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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…

Former Liverpool striker Stan Collymore has hit back at Sky Sports pundit Jose Mourinho after his comments about Liverpool’s 1-1 draw against Manchester United at Old Trafford.

What’s the word?

Collymore, who scored 35 goals for the Reds, felt that the former Chelsea and Manchester United manager was talking “rubbish” when giving his analysis about Liverpool’s performance on Sunday.

Mourinho took a swipe at manager Jurgen Klopp for not liking the Red Devils’ tactics. Speaking to Sky Sports, via The Evening Standard, he said: “He didn’t like the menu. He likes meat and he got fish, so he was not happy.

“They are of course much stronger against opponents who give them a chance of transitions and counter-attacks. United didn’t do that. And he didn’t like the menu.”

One draw after 17 straight wins

Mourinho did not think before he spoke about Liverpool. Klopp’s record with the Reds has been impeccable and the fact that the German manager managed to guide his team to 17 wins in a row in the Premier League is a phenomenal achievement in itself.

Watch a Liverpool fan discover the internet and get a nasty surprise in the video below…

Liverpool have not played really well at any point during their league campaign this season but still managed to win their first eight games. Against Sheffield United and Leicester City, the Reds were given similar tactical lessons of patience and discipline as they edged past the two teams. However, using the same approach they were unable to break down Manchester United.

Despite playing against teams that have gone out of their way to defend against the Reds, Klopp’s side have still managed to score 21 goals and have only conceded seven without defeat this season.

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said during last season that they were in title-winning form as Liverpool consistently find ways to win games, as per Sky Sports, via Tribal Football.

Watch Liverpool Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Collymore is right to criticise Mourinho. Due to the situation the Reds find themselves in after the draw, they are still six points clear at the top of the table while Manchester United lie in 13th.

It’s all about perspective. The former Nottingham Forest striker has correctly called out opinions based on pre-match thoughts, which derive from nonsensical combined XIs with Danny Mills and drawing the picture that Liverpool have slipped up because of the Red Devils’ atrocious form.

In fact, Liverpool and Klopp can feel contempt about taking a point away from Old Trafford.

Phil Parkinson got his Sunderland career off to the worst possible start on Saturday but he could have a trick up his sleeve to get back to winning ways.

Tranmere could be the visitors the Mackems need tonight as they have picked up only three wins in 13 league matches, and it could be a suitable occasion for Benji Kimpioka to make his first senior appearance of the season, with his previous one coming all the way back in April.

Watch League 1 Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

The Black Cats have struggled for goals once again this term with 16 scored in 12 league matches, and with Aiden McGeady ruled out through suspension there is a vacant position in the starting line-up, and the team needs a spark.

As a result, some fans have backed the 19-year-old to be given a role in the matchday squad, with some suggesting that his pace and ability to run at defenders is lacking in the squad.

However, others believe he isn’t ready to step up to the first-team considering he hasn’t been hugely impressive for the U23 team, with only one goal in four games.

Here are some of the reactions from fans discussing whether he should be involved against Rovers.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

When in doubt, go back to the place you know well.

That seems to be Chris Wilder’s plan as he makes starts putting together his plans for the January window

What’s the story?

According to a report from The Sun On Sunday (27/11, page 61), Sheffield United are interested in bringing in Swansea City defender Joe Rodon.

This wouldn’t be the first time the two teams have done business together, as Ollie McBurnie made the move from South Wales to South Yorkshire this past summer.

Whether or not his injury sustained in the South Wales Derby will have any impact on the deal is yet to be seen.

Watch Sheffield United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Building for the future?

The 22-year-old Welsh defender has certainly developed well at the Liberty Stadium, so much so that he has managed to gain the trust of his national side.

Having made his debut against Azerbaijan back in August, he has been an ever-present in Ryan Giggs’ side since, keeping more experienced players like Ashley Williams out of the starting line-up.

There have been some reports that have gone so far as dubbing him ‘The Welsh John Stones’, and his career statistics would back up those claims, averaging 53 passes per game for an average of 86.1%.

Whilst they’re a little bit short of the Man City defender’s numbers of 59.7 and 92.9%, it’s still a respectable amount, especially when you consider the division he is in.

Do you remember Chris Wilder’s first ever game in charge of Sheffield United. We look at the players that played that day and what became of them in the video below…

Whilst he may be in a position to help Chris Wilder’s side out right now, bringing in someone at the age of 22 means that he can be of great benefit for the Blades not just in this season, but also going forward as well.

If you take a look at the current crop of Sheffield United centre-backs, half of them are over the age of 30, Richard Stearman, Phil Jagielka and Chris Basham, and they’re all going to need replacing at some stage.

Although given what he’s managed to do so far in his young career, it’s fair to say he’ll be able to command a role in the starting eleven straight away.

If he doesn’t, then at least they’ve got someone capable of playing a star role when the elder statesmen move on.

After returning from an almost two-month injury lay-off against Liverpool, Anthony Martial announced his comeback to the Manchester United side with a series of impressive goal-scoring displays.

The France international netted the winner against Partizan Belgrade, and got on the score-sheet in the comfortable win against Norwich too. But against Bournemouth on Saturday afternoon in the Premier League, the 23-year-old didn’t look anywhere near best.

As per Sofascore, the forward had just one shot on target and 27 touches over the course of the 90 minutes, and finished with a match rating of 6.6 – the worst of any United player who completed the full game.

After seeing the Frenchman’s display, fans of the Manchester side flooded to Twitter to voice their thoughts about their number nine.

Many Red Devils supporters questioned his work ethic and insisted he simply doesn’t put in the hard yards to be a top-level striker for the club.

Check out some of the reaction of United fans below:

Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter to discuss Max Meyer’s impact off the bench against Leicester, and it seems as if the general consensus is that the midfielder wasn’t very good at all.

The 4-cap Germany international was making just his fourth Premier League appearance of the season when he came off the bench with just 17 minutes to play against the Foxes, but he failed to put his stamp on the game as the Eagles lost 2-0 to Brendan Rodger’s side.

Meyer had just seven touches of the ball during his cameo, but was still dispossessed twice.

The former Schalke man also failed to have a single shot, make a key pass, or complete any kind of defensive act in the form of a tackle, clearance, block or interception – he was practically non-existent when he entered the fray.

One fan said that Palace looked less dangerous  when he came on for Cheikhou Kouyate, whereas another supporter thinks that the German is “too weak” for the Premier League.

Let’s take a look at some more tweets…

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

Phil Parkinson seems to be taking a defensive approach with Sunderland and it is the most appropriate course of action to take if he is to win promotion.

On the chalkboard

The former Bolton boss has quickly grown used to the inconsistent performances of this Sunderland team, and has two wins and two defeats from his four League One matches so far.

Though still struggling away from home, he has already improved the defence slightly with three goals conceded in four league games, and two clean sheets out of two at home.

Southend manager Sol Campbell spoke of the importance of home form in mounting a promotion push, following their defeat against the Black Cats. Parkinson has already overseen an upturn in form in that department, and if he can continue to make shrewd decisions like playing Luke O’Nien at right midfield, then the Black Cats could be on course for success.

O’Nien provided the defensive qualities that are expected from a right-back on Saturday but crucially added the winning goal, and with George Dobson also showing signs of improvement there is reason for optimism from a defensive standpoint.

Watch League 1 Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Platform for success

Despite an underwhelming attack which resulted in too many draws last term, Sunderland were equally disappointing in defence.

They may have only let in 47 goals in 46 league games, but they conceded a goal in 33 of those matches, and if they repeat such a record this campaign they will fail to pick up the number of wins required for promotion.

That was a primary reason behind their failures last season, and it is little surprise that the two sides who kept the most clean sheets finished in the promotion places.

Parkinson is taking the right approach in order to achieve the club’s aim. It was how he built success at Bolton in the 2016/17 season, with his Trotters side conceding only 36 goals in the league as they finished in second.

Sunderland have an international goalkeeper in Jon McLaughlin, and recruited two centre-backs over the summer, so there is no reason why they don’t have the base for promotion success.

Should they do so, their away form will likely improve and considering they are yet to lose at home in 2019/20, that would put them in with a great chance of getting back into the Championship.

A number of Southampton fans have slammed the performance of James Ward-Prowse in Saturday afternoon’s Premier League clash with Everton.

The Saints recovered from an early setback to level the scores in the 50th minute, with Danny Ings registering against the Merseyside outfit.

Richarlison came up with the winner for the visitors in the 75th minute, though, meaning that Southampton have now lost their last four matches in all competitions.

And a number of the fans took their frustrations out on James Ward-Prowse.

The 25-year-old played the full 90 minutes against Marco Silva’s team, and WhoScored have him down as completing 30 of his 35 passes.

Ward-Prowse only managed one shot, though, and did not make a single challenge during the entire match, which will be a concern to head coach Ralph Hasenhuttl.

It is certainly a difficult time to be a Southampton fan, and a selection of their reaction to Ward-Prowse’s performance against the Toffees can be seen below:

Will Grigg is available after overcoming illness and his manager is pleased to be able to pick him once again as he believes he is an “important player” for his team.

Going by his history and his pedigree in League One Grigg should be a key player for the Black Cats, but his return of seven goals in 42 games means he has hugely disappointed.

That has led many fans to ridicule the striker in response to Parkinson’s statement, with many unhappy with what he has delivered in matches so far, as he often contributes little when he doesn’t score.

Watch Sunderland Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

As a result, some think that he shouldn’t be anywhere near the first-team while others hope that he is sold in January and another more prolific striker is brought in.

The Northern Ireland international struggled under Jack Ross and although he has the backing of his new manager he has still continued to underwhelm, aside from a goal against Tranmere, and until he picks up his form he may be subject to more criticism from fans.

The following reactions show the amount of vitriol that exists towards the 28-year-old currently.

Former Premier League footballer Jamie O’Hara believes that Manchester United should waste no time in snapping up the services of ex-Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino after the Argentinian’s sacking earlier this week.

Pochettino saw over five years of work at Spurs come to an abrupt end on Tuesday amid a poor start to the season following their fairy-tale journey to the Champions League final in 2018/19.

With United in indifferent form both during and since the tenure of Pochettino’s successor Jose Mourinho, O’Hara has urged the Red Devils to act swiftly in order to bring the 47-year-old to Old Trafford immediately – even at the expense of current manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

Speaking on TalkSPORT, O’Hara feels that ‘Poch’ could be the man to deliver success at Manchester United, and is a talent too good to pass on.

He said: “I think Poch is taking over Man United.

“I’d get him in straight away. You’ve got one of the best managers in the world currently available for nothing.

“Get him in now, get his feet under the table.

“What he’s done is built a football club. [Tottenham] would never be able to get Mourinho if it wasn’t for Poch coming in and building the football club to where it is now.

“And I think if he went to Man United, that’s the statement: ‘We’ve got Poch, and we’re going to win things with him’.”

Looking at O’Hara’s comments, it could be argued he values Pochettino’s managerial talents higher than those of Mourinho’s.

While he has also suggested that Mourinho could lead Spurs to the Champions League title, he has backed Pochettino to win things at a club where Mourinho had ultimately failed himself.

Either he rates Spurs’ squad higher than United’s (which wouldn’t be surprising given his association with the club), or he believes that Pochettino can take United to where Mourinho and Solskjaer have been unable to – hence the calls to hire him as soon as possible.

Manchester United fans, would Pochettino be a significant upgrade on Mourinho and Solskjaer? Let us know below!

Loads of Liverpool fans have been reacting with huge excitement to something Timo Werner said recently, which seemed to imply he would be the perfect deputy for Roberto Firmino.

Jurgen Klopp’s transformation of Firmino into the ultimate ‘false 9’ has been extremely enjoyable to watch, and Reds fans suspect Werner might be next in line for similar treatment.

The German striker has been linked with a switch to Anfield recently, but for any striker to come and compete with Firmino for a place, they need to be able to do more than just score goals.

Werner has bagged a remarkable 12 goals in 12 Bundesliga showings this season, but it is his latest comment that has really caught the attention of the Anfield faithful.

“(Julian) Nagelsmann has said that I won’t be playing as an out and out striker for him as such, but more of a false 9,” he said, per One Football.

“It has encouraged me to improve & develop myself, even when we come up against oppositions that sit deep. He‘s helped me to make better use of space.”

Firmino is well-known for his tendency to drop deep into space, drag centre-backs out of position and supply chances for the likes of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane, so the fact that Werner is doing this while also scoring plenty of goals is surely a good sign for those who want to see the 23 year-old on Merseyside.

Fans can hardly contain their excitement, with some offering up their finest GIFs, while others get the #Werner2020 hashtag fired up and ready to go…