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Claims that Rafa Benitez has demanded funds of £75 million to spend on strikers if he is to stay, appear to be how some people interpreted his post-match comments following the defeat to Arsenal on Monday.

But if you listen to what he actually said, it is not exactly the point he was making.

A report in the Daily Mirror yesterday suggested that it was some sort of ultimatum, which is not how it appeared to us.

They report Benitez said: “The final third, we have been speaking all season… the final third you have to spend £40m, £50m, £75m.”

He is quite right, too.

The point he was making is for a team to be able to compete week in, week out, and challenge the top six sides, they would need to spend those sums of money.

But Rafa has consistently maintained that he does not want, or expect, Newcastle to be transformed overnight into a title-chasing club, or even to be perennial Champion’s League contenders.

He wants to be given a budget that will see the club pull away from their annual relegation scrap, consolidate themselves as a top half team, and if results go better than expected, could push for a top seven or eight finish.

After two or three seasons as an established squad, maybe then they could increase the budget, due to higher prize payouts, and look to kick on towards Europa League places.

To suggest that he is demanding ridiculous amounts for the next transfer window is mischief-making.

It is misinformation like this that gives fans in other regions of the country the wrong impression that Newcastle fans expect success, when all they have ever wanted is a team they can be proud of, that wears the black and white stripes with pride, and makes them excited for Saturdays to arrive.

Do you expect Newcastle to entice Benitez to stay? Do you think it would take a huge budget to convince him? Let us know…

يدخل الأهلي تحدي قوي عندما يلاقي الوداد البيضاوي، في اللقاء الذي يجمعهما ضمن منافسات ذهاب دور نصف نهائي دوري أبطال إفريقيا.

وتُقام مباراة الأهلي والوداد المغربي، في التاسعة من مساء اليوم السبت، بتوقيت القاهرة، الثامنة مساءً بتوقيت المغرب، العاشرة بتوقيت السعودية، على ستاد محمد الخامس، بالدار البيضاء.

وحرصت بعثة الأهلي على التواجد في المغرب قبل 5 أيام من المباراة للتأقلم على الأجواء، بعدما وصلت البعثة إلى الدار البيضاء مساء الثلاثاء الماضي، على متن طائرة خاصة.

وتأهل الأهلي إلى دور نصف النهائي بعدما فاز على صن داونز الجنوب إفريقي بنتيجة 3 / 1، في مجموع مباراتي الذهاب والعودة لدور ربع النهائي ببطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا، بينما تأهل الوداد البيضاوي إلى هذا الدور بعدما فاز على النجم الساحلي التونسي بنتيجة 2 / 1، في مجموع مباراتي الذهاب والعودة في ربع النهائي

طالع | موسيماني: أعرف الوداد جيداً.. ولِمَ لا يعود الأهلي فائزًا من المغرب

كما يسعى الجنوب إفريقي بيتسو موسيماني، المدير الفني لفريق الأهلي، لتحقيق نتيجة إيجابية مع فريقه أمام الوداد في مباراة الذهاب لمنح لاعبيه الأريحية في مباراة العودة التي ستقام يوم 23 من شهر أكتوبر الجاري.

وحرص الجهاز الفني للأهلي على مشاهدة خمس مباريات لفريق الوداد المغربي؛ استعدادا للقاء اليوم، حيث قام موسى ماتالابا وأحمد سليمان، محللا الأداء بالجهاز الفني، لوضع الخطة النهائية لخوض المباراة.

يذكر، أن الأهلي سيواجه الوداد في مباراة الذهاب بالقاهرة يوم الجمعة المقبل على أرضية استاد القاهرة الدولي.

A 2-1 win over Tottenham Hotspur last weekend has surely alleviated fears of relegation for Southampton fans, right?

The arrival of Ralph Hasenhuttl in December has undeniably led to a marked improvement for the Saints following a dismal start to their Premier League campaign under former boss Mark Hughes.

Impressive displays against the likes of Spurs and Arsenal at St. Mary’s Stadium have been backed up by promising performances on their travels against the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United in recent weeks.

Yet despite their results against the Premier League’s traditional top six sides, Southampton have struggled to replicate their form against teams who are also threatened by relegation as illustrated by their recent 2-1 loss at home to Cardiff City.

With his side currently 16th in the league standings and just two points above the relegation zone, Hassenhuttl will know that a defeat on their travels against Brighton & Hove Albion on March 30th could see them fall back into the danger zone.

Although the Championship is hardly unfamiliar territory for the Saints giving the fact that they have spent five of the last thirteen seasons in the second level of England’s footballing pyramid, a return to that level could see the departure of a whole host of players.

The only way that Southampton could realistically keep a hold of the likes of James Ward-Prowse, Danny Ings and Ryan Bertrand is by remaining in the Premier League and so the next eight games are crucial for the club’s immediate future.

36 points were enough for the Saints to stay up last season yet Hasenhuttl will be aiming for the magic total of 40 which should easily secure survival this year. With his side currently 10 points away from this mark, the former RB Leipzig boss will be targeting games against Brighton, Newcastle United and Huddersfield Town as key clashes to achieve their goal.

Whereas a defeat to the Seagulls at the Amex Stadium at the end of March may not prove to be a defining result in Southampton’s season, it could put a big enough dent in their confidence to cause concern amongst supporters.

Hassenhuttl’s future with the club may also be defined by the outcome of this season as relegation to the Championship could bring about the real possibility of him departing from his role at St Mary’s.

What do you think Southampton fans? Do you think your club are too complacent when they face sides outside of the top six? Will you stay up this season? Let us know below…

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Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane has returned to first-team training ahead of this weekend’s clash with Burnley, per the London Evening Standard.

The England captain sustained ankle ligament damage in January’s loss to Manchester United.

The BBC subsequently claimed that he could be out until March, but the aforementioned London Evening Standard report claims that he could even feature this weekend.

The London Evening Standard claim that Kane has been reminded previously that he must not push himself too hard and manager Mauricio Pochettino may subsequently start him on the bench, particularly with back-to-back derbies against Chelsea and Arsenal looming.

Indeed, Spurs have not lost a Premier League game since the forward was ruled out, beating Fulham, Watford, Newcastle United and Leicester City. They were eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup but beat Borussia Dortmund 3-0 in the first leg of their Champions League Round of 16 tie last week.

Nevertheless, Spurs are delighted that Kane is readying himself for a comeback. Take a look at the best reaction on Twitter below!

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Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter to react after Wilfried Zaha was handed a one-game ban and fined £10,000 for improper conduct, after sarcastically applauding referee Andre Marriner in the 1-1 draw with Southampton according to the Eagles’ official Twitter account.

The Ivory Coast international accepted a charge for the offence for his actions, having been given his marching orders by Marriner at St Mary’s Stadium towards the end of January.

Interestingly, the suspension will not come into effect immediately as the 26-year-old considers his right of appeal.

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia’s biggest football stars in the video below…

Zaha has decided to appeal, so he will be available for the fixture against West Ham at Selhurst Park in what should be an exciting London derby.

However, given the fact that some fans of the south London-based club feel the initial dismissal by Marriner was unfair given the context of the situation, they have let their feelings about the decision be known on Twitter…

After arriving from Spanish side CD Tenerife, Ayoze Perez enjoyed a fairly impressive spell in his time at Newcastle.

The versatile forward played 195 times for the Magpies, scoring 48 goals and providing a further 17 assists. He was there during the campaign Newcastle spent in the Championship, and was a permanent fixture in the side as they set about trying to cement their place in the Premier League too.

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But the Spaniard made the switch to top-flight rivals Leicester last summer in a deal reported to be worth around £30m. Now, speaking to Sky Sports, Perez has admitted that whilst he stills holds affection for Newcastle, he made the move to the Foxes to join their project.

He said: “I just wish them (Newcastle) the best. They are a special team for myself. It was a very important part of my career. Leicester is also building up a great project. It’s a great team which is developing. So, in the end, it was an easy decision. If you ask me today if it was the right one, I would say so.”

After hearing what Perez had to say, Newcastle fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts on their former star.

One Newcastle fan in particular meanwhile suggested that Perez may now regret his decision to leave, perhaps referencing the fact the Magpies are set for a takeover.

Unsurprisingly, some Newcastle supporters don’t seem to be the biggest fans of Perez now.

But the Magpies got a fairly decent chunk of money for a player who has only reached double figures in a league campaign just once in his entire professional career.

So whilst they may not be happy with his exit, Newcastle still did fairly well out of it.

Leeds United’s pursuit of a striker seems to be at a bit of an impasse at the moment.

Che Adams doesn’t seem to be on his way, they’ve been knocked back in their pursuit of Andre Gray, and Dwight Gayle’s injury seems to be affecting their interest there.

Of course, they aren’t the only strikers available, and they’re not the only ones they’ve been linked with.

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It was a while back now, but Leeds have reportedly shown an interest in signing Matej Vydra in this window (The Mirror 22/11 page 74).

However, it seems as if the club are hesitant to go for that deal as Phil Hay has stated that Leeds’ history with Vydra may put them off looking into signing him again.

For anyone who can’t remember, the Czech forward was due to sign for Leeds in a deal worth £11m, but that fell apart late on as the two parties couldn’t agree personal terms.

Vydra went to Burnley and Leeds signed Patrick Bamford, and from that point the rest is history.

However, with Vyrdra only playing 100 minutes of league football this term, and Leeds’ need for a striker the interest has seemingly been drummed up again, but the feeling around the club is seemingly that they don’t want the same thing to happen again.

Perhaps the club are being overly-pessimistic with that view though.

The former Derby man was a hot commodity last time Leeds went for him, as he’d just won the Championship Golden Boot, but since then he’s become something of a forgotten man at Burnley as he’s played just 100 minutes this term.

He wouldn’t be able to be as picky with his destination this time, as he’s not done enough lately to warrant huge interest in his services, but if he can rekindle the form that saw him score 21 times for the Rams last time he was in the Championship he could be a wonderful addition to United’s frontline.

Leeds should swallow their pride and take the plunge and ask about Vydra as the transfer window is ticking down and their options are becoming more limited by the day.

In other news, Phil Hay has hinted towards a late transfer twist for Leeds United.

Steven Gerrard told BBC Sport on Thursday that Liverpool loanee Ovie Ejaria is unsettled at Rangers, and if he does return to his parent club it could signal a change of transfer strategy for the Gers boss.

What did he say?

“I had a chat with him a couple of days ago and he’s slightly unsettled.”

“The next time I see Ovie is on Friday and we’ll have a conversation then and see where we go from there. Liverpool are aware of the situation and we’re in dialogue with them.”

What did he really mean?

By mentioning that Ejaria’s parent club Liverpool were aware of the situation, Gerrard hinted that there is a real possibility that the 21-year-old midfielder may leave Rangers before his season-long loan deal expires.

The London-born youngster got off to a bright start north of the border, and he has played 28 times so far this season under Gerrard, with all but five of those being from the start.

However, his performances have dropped off recently and Gerrard’s latest comments perhaps go some way to explaining why. The England U21 international was not even involved in the squad as the Gers crashed out of the Europa League on Thursday, losing 1-0 to Austrian side Rapid Vienna.

Change in strategy

If Ejaria does return to Merseyside, it could signal a change in strategy for Gerrard in the transfer market.

When he joined Rangers in the summer, it was a clear tactic for the Liverpool legend to attempt to sign players that he knew from his time spent working with the academy at his former club.

However, with ex-Liverpool players like Jon Flanagan and Jordan Rossiter struggling for game time and Ejaria’s fellow loanee Ryan Kent out injured, we could see Gerrard divert his attentions away from the Reds and to other sources that would provide the necessary quality for a title challenge.

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Liverpool’s unbeaten record in the Premier League was extended against Chelsea thanks to a late goal from Daniel Sturridge.

The Reds had plenty of opportunities to be out of sight against the Blues but were unable to find a way through Kepa Arrizabalaga. Chelsea were quick to seize on an error by Trent Alexander-Arnold with Eden Hazard racing clear to beat Alisson Becker. Jurgen Klopp’s side were seemingly heading for their first Premier League defeat of the season before Sturridge curled home a sensational effort in from range against his former team.

Liverpool fans will be pleased to take a point from Stamford Bridge, but many were concerned over the performance of Mohamed Salah. The Egyptian was particularly wasteful against his former club, missing chances he was scoring for fun last season. Salah had more shots than any player on the pitch but was unable to find the back of the net and was eventually hooked for Xherdan Shaqiri just after the hour mark.

After a record-breaking first season at Anfield, his second campaign in the Premier League was going to be under a magnifying glass. Despite suggestions that Salah is nowhere near his best, only nine players have more goals than the former Roma winger in the league so far. Salah has also had more clear-cut chances than anyone in the league and more shots on target than anyone in the division – it won’t be long until he starts finding the back of the net consistently.

Salah’s current situation is very similar to Zlatan Ibrahimovic’s debut campaign at Manchester United. The Swede was missing a host of chances but still found himself in dangerous areas throughout his drought. Eventually, the goals started to flow – if you are making opportunities, you will eventually start scoring.

The cream always rises to the top as the big Swede proved and, considering the amount of chances Liverpool can create, Salah isn’t likely to be struggling for long.

Liverpool definitely do not need to worry about their star forward who will undoubtedly find his top gear soon.

Liverpool fans, thoughts?

Tottenham fans don’t want to lose Erik Lamela, after a report named the feisty winger as one of five major first team players that could leave the club.

According to The Daily Express (via Tribal Football), Danny Rose, Mousa Dembele, Moussa Sissoko and Toby Alderweireld and Lamela could all be sold this summer to raise funds for new signings.

Dembele is expected to leave as he enters the last 12 months of his contract, with the club, player and even most fans all feeling it is time to cash in.

Rose and Alderweireld tend to split opinion, with some fans furious they could lose two quality players and other fans feeling if they don’t want to be at the club it’s best to let them leave.

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One player everyone seems to be agreeing on though is Lamela, who hardly made any impact last season due to injuries and personal reasons.

The popular Argentine started just seven Premier League games, scoring his only league goals of the season in the final day win over Leicester.

The 26 year-old has not always had the best end product, but he is extremely hard working, incredibly skilful, and of course has that wonderful knack of winding up opposition fans and players.

You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…