All posts by z3u9t.icu

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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…

It seems as though as soon as Naby Keita looks set for a potential run in the Liverpool team, he suffers a niggle or a knock.

The best example of this was towards the end of what was an up-and-down 2018/19 campaign, when he started four successive Premier League matches against Southampton, Chelsea, Cardiff City and Huddersfield Town in April.

The Guinea international scored twice in that run of fixtures, as well as another in a man-of-the-match performance against FC Porto in the Champions League.

He received plenty of praise on Twitter from supporters and looked to finally be showing why the Reds had paid so much money to bring him to Anfield, but unfortunately it didn’t last.

On the chalkboard

At RB Leipzig previously, the 24-year-old was a box-to-box player capable of scoring and assisting, as shown with his 17 goals and 15 assists in 71 outings, according to Transfermarkt.

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However, he has struggled to replicate that sort of form on Merseyside, scoring three and assisting one in 34 appearances to date.

Just when he looked to be hitting some form by scoring two of those three goals in April, he suffered a groin issue that ruled him out of the final two top flight games of the campaign.

Keita would surely have been hoping to hit the ground running this term and may well have been in contention for a start in the Super Cup on Wednesday, but Liverpool Echo reporter Ian Doyle tweeted that he had left the training pitch early on Tuesday and his absence was later explained by the club as due to a muscle strain – not a good sign again for the African.

Chance for Harvey Elliott?

If Keita has suffered a new issue or a recurrence of a previous problem, then summer addition Elliott could be his surprise replacement – until he returns, that is.

The 16-year-old likely earned a move to Anfield because of his performances and record on the wing for both Fulham’s and England’s youth sides, but as we saw on Tuesday he actually played as part of a central midfield three during a mini training game before the big Istanbul clash.

His profile on former club Fulham’s website describes him as having a ‘superb first touch’ and being ‘known for his dribbling ability’, which are two traits to suggest that he could yet have a short-term – and potentially a long-term – future as part of a midfield trio.

Having appeared against Napoli during pre-season, the young Englishman clearly has no fear despite his tender years, and he already looks ready to make an impact when his time comes.

That could be sooner rather than later if Keita has suffered an injury, and the teenager could be the surprise man to step up and fill any potential void.

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Crystal Palace welcome Colchester to Selhurst Park on Tuesday evening in what will be the Eagles’ first Carabao Cup action of the season.

Spirits will certainly be high in the Palace squad after they managed to pull off a historic win over Manchester United at Old Trafford on Saturday, managing to beat the Red Devils in the Premier League for the first time whilst also becoming the first team to score a stoppage time winner against them on their own turf.

For the game against the League Two side, however, we think Roy Hodgson should make a few changes…

With all due respect, the difference in quality between Manchester United and Colchester is substantial, so Hodgson should be able to afford some game time to those who haven’t got much under their belt yet this season.

With that in mind, we think Wayne Hennessey should be handed his first appearance of the campaign, along with 20-year-old centre-back Sam Woods, who made his first-team debut in this competition against Middlesbrough last term.

Alongside him, a man who impressed the Palace fans on Twitter after making his debut for the club in Gary Cahill would benefit from a start once again in order to build up his match fitness, having not had a proper pre-season whilst being a free agent.

Ahead of them, Hodgson should hand full debuts to two more summer signings in James McCarthy and Victor Camarasa – the former has made two substitute appearances, whilst Camarasa is yet to appear.

In attack, Andros Townsend should start after being placed on the bench against United, along with Connor Wickham and Max Meyer who also sat next to the England international in the Old Trafford dugout.

On the left, we think Hodgson should hand 20-year-old Jason Lokilo a start against Colchester to see what he can do in the first-team, after some fans on Twitter called for him to be involved following his delightful assist in a 1-0 win for the Under-23 side last week.

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[ad_pod ]After recent poor performances for Manchester United he Paul Pogba debate has reeled its head again (as if it ever went away).The Frenchman is an enigma. There’s no other play in the world quite like Pogba who can look so utterly impressive one week then so poor the next – it’s genuinely remarkable.Indeed, we dare say it’s one of the main reasons Pogba’s still tolerated at the club – the fact that somewhere, deep down, he has it in his locker to be one of the best players in the world. How could anyone forget about the flurry of form after Jose Mourinho was sacked in December (eight goals and five assists in 10 games)?Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

We all know there’s something there, but it’s getting to the point now where people are starting to really question if extracting said talent is really worth the effort. Sir Matt Busby biographer Patrick Barclay and ex-Premier League forward Stan Collymore are the latest to wade in on the debate…

Fairly comprehensive.

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Crikey – the sheer disrespect he showed those defenders. They had families to go home to you know, Ian. Their children likely never enjoyed school again, their wives probably left them, their dogs almost certainly ran away, and their sons and daughters probably wanted to swap football for ‘ultimate frisbee’ to avoid ever experiencing similar humiliation.

Choo, choo hype train rolling in (A.K.A Eddie Nketiah, Wiley, and Rio Ferdinand) …

Complete and utter carnage.

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Liverpool’s Dejan Lovren has stated to Croatia media outlet Sportske Nowotski, as translated by Sky Sports, that he is committed to fighting for his place in the team having admitted he did think about leaving this summer, and it is exactly what fans of the Merseyside outfit want to hear.

The Croatian international was linked with a move to Roma, having given his best for the Reds since joining in 2015.

Despite the interest, and the fact he has fallen down the pecking order with Joel Matip and Joe Gomez starting games alongside Virgil van Dijk this season, he doesn’t want to accept a place on the bench.

That attitude has earned him praise from some fans, with one also pleased that the defender staying at Anfield means his strong friendship with Mo Salah will continue.

The 30-year-old endured a frustrating campaign last time out, suffering from injuries which limited him to 18 appearances, but is happy to still a Red after the club stood by him through that period and over the summer.

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Jurgen Klopp told him how much he was valued and that encouraged Lovren to stay, and as shown in the responses below, some Liverpool fans are clearly impressed with his attitude.

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Mikey Johnston is set to miss out for Celtic this weekend due to an injury picked up in the top of the table clash with Rangers, as reported in The Daily Record.

What’s the latest?

Johnston was sent home from international duty with the Scotland under 21 squad after suffering a groin injury against Rangers before the break from domestic football. Thankfully for Celtic fans the talented youngster believes he’ll only miss this weekend’s fixture with Hamilton.

He said: “I’ve just got a groin strain so I’ll miss the weekend’s game (at Hamilton) but I’ll hopefully be back after that”

He had reported for duty with the Scotland youth team before being sent back to his parent club for treatment after it was established that he wouldn’t recover in time. Scotland U21 coach, Scott Gemmil was disappointment but stated it was “an opportunity for someone else”.

Johnston has had a solid start to the season with three goals and four assist in just over 700 minutes of competitive football. Producing a goal or assist every game so far is a solid progression from last season’s tally of five goals an one assist from twenty three appearances. There will be a space in Celtic’s attack so, who will replace Johnston in the starting line-up?

A return for Sinclair?

The most likely outcome for this weekend is that Celtic play with a front three of James Forrest, Odsonne Edouard and Ryan Christie with Olivier Ntcham, Callum McGregor and Scott Brown making up the midfield. Ntcham and McGregor would be given license to control the play in the final third with Scott Brown, dictating from deep. Despite starting only 53% of Celtic’s league minutes this season he has still managed one goal and two assists in four games. His restricted game time is maybe still a hangover from his comments in the summer.

There has been recent speculation about the return of Scott Sinclair to the first team with both the player’s attitude improving and Neil Lennon being tipped to offer an olive branch as reported by Football Insider.

A player with sixty goals in his last three season would slot seamlessly into Celtic’s shape on the left-hand side of the attack having performed well there on numerous occasions – whether or not his attitude is right remains to be seen. Sinclair has been there and done it as a key player in the “Treble Treble” winning side, if he wants a new contract or to move to another club, he has to be playing, the question is – can and will Lennon trust him?

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Injury News series, which considers the impact of the latest updates on players’ fitness

Tottenham Hotspur confirmed on Tuesday that summer addition Ryan Sessegnon will miss their Champions League clash with Olympiacos on Monday night having suffered a setback in his comeback from a hamstring injury, as his wait to make his debut goes on.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Spurs signed the 19-year-old in a deal that could eventually total £30m last month, but he is yet to be involved for the north London outfit having picked up an injury while on international duty with the England U21s during the summer.

Football London reported that it was thought the teenager would be back in first-team training during the international break ahead of the trip to Greece, but instead the club say the former Fulham man will be absent having reported irritation with his previous hamstring issue.

Cruel blow

With Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino openly admitting he is ready to rotate his team for this European clash – and with Danny Rose left behind in England – this looked to be the perfect opportunity for the left-sided Sessegnon to be named in the matchday squad for the first time, and potentially get on the pitch to make his debut.

However, just as he looked to be making good progress the irritation he has suffered with his hamstring means that now can’t happen, and his wait to make his bow for Spurs goes on.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Given the competition for places all over the pitch for the north London outfit, the 19-year-old must be desperate to get out there and show Pochettino what he can do – this latest setback only prolongs his chance to do exactly that and ultimately leaves the youngster down the pecking order.

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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… 

Leeds’ woes when it comes to creativity is clear to see.

This season, Jack Harrison has completed just one accurate cross out of 31 attempted in the Championship.

If you consider that statistic, is it really any surprise Leeds failed to win against Derby? Arguably not.

However, they should have been out of sight and Harrison’s form really shouldn’t have become such a talking point.

Patrick Bamford hit the post and Mateusz Klich saw his spot-kick go wide of the target but ultimately the Whites couldn’t do enough.

The solution to their problems could well involve Helder Costa.

On the chalkboard

Signed on loan from Wolves in the summer transfer window, Costa is yet to start in the Championship. It’s something that’s had Leeds supporters rather baffled as they call for him to be included.

It could be that he replaces Harrison in the side. For all of his hard work, his final ball is missing and his quality in the final third is too infrequent to have a say on proceedings.

Not since the opening weekend has the 22-year-old contributed to a goal and this will only continue to halter Leeds in their tracks.

If he does get dropped from the side then Jack Clarke should be eagerly waiting for his chance too. It seems like a last resort but the neglected teenager may have to be used sooner rather than later.

The 18-year-old has been restricted to just two appearances in the Carabao Cup, failing to earn a place in the squad because of a rule that restricts more than five loan players from appearing in a single matchday squad.

Something drastic would have to happen for Harrison to fall out of the squad entirely but unless his numbers improve and he starts impacting goals, he could be under threat.

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At the weekend, Leeds had a lack of genuine attacking options on the bench to change the game.

Instead, Bielsa had a goalkeeper, three defenders and Tyler Roberts, who is arguably not 100% match fit, on the bench with Eddie Nketiah and Costa.

Roberts wasn’t used and instead they went for Barry Douglas to replace Pablo Hernandez. This was strange but showed there is a lack of depth in forward areas. Perhaps they needed Clarke?

The only way the winger will get his chance is if one of their loan players drop out. The more realistic options, if things got worse, would be to lose Harrison or stopper Illan Meslier.

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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…

Last weekend, Barcelona were put to the sword by Granada. Matchday five brought more woe as the Catalans suffered a shock 2-0 defeat to their hosts.

But despite a bad collective performance, one player, in particular, endured a difficult 45 minutes.

Junior Firpo was the man called up to replace Jordi Alba as the Spaniard is still recovering from his recent injury. But the 24-year-old was not at his best and was directly responsible for Granada’s first goal.

Other than that, he also registered two tackles, one interception and one clearance.

Nevertheless, Valverde was clearly not impressed and he substituted Firpo at half-time, slotting Nelson Semedo on the left and dropping Sergi Roberto from midfield into the right-back position.

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But despite that mistake early on in the game, Firpo still played well, all things considered.

Thus, Valverde’s substitution can only negatively affect his mentality and motivation.

Strangely, Firpo was then reinstated to the starting XI for the next game against Villarreal at the Camp Nou, and fortunately produced a much better display.

The young defender tallied four tackles and one clearance to his name, immediately proving the early fluffs in the previous clash were just jitters and him getting used to a new environment.

But that only puts Valverde’s man-management under further scrutiny, having singled out a new signing who – one mistake aside – had performed well for his new team.

Of course, good performances need to be rewarded and likewise, bad performances need to be punished. But for a newcomer to the club who was making his first start back then, that punishment seemed just a tad too harsh.

Not to mention that it sends the completely wrong message to the youngsters, especially considering that the senior players don’t seem to get the same treatment.

Take Luis Suarez, for example. He turned in an underwhelming display against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League and yet, he not only played that game in full but also started and finished the game against Granada, as well.

Maybe this won’t affect Firpo all that negatively in the long run but this type of management by Valverde is definitely not the way to move forward.

It will create a culture of fear where players are less inclined to take risks, concerned a mistake could cost them a place in the team – or even result in a very public hooking off.

We can only wait and see what it does for the 24-year-old in future fixtures, but Valverde can’t continue ruling with a reactionary fist.

There are many reasons being cited among those that led to Tottenham Hotspur losing 7-2 against Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Some blame has been put on the players, with Rafael van der Vaart claiming they “think they’re better than they are”, as reported by Last Word on Spurs.

However, questions have also been asked of Mauricio Pochettino’s diamond formation, with Ricky Sacks leading the charge:

Against Bayern, Pochettino used Harry Winks as the holding player, Moussa Sissoko and Tanguy Ndombele in the middle, with Dele Alli as the most progressive midfielder.

This simply didn’t work, as the German champions held 58.7% of possession and completed more of their passes than Spurs, as per WhoScored.

Many of the supporters in the replies feel as though Pochettino should deploy a 4-2-3-1 instead, or he should be sacked so someone else can do it.

A selection of Twitter reaction to the statement, including posts from disgruntled Spurs fans, can be seen below:

Spurs fans, do you think Pochettino needs to change his formation? Join the discussion by commenting below…