The international break has gifted the Southampton squad a chance to get some casual minutes under their belts, with many of those who haven’t been called up to their national teams featuring in a friendly versus QPR on Wednesday.
The game, which the Saints won 3-2, gave run outs to Nathan Redmond, Charlie Austin and Yan Valery to name but a few. However, the real talking point was the rare sight of Fraser Forster – the former Celtic man hasn’t featured for the first team all season, with Angus Gunn stealing the gloves.
Between the sticks for the Saints, the 31-year-old let in two against Championship opposition, but that didn’t matter one bit to the St Mary’s Stadium faithful who were largely pleased to see the goalkeeper was even at the club still.
Former Wigan & Fulham man, Jimmy Bullard recently showed that he’s still got it! Check out the video below…
Here’s what they had to say on Twitter, with most simply excited to see him don the gloves again, while another suggested he may yet regain his starting spot…
Crystal Palace youngster Sam Woods has been speaking about his first team chances – could the Eagles already have their James Tomkins replacement at the club?
Mamadou Sakho could miss the rest of the season through injury, and it may just offer the perfect chance for Woods to prove his worth.
Roy Hodgson of course has veteran Scott Dann to call on in Sakho’s absence, but Woods has been speaking about his hopes of a proper run in the first XI.
What has he said?
“That’s not my decision, so I can’t say If I can play or not,” Woods told Football.London.
“I’m just going to be trying my best everyday and see where that takes me.
“I think to try my best everyday in training, in games and just see what happens. If I can keep getting on the bench for the first-team that’s good and maybe come on.
“We just have to wait and see.
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“It’s different (training with the first-team) it’s a lot more intense and demanding, but you have to learn quick.
“I feel like I’m adapting everyday and definitely becoming a better player training with them.”
Following Wan-Bissaka
Woods went on to explain the benefits of training with the first team and praised the likes of Dann and Tomkins for their guidance, so he clearly has his head screwed on straight.
And the youngster has actually already featured for the senior side, amassing 11 minutes in an EFL cup clash against Middlesbrough.
With Tomkins set to turn 30 on Friday, Woods’ presence in the first team could become more and more prevalent over the next 18 months or so.
Aaron Wan-Bissaka has already cleared the path for youngsters to grab their chances under Roy Hodgson, and Woods’ excellent attitude should ensure he is best-placed to follow in the right-back’s footsteps.
Players age at different rates of course, but if Tomkins’ form falls off at any point in the near future, could the 20 year-old be a long-term partner for Sakho? Palace fans, let us know your thoughts in the comments below…
Arsenal face Manchester United this weekend in what could be described as their toughest game of the season so far.
The Gunners have played United twice this season and have failed to win both games, drawing 2-2 in the Premier League and losing 3-1 in the FA Cup. In fact, they have not tasted victory over United since 2017, when Granit Xhaka and Danny Welbeck scored the goals in a 2-0 win. Wayne Rooney started up front for United that day.
Ever since, it appears there has been something of a mental block, an intangible problem that has prevented the Gunners from getting one over on the Red Devils.
Perhaps much of that can be put down to the Jose Mourinho effect. In his entire career, spanning two spells with Chelsea and one with United, the Portuguese has lost twice to the Gunners. One of those games was the 2-0 defeat in 2017, the other came in the 2016 FA Cup final, with Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain scoring the only goal.
Against Arsene Wenger, Mourinho, of course, enjoyed superb success over a man he dubbed a “specialist in failure”. On the Frenchman’s 1,000th game in charge, Chelsea welcomed Arsenal to Stamford Bridge and thumped Wenger’s side 6-0, and that mental stranglehold transmitted to Old Trafford.
Now, though, as the battle for Champions League qualification reaches a crunch period, the two sides are separated by a point. There can be no excuses from Unai Emery as he bids to mastermind a victory which would take the Gunners back into the top-four.
Mourinho – who never lost to Emery in La Liga, when the Portuguese was managing Real Madrid and the Gunners boss was with Valencia – has long since vacated the premises at Old Trafford.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has restored some belief and swagger to United and helped the side to a miraculous Champions League comeback win over PSG in midweek, but Arsenal will perhaps enter the game as favourites.
They play Rennes on Thursday in the Europa League and Emery has repeatedly followed in Wenger’s footsteps by blooding youngsters in Europe’s secondary competition; he is likely to follow suit this time around as he bids to keep his first-team stars fresh for the weekend.
United, moreover, have injuries. The likes of Alexis Sanchez, who tormented his former club in the FA Cup tie earlier this season, Ander Herrera, Jesse Lingard, Juan Mata and Nemanja Matic are all on the sidelines; so thin is their squad, currently, that both Tahith Chong and Mason Greenwood came on as substitutes at Parc des Princes.
Arsenal are missing Hector Bellerin, Rob Holding and Welbeck, but they are long-term injuries and Emery will have long since known of their absences.
Their key starting XI is fit and firing and they will be out for blood. A 1-1 draw with Tottenham Hotspur last time out was perhaps unjust as Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang missed a last-minute penalty, while they also thumped AFC Bournemouth 5-1 in their last outing at the Emirates Stadium.
Soccer Football – Premier League – Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal – Wembley Stadium, London, Britain – March 2, 2019 Tottenham’s Jan Vertonghen and Davinson Sanchez in action with Arsenal’s Laurent Koscielny Action Images via Reuters/Andrew Couldridge EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or “live” services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publication
Against United, then, it is merely a case of overcoming the psychological barrier that seems to rear its head whenever the Red Devils come to town.
If Arsenal play as they can, they should win, and there was evidence against PSG that it was a case of the stars aligning more than any great display from United; Kylian Mbappe, indeed, twice lost his footing after being put through on goal, while the decision to award Marcus Rashford the chance to score from the penalty spot in the dying minutes has provoked fierce debate.
As Solskjaer prepares to take his men into battle once more, they are wounded and relying on their reserves. It has worked so far, but Arsenal are well-placed to take advantage of the deficiencies gripping the Red Devils.
Emery and his men should end their hoodoo this weekend, and deal United a bitter blow in their bid to qualify for the Champions League next season. There can be no more excuses.
Brighton beat Crystal Palace for the second time this season on Saturday, and Roy Hodgson’s performance on the day was nothing short of abysmal.
Selhurst Park has seen just three league victories for the Eagles all year, and Saturday’s clash against Brighton didn’t exactly go to plan either.
The Seagulls took the lead in the first half when Glenn Murray capitalised on a mistake from James Tomkins, but Luka Milivojevic levelled from the spot for the hosts.
Anthony Knockaert decided the outcome of the match with a stunning strike though, cutting inside Patrick van Aanholt and curling a wonderful effort into the far top corner.
While the visitors deserve immense credit for taking the few chances that fell their way, the blame for the Eagles should be place entirely on Hodgson, whose team selection and game management were downright absurd.
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The wrong midfield
It didn’t take a genius to work out that Brighton would set up defensively in south London, but Hodgson clearly didn’t figure it out.
His side had 63 per cent of the ball, eight more corners and spent most of the match in the opposition’s half, per Whoscored, yet the boss opted for a midfield three without an ounce of creativity.
With all due respect, Milivojevic, Jeffrey Schlupp and James McArthur wouldn’t break down a deep, organised defence if you gave them all year, but Hodgson waited until the 77th minute to introduce Max Meyer.
A 4-2-3-1 formation, with Milivojevic and Cheikhou Kouyate offering Meyer the freedom to roam around in the number ten role, could have caused absolute havoc between the Brighton lines of defence.
Ridiculous decisions
If the gaffer’s starting XI and system were completely wrong, his in-game decisions were even worse.
Aforementioned, he took way too long to make changes. On top of that, when the change eventually did come, it coincided with a switch to a 4-4-2, a switch that ultimately took Palace’s best player out of the game.
Sticking Zaha out wide in a 4-4-2 formation in the hope of launching crosses in towards two strikers is the sign of a manager going backwards, not forwards.
Change required
With the likes of Michy Batshuayi, Zaha, Milivojevic, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Mamadou Sakho, the Eagles have some of the best players in the league outside of the top six.
As long as Hodgson is at the helm though, they will continue to play uninspiring, rigid football.
The ex-England boss did a superb job rescuing the club from the mess left by Frank de Boer, but providing he does little more than steady the ship until the end of the season, he should be sacked this summer.
Loads of Sunderland fans have been reacting to a crushing blow, as Duncan Watmore has once again suffered a season-ending injury.
Sunderland were held to a 0-0 draw at Oakwell on Tuesday night, as Barnsley kept a slight advantage over the Black Cats in the race for automatic promotion.
Jack Ross’ side will certainly take a point from a ground where just six other teams have avoided defeated this season (and not one has won), but the gaffer delivered an update after the game that has taken any gloss off an otherwise decent outing.
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Watmore, who missed the first 19 games of the season with a knee injury, will now miss the remainder of the campaign with an ankle problem, the club confirmed.
The 25 year-old became an instant fan favourite when he broke into the first team as a youngster, and has since racked up 65 games for the club.
That 65 would of course be a lot higher if he wasn’t so unfortunate with injuries, and loads of fans have been giving their verdict on his latest setback.
حرص أحمد حسام ميدو مدرب الزمالك السابق على توجيه رسالة لجماهير الأبيض ورموزه القدامى من أجل دعم الفريق قبل دور نصف النهائي بدوري أبطال إفريقيا.
الزمالك يستعد لمواجهة الرجاء يوم الأحد المقبل والتي ستقام في المغرب في ذهاب دور نصف نهائي البطولة القارية.
طالع أيضًا.. الزمالك يكشف لـ بطولات موقف محمود علاء من المشاركة أمام الرجاء
ونشر ميدو على حسابه الرسمي بموقع التغريدات القصيرة “تويتر”: “أدعو جماهير الزمالك العظيمة ونجومه القدامى ورموزه بعدم الحديث أو التطرق إلى أي مشاكل خارجيه قد تؤثر على تركيز اللاعبين في الفترة القادمة”.
واختتم: “والتركيز فقط على دعم الفريق قبل مباراتي نصف النهائي وسأبدأ بنفسي بعدم الحديث عن أي مشاكل خارج كرة القدم والتركيز على دعم الفريق”.
أدعو جماهير #الزمالك العظيمة ونجومه القدامى ورموزه بعدم الحديث او التطرق الى اي مشاكل خارجيه قد تؤثر على تركيز اللاعبين في الفترة القادمة والتركيز فقط على دعم الفريق قبل مباراتي نصف النهائي وسأبدأ بنفسي بعدم الحديث عن اي مشاكل خارج كرة القدم والتركيز على دعم الفريق @OdetLebsMido pic.twitter.com/UxHxrZDYgf
Phil Neville has made the ridiculous assertion that Manchester United need to sign Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Eric Dier this summer, per Sky Sports.
Dier has struggled for form this season but Neville, the manager of the England Women’s team, believes that the 25-year-old should be on the club’s shortlist for the summer.
What’s the word?
Dier has been a key member of Mauricio Pochettino’s squad in recent seasons, making a total of 204 appearances for the club.
However, this season, Dier has struggled for form and consistency, enduring an injury-hit campaign.
He has completed 90 minutes 10 times in the Premier League, struggling with both appendicitis and tonsillitis.
Nevertheless, Neville believes that the England international would be a shrewd addition for United.
Asked by Sky Sports to name his dream signings for his former club, he said: “Eric Dier as the holding midfield player and Philippe Coutinho, who there has been a bit of speculation about.
“You have to have British players in a title-winning team. [Ander] Herrera, Fred and [Scott] McTominay are part of the squad. [Nemanja] Matic, this season, has had a dip.”
Has he watched Dier?
This is an absolutely ridiculous assertion from Neville.
Dier has endured a below-average season at best and a poor one at worst.
Per WhoScored, he averages a total of 1.5 tackles per game in the Premier League – this is a player who is routinely deployed in a defensive midfield role – as well as 1.3 fouls. He makes just 0.4 blocks across 90 minutes on average along with 0.9 interceptions.
In attack, he completes 0.1 dribbles across a game, meaning he may as well not carry the ball forward at all. He also has 0.4 shots per game, 0.4 key passes and has a pass completion rate of just 84.3%.
This is far from the elite central midfielder that United need.
As for the claim that a title-winning team needs a British player, that does not even bear unpicking, such is its sheer stupidity. But for argument’s sake, just two British players made 30+ Premier League appearances for Man City last season, and a mere four made above 17.
Arsenal fell into a state of predictability under Arsene Wenger both on and off the field: an outdated philosophy was religiously applied to a squad which was seldom shaken up by the arrival of a marquee signing; the promotion of youth reigned supreme. “The problem with Arsenal is they always try and walk it into the net”. Boring, boring, Arsenal.
Inevitably and paradoxically, Wenger’s own success was conducive to his demise.
Rather than being taken out in an instant by a camouflaged sniper, the French legend’s character assassination was open for spectators to feast their eyes over during a number of years. As another Arsenal fan TV clip went viral on social media featuring actual grown men willingly signing up for yet another slice of public humiliation, a piece of Wenger’s credibility was removed.
But the three-time Premier League title winner stood firm and by his principles, until less than six months before his watch came to an end. Wenger stood before his sworn brothers a broken man, battered and tired of the familiar narrative, before confirming that Mesut Ozil had been awarded a £350,000 per week contract amid fears that he could leave the club.
This was an aberration in the Wenger era but one deemed necessary after losing Alexis Sanchez to Manchester United just a few days before. The figure was unprecedented for a club who had seemingly been unwilling to join their top-four rivals in offering mega wages to star players.
With the benefit of hindsight, though, Arsenal will be deeply regretting their decision to break the mould which they had kneaded for themselves. Ozil has fallen from grace at a rate akin to that which 99% of reality TV stars experience exactly four weeks after they disappear from our screens, and the club’s hierarchy may well be questioning whether they should have caved to pressure from supporters who vehemently called for a new deal.
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Alex Iwobi is a fine example of how promoting from within can be incredibly cost effective. The Nigeria international may not unanimously scoop the plaudits for his style of play, but in terms of value for money he serves as a quintessential example of why promoting youth remains at the core of Arsenal’s DNA.
That Unai Emery has consistently trusted the 22-year-old this season – including in games against top-six rivals – underlines how highly he is regarded by the Spanish tactician. And when directly placed under the microscope alongside Ozil it’s clear to see exactly how dramatically Arsenal’s agreement with the enigmatic playmaker has backfired.
The above comparison demonstrates how the numbers simply don’t add up. Just over ten minutes of football for Iwobi is worth just one minute of Ozil’s time on the pitch; Ozil’s goals have been seven times more expensive than Iwobi’s; there is little to separate Iwobi’s yearly salary from the price of a single Ozil assist.
The master is not justifying this mind-boggling financial disparity over the apprentice.
A break in the trend was perhaps only a temporary blip: Emery’s willingness to stay true to club principles has manifested itself through the selection of academy prospects Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Eddie Nketiah, Joe Willock, Emile Smith-Rowe and Bukayo Saka.
Matteo Guendouzi, Lucas Torreira and Bernd Leno – earning £40k, £75k and £100k per week respectively – all represented progressive signings with the long-term firmly at the heart of the decision-making process.
In light of the disastrous panic-stricken decision to offer Ozil a bumper new deal – one made with a warped perception that somehow his experience compensated for the lack of leadership credentials which the club are craving – it’s fair to say that there is now concrete financial evidence to vindicate Emery’s emphasis on providing opportunities for young players.
Josh Cullen has been in impressive form for Charlton Athletic on loan this season, and the standard of his performances have earned him recognition away from the Valley.
Indeed, the 22-year-old has earned his first ever international call-up to the Ireland squad to face Gibraltar and Georgia in a pair of Euro 2020 qualifiers, replacing the injured Ronan Curtis.
Cullen will join fellow central midfielders Jeff Hendrick, Glenn Whelan and Harry Arter as he bids to break into the starting XI.
Shortly after news broke concerning his late call-up, Cullen took to Twitter to reveal his delight at Mick McCarthy’s decision to draft him into the squad.
The call-up represents a landmark moment in the West Ham academy product’s career. Cullen’s bid to establish himself at the top level has not been a smooth process, but his latest achievement suggests that he has made significant strides forward in League One this season.
In response to his tweet, supporters turned out in their numbers to heap praise on the impressive loanee and urged him to remain injury free with the Addicks battling for promotion.
Here’s what fans of Charlton, West Ham and Bradford City had to say in response to Cullen’s post:
Three years ago yesterday, West Ham fans witnessed possibly the best goal that a Hammer has ever scored at Old Trafford. The Irons travelled to face Manchester United in the FA Cup quarter-finals and managed a 1-1 draw thanks to a moment of sheer brilliance from their magic Frenchman Dimitri Payet.
That season was West Ham’s Payet season. The Frenchman was one of the best players in the Premier League during the campaign, with a number of flashy goals and assists in claret and blue. Whilst his career as a Hammer ended in bitter disappointment, the fans aren’t letting the way Payet left the club change their perception of some of his truly fantastic goals, especially not this one given the absolite magic of it.
With the game looking like it could go to the wire at Old Trafford, the Hammers won a free-kick about 30 yards away from goal. For the home fans, it was something they’d seen hundreds of times without conceding, but Payet did what he does best as he whipped the ball into the top corner to send the away fans into raptures. It was a moment that will go down in West Ham history, and despite the Irons’ hate for Payet, they all absolutely adore seeing replays of this goal.
You can read the Hammers’ verdict on that famous goal here:
The Hammers will never forget Payet, mostly for the wrong reasons, but also for the incredible goals, like this famous one, that he scored for them.