All posts by n8rngtd.top

Southampton have now picked up just one point in their last eight Premier League fixtures, with Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side looking a shadow of the team that briefly went top of the Premier League earlier in the season.

A key factor behind their drop in form looks to have been the absence of Kyle Walker-Peters, who has picked up two separate injury issues so far this year, which have kept him sidelined and forced Hasenhuttl to look for alternative options at right-back.

The young defender quickly established himself as a key player with the Saints following his loan spell last season, which was made permanent last summer as he won over the Austrian manager and fans with his impressive performances.

Those displays continued into the new season, with Walker-Peters having made 19 appearances in the top-flight so far this season, averaging a solid 7/10 rating – the third-best of any Saints player.

Southampton have picked up 29 points in the 19 games in which the 23-year-old has featured, averaging 1.53 points per game, whereas in the six Premier League games he has missed through injury, Hasenhuttl’s side have earned just one point, averaging 0.17 points per game.

This immediately emphasises that the South Coast club struggle without the right-back, which makes it even more baffling that Hasenhuttl allowed back-up right-back Yan Valery to depart on loan during January, without any back-up being brought in.

Walker-Peters briefly returned for the consecutive games against Wolves earlier this month after picking up an injury in training but was forced off in the Premier League defeat, with Hasenhuttl confirming that he would miss a few weeks at least.

The Austrian manager has deployed Jan Bednarek as a right-back in recent fixtures, and whilst the Polish international is solid from a defensive point of view, he doesn’t offer the same attacking threat as Walker-Peters.

The former Spurs man offers Southampton an out ball by pushing high up the right-hand side and formed an excellent partnership with Stuart Armstrong down that side, something which Bednarek is unfortunately unable to replicate.

Walker-Peters, who earns £23k per week at Southampton, has also registered more tackles on average than any other Saints defender, barring Kayne Ramsay who has made just one appearance, which could be a factor as to why Southampton have struggled defensively so much in recent weeks.

Jermaine Beckford said on the post-match Sky Sports coverage of the 3-0 defeat to Leeds United that the Saints’ recent run of form and how many goals they are conceding right now was “disgusting”, so it seems clear that they need Walker-Peters back in their side as soon as possible if they want to turn their awful run of form around.

And, in other news… Dire: Old habits die hard for £15m Southampton man who lost 71% of his duels vs Leeds

Many Liverpool fans have been reacting to comments made by Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville regarding midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum.
The future of the 30-year-old has been a major talking point during the 2020/21 campaign with his contract due to expire at the end of June and no signs of progress in talks between the two parties.
Despite this, Neville answered a question from a football fan on Twitter as to who is the most underrated player in the Premier League, to which he singled out the Netherlands international.
Wijnaldum has scored 22 goals and provided 16 assists from 222 appearances so far for the Reds and stole the headlines during his side’s unforgettable 4-0 win against Barcelona in 2019.
Despite supporters being torn on whether they would want to see Wijnaldum depart from Anfield, these fans were keen to see him sign an extended deal and made their feelings clear to Anfield Watch on social media.

Gary Neville earns Anfield plaudits

“Totally agree”
Credit: @MakhasiO
“Truth….when you watch games, some may rank him down at the bottom of the squad each game, but tactically with what he offers, he’d be one of the last I’d take off the field. Class.”
Credit: @tfp6
“Would love a last-minute contract signature for this man, what a player”
Credit: @CalumFlanagan88
“He isn’t wrong”
Credit: @LFC_IBYY
“Not often I agree with him, but on this occasion, he’s bang on! He wants £40m over 4 yrs. get it done @LFC”
Credit: @JakeJonTaylor
“He is correct”
Credit: @randon_brandon

In other news, Liverpool fans reacted furiously to Paul Joyce’s update on social media.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Southampton midfielder Carlton Palmer has warned his old club about selling star players Danny Ings and Jannik Vestergaard to Tottenham this summer, and believes the former may have an “agreement” already with the north London side.

According to The Mirror, Jose Mourinho is considering making a move for Vestergaard once the transfer window opens, while Eurosport have credited the north London outfit with an interest in Ings.

While a lot still has to happen before any of these potential transfers materialise, the links are a worrying sign for Southampton, who have sold the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Sadio Mane and Luke Shaw to Premier League rivals in previous windows.

And Palmer believes it is not sustainable for the Saints to continue selling key assets every time one of the division’s big boys come knocking.

“It’s not sustainable for anybody to sell their best players,” the retired England international exclusively told FFC when discussing Tottenham’s reported interest in both Ings and Vestergaard.

“I think Danny’s gone off the boil. I think if reading between the lines from how I see it, it almost seems as if Danny’s got an agreement with Spurs, that’s just the way I feel. Listen, I don’t blame him. If you’re looking at Southampton, you’re looking at Spurs, Spurs are going to always be at the top end of the table and they’re going to be challenging for major honours. I don’t blame him.”

Ings starred for Southampton last season, finishing the 2019/20 Premier League campaign with an impressive 22 goals to his name, while Vestergaard has made a good name for himself in defence this term.

The Danish defender is currently winning 3.6 aerial duels per league game, the highest average in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s squad (via WhoScored), and is also making the most clearances out of all of his team-mates (4). Furthermore, losing both players would have to come as a blow to the south coast outfit.

Preston North End boss Alex Neil has fired Carlo Ancelotti a huge warning over Anthony Gordon after revealing why the Everton loanee did not face Middlesbrough on Tuesday night.

The Lilywhites travelled to the Riverside Stadium for a midweek clash but returned to Deepdale without any points to show for their efforts, after an own goal from Jordan Storey and strike from Marcus Tavernier saw Neil Warnock’s Boro triumph.

Gordon had been a regular member of Neil’s plans since joining the Championship side on loan for the remainder of the season during the winter transfer market, but played no part in the defeat for only his second non-appearance in 10 games for the club.

Preston supporters were at a loss as to why Gordon was not fielded in the starting line-up on Tuesday and later not given any minutes from the bench, despite their side later being reduced to 10 men following a red card for Alan Browne.

Neil has since explained why Gordon was overlooked against Middlesbrough, in a potentially huge warning for Ancelotti and the winger’s hopes of establishing himself back at Everton next season.

“It’s different being a fan and being a manager, because my job is to try and put the team out to try and win the game,” Neil explained, via quotes by Lancs Live. “Fans want to see exciting players and I understand that, so that’s not lost on me.

“But my job at the moment, certainly with the difficult run we’re on, is to try and get some points and listen – the one thing I can assure everybody and Anthony, because I speak to him regularly, is that if I think he is the best option for a game coming up, I’ve got no reservations whatsoever of putting him in.

“The thing is with Anthony is that he wants to take touches, and against Middlesbrough, they want to lock you in, so you need to limit your touches – certainly if you’re high up the pitch. That’s why I put three runners behind Ched [Evans], so it [the ball] goes up, sticks, gets set back and then guys run.”

Gordon had been noted to have offered a positive impact from the bench in Preston’s prior 1-0 defeat to Wycombe Wanderers last Saturday, but has now not started a fixture under Neil in four possible games and remains without a goal or an assist.

Neil’s reasoning behind overlooking Gordon against Middlesbrough on Tuesday should act as a warning for Ancelotti, and raise concerns back at Everton of what sort of impact the £4.5m-rated forward will be able to offer the European football hopefuls next season.

The Preston boss clearly feels Gordon still has some room to develop before he is consistently making the correct decisions in the final-third, which in turn is likely helping toward his wait for a first contribution to the scoring with the Championship side.

Yet Gordon has shown over his outings for the Lilywhites that he can be a productive member of Neil’s attacking options, even if the chances have not yet been converted, and it is surely only a matter of time before the Liverpool-born talent is influencing games.

Despite taking just 25.9 touches per Championship game over his eight appearances to date, Gordon has offered on average 0.9 shots and created one goalscoring opportunity, including two big chances and missing one clear cut opening, per SofaScore.

Richarlison offers Everton 40.5 touches per Premier League game over his 24 outings so far, for comparison, which have seen the Brazilian produce on average 1.7 shots and 0.6 key passes for six goals and three assists, along with creating three big chances and missing six.

The 23-year-old plays on average 83 minutes a game, while Gordon only registers 49 having made half of his appearances from the bench, to show that the Toffees product is establishing a solid baseline to build on over the final quarter of the second-tier season. However, if he’s not trusted to play in a big Championship clash, then maybe he isn’t close to being ready for the Premier League just yet.

AND in other news, Everton have their eyes on a £105k-p/w striker with three goals in 34 games for his current side…

According to a report by journalist Mike McGrath, writing for the Telegraph, Ligue 1 side Nice are ‘ready to offer’ Tottenham Hotspur mainstay Hugo Lloris a way out of north London this summer – with the World Cup winner having just one full season left on his current deal.

Nice want Hugo Lloris signing

After giving a forthright and honest interview in wake of the Dinamo Zagreb humiliation, revealing he was part of a broken dressing room, Nice’s hopes of bringing their former shot stopper back to France have been raised.

Indeed, McGrath reports that Lloris’ admission after Spurs’ Europa League defeat has encouraged Nice that they could tempt the 34-year-old into a summer move – and they see him as a potential marquee signing from Tottenham.

As a result, they are reportedly ready to offer the international a way out of north London this summer as he is yet to pen an extension on his current Lilywhites deal – which expires in 2022.

Transfer Tavern take

Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho could potentially lose Lloris as Nice attempt to lure him back to France, and it’s safe to stay he won’t want that to happen despite his recently poor run.

Indeed, speaking candidly to the media, Mourinho backed the under-fire goalkeeper just last month amid his bad spell – calling him an ‘amazing, amazing’ number one (Evening Standard).

In other news: Robinson was thrilled by this ‘great news for Spurs’, find out more here.

With the latest international break currently in full flow, there is still an obvious exclusion from the latest England squad.

That man is Leeds United frontman Patrick Bamford.

The former Crystal Palace loanee has enjoyed a tremendous season in front of goal in the Premier League, scoring 14 goals and providing seven assists for Marcelo Bielsa’s men – form which has seen Clinton Morrison label the striker as “unplayable”.

Whilst Leeds will be thrilled with Bamford’s lethal goalscoring touch throughout the 2020/21 season, Palace will be tinged with slight disappointment having seen the striker flop miserably in a period at Selhurst Park, especially considering that two of his goals this term have come against Roy Hodgson’s men.

Joining on loan from Chelsea in 2015, the then-21-year-old was fresh off the back of a stunning season in the Championship, having plundered 17 goals with Middlesbrough and also scooping the division’s Player of the Year award.

He displayed no such form for the Eagles, though, with Bamford’s only contribution in a Palace shirt being a solitary assist in a 4-1 League Cup thumping of Charlton Athletic.

In all, the striker made just nine poor performances for Palace in a miserable five months at Selhurst Park before he was recalled by parent club Chelsea, then subsequently joining fellow Premier League outfit Norwich City on another temporary deal. He also made another seven appearances in Norfolk, once again failing to get on the scoresheet.

To Bamford’s credit, he was only afforded four starts in all competitions across those two loan spells, so his talent might not have been fully justified by his performances.

Now, with the Leeds striker firmly in the conversation for England recognition due to a spectacular season, Palace might well be frustrated that they did not spot that potential whilst he was donning an Eagles shirt.

AND in more news, read about which Championship starlet is apparently interesting Steve Parish…

Fans of Southampton have been reacting to a post on Twitter, which relayed a report regarding the current contract situation of Saints centre-back, Jannik Vestergaard.

According to the report by The Athletic, talks are yet to take place over a new contract for the £60,000-per-week defender, whose contract at St Mary’s expires in the summer of 2022.

The report goes on to mention Vestergaard’s links with a summer move to Tottenham Hotspur, as well as relaying the 28-year-old’s comments in a recent interview with Tipsbladet, in which the Denmark international admitted he was flattered by the reported interest in his services.

And, after Southampton Page relayed the report on Twitter, as well as asking fans of the club whether they feel Vestergaard deserves to be awarded a new contract with Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side, many of the St Mary’s faithful flocked to have their say on the matter, with the majority appearing to be desperate for the club to tie the £16.2 million-rated man down to a new deal.

So, what exactly did these Southampton fans have to say in reaction to the report regarding Jannik Vestergaard?

“Been a great signing, he deserves a new contract. I’ve no faith in Semmens and Crocker to get a contract agreed. Don’t seem to be able to get things done.”

@ScottHammy87

“He’s been superb and has been really tested this year. He’s a must!”

@bfgfox

“Top three player for the Saints this year. A new 4 year deal for him would be great.”

@mwmiller3471

“Without a doubt. The most improved player over the last year.”

@SimonParkerPT

“No brainer. Special player, just hope we can keep him.”

@MarcRolf1

“Yes, otherwise he’ll be off.”

@toblermoan55

“Deffo, no question about it.”

@Stevewe1965

In other news: lots of Saints fans buzzed at the link with this star who’s ‘better than Redmond’ –  find out more here!

In an exclusive interview with Transfer Tavern, ex-Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has scoffed at Chelsea’s reported asking price for Ross Barkley.

Barkley is currently on loan at Villa from Chelsea and, according to Football Insider, the west London club will demand a £35m fee from their Premier League rivals this summer in any potential permanent deal.

The 27-year-old attacking midfielder made an impressive start to life at Villa Park, scoring on his debut in that unforgettable 7-2 victory against Liverpool before netting the winner versus Leicester City shortly after.

It has been downhill since then, however, with Barkley picking up a problematic hamstring injury at the end of 2020 and no longer a regular starter in Dean Smith’s starting XI.

It leaves Villa with a decision to make but, at £35m, Hendrie believes their minds should already be made up.

“There’s no doubt he’s got the ability, there’s no doubt that he’s a very, very good player and we’ve seen that when he first came into the club, but we haven’t seen it again,” the ex-Villa star told TT.

“The lack of consistency, you know, if you’re spending £35m on a player, you want some revenue back, you want to see some form of goals and creativity. Yes, he’s got that, but have we seen enough of it? I don’t think so for £35m if I’m quite honest.”

Hendrie, however, did add:

“If you’d have asked me when he first came in, first three or four games, I would’ve said ‘yeah. I would snap your hands off’.”

If Barkley does return to Chelsea, he could face a real battle to get into the Blues starting XI. In midfield, Thomas Tuchel currently has N’Golo Kante, Mateo Kovacic and Jorginho to call upon. Further forward, the German has the likes of Mason Mount, Timo Werner and Kai Havertz all at his disposal.

Some Manchester United fans have been left fuming at an update involving David de Gea.

As per the Daily Mirror, the former Atletico Madrid goalkeeper is set to become surplus to requirements at Old Trafford at the end of the season as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer puts his faith in Dean Henderson as the Red Devils’ number one ‘keeper.

The club would have to pay off a large chunk of his mammoth wages in order to get the Spaniard off  their books and value him at £50m, which is an ambitious price given the financial impact of the global pandemic.

Nonetheless, to lose a player of that calibre who has been a loyal servant to Manchester United without an adequate replacement lined up would not be the best bit of business, and the news has certainly been questioned by some supporters.

Manchester United fans on de Gea update

These United fans fumed upon reading the update on Twitter, with one even going as far as to claim that it would be a ‘Solskjaer disasterclass’ to let the 30-year-old leave:

“No way, Dave is going to be the number one of this club in the next three years, he is streets ahead of Hendo. Form is temporary class is permanent.”

Credit: @Apdihakem2

“Crazy if you ask me given it’s probably De Gea who wants to go now he has a baby in Spain if anything De Gea should buy himself out of the contract not the other way round”

Credit: @UAGMVMT

“Another sale which will backfire under Solskjaer.”

Credit: @KarlaHilton1

“This is a disgrace if true United fans on twitter should be ashamed of the way they have treated this legend”

Credit: @Awbmasterclass

“Terrible mistake”

Credit: @UTDpat_

“Another Solskjaer disasterclass in management but not a word is said because he’s not Mourinho”

Credit: @FinishedZ

In other news, find out what Anthony Martial update has left many fans fuming!

According to team update by West Ham insider Claret & Hugh, midfielder Manuel Lanzini faces a late fitness test for the clash against Leicester this afternoon despite recovering from a knock, with manager David Moyes facing the possibility of being without him again depending on the results.

Moyes could be without Lanzini

Lanzini, who hasn’t been among the favourites picked for selection in the starting XI by Moyes this season (WhoScored), missed last week’s encounter with Wolves after picking up a knock. 

Claret & Hugh now claim that the 28-year-old faces a late fitness test before West Ham’s battle with the Foxes this afternoon despite seemingly recovering, according to their previous information.

With Michail Antonio and Declan Rice both certain to miss out, the Argentine could provide that extra bit of firepower off the bench if he is indeed able to play, but Moyes could yet be without him as an option again today.

Lanzini’s highlight of the season by far is that wonder goal away to Spurs in the opening weeks of the campaign, and the Irons could do with a similar bit of magic against third-placed Leicester.

Transfer Tavern take

Today is arguably one of the most crucial games of the season for Moyes and West Ham, where a win would tighten their grip on a European qualifying spot.

Back in late December, Tony Cottee lauded Lanzini as West Ham’s ‘best footballer’ when speaking on Sky Sports’ Soccer Saturday (via Hammers News) as he implored Moyes to play him more.

Despite that notion being debatable, West Ham fans could be hoping they have him to call upon from the bench at least, especially if their team is in a tight spot at some point this afternoon – all the more so considering that the encounter may also come too soon for his team-mates Andriy Yarmolenko and Angelo Ogbonna (Claret & Hugh).

In other news: Many West Ham fans flocked to this ExWHUemployee tweet, find out more here.