All posts by h716a5.icu

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Leeds United fans have shared their anger at missing out on Swansea City star Daniel James in January.

The 21-year-old almost moved to Elland Road in the most recent transfer window but the deal fell through on deadline day.

The BBC report that James had completed a medical with Leeds and was actually on the club’s premises when the transfer collapsed.

The move would have been an initial loan which would have been made permanent if Leeds gained promotion to the Premier League.

Swansea backed out of the deal at the eleventh hour and are now reaping the rewards, to the chagrin of Whites supporters after James turned in a superb display in the FA Cup against Manchester City.

The winger was a livewire against Pep Guardiola’s outfit, a constant thorn in the side of the Premier League champions’ defence as Swansea took a 2-0 lead in the quarter-final tie.

City, of course, fought back to win 3-2 in controversial circumstances – their second goal came from a disputed penalty while their third, a Sergio Aguero header, appeared to be offside.

And Leeds fans, having watched their side lose 1-0 to Sheffield United earlier on Saturday, expressed their disappointment at James’ breakout display on Twitter. Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

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QPR finally gave their fans something to – somewhat – be happy about as they came back from two down to draw away at Hull on Saturday, having been the Championship’s punching bag for the last couple of months.

The result was much-needed after loss to Rotherham, in which Darnell Furlong gave away a free-kick in the dying seconds, from which their visitors were allowed to score a winner.

The young right-back has, like many of his teammates, been poor in recent weeks so the surely nearing return of Angel Rangel to the ranks will be a huge relief to fans.

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…

The veteran defender tore a tendon during the win over Leeds in February and completed a solid 45 minutes for the R’s in a friendly against Southampton this week. Geoff Cameron, who has also been injured, got through the whole game.

Here’s what the Hoops faithful had to say on Twitter, with many relishing the 5 ft 10 Spaniard’s comeback…

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The Mirror have reported that Unai Emery’s Arsenal have been put on alert by comments made by Dalian Yifang and Belgium winger Yannick Carrasco.

What’s the word, then?

The 25-year-old who is a target of the Gunners has admitted that he wants out of the Chinese Super League in the summer transfer window, and that he tried to force a move away in January.

Carrasco also suggested that a lot of clubs have shown interest in him and that losing his starting place in the Belgian national side has been a big incentive for the desired move, per the original report.

The versatile left winger started his senior career at Monaco before a big-money transfer to Atletico Madrid and a rather baffling switch to China in February 2018, where he has started the new Chinese top-flight season brightly with three goals in two matches.

The Gunners must dodge the bullet

In terms of a possible move to the Emirates Stadium, Yifang could demand a high fee for their star man, having forked out the best part of £10 million on him just over a year ago – they will want to make a profit.

Perhaps the biggest part of this deal that makes it a bullet to dodge for the Gunners and not an asset to gain is the wage situation.

Currently, Carrasco, if various different reports are to be believed, is earning in the region of a lucrative £9 million per year.

Whilst CSL clubs are renowned for paying criminally high wages, it’s much of a bigger deal for a team in the western hemisphere to put a player on this kind of salary, although wages are still high in European football.

If Carrasco is demanding something similar, Emery is likely to have a problem on his hands because if one star earns so much, why shouldn’t any of the other players?

This would undoubtedly have a negative impact on the harmony of the squad without even delving into the numbers the North Londoners currently have in the left-sided attacking area, and rifts between teammates are the last thing the Spaniard wants as he continues to try to bed in at the Emirates.

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Liverpool will look to add another three points on to their tally in the exciting Premier League title race with Manchester City when they face Southampton at St Mary’s on Friday night.

The Reds secured a dramatic late win against Tottenham Hotspur at Anfield on Sunday which took them back to the top of the standings, albeit until Wednesday night, and Jurgen Klopp will know that given the calibre of Pep Guardiola and his side they may have to win all of their remaining matches to lift the famous trophy come what May.

A fixture against the Saints certainly won’t be an easy one either, considering the south coast outfit are on a two-match winning run and have beaten both Arsenal and Spurs on their own patch since Ralph Hasenhuttl was appointed in December, as well as drawing away at Chelsea.

Paul Tierney, who officiated in Everton’s win over West Ham United at the weekend, will be the man in the middle under the floodlights, and while many of his statistics are pretty unremarkable in comparison to his refereeing peers, one certainly sticks out.

The 38-year-old has taken charge of 20 top flight fixtures so far during the 2018/19 campaign, and quite remarkably not a single one of those has ended in a draw, as per WhoScored stats.

In fact, there is a 40% home win 60% away win bias from those games, and if history repeats itself once again it suggests that the spoils won’t be shared.

The hosts certainly still need to get points on the board in their battle to beat the drop and are likely to want to go and get three to move a step closer to survival, and as aforementioned the Merseyside visitors are in a similar boat but for very different reasons.

In a strange spell of fate, Tierney was also the referee when the two teams met at Anfield back in September, with the game ending in a 3-0 win for Klopp’s men, while he sent off Saints skipper Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg for a poor tackle against Manchester City back in December.

In will certainly be interesting to see what the outcome is, but if the stats are right we can already rule one of the possible three of those out.

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Tottenham Hotspur fans have expressed their disappointment at Moussa Sissoko missing out on the Man of the Match award after his performance against Crystal Palace.

Son Heung-Min won the award after scoring the first goal at the club’s new stadium, seeing his effort from the edge of the box deflected into the bottom corner after he cut in from the right flank. Christian Eriksen netted the second.

But Sissoko turned in an excellent midfield performance versus the Eagles, having been transformed under Mauricio Pochettino this season.

Indeed, per WhoScored, Sissoko made two tackles, two clearances, one interception and won three aerial duels.

Sissoko also made one key pass and had a pass completion rate of 81%.

Spurs confirmed on Twitter on Thursday that Son had won the accolade but a number of fans replied indignantly to their tweet, insisting that his French team-mate was the rightful winner.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

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Liverpool fans have taken to Twitter to dispute Jamie Carragher’s claim that Eden Hazard is the best player in the Premier League.

The former Reds defender was speaking after Chelsea’s 2-0 win over West Ham on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, where he revealed that he thinks the Belgian is the top-flight’s best player.

Has Alisson been Liverpool’s most important signing of the season? Check out the video below to find out why Jurgen Klopp thinks so…

Hazard single-handedly won the game for the Blues against the Hammers with two excellent goals, the first of which will most certainly be up for Goal of the Season at the end of the campaign.

The former Lille star slalomed his way through a number of challenges, keeping the ball close to his feet, before rifling low into the bottom right corner.

It was the 28-year-old’s 15th league goal this term, before his second put him on 16 – just three behind leading scorer Sergio Aguero – impressively, Hazard also has 12 league assists to his name.

Despite his excellent season, however, many Liverpool fans have dismissed their former colossus’ claims that Hazard is the league’s best and have taken to Twitter to let their feelings be known…

It was a result Arsenal needed, and it was a result that can have a positive domino effect for the Gunners.

Last night’s 1-0 win away to Watford was a turning point for Arsenal’s season. It was the club’s first clean sheet on the road all season and was a victory not many fans expected to go into the match before kick-off, but the Gunners pulled it off, and in doing might have set up a chain of events for the team.

The weight and importance of winning away from home and getting a clean sheet has already been massive for Arsenal, injecting new confidence for the team as they head into their final few league games of the season with the belief that now they can genuinely achieve a top-four finish as well as find success in Europe.

Thursday’s game against Napoli will be another major test for Arsenal, but if Unai Emery can guide his side to a result over Carlo Ancelotti’s team in Italy, it will yet again add to the claim that the win over Watford has set in motion a chain of events leading to success for the Gunners.

Arsenal now have their destiny for this season in their hands, and with the win against Watford likely to motivate the team to go further this season, fans and players can look back at that win against their London rivals as the result that changed their fortunes for the better.

Arsenal fans, how important was the win against Watford? Let us know!

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According to The Sun, Brendan Rodgers is plotting a move for Liverpool’s Daniel Sturridge. The striker has rarely been afforded game time in recent seasons, predominantly because of injury and the form of the Reds’ magnificent front three.

As a result, the club look as though they’re willing to let the striker’s contract run down, with his current deal ending in the summer. That means that any potential suitor would not have to pay a single penny for his services.

Leicester have emerged as one of the parties interested in the 5 ft 10 attacker as their new manager aims to reunite himself with a player who almost helped win him the league at Liverpool. But given the player’s injury record, should the Foxes be looking to sign him? Football FanCast writers give their verdict..

Harry Sherlock

“Leicester should stay as far away from Daniel Sturridge as humanly possible. He can’t stay fit and he no longer possesses the ferocious pace that so made him a star. The fact of the matter is that Leicester need to bring in younger players with the hunger and ability to take the Foxes up a level. Fans remember them winning the Premier League, of course, and playing in the Champions League. Signing Sturridge does nothing to return Leicester to that level. In fact, it does the exact opposite – it sends the wrong message to fans and players alike, and smacks of hunting for a bargain instead of doing proper scouting.”

James Beavis

“In my opinion Leicester need two strikers this summer with Jamie Vardy ageing and Kelechi Iheanacho simply not good enough. If one of those is Daniel Sturridge on a free then I personally think it’s a no-brainer. Brendan Rodgers knows his strengths and bringing him to the King Power Stadium for nothing means he then would be able to spend big on another striker. Sturridge needs consistent starts to find some form and he would get that with the Foxes – in fact, he and Maddison together would be mouth-watering.”

Harry Elnaugh

“Jamie Vardy was neutralised by Newcastle at the weekend and it was clear that Leicester need someone who can bring a different dimension to the attack. Iheanacho doesn’t cut the mustard so the Foxes may have to dig into their pockets this summer to rejuvenate their strike-force. However, if they can poach Sturridge for free then it changes everything. Of course, the Liverpool man cannot be relied upon to lead the line for a whole season due to his recurring injury issues, but he’s lethal in front of goal and can work in tight spaces. A reunion with Rodgers makes perfect sense.”

Matt Dawson

“On a free transfer, a potential move for Daniel Sturridge would be fantastic business by Brendan Rodgers. His best season for goals came under the Scot and a potential link up between the pair could be absolute dynamite for Leicester. Jamie Vardy has been tasked with scoring the brunt of the club’s goals in recent seasons and a move for a high class striker is definitely needed to lift some of the burden. Sturridge may have struggled for game time and goals under Jurgen Klopp but under Rodgers, we could witness a career revival for someone who was once one of the deadliest finishers in the league.” 

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Alan Shearer has urged Tottenham Hotspur to spend money this summer as they look to close the gap to both Manchester City and Liverpool at the top of the Premier League table, per BBC Sport.

What’s he said?

Spurs lost to West Ham on Saturday but remain third after a series of results that boosted Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

Following Spurs’ 1-0 loss, Arsenal were beaten 3-0 by Leicester City and Manchester United and Chelsea played out a 1-1 draw.

With Spurs four points clear of Unai Emery’s men, a victory over AFC Bournemouth in their next outing will seal qualification for the Champions League next season, while they are also set to face Ajax for the right to play in the final of Europe’s elite club competition.

But Shearer believes they will want to close the gap on City and the Reds at the top of the table; Spurs are currently 22 points behind Pep Guardiola’s champions.

He said, per BBC: “They are now 22 points behind City, and if they want to push on and get closer to the title next year, then they simply have to sign some players this summer.

“Spurs have got the numbers to cover every position but, as we have seen from their results in their past few league games, they do not necessarily have the quality too.

“They are suffering at the end of a long, hard season and I still feel they have done incredibly well to be where they are when you consider everything that has been going on, with that lack of new faces and their wait to get into their new ground.”

Investment a necessity but so is keeping players

Yes, Spurs need to sign players this summer. This much has been obvious since the January transfer window, when they were crying out for a striker and another central midfielder.

But it’s become a tired trope to continually beat the club with that stick.

What is perhaps far more important is retaining both Christian Eriksen and Toby Alderweireld.

Eriksen continues to be linked with a move away, particularly with his contract expiring at the end of next season, while Alderweireld has a £25million release clause in his contract.

The Belgium international, of course, has his future in his own hands but Spurs should be pulling out all the stops to get him to stay.

That includes the offer of a new contract and parity with the club’s highest earners.

Shearer should look a bit closer as he bids to sound informed.

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Liverpool fans have taken to Twitter in furious fashion after it was revealed that Manchester City stopper Ederson had been named in the PFA Team of the Year over their side’s goalkeeper, Alisson Becker.

The Reds No.13 has kept the most clean sheets out of every glovesman in the Premier League with 19 to his name in 35 appearances, whilst Ederson is closely behind him with 18.

Chelsea fans were giving it large at Anfield on Sunday. Watch their afternoon get slowly ruined in the video below…

Alisson, signed from Roma back in the summer for a whopping £66.9m, has also conceded the fewest goals this season having let the ball find the back of the net just 20 times.

As a result of the aforementioned statistics, a number of Liverpool fans have been left scratching their heads over Alisson’s exclusion from the Team of the Year.

Four member of Jurgen Klopp’s side in Trent Alexander-Arnold, Sadio Mane, Virgil van Dijk and Andy Robertson did manage to make the team, but the Liverpool supporters on Twitter have been focusing on Alisson’s exclusion instead…