are unable to bring in a new centre-forward before deadline day, then a move for Lingard should be prioritised at the very least – especially considering his exploits on loan at the London Stadium last season.

He bagged a brilliant nine goals and four assists in 16 Premier League starts over the second half of 2020/2021 (WhoScored), being called ‘phenomenal’ by talkSPORT pundit Adrian Durham.

In other news: West Ham source: GSB ‘set sights on signing’ 6 foot 3 powerhouse for Moyes, find out more here.

Leeds United winger Helder Costa showed exactly why Marcelo Bielsa should sell him in this summer transfer window by putting in a woeful display in his side’s 2-0 win over Crewe Alexandra in the Carabao Cup second round.

Reports in recent weeks and months have suggested that the Whites were open to letting him go this summer on a permanent basis, as they see him as someone who could be sold for a decent money to then be reinvested into the squad.

That was then followed up by The Athletic’s Phil Hay who revealed that sources in Spain had told him that La Liga clubs, including the likes of Valencia, are monitoring him, although no formal bids had been placed.

On Tuesday night, Costa was given the chance to start from the off and prove to Bielsa why he’s worth keeping around, but instead, delivered the a shocking performance.

Despite his team dominating on their way to a comfortable victory, the Portugal international struggled to really get to grips with the game, despite the gulf in class between the two sides.

As per Sofascore, he actually made fewer passes than goalkeeper Illan Meslier, provided no key passes, failed to complete any dribbles, and saw his two attempts on goal miss the target completely.

Costa just looked far too lightweight, losing six of his 11 total duels, and conceding possession on nine separate occasions – a real indication of the kind of wastefulness with which he played with.

And, in his post-match player ratings for The Yorkshire Evening Post, Graham Smyth gave him a five, saying: “Persisted despite a struggle to make a first half impact and a wild shot when he got a chance. Couldn’t create much danger on the right.”

Those sentiments were followed up by Leeds Live’s Beren Cross, who also gave him a five, adding: “Another ineffectual performance from the winger, despite the quality of the opposition. A performance summed up by the drive inside from the right flank which had everyone on their feet before driving the ball halfway up the Norman Hunter Stand.”

Make no mistake about it, a home tie in the Carabao Cup second round against a side currently lying in 22nd in League One was the perfect chance and audition for Costa to remind Bielsa and the club of the qualities he possesses.

Instead, his abject display surely more than confirmed the feeling that the Portuguese ace simply has to go in the remaining few days of the summer transfer window.

Costa’s time at Elland Road must be over now.

Meanwhile, Phil Hay has dropped a Leeds United transfer update…

If you look down at the league table after the first three matches, it will tell a sorry story for Wolverhampton Wanderers and their manager Bruno Lage.

Wolves sit towards the bottom without a single point and they are also yet to score.

How the Molineux outfit haven’t found the net beggars belief. They have taken 56 attempts at goal but have been met with some outstanding goalkeeper but ultimately, poor cutting edge.

In all three of their first games of the campaign, they’ve looked productive. There is clear excitement to the football that Bruno Lage has deployed since arriving in the Midlands but they have nothing to show for it yet.

They play quick counter-attacking football but can’t quite seem to find the back of the net. Adama Traore with eight dribbles to his name was at his usual rampant self against Manchester United on Sunday, but it was almost an exact replica of their 1-0 loss to Spurs a week prior.

Once again, Wolves lost by a solitary goal but it could have so easily gone the other way.

Trincao had an effort that was destined for the goal cleared almost on the line by Aaron Wan-Bissaka and then in the second period, David de Gea made an extraordinary save to deny Romain Saiss from a corner.

At the other end, however, the goalkeeping wasn’t the best.

New signing Jose Sa didn’t actually have much to do in the game but when he was tested, he let Bruno Lage down severely.

Mason Greenwood skipped beyond Marcal and then fired a shot towards the back post. Sa reached out to deny it but could only divert the ball into the goal.

Although the Portuguese stopper should have done better, the defending from Marcal was also lazy.

As the ball was spread out towards Greenwood on the right-hand side of the box, he took the Brazilian full-back on and then fired his shot away. The defender made little attempt to get close to him and as a result, the United striker had the freedom of the box to get a shot away.

Besides that, Marcal didn’t have an awful game. With four tackles to his name, he marshalled Greenwood well for large passages of the game.

Yet, when he didn’t, it ultimately proved devastating for Wolves and Lage.

The left wing-back was sadly also lacking in attacking quality too. When the Old Gold played promisingly on the counter-attack in the first 45 minutes, he got forward on a regular basis.

Marcal occupied tidy spaces on the left flank and consistently found room for a cross. Yet, with Wolves crying out for a bit of quality, he was unsuccessful with all four of his deliveries from a wide area.

The kind of quality that deserted him meant that throughout the course of the match, the £29k-per-week earner lost possession 18 times. Alongside Paul Pogba in the United midfield, that was the highest number by any player on the pitch at Molineux.

Rayan Ait-Nouri signed permanently in the summer after an impressive end to 2020/21 so it surely won’t be long before Lage entrusts him on the left instead.

Marcal is a productive wing-back but in the big moments usually turns out to be frustrating. That was evident on Sunday evening.

AND in other news, Wolves offered chance to sign “outstanding” 67-cap gem, he’s a great Moutinho heir…

Former Premier League striker Dean Windass believes that Odsonne Edouard is a real coup for Crystal Palace. 

Edouard completed a deadline day move to Selhurst Park from Celtic in a deal reported to be worth £14m, which could rise to £18.5m according to Sky Sports. The report also states that the 23-year-old has put pen to paper on a four-year deal with an option of a further 12 months.

Whilst with Celtic, Edouard scored 39 goals for his teammates.

The striker had a successful spell at Paradise as he helped the Hoops to three Scottish Premiership titles, three Scottish Cups and three Scottish League Cups, while he picked up the individual accolade of Player of the Year in 2019/2020.

And Windass believes that the signing of Edouard is a real coup for Crystal Palace, telling Transfer Tavern: “I’ve watched him when Josh was at Glasgow Rangers, as you say he’s a natural finisher. Listen it’s a positive move by Patrick Vieira and I’m sure once he gets up and going and he can get his first goal because he is a good player and that’s what Patrick brought him in for.”

Edouard was Crystal Palace’s seventh signing of the summer, with Marc Guehi, Michael Olise, Jacob Montes, Joachim Anderson, Conor Gallagher and Will Hughes all penning deals at Selhurst Park.

Crystal Palace have made a slow start to life under their new manager Patrick Vieira, picking up just a single point from their opening three Premier League games under the Frenchman.

A raft of exciting new signings have given the Eagles hope of enjoying a successful season this term, and Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher backed a brace last time out, showcasing his quality and potential.

The 21-year-old’s double earned Palace a 2-2 draw against West Ham United at the London Stadium, but there are still concerns over where the Eagles’ goals are going to come from.

Bringing in former Celtic striker Odsonne Edouard on transfer deadline day may have eased some of those fears, although the poor form of their other attacking options will be a cause for concern for Vieira.

Talismanic figure Wilfried Zaha has been charged with dragging the south London outfit up the top-flight table in recent years, but no goals or assists in 360 minutes of action in all competitions is not the start to 2021/22 he would have had in mind.

The Ivory Coast international’s underlying numbers are arguably just as concerning. As per SofaScore, the £130,000-per-week man has received a match rating of just 6.70 out of 10 for his August exploits, ranking him ninth of the 15 players who have featured for Palace so far in the league this term.

That’s because the 28-year-old has lost possession for his team a whopping 72 times in four games, while having zero shots on target and averaging just 1.3 key passes per match.

Vieira will be hoping that his star man rediscovers his best form following the international break, duly making his transition into life in the Palace dugout a much easier task.

In other news… Palace given fresh hope over “explosive” £14.4m-rated wizard, Vieira will be buzzing 

Newcastle United are interested in signing Millwall star Jed Wallace amid his contract uncertainty with the Championship club.

What’s the story?

According to Football League World, the Magpies are among a number of clubs interested in signing the attacking midfielder in January, with his contract set to expire at The Den in the summer.

The report adds that a new contract offer is on the table for the 27-year-old, although there is an intense battle to land his signature, with Newcastle joined by the likes of West Ham, Crystal Palace and Brentford among others in being interested in him.

He’s better than Almiron

In Wallace, Steve Bruce could sign a goal-scoring midfielder who also has the creativity to set up his teammates – essentially everything the Magpies probably thought they were getting when they signed Miguel Almiron.

The Paraguay international has flattered to deceive at St James’ Park, and that hasn’t been for a case of not trying. The former Atlanta United ace has managed just 13 goals in 95 games for the club, and only provided a further five assists – a paltry record for someone who either plays off the striker or out wide for the majority of the time.

While of course playing in a division lower, Wallace has proven himself to be a much bigger goal threat. Already this season he has bagged three goals and one assist in just five Championship games, while the previous campaign saw him rack up ten goals and seven assists in the league alone.

Millwall boss Gary Rowett has previously dubbed his talisman as being “instrumental”, saying: “It seems Jed Wallace is instrumental in everything we achieve at the moment. His recent stats are unbelievable.”

Speaking after an inspired performance against Blackpool, the Lions boss added: “Jed once again – I’ve spoked there to Jed and Muzza and said after the last two games I’m just going to go and try and sign anyone called Wallace in the last three days, anybody, doesn’t matter – because certainly Jed today was a game changer. It’s simple.

“You look to your big players to come up with those moments and he’s done it so often. It’s a wonderful, wonderful free-kick. Under pressure.”

As per WhoScored, Wallace averages more shots, key passes and dribbles per game than the Newcastle man both this season and last, and given that he’s actually just a month older than Almiron – both of them are 27 – he could come in and hit the ground running at St James’ Park.

The Magpies must surely be all over a move for the £6.3m-rated Wallace.

Meanwhile, this might be Mike Ashley’s only Newcastle masterclass…

Aston Villa announced a new partnership with online betting company Parimatch on Monday.

However, their official club post on the matter didn’t go down well with a number of Villa supporters, who took to social media to vent their frustration at the news.

Some Villa fans haven’t been happy at the club’s association with betting companies this summer, including sleeve sponsor OB Sports and the launch of the $AVL Fan Token.

Parimatch, who have also partnered with fellow Premier League clubs Brighton and Southampton, ‘will provide fans, within appropriate age and territory restrictions, with the opportunity for matchday access, unique experiences and events’.

The company are also involved with Chelsea, Everton and Leicester, bringing their dealings with top-flight sides to six.

Villa fans react

Villa shared the news regarding an agreement with Parimatch on their official Twitter page. This is what these Villa fans had to say in reply, with many not happy and one labelling it as ‘disappointing’.

“If it’s not cryptocurrency being shovelled down your throat & minors asking what’s this new ‘fan token’ all about… then it’s another betting partner. Shame on you, Villa.”

Credit: @RyanABAOPod

“Booooo”

Credit: @_ElliotAV

“Disappointing to see this from my club. Not something we should be actively promoting. Expected better.”

Credit: @ChristianLong7

“don’t do that to me”

Credit: @avbiIly

“Yet more gambling and betting, a cancer of the game. We can and should set an example and politely decline this dirty money.”

Credit: @stephenlwright

“We discussed the other day the sheer lack of commercial income at #avfc and the work Purslow still has a lot to do on. Another announcement for business ties. Just a shame this one is a betting connection.”

Credit: @amc89avfc

In other news: ‘Bad attitude’ – Aston Villa ace’s comments have got loads of fans talking. 

Tottenham Hotspur are now reportedly eyeing up a potential move to sign Nicolo Zaniolo.

The Lowdown: Spurs have tried before

It has been reported that Spurs tried to sign Zaniolo back in 2019 under the guidance of Mauricio Pochettino, but in the end they brought in the manager’s countryman, Giovani Lo Celso, instead.

Lo Celso has of course been affected by injuries during his time with the club, as one insider noted recently that his inability to complete 90 minutes is a big problem for Nuno Espirito Santo.

The Latest: Enquiry

As per Calciomercato, the North London club have ‘taken information’ about Zaniolo in recent weeks, despite the fact he looks set to sign a new deal at Roma.

He wants more money that he is currently being offered by the Serie A side, meaning that Nuno’s team could still take advantage of the situation if there is a breakdown in talks.

The Verdict: Sign

Once likened to England legend and former Lilywhites player Paul Gascoigne by his agent Claudio Vigorelli, Zaniolo is the creative spark in midfield that THFC need.

He has scored 15 goals and made a further six assists during his time at Roma, and has also scored two goals for Italy (Transfermarkt).

At 22 years of age, the £36m-rated maestro has a lot of potential, and with former Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho currently managing Roma, Spurs may be able to strike a deal.

In other news, find out which Beckham-like star was close to joining THFC here!

Former Aston Villa striker Gabby Agbonlahor has tipped John McGinn and Jacob Ramsey to dominate Tottenham Hotspur in this afternoon’s Premier League clash.

The Lowdown: Rising star in Ramsey

Both players have started together in Dean Smith’s midfield in the previous three Premier League games, including the 3-0 victory over Everton and 1-0 win at Old Trafford last weekend.

Whilst the Scot has been a constant figure in the Villa squad since his 2018 move from Hibernian, the 20-year-old has really stormed onto the scene recently and has made five league appearances this season.

Rated at £20m by Ashley Preece, Ramsey is set to start at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this afternoon and hopefully put in another impressive display.

The Latest: Terrific trio for Gabby

Speaking to Football Insider, former Villa captain Agbonlahor has heaped praise on Ramsey and has predicted both players to torment Spurs today.

Douglas Luiz, Ramsey and McGinn have formed a formidable trio in the middle of the park, and the 34-year-old believes they could hold the key to pounce upon Tottenham’s much-maligned midfield.

He said: “They are all quality players and can adapt to anything. Two of them could play in a 4-4-2, they can play as a three. All three of them in that central-midfield can play in any role.”

Agbonlahor continued: “Against Spurs, he won’t change that. It will be those three in there because Dean Smith has seen how well they have done. He will have also seen how many holes in the Spurs midfield against Arsenal. He’ll know Ramsey and McGinn are so good at running with the ball that they can exploit that.

“They’re doing well in every game. I’ve noticed Jacob Ramsey is getting better and better with every game and the more experience he has. He’ll continue to do that.”

The Verdict: Ramsey filling the Grealish void

Ramsey’s rise and consistency have softened the blow of losing Jack Grealish in the summer, with Smith adapting his squad following the loss of their former captain to Manchester City.

If he, McGinn and Luiz can outclass Spurs’ midfield of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Dele Alli and Tanguy Ndombele, they could stand a serious chance of piling more misery on Nuno Espirito Santo.

In other news, this Villa loanee is open to making his move permanent. Find out more here.