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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…

Following the Championship play-off final victory over Derby County in May, Aston Villa’s re-arrival in the English top-flight coincided with the departure of Chelsea loanee Tammy Abraham, who had scored 26 goals in the West Midlands side’s promotion-winning season.

Abraham returning to Chelsea saw Villa move for Club Brugges striker Wesley, who has gradually adapted to life in the Premier League with four goals in 11 appearances, but the club have been linked with a move for Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos.

Since then, former Ibrox forward Neil McCann has spoken out regarding his thoughts on the valuation of the Colombian striker.

What did he say?

“I can’t see for the life of me the board entertaining Morelos going unless it was stupid money” said McCann, speaking to the Evening Times.

He then went onto state the following:

“I mean, it would have to be crazy cash – £25 million plus, maybe, Kieran Tierney money.

“When you look at Morelos, he is a fantastic goal scorer and has so much to offer.”

Could Morelos represent the missing link for Villa?

Despite Dean Smith’s side having scored 16 goals so far this season – the most of any team in the Premier League’s bottom nine – the club have seemed to lack a striker with a clinical cutting edge upfront.

Wesley has displayed his quality at times, most notably with a well-taken brace against Norwich City, but Smith may opt to enter the January market in a bid to galvanise Villa’s striking options – a move for 18-goal Morelos could make perfect sense.

Despite issues of discipline last season, the 23-year-old has dramatically improved his on-field demeanour in the current campaign. Having been sent off five times last season, Morelos is yet to see red so far in the 2019/20 campaign, and this sense of growing maturity could be timely for a move to the English top-flight.

McCann’s comments suggest an offer in the region of £25m would give Rangers serious food for thought, and given Villa’s extensive backing – with £130m having been spent on 13 new players in the summer – this would not be a fee that Villa would baulk at.

Having scored 10 goals in 11 Europa League appearances so far this season, Morelos is displaying the calibre of a player who is capable of competing at a higher level than the Scottish Premiership.

Combine this improved discipline, proven goalscoring form and the ongoing doubts regarding Villa’s back-up striker Jonathan Kodjia – who has continued to be plagued by injuries despite initially impressing during his time with the club – an offer for Morelos in January could make perfect sense for Smith’s side in a bid to bolster their attacking options and retain their top-flight status.

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…

Sunderland executive director Charlie Methven is pleased with what the team have produced since Phil Parkinson came in and believes the disappointing results are down to a lack of luck.

What did he say?

The Black Cats have been up and down since Parkinson took over, going from the highs of a 5-0 thrashing of Tranmere to a disappointing 1-0 defeat away at Shrewsbury a few days later.

Along with that, they have also been knocked out of the Carabao Cup on penalties against a high-flying Oxford side, leading Methven to suggest that the performances have begun to improve.

However, given Sunderland’s respective budget in comparison to most teams, and their aims this season, it is a little surprising that he should be so relaxed about matters – though it is in everyone’s best interest if he comes out in support of the new boss.

Speaking to ChronicleLive, he said:

It’s one thing being beaten fair and square. But quite another when you feel that the Gods are conspiring against you.

“In the last three away matches Sunderland have hit the woodwork no few than six times.

“We have been denied blatant penalties, and found a bewildering number of ways not to convert an array of clear chances.

“However, as the hours and days pass and the immediate sulk gradually lifts, the board is encouraged by the improvement in the level of performance.”

The director also noted that he is impressed with the levels of effort on display, and suggested that the coaching staff and players “will surely be rewarded” if they keep doing what they’re doing.

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Lack of quality?

It is good to see positivity around the club considering Parkinson has failed to make the desired impact straight away, as he and his players will need backing if they are to achieve their goal this year.

While it is true that the Black Cats have been dominant in the majority of the games they have played – boasting 52% average possession in League One – it may not be down to luck that they have not picked up more points.

Against Southend last weekend, for example, the Sunderland players missed several chances, and a lack of cutting edge in the final third isn’t simply a matter of luck, but lacking quality.

If that problem continues, it is important Methven and Co realise the real issues holding back Parkinson’s side, and address it when they have to opportunity to do so in January.

Will Grigg has just one league goal in 15 league games this campaign, and though they will be keen to see a return of that investment, they need to strengthen in that area, as neither he nor Marc McNulty currently look like they will score the goals to get the club promoted.

يستعد نادي باريس سان جيرمان الفرنسي، للإعلان عن تجديد عقد نجمه البرازيلي نيمار دا سيلفا، قريبًا.

النجم البرازيلي أعلن في تصريحات أن مسألة تجديد عقده محسومة وليست مجالاً للنقاش (طالع تصريحاته)، وذلك عقب تأهل باريس سان جيرمان على حساب بايرن ميونخ لنصف نهائي دوري أبطال أوروبا.

وبحسب صحيفة “ليكيب” الفرنسية، سيجدد باريس سان جيرمان عقد نيمار حتى يونيو 2027.

ويوضح التقرير أن باريس سان جيرمان سيعلن رسميًا عن تجديد عقد نيمار، قبل مباراة نصف نهائي دوري أبطال أوروبا في أبريل الجاري.

من جانبه صرح ناصر الخليفي، رئيس باريس سان جيرمان، أن نيمار وكيليان مبابي، ليس لديهما أعذار للرحيل عن النادي، حينما تحدث عقب تأهل فريقه لنصف النهائي عقب مباراة الأمس أمام بايرن ميونخ.

أفاد التقرير أيضًا أن باريس سان جيرمان يضغط على مبابي ليسير على خطى نيمار ويمدد عقده مع النادي، والذي ينتهي في يونيو 2022.

وأشارت إلى أن باريس سان جيرمان يحاول إقناع مبابي باستكمال مسيرته في صفوف الفريق.

Arsenal have been asked to pay the asking price of €100m (£86.3m) for RB Leipzig defender Dayot Upamecano, according to The Athletic.

The question is, do the Gunners need him?

Unai Emery’s side have been linked with the Frenchman for the majority of the summer after having a £55m bid previously rejected. Despite this, Arsenal bolstered their defence with the addition of the 18-year-old Saint-Etienne centre back William Saliba, only for the Frenchman to return to Les Verts on a season-long loan.

So why are Arsenal trying to sign another centre back? Is he needed?

Here’s why Unai Emery already has his very own Dayot Upamecano at the club.

During the 2018/19 campaign and in the 16 games that he played, Saliba averaged two tackles per game and 2.7 clearances, along with an average of 1.8 interceptions and a passing accuracy of 85.6%. Saliba has received praise from some of the most iconic figures in Europe. Former Chelsea and Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho described him as being exactly like Kurt Zouma, who has won the Premier League twice with the Blues. per RMC (via talkSPORT).

The Gunners were looking for a long-term replacement for the former skipper Laurent Koscielny and believe that Saliba is the answer. With Hector Bellerin injured, the 18-year-old also has the versatility to play in the right-back role which will come as a huge advantage in terms of Arsenal’s defensive squad depth.

As eye-catching as his statistics appear, it’s difficult to ignore what Upamecano has achieved in the past 12 months. However, they do not compare to Saliba in any way.

As a 19-year-old, the RB Leipzig centre back featured 15 times in the German Bundesliga and averaged 1.5 tackles, 2.2 interceptions, 1.1 fouls, 2.9 clearances and was shortlisted for the 2018 Golden Boy award last season. He achieved a passing accuracy of 82.5% which was not as high as his fellow countryman.

Unai Emery has to be given credit for snatching the 18-year-old away from the French-outfit for such a low price, considering the inflated rate suggested to them for Upamecano. With Saliba edging out the 20-year-old in almost every defensive area, Arsenal already have their very own Upamecano on their hands, without buying him.

As David Ornstein from The Athletic said, there does not appear to be any urgency in going after a centre half at this stage due to the options that the club already has. The club should follow their gut and wait for the arrival of Saliba next summer instead of paying millions for another defender.

Arsenal fans have been debating about the future of peripheral figure Mesut Ozil after the midfielder was dropped from the side by Unai Emery.

Ozil, 30, has only appeared for Arsenal on two occasions this season, with his days at the club looking increasingly bleak. The Spanish manager favours the likes of Lucas Torreira, Matteo Guendouzi and Dani Ceballos as he continues to implement in philosophy.

The former Germany international signed for the club in 2013 and has scored 43 goals and conjured up 74 assists in 233 appearances, as well as becoming the fastest player in Premier League history to reach 50 assists.

The Emirates faithful could not agree after a statistic revealed the competency of Ozil when he in the Gunners’ side, while Ceballos was proved not to be as efficient as the Gelsenkirchen-born playmaker.

One fan accused Ozil of being “non-existent” against Nottingham Forest and said that stats aren’t everything. Another accused fans of “underestimating” him.

Here you will find some of the best reactions from Arsenal fans:

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England maintained their 100% record in Euro 2020 qualifying on Saturday evening with a 4-0 drubbing of Bulgaria at Wembley thanks to a Harry Kane hat-trick and a goal from Raheem Sterling.

Three Lions boss Gareth Southgate left some of his exciting youngsters on the bench for this fixture, with Mason Mount and Jadon Sancho both only managing substitute minutes on the pitch in the second half.

Such decisions from the popular 49-year-old have left a number of fans debating the team ahead of Tuesday’s top of the table clash with Kosovo, who too are unbeaten in Group A.

Three Lions or Super Eagles? Watch the video below for the important decision facing Chelsea’s Tammy Abraham…

One man they are hoping to see start the match at Southampton’s St Mary’s on Tuesday is indeed the Borussia Dortmund star.

The 19-year-old has now picked up seven senior caps for England and could well be one of the first names on the teamsheet at next summer’s tournament should England continue to impress in the qualifying round.

You can read some of the reaction below:

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It is being reported that Mesut Ozil will not be leaving Arsenal before the end of the summer transfer window. Whilst he may not be the player he once was, it would be silly for the Gunners to let him leave at this point.

What’s the story?

The former Germany international is yet to feature this campaign. Initially, he was stopped from playing for security reasons after an incident on June 25th, but he was available for this past weekend’s match against Liverpool at Anfield, yet he was not even selected in the squad.

As such, there had been an indication that his Gunners future was in the balance. However, the 30-year-old’s agent Dr Erkut Sogut has revealed to Turkish-Football that he will be staying at the Emirates Stadium this summer.

Check out fan reaction to Liverpool 3-1 Arsenal in the video below…

Positive news, but sell next summer

It is fair to say that Ozil is not the player he once was. Last season’s record of just two assists and an average WhoScored rating of 6.74 in the Premier League is not what you would expect from a man who was once the club’s record signing.

However, it wasn’t always like that. In the 2015/16 season, he created a staggering 19 goals for his teammates and averaged a huge 7.66. That just goes to show that he has those kind of big performances in his locker.

Looking at Unai Emery’s squad, there is a lack of creative players in midfield. Other than Ozil, only Dani Ceballos can be described as somewhat of a playmaker. Granit Xhaka, Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi are all better known for their industriousness.

The on-loan Real Madrid man’s starting debut against Burnley, in which he provided both goals in a 2-1 victory, indicates that he is best placed to take up a playmaking role at the moment, but there will be times when he is either not fit or having an off day.In these situations, the former Schalke man would be the ready-made replacement, especially against defensive teams that need unlocking.

Ceballos will likely be returning to Spain next summer, and Ozil will be 31 by then as well. That would be the perfect time to let him go and bring in a long-term successor. For now though, they would be naive to let him leave, which is why this report is good news for the Gunners.

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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…

Speaking to West Yorkshire Daily on the BBC (6pm, 04/09), Managing Director of Leeds Angus Kinnear has offered his thoughts on an area where he feels the Whites have improved from last season, thus putting them at a significant step forward.

What’s he said?

Despite losing to Swansea last weekend, Leeds have had an impressive start to 2019/20, being defeated just once in the league as they sit third.

Losing Pontus Jansson hasn’t cost them too much as they’ve conceded just three times and lie in a promising position in the table.

A large part of that has been down to the business they did in the summer. It may have been questionable to make six loan signings but it appears to have been a shrewd approach and one that the club specifically targeted.

Speaking to the BBC, Kinnear said that their temporary moves was a strategy they wanted to strengthen, mentioning how this year’s team is now better off because of who they brought in. He said:

“We look back at last year and what didn’t work as well as it should have done and the loan window was one of those. Our loan strategy was one of the things which didn’t deliver in the way we wanted it to.

“We know how important loans can be and I think this year the players we’ve brought in and what they’ve shown already puts us at a significant step forward from where we were last year.”

Loans paying dividends so far

It’s fair to say that because of their business during the summer, Leeds are in fact better off, even if Kemar Roofe and Jansson left.

Last season Leeds carried some passengers, particularly in the loan department as barring Jack Harrison, their temporary signings rarely played.

They brought in three men from Chelsea including Lewis Baker, Izzy Brown and Jamal Blackman but they played a combined 18 matches, 14 of which were by the former.

Baker only managed 490 minutes whilst a broken tibia for Blackman obviously had a large say.

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Those deals didn’t pay off but moves made as recently as the summer show they’ve improved.

Ben White has won the PFA Fans’ Player of the Month for August, making 4.2 interceptions per game whilst Eddie Nketiah and Helder Costa have shown promising signs, combining for a goal twice.

The two latter names have already appeared more times combined than Brown and Blackman did so that’s certainly a positive.

Leeds still don’t have a huge amount of depth but these loan signings have given them greater quality than last term.

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

The Sun journalist Alan Nixon has claimed on Twitter that Southampton goalkeeper Fraser Forster has had a pay hike this season, which is absolutely baffling in the circumstances.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Nixon revealed that Saints are looking to offload both Forster and fellow stopper Alex McCarthy on loan during the summer transfer window, which isn’t too much of a surprise given Angus Gunn has established himself as Ralph Hasenhuttl’s first choice in 2019.

However, it was a detail at the end of the tweet that made for interesting reading, as he suggested that a potential exit is proving difficult because of the wage packets the duo are on, with both said to have risen this term.

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It remains unclear whether Nixon means in 2018/19 or ahead of the upcoming campaign, but whatever the case it is quite remarkable in Forster’s case.

Why’s that?

The 31-year-old was once upon a time the undoubted number one at St Mary’s under the likes of Ronald Koeman and Claude Puel, but his form dropped off dramatically towards the end of 2017 – six months after he had signed a new five-year contract with the south coast club.

Remember when Fraser Forster was challenging for the England No. 1 spot instead of Southampton’s No. 4? We throw back to a happier time for him in the video below…

Following a 5-2 defeat against Tottenham Hotspur on Boxing Day, the former Newcastle man was dropped in favour of Alex McCarthy and has only made one senior appearance since then – against West Ham United back in May.

It is no secret that he is reported to be one of the highest-earning players at Southampton, which makes sense from the bumper deal he put pen to paper on two summers ago.

However, if Nixon is right and he has seen a hike in his pay either last season or for the upcoming one, it shows just how badly the club has been run in the past.

Saints appear desperate to offload the 6 foot 7 goalkeeper before the transfer window shuts next month, but they may have dug their own grave if Nixon is right.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Amidst all the focus on the transfer window at Old Trafford, one thing that has seemingly slipped under the radar has been the fact the club does not have an official first-team captain at the moment.

Veteran right-back Antonio Valencia’s departure in the summer has left United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with a tough decision to make over the coming weeks as the club look to name a permanent successor to the Ecuadorian.

Indeed, speaking back in April, Solskjaer admitted that there were certain traits and characteristics he would be looking for in the next United captain. He said: “There’s a certain criteria. They have to be one of the, how do you say, cultural architects if I put it in a nice word. It’s someone you have to look up to, someone who’s got the right habits, standards and the personality to be that.”

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What is perhaps fascinating about Solskjaer’s words was the names he mentioned during that press conference about who could potentially take over from Valencia. He added: “We’ve had Antonio, he’s going, we’ve had Ashley (Young), we’ve had Paul (Pogba), we’ve had David (de Gea), Chris (Smalling) has been captain, so there are players here who can be captain on the pitch.”

All four of the names the Norwegian reeled off have a major asterisk to their names, and none of them arguably in the positive. Speculation remains that Pogba could be heading for an Old Trafford exit this summer, De Gea went through his arguably his most underwhelming campaign in a United shirt for many a year, and both Smalling and Young are hardly guaranteed starters in the first-team.

As the clock ticks down to the opening Premier League game of the season against Chelsea next month, the Red Devils are ultimately left scrambling around to bestow one of the biggest honours in club football; captain of Manchester United.

A side littered with some of the greatest leaders in the history of the game, ranging from Sir Bobby Charlton to Wayne Rooney, from Bryan Robson to Roy Keane. And now, the prospect of having a player who has made it clear he doesn’t want to be there, or someone who has proven that they might not even be good enough in the first place.

If ever there was a damning indictment of how United have fallen in recent years, then the uncertainty and frankly shocking choices of options for the captaincy says it all.