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Wolverhampton Wanderers’ unbeaten run came to a heartbreaking end on Sunday afternoon as they sunk to eighth in the Premier League standings.

The west Midlanders looked to be on for a 12th straight game without tasting defeat until Tottenham Hotspur centre-back Jan Vertonghen popped up at the back post with an injury-time header to send his side back to north London with all three points.

Earlier this week, Football Insider revealed that senior members of the Spurs squad were so impressed by winger Adama Traore that they told their manager Jose Mourinho to sign him after the game.

This has led to several members of the Molineux faithful reacting on social media with some naming their price tag for the 23-year-old.

Watch Wolves vs Man City Live and Free with Amazon Prime on December 27th

Transfermarkt currently value Traore at £25.2m, which is an increase on the £18m they paid for him but fans’ evaluations seem to have far exceeded that with £100m being regularly mentioned.

Others brought up the fact that Spurs had tried to injure him consistently throughout the match, making the idea of them wanting to sign him quite baffling.

Three visiting players were all booked for trying to take down the pacy winger, including captain Harry Kane and England teammate Eric Dier.

It means in 26 appearances this season, 24 players have seen a booking for fouling the Spaniard.

And then there were some who issued a hands-off warning with a couple believing that he wouldn’t be going anywhere anytime soon…

It remains to be seen how accurate these reports are, but for the time being, we’ll have to wait and see what emerges in January. Wolves are indeed expected to be active according to their boss, so stay tuned.

Calling all Premier League experts: Who do these unique statistics belong to? Find out below….

Meanwhile, Nuno should call upon this highly sought-after prospect to bolster his defensive problems before it’s too late…

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

After an excellent start to the campaign, Charlton have slowly began to tail off as injury problems mount.

Lee Bowyer’s side went unbeaten in their first six games back in the Championship, winning four and drawing two, although they have struggled to keep key players out of the physio room.

Lyle Taylor – who netted five times in those first six games and hasn’t played since – is still yet to return from damaged knee ligaments, while Jonny Williams is also looking at a number of weeks on the sidelines.

Despite these issues, there is one man who has delivered awful back-to-back performances during what is now a four-game winless run.

Who is it?

It wouldn’t be harsh to say that Naby Sarr has been in terrible form these past two weeks.

The 26-year-old was subbed off at half-time in the 1-0 defeat to Preston – his 45-minute showing angered these supporters – before he was at fault for both goals in Charlton’s 2-1 defeat to Millwall, another game that attracted angry responses from some fans.

As a result, Sarr should be dropped for one man who has waited patiently for a serious chance.

Summer signing deserves a shot

Deji Oshilaja, a man who became Bowyer’s seventh signing of the summer back in July, has made just four Championship starts since his arrival.

Head of Recruitment Steve Gallen described the 26-year-old as a “strong, dependable” centre-back upon his arrival, and after some consecutively terrible performances from Sarr, Bowyer should see no problems with at least giving Oshilaja a chance to prove himself.

It is evident that Sarr isn’t himself right now, having left The Den turf in tears last week, and it must be said that it was a shock to even see him start against Millwall after being hooked at half-time against Preston.

It won’t do the Senegalese defender much good for Bowyer to keep thrusting him into the limelight, only for Sarr to play poorly, attract criticism and become even more upset.

The Charlton boss must take him out of the firing line, and Oshilaja deserves a chance as a result.

In our latest instalment of the Flashback series, we take a look back at a certain moment and look at how things might have changed those initial reactions.

Having already featured in a UEFA Cup final during his time at Middlesbrough, 21-year-old Lee Cattermole joined Sunderland from Wigan Athletic in a £6m deal in 2009, as reported by The Telegraph.

Steve Bruce’s comments from The Guardian, made when signing the midfielder, show how highly the then-Sunderland manager regarded him: “He’s fiercely competitive, driven, very like Roy. When Roy was younger he had the same dynamism. Lee reminds me of him in his attitude for the game. He is a born winner.”

Cattermole would go nowhere near reaching the Manchester United icon’s level of achievement, but he did mirror parts of his grit and determination, which in turn led to him becoming a popular figure among many Sunderland fans.

The midfielder went on to play 262 times for the Black Cats during his 10 years at the club, with his dedication to the cause being highlighted in an interview with The Guardian, in which he disclosed that he had played for years with a torn hip, relying on painkillers to get through games.

This is the type of willingness to suffer that was absent from many of Cattermole’s teammates towards the end of his time at the Stadium of Light, with Jack Rodwell having his contract terminated in 2018 after Chris Coleman – and pretty much the whole of Sunderland – questioning his mentality, as reported by BBC Sport.

Cattermole’s professionalism and dedication to the club even extended to his mutually agreed departure in the summer of 2019, which saw him join VVV-Venlo.

Following two painful relegations in a row and then the League One play-off final loss against Charlton Athletic, by leaving the Stadium of Light, he allowed the club to get out of an agreement that could prove unsustainable and therefore helped them to reinvest, as reported by The Sunderland Echo.

From start to finish, Cattermole gave his all to the club and many fans showed their appreciation for that, meaning that despite the hardship he faced at the club and the mocking he faced from fans of other teams, he will be fondly remembered at the Stadium of Light.

Sunderland fans, what are your biggest memories of Cattermole? Join the discussion by commenting below…

Few people would have predicted a night so full of action on Wednesday at Anfield between Liverpool and Arsenal.

The scored ended 5-5 in normal time, before Jurgen Klopp’s Reds prevailed in a penalty shoot-out to advance to the next round of the League Cup.

For the home side, Shkodran Mustafi’s own goal got them under way, before James Milner, former Gunner Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and a double from Divock Origi completed their scoring.

For the visitors, Ainsley Maitland-Niles, Lucas Torreira, Joe Willock and Gabriel Martinelli – twice – were on the scoresheet.

Watch the moment Granit Xhaka’s Arsenal career may have come to an ugly end in the video below…

Unai Emery will have been hoping for a win to ease the pressure on his shoulders, but he will now need to look to the Premier League fixture against Wolves to get himself that much-needed victory.

Once again last night, he didn’t escape the wrath of the supporters. This time, they slammed his substitutions, particularly the decisions to bring Mesut Ozil and Torreira off.

They took to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

Manchester City returned to winning ways with yet another convincing win last weekend against Crystal Palace.

A 50th City goal for Gabriel Jesus and a sublime team goal from David Silva sealed the points at Selhurst Park.

The result brought the champions back within six points of league leaders Liverpool after the Reds drew with Manchester United at Old Trafford. Plus, with Jurgen Klopp’s men not playing until Sunday, Guardiola has a chance to be within three points off the top spot by Saturday afternoon.

The Spaniard will be looking to do so with another demolition of a visiting team to the Etihad. This time, it’s Aston Villa.

In defence is where the former Barcelona boss has had the issues this season. The long term injury to Aymeric Laporte and the departure of Vincent Kompany has forced Fernandinho and Rodri into a makeshift backline.

However, Rodri’s injury against Atalanta will keep him out and most likely force the Brazilian to stay in at centre-back alongside John Stones. Elsewhere, Oleksandr Zinchenko underwent knee surgery this week, which should keep Benjamin Mendy at left-back for the foreseeable future.

Kyle Walker’s position at right-back has been under threat this season with the signing of Joao Cancelo. The former Juventus man could come into the side on a regular basis now after he played the full game against the Eagles.

In midfield, Rodri’s injury leaves Ilkay Gundogan as the most likely option, whilst Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva remain irreplaceable for the Citizens – the playmaking duo have an outstanding four goals and 12 assists between them in the Premier League.

In the attacking slots, Raheem Sterling scored yet another hat-trick for City in midweek. It leaves the 24-year-old on 81 goals for the club since his move from Liverpool in 2015. Also, despite being rested for the clash at Selhurst Park, Sergio Aguero is still Guardiola’s go-to man for goals in the league.

The Argentine is the joint top scorer in the top-flight and is averaging a goal every 70 minutes in the league. Alongside the 31-year-old could be Bernardo Silva, who has four goals and two assists in the league so far from just five starts.

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Rangers winger Ryan Kent is edging back to full fitness after getting injured against Livingston earlier this month, but Gers assistant manager Gary McAllister has said that the club will not rush him back.

What’s the word?

McAllister was speaking to the press earlier this week as the Gers prepared for a Scottish League Cup quarter-final – against Livingston funnily enough – when he took time to offer an injury update on some of the club’s stars.

Quoted by the club’s official Twitter account, he said of attacking players Ryan Kent and Jordan Jones:

“It’s great to see Kent and Jones starting to move again. They won’t be rushed but they are improving.”

Kent, of course, was injured during his second debut for the club, just days after signing for the Gers on a permanent basis, with him picking up a hamstring pull.

Jordan Jones, for that matter, has been injured a little longer after clattering Moritz Bauer in the Old Firm derby at the end of August and getting a red card for his troubles.

McAllister’s vow will no doubt sit well with Gers fans, though, with the club seemingly taking the approach to ease Kent back into first-team duties.

Verdict

Right at the end of the window, Rangers sealed Kent’s signature and the enthusiasm was clear to see amongst the coaching staff, who threw Kent straight into a game days after.

With little match fitness having not played for Liverpool at the start of the season, Kent was always going to be at risk of pulling something and, duly, he did.

It appears as though the club have learned their lesson, judging by McAllister’s comments, though, and so Kent should come back into the side when he is fully ready, rather than when he’s wanted back in.

Fans should be happy with this course of action. Having Kent on the pitch a little later in the season and fully fit rather than earlier and then out for another period should be the preferred option.

تحلم كبار أندية أوروبا بالتعاقد مع النجمين الشابين، إيرلينج هالاند وكيليان مبابي، لإضافة قوة إضافية للهجوم، وعلى رأسها نادي ريال مدريد الإسباني.

وأفادت تقارير أن ريال مدريد يدرس التعاقد مع هالاند ومبابي دفعة واحدة، من صفوف بوروسيا دورتموند وريال مدريد على الترتيب (طالع التفاصيل).

وتشير صحيفة “ديلي ميل” البريطانية إلى أن ريال مدريد سيضطر إلى بيع 6 لاعبين ليعزز تمويل صفقتي هالاند ومبابي.

أول الأسماء على قائمة الرحيل، هما الثنائي إدين هازارد وجاريث بيل (المعار إلى توتنهام).

ووفقًا لموندو ديبورتيفو، فإن القائد سيرجيو راموس ورافائيل فاران ومارسيلو وإيسكو على قائمة الرحيل كذلك.

ويحتل ريال مدريد حاليا المركز الثالث في الليجا خلف أتلتيكو مدريد وخصمه برشلونة، ويواجه ليفربول في ربع النهائي بدوري أبطال أوروبا في أبريل.

ويأمل ريال مدريد في العودة إلى القمة المحلية والأوروبية، وبالتالي سيواصل محاولة بناء مستقبله على المدى الطويل من خلال التوقيع على الثنائي كجزء من عملية البناء.

على الرغم من أن الشرط الجزائي في عقد هالاند يبلغ 65 مليون جنيه إسترليني والذي يصبح ساريًا في الموسم المقبل، إلا أن دورتموند يطالب بحوالي 150 مليون جنيه إسترليني، في ظل حرب المزايدة على نجمه هذا الصيف.

ومن المرجح أن يكلف مبابي أكثر من ذلك، على الرغم من أن اللاعب البالغ من العمر 22 عامًا قد وصف ريال مدريد سابقًا بأنه خطوة حلم.

وانهارت محادثات تجديد التعاقد مع القائد المخضرم راموس، الذي قد يغادر برنابيو بعد 16 موسمًا في النادي، بينما قد يرحل بيل الجناح الويلزي على الرغم من إعلانه عن نيته العودة إلى العاصمة الإسبانية.

ولم يسجل نجم تشيلسي السابق إيدن هازارد سوى أربعة أهداف في موسمين في فترة الإصابة، وحظي فاران باهتمام أندية أخرى وهناك شكوك حول رحيله، في حين أن إيسكو ومارسيلو غير مرجح بقائهما في ريال مدريد.

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

England may have got off to a lacklustre start in their amazing 5-3 win against Kosovo at St Mary’s on Tuesday night, but a five-goal first half blitz involving Harry Kane surely means Mauricio Pochettino is missing a big trick at Tottenham Hotspur.

On the chalkboard

So far this season, the Argentine manager has used a number of different formations in Spurs’ Premier League matches, including 4-2-3-1, 4-3-1-2 and 4-2-2-2, according to Transfermarkt.

The system most similar to the 4-3-3 one the Three Lions used on the south coast is the former, which was utilised against Manchester City and Newcastle United.

Christian Eriksen and Moussa Sissoko were the wide players against Pep Guardiola’s men, with Son Heung-Min and Lucas Moura filling those roles against the Magpies.

On Tuesday, Raheem Sterling and Jadon Sancho played high up the pitch and almost alongside Kane, and it worked wonders with the former scoring one and assisting three, and the latter netting a brace and providing the cross from which the own goal came about.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Lesson to learn for Poch

Son and Lucas may have played on the flanks in the disappointing defeat to Newcastle, but the presence of Erik Lamela in the No.10 role meant they had to do their fair share of defensive duties, too.

Tuesday night highlighted just how effective Kane can be in a front three if he has two pacey players around him, as well as affording him more space to work in, and Son and Lucas have the skills and speed to play a similar role for the north London outfit that Sterling and Sancho did for England.

It would of course mean Pochettino needs to take a few risks and potentially leave the likes of Lamela and Dele Alli out of the starting XI, but it’s hardly as though they’ve been in brilliant form themselves either in recent months.

A solid midfield trio – picked from Tanguy Ndombele, Harry Winks, Eric Dier, Sissoko and Eriksen – would then be the answer to allowing an out-and-out Tottenham front three to thrive.

1-0 defeats at home to West Ham, Ajax and Newcastle United at the club’s new stadium in 2019 show they are far from perfect going forward, and the opportunity to play 4-3-3 on a consistent basis is one Pochettino can’t afford to waste given the options he has available at his disposal.

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حقق فريق ميلان فوزًا ثمينًا على مضيفه روما، بهدفين لهدف في منافسات الدوري الإيطالي، مساء اليوم الأحد.

وحل ميلان ضيفًا على روما بملعب “الأولمبيكو” ضمن منافسات الجولة 24 للدوري الإيطالي.

وتقدم فرانك كيسي بهدف لميلان من ركلة جزاء في الدقيقة 43 لينتهي الشوط الأول بهزيمة روما بهدف نظيف.

اقرأ أيضًا.. كونتي: إنتر لم يستحق وداع دوري الأبطال.. وقللنا الفجوة مع يوفنتوس بعد وصولي!

في الشوط الثاني، نجح جورادن فيرتو في إدراك التعادل لروما في الدقيقة 50، لكن بعد مرور 8 دقائق فقط، خطف أنتي ريبيتش الفوز لميلان في الدقيقة 58.

بذلك يرفع ميلان رصيده للنقطة 52 في المركز الثاني بفارق 4 نقاط عن المتصدر إنتر ميلان، وتجمد رصيد روما عند 44 نقطة في المركز الخامس. أهداف مباراة روما وميلان 

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

Leicester City’s match against Wolves was just one of two opening weekend 0-0’s in the top-flight as the Premier League got underway for the 2019/20 season.

The Foxes dominated large spells of the game recording 70.1% possession but faltered in the final third having failed to create any major chances of note.

In fact, Brendan Rodgers’ men recorded the most passes of any other Premier League team with 665 – over one hundred more than Manchester City who are well-known for their quick tempo passing style.

Their impotence in front of goal was reflected vastly on the other end of the scale having managed just one shot on target during the entire game – the lowest of any other Premier League side.

This summer, Rodgers added Ayoze Perez from Newcastle United for £30m to what was already an impressive cohort of attacking talent.

Jamie Vardy, James Maddison, Youri Tielemans and now Perez – that should get you a lot of goals.

On the Chalkboard

The way Leicester set-up against Wolves wasn’t ideal.

There was too much space and time given to a side which operates with three centre-backs and two wing-backs at either side.

The back three anchored by Ruben Neves had all the time in the world to get behind the ball and settle down whilst the presence of Jonny and Matt Doherty meant that the Foxes’ own full-backs were wary of displaying their attacking intent.

As a result, they were often playing on the back foot and hoping that one of the aforementioned quartet of forward-thinking stars could spring something out of nothing – which isn’t a fantastic game plan going forward.

As good as Maddison is, he is no winger but rather a perfect candidate to play in the number ten role with a winger one side and Perez the other – the two can interchange like they did against Wolves but with more purpose.

The 22-year-old is simply wasted out wide – he averaged more key passes per game last season than any other Leicester player at 2.8, the next best was way behind averaging 2 per game with Christian Fuchs. His pass success rate was also better than any other Foxes midfielder that played over 25 matches in the Premier League (83.8%).

Could it be “game over” for Kelechi Iheanacho at Leicester? Find out in the video below…

Maddison recorded seven assists, more than anyone else in the squad, which only goes to some length in showing just how good he really is in this team but his impressive visionary skillset must be utilised centrally going forward.

Rodgers has a couple of exciting young options he could call upon to add vital width to the team.

Harvey Barnes impressed during a loan spell at West Brom with nine goals and six assists whilst Demari Gray can’t be written off after one sub-par season – he’s only 23 and could thrive under Rodgers if given the chance.

Add width, Maddison will flourish, and goals will come.

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