All posts by z3u9t.icu

Swansea City’s automatic promotion hopes appear to have suffered another significant blow, with midfielder Conor Hourihane looking set for a spell on the sidelines after picking up a hamstring injury in the South Wales derby at the weekend.

The 30-year-old, who joined Swansea on loan from Aston Villa in the winter transfer window, was forced off in the first half of the 1-0 defeat against Cardiff City on Saturday with a hamstring problem.

Manager Steve Cooper has admitted that he doesn’t know the extent of the injury yet, whilst Hourihane was included in the Republic of Ireland squad before his injury, so you would imagine that he will likely be forced to withdraw.

The former Barnsley man has been impressive since joining the Swans on loan, having contributed five goals and one assist in just 13 Championship appearances, resulting in a solid 6.86 average rating from WhoScored.

This puts him third in Swansea’s top scorer list this season, with Cooper’s side having been extremely reliant on the goals of Andre Ayew in recent weeks, especially with Jamal Lowe enduring a woeful run of form in front of goal.

Therefore, it would be a huge blow if they were to lose Hourihane for an extended period as we approach the final stages of the Championship season, as other midfield regulars Jay Fulton, Matt Grimes and Yan Dhanda have just five league goals between them this season, so can’t really be considered goalscoring threats in this Swansea side.

After making his debut for the Swans, Cooper was full of praise for Hourihane, saying:

“I thought he (Hourihane) was excellent.

“He’s been so impressive from the day he’s come through the door, which wasn’t that long ago.”

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Cooper clearly values the Irish international highly and he was undoubtedly hoping that the 30-year-old could help Swansea earn automatic promotion this season but given recent results and Hourihane potentially being set for a spell out injured, it seems unlikely that Cooper’s side will be able to catch Watford in second place, and may instead be forced to settle for a playoff spot.

And, in other news… Fewer passes than Woodman: 27 y/o Swansea ace let Cooper down with a woeful display

After securing a win against mid-table Blackburn Rovers at the weekend, Nottingham Forest turn their attentions towards relegation battlers Rotherham on Tuesday night.

Chris Hughton’s side have picked things up in recent weeks in terms of their form, with the defeat to Swansea last Wednesday their only loss in the last six Championship games.

Things are looking much brighter for Forest, and while Hughton will be unlikely to ring massive changes for tonight’s game, he may look to freshen things up slightly given the quick turnaround in games.

And with that in mind, below is a look at how Forest might line up.

In goal, Bryce Samba should keep his place, with the back-four in front of him remaining unchanged, with Forest’s defence having improved significantly in recent weeks – they’ve kept four clean sheets in their last six games.

The midfield could see one key change, with Hughton no doubt keen one eye on the East Midlands derby on Friday against Derby County, and that could see Manchester United loanee James Garner given a rest.

If Hughton does make that bold call, then the 6 foot 3 Ryan Yates could well be in contention for a recall to the starting line-up alongside Cafu.

Further ahead, Joe Lolley will also be hoping that he’s the beneficiary of Hughton wanting to keep players as fresh as possible, with another young talent in Alex Mighton benched in his place.

Predicted XI: Samba; Christie, Figueiredo, Worrall, Ribeiro; Yates, Cafu; Knockaert, Krovinovic, Lolley; Murray.

Lots of Everton fans have flocked to the latest tweet from the club that recently emerged on social media.

The Toffees’ Twitter account posted an injury update involving Abdoulaye Doucoure, with the tweet stating the fact that the midfielder sustained an injury before Everton faced Chelsea and Carlo Ancelotti said that the former Watford man will miss ‘some games’ in the next few weeks.

Ancelotti made it clear that he wasn’t completely sure about the injury that the midfielder has suffered, but he will certainly be out until after the international break.

The Italian did back his side to thrive without their box-to-box machine. He said that when Lucas Digne was out, they managed to replace him on a temporary basis and they did the same when Allan was out of action. He is hopeful that the Blues will deal with Doucoure’s absence too.

The 28-year-old Doucoure has been a regular for Everton in the current campaign, making 25 Premier League appearances. He has scored two goals, also picking up three assists for the Toffees. In the FA Cup, he has scored once for Ancelotti’s side (as per Transfermarkt).

The tweet sharing Doucoure’s update drew the attention of the Everton faithful, who made their views clear about him.

What did Everton fans make of the update about Doucoure?

“That’s a real shame. We will miss the lad’s energy in our midfield. Hope his injury isn’t too long.”

Credit: @PeterPapadopo11

“Gutted. He’s the engine of this side.”

Credit: @ferninho

“Huge loss.”

Credit: @Houndog6105

“Such a loss.”

Credit: @ollietramineee

“Nice one, sons crying.”

Credit: @_____h23

“Ah mate that’s the final straw, am off ahaha.”

Credit: @1878Lee

In other news, Everton could be set to a lose a midfielder in the summer – read more here.

Southampton face a tough away trip in the Premier League on Saturday evening as they face high-flying Leicester City at the King Power Stadium.

The Foxes currently sit fourth in the t0p-flight, with the Saints in seventh, but three points against Brendan Rodgers’s side could see the South Coast club move above them in the Premier League table.

Whilst Jamie Vardy will be an obvious threat for the Foxes, Hasenhuttl must ensure that his side are wary of Leicester midfielder James Maddison, whose excellent form so far this season marks him out as a danger man in Rodgers’ side.

In 15 top-flight appearances, the former Norwich City man has contributed four goals and two assists, which has seen him average a strong 7.02 rating.

This puts him well on track to surpass his tally from last season when he managed just six goals and three assists in the Premier League across 31 appearances.

Maddison averages 1.9 shots per game in the top-flight this season, which is only slightly less than the 2.4 averaged by Vardy.

The attacking-midfielder has also averaged 1.9 key passes per game so far this campaign, which is more than any Southampton player, with James Ward-Prowse leading the way in Hasenhuttl’s side with 1.6 key passes per game.

A prime example of the threat that Maddison can pose was in Leicester’s 2-1 win against Sheffield United earlier in the season when in added time at the end of the match, the England international robbed John Fleck of possession and played an inch-perfect through ball to Vardy, who scored the winner.

If the Saints are missing Oriol Romeu again on Saturday, then the job of marking Maddison will surely fall on the shoulders of Ibrahima Diallo. Whilst he impressed against Fulham and Liverpool, he will have to be at his best to keep the 24-year-old, who earns £110k per week, quiet at the King Power.

Whereas Southampton’s defence could keep Vardy quiet by sitting deep to prevent counter-attacks and balls over the top, this could leave them vulnerable to Maddison’s long-range shooting, with the midfielder having scored eight goals from outside of the box between the beginning of 2018/19 and January 2020, which was more than any other player.

He also earned the praise of manager Brendan Rodgers last season, with the former Liverpool boss saying:

“If you look at his numbers this season, in terms of the goals he has scored and created, he has shown he is a big-game player.”

He has certainly continued that theme this season, with a superb strike against Manchester City earlier in the season perhaps the pick of the bunch, so Southampton must be wary of the threat he poses on Saturday.

And, in other news, Southampton handed huge blow with “outstanding” gem ruled out of Leicester clash…

West Brom have twice missed out on signing attacking hotshot Ollie Watkins over the years and now their most recent decision is looking worse by the week…

What was the word?

According to Sky Sports during the summer transfer window, then-Baggies boss Slaven Bilic was said to be an admirer of the former Brentford forward and was interested in signing him.

This has since been backed up by The Athletic’s Steve Madeley, who claimed that Watkins was the top target before the club moved onto Karlan Grant.

Whilst in the past, Darren Moore revealed that Albion rejected the chance to sign him from Exeter City before his move to the Bees.

One that got away?

Now the 25-year-old finds himself down the road at Aston Villa, where he has set the Premier League alight with his goalscoring exploits – only further making those calls look absolutely disastrous.

Currently, Sam Allardyce has two major problems as West Brom boss.

One, they cannot stop leaking goals – they hold the record of the Premier League’s worst defence, and two, they cannot score goals either – Grant has bagged just once since his £12m arrival in the summer.

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Matheus Pereira is practically carrying the Baggies on his back having scored four and assisted three of their 15 league goals (46.6%).

Over at Villa Park, Dean Smith’s side find themselves in surprise contention for a European spot and that largely comes down to the signing of Watkins as last term in narrowly avoiding relegation, they lacked a true goalscorer.

An average of 1.07 goals scored per game has risen to 1.83 in less than a year. That is no coincidence as top-scorer Watkins has bagged eight in 18 starts, also averaging 2.8 shots per match, via WhoScored.

No wonder he was dubbed “a machine” by Bees programme editor Chris Deacon.

By comparison, Grant is managing only 1.2 shots per game with Pereira and Conor Gallager a fraction better by 0.2, so the Villa man usurps the whole Albion squad with ease.

Both Grant and Watkins came from the Championship this summer and only one looks right at home in the big time – hint: he’s not wearing blue and white stripes every weekend.

Villa clearly struck gold over the 5 foot 11 dynamo, who earns £75k-per-week, all whilst the Baggies continue to suffer amid a relegation dogfight.

Smith once lauded his leading man “a hell of a player” when signing him at Brentford, while Trevor Sinclair described him as “lethal” and compared his style to Jermain Defoe to fans on Twitter.

It remains to be seen whether Bilic or Allardyce would’ve got the same returns out of him, but the ability is clearly there.

Guochuan Lai’s decision to not pay up for the £27m-rated Watkins could be one they regret massively for a very long time – if not forever, especially if they go down.

He’s transformed their rivals from relegation favourites to a top ten side almost overnight. That shouldn’t have been allowed.

AND in other news Exclusive: West Brom urged to secure 28 y/o who could fix problems…

Leeds United have been tipped to be interested in signing William Saliba on a temporary basis in January. Kevin Campbell believes that the Whites “would love” to bring him to Elland Road as Arsenal hope to see him gain some valuable first team experience (via Football Insider).

The 19-year-old signed for the Gunners in 2019 in a £27million deal, before being loaned back to former club Saint-Etienne. Saliba attracted a lot of attention during his time in France, commanding the spotlight in his transition from youth to first team football.

His former coach Fabio Frasconi tipped the centre-back to “go very far” after likening him to France international Raphael Varane (via Planet Football).

Saliba could mend Leeds injury troubles

If Leeds pursue a move for the teenager then they would be answering a lot of questions raised around their squad right now. The Whites are struggling massively with their squad depth and received a double fitness blow when Robin Koch and Diego Llorente both picked up injuries earlier this month.

Marcelo Bielsa has been forced to use full-back Luke Ayling as a stand-in central defender whilst the duo are sidelined. Although he’s been doing a solid job so far, the boss cannot rely on him to play out of position for months to come.

That’s why signing Saliba would be a huge statement for the club. Not only would they be plugging a leak in their defence but the Arsenal prospect would relish in the chance to play regular first team football in the Premier League.

The Gunners clearly have big plans for the youngster, else they wouldn’t have spent such a large sum on such a young player. There’s likely no chance of a permanent deal being offered, which suits Leeds considering they spent a hefty amount in the previous transfer window.

Recruiting Saliba on loan would be the ideal move as it wouldn’t affect Koch’s place in the squad next season but it would still help keep them afloat this campaign.

In other news, Radrizzani will be glad to offload Eunan O’Kane next summer…

After thrashing West Brom 5-0 last time out in the Premier League, Leeds United were brought back down to earth somewhat with a 3-0 defeat to Tottenham on Saturday afternoon.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side failed to make the most of their opportunities in the first-half, and were punished for a couple of sloppy mistakes, including a dreadful error from left-back Ezgjan Alioski who had a rush of blood and brought down Steven Bergwijn inside the area.

That was a hammer blow for a Leeds team who could have, and probably should have, taken the lead, but for some profligate finishing from Patrick Bamford.

And the striker’s display has surely sent a message to Victor Orta about ensuring the Whites bring in a new centre-forward in this January transfer window, having already been linked to names like Fiorentina’s Christian Kouame in recent days.

As per Sofascore, he lost 80% of his duels over the course of the game, whilst he managed only 11 passes. Aside from struggling to really get a foothold in the match up front, he just didn’t have his shooting boots on, failing to hit the back of the net with a whopping seven attempts.

It was no surprise that Leeds Live gave him a five out of ten match rating, explaining: “Wasteful and tame with the chances he did get. One of those matches he never looked lethal or sharp around the box”.

So whilst Alioski may get some criticism for having been the man to really send Spurs on their way, Bamford’s performance should act as a reminder to Orta that there’s work to be done in the transfer market.

Crystal Palace were plagued by defensive issues last season, which has been compounded by an injury crisis this season. Roy Hodgson’s side have been ravaged by injury, which has meant that Joel Ward has moved to the right.

What’s the word?

According to an exclusive from TEAMtalk, Palace are keeping close tabs on Reading captain Liam Moore, amid interest from a number of other Premier League clubs including Leicester City, Newcastle United, Southampton, West Ham and Wolves.

The Reading skipper has been in sensational form this season as the Royals have stormed to the top of the Championship table, with four wins in their past five games. So, it’s perhaps hardly surprising that the Eagles are interested in signing Moore, given the gravity of the situation, as they picked up several injuries during the international break.

Bargain buy?

Moore, 27, who can play as a centre-back or as a right-back, is exactly the type of versatile player Hodgson desperately needs, if he decides to switch to Selhurst Park.

Whilst Ward has done a fine job on the right flank, as he has made five appearances in the Premier League this season, it’s worth considering the fact that Gary Cahill isn’t getting any younger, and there will come a time when Palace will need to start pruning their aging squad.

The Leicester City academy graduate has played seven games in the Championship this season, supplying one assist, whilst he has made 1.1 interceptions and 4.3 clearances per game, via WhoScored. By comparison, Mamadou Sakho has failed to register at least one interception per game in the English top flight so far, whilst only Ward has made more clearances than Moore.

Recently described as a “fantastic” player by Veljko Paunovic for his defensive display in the 3-0 win over Rotherham United at the Madejski Stadium, Moore made 43 appearances for Reading last term, scoring one goal, whilst he made 1.1 tackles, 1.2 blocks and 4 clearances per game, as per WhoScored.

He is currently valued at £4.95m via Transfermarkt, which, if anything, is all the more reason to get a deal done to avoid a bidding war at all costs.

For roughly £5m, what an absolute steal that would be!

AND in other news, Crystal Palace ace Jairo Riedewald dominated the midfield battle against Fulham… 

After a fine debut season in the Premier League saw him named the Leicester City Players’ Player of the Year in 2015, followed by his arrival at Selhurst Park a couple of years later, Crystal Palace winger Jeffrey Schlupp has established himself as a first-team regular starter under Roy Hodgson in recent years.

The Ghana international has made over a hundred appearances for Palace in all competitions, scoring eight goals and supplying nine assists so far. However, his overall display against Newcastle United was arguably one of his worst since he moved to south London from the East Midlands.

Whilst Schlupp may have been left feeling a little bit aggrieved after Jordan Ayew fired wide from close range after the break, he produced a shocking performance against Steve Bruce’s side, with the Magpies managing to keep him quiet for the most part of the game.

Per SofaScore, the 27-year-old picked up an abysmal rating of 5.9 out of ten for his efforts, which was by far the worst of any Palace on the pitch.

Schlupp failed to register a single key pass, despite the fact he played the full 90′ minutes, whilst he lost possession 15 times and only won five out of his 19 duels in total too (26%).

It’s a far cry from the kind of performances he put in last season, where he scored three times and supplied an assist in 18 games in the Premier League, via WhoScored.

With Wilfried Zaha currently sidelined due to a positive coronavirus test, the stage was arguably set for Schlupp to stake his claim for a place in the starting line-up, after being benched for the past two games against Leeds United and Burnley.

But the £9m-rated ace failed to make the most of the opportunity as he drew blank against the Magpies, having spurned a golden opportunity to take the lead after goalkeeper Karl Darlow denied him in the first half.

Playing upfront for the first time this season, he couldn’t provide the cutting edge on Friday night, and looked increasingly isolated on the ball as the Eagles once again failed to find the back of the net for the second time in as many matches.

Palace were left to rue their missed chances after Callum Wilson and Joelinton scored two late goals which means Hodgson will have to go back to the drawing board before they travel to the Hawthorns to take on West Bromwich Albion on Sunday .

AND in other news, Get rid: Crystal Palace should offload Patrick van Aanholt in January…

Conor Coady had a dream game against Wales on Thursday evening after his 53rd minute strike opened up his international portfolio.

The Liverpool-born defender doubled England’s lead over their British rivals after Dominic Calvert-Lewin broke the deadlock with a diving header. Gary Lineker has praised the “admired” 27-year-old in a recent tweet, after Coady and his teammates emphatically celebrated his first goal for his country.

Wolves must tie Coady down

Since joining the club in 2015, the centre-back has risen into the spotlight as he continues to drive Wolves forward. Nuno Espirito Santo will be delighted with their recent run of form, if not disappointed to just miss out on a top six finish last season. Coady played every minute of Premier League football last term, proving to be untouchable in the heart of the club’s defence.

He helped pull off some incredible results, including a 2-0 win over then reigning champions Manchester City. Adama Traore was on song with a brace, but Coady equally grafted hard to ensure their blistering attack was kept at bay. Sergio Aguero, who finished the 2018/19 season on 21 goals, behind the triple Golden Boot winners from that season by just one (via Premier League), couldn’t get a sniff.

According to SofaScore, Aguero failed to register a single shot on target and made just nine accurate passes in 90 minutes. On the other end, Coady provided an impressive nine clearances, one tackle and completed 100% of his attempted duels.

Now he’s made a splash with his England goal, other clubs could have had their heads turned in his direction. The Fosun Group simply cannot allow their captain to be tempted by another team and must do what they can to keep him at Molineux.

In other news, Wolves make plans for the future with new Niall Ennis contract…