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…

Speaking to Sky Sports, Manchester United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has revealed the side’s renewed energy and focused attitude has been their biggest change from last season.

What did he say?

The Red Devils kicked off the Premier League campaign in emphatic fashion by thumping rivals Chelsea 4-0 at Old Trafford, and also enjoyed a perfect set of results in pre-season, although Monday night saw them only manage a draw against Wolves at Molineux.

Now, Solskjaer has suggested the side’s off-the-ball work is a major barometer of their improvement from last season.

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He said: “I know physical stats are not a lot to go from but there is a shift from this first league game and the Chelsea match three games from the end of last season. How much more we run now compared to then is encouraging. We’ve got energy, it’s still early doors, and we’re working hard on fitness still.

“The players have a chance every day to prove you should be part of this exciting future, and to be part of this club you have to give everything. The attitude of every single one of the lads this season has been spot on. That’s been maybe the most encouraging part for me.”

Culture change

What Solskjaer alludes to is something United needed to have addressed in the aftermath of Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure. Attitude. High-profile stars like Alexis Sanchez and Angel Di Maria, amongst others, joined the Red Devils in high-profile deals and flattered to deceive.

The Manchester side’s summer work in bringing in the likes of Daniel James, Aaron-Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire has gone a long way in trying to introduce a greater harmony in the squad by finding young players who are hungry for the shirt.

The indoor football skills in the video below have to be seen to be believed…

More than anything, what United simply need is a set of players who are willing to fight for the badge. Solskjaer’s intent on pressing from the front and winning the ball back as quickly as possible is predicated on his team embracing a philosophy of working hard.

And while some may question how much that was on show in the second half against Wolves, when United took their foot off the gas after taking a 27th-minute lead, it shouldn’t be forgotten that they lost this same fixture twice, to scorelines of 2-1, in the first half of 2019. Clearly, there has been improvement.

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West Ham United recorded a 3-1 win over Watford on Saturday afternoon to pick up their first Premier League victory of the 2019-20 campaign.

Sebastien Haller scored twice for the Hammers at Vicarage Road and was widely praised by the club’s fans on social media following the clash in the capital.

The same cannot be said for Ryan Fredericks, though, with his performance disappointing a number of the club’s supporters.

According to WhoScored, the 26-year-old made just one tackle during his 90 minutes on the field, but the 5 ft 11 defender did boast a 90% pass success rate.

There is no question that it was a positive afternoon for Manuel Pellegrini’s side, who had taken just one point from their first two fixtures against Manchester City and Brighton & Hove Albion.

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However, to suggest that Fredericks’ performance was not well received by the West Ham supporters would be a slight understatement.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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Milner’s teammates Andrew Robertson and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain couldn’t help but share the moment…

Classic Milner indeed.

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Celtic were the victors from the Old Firm derby on Sunday as goals from Odsonne Edouard and Jonny Hayes settled the game.

The Hoops took the lead in the first half and then sealed things late on when they found room on the counter.

Neil Lennon’s side looked comfortable for large parts of the match, particularly in defence, as they kept a clean sheet.

A large part of that was down to the performance of Hatem Elhamed, who earned plenty of praise from supporters after the match on Twitter.

The 28-year-old was hailed as unreal and fantastic whilst one individual suggested he was the best player on the park at Ibrox on Sunday.

A fellow fan claimed he was the best right back in the division as another went as far as saying he’d now have a statue built for him.

The Israel international signed this summer from Hapoel Be’er Sheva and has made five appearances since joining.

This was his second league start and on the evidence of this showing, plenty more will be on the way.

Here’s the best of the reaction.

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[ad_pod ]Some Charlton fans have taken to Twitter to react after it was confirmed that Huddersfield have appointed Danny Cowley as their new manager.Cowley, who joins the Terriers from Lincoln alongside his brother and assistant Nicky, succeeds Jan Siewert at the John Smith’s Stadium after the former Borussia Dortmund II coach was sacked.

Why is this relevant to Charlton, I hear you ask?

Well, the recently-relegated Terriers were linked with Addicks boss Lee Bowyer and reportedly “pushed hard” for the 42-year-old to become their manager, although the former Newcastle midfielder pledged his loyalty to the south Londoners and remained at The Valley.

However, in football anything is possible, so the news that Huddersfield have officially moved on and successfully pursued another appointment should be music to Charlton’s ears – Bowyer is yet to lose a Championship game this term with four wins and two draws in six games.

Let’s take a look at how some of the Addicks fans reacted on Twitter…

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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…

Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Joe Urquhart has given his verdict on Jack Clarke when speaking to episode 66 of the Inside Elland Road Podcast, suggesting he has nowhere to hide.

What’s he said?

Clarke has been a topic of debate amongst supporters this season and for good reason too.

The youngster joined Tottenham in the summer and then arrived back at Leeds on loan but hasn’t really played.

He’s featured just twice in the League Cup but recently scored for one of England’s youth sides over the international break.

Issuing his thoughts on the 18-year-old, Urquhart spoke of his concerns and suggested what he needs to do after a mini confidence boost. He told the Inside Elland Road Podcast:

“He just hasn’t been the player everyone thought since he first burst onto the scene in February time. He’s not really kicked on. He’s a £9m footballer now so there’s nowhere for him to hide. People are very very aware of him.

“When he first came on the scene he maybe had that element of surprise and pace to cut back inside. It’s time for him to put his big boy pants on.”

Clarke’s confidence on the up?

The winger has looked a shadow of the player that first burst onto the scene last term. He started to make his name after scoring against Aston Villa but has struggled significantly since.

The fact he’s only played twice and not appeared in the Championship in 2019/20 is evidence of that.

Clarke was withdrawn at half time against Stoke and then refused to shake the hand of the player that replaced him in an U23 outing against Bristol City on 85 minutes.

However, his confidence may be on the rise following the international break.

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The teenager scored a late winner for England U20s against Switzerland earlier in the week, something that surely will have been of great relief to him.

The task now, though, is sorting himself out at Leeds. Urquhart is right to suggest he has nowhere to hide and the fact he’s been discussed regularly by fans shows that.

In the words of the YEP journalist, he needs to put his big boy pants on and show what he’s made of.

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Andy Carroll is nearing a return to fitness as he looks set to undergo the second chapter of his life as a Newcastle United player and has been included in the Magpies’ squad for tomorrow’s huge clash at home to Brighton and Hove Albion.

The Geordie returned to his boyhood club this summer after leaving West Ham United on a free transfer on deadline day. However, the 30-year-old has been fighting his way back to fitness and only just started training with his new team.

Indeed, this will obviously be Carroll’s second stint at his hometown club and, having been vital for the side before his departure to Liverpool all those years ago, the supporters will surely be hoping he finds that goalscoring form once again.

Here are two reasons the Magpies will be boosted by his return.

Opening up a new attacking stream

Carroll endured a torrid time since leaving for Liverpool back in 2011 and perhaps it was no surprise to see him fail so miserably on Merseyside, as the Englishman wasn’t exactly a man who had the goalscoring feats to rival the recently departed Fernando Torres.

However, before his departure to the North West, Carroll proved that when wearing the black and white, he can comfortably find the back of the net, scoring 33 goals in 90 appearances for the Magpies (as per WhoScored). With his teammates only averaging 15 crosses per game (the fourth lowest in the division), perhaps the introduction of a man who has averaged winning 6.2 aerial duels per game across 192 analysed career appearances on WhoScored could open up a new attacking stream. Put simply, with him in the team, using more crosses to try and score would make sense.

Help for Joelinton

Joelinton has started well to life at Newcastle, scoring the winner in the memorable game against Spurs and registering an average of 2.3 shots per game so far (as per WhoScored).

However, with just the one goal to his name, perhaps Carroll could help him. Indeed, the pressure could be taken off the former Hoffenheim ace, who has been deployed in support of a striker 21 times over the course of his career (per Transfermarkt), while potentially keeping him in the side.

In fact, within the Sun’s profile of the player upon his arrival on Tyneside, they noted his ability to ‘vision and mobility to drop deeper and combine’, so perhaps the two could form a partnership.

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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…

Tottenham Hotspur fell to a disappointing 2-1 defeat against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Saturday, but the match could have bigger consequences for two of their players – one of whom was involved against the Foxes, and one who wasn’t.

Kyle Walker-Peters started the 2019/20 season in the starting XI following the departure of Kieran Trippier to Atletico Madrid and with Serge Aurier seemingly out of favour, but he picked up an injury against Newcastle United that saw him miss the subsequent Premier League clashes against Arsenal and Crystal Palace.

However, with Aurier not travelling to Greece to face Olympiacos as Mauricio Pochettino rotated his team, the 22-year-old was back in the matchday squad in Athens.

He had to settle for a spot on the substitutes’ bench though as Pochettino selected Davinson Sanchez at right-back despite the same experiment not going well previously against Arsenal, as you can see from these fans’ reactions on Twitter.

That was a signal that the Argentine manager doesn’t fully trust the right-back seeing as he was surely fit enough to start having been named on the bench, and worse was to come for the trip to face Brendan Rodgers’ men at the weekend as he was omitted from the 18 altogether.

The situation is an indication of where Walker-Peters stands with the north London outfit, and that he isn’t viewed as good enough even when the only other options available aren’t natural full-backs.

Meanwhile, Victor Wanyama was linked with a move away from Tottenham during the summer, but both the English and European transfer windows closed without an exit materialising for the Kenya international, as a transfer to Club Brugge collapsed.

Prior to the Leicester encounter, the 28-year-old had been on the bench on three occasions this term, as well as missing out on the squad on three occasions as per Transfermarkt, but Pochettino decided to introduce him as a 67th minute from the bench against the Foxes with the visitors leading 1-0.

It’s fair to say that it was a disastrous cameo from the former Southampton and Celtic man, as he gave the ball away in the build-up to the hosts’ equaliser, before failing to close down James Maddison effectively for the winning goal.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

The African looks to be firmly behind the likes of Harry Winks, Tanguy Ndombele and Moussa Sissoko already in the central midfield pecking order, and this latest display may have just sealed his exit in the New Year if there are some takers for him.

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It was another good weekend for West Ham.

After rivals Spurs lost on Saturday, the Hammers beat Manchester United 2-0 on Sunday, which has seen them move into real contention for the European places.

They are now unbeaten since the damaging 5-0 defeat against Manchester City on the opening day of the Premier League campaign.

Andriy Yarmolenko and Aaron Cresswell were the goalscorers for the Hammers during the match, and the former put in a particularly eye-catching display. The Ukraine international had a terrible term last time out, missing the majority of it due to injury, but this is now the second strike he has netted since recovering. Against the Red Devils, he had the most shots on target of any of his teammates.

Watch West Ham United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

The London Stadium faithful were also quick to recognise the quality performances of the 29-year-old. They took to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

Arsenal were forced to make do with a point following their visit to Old Trafford on Monday night.

Let’s be honest, it wasn’t the most thrilling of games, but there were still two goals that prevented it from being a totally damp squib.

Scott McTominay bagged the opener from outside the box before Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored the equaliser in the second half. Of course, that was only after VAR had to come to the aid of the hapless linesman, who somehow thought that the Gabon international was offside.

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You would have thought that would have been the main talking point from a Gunners perspective. You’d have been wrong.

Instead, Granit Xhaka was at the end of plentiful criticism from the Emirates Stadium faithful for his part in McTominay’s strike.

To the naked eye, it appeared as though the Switzerland international ducked out of the way of the ball as it rocketed towards goal. Although the replays showed a slight deflection from Sokratis, it still doesn’t make for great viewing. Not the best way to start his tenure as the club’s captain.

The Arsenal supporters, not known for being reserved, took to Twitter to slaughter the 26-year-old. You can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.