All posts by n8rngtd.top

Many Everton fans have been giving their thoughts as Phil Kirkbride has claimed that Mason Holgate may be dropped against West Ham United on Sunday afternoon.

However, the Liverpool Echo journalist suggested that the defender needs time to regain his form, which caused quite a stir among some members of the Goodison Park faithful.

Holgate has made costly errors in recent games for the Toffees, dwelling on the ball which allowed Ollie Watkins to score for Aston Villa last week, while two lapses of judgement alongside Michael Keane allowed Harry Kane to score twice for Tottenham in April.

It seems as if many Everton supporters have simply had enough of the defender and subsequently do not want him to start in what is a crucial match away to the Hammers as Carlo Ancelotti’s side chase a European finish.

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Everton fans on Holgate claim

These fans made their feelings clear after Kirkbride made the claim on Twitter, as they were particularly critical of Holgate’s recent performances.

“His performances lately have been shocking. He should be dropped. No room for sentiment”

Credit: @JACKDEL15

“Probably get slated for this but he should be sold in the summer. We need players with a winning mentality”

Credit: @offerson76

“Needs a change of attitude & mental aptitude. Too cocky & thinks he’s better than what he is. Only seems to turn it on when we play a bigger team. Frustrating, had his chance, definitely should be dropped for the rest of the season unless injuries hit.”

Credit: @rob_fisher_efc

“Need to cash in this summer, he hasn’t improved, makes too many mistakes & terrible on the ball. Anything over £10m would be a great deal for us.”

Credit: @iamawayrightnow

“Liability, attitude got the better of him”

Credit: @evertonno1

“He can have all the time he needs at another club. Nowhere near good enough and stagnated.”

Credit: @LeaderRound

In other news, find out what early team news has left some Everton fans fuming.

Nicolas Tagliafico would be an excellent signing for Leeds United this summer, according to former Arsenal and Everton striker Kevin Campbell.

Marcelo Bielsa could well be on the lookout for a new left-back at the end of the season, with Ezgjan Alioski expected to leave the club.

His exit would leave a void in that area of the pitch and Leeds have been linked with a number of replacements, including Crystal Palace’s Patrick van Aanholt.

Another player who has emerged as a reported target is £22.5million-rated Ajax left-back Tagliafico, who has 27 caps to his name for Argentina.

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Campbell heaps praise on Tagliafico

Speaking to Football Insider, Campbell talked up the idea of Leeds making a move for the 28-year-old, outlining his qualities:

“He is a top-quality player. He would fit the bill for Leeds because they are in definite need of a recognised left-back.

“He’s got lots of experience in the Champions League and on the international stage so I think it would be a smart signing.

“Bielsa and his team will be putting their feelers out and identifying players ahead of the summer and they could do a lot worse than Tagliafico, let me tell you.

“From Ajax as well, I do not think they would have to pay over the odds to get him.”

Transfer Tavern take

Tagliafico looks a strong fit for Leeds, with the Argentine possessing a wealth of experience at the top level, but also still having a number of years left in him at just 28.

He has chipped in with a goal and two assists in the Eredivisie this season, while his average of 1.9 tackles and 1.7 interceptions per game shows he can shine at both ends of the pitch – that is as many tackles and far more interceptions than Alioski.

Tagliafico’s current Ajax deal doesn’t expire until 2023, however, so a hefty fee may be required to prise him away, perhaps something in the region of the site’s £22.5m valuation.

In other news, Leeds have been urged to sign a Scottish Premiership player this summer. Find out who it is here.

Returning to the dugout this evening, Sheffield Wednesday manager Darren Moore will certainly be looking for a strong response to their embarrassing defeat at the weekend.

After an emphatic victory against Cardiff in front of the TV cameras on Easter Monday, the Owls were then thrashed 4-1 by QPR to put their Championship survival hopes hanging by a thread.

The 46-year-old is now left with plenty to consider by way of team selection at Hillsborough tonight, as his side welcome promotion chasers Swansea City, who have the firepower to deal further damage to Wednesday’s plight.

It would be a surprise to see an unchanged lineup, so here’s our predicted XI as well as the latest team and injury news from south Yorkshire…

The nature of their defeat on Saturday will surely signal some alterations and we’re predicting three changes from the QPR defeat.

After a trio of goals in the second half, we could well see Keiren Westwood finally return between the sticks, as his leadership and experience should be crucial in these final six matches. He replaces Joe Wildsmith.

There could be a tweak to the backline, too, as Moore makes the big decision to drop Sam Hutchinson back into defence alongside Tom Lees and Osaze Urhoghide. It means that Julian Borner makes way after a difficult afternoon against the R’s.

Given the lack of wide options, both Adam Reach and Liam Palmer are likely to remain in their wing-back roles, whilst Joey Pelupessy is an obvious candidate to move into midfield to fill the vacancy left by Hutchinson’s redeployment.

The Dutch defensive midfielder could well be needed against a team which is expected to dominate possession. He would free up Barry Bannan and Josh Windass to be the dangermen for the Owls slightly further up the pitch.

Moore could stick with Jordan Rhodes up top as the forward has bagged four times since his arrival from Doncaster, but in a bid to spark a reaction, Andre Green may be handed his second start since joining on a free transfer in January. That’s a move which would see Callum Paterson revert to the bench.

Joost van Aken and Fisayo Dele-Bashiru have both returned from injury, but as they featured for the under-23s earlier this week, they shouldn’t be involved at Hillsborough tonight; whilst the likes of Moses Odubajo, Massimo Luongo and Chey Dunkley are all still on the treatment table.

AND in other news, Forget Wildsmith: Sheff Wed lightweight who lost 89% of duels badly let Moore down on Saturday…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Carlton Palmer has suggested that Celtic could look to loan Liam Shaw out after his pre-contract move from Sheffield Wednesday was confirmed last month.

Shaw, whose time at Hillsborough is coming to an end, has agreed to join Scottish giants Celtic in the summer on a free transfer.

With Celtic expected to compete for the league title next season and set to feature in Europe, moving to Glasgow is a huge opportunity for Shaw.

Palmer, though, believes it may have come too soon for the 20-year-old, feeling that he could struggle to get game time at Celtic Park.

Discussing Shaw’s transfer to Celtic, Palmer told FFC:

“Liam is going to struggle going to Celtic that age to play. He’ll probably end up going there and going out on loan, I’m assuming, I don’t know.”

Speaking on the midfielder’s move further, the former Wednesday player added:

“If I was Liam, I’d be wanting to get out on loan somewhere where it’s guaranteed that he’s going to play because you can do that. I’ve done it before where I’ve taken a player when I was manager at Stockport and the manager’s come to me and said, ‘right, listen, I’ll let the player come, but he’s got to play.’ Bit like David Beckham when he went to Preston, that’s how they develop. They’ve got to play.”

Whoever is in the Celtic Park dugout next season will be demanding a lot from Shaw and his future team-mates. The Bhoys have been extremely underwhelming this term, surrendering their title to rivals Rangers while crashing out of the Europa League in disappointing fashion.

Former Manchester United man Keith Gillespie has criticised Marcus Rashford’s form in an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, insisting that he has not been good enough.

The £200,000-a-week England international has somewhat struggled in front of goal this season as Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have attempted to challenge Manchester City at the top of the league.

Rashford has scored nine goals in 29 Premier League appearances this season but he has netted just twice in his last 14 appearances.

Those goals came in the 9-0 thumping of Southampton and the 3-1 beating of Newcastle United, and Gillespie has been disappointed with the way the 23-year-old has been performing.

Indeed, he believes that United need to prioritise the signing of a striker in the summer transfer window as they look to find a guaranteed source of goals.

Speaking exclusively to FFC, he said: “I think for quite a while Rashford’s been poor, and I think a lot of Man United fans feel this.

“He’s got all the talent in the world but just sometimes his decision-making isn’t good enough.”

Rashford did have a good record in the Champions League this season, scoring six times in six games, but his lack of form has coincided with United losing ground in the title race.

Glasgow Rangers supporters group Club 1872 have demanded the sacking of BBC pundit Michael Stewart after his comments regarding the Glen Kamara racism row.

Club 1872 demand Stewart sacking

The Finland international claimed to have been racially abused by Slavia Prague’s Ondrej Kudela during the Gers’ Europa League clash on Thursday.

Speaking on Sportsound in the aftermath, Stewart suggested that Kamara may have misheard Kudela and asked for caution in judging the situation (Daily Record). This has enraged Club 1872, who believe that Stewart is brushing the allegations under the carpet. They released a statement which read, in part:

“Unfortunately we also find ourselves in the position of having to address the behaviour of Michael Stewart in relation to this latest incident of racism directed at a Rangers player. In February 2020, Mr Stewart did his best to use his platform on BBC Scotland to cast doubt on the racist abuse suffered by Alfredo Morelos at Celtic Park, despite someone being charged over the incident. Fast forward one year and he is again refusing to take the personal experience of a black player who has been racially abused at face value.

“We believe Glen Kamara 100%, his account is clear, his and his teammates’ reaction at the time was authentic and it was immediately apparent to anyone with any common sense that something serious had occurred. For racism to be dealt with in football, our default position should be to believe the accounts of those who experience it and seek the corroboration and evidence to allow the authorities to take strong action. For Michael Stewart to take the opposite approach, twice, is a disgrace.

“We are fully aware of Michael Stewart’s desperate quest for attention and we are loath to give him the attention he craves, but this is too serious a matter to allow to pass without comment. BBC Scotland told us last year, following Mr Stewart’s rant at that time, that he had been reminded of his responsibilities. Clearly, that ‘reminder’ has fallen on deaf ears. BBC Scotland’s continuing tolerance of him is further evidence of the institutional decline of the Scottish outpost of the BBC. This latest outburst should be his last and we will watch with interest to see if BBC Scotland now take the action they should have taken over a year ago.”

Strong stance

Stewart’s comments were particularly out of touch. While caution and due process is needed in such a situation, he basically suggested that Kamara may well have got it wrong – given how the scene unfolded at Ibrox, it is hard to believe the Finland international would be making it up. This is not the first time Stewart has had negative things to say about the Gers, either – it is actually something of a regular occurrence.

This is another sad example of racism rearing its ugly head – the last thing we need is for such claims to be dismissed so quickly. As Rio Ferdinand also suggested in the aftermath, Stewart could do well to educate himself on the subject.

In other news, many Rangers fans love this club statement.

The hurt, the pain, the anguish, it is all over for Sunderland. It has been 48 years since they lasted lifted silverware after taking home the 1973 FA Cup.

The honour on this occasion might not have been as prestigious but Black Cats supporters won’t care; they are now EFL Trophy winners.

Gone are the days of Phil Parkinson, Stewart Donald and Charlie Methven. They now have Kyril Louis-Dreyfus at the helm and he already has a trophy to show for his troubles.

Lee Johnson has led a tremendous revival at the Stadium of Light and after lifting the club into the playoff places in League One, he engineered a memorable afternoon at Wembley on Sunday. It finally seems like the club are on the right track.

Lynden Gooch had a quiet first half but ultimately scored the goal that made the difference. He was set free by Aiden McGeady in the second half before stroking the ball home for the only goal of the game.

There were a number of heroes in London. Luke O’Nien was given the Man of the Match award while McGeady came up with several important actions.

That being said, with places up for grabs, Josh Scowen did himself no favours.

The 27-year-old played in midfield with Carl Winchester cup-tied but he didn’t exactly prove himself to Johnson that he should be a regular in the XI. A host of players staked their claims, no less Gooch, but unfortunately, Scowen didn’t do the same.

He and Grant Leadbitter were often overrun in the middle of the park with Tranmere enjoying far more of the ball than Sunderland would have liked.

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They were pegged back on numerous occasions with Callum McFadzean enduring a particularly tough game against the marauding Otis Khan. The Tranmere right-back was relentless in the final third, completing four dribbles down the right-hand side.

That being said, the defender did prevail in four of his defensive duels. Scowen, on the other hand, was rather lightweight.

He won just 14.2% of his ground and aerial duels during the contest, a measly amount when you consider the position he plays in and the pressure the Black Cats had to withstand.

Scowen failed to make a single tackle while his passing, despite a completion rate of 90%, was far from inspiring.

With Leadbitter back from injury and Winchester beginning to adapt to life in the north-east, Scowen needs to improve.

His performance on the big stage was not good enough and will have told Johnson plenty ahead of the promotion run-in. He missed a chance to make an impression here.

AND in other news, Dreyfus may be on the verge of repeating one of Donald’s biggest SAFC mistakes already…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former Southampton midfielder Carlton Palmer has backed Ralph Hasenhuttl after a turbulent couple of months at St Mary’s.

After a bright start to the Premier League season, a poor run of form has seen Southampton drop into the bottom half of the table. They have also been on the opposite end of a humiliating 9-0 defeat to Manchester United, a repeat of the 9-0 massacre against Leicester City last term.

It has certainly been a difficult period for Southampton and Hasenhuttl; however, Palmer is still backing the Austrian manager, praising the overall job he has done since arriving at the south coast club.

Speaking exclusively with FFC, the retired Premier League footballer said:

“I don’t like the bashing of the manager. I think he’s a very good manager. I think he’s done a fantastic job there and they’re just going through a difficult time at the moment.

“You know, you’re seeing that with Liverpool. Liverpool are going through a difficult time at the moment. That doesn’t mean Jurgen Klopp’s not a good manager. He’s not all of a sudden a bad manager because Liverpool are going through a difficult situation. Same with Jose Mourinho, these are good managers. All teams go through difficult periods.”

While Southampton are struggling at present, it has not been all doom and gloom at St. Mary’s this season. The Saints have put in some good performances, including in the 1-0 win over Premier League champions Liverpool, and have reached the FA Cup quarter-finals.

Hasenhuttl’s side take on Championship outfit Bournemouth in the competition, with the Cherries the only thing standing between them and a trip to Wembley. Ultimately, there is still a possibility that Southampton could make success of the current campaign.

Liverpool have been linked to a new attacking option ahead of the summer transfer window. According to Football Insider, the club’s scouts are keeping tabs on Leeds United’s £17m Raphinha after he has quickly made an impact in the Premier League this season.

With Diogo Jota out injured and nobody else really staking a claim, a new wide-man is unsurprisingly on Jurgen Klopp’s side’s shortlist to serve as back-up to the blistering duo of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane.

Would Raphinha suit Liverpool?

Between the two African wingers, they have accumulated 22 goals and six assists so far in the Premier League, according to BBC Sport. However, since Mane has been ruled out with an apparent muscle problem, it’s just laid bare the lack of genuine class options Klopp has at his disposal in those wide areas.

In Mane’s absence, Xherdan Shaqiri has stepped in. Whilst he managed to pick up an assist against West Ham, he is still yet to score in the Premier League so far. In fact, he has already bagged himself more than he did last campaign, where he managed one assist across all competitions, via Transfermarkt.

There have been whispers regarding a potential move away from Anfield for the Swiss attacker. A recent report from Fotomac linked Shaqiri to a permanent January move to Galatasaray (via TEAMtalk). However, with Liverpool’s limited options, they have kept the 29-year-old in Merseyside. But if they bring in a replacement, it could be the final nail in the coffin for Shaqiri.

As for Raphinha, his debut season in England’s top flight hints that he could be a solid back-up to Salah. According to Transfermarkt, the Brazilian has contributed to a goal in 50% of his Premier League appearances for Leeds. He currently has four goals and four assists to his name in 16 matches.

His performances at the back end of last year attracted a lot of attention. Raphinha earned praise from ex-Leeds man Noel Whelan, who said: “He’s incredible, he really is – I mean we weren’t sure what we were getting when we bought him, we’d seen clips on YouTube etcetera but didn’t know a great deal about him.

“He’s bought into everything that Marcelo Bielsa wants in a player, which is not just that flair on the field but that hard work and ethic that he brings as well, with the amount of trackbacks we’ve seen.”

Raphinha has proven to be a shrewd signing for Bielsa, and given that this is only his debut campaign in English football, it makes for a pretty exciting future for the Brazilian.

The fact that Whelan has picked out his defensive work should really have Klopp buzzing, who will want any new signings to really buy into the work-rate and culture at Anfield, and Raphinha appears to be someone who is just as willing to do the dirty side of the game.

This season in the Premier League, the Leeds winger has won an impressive 5.3 duels per match, which is actually sandwiched in between what Mane and Salah have managed – 7.6 and 3.2 respectively. The pressing starts from the front, and Raphinha has shown he can buy into that, and that extra bit of energy, dynamism and selflessness makes him a perfect fit for Klopp.

Both he and Jota could be the ideal super subs or rotation options for Klopp and Liverpool as they look to continue their run of winning silverware.

In other news, Liverpool should start Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain vs Man City…

According reports, Aston Villa are interested in signing free agent Alex Teixeira.

What’s the story?

Dean Smith’s side have enjoyed a superb Premier League season thus far, placing themselves firmly in the battle for a European place. And, according to Spanish publication, Fichajes, Villa are keen on making a move for Teixeira.

The Brazilian left Chinese Super League side Jiangsu Suning at the end of December, and the report claims that Villa, along with both Benfica and his former side Shakhtar Donetsk, are keen on giving him an immediate return to football.

It’s further suggested that Villa see Teixeira as someone who could give a “big boost” to their European push.

Upgrade on Barkley

Described as a “technical leader”, Teixeira has been doing the business across the world for a number of years now, amassing a quite incredible 172 goals over his illustrious career – that despite predominantly featuring as a number ten or out wide.

Speaking back in 2016, Teixeira’s then boss at Shakhtar, Mircea Lucescu, said: “He’s incredible, very fast, very good technique. I compare him with other players of the same age who changed (the fortunes of) a club, (Angel) Di Maria for example at Paris Saint-Germain.

“Teixeira can be at the same level, better even. He doesn’t get injured, and every year he gets better and better.”

The Brazilian would offer an immediate upgrade on Ross Barkley, who has still yet to prove himself as a real consistent performer over the years. He has never managed more than eight goals in a single league campaign, whilst his totals in the past three seasons in particular have been shocking to say the least, with three, one and two goals respectively.

On the other hand, Teixeira has consistently broken past the ten goal barrier in the league both at Shakhtar and with Jiangsu. Since the 2012/2013 campaign, he has managed totals of: 10, 6, 17, 22, 11, 8, 13 and 18. The veteran is a goal-scoring machine from midfield, and would give Smith’s side an added dimension, instead of just having to rely on Ollie Watkins to score all the time.

Teixeira’s consistency over such a long period of time, and the fact that he’s had plenty of experience playing at the highest level in the Champions League too, means he would surely represent an upgrade on Barkley. The fact he “doesn’t get injured”, like has been the case with the England international, makes him all the more of an attractive proposition when you add that to the fact he would arrive on a free transfer.

Meanwhile, this Aston Villa star has been a revelation…