All posts by h716a5.icu

Is this the beginning of Celtic’s turnaround? Their 4-0 win over Kilmarnock brought back happy memories of some of the free-flowing football we’ve seen over the last decade.

On each of the last nine occasions, the Hoops have been the triumphant side when it comes to the SPFL.

Their success has been unmatched but now they’re on the verge of surrendering their grasp over Scottish football.

Heading into their clash with Motherwell on Saturday, they are still 23 points behind Rangers. It’s safe to say that any chance of securing a tenth successive crown is done and dusted.

It’s rather remarkable that Neil Lennon is still in the job and we’re not expecting him to lose it anytime soon. After all, the hierarchy have backed him to the hills.

Thus, in Lennon’s next clash, what will his starting XI be?

We’re tipping the manager to make as many as four changes from the team that defeated Kilmarnock on Tuesday.

One of those changes is enforced. Albian Ajeti scored against Killie but is now facing a two-match suspension after being retrospectively banned for simulation.

He went down to earn a penalty that Odsonne Edouard converted but is now facing punishment for his actions. That means that Leigh Griffiths returns to the side.

Another change is at left-back where Diego Laxalt comes into replace Greg Taylor. That’s the only replacement among a backline that kept a rare clean sheet a few days ago.

The other two switches come in the middle of the park. Scott Brown was imperious in the win over Killie but is dropped back to the bench in place of the effervescent Ismaila Soro.

We’ve downplayed Ryan Christie’s performances this week and as such, we think the out of form winger needs to be benched. He’s scored just once in his last 19 outings so Mo Elyounoussi takes his place in the side.

That means that David Turnbull is moved over to the right-hand side in the hope of finding good fortune against his former employers.

AND in other news, Celtic could fix a big problem by hiring manager who left Rodgers “really impressed”…

2021 has been the very definition of hot and cold for Leeds United. They have tasted defeat in four games now, but their two wins in the Premier League have been impressive.

They started the New Year in dismal fashion with three consecutive defeats – one of which came against League Two Crawley in the FA Cup. Though, in beating Newcastle and then demoralising Leicester, they bounced back tremendously.

The football Marcelo Bielsa’s men played last weekend at the King Power Stadium was relentless. Their pressing was perfect and Patrick Bamford was a constant thorn in the opposition defence.

He helped himself to a goal and two assists on Sunday but despite registering another assist in midweek, Leeds fell to a 2-1 loss at the hands of Everton.

It was a disappointing result given the performance only a few days ago but it summed up their current top-flight campaign. One minute they’re unrelenting in their play and the next, they’re being sliced open.

No player in Leeds’ squad epitomises their inconsistency quite like Jack Harrison.

The loanee is now in his third loan spell at Elland Road but each season, he has constantly put in indifferent performances. On his day, he has the first touch of a superstar, like Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. However, on others, he has the end product of Jimmy Kebe.

At times this season, Harrison has looked unstoppable. Coming into their clash with the Toffees, the winger had scored in consecutive games.

Though old habits die hard and that was typified on Wednesday evening. The 24-year-old struggled to get into the game and although it was his pressing that led to the turnover for Leeds’ goal, he struggled throughout.

In fact, both of Bielsa’s troops on the left-hand side were particularly abject. We’ve already picked bones with Gjanni Alioski’s performances this term but in committing four fouls and winning just three duels on the ground, he particularly struggled with the way Everton played.

Yet, Harrison was worse, winning just two of the seven duels he competed in. That being said, it was his attacking play that disappointed the most.

The forward lost possession of the ball on 19 occasions, a tally higher than every Leeds player on the pitch besides Luke Ayling and Raphinha. Of course, Harrison was keen to get balls into the area but only 50% of his deliveries were accurate.

Just a solitary key pass told the story of an abject day creatively. This should hardly be surprising judging by some of the form he showed last season. After all, following the opening eight games of 2019/20, he’d managed only one accurate cross from 31 attempted.

Judging by the fact Harrison has four Premier League assists this season, it shows he has improved. However, until he begins to capitalise on promising situations more often, Bielsa won’t be able to take him to the next level.

On this occasion, it was a night where the flanker let his manager down again. He needs to discover more consistency.

AND in other news, Forget QSI: £50m Leeds update could be completely game-changing for Bielsa and Radz…

West Bromwich Albion fans do not seem to worried about the prospect of Sam Johnstone leaving the club after he revealed he wants to stay in the Premier League for the rest of his career.

Johnstone has been an ever-present for the Baggies so far this campaign, playing in 22 of their 23 matches in the Premier League (Transfermarkt). West Brom have conceded 52 goals overall (Sky Sports) – far from a good record – but a lot of that cannot be blamed on the shot-stopper. No goalkeeper in the top flight has made more saves than the 27-year-old this season (FB Ref).

In an interview with The Athletic, £5.85m-valued Johnstone (Transfermarkt) has revealed that he wants to stay in the English top division for the rest of his career after the long path he took to get there. With the Baggies staring relegation in the face – they are 11 points from safety with 15 games remaining – he will likely need to leave the club if he wants to stay amongst the elite next term.

The fans don’t seem too worried about the prospect of his departure. The interview in question was shared by journalist Steve Madeley on Twitter, and the fans took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the comments from Johnstone below

“Bye then, Sam.”

Credit: @WBA1878

“Dont mind if he leaves as long as Palmer takes his spot”

Credit: @JDWBA2

“Bye bye Sam. Thanks for your efforts this season. Sorry others couldn’t match them. Good luck in the rest of your career.”

Credit: @Alan4NewportSal

“He can go for me. Yes hes been much better in prem and interestingly without crowds. Palmer is our future in that position”

Credit: @PORTZD2

“Sell and bring Palmer back put him into the side I feel like he has waited so long for a chance to get into the first team keeps performing in loan”

Credit: @Nikolaiwilliam9

“Great shot stopper, dreadful distribution and flaps at crosses. Presuming we will get relegated, I hope we get a good price for him and get a more rounded goalie in.”

Credit: @robnobot

“Some good keepers coming behind him , right offer and I’d accept . Great shot stopper but never been convinced on crosses .”

Credit: @SicknessWitness

In other news, West Brom fans love this Conor Townsend news.

According to reports, Leeds United are interested in making a move for Torino’s Nicolas Nkoulou in the summer transfer window.

What’s the story?

Despite Marcelo Bielsa’s side adding another two options to their centre-back ranks last summer with the signings of Diego Llorente and Robin Koch, it appears the Leeds boss isn’t done with reinforcing that area of the pitch.

Now, according to Italian publication CalcioMercato (via Sport Witness), the Premier League outfit have got their sights set on luring Nkoulou to Elland Road once his contract expires at the end of the season.

The report adds that Nkoulou’s signing is a special request from Bielsa himself, and that given how he worked with the centre-back in his time at Marseille, is someone who he values very much.

Orta masterclass

With Llorente and Koch both arriving for significant transfer fees last summer, swooping for someone of Nkoulou’s experience on a free transfer just seems like a shrewd way of strengthening Leeds’ options at centre-back.

The 72-cap Cameroon international has got vasts amount of top-level experience in his time playing for a number of European clubs, including the likes of Marseille, Lyon, Monaco and current club Torino.

Given the fact he won’t cost Andrea Radrizzani a penny in terms of a transfer fee, this has all the makings of being a real masterclass from Victor Orta.

After clinching a superb 1-0 victory over Leeds United at Elland Road at the weekend, Aston Villa make the trip to Sheffield United on Wednesday night.

Dean Smith’s side took home all three points thanks to a first-half goal from Anwar El Ghazi, and with tonight’s opponents currently rooted to the bottom of the Premier League table, back-to-back wins is very much on the cards.

The Villa boss could look to freshen things up slightly both in midfield and in attack, and with that in mind, below is a look at how Smith’s side might line up when they take on the Blades.

In goal, Emiliano Martinez can close the gap on Manchester City shot-stopper Ederson in the race for the Premier League’s Golden Glove award, with the Argentine just two clean sheets behind.

The back-four should also remain unchanged, with veteran full-back Ahmed Elmohamady once again filling in for the injured Matty Cash.

Both Marvelous Nakamba and Jacob Ramsey – who was outstanding in particular against Leeds – should keep their places in midfield, but January signing Morgan Sanson is surely now pushing for his first start in the top-flight after yet another cameo at the weekend.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the game against Sheffield United, Smith said: “If you throw people in they can find it hard very early and it can hamper them for the rest of their progression. I’ve been lucky I’ve been able to feed him in gradually but he’s certainly ready to start games now and I know we’ve got a very good player on our hands.”

And in the front-line, the 46-cap Trezeguet could get his first start in a long while and replace Bertrand Traore on the right-hand side, with the Egyptian perfectly suited to combating the Blades’ wing-back system.

It would certainly be a bold call to make two key changes to his winning side, but Smith will want his players as fresh as possible given the quick turnaround in games.

Predicted XI: Martinez; Elmohamady, Konsa, Mings, Targett; Sanson, Nakamba, Ramsey; Trezeguet, Watkins, El Ghazi.

Meanwhile, Villa should unleash this £9m-rated star tonight…

With Raphinha one of the big shining lights for Leeds this season in the Premier League, one thing Marcelo Bielsa will no doubt be searching for is how he could make him even better and even more influential for the Whites.

One way he could do that is by bringing in Ivan Toney.

Reports in recent days have suggested that Leeds are eyeing a move for the Brentford striker in the summer transfer window, although they could face competition for his signature from fellow Premier League side Arsenal.

At Brentford, the striker has been in prolific form all season for the Championship side, already racking up an impressive 25 goals in all competitions.

Speaking earlier last year, Peterborough’s director of football, Barry Fry, said: “He’s turned into a tremendous all-round footballer. It’s important to remember Ivan is not just an exceptional goal-scoring forward, he’s also an outstanding defender.”

One of the key successes behind his goal-scoring record, is his relationship with the Bees’ right-winger, Bryan Mbeumo.

As per Transfermarkt, despite playing only 32 games together, they have already combined for seven goals between each other – Toney’s relationship with the Frenchman is only bettered in terms of goal contributions with former Peterborough teammate Marcus Maddison, although their tally of 14 came in 70 matches.

Mbeumo’s ability to beat players one-on-one but also have the end product at the end of it to actually pick his striker out, or go it alone, is very much reminiscent of Leeds’ own right-winger Raphinha.

Sky Sports pundit Don Goodman said just last year: “There are so many talented, skilful players that can dribble and beat players but they play with their head down and they don’t see the big picture. I think he really excels at picking the right time to cross the ball and picking players out.”

At Leeds, the £9m-rated Toney could play with another similar player in Raphinha, and it’s a partnership that could potentially wreak havoc in the Premier League.

Both Mbeumo and Raphinha are predominantly left-footed players who play off the right, usually cutting in with great effect. Toney’s relationship with the former at Brentford suggests he works very well with someone who’s not your typical wide-man who is used to getting to the by-line and crossing it in, instead, he likes those playrs coming off the touch-line and linking up with him.

With Raphinha, in fact, averaging even more key passes per game this season than Mbeumo (two to 1.2), Toney would surely get even more opportunities to score than he already does at Brentford. Just imagine the kind of partnership the duo could build under Bielsa’s guidence at Elland Road.

Meanwhile, this Leeds man is surely facing an uncertain future after Bielsa’s decision…

Former Glasgow Rangers player Lorenzo Amoruso has suggested he would like to return to Ibrox to work with the 55-time Scottish champions.

Amoruso wants Gers return

Amoruso spent six years with the Gers between 1997 and 2003, helping them win three league titles along the way.

Speaking to Inside Futbol, the Italian has revealed he would like to work with his former club again. He said:

“Sure and I hope [I can work with Rangers again]!

“I often talk to the club, I have always told them that if they need a person in Italy, I am there.

“I have always tried to advise on some players.

“I have three teams in my heart: Bari, Fiorentina and Rangers.”

Clear affinity

Given his comments here, it is clear Amoruso shares an affinity with the Gers. After six years there, it would be hard not to leave with some kind of connection. It seems he is not officially working with any club at the moment, which means he would be available if the Gers were eager to sign him up.

Having someone on the ground in Italy could be very advantageous. It is a footballing hotbed, after all, and Amoruso would be in a position to point up some hidden gems that would otherwise remain off the Gers’ radar. It remains to be seen whether Ross Wilson and co act on the 49-year-old’s wishes.

In other news, Kris Boyd demands new deals for this Rangers duo.

Leeds United are keen on signing an ideal backup to Kalvin Phillips this summer, with no current squad member tailor-made to fill in for him when absent.

The 25-year-old has been an outstanding performer for the Whites in recent years, arguably becoming the first name on Marcelo Bielsa’s team sheet.

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Phillips has taken his imperious form with him from the Championship to the Premier League, forcing his way into Gareth Southgate’s England squad in the process.

The midfielder is a huge loss when he is unavailable, however – as has been the case recently, having missed a chunk of action with a calf injury.

Leeds eye up Phillips deputy this summer

Leeds are looking to alleviate that issue moving forward, with The Athletic’s Phil Hay claiming that they are ‘thinking seriously about recruiting cover’ for the England international, with their current backup options far from the ‘perfect match’, with Pascal Struijk mentioned as an example.

Marcela Bielsa’s hope is that a new addition will mean future absences for Phillips would leave ‘a smaller void’ than it has this season, with the Whites not the same team without him, losing six of the eight league matches he has missed.

Hay describes Phillips as Leeds’ ‘best player’ against West Ham and ‘highly effective’ in the 0-0 draw at home to Chelsea, highlighting his importance even after a lengthy absence.

Transfer Tavern take

The importance of squad depth cannot be downplayed over the course of a long and gruelling season in the Premier League, so a new midfield signing of Phillips’ ilk is important this summer.

It is never healthy to be overly reliant on one individual, which can arguably be the case with the Leeds midfielder, and a summer reinforcement would allow for more rotation from Bielsa.

In other news, Hay has also provided an important injury update on Patrick Bamford. Read all about it here.

Fans of West Bromwich Albion have been reacting to a post on Twitter, in which the Baggies confirmed that Kieran Gibbs would be leaving the club at the end of the season.

According to a statement on West Brom’s club website, Gibbs will remain at The Hawthorns for the remainder of the Baggies’ Premier League campaign, after which the 31-year-old will leave the club for Major League Soccer side, Inter Miami, on a free transfer.

Having joined West Brom from Arsenal back in the summer of 2017, Gibbs has so far gone on to make 100 appearances in all competitions for the club, chipping in with five goals along the way.

And, after West Brom relayed the news of Gibbs’ impending departure on Twitter, fans of the Baggies flocked to have their say on the matter, with many appearing delighted at the prospect of the £30,000-per-week left-back leaving their club this summer, due mainly to his injury history.

So, what exactly did these West Bromwich Albion fans have to say in reaction to the news regarding Kieran Gibbs?

“I’ll pay for his flight over there.”

@WBADyl

“Good, 70k off the wage bill for someone with a hamstring made of glass.”

@RobWBA_

“Bye then. Rolls Royce in the Championship I saw him once described as. More like clapped out in the prem. 55 grand a week? Nah, not for me.”

@nickwestwood33

“I wouldn’t give him another contract anyway. Never lived up to his name sadly. Good luck to him.”

@KnaveofAlbion

“Great move for him.”

@Blackjack42B

“Get in.”

@vivalaalbion

“Quality most of the time for us, all the best Gibbo.”

@danwba_

In other news: these WBA fans unleashed their fury at “pathetic” stars following John Percy’s report – find out more here!

Gabby Agbonlahor has been left to slam the displays of both Joelinton and Ryan Fraser for Newcastle United so far in the 2020/21 term.

Speaking to Football Insider, the former Aston Villa and England international striker was very critical of the duo, and also suggested that Steve Bruce may drop them for the remainder of the games in the season:

“You look at Joelinton, he hasn’t turned up all season for Newcastle. He’s still not turning up.

“For me, Steve Bruce has now got to work out what 11 players are going to fight for him and fight for the club and pick them. If that’s Dwight Gayle, if that’s Andy Carroll, if that’s Matt Ritchie, if that’s the Longstaff brothers in midfield. 

“Whoever is going to fight for him and the club – that’s what it’s about now.

“Certain players are letting him down, the likes of Ryan Fraser, the likes of Joelinton, they’re not doing anything, they’re not showing any hunger, they’re not showing any fight.

“I’m sure Steve Bruce will be making changes for the games coming up.”

Newcastle need more from Joelinton and Fraser

The St. James’ Park faithful certainly need to see more from both Joelinton and Fraser from now until the end of the campaign if they have ambitions of avoiding being relegated from the top flight down to the EFL Championship.

The former continues to fail to live up to his hefty transfer fee, with a mere three goals and three assists in 28 games in total over all competitions so far this season (Transfermarkt).

Considering the recent injuries to the likes of Allan Saint-Maximin, Callum Wilson and Miguel Almiron, both of these players have certainly not shown why they should be playing in Steve Bruce’s team instead, as they look destined to be squad players from now until they leave the North East club.

In other news, find out what big double injury boost NUFC have received here!