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Aston Villa have had their fair share of poor transfer dealings over recent years, haven’t they? The club have made moves for both experienced players who should have the know-how to succeed, as well as younger faces who can inject energy in the side. Either way, both calibres of players have had mixed fortunes in the Midlands.

This season, Villa’s approach to transfers has largely paid dividends. The permanent signing of John McGinn, as well as loan moves for Tammy Abraham and Tyrone Mings particularly stand out due to their performances in a claret and blue shirt during their time at Villa Park.

However, not all transfers are able to have such an effect on the side. With that being said, let’s take a look at two of the worst Villa transfers over the past five years…

Micah Richards

Richards was Tim Sherwood’s first official signing as Villa manager in 2015 and upon his arrival, he was made club captain. Given his credentials and understanding of the League, it seemed to be a positive addition.

In his first campaign, injuries and poor showings from himself in a lacklustre side meant Richards was in-and-out of the side after the turn of the year.

The following season he made three appearances, the last one came in October 2016 after he came off against Wolves and he has not played for Villa since.

The 30-year-old is reportedly on £35,000 per week, as reported by BirminghamLive and to be paying a player a significant amount of money when the situation is completely unknown is just baffling. Richards’ contract expires in the summer so that will surely bring an end to his four-year affiliation with the club.

Joleon Lescott

Lescott joined from West Bromwich Albion in the same summer that his ex-Manchester City teammate joined Villa too.

He made 31 appearances for Villa that season, with a significant number of them being substandard defensive showings as Lescott seemed to be a shadow of his former-self that had been so dominant in years gone by.

His reputation among the fans was not done any favours through the infamous tweet of a Mercedes following a 6-0 defeat at home to Liverpool and the former-England international did then move on to AEK Athens soon after. He has since retired following a spell at Sunderland and leaves little to no legacy at Villa Park.

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Loads of Liverpool fans have been reacting to some comments from Jordan Henderson, as the skipper said the Reds are going all out to win both the Premier League and Champions League.

Liverpool are in their best position in years to end their title drought, currently sitting level on points with Manchester City having played one game less than the champions.

Jurgen Klopp’s squad is the deepest it has been since his arrival, but there have still been question marks about the lack of quality back-up options in some positions, most notably in defence.

Perhaps because of the defensive injury crisis, there have been plenty of talks of ditching one competition to focus on the other, but Henderson has absolutely no time for that.

“If we had to choose (PL or CL), we’d choose both,” said the skipper, as reported by GOAL.com’s Neil Jones.

The 28 year-old has been a divisive figure since taking the armband at Anfield, as one the one hand he is one of the most versatile, professional and passionate players at the club, but one the other hand he is not Steven Gerrard.

Fans are all uniting on this one though, praising the skipper for his faith in the side, and you can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

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Brendan Rodgers has one very important decision to make in defence for the return leg with Valencia.

It doesn’t involve the full-back positions – Jeremy Toljan and Jonny Hayes seem certain to start – but in central defence the Celtic boss has to decide who plays alongside Dedryck Boyata.

In the first leg Jozo Simunovic was pulled all over the place with Valencia’s second goal delivered by an unmarked Ruben Sobrino shooting home from seven yards out. At that moment the odds on Celtic progressing became ridiculous.

On Sunday at Kilmarnock Kris Ajer replaced Simunovic, who has made just one appearance on a plastic pitch since joining Celtic in 2015.

The former Dinamo Zagreb defender has never quite convinced the Celtic support that he is the real deal. Apart from one memorable challenge on Kenny Miller there have been few domineering performances in between regular spells out injured. According to Transfermarkt he has had eight absences due to injury.

By contrast Ajer has always made himself available – away to Astana in the 2017 Champions League qualifier he learned some punishing lessons as Celtic leaked goals but just managed to hang on to claim a place in the group phase.

Ajer is effectively in his second season at Celtic, deputising behind Boyata and Filip Benkovic who are the first choice pairing but about to leave the Hoops in the summer.

The young Norwegian has had some testing times but 90 minutes against Valencia will have him fully prepared for next season’s Champions League qualifiers – assuming Celtic clinch the title.

None of next season’s Champions League opponents will be on a par with the Spanish side. This season Celtic would have faced qualifiers against the champions of Greece and Hungary to reach the group phase.

Rodgers has spoken recently about age not being a barrier – giving Ajer the jersey to face Valencia is a sound decision for the clash in the Mestalla with plenty of dividends down the line for the player and club.

Wolverhampton Wanderers fans have been drooling over one of their top young talents this week after the club’s official Twitter feed reminded them of a key landmark.

Oskar Buur became a 22-year-old on Tuesday, and both the club and supporters have been wishing him well on social media.

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The emerging Dane has become a part of Nuno Santo’s first-team setup this season, signing a contract extension in February. He has made four senior appearances across the Europa League, FA Cup and the EFL Trophy.

Buur provided the very assist that clinched Diogo Jota’s hat-trick against Besiktas earlier this campaign.

With Nuno deploying a small squad of players, the left wing-back has seen himself rise in the pecking order to play second fiddle to Matt Doherty, who one fan believes is the worse player of the two.

He’s clearly seen as one for the future as the club have tied him down until the summer of 2023, even despite landing Rochdale prodigy Luke Matheson during the January transfer window.

Here’s what supporters have been saying…

AND in other news, Nuno can make amends for January disaster with swoop for 20-goal STAR…  

According to Goal, Wolverhampton Wanderers are one of three Premier League clubs vying for the signature of Atletico Madrid attacker Thomas Lemar.

What’s the word?

It is believed that Diego Simeone is keen on adding a striker to his armoury this month, but for that to happen, there has to be a departure of some kind with Thomas Lemar being the ‘chosen one.’

Simeone claims the Frenchman hasn’t lived up to expectations in Madrid.

The report suggests that the La Liga outfit has circulated his availability, resulting in interest from the west Midlanders as well as Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur.

Lemar is a client of super-agent Jorge Mendes, who has deep ties with Wolves having brokered many deals since Fosun took ownership in 2016.

The Portuguese representative has even completed a few between the two clubs with Jonny and Diogo Jota both switching the Spanish capital for Molineux in recent seasons.

Jota upgrade?

Lemar’s time at Atletico has been nothing short of disappointing after a £52.7m move from Monaco in the summer of 2018. In 64 appearances, he has managed just three goals and six assists, per Transfermarkt.

However, the red and white stripes of Madrid has notoriously been an unhappy hunting ground for many a forward under Simeone – their creative issues have been highlighted here, while his style of play is well renowned for being defensively-focused.

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Therefore, Lemar can be given a free pass, for the time being. He’s only 24 after all and still has plenty to offer, which is why Wolves must pursue him at all costs this month.

The wide man helped Monaco to a Ligue 1 title as well as a Champions League semi-final, and directly contributed to 55 goals in his 127 appearances at the club, via Transfermarkt.

Phillipe Tranchant, who unearthed Lemar’s talent as a 12-year-old playing football in Guadeloupe, once labelled him as “extraordinary” while his dribbling ability, versatility and impressive use of both feet are also highlighted throughout the same article.

This makes him an exciting prospect for Nuno Santo, especially given Jota’s struggles this term – he has bagged just three times in 19 league matches, two of which in the same game while he is yet to provide an assist, which is poor considering he’s hit at least five in the previous two seasons, per WhoScored.

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If the Portuguese boss can unearth the player that was at Monaco, then Wolves will have an elite talent on their hands, one that would be an instant upgrade on the faltering Jota.

He would also bring squad depth with his ability to play anywhere across the front three.

And in other news, John Ruddy believes he knows exactly who can replace the departing Jesus Vallejo this month…

[ad_pod ]I don’t need to tell you much about the feud between Paul Pogba and Jose Mourinho at Manchester United; just whack either of their names into Twitter or Google and hundreds of articles will appear on the topic.At a club that has a global reputation as significant as United’s, and for a player of Pogba’s unerring marketability, it was particularly foolish of Mourinho to pick a fight with a player that cost the club £89m, has over 6m Twitter followers and more than 30m on Instagram – the Frenchman’s commercial worth to a club obsessive over these exact qualities was always going to see him win his battle with the Portuguese boss.The 25-year-old wasted no time in reacting to his former boss’ sacking. Just 46 minutes after the Red Devils announced that the former Chelsea and Real Madrid boss would be leaving, Pogba uploaded a picture along with the tagline ‘Caption this!’

You don’t need to be an expert in body language to see that the former Juventus star’s facial expression is one that says: “You really thought you could challenge me and win, huh?” Additionally, the fact that Pogba deleted this post soon after it was uploaded tells you all you need to know.

Off the pitch, the World Cup winner is eccentric to say the least. He is constantly mocking up new dance moves with teammates, ‘dabbing’ or what not, and just being overly loud in general.

Perhaps it was a generational thing why Mourinho visibly detested him so much, even calling him a ‘virus’, or maybe the 55-year-old is just becoming a grumpy old man who is just ‘Yer Da’ but just happens to be a huge figure in the footballing world.

On the pitch, however, there is no way that you can argue that a player who has won countless titles, numerous individual awards – including being named in the FIFA World XI for 2015 – and has so much swagger and confidence in general could perform so pitifully and uselessly unintentionally – his woeful performances under Mourinho could easily be argued as being an act of sabotage, and he now has what he wanted.

As the club’s record signing Pogba can now truly step up and show the world that it was in fact Mourinho who was holding him back, and he must replicate the brilliant performances he showed for his country in the summer as they won the 2018 World Cup for his club.

He has won the battle to be the alpha male at Old Trafford, but with no new challenger in sight, he must show that he can be a leader and an inspiration; if he still under performs in this post-Mourinho era, there aren’t many excuses left for a player thoroughly out-of-sorts.

Which big 6 club needs to do the most business in January? Check out what the Playmaker FC squad think in the video below…

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Tottenham Hotspur were linked with a move for Lazio striker Ciro Immobile during the summer transfer window, and with Harry Kane struggling for form and with the Italian scoring for his side in the Europa League on Thursday night, Daniel Levy should have taken a big-money risk on the 28-year-old.

What’s the word, then?

Well, The Mirror reported back in April that Spurs were lining up a £100m double swoop on Lazio for duo Sergey Milinkovic-Savic and Immobile, rated at £45m by Transfermarkt, and that the funds for any potential deal could come from selling the likes of Mousa Dembele, Danny Rose and Toby Alderweireld during the summer.

However, the trio – along with teammates like Moussa Sissoko and Victor Wanyama – all remained with the north London outfit, as they failed to make a single addition to their squad before the window slammed shut on August 9.

While Mauricio Pochettino’s men got off to a decent enough start to the current campaign, three straight losses for the first time since the Argentine took charge of Tottenham – and a number of their players looking a shadow of their former selves following the 2018 World Cup – mean they are really struggling right now.

Why should they have signed Immobile?

The Italy international showed the goalscoring ability he has with 41 goals in 47 appearances in all competitions for Lazio last term, and while he may only have two in five outings so far this season – including the winner from the penalty spot against Apollon Limassol on Thursday – there is no doubt he would have made a difference for Tottenham.

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Kane is showing signs of fatigue following his exploits for England in Russia, and Levy and Pochettino failed to find a suitable alternative to the Three Lions captain during the summer window with Fernando Llorente far from an able back-up.

Immobile would have been exactly that, and even if he came at a cost Spurs should have splashed the cash on the 28-year-old, and they would be in a much better position right now if they had.

According to reports in Italian media outlet La Stampa, via Tuttomercatoweb, Liverpool have been told they must pay €60m (approximately £53m) if they want to sign Fiorentina winger Federico Chiesa in the summer.

What’s the word, then?

Well, La Stampa, via Tuttomercatoweb, says that the Serie A outfit view the attacker as the jewel in their crown, and Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Inter Milan, Juventus, Napoli, Roma and Paris Saint-Germain are all monitoring the 20-year-old.

However La Stampa, via Tuttomercatoweb, says that because the forward has only recently extended his stay with the Viola until 2022, it will take at least £53m to prise him away.

How has Chiesa done this season?

Despite only turning 20 years of age in October, the winger is already a regular in the Fiorentina side.

In 15 Serie A appearances this term, the versatile attacker has scored four goals and provided a further three assists.

Chiesa has shown his attacking abilities and threat in the final third and according to Squawka he has created 16 chances, winning 25 fouls and successfully completing 18 of the 33 take-ons he has attempted.

Would he be a good signing for Liverpool?

He certainly could be in the future, yes.

The 20-year-old looks to have plenty of potential and quality, but you would have to question whether the Reds need him considering the wealth of attacking options they already have.

With Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, Philippe Coutinho and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain just some of the options available to Jurgen Klopp right now, you wouldn’t think that they need Chiesa – especially for what would be a club-record fee.

If he is to cost more than £50m, you would expect the Merseyside outfit to steer clear and expect to concentrate on strengthening their backline next summer.

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According to a number of media sources, including BBC Football, Southampton captain Virgil van Dijk wants to join Liverpool this summer.

The centre-back has become one of the most coveted players for the top teams in the Premier League following a number of outstanding performances at the back for the Saints over the course of the last two seasons, but it appears as though linking up with Reds boss Jurgen Klopp is his preference.

While that may be the case, the sticking point for any deal could be the transfer fee with the south coast outfit ready to demand at least £60m for the 25-year-old.

If the Dutchman does move to Anfield, he would be the latest in a long of Saints players to make the move to the red half of Merseyside, including Adam Lallana, Sadio Mane, Nathaniel Clyne and Dejan Lovren.

Southampton supporters were quick to have their say on the latest news via social media, and they were understandably crushed that yet another of their star players looks set to join Liverpool.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

In case you haven’t realised, it’s the small matter of Liverpool against West Ham this weekend. The Reds play hosts to the under-fire Hammers hoping to close the four-point gap that has developed between themselves and Premier League leaders Chelsea at the summit of the table.

Ahead of the visit of West Ham, Football FanCast have decided to open the historical files and reacquaint ourselves with some of the best Reds strikes scored against the Irons in recent years.

There’s no denying Slaven Bilic will be hopeful yet another wonder goal doesn’t occur this weekend as he is desperate for three points – or even just not to be humiliated once again this season.

Everyone is all too aware of the Reds attacking prowess and their ability to accumulate huge winning margins, but can they add another stunning strike to this collection on Sunday?

Here are five of the best goals Liverpool have scored against the Hammers in recent years.

Robbie Fowler – 1997

What a goal by ‘God’. Robbie Fowler scored his 86th Liverpool goal during the club’s victory over West Ham in September 1997.

Seven minutes after half-time, the Reds were struggling to impose themselves on Harry Redknapp’s Hammers side. Fowler took matters into his hands and scored a beautiful volley that’s still fondly remembered on Merseyside.

Goals like this highlight exactly why Fowler remains a legend amongst Liverpool fans.

Steven Gerrard – 2006

With F.A. Cup glory seemingly slipping away from Liverpool in 2006, Steven Gerrard still had more to say regarding the outcome of the final against West Ham.

At this stage of the match, seconds were remaining on the clock as the Reds bombarded the Hammers backline. A headed clearance fell straight into the path of Gerrard, who hammered a half-volley in from thirty yards.

Liverpool won the contest on penalties and Gerrard’s goal has gone down in FA Cup folklore.

Dirk Kuyt – 2007

Dutch forward Kuyt emerged as somewhat of a cult hero during his time at Anfield as his devotion to the cause became a fundamental factor of the Reds’ success during the late 2000s.

Goals like this one scored at Upton Park in January 2007 further highlighted the Dutchman’s ability, with solid technique and a low driving shot.

Daniel Sturridge – 2015

If ever there was a goal to sum up the ability of Daniel Sturridge perfectly then it’s this one. During Liverpool’s home clash with West Ham in January 2015, Sturridge returned from injury in devastating fashion.

The touch to take the ball away from the Hammers backline was exquisite, but the finish to fire past Adrian was even more impressive. A typical Sturridge goal.

Philippe Coutinho – 2016

Coutinho’s Brazilian flair was expertly witnessed during their F.A. Cup fourth round clash at Upton Park in February. After going a goal behind thanks to Michail Antonio, Coutinho took proceedings into his own hands and fired the Reds back into the contest.

A twenty-yard free-kick saw Coutinho cleverly shoot underneath the jumping West Ham wall to provide Liverpool with an equaliser. The Reds lost the match, but the goal was truly superb.