Tag Futebol

West Ham fans all agree they don’t want Jay Rodriguez, after the West Brom striker was linked with a move to East London.

With Manuel Pellegrini likely to play two up front at the London Stadium next season, the Hammers will probably be linked with every striker under the sun this summer, but fans don’t like the latest links.

According to Sky Sports, West Ham are one of four Premier League sides interested in Rodriguez, alongside Burnley, Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.

[ad_pod ]

The Englishman scored seven times in 37 Premier League appearances last season, and is likely to be one of a number of players to leave the Hawthorns this summer.

The 28 year-old, who earned an England cap after his brilliant form for Southampton back in 2013, probably would have gone to the 2014 World Cup if not for a knee injury.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

West Ham fans want to see more ambition from their club though, and they all agree Rodriguez is not what they’re looking for.

You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

Bristol City centre-back Aden Flint put in an impressive display as his side was narrowly beaten 2-1 by runaway Premier League leaders Manchester City in the first leg of their EFL Cup semi-final tie at the Etihad Stadium, and West Ham United fans have urged their club to sign the defender.

The Championship high-flyers were just minutes away from securing an impressive draw before Sergio Aguero struck late on, and Flint was a rock for the Robins at the back and made a remarkable goal-line clearance from a Raheem Sterling effort.

The 28-year-old has enjoyed another strong campaign for his team after a summer move to Birmingham City fell though, and as well as his defensive nous he has also scored six goals in 22 league games so far this term.

West Ham supporters were quick to have their say on the tall centre-half’s performance against Pep Guardiola’s men, and while one simply said “sign Aden Flint”, another described him as a “class act”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s first start since the opening day of the season saw him bag a second-half brace to send Arsenal back to the top of the Premier League.

Tony Pulis set his Palace side out to frustrate Arsenal and saw his plan pay off in the first-half as the visitors defended well to go in at half-time still level.

But Arsenal notched up a gear in the second-half and Oxlade-Chamberlain marked his return to first-team action two goals and brilliant performance.

Here’s how the game was covered on Twitter…

HALF-TIME: A fairly eventless opening 45 minutes, with Palace doing well to frustrate the hosts…

47 minutes: Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain latches on to a Santi Cazorla through ball to give Arsenal the perfect start to the second-half…

51 minutes: Wojciech Szczesny pulls off a superb point blank save to deny Cameron Jerome’s back post header…

73 minutes: Oxlade-Chamberlain gets his second of the game after a brilliant solo run ended with him cooly smashing low past Speroni…

Manchester United forward Robin van Persie has escaped FA action for his reported elbow on Yohan Cabaye.

The Dutch forward appeared to strike the Newcastle midfielder in his side’s 3-0 win at the Sports Direct Arena on Sunday, with Alan Pardew calling for the visiting attacker to be reprimanded by the governing body.

However, The Telegraph state that match official Howard Webb has recommended that no action be taken against Van Persie, and that the incident did not deserve any punishment.

Van Persie had already been booked in the game before the incident, and Sir Alex Ferguson was quick to substitute his striker soon after.

The Netherlands international appeared to be in hot water, but has escaped punishment in a boost for the Old Trafford outfit.

Similarly, Luis Suarez will not be in the FA’s gaze over claims from Stoke boss Tony Pulis that the Liverpool forward was guilty of diving at the weekend.

The Britannia Stadium chief called for action to be taken against Suarez, but this will not be forthcoming.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Lazio have set the asking price for Manchester United midfield target Sergej Milinkovic-Savic at a whopping £87.5m this summer according to the Daily Mail. 

That will reportedly serve to cool United’s interest but the Serbian maestro is the perfect man to complete their midfield trio, alongside Nemanja Matic and Paul Pogba.

What’s the story, then?

The Mail claim that the asking price had previously been set at £70m, and Milinkovic-Savic has been offered to United at various stages of the season at that valuation.

The report says that Real Madrid have shown an interest in the midfielder, which has served to push the value of the player up by £17.5m.

It goes on to say that bump has put United off, as they are not sure where he would fit into their side, especially with a deal for Fred, also a midfielder, reportedly moving closer.

Milinkovic-Savic is the man

Both Milinkovic-Savic and Fred are unknown quantities in Premier League terms, with high reputations and price tags but uncertainty over their ability to adapt to English football.

However, Jose Mourinho has been obsessed with physicality in his United side for far too long and it seems like the signing of Fred would be another step in that direction.

The Serbian is a physical player, able to handle himself but also with the technical ability and flair to, alongside Pogba, haul United forward from deep.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Manchester City’s title canter was engineered by two number 10s – Kevin de Bruyne and David Silva – playing from deep and United would have a duo capable of similar in Pogba and Milinkovic-Savic.

[ad_pod ]

Reported Arsenal target Jonny Evans scored as West Bromwich Albion picked up their first Premier League win since August by beating Brighton and Hove Albion 2-0 at the Hawthorns on Saturday, and Gunners fans have urged their club to sign the defender.

The Telegraph reported on January 8 that the north London outfit are keen to bring the Northern Ireland international to the Emirates this month, with the Baggies wanting around £25m for the player who has 18 months left on his contract.

The west Midlands outfit’s captain headed his side in front against the Seagulls on Saturday, before Craig Dawson secured a crucial three points for Alan Pardew’s side after the break.

Arsenal supporters were quick to have their say on the former Manchester United man’s latest display via social media, and while one said “sign Jonny Evans now”, another said “Evans is class”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

[ad_pod ]

AC Milan will turn to Newcastle defender Davide Santon if Ignazio Abate completes a move to Arsenal in the New Year, according to reports from The Express.

The Italian international is being lined up by the Gunners who are searching for replacements for Bacary Sagna, and could be the subject of a serious offer in January.

Milan are keen to keep their full-back, but are aware that if he does move on that they will need to draft in a new man to replace him.

Santon is believed to be their top target.

The former Inter Milan man was once heralded as one if Italian football’s top emerging talents, and was even compared to Azzurri and Rossoneri icon Paolo Maldini.

But, injuries curtailed his progress, and he eventually left Serie A to rediscover his form and fitness with Newcastle.

Milan have continued to monitor his development, and are now ready to offer him a route back to his homeland.

The 22-year-old is thought to be happy at St James’ Park, but he could be open to a switch to Italy ahead of the World Cup, which may benefit his chances of making his nation’s squad for the showcase tournament.

Should Newcastle do all they can to keep Davide Santon?

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Have your say below!

[cat_link cat=”newcastle-united” type=”grid”]

Liverpool midfielder Lucas Leiva has described 2012 as the worst year of his career and indeed his life, reports Sky Sports. 

The influential midfielder is currently out with a thigh injury he picked up during the second game of the season, and is set to be out for a further two months.

This has come after the Brazilian was out injured for 6 months, following a serious knee injury he picked up in November 2011.

His injury coincided with Liverpool’s awful dip in form during the last campaign, and Brendan Rodgers looks to be suffering without him also, as he is still in search of his first Premier League win.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

“This is the worst year of my career and of my life as well. When we can’t do what we like to do and perform your job, it’s always a bit frustrating,” the 25-year-old told Sportv.

“Everything is a bit new to me because I have never had so many injuries. Two in a row is very complicated,” he added.”We tried to stay positive when the first one happened, but the second one was much tougher as it happened so close to the other one.”

Aston Villa will look to secure a return to the Premier League following a two-year absence when they face Fulham in the Championship play-off final at Wembley on Saturday.

The Midlands outfit saw off Middlesbrough 1-0 on aggregate over two legs in their semi-final tie, with manager Steve Bruce deploying a 4-1-4-1 system in both matches.

Mile Jedinak was the man tasked with sitting in front of the back four and providing that shield, and it certainly worked as the Villans kept two clean sheets.

[ad_pod ]

They may well need that protection again against a free-scoring Fulham, with Slavisa Jokanovic’s fluid 4-3-3 formation seeing them finish the league campaign as the second-top goalscorers in the division behind champions Wolverhampton Wanderers.

We at Football Fancast suggested previously that Bruce should perhaps look to be a little more adventurous and also select a 4-3-3 system because he has the players that would excel in, and it would likely shock the Cottagers ahead of the encounter.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

We asked Aston Villa fans to vote on our poll to see which formation out of the two they would prefer Bruce to use on Saturday, and a majority 62% want him to play it safe and not take any risks by sticking with the trusted 4-1-4-1.

It will certailyn be interesting to see what the 57-year-old chooses to do this weekend, as he looks to lead the club back to the promised land.

Leeds United have recruited a new player to the squad in the form of Japanese midfielder Yosuke Ideguchi.

The 21-year-old has not yet finalised the switch from Gamba Osaka, but is expected to sign on the dotted line next week.

The midfielder will undergo a medical before completing the deal, but the club have confirmed that he will likely be sent on loan until the end of the season.

Ideguchi is expected to join Cultural Leonesa on a temporary deal due to the face that the J1 League only finished in December.

The young midfielder is not well-known on a broad scale, but he already has 10 international caps for Japan to his name.

Leeds fans gave their reaction to the news on Twitter.

As it stands, Thomas Christiansen’s side are sixth in the Championship table following a run of five wins in their last six matches.

FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast. Subscribe FootballFanCast General Stay ahead in the world of football analysis, commentary, and fan insights with FootballFancast.

---

Subscribe

By subscribing, you agree to receive newsletter and marketing emails, and accept Valnet’s Terms of Use and Privacy Policy. You can unsubscribe anytime.

Next up for the Whites in the league is a trip to face Ipswich Town on January 13, but before that, the team will take on Newport County in the FA Cup this weekend.