All posts by h716a5.icu

Glasgow Rangers like making life difficult for themselves, don’t they?

Ross Callachan scored with the last kick of the game to give Scottish Premiership strugglers Hamilton a well-deserved draw with the runaway league leaders.

Rangers manager Steven Gerrard made three changes to the side which secured a midweek win over St Johnstone and it backfired almost immediately as the Gers struggled to gain a foothold in the game, with the Accies going close on several occasions only to be denied by the outstretched arms of the in-form Allan McGregor.

Having arrived from French Ligue 2 side Amiens on a short-term loan deal until the end of the season, Bongani Zungu was the shock inclusion as he started ahead of regulars Steven Davis and Ryan Jack.

But it was nothing short of an alarming performance from the Bafana-Bafana midfielder. He has plenty of experience in European competitions, but he was badly caught out of possession with a string of poor passes, particularly in the first half, with former Rangers winger Neil McCann criticising him on BBC Sportsound.

He said: “Zungu’s had a number of slack passes today, his distribution has been poor. He doesn’t look sharp out there and I think McGregor just gave him a little reminder to waken up.”

Left on the bench against Saints, Zungu missed a carbon-copy chance this afternoon to stake his claim for a place in the starting line-up.

SofaScore graded the 28-year-old as one of the worst players on the pitch with a low 6.9 rating, that being bettered by Davis (7) after his introduction in the second half.

Zungu’s struggles were obvious throughout the contest and despite being at the centre of the supply chain, he was rarely involved, as he took fewer touches than Ianis Hagi, as per SofaScore, who also endured a torrid time against the Accies.

Defensively, he failed to put much pressure on the opposition, having won just three out of eight duels overall (37%), and didn’t register a single tackle either.

Gerrard introduced Davis late on in an attempt to try to rescue the game and it’s perhaps telling that the Northern Irishman made a noticeable difference after he orchestrated the opening goal by combining with Borna Barisic down the left flank.

Despite being on the pitch for just over 10′ minutes, the contrast was stark, as Davis was still more effective. He attempted the same amount of dribbles as Zungu and also completed a tackle as well.

An unconvincing performance like this should show Gerrard that he can’t start games without Davis and Jack in the midfield. Zungu was a liability against the Accies on Sunday afternoon and should be dropped for the next game against Kilmarnock.

AND in other news, Glen Kamara has become virtually undroppable for Glasgow Rangers…

West Brom face a mammoth battle to remain in the Premier League this season, and Sam Allardyce’s task isn’t getting any easier as they welcome Manchester United to the Hawthorns this afternoon.

Heading into the encounter, the Baggies are 11 points adrift of safety and have won just once under the 66-year-old since he took over from Slaven Bilic in mid-December.

Albion also hold the unwanted record of being Europe’s leakiest defence while in the English top-flight alone, they have leaked 15 more goals than any other team – 54 goals.

So, what sort of side could we see today? Here’s our predicted XI as well as the latest team and injury news…

There could be as many as four changes from the side that was defeated by Spurs last weekend, including a debut for January arrival, Celta Vigo loanee Okay Yokuslu.

The 26-year-old could sit at the base of midfield alongside fellow winter signing Ainsley Maitland-Niles with Matheus Pereira returning to the starting fold in a slightly more advanced role.

It means Romaine Sawyers and Chelsea loan starlet Conor Gallagher are in line to face the chop, as a result.

Back in defence, Allardyce could bring Darnell Furlong back into the mix over Lee Peltier at right-back.

However, the rest of the back four, namely Semi Ajayi, Kyle Bartley and Conor Townsend should remain untouched in front of impressive goalkeeper and arguably the only shining light this season, Sam Johnstone.

Robert Snodgrass, another Allardyce addition, should keep his place on the flank but we may see Callum Robinson replace Karlan Grant.

The £9m-rated forward has seen his position put at risk following the signing of Mbaye Diagne, who will once again start up top for the Baggies.

It means club captain Jake Livermore will have to settle for a place on the bench for the second successive league outing, whilst Matty Phillips and Hal Robson-Kanu are too substitute options.

AND in other news, Waste of money: West Brom’s “competitive animal” proving to be a big Dowling disaster…

As former West Brom boss Darren Moore lands himself a new job in the Championship this week, many at the Midlands outfit still have a lot to thank him for.

After all, he was the man to bring the relatively unknown Conor Townsend to the Hawthorns, a left-back who has quickly emerged as one of Albion’s strongest players.

The 27-year-old joined from Scunthorpe United for an undisclosed fee in the summer of 2018 and speaking about the move, Moore told the official website (via HullLive): “This is another good acquisition for us.”

It’s taken him a while to make such an impact, having been sat behind former England international Kieran Gibbs since then, though the tides are turning and he’s now the no.1 option in the role.

So much so that the club has extended his deal until June 2024, so clearly sporting director Luke Dowling and co see him as part of their long-term future, irrespective of the division they find themselves in next term.

And that’s a testament to Moore for taking the gamble on him despite never playing higher than League One in his career prior to the move.

Townsend played 27 times on the Baggies’ way to promotion last season, and while injuries have hampered his time in the Premier League, he’s still started 13 matches, via Transfermarkt.

In terms of average WhoScored rating for the season so far, he ranks sixth in this West Brom squad (6.71), which is pretty respectable considering it is the first time he’s played at this level in his career, and is higher than seasoned pros such as Robert Snodgrass (6.63), Gibbs (6.29), Branislav Ivanovic (6.24) and Jake Livermore (6.19).

The £15k-per-week gem has been pretty reliable defensively and has impressed with his solid work rate, averaging 1.6 tackles per 90 minutes at a success rate of just over 61.5%, which means more often than not, he’s stopping the opposition winger.

Whilst an average of 1.5 interceptions per 90 (fifth most) shows he can read the game well enough at this elite level to further thwart the opposition.

This is something backed up by his former Grimsby boss Paul Hurst, who told The Athletic: “He did really well for us in general. He was better at one-versus-one defending. Positionally he was better.”

“Intelligent,” “dynamic” and “popular” were just three other words used to describe him by Graham Alexander, too.

Perhaps it could even be argued that the 27-year-old gem has been an underrated member of this Albion squad with the likes of Matheus Pereira, Conor Gallagher and Kyle Bartley often taking the plaudits.

But you cannot forget about Townsend and it is thanks to the new Sheffield Wednesday boss that the Midlands outfit have him for the foreseeable future.

Sacked unfairly, but the left-back must be regarded as Moore’s finest parting gift at the Hawthorns.

AND in other news, West Brom’s “fearless” colossus surely running out of time to save Hawthorns career…

Leeds United could fix a big Marcelo Bielsa problem by signing Feyenoord midfielder Orkun Kokcu.

The Whites have enjoyed an impressive first season back in the Premier League, currently finding themselves ten points off fourth-placed West Ham.

But one major area of concern for Bielsa has been the lack of creativity and goal-scoring threat from his central midfielders. The last game against Aston Villa saw Patrick Bamford manage just two shots on goal, with a real absence of services from those behind him – in fact, not one of the Whites midfield options created a big chance for their striker.

It’s been a theme that’s run throughout this season, with only five players in this entire Leeds squad averaging more than just one key pass per game. Mateusz Klich leads the way with 1.5 per match, but he’s more of a box-to-box presence rather than someone genuinely tasked with trying to unlock the door – the Polish ace also leads the way for goals, with just three.

The Whites have been at their best when Raphinha’s been on his game and so it’s no surprise that only 24% of their attacks comes through the middle of the pitch – that ranks them as 16th in the Premier League table.

But in Kokcu, they could find someone who could complement the holding midfield talents of Kalvin Phillips much better. The 20-year-old Dutchman was reported to be of interest to Leeds in the January transfer window, and has now opened the door to a summer exit after admitting that Feyenoord financial problems could lead to him being sold.

If that’s the case, Leeds should snap the Dutch side’s hands-off and land someone who could fix that big creative hole. This season has seen his Klich’s numbers of 1.5 key passes per game, but crucially, he is much more of an all-round threat going forward.

He averages far more shots, dribbles and crosses, while he also gets fouled more per match too, an indication of how opposition defenders have looked to bring him down more often than not to cut the supply at source.

Speaking to Goal, former Manchester United defender Jaap Stam raved about Kokcu’s quality, saying: “He has the ability. He is a player who has the personality to want to improve, he always wants to do better. He’s never happy with himself, he’s disappointed if he doesn’t score, or his passes aren’t good enough.

“When I joined Feyenoord, he hadn’t played a lot because everyone said he was too young. I put him in the first team and let him play most of the games, I trusted him and saw a lot of ability in him. Now he’s proving himself in Holland and is one of the best midfield players in the country.

“He’s certainly got the ability to make that step to the Premier League. He has creativity, scoring ability, stamina and running ability. He keeps on going. I saw him as a very promising player.”

Stam also hailed Kokcu’s versatility, a trait Bielsa will no doubt admire.

He added: “When we played with one holding midfielder, he was one of the two who played a little bit higher up the pitch. But he can play as No.10 or he can play as a left midfield player. Sometimes he can drop in deep as well to get the ball forward to link up the play with strikers.”

With Stam himself raving about Kokcu’s creativity and scoring ability, that could go a long way to addressing a key issue for Bielsa, and offer them a much better balance alongside Phillips in the middle of the park.

While Phillips sweeps up everything in front of the back-four and dictates the play, Kokcu can drive forward and have the vision and guile to pick out runners and give Leeds a new attacking threat from the middle of the pitch.

West Bromwich Albion fans were far from happy with the performance of Matheus Pereira during their 1-0 defeat to Everton on Thursday.

The Baggies were beaten 1-0 at the Hawthorns by the Toffees, with Richarlison scoring the only goal of the game. It was a close affair, with both sides having three shots on target (SofaScore), but Sam Allardyce’s side were unable to get anything from the match after a late equaliser was disallowed for offside.

The defeat leaves them nine points from safety with just 11 games left to play (Sky Sports).

Pereira was far from at this best against Carlo Ancelotti’s side. He won just two of his seven duels and lost possession a whopping 24 times throughout the game, the joint-most of any Baggies player.

Despite being one of West Brom’s most creative players, he has too often been a passenger this term.

The Baggies supporters were not scared to share their thoughts on the 24-year-old, and they took to social media platform Twitter to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about Pereira below

“Pereira has been absolutely awful he’s only still on the pitch because we don’t have anyone good enough to replace him”

Credit: @DexWBA_

“How did pereira play 90 mins today he was awful”

Credit: @liamopatel_

“He’s not been the same since Krov left, just got gradually worse. I would drop him, till he gets his head right.”

Credit: @DannyJTurner2

“Decent performance that can’t be to disheartened but if there’s one negative it’s pereira been shocking lately and we as albion fans massively over hype him #wba”

Credit: @chr1s_williamsc

“what? pereira was by far the worst player on the pitch”

Credit: @ftblEthann

Token point but in games like this where you need a bit of directness and goal threat at the death, can’t fathom why Robinson didn’t get minutes over HRK and Pereira who needed to be hooked #wba”

Credit: @sjpatel212

In other news, West Brom fans love news on this defender.

Ahmed Elmohamady is unlikely to be offered a new Aston Villa contract, with a Villa Park summer exit now looking likely.

The 33-year-old has started the last four Premier League fixtures due to Matty Cash’s hamstring injury, however, it seems as if his four-year stay in the Midlands will reach a conclusion at the end of the season.

According to the Birmingham Mail, Villa are unlikely to offer him a fresh deal, with his current contract set to expire in June.

Guilbert to return and replace Elmohamady

The report also adds that Frederic Guilbert, who was sent out on loan to Strasbourg in January, is set to return to challenge Cash during the 2021/22 campaign.

Guilbert, 26, has already scored and provided two assists in just 360 minutes of Ligue 1 action, with Strasbourg undefeated in league games the French right-back has started.

Transfer Tavern take

Although Elmohamady has been a terrific servant to the club, it feels as if the summer will be the correct time to part ways with the Egyptian.

Cash has made the right-back spot his own since joining from Nottingham Forest, and with Guilbert making an impact in his native country, the two could push each other on going forward with Guilbert serving as a natural replacement to the Egyptian.

Elmohamady reportedly picks up £25,000-a-week at Villa Park, so that wage could go towards a summer addition.

In other news: Collymore believes Grealish is ‘on a list’ of potential summer signings for one Premier League giant, find out more here. 

With a potential 12-man exodus on the cards at Celtic this summer, it could be all change at Parkhead.

The likes of Odsonne Edouard and Kristoffer Ajer are regularly linked with the exit door and thus, the new manager will likely have his work cut out in the transfer market.

On the chalkboard

Another player who could depart Parkhead in a few months time is Ryan Christie. The Scot has scored just twice in his last 25 outings and has been regularly tipped to leave by Frank McAvennie.

That comes after substantial interest in the winger throughout the winter. Leeds United were linked with making a move for Christie, while it was also reported that Arsenal were interested in his services.

It would be a timely departure when you consider his significant downfall in recent months.

Last term, Christie was one of the stars of the Celtic side. He scored 20 goals and supplied 16 assists in the process. However, in 2020/21, he has been nothing short of abysmal.

The Scotland international has netted five times and has regularly struggled to beat the goalkeeper. The nadir of his season was undoubtedly when Celtic lost 1-0 to Ross County.

Christie was selected up front on that occasion but spurned four chances and even blasted the ball over the bar from a matter of yards out. It was a moment that perfectly summed up his timid season.

The solution

With Moi Elyounoussi set to head back to Southampton at the conclusion of his loan spell, the Hoops will likely have to search for internal solutions.

One such option could be James Forrest. The attacker has only played once since September after a very lengthy injury lay-off. Though, there is a controversial figure in their midst who could just be given a second chance to prove himself; that’s especially if Christie does leave.

That happens to divisive winger Marian Shved. The Ukrainian has only played for the Bhoys on three occasions and has had a rather difficult few years in Scotland.

Shved admitted over the winter that he has an ounce of regret about his move to Celtic and you can understand why based on the limited opportunities he’s received.

The 23-year-old’s loan spell at Mechelen in Belgium was hardly going to plan either. He was turning up late for training and showing a diabolical attitude. For many players, there would be no way back from that.

Mechelen boss Wouter Vrancken initially said: “Let’s be honest here, Marian Shved is an outstanding talent who would not normally choose to play for a club like Mechelen. We are very lucky to have him.”

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/latest-celtic-transfer-news-onuachu-edouard-dembele-turnbull” title=”The latest Celtic news and views!”]

That was before he unleashed a rather remarkable assault on Shved: “The players and staff have done everything they can to include Shved in the squad, but he puts himself above the group.”

“Well, it stops now,” he added. “If he wants to be a loner, he can. Go play billiards for the rest of his life or something.”

Fortunately, Shved has since turned his season around. The Ukraine international has worked to get back in the side and has provided promising results in recent months.

He assisted Mechelen’s goal in an impressive 1-1 draw with Anderlecht last weekend, taking his tally of goal involvements for the season to seven in 16 games.

Before Vrancken’s brutal assessment of Shved, he had not scored all season. It would appear that the penny has finally dropped with the hot-headed winger.

If he applies the same attitude on his return to Celtic, there’s no reason why he can’t work himself back into their long-term plans. With the club in disarray and players potentially leaving, there will be openings for him to exploit.

AND in other news, Soro should be fuming if Celtic sign £50k-p/w brute this summer, he’s a “class player”…

Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf has confirmed Glasgow Rangers’ Old Firm derby will be allowed to go ahead on Sunday.

Yousaf confirms Old Firm will be played

The Gers’ status as Premiership champions was confirmed on the Sunday before last after Celtic could only draw 0-0 with Dundee United. In the aftermath of that triumph, thousands of Gers supporters took to the streets of Glasgow to celebrate, breaking coronavirus regulations in the process.

Yousaf had suggested the match this weekend against Celtic could be cancelled if he did not receive assurances that such scenes would not be repeated (Herald Scotland). However, it appears he is now satisfied after he confirmed the game will be played (BBC).

Sensible

It always felt unlikely that the match would actually be cancelled. After all, there didn’t seem to be any real danger of such scenes being repeated given the game itself is pretty much a dead rubber. Cancelling it may have led to more trouble anyway.

Now, Steven Gerrard and his players can look towards Parkhead as they aim to get back to winning ways. It has been a difficult few days as the fall-out from their Europa League exit at the hands of Slavia Prague continues – an Old Firm game could well be the perfect distraction for them.

In other news, Rangers fans react to this Ondrej Kudela footage.

There were high hopes when Southampton signed Wesley Hoedt from Lazio in 2017 but the Dutch defender has endured a nightmare spell with the South Coast club and has seen his market value fall off a cliff as a result.

It is hard to believe that the 27-year-old is still contracted to Southampton after failing to make an appearance for the Saints since the 2018/19 season and the club will seriously be regretting handing him a five-year deal when he joined for £15 million in 2017.

The centre-back has spent much of the last three seasons out on loan, having spells at Celta Vigo and Royal Antwerp before returning to his old side Lazio for this season, with the Italian side holding the option to sign him permanently should they so wish.

However, the former Dutch international has struggled to perform in Serie A, and it is difficult to see Simone Inzaghi’s side wanting to make his move permanent this summer, as he has averaged a shocking 6.36/10 rating across his 15 appearances in Italy’s top-flight so far this season.

Therefore, it appears likely that he will return to Southampton in the summer and the South Coast club will undoubtedly be looking to sell him, or they risk losing him for nothing at the end of next season when his contract expires.

If they do manage to find a buyer for the former AZ Alkmaar man, it seems as if they will have to accept significantly less than the £15 million they paid four years ago, as his market value now stands at a measly £4.5 million according to Transfermarkt.

In the space of two and a half years, Hoedt has seen his market value seriously decline, as a result of his poor performances out on loan in Spain, Belgium and Italy.

Therefore, you could definitely argue that Wilson made a huge error when signing the centre-back in 2017, as it has cost Southampton a serious amount of money in both transfer fee and wages, and they look set to make a significant loss on him when he leaves St Mary’s.

And, in other news… Forget Diallo: Southampton could sign their ideal Romeu heir in 22 y/o gem

Liverpool have been reported to be keen to add to their ranks with a big-money signing this summer.

On Jurgen Klopp’s shortlist are apparently two of the most exciting young players in world football in the form of Paris Saint Germain’s Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland of Borussia Dortmund.

L’Equipe are reporting that the Reds are interested in the Frenchman, who has scored 30 goals so far this season, as his contract at the Parc des Princes continues to wind down.

Meanwhile, former Reds’ defender Glen Johnson has suggested that Liverpool could get involved in “a race to the line” for the Norwegian’s signature with Premier League rivals Manchester City.

With the Dortmund star rated at £99m at the current time, and Mbappe being valued higher at £162m, Liverpool fans have understandably been conflicted about which forward they would prefer to have at Anfield.

We asked a panel of Reds’ supporters which of the two they’d like their club to sign this summer if both were available. Here’s what they had to say:

Paul Machin – @ThePaulMachin

“I’d love Haaland, he’s the kind of bully we haven’t had up front since Luis Suarez, but Mbappe is the kind of player that we’ve never bought before. The heir apparent to the throne of the world’s best player, a one-man franchise. His signing would improve the XI, grow the brand and put the rest of football on notice that Liverpool are now at the top of the food chain.”

Ross Chandley – @rossic89

“I’d take Mbappe for all the reasons Paul stated. Unless we completely broke our wage structure to get him in, in which case, Haaland would be the preference.”

Kendra Little – @kendra_litt

“It’s Mbappe and honestly it’s really not even a discussion. I can’t believe anyone would choose Haaland over him. He’s a once in a generation talent, with huge marketability.”

Russell Wareing – @RiverboatRuss

“I would take Mbappe. But it’s a valid discussion for me. Mbappe’s marketability just pushes him ahead, though”

Sam Walker – @OneSGW

“Mbappe. He’s a bigger brand, fits the Nike and Lebron links too. He’s more versatile and has more assets to his repertoire. If Haaland stops scoring for a while, he’s not bringing other threats. Mbappe’s pace is just what’s needed to beat a man. Plus his celebrations are sound too!”

Will Woodward – @willjw

“Mbappe. Because he’s been consistently at the top level for longer and seems to be the more rounded footballer, rather than an out and out (albeit lethal) finisher.”

Emma Sanders – @em_sandy

“Mbappe. Best player in the world outside of Messi and Ronaldo and will be for years to come I expect.”

Adam Heayns – @awh24

“I would have Haaland. He’s more of a system player where Mbappe is perhaps more of a “let him do wonderful things” kind of guy. I also think that Mbappe would also keep moving on, where you’ll get more time from Haaland before you possibly look at moving him. I also imagine his wages will be lower and he’d be more likely to take a performance-related salary compared to Mbappe.”

So, the vast majority of these Liverpool fans would prefer Mbappe, time will tell if he, Haaland or any other top-class centre forward makes their way to Anfield this summer.