All posts by n8rngtd.top

[ad_pod ]

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…

Eddie. Eddie. Eddie. The now synonymous chants whenever Arsenal’s young striker Eddie Nketiah takes to the field. The 20-year-old burst onto the scene with a memorable late brace to spare the Gunners’ blushes against Norwich in the League Cup in October 2017, and became a real fan favourite by doing so.

However, the England U21 international has struggled to really break into the side since that day, but following some fine displays in pre-season, this could well be Nketiah’s year.

Reports earlier in January of this year had suggested that Nketiah could have been set for a loan move to the Bundesliga, but that fell through at the final moment. Unfortunately for the striker, that situation didn’t seem to translate into many opportunities in north London, and he was forced into the shadows as Pierre Emerick-Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette stole the show up front.

Watch Arsenal Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

But following Danny Welbeck’s departure on a free transfer at the end of last season, there is certainly greater room for Nketiah to stake a claim. Indeed, his showings in pre-season have certainly given Emery food for thought. The 20-year-old has netted three times in two games in the International Champions Cup, and more than held his own against Bayern Munich and Fiorentina.

A clinical penalty-box predator, Nketiah’s style of play gives Emery a different options to his current striking options. The Englishman is an out-and-out striker, who thrives on poaching goals. The likes of Aubameyang and Lacazette on the other hand have shown that they have different facets to their game. If the Gunners are in need of a goal or an extra body in the box to cause some havoc and chaos, Nketiah could very well be that man.

Indeed, as Emery hinted in his post-match press conference following the Fiorentina game, the chance for Nketiah to stay at the Emirates for the upcoming campaign is there for him to take.

The Spaniard said: “If you earn the right to be with us it’s because I can promise you that you are going to have minutes. We started this pre-season with the same idea as we finished last year – stay with us. And my idea is that if you progress like we are seeing from you, you can have a chance here for us.”

If Nketiah can continue to impress, then he may well have done enough to convince the Gunners hierarchy that he’s good enough to compete with the likes of Aubameyang and Lacazette. And that isn’t too shabby for a 20-year-old.

[ad_pod ]

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

Wolves stamped their foot on the transfer window for the first time over the weekend, confirming the signing of Jesus Vallejo on loan from Real Madrid.

One of the star players in Spain’s European U21 triumph this summer, he could be joined by both Ruben Dias and Patrick Cutrone according to Express & Star.

It looks as though the Midlands outfit are striving to make a real statement in the transfer market and the fact they’ve also been linked with Moise Kean is an indication of that.

Last week, Sky Sports Italia, via Football Italia, claimed that a potential swap deal between Ruben Neves and the Italian was a topic of discussion between the Wolves hierarchy and Juventus director Fabio Paratici.

But what could a move for the attacker mean?

On the chalkboard

Kean has been one of the rising stars in Serie A for a while now and at the age of 19 he’s already amassed 35 appearances in the division, scoring 11 goals.

Playing predominantly as a striker, his potential signing could add a greater amount of depth to an area of the pitch that has already seen Ivan Cavaleiro depart this summer.

Everton and Juventus are also in talks for the player in a deal that could be worth £36m so it looks as though it may be a fiercely contested battle for his signature.

However, if Wolves did beat the Toffees to him, it could have a negative impact on Morgan Gibbs-White.

In pre-season, the youngster who also happens to be 19, has been playing alongside Diogo Jota in attack, almost as a second striker.

Check out the reaction to Wolves’ first European game since the ’80s in the video below…

With Raul Jimenez not yet fit after returning to pre-season late following his exploits at the Gold Cup with Mexico, he’s taken his opportunity fantastically well.

He scored against Newcastle in their opening game of the Asia Trophy, appearing to finally find a position he’s comfortable in at the club.

Nuno Santo rarely played him as a number ten in 2018/19 as the teenager was restricted to just five starts in the Premier League.

Yet, just as it looks as though Gibbs-White is finding some momentum, the addition of a new striker could halt his progress in the new role he’s taken on.

As a result, Kean arriving in the Midlands might well have an adverse effect on the Wolves man.

[ad_pod ]

At the time of writing this, Crystal Palace are still leading the race to sign former Chelsea centre-back Gary Cahill, reports suggest.

The Sun say that Hodgson is determined to pick-up the centre-back, who played under his tutelage during Hodgson’s tenure as England manager.

According to the report, the 33-year-old is keen to stay within the capital and hopes to land a contract worth £75,000-a-week for two years.

Cahill has also reportedly been talking to other clubs. West Ham and Burnley have been mentioned, though the latter seemed to have decreased their interest due to £40m-rated James Tarkowski being more likely to stay at Turf Moor.

If the £75,000-per-week rumours are true, then seeing Gary Cahill join Palace would be a surprising move. Palace already boast four established Premier League centre-backs in Mamadou Sakho, James Tomkins, Martin Kelly, Scott Dann and even have Jairo Riedewald at their disposal.

Indeed, within the Guardian’s season preview, they do stress that the club’s wage bill has been holding them back in the transfer market, so the idea of seeing someone come in on wages that’d make him the fifth-highest earner (via SpotRac) does seem somewhat far-fetched.

Furthermore, considering that Cahill hasn’t really played football for a year, it’s hard to see where you pick him in that side. Sakho and Tomkins are likely to remain as the first choice pairing if they are both fit, based on their 27 and 29 games in the league last season, before their seasons were both hampered by injuries.

With Dominic Fifield and The Guardian describing Palace as a team “with an onerous wage bill demanding an imaginative approach to strengthening” within their season preview, then Gary Cahill doesn’t really fit that bill and seems more of a panicked, safe option rather than finding someone who can do a job on far less money and have a better resale value.

With Palace already struggling with their wage bill, getting Cahill on £75,000-per-week would be really lacking foresight as it could prevent them from reinvesting in the future.

They already have four accomplished centre-backs, so they would’ve been better getting another young player, playing Riedewald or sorting a loan deal, rather than tying down a player on expensive wages for two years who might not even play.

How much of a waste would Cahill be? Join the discussion by commenting below…

[ad_pod ]

Some Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter to praise Joel Ward for his performance in the 0-0 draw against Everton at Selhurst Park on Saturday.

The 29-year-old only made seven Premier League appearances last term after losing his spot to Aaron Wan-Bissaka, but was back in the starting eleven against the Toffees after the young full-back joined Manchester United over the summer.

Ward didn’t take long to shake off the cobwebs, turning in a very good performance to keep Bernard under wraps and help the Eagles to a first clean sheet of the campaign.

The 6 foot 2 ace won four aerial duels and also completed four clearances on a day where Roy Hodgson’s side will probably be annoyed that they couldn’t get the win after missed chances from Jordan Ayew and Max Meyer – a point against a Toffees team who invested heavily over the summer isn’t a bad result, however.

Is Gary Cahill experienced or finished. A Palace fan discusses in the video below…

Let’s see what some Palace fans on Twitter have been saying about Ward’s performance…

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]We don’t want to speak to soon, but things could be looking up for Manchester United.Sunday’s opener versus Frank Lampard’s Chelsea side made for some truly refreshing entertainment. Every single player in the United squad came together in one harmonious united like a hive of bees, each commanding a vital function to which they performed with equal effectiveness. Lest we forget the state of the squad at the back end of last season (two wins in 12 in case you’d somehow managed force it to the back of your mind).Wave after wave of Chelsea attacks were responded to with Ferguson-era-esque counter attacking football; the harder Lampard’s side struggled, the tighter the noose squeezed.While we admit each and every goal had its own unique talking point, it was the host’s third, which saw the Paul Pogba-Marcus Rashford relationship in full force, which really perked our interest. And Rashford’s, it would seem…

Let’s hope for United’s sake that they’re able to keep this pair firing as they look to rebuild because it’s going to take something truly special to knock noisy neighbours Manchester City off their perch.

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

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

Leicester City have gone two draws from two to open the 2019/20 Premier League season by following up the Wolves stalemate with a one-goal apiece encounter at Stamford Bridge.

Wilfred Ndidi’s mistake allowed Mason Mount to open the scoring early in the first half but the 22-year-old made amends by bagging the equaliser with a nicely-timed header from James Maddison’s corner.

Leicester’s number ten should have won it for the Foxes after drilling a close-range effort well over the bar with less than 20 minutes left in the match.

Although it was another draw, Brendan Rodgers’ side remain unbeaten and there were plenty of positives to take from the game against Chelsea.

Most notably, with the role of Maddison who looked to be a completely different player to the one we saw against Wolves only eight days ago.

Watch Leicester City Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

On the Chalkboard

The 22-year-old looked a despondent and frustrated figure out wide last week, proving to be fairly ineffectual and ultimately wasted.

However, against Chelsea he proved that he is more than capable of having an impact in that very role after it appeared that Rodgers gave him more freedom to express himself.

That subtle change resulted in a Man of the Match performance on Maddison’s part.

He recorded 67 touches, six of which were in the opposition box (and the most of any player), two shots, three chances created including the assist for the equaliser and completed 24 of 36 passes – all stats according to Sky Sports Statto.

Both of Leicester’s full-backs were pushed forward in the attacking phases of the game as seen by both Christian Fuchs’ and Ricardo Pereira’s heatmaps from the match which allowed Maddison and his wing partner Ayoze Perez, freedom to cut in and operate more centrally at times.

Could it be “game over” for Kelechi Iheanacho at Leicester? Find out in the video below…

The England U21 international played primarily in the centre of midfield last season – in 26 of his 38 appearances to be precise, where he scored six and assisted three.

The remaining matches he played out wide where he could only manage one goal and four assists.

Certainly after the Wolves game, the same trend looked to be repeated but if he’s continued to be given the ability to roam freely then he may well thrive and be the asset Rodgers needs in attack.

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

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…

Harry Winks insists that Christian Eriksen is fully committed to Tottenham Hotspur, per The Independent.

What’s he said?

Eriksen, of course, could still leave the club, with many European transfer windows still open.

His contract expires at the end of the season and numerous reports state that he has set his heart on a potential move to either Real Madrid or Barcelona.

He was left out of the starting XI on the opening weekend against Aston Villa and was also on the bench for Sunday’s 1-0 defeat to Newcastle United.

But Winks insists that the Denmark international is fully focused on life in north London.

He said: “Yeah, of course (he’s committed). Every player is 100 per cent committed to the club, every player wants to do well and do big things at Tottenham and that will never change.”

Propaganda

Winks has to say this.

But, quite simply, it doesn’t look to be very accurate.

Eriksen has been left out for two of the three games thus far this season and one has to assume that it has something to do with his attitude.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Mauricio Pochettino, surely, would not just leave the Dane out for no reason whatsoever. It just doesn’t make any sense. The 27 year-old has enjoyed a stunning spell in north London and any team in the world would be lucky to have him.

Winks’ words probably shouldn’t give fans any great degree of comfort.

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]Footballers have to be careful nowadays, they really do.There’s a reason why we see our favourite stars covering up their mouths when they want to whisper something to a teammate or opponent at the end of a game.Words can so easily be misconstrued, and even if you’re talking about what you’re going to have for dinner that night, a player will often find themselves on the back pages of certain outlets accused of threatening to kill X or Y’s dog.Watch Sheffield United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Sheffield United forward Oli McBurnie’s recent comments may not have been as innocent as trivially quoting his designated grub for the evening, nor as sinister as calling a hit on an opponent’s pooch, but they weren’t particularly smart either.

For those unaware, the Blades’ £20m record-signing was essentially caught out saying he didn’t particularly want to join up with the Scotland national team, using some very choice words.

McBurnie has since faced criticism, but BBC 5 Live Sport’s Pat Nevin believes the whole thing could be a misunderstanding…

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

Lots of Manchester City fans have taken to Twitter to discuss Phil Foden’s comments about his lack of playing time at the Etihad Stadium.

The England Under-21 international is a real talent and set up two goals for Eddie Nketiah in his last outing for the Under-21 side, but he is finding chances hard to come by under Pep Guardiola at club level.

Foden has the likes of Bernardo Silva, David Silva, Ilkay Gundogan and Kevin De Bruyne ahead of him in the pecking order, and has managed to play just 10 minutes of Premier League football so far this season.

The 19-year-old insisted that he is ‘ready’ to play first-team football for the Citizens, whilst he also hinted that he isn’t too keen on listening to his teammates telling him to be ‘patient’.

One fan below thinks that this situation will be ‘the end of Pep’ and will turn out in similar fashion to Jadon Sancho’s exit from the club – the Borussia Dortmund forward is now one of Europe’s best.

Let’s see what the City fans on Twitter have been saying about the situation…

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

Lots of Tottenham fans have taken to Twitter to discuss Kieran Trippier’s comments on Diego Simeone, following England’s 4-0 win over Bulgaria at Wembley on Saturday.

The Atletico Madrid right-back, who left Spurs in a deal worth around £20m this summer, was quizzed on what life under Simeone is like in the Spanish capital, with Trippier saying: “He’s incredible to work with, totally different to any other coach I’ve had.”

Now, it seems as if a couple of Spurs fans on Twitter have taken his comments as a subtle dig at Mauricio Pochettino, with one supporter asking: “How much more insulting to Poch can you get?”

Another stated that Trippier appears to want to blame Pochettino for his poor form last year.

Whether or not Trippier meant to aim a dig at his former boss is a mystery, but his words have certainly sparked a discussion on Twitter.

Let’s take a look at some of the reaction…

[ad_pod ]