All posts by z3u9t.icu

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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…

Noel Whelan has had his say on Aston Villa’s opening Premier League performance against Tottenham Hotspur on Saturday evening.What’s he said?Villa looked to be on course for the upset of the weekend after John McGinn’s ninth minute strike was the only goal of the game until the 73rd minute.However, a long-range screamer from Tanguy Ndombele and a quick-fire Harry Kane brace secured a 3-1 victory for Mauricio Pochettino’s Spurs.Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan believed the tactics used by Dean Smith were the cause of their downfall, he said:

“One thing Aston Villa need to do is take the pressure off their defence by trying to play higher.”I know you’re playing against a very good Tottenham side but they’ve just spent £127million. You want to test them at the other end and relieve a little bit of pressure on your back four.”I just think they got very, very deep at times, inviting Tottenham on, didn’t cause them hardly any problems in the second half.”Dean Smith will use it as a learning game as well, you need to play higher up the pitch at times and be brave enough push bodies up. I think they kind of shot themselves a little bit in the foot by not having a go in the second half.”Guilbert, a potential Targett?

It was quite the surprise when Villa boss Smith named his starting XI for the game as he elected to keep two of last season’s playoff heroes at either side of his defence.Neil Taylor, 30, and Ahmed Elmohamady, 31, have plenty of experience in the top-flight of English football – between them they have 298 Premier League appearances (Taylor, 132; Elmohamady, 166).But as Whelan eludes to, that decision may have been the catalyst to their downfall.Watch Aston Villa Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv BelowYou have two ageing full-backs, who have lost a yard of pace since their last foray into the Premier League back in the 2016/17 season, going up against the speed and trickery of Lucas Moura, Erik Lamela and even Kyle Walker-Peters. And they invited that much pressure on them – Spurs recorded 70.1% possession in the match.Villa’s regular duo at full-back throughout the summer was Frederic Guilbert and summer arrival Matt Targett, who between them only conceded three goals in five matches in what appeared to be a very promising partnership.Find out which 33-year-old could help keep Aston Villa in the Premier league this season in the video below…They are both at least six years younger than the aforementioned pair and would offer so much more going forward.Whelan’s right that they need to take the pressure of the defence by playing higher, but they would be wise to throw these two back into the lineup to do so – there’s no time for sentiment in the Premier League.[ad_pod ]

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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…

Having featured for 23 minutes as a substitute in the Community Shield before being an unused substitute against Norwich City on the opening day of the Premier League, Liverpool midfielder Naby Keita was surely in with a good chance of starting the Super Cup against Chelsea in Istanbul.

However, the club reported on the same day that the Guinea international was set to miss the clash against the Blues with a muscle strain, and it continued his unfortunate run of luck pretty much ever since he has been an official Reds player.

For example, just when he was hitting some good form towards the end of the 2018/19 campaign with five starts and three goals in April, as per Transfermarkt, he suffered a groin issue that kept him out for the remainder of the season.

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The same thing has happened again now and as well as being absent against Chelsea, he was also ruled out against Southampton at the weekend.

It was another big missed opportunity for the 24-year-old with Fabinho and Jordan Henderson both rested following their exertions in Turkey, meaning two central midfield spots were up for grabs.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain, who missed almost the campaign last time out, came in having featured and struggled on the left wing against Frank Lampard’s men, and he did a good job.

The 26-year-old is another individual looking to work his way back into manager Jurgen Klopp’s plans following a long injury lay-off, with plenty of competition for places in the middle of the pitch.

The former Southampton man largely took his opportunity and impressed from a defensive point of view, expertly covering for Trent Alexander-Arnold on one occasion when Nathan Redmond was breaking down the left wing.

Injuries have undoubtedly been one of Keita’s biggest concerns in recent months, but his latest issue may well have also seen him slip a further place down the pecking order.

Far from ideal.

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

Much has been made of mercurial talent Sofiane Boufal since he returned to the South Coast for the 2019/20 campaign.

After spending last season on loan at Celta Vigo, it looked as if the Morocco international wouldn’t be a part of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s plans but his dogged, determined work in pre-season has made the Austrian boss think again.

Nathan Redmond highlighted just what the skilful Boufal needs to do to get into Hasenhuttl’s good books when he told BBC Radio Solent that the former RB Leipzig manager wants ‘people who can run like a horse without the ball’.

Whilst you would typically expect flair players to not be the type to do such a task, one unique, eye-catching stat from the former Lille man’s performance against Fulham suggests that he can do what the manager wants him to do.

The forward – who registered more La Liga take-ons than Lionel Messi last term – completed a whopping 10 tackles against the Cottagers as the Saints progressed to the next round – where arch-rivals Portsmouth await – thanks to a hard-fought 1-0 win.

Boufal’s 10 tackles were by far and away the most out of any player on the pitch at Craven Cottage on Tuesday, with right-back Cedric Soares completing the second most with four.

He seems determined to turn his Southampton career around and make his £16m transfer fee look like a snip, and so far, the African is doing extremely well in changing the preconceived minds of those who have doubted him.

Premier League sides can seldom carry passengers at this level, and whilst Boufal has all the flair, talent and ability in the world, you need the mindset to work for your teammates if you want to get anywhere in England’s top-flight – another talented Moroccan in Adel Taarabt knows that all too well.

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Turkish media outlet Sabah has claimed Fenerbahce striker Vedat Muriqi is attracting interest from Tottenham Hotspur, who are said to have watched him in action when he scored for Kosovo in their 2-1 Euro 2020 qualifying win against the Czech Republic on Saturday.

It was a continuation of an impressive start to the season for the 25-year-old, who only joined the Super Lig outfit from Caykur Rizespor during the summer transfer window.

The centre-forward has hit the ground running with the Turkish giants with two goals in three top flight appearances to date, with some eye-catching stats to boot.

According to WhoScored, he has averaged five shots per match and made 1.3 key passes – showing he is willing to get heavily involved in the final third.

As well as that, he has also won an average of four aerial duels to show he is willing to battle and put his body about – it is early days but it appears there is plenty to work with.

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The fact that Spurs are actively scouting Muriqi suggests they see him as a potential back-up for Harry Kane in north London, with the England international once again having no senior competition for his striker’s spot in 2019/20 following the departures of Vincent Janssen and Fernando Llorente during the summer.

So, what better chance for Tottenham to see if the 25-year-old is actually good enough to make a big impact for them than on Tuesday night, when Kosovo face England at St Mary’s?

If he starts, the Fenerbahce attacker could come up against some experienced Premier League pros in Harry Maguire, Michael Keane and Joe Gomez, and it would be an early insight into how he would cope should he end up making the move to England given someone like Everton’s Cenk Tosun has largely struggled despite being prolific in Turkey.

Mixing it with those aforementioned centre-backs – and potentially getting the better of them too – would suggest that he could have a role to play with Spurs at some point in the future.

Over to you then, Vedat.

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The pair already seem to be very close despite the fact that they won’t have spent much time together as they never played with one another at youth level and Sancho spends most of his time in Germany with Borussia Dortmund.

The winger took to the comments section, further highlighting how quickly Maddison has fit into the group.

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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 on talkSPORT, Trevor Sinclair has revealed Raheem Sterling can be held in the same regard as Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi.

What did he say?

The Manchester City winger enjoyed an impressive campaign last year for Pep Guardiola’s side, racking up 25 goals and 18 assists. His start to the current season has been similarly scintillating, with Sterling netting a hat-trick in the side’s opening Premier League game against West Ham.

Now, Sinclair has heaped praise on the England international, and made a huge claim about the kind of company the 24-year-old is keeping.

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He said: “Raheem Sterling is right at the top of the tree, for me. If he’s not worth £200m now, I’d be surprised. He’s the best player playing for England and he’s the first player on the team sheet for Pep Guardiola. The big question now is where do you put him with the likes of Messi and Ronaldo? I would put him right amongst them. He’s there now.

“If he continues in this form he’s showing, people are going to start talking about him being the best player in the world and I think he’s deserved that honour. His end product and decision making and productivity he brings to England and Manchester City is so consistent, he’s got to be regarded as one of the best players in the world.”

Bandwagon

So the conversation behind Sterling being considered one of the best players in the world is gaining traction. First it was Tony Cascarino who suggested the Englishman is better than Neymar, and now Sinclar has weighed in on the argument by going one step further with his level of comparison. Messi and Ronaldo? Seriously? As good as the City forward has been, it’s almost insulting to the Ballon d’Or winning duo to suggest he is in the same boat as them at the moment.

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

As always, consistency will be the key. If he can continue to perform at the high standards he has set himself in the past 12-18 months, then he will perhaps be more deserving of being mentioned in the same breath as Ronaldo and Messi. Until then, Sterling simply has to shut out the plaudits and focus on his football.

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Early on Thursday night, Celtic will take on Rennes in France. It is the first of their Europa League groups games, and a point would be a very good result.

It would set up Celtic’s home game rather nicely and give them a decent chance of going forward from the group.

Brendan Rodgers may have gone there and tried to play attacking football and damn the consequences, but Neil Lennon is a more pragmatic manager than his predecessor.

He has a number of tactical options available to him, but which one should he choose?

Let’s start with the basic 4-2-3-1.

It is an attacking system and based on the current makeup of the squad, this is the likely starting eleven.

That system is good enough to get goals – Ryan Christie, James Forrest and Odsonne Edouard have nine between them in the top flight this season – but it’s also more expansive than might be safe with four attacking players.

The Celtic defence is still settling in following the summer arrivals of Boli Bolingoli, Christopher Jullien and Hatem Abd Elhamed, and this would be a bad night for them to get exposed.

There is a system very similar to this which would give them more protection, and it might well be that Lennon decides to go with it instead.

It involves sacrificing the attacking midfielder, Christie, for another central midfield player and pulling Scott Brown back into a true defensive midfield role.

That’s a 4-1-2-2-1 system, or a 4-1-2-3.

This system has one major advantage and one major disadvantage.

The advantage is obvious; it puts Brown in a place where he can cover the backline and offer them protection.

The disadvantage is that gaping hole between the central midfield and the striker; against a decent defence and a good midfield you need that man in the hole, that link man, to create chances and get the ball forward.

Without him, you’re basically relying on the lone striker to do a lot of work, or you’re asking your wingers to be out of position in the transition phase.

If it’s a more structured approach Lennon wants, he can pull the wide men back, letting them help the full-backs, and play a more compact midfield.

The advantage of the 4-4-1-1 is that you still have the striker supported by the roaming midfielder.

But this does negate the two potent weapons they have on the wing and especially Forrest, who is in the midst of a great run of form with seven goals and five assists in all competitions.

He will almost certainly play as part of whatever system Lennon decides to play, and if the gaffer goes for a radically defensive team he would probably play behind Edouard in the hole, in a 5-3-1-1.

This would move Hatem Abd Elhamed to central defence and put Moritz Bauer on the right.

That would give Celtic an extra central defender as well as an extra man in the middle of the pitch.

The wide forwards would go, but Bolingoli and Bauer would play further up the pitch – which may actually play to the former’s natural game.

It would also let Lennon play Olivier Ntcham, who showed last season he can get forward and score goals with six in total.

We suspect Lennon will go with one of the systems here. It will be interesting to see which it is.

A quick check of the midfielder’s Transfermarkt page shows that he has played against MK Dons just once in his career, and that appearance came on Wednesday night.

However, Milner played in Milton Keynes for England’s U21 team back in the day, and he netted on his last appearance there against Bulgaria all the back in 2007.

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The former Man City man made reference to that goal in a post before the game, and after the match, he was quick to let everybody know that his scoring streak is still alive.

With MK Dons sitting in League One it’s hard to envisage Milner getting too many opportunities to play there before he hangs up his boots, but he’ll certainly be hoping to extend his scoring streak should he ever visit Milton Keynes again.

QPR travel to South Wales this Wednesday to take on Cardiff, following a mixed start to the campaign for Neil Warnock’s side.

The Bluebirds have won three, drawn four and lost two of their nine league games so far, whereas Mark Warburton’s men have only just seen a fantastic four-game winning run come to an end with a 2-0 defeat to West Brom.

There were a few questionable performances last time out, with some fans unhappy about Joe Lumley’s contribution after a poor mistake.

In addition to that, Todd Kane delivered a poor performance at right wing-back, so the R’s will be keen to bounce back at the Cardiff City Stadium.

Let’s take a look at the XI Warburton should put out to give his side the best chance of doing just that…

As you can see, there aren’t too many drastic changes from the XI that lost to Slaven Bilic’s side.

We have decided to drop Lumley from the starting lineup, not solely due to the fact he attracted criticism from some fans as aforesaid, but because he has been in underwhelming form for a while now – Liam Kelly takes his spot in our XI.

Indeed, Lumley allowed Nathan Ferguson’s shot to swerve under him against the Baggies, while his woeful error against Luton in which he literally gifted Harry Cornick an open goal almost saw the Londoners throw away a three-goal lead.

Grant Hall also looks to have recovered from an injury problem, so we think he should come in to replace 34-year-old Geoff Cameron.

Elsewhere, the only other suggested change is one that sees 21-year-old Conor Masterson come in for what would be his debut – he is yet to play a minute since arriving from Liverpool – as a replacement for the suspended Yoann Barbet, who was sent off against West Brom.

With these changes, Warburton would be handing his side a good chance of getting a result against Warnock’s men.

Leeds are tasked with bouncing back from a first away defeat of the season this evening.

However, it won’t be an easy challenge as they face a West Brom side unbeaten in the league with Slaven Bilic at the helm.

The Baggies are currently top of the table and have made a fine response to not achieving promotion in 2018/19.

Albion secured a 2-0 victory last time out, whereas the Whites suffered a 1-0 defeat at the hands of Charlton.

But how could Leeds line-up at Elland Road on Tuesday? Here’s what we’re predicting.

One big change could be made upfront and we’re tipping Eddie Nketiah to come in for a first league start of the campaign.

The Arsenal loanee has waited patiently for a chance and following a run of four games without a goal for Patrick Bamford, now seems as good a time as any to bring in the 20-year-old, especially as it’s a midweek outing.

Pablo Hernandez is set to sit out while Adam Forshaw is also likely to be absent with the same injury that kept him out before his return at The Valley.

That means that Tyler Roberts could come back into the fold for his first start of the season.

He had fluid drained from his knee and only returned from the bench last time out but Jamie Shackleton’s form has been poor.

The youngster failed to register a single shot or key pass against Derby and was then hauled off at half-time last weekend. He clearly isn’t having a good time of it recently.

Barry Douglas and Luke Ayling played for the U23s on Monday afternoon so assume Gjanni Alioski and Stuart Dallas will continue in the full-back roles.

Jack Harrison and Helder Costa should maintain their places on the flanks.