All posts by z3u9t.icu

Rangers were heavily linked with a move for Brighton and Hove Albion striker Florin Andone during the summer transfer window but considering his lack of appearances for the Seagulls this season, it appears that Steven Gerrard dodged a bullet in him not making the move to Ibrox.

It was widely reported last summer that after his loan spell at Galatasaray, both Rangers and their Old Firm rivals were keen on bringing him to Scotland for this season but a move never materialised and he ended up staying with Graham Potter’s side.

Whilst the Seagulls have been struggling this season, particularly in front of goal, Andone hasn’t made a single appearance in any competition for Brighton, as it is clear that they feel he is completely surplus to requirements.

In 12 appearances for Galatasaray last season, the Romanian striker would manage just two goals, so it was something of a surprise to see Gerrard’s side linked with him in the first place.

In fact, the 27-year-old striker has never really been prolific in his career, with his best season coming in the 2015/16 La Liga 2 season with Cordoba, when he contributed 21 goals and eight assists in 36 league appearances.

It seems as if after their reported pursuit of Andone failed, Rangers turned their attention to bringing in Kemar Roofe from Anderlecht and that certainly proved a good decision, with the former Leeds man having contributed 10 goals and two assists in just 18 Premiership appearances so far this season, resulting in an impressive 7.13 rating.

Considering Gerrard also has the likes of Cedric Itten and Jermaine Defoe available as options in his squad, it is difficult to imagine that Andone would have been a regular had he joined, and considering his lack of goals and appearances in recent seasons, it looks like Rangers dodged a bullet by not signing the Romanian international.

And, in other news… Wilson shouldn’t rush transfer decision on Rangers ace Gerrard dubbed a “real threat”

Many Arsenal fans were left slamming the display of Cedric in their side’s 2-1 away loss to Wolves in the Premier League on Tuesday evening.

Mikel Arteta’s team took a deserved lead through Nicolas Pepe just after the half an hour mark, a goal which came after Bukayo Saka had hit the post and also had a goal chalked off by VAR as Alex Lacazette was found to be a fraction offside in the build up.

However, a David Luiz red card and consequently a converted Ruben Neves turned the game on its head, with Joao Moutinho then scoring a screamer from outside of the box before Bernd Leno was given his own marching orders for handling the ball outside of his area.

Although there were some very good performances in a Gunners shirt on the night, Cedric’s flattered to deceive several members of the Emirates Stadium faithful.

The Portugal international lost no fewer than nine of his duels in the match, the most out of any of his teammates to have set foot on the pitch, and also failed to make a single interception, key pass or accurate long ball, as he earned a pretty poor 5.6 overall rating on Sofascore, the second lowest out of any player, behind Luiz.

Arsenal fan reaction to Cedric display

These Gooners slammed his performance on Twitter, with a couple of AFC supporters even going as far as to call the 29-year-old ‘awful’:

“Cedric is playing so badly now, this guy hasn’t made any passes so far ever since Leno came off #WOLARS”

Credit: @hayth_09

“Cedric and Bellerin been awful all game #WOLARS”

Credit: @krish___kr7

“Thought Cedric should have come off at HT for Gabriel as he was getting roasted, Saka move into LB and ESR and Pepe narrowly sit behind Lacazette”

Credit: @DaisJenks

“Cedric was poor”

Credit: @afccxo

“Cedric getting toasted by Adama who has been off form throughout the season and all of Cedric’s long balls were awful, one good assist and Edu decided to make him 2nd choice lb, ambitionless owner and club”Credit: @uvarsenal”Cedric and Bellerin not good enough however its easy to do against 9 men. Neto was non-existent with 11 v 11″Credit: @Forrest992HIn other news, find out which left-back Arsenal were interested in signing before the window shut here!

MK Dons manager Russell Martin has delivered West Ham United a boost in the Premier League club’s hope of signing defender Matthew Sorinola this summer.

That’s according to the MK Citizen, who quote Martin as confirming that the 20-year-old is yet to agree on a new contract at Stadium MK despite having an offer in place.

Sorinola is due to become a free agent at the end of the season and Martin is refusing to let the uncertainty continue for much longer, after receiving no offers during the recent winter transfer market.

West Ham were credited with an interest in the London-born full-back by TEAMtalk in December, who claimed that a host of top and second-tier clubs were chasing the Dons starlet after Sorinola broke into the first-team and made a big impression.

The defender trained with Fulham in his youth but made the step up to senior football at MK Dons following a loan spell in non-league last year, and had the Irons, Newcastle, West Bromwich Albion, Burnley, Crystal Palace, Brentford, Bournemouth and Middlesbrough all checking in.

Martin believes Sorinola’s advisors may have bent his ear during the January window to hold off on signing a new contract at Stadium MK, and he is now urging the full-back to decide where he wishes to play his football, with three months remaining on his current contract.

“The situation with him hasn’t changed,” the Dons boss said. “He got offered a contract a long time ago, one which we consider fair and fits in with the structure of our club and for a young player, but he hasn’t signed it. There has been no real discussion from his end.

“He has a decision to make at some point, but I cannot let it rumble on to the end of the season – that’s not ideal for anyone. I love Matty. We extended his contract when we first took over, we showed some commitment to him, we put a lot of work into him, he responded brilliantly.

“But the situation has not affected him a bit – not his mentality or his attitude – but it impacts on how you feel about the club moving forward. We want people here who really want to be here long-term and who are desperate to show that commitment.”

It remains to be seen if Sorinola puts pen to paper on a new contract with MK Dons, but David Moyes should be urging West Ham to test the defender’s resolve with the offer of a move to a Premier League side.

The Hammers have been in the market for a new, young full-back for the past year with reports of interest in Ryan Manning and Jonjoe Kenny last summer. Brentford’s Rico Henry, Rangers’ Calvin Bassey, Manchester City’s Oleksandr Zinchenko and Chelsea’s Emerson Palmieri have also been touted for a move to the London Stadium in more recent months.

Opting for Sorinola – who Martin has previously described as “excellent” – would offer Moyes a player he can mould into his own talent in east London, as a future replacement for Aaron Cresswell plus competition for Arthur Masuaku and natural right-back Ben Johnson.

Sorinola would also be a free signing and has shown promise in League One despite only playing three times for MK Dons before the 2020/21 season, having featured 29 times across all competitions this term including starting 12 of 20 third-tier appearances.

Among his League One outings, the full-back has averaged 4.2 ground duels won per game and with a 57% success rate, plus 1.3 successful tackles and 0.3 accurate crosses (10%), per SofaScore.

If he did sign as a developmental prospect, Moyes would most need to see Sorinola improve his deliveries with Cresswell currently offering 1.7 (27%) per game, along with 1.1 tackles and 1.7 ground duels won (60%) on average in the Premier League.

So, while he may be untested above the third-tier, a free deal for Sorinola could prove enticing for Moyes to add youth and promise to West Ham’s defensive ranks.

AND in other news, West Ham are monitoring an “outstanding” £18.5m titan praised by Jurgen Klopp…

Newcastle United hope to have defender Jamaal Lascelles back available to face Arsenal in the FA Cup, leaving Steve Bruce with a mammoth task against Leicester City on Sunday.

The Toon have been without Lascelles for their past six Premier League fixtures, after the 27-year-old returned a positive test for coronavirus alongside Allan Saint-Maximin following an outbreak at the club after the November international break.

Lascelles has suffered badly from the virus but was welcomed back to training late last month for light solo sessions away from the squad, but is finally starting to show signs of progress and stepped up his fitness regime early this week, according to The Northern Echo.

Newcastle staff had to closely monitor Lascelles’ rehabilitation despite the Magpies captain returning a string of negative tests, and will continue to take a cautious approach given the length of time the Derby-born defender has now been sidelined for.

Lascelles will not be involved in Sunday’s matchday squad to face Leicester at St. James’ Park, with the preference being to wait a further week as there is a chance he can feature at the Emirates during Newcastle’s FA Cup third round meeting with Arsenal.

Ciaran Clark has filled in for Lascelles over the Christmas period, while Bruce has been able to welcome Fabian Schar and Federico Fernandez back into the fold after also losing the pair due to the Covid outbreak.

But news of Lascelles facing another week out of action will be a huge blow for Bruce ahead of facing the Foxes on Sunday, having already expressed concern on over-exerting Schar and Fernandez having been forced to withdraw the Argentine against Fulham through chronic fatigue.

Fernandez was taken off at half-time during last month’s 1-1 draw at home to the Cottagers before returning to play the full 90 minutes against Manchester City and Liverpool alongside Schar, who is yet to miss a second since his comeback at the Etihad.

It is likely that their run in the side will now have to continue at home to Leicester City on Sunday, even if Bruce would prefer to afford at least one of his centre-halves a welcome break to start the New Year.

AND in other news, an “unplayable” £75k-p/w Newcastle United player is in-demand ahead of the January transfer window…

Marcus Rashford’s hot streak continued as he put on a masterclass to help Manchester United come from behind to beat Liverpool and progress to the fifth round of the FA Cup.

Inspired by the spirited Rashford, who earns wages worth £200,000-per-week, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side claimed one of their biggest scalps of this season so far.

Goals from Bruno Fernandes, Mason Greenwood and Rashford gave the Red Devils victory in a thrilling FA Cup clash against the defending Premier League champions at Old Trafford.

After Greenwood drew the Red Devils level, the Rashford scored shortly after halftime to put them within touching distance of a place in the next round of the competition.

While Fernandes will be the name in the headlines, it was Rashford who stepped up to derail the Reds’ pursuit of silverware. Mo Salah opened the scoring for Liverpool at Old Trafford but United bounced back in style after a cross-field diagonal ball from Rashford found Greenwood on the right, who coolly slotted home past the helpless Alisson.

But he saved his best moment for later in the game as he latched onto a through ball from Greenwood and found the back of the net.

As per SofaScore, the monstrous Rashford earned a 7.8 match rating for his display, that being the second-highest out of any United player on the pitch, bettered only by a certain Greenwood, which was significantly higher than his season average of 6.96.

Against Liverpool, he would take two shots on target, which was the most of any player from Solskjaer’s squad, including Fernandes.

He’s still not the finished article, that much is obvious, but he’s started to show a maturity far beyond his years both on and off the pitch.

The England international also took more touches (38) than Edinson Cavani as he showed a willingness to bring the ball out from inside his own half to put his team on the front foot, as evidenced by his two successful dribbles from three attempts per 86′ minutes.

He would also win four duels, which is on par with his average of 4.5 in the Premier League, whilst Georginio Wijnaldum and Trent Alexander-Arnold, who were tasked with the job of keeping the left winger at bay, received below-par ratings of 6.4 and 6.7 respectively, as per SofaScore, which goes some way to show that it was the United forward who got the best of his direct opponents on the day.

If the Red Devils are to regain the title for the first time since the 2012-13 season and go far in the FA Cup too, United fans will be hoping that he can maintain his impressive run of form, which has seen him score 15 goals in 31 appearances so far this season.

AND in other news, Manchester United should consider January loan exit for Donny van de Beek…

Celtic will hope that their Thursday win over Lille in the Europa League can spark a creative masterclass against Kilmarnock this afternoon. As it stands, the Glaswegians trail their rivals by a mammoth 13 points, with Steven Gerrard and his men still yet to register a loss in the Premiership this season.

The Hoops aren’t down and out yet but the chances of them overtaking Rangers at this point are extremely slim. But all eyes shift to their next match, which Neil Lennon will hope can end in a win in order to keep him in the job a little bit longer.

FootballFanCast has predicted how the boss could set up against Killie today…

Celtic fans could be in for a surprise as Lennon may opt to change up his usual starting personnel. The victory over Lille will have opened his eyes to some hidden gems within his team that he may not have considered before now.

With that being said, we could see match day stars Ismaila Soro and David Turnbull take to the starting lineup for the second game in a row. The former was solid in midfield and registered an impressive ten tackles as the 22-year-old worked hard to keep the French at bay. Similarly, Turnbull was a workhorse on the wing and his efforts paid off in dividends after he bagged himself a goal and an assist.

Playing opposite this season’s top scorer Mohamed Elyounoussi could create some brilliant chemistry as they support clinical striker Odsonne Edouard.

Midfield stalwart Ryan Christie will return to the action after taking a much-needed rest. His experience of the game will help Soro massively in just his second start for Celtic. This leaves no room for captain Scott Brown, who has been disappointing in recent weeks.

After Jeremy Frimpong was taken off injured on Thursday, Lennon could hand a first start of the season to Anthony Ralston, who is as solid in defence as he is going forward. Behind him and Diego Laxalt will be the defensive trio of Nir Bitton, Christopher Jullien and Kristoffer Ajer.

His ever-changing mind on his goalkeeping options could result in another switch up, seeing Scott Bain start over Vasilis Barkas.

In other news, Exclusive: Pundit rubbishes idea of Sam Allardyce replacing Neil Lennon at Celtic…

David Sullivan potentially wasted a whopping £31m by signing Sebastien Haller from Eintracht Frankfurt amid reports West Ham United could look to sell the striker next summer.

What’s the word?

According to Claret and Hugh, Haller is playing on borrowed time at the London Stadium after it was decided that the Ivory Coast international will be placed on the Irons’ transfer list at the end of the season.

Neither the forward nor the club are presently interested in a potential mid-season loan exit for the 26-year-old, who continues to have his admirers in Germany despite failing to make any real impact in England following his £45m capture in 2019.

At least three Bundesliga outfits are believed to have approached West Ham looking to discuss a temporary deal for Haller, only to be informed he is not available until the summer when he will cost any interested side at least £25m.

Further conversations between Hammers chiefs and the unnamed interested clubs have only increased the likelihood of a permanent transfer in the next off-season, when Haller will have earned close to £11m through his £115,000-per-week West Ham contract.

Haller has featured in 13 of David Moyes’ 14 Premier League squads thus far this season but only started seven of his appearances after the Irons lost leading striker Michail Antonio in October through the first of two hamstring injuries.

A major flop

While the claims of interest in Germany suggest Bundesliga clubs forgive Haller for struggling in the Premier League due to Moyes’ tactics, his spell in east London would forever be regarded as a major disaster should he leave the Irons next summer.

Former Director of Football Mario Husillos and manager Manuel Pellegrini spent big on making Haller the Irons’ record signing and awarding him the most-lucrative contract among current West Ham players.

For that, the Hammers have only been rewarded with 14 goals in 50 games across all competitions, including a hit-rate of one every 297 minutes in the Premier League.

Moyes continually asks Haller for more, with the former Manchester United coach urging the France-born forward to show in his performances why he developed a big reputation in Germany, where he netted 24 times in 60 Bundesliga appearances.

“I’ve got to say, he’s got a great reputation throughout Europe. His goals in Germany were excellent at Frankfurt, so let’s hope he can bring them to West Ham,” Moyes said.

“I would hope that I don’t need to categorise him that he can only play in a certain type of game. I want to see a big whole-hearted, committed centre-forward who we know can contribute to the team. We’ve got the makings of a good team and I want Seb to be part of it.”

It remains to be seen, however, for how much longer Haller is a part of Moyes’ team.

AND in other news, David Moyes can discover his ideal West Ham titan in a 12-goal star “everyone loves”.

It’s becoming evidently clear that Charlie Austin has little to no future at West Brom.

The 31-year-old has not been named in any of Albion’s last five Premier League matchday squads despite an obvious need for a goalscorer, in fact, his only two appearances have come in the Carabao Cup.

Throughout the summer transfer window, the former Southampton striker was linked with an exit, just a year on from joining in a £4m deal.

Only three teams have scored fewer goals than the Baggies in their opening six top-flight fixtures and with the arrival of Karlan Grant on the eve of the domestic deadline earlier in the month, Austin has slipped down the pecking order even more.

He’s even been mooted with a January switch to the MLS, according to The Sun (via Tribal Football), after a move to Derby County seemingly fell through.

Given that Austin is on a whopping £50k-per-week at the Hawthorns, which puts him amongst the club’s highest earners, he’s simply bleeding the club and Guochuan Lai’s pockets dry by not being involved whatsoever.

So far, the 6 foot 2 frontman has cost a total of £7.2m with wages and fees considered and with the January window still several months away, that is only going to increase.

Austin bagged only ten times last season, meaning Albion have received a goal for every £720k spent. His numbers aside from scoring weren’t pleasant either, averaging just 1.6 shots, 0.8 aerials won and 0.3 dribbles per game, via WhoScored.

Former Villa ace Alan Hutton has previously lauded the Englishman as an “excellent player” whilst Sky Sports pundit Jamie Redknapp once He works his socks off and he gets his rewards. Austin was someone who “works his socks off” before comparing him to Alan Shearer.

He’s certainly far from that player these days. Baggies sporting and technical director Luke Dowling must do everything to push him out at the turn of the year.

AND in other news, Bilic should unleash his “exceptional” favourite after Lai’s latest catastrophe…

Glasgow Rangers dodged a bullet by not signing Adrian Grbic in the summer, after Steven Gerrard’s side emerged as one of several top European clubs believed to be battling it out to land his signature.

What was the story?

According to an exclusive from TEAMtalk at the time, Rangers were eager to add to Gerrard’s attacking options by raiding Clermont Foot for Grbic as he went on to score 17 goals and supply four assists in 26 appearances in Ligue 2 last season.

The Stuttgart academy graduate enjoyed spells at Floridsdorfer AC and Rheindorf Altach before bursting onto the scene with Clermont after arriving at the the Stade Gabriel-Montpied on a free transfer in 2019.

His penchant for scoring free kicks saw the striker courted by a number of clubs over the course of the campaign, including Scottish Premiership arch-rivals Celtic, French Ligue 1 side Stade Brestois 29 and Premier League side Brighton.

Rangers faced another major obstacle in their attempts to sign the Austrian as well, as the French club held firm on their €10m (£8.9m) valuation, so they seem to have had a lucky escape given his struggles so far this season. FC Lorient signed the 24-year-old from Clermont in the end instead following their promotion to the French first division, whilst the Gers settled for Kemar Roofe and Cedric Itten to bolster their impressive arsenal alongside Alfredo Morelos and Jermain Defoe.

Filip Sebo 2.0

His announcement video went viral after he arrived at Lorient although his performances so far have struggled to justify Clermont’s colossal asking price. In fact, it’s fair to say that Grbic has found goals hard to come by this season, as he has failed to find the back of the net in his past seven fixtures in the top flight.

In ten appearances in Ligue 1 this season, the 24-year-old has only scored twice so far, so his goal-to-game ratio is pretty poor, whilst he is averaging just 1.3 shots and 0.1 dribbles per game, via WhoScored.

Lorient boss Christophe Pélissier has even resorted to benching the club record signing in recent weeks in an attempt to try and trigger a reaction. Unfortunately, the goals have continued to dry up, at club level at least.

By comparison, Rangers’ new summer recruit Kemar Roofe is managing 2.1 shots per game in the Premiership, as per WhoScored, whilst he has scored four goals in seven league games for Gerrard’s side so far.

It goes without saying that the Light Blues have been here many times before. Former Ibrox boss Paul Le Guen brought a young Filip Sebo to the club for £1.8m from Austria Vienna back in 2006, only for the Slovakian striker to turn out to be a total flop, scoring just twice in 31 appearances for the Gers.

Pélissier seems to be having the same frustrations with Grbic, as he has made four appearances as a substitute so far, whilst he is showing he has obvious areas of improvement in terms of his passing and ability to hold on to the ball, which will give the Gers plenty of reasons why they should be glad they decided against signing the 5-cap Austria international.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers could’ve signed Ryan Kent’s perfect replacement in Daniel Johnson…

After falling behind to a superb strike from Grady Diangana, Everton rallied back to comprehensively beat West Brom at Goodison Park on Saturday afternoon.

The Toffees equalised through Dominic Calvert-Lewin, before Kieran Gibbs’ sending off on the stroke of half-time opened up the floodgates for Carlo Ancelotti’s side to demolish the newly promoted side.

How big of an Everton fan are you? Can you spot Mikel Arteta from Graham Stuart? This quiz will test your knowledge, try it if you’re brave enough…

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But one man who didn’t enjoy the greatest of games, was Colombia international Yerry Mina. The towering defender was at fault for both of West Brom’s two goals, first backing off Diangana and allowing the youngster to shoot from outside the box, and then failing to jump for a direct free-kick from Matheus Pereira.

And after seeing his disappointing display, Everton fans took to Twitter to share their reactions.

A couple of Everton fans were particularly frustrated with Mina’s tendency to be overly aggressive and diving in for challenges, causing “unnecessary problems”.

Whilst Ancelotti will rightfully be delighted with starting the new Premier League campaign with two wins from two, he will be slightly worried at Mina’s performance on Saturday.

The Colombian just didn’t look at all comfortable with the Baggies’ nimble and quick forwards running directly at him, and then he really let his team down by chickening out of taking a ball to the face for Pereira’s strike.

It’s no surprise Everton fans don’t seem to be too enamored with the giant defender.