Category Uncategorized

After Liverpool’s rather controversial decision to furlough the club’s non-playing staff (something that they have now reversed), it’s been rather unsurprising to say the least that there has been plenty of criticism of the Merseyside club.Tony Cascarino labelled it as “bordering on lunacy”, whilst Piers Morgan has now waded into the conversation by launching a stinging criticism of the Reds’ actions too.Speaking on Good Morning Britain, Morgan said (as quoted by The Daily Mail): “Liverpool Football club built up such a good reputation in recent years under Jurgen Klopp, and winning the Champions League, this dynamic wonderful team, everyone was proud, everyone loved what Liverpool were standing for.

Best of the Decade: Top scorers & creators – Can you name them?

World Class score: 95% | Expert score: 80% | Veteran score: 65% | Intermediate score: 45% | Amateur score: 30% | Try Again: 5%

“All gone, all gone, because their billionaire owners in America decided that this was the time in a year when they made £45m profit that they were going to furlough their staff at Liverpool Football Club.”

And following his comments, Liverpool fans have taken to Twitter to voice their thoughts on what Morgan had to say.

One particularly disappointed Liverpool fan claimed that whilst owners FSG haven’t made too many mistakes at Anfield, this is “by far their biggest”.

When footballing fans say they’re in complete agreement with a hugely divisive and controversial figure like Morgan, then you really know there’s been a huge error.

The Reds certainly haven’t covered themselves in glory, and it’s incredibly disappointing that in a campaign in which they have done so well on the pitch and look certain to lift the Premier League title (if and when football resumes), this is going to be a major stain on their reputation.

The fact they have now reversed it does at least in some small part restore a sense of dignity.

Meanwhile, Liverpool fans react to links with this Ligue 1 ace.

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…

In football, there can often be a pantomime villain.

A player who the opposition supporters love to rile up, either due to previous incidents or merely in an attempt to distract them from performing to the best of their abilities.

In this instance, that player is Wilfried Zaha, and those supporters are Watford fans.

Ever since the Ivory Coast international won that penalty against the Hornets in the Championship playoff final, a moment that led to Crystal Palace scoring the £120m fixture’s only goal, there has been somewhat of a vendetta towards the mercurial forward.

Watford’s mascot Harry the Hornet has even gotten in on the act, diving in front of Zaha in mocking fashion following a Premier League tie at Vicarage Road in 2018 – Roy Hodgson later branded the man dressed as an insect as “disgraceful”.

If you happen to have been present in previous meetings between the two sides, you might have heard some Watford fans singing: “He’s gonna dive in a minute”.

Even the Watford players have gotten in on the act. Etienne Capoue leapt on the Achilles of Zaha at Vicarage Road last season, raking his studs down the former Manchester United man’s leg before appearing to gee up the home support afterwards in 2018 – Hodgson later admitted the incident affected his star man.

Moving away from the Hornets for a moment, and we saw last season how Zaha can become frustrated as well as affected when being actively wound up by the opposition.

Southampton’s James Ward-Prowse managed to get Palace’s No.11 sent off after pretending to throw the ball in his face and then patting him on the cheek earlier this year – if that sent Zaha over the edge, a Watford fanbase and squad who are currently anchored to the bottom of the Premier League will be in no such mood to sugarcoat anything.

Hodgson needs Zaha to behave, as there seems little doubt that Watford will do their best to press his buttons once again.

In other news, these Crystal Palace supporters on Twitter are all saying the same thing about Christian Benteke…

Liverpool have confirmed their plans to field two separate squads to compete in both the Club World Cup and their Carabao Cup quarter-final against Aston Villa, and some fans of the West Midlands’ side have been speaking out following Jurgen Klopp’s comments on the situation.

With the two fixtures coinciding, Liverpool will attempt to win the games at both Villa Park and in Qatar, despite Klopp’s previous request for the English Football League (EFL) to reconsider scheduling their tie with Dean Smith’s side.

The Liverpool boss, as reported by James Pearce of The Athletic, said to reporters: “Can we ask Aston Villa to come to Qatar and we play the game over there?”

Whilst a manager as jovial as the German coach could easily have been speaking in jest, these Villa fans were quick to respond to the Liverpool manager’s comments, with a number asking the Champions League-winning boss to pay for their travel to Qatar.

Here are some of the best reactions from these Villa fans following the confirmation of Klopp’s comments.

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

The performance of Robert Snodgrass gave West Ham a much-needed boost on Saturday and he could be a solution for Manuel Pellegrini moving forward.

On the chalkboard

There has been much discussion over the reasons behind the Hammers’ lack of goals this term, with fans criticising Felipe Anderson and Manuel Lanzini after recent performances, with neither creating many chances of late.

In the last match when both started – away at Everton – neither managed a key pass, which explains the team’s failure to score.

Watch West Ham United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

However, Declan Rice believes the problem lies not in creating opportunities, but in being clinical and, according to the expected goals table, per Understat, West Ham should have scored 14.57 league goals, which supports the England international’s claim.

Either way, Snodgrass’ recall to the side against Sheffield United made the difference, as he put away a chance against the Blades which was similar to one Lanzini missed against Crystal Palace, and a repeat of that display could lead him to starting more often.

Change of role

The former Scotland international isn’t getting any younger at 32 and he has had his fair share of injury issues throughout his career. That has impacted his physical ability and as a result he may not be well-suited to playing on the wing anymore.

He achieved an average of 1.8 successful crosses last year, but playing in a central role he could be given the freedom to drift out wide and take up threatening positions, allowing him to provide service for Sebastien Haller.

Snodgrass also showed his intelligence and used his experience well to read play on Saturday, which subsequently allowed him to take up scoring positions – and he almost won the game late on but instead his effort came back off the post.

By contrast, Lanzini has no goals so far, and only one expected goal, which shows he is failing to take up the positions necessary to punish teams. If that continues he may find himself playing second fiddle to Snodgrass.

Rice described Snodgrass as having a “blinder” against Sheffield United, suggesting he was a “top pro” who has earned game time through his effort, and if he can be productive on a regular basis then he could be very useful for his manager.

His inclusion should also motivate Lanzini and send a warning sign regarding his form, prompting an improvement from the Argentine in the process.

Pellegrini now has a selection headache following Saturday’s game, but that’s exactly what he’ll want as he bids to take the Hammers to another level.

After a weekend off, Real Madrid are finally getting back to business on Wednesday evening.

Los Blancos are welcoming another tricky opponent to the Santiago Bernabeu in the form of Leganes.

Now that they have reached the top of the mountain, Zinedine Zidane’s troops will definitely be looking to get back to the throne as soon as possible.

And for once, the squad is not really plagued with injuries that much and with the postponement of El Clasico, they had a couple of extra days to get rest, recuperate and then get back fresh and ready to fire on all cylinders.

Still, Zidane could be inclined to give some younger players a chance to shine in this mid-week fixture.

With all of that in mind, here’s what we think Real Madrid’s starting XI might look like against Leganes, with the Frenchman making just one change from the side that beat Galatasary last time out.

Thibaut Courtois is seemingly getting back to his brilliant best and is starting to show his true colours.

His latest display was a truly heroic one as the Belgian goalie was one of the players who single-handedly won Real Madrid the game with his performance. With that being said, there’s no reason for Zidane to drop him now so we’re slotting him ahead of Alphonse Areola between the sticks.

Watch Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale answer the internet’s weirdest questions in the video below…

The backline, however, should not see any major surprises and the usual suspects should all start at the Santiago Bernabeu: Sergio Ramos and Raphael Varane manning the centre-back positions and they should be flanked by Marcelo and Daniel Carvajal on the left and the right side respectively.

Toni Kroos and Casemiro could also reprise their roles in midfield but it’s actually Federico Valverde whose appearance might surprise some people.

But considering that he mustered another brilliant display against Galatasaray in the Champions League – and especially seeing how Luka Modric is still fresh from his injury – his inclusion in the starting XI does make a lot of sense.

Finally, up front we have the return of Eden Hazard, who sat the last La Liga game out, and the 18-year-old prodigy, Rodrygo, who should act as a replacement for the still injured Gareth Bale.

The Brazilian youngster was also one of the players who really impressed the last time he was playing so it’s wouldn’t be a stretch to say Zidane will gives him another shot in the team.

Luka Jovic is probably the biggest surprise of them all but seeing how Karim Benzema has virtually not been dropped at all this season, being the second most-used player in the squad, the Serbian just might get a chance and the Frenchman his long-overdue rest.

[ad_pod ]

Some Wolves fans have taken to Twitter to heap praise on Pedro Neto, after he impressed against Watford on what was his first ever start in the Premier League.

The 19-year-old – signed on a five-year contract back in the summer – had only made four Premier League appearances prior to the visit of the Hornets on Saturday, but he impressed on his first showing from the first whistle.

Neto grabbed the assist for Matt Doherty’s goal to help open the scoring, while he also made two key passes before being withdrawn in the 56th minute – he also managed to get his only shot of the game on target.

The No.7 caused chaos in attack, with one fan below saying that the teenager looked very good and confident, whereas another said that the Portuguese forward is a talent in the making.

Let’s take a look at some more of the Twitter reaction from some Wolves fans…

This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…

Manuel Pellegrini would have been looking for his first-team players to bounce back following a dreadful display by a largely second-string XI against Oxford United during the week.

There were changes aplenty at the Vitality Stadium, but one man who did keep his place in the side was summer addition Pablo Fornals.

The £24m man hadn’t impressed at the Kassam Stadium in a humiliating 4-0 defeat, and was handed a 3/10 rating by Football London for his performance – it was certainly concerning that he wasn’t able to make an impact against League One opposition.

Watch West Ham United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Part of the reason the Spaniard got the nod again against the Cherries may well have been the fact that Manuel Lanzini wasn’t fit enough start on his return from injury, with the Argentine only named among the substitutes.

The former Villarreal man is taking time to acclimatise to English football, with no goals or assists to show for his seven Premier League outings to date.

He actually came under criticism from some Irons supporters on Twitter for his showing against Eddie Howe’s men, but the statistics suggest he did a much better job than they think he might have done.

For example, the 23-year-old completed all 26 of the passes he attempted, according to SofaScore, while he also made an impressive three key passes on the south coast.

Fornals also saw four shots blocked by the opposition, and showed that he is willing to put the work in from a defensive viewpoint as well by winning one tackle.

His positive display has certainly made Pellegrini’s life difficult ahead of the visit of Crystal Palace to the London Stadium this weekend, with the decision on who to pick in his midfield surely one of his hardest right now.

Felipe Anderson is clearly a quality player who can make a difference, Andriy Yarmolenko is in form, Declan Rice and Mark Noble are almost un-droppable, and Manuel Lanzini has been one of the Irons’ most talented individuals in recent times.

With Fornals showing signs he can be a Premier League success it may give his Chilean manager a headache, although it has to be seen as a positive one because after all he’d rather have more quality available than not.

Choosing between Lanzini and Fornals is tough, and one is sure to be left disappointed when the team-sheet is announced on Saturday.

[ad_pod ]

Ousmane Dembele has made just one appearance for Barcelona thus far this season and has been injured for the last four encounters.

He featured in the curtain-raiser against Athletic Bilbao but that game left him with a hamstring injury. He has been out ever since.

But according to the latest reports coming from Catalunya Radio, the Frenchman is already back in training with the first-team and could soon make his return to action at Camp Nou.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

And a number of the club’s fans are now excited to see the attacker make his return, with some hoping he will take the place of Luis Suarez in the starting XI.

Indeed, Barca face Granada on Saturday before further league clashes against Villarreal and Getafe. They return to Champions League action on October 2nd, hosting Italian giants Inter Milan at Camp Nou. The Catalan giants drew 0-0 with Borussia Dortmund in their opener.

You can see some of their replies and comments down in the collection of tweets below:

[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…

Speaking to Optus Sport, Le Havre’s Head of Recruitment Franck Sale has revealed Paul Pogba is “ready for a new challenge”.

What did he say?

The France World Cup winner has been linked with a move away all summer, and did little to silence the rumours by admitting there is still a question mark over his future.

Now, Sale, who recruited Pogba as a teenager, has suggested the 26-year-old needs to leave Manchester United for a new challenge.

Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

He said: “When he left for Juventus a few years ago, with Alex Ferguson that was very complicated too. Paul didn’t concede because he has such a strong character. So when he says, ‘I’m leaving,’ he’s leaving.

“Paul is a man who needs to be challenged. I think he is becoming too comfortable at United. It’s not as demanding for him as it was a few years ago. I think he is ready for a new challenge, that’s obvious. I can see him leaving for another big club searching for this new challenge.”

Inevitable

In one of the most drawn-out transfer sagas of the summer, Pogba’s ‘will he or won’t he’ drama has overshadowed United’s opening to the Premier League campaign. The Frenchman’s future has had plenty of twists and turns, with background characters, like his brother Mathias, fuelling the flames with sly comments to the media.

The whole charade makes it feel inevitable that the midfielder will eventually leave Old Trafford for pastures new, but whether that is to be this summer remains to be seen.

That said, Sale’s words that he feels Pogba has become “too comfortable” certainly raise a few eyebrows.

Comfortable in what sense? United haven’t exactly been walking through the Premier League like a doddle, and his relationship with the club’s fanbase is anything but comfortable.

If anything, this summer has been the most demanding on the Frenchman since his return to the side, and leaving now would really raise questions over his mentality.

[ad_pod ]

[ad_pod ]

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

Everton are in danger of missing out on two of their reported attacking targets following fresh developments in the market, with Crystal Palace winger Wilfried Zaha and Barcelona forward Malcom the players in question.

What’s the word, then?

Well, the Toffees had been linked with a move for 22-year-old Malcom as Marco Silva looks to add another forward to his ranks – the likes of Nicolas Pepe, David Neres and Bertrand Traore are also on their list.

Now, however, that particular target looks to have been made even harder to acquire after Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund got involved in proceedings – the Germans have reportedly submitted a £38m offer.

In regards to the pursuit of Zaha, Chelsea have joined the race for the Ivorian’s signature along with Arsenal – both Dortmund and the west London outfit’s offers could place the Toffees’ chances of landing either of the pair in doubt.

Why are they in danger of missing out?

Ignoring that fact that Dortmund and Chelsea are simply bigger clubs than Everton (with all due respect), there are more precise details as to why their respective offers are more attractive than the Merseysiders’ bids.

Firstly, Dortmund’s offer for Malcom is already higher than what Everton are willing to offer – this report states that the Toffees are ready to offer €35m (£31.3m) for the former Bordeaux man, which is lower than Dortmund’s £38m bid.

Lucien Favre’s side can also offer Malcom Champions League football.

Check out some amazing tekkers in the video below…

In the race for Zaha, Everton’s reported £60m + Cenk Tosun deal seems fairly reasonable, but selling to Chelsea would suit Crystal Palace more and would also appeal to the 26-year-old’s desire to play Champions League football.

The Blues are currently under a transfer ban, so any potential deal would see Zaha remain at Selhurst Park for the time being – presumably, the Eagles wouldn’t mind that as they get to keep hold of their talisman for a little longer.

Frank Lampard is also armed with a war-chest from the £58m sale of Alvaro Morata and the initial £89m earned from Eden Hazard’s Real Madrid move, a transfer which could eventually exceed £150m – meeting Palace’s £80m valuation of Zaha shouldn’t be an issue as a result.

Everton are showing great ambition, but they are certainly in real danger of missing out on the pair.

[ad_pod ]