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Well, that’s not good news, is it?

Aaron Wan-Bissaka has pulled out of the England squad due to injury.

The Manchester United defender was set to compete alongside Trent Alexander-Arnold and Kieran Trippier for a spot in the team to face Bulgaria and Kosovo in the next round of European qualifiers, but it was recently announced that his international escapades have come to a premature end following complications with his back (cue jokes about carrying United).

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Whether this is a covert and cynical ploy to remove him from harm remains to be seen. However, if it’s a case of Wan-Bissaka’s injury being both serious and genuine, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer faces a serious selection dilemma ahead of the upcoming game against top-four hopefuls Leicester City – auxiliary right-back Ashley Young is already covering an injured Luke Shaw on the opposite flank having featured against Southampton at the weekend.

United fans have taken to Twitter to react to the news…

As you can see the United faithful are somewhat sceptical about the genuineness of the claims. Is this an elaborate ‘sicky’ orchestrated by Solskjaer? We’ll have to wait and see (sounds convenient though, doesn’t it? A “back injury” yeah, yeah).

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Leeds come into their clash with Swansea on Saturday afternoon needing to bounce back from a first defeat of the campaign.

The Whites were beaten on penalties after coming back from 2-0 down but Jack Harrison was the unfortunate player to miss from 12 yards.

This game against the Swansea is a top of the table tie with both clubs sitting on the same number of points, 13. Leeds, however, are ahead on goal difference.

Changes are likely to be on the horizon for this encounter and we’re tipping Marcelo Bielsa to make seven from the midweek defeat.

Here’s the team we’re predicting him to go with.

The first thing to note with this selection is that there might well be a first Championship start for Eddie Nketiah.

The loanee appeared in front of the press this week and revealed how his relationship with Ian Wright has helped him.

Nketiah has three goals in four matches already and started last Tuesday. The fact Leeds also went with two strikers against Stoke a weekend previous dictates this may be his time to shine from the off.

Key defender Liam Cooper is set to be welcomed back into the fold after nursing an ankle problem which meant he was absent from both games against the Potters. Considering he made the PFA Team of the Year last season, it will be a welcome boost.

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Bielsa confirmed this week that he should have a fully fit squad available to him barring absentees Luke Ayling and Tyler Roberts.

As a result, Leeds may favour the same 3-4-1-2 style they went with last weekend. Ezgjan Alioski scored on that occasion but with Barry Douglas now back he could be favoured.

The midfield should have a familiar look to it with Pablo Hernandez starting behind the two forwards.

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كشفت صحيفة “فوتو سبور” التركية السر وراء احتفال مهاجم الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي جالطة سراي، مصطفى محمد، بعد هدفه القاتل أمام قاسم باشا في الدوري المحلي.

ونجح مصطفى محمد في تسجيل هدف الفوز لصالح جالطة سراي في الدقائق الأخيرة أمام قاسم باشا من ركلة جزاء، ولكن احتفاله بهذا الهدف كان وراءه سر تكشفه الصحيفة الشهيرة.

وظهر مصطفى محمد وهو يقوم بحركة بيديه الاثنتين، ربطها البعض بأنه يقوم بـ”رش الملح على الطعام”، لكن لم تكن هذه هي نية المهاجم المصري الدولي.

اقرأ أيضًا.. مدرب طرابزون سبور السابق: حاولنا ضم مصطفى محمد في 2018

وأفادت الصحيفة أنه كان هناك اتفاق بين مصطفى محمد وزميله الظهير الأيسر، عمر بيرم، عندما يحرز هدفه الجديد سيحتفل على طريقة تقديم كوب من القهوة في رسالة إلى أحد اللاعبين الذين رحلوا إلى فناربخشة.

وتابعت الصحيفة أن قصة الاحتفال مثيرة بعض الشيء، حيث كان مصطفى محمد يقرأ الكثير من الأخبار عن لاعب باشاك شهير السابق، عرفان قهوجي، الذي كان يسعى جالطة سراي لشرائه ولكن في النهاية رحل إلى الغريم فناربخشة في يناير الماضي.

كانت هناك رغبة من طرف قهوجي للتواجد في جالطة سراي، لكن الأجواء داخل النادي التركي كانت متوترة بعد انتقاله إلى فناربخشة، وهو ما أزعج مصطفى محمد كثيرًا، وتحدث مع زملائه بالفريق وعلى رأسهم بيرم، وقال: “لا يوجد لاعب كرة قدم يستحق ذلك الاهتمام، عليكم نسيان عرفان، أنا هنا وسأرسل له رسالة في أول هدف قادم مع الفريق”.

وقام مصطفى محمد بالاحتفال على طريقة كوب القهوة (إشارة إلى اسم قهوجي) مع بيرم بعد إحرازه هدف الفوز أمام قاسم باشا، ليؤكد أنهم عليهم نسيان عرفان قهوجي المنتقل إلى فناربخشة.

شاهد هدف مصطفى محمد في مرمى قاسم باشا واحتفاله المثير

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Tuesday’s Manchester United transfer roundup reported on the price set for an Argentinian international, an enquiry made for a Southampton midfielder and comments from a Swede’s agent. Today’s edition focuses on another update on Paul Pogba, the future of a former Chelsea forward and the pursuit of a 6 foot 3 centre-back.

Pogba news

The Sun is reporting that Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will ask Frenchman Pogba to stay one more year at Old Trafford before he leaves the Red Devils. The Norwegian wants the former Juventus man to stay with the club as he puts his rebuilding plan into action.

Inter still after Lukaku

According to Sky Sports, Inter Milan officials are to fly to the UK this week as they step up their attempt to sign United’s Romelu Lukaku. In recent days, Juventus have also reportedly made an approach for the 26-year-old Belgian, who scored 15 goals in all competitions for the Premier League team last campaign.

Maguire keen on move

Leicester City’s Harry Maguire is “flattered” by Manchester United’s interest in him according to Goal.com. The report also adds that the 26-year-old England defender would like to join Solskjaer’s rebuild, which has already seen Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Dan James join the club.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

There has been somewhat of a firesale at Elland Road this summer as Leeds have looked to remove the deadwood from their squad as well as cash in on some of their prized assets.

Up until now, a staggering eight players have departed from Elland Road permanently. Mallik Wilks, Aapo Halme, Paudie O’Connor, Pontus Jansson, Jack Clarke, Hugo Diaz, Liam Kitching and now Tyler Denton has joined that list.

What’s the story?

Despite all of these departures, Leeds still have a number of unwanted players they want to get off of their books.

Certain individuals look to be leaving imminently such as Caleb Ekuban, Yosuke Ideguchi and Vurnon Anita, but others such as Hadi Sacko, Samu Saiz and Laurens De Bock don’t seem to have an exit route planned out.

Could be problematic

Leeds could have some problems next season if they don’t manage to shift these players.

It’s already been established that they could be cutting it fine in terms of FFP, and having these unwanted players on their wage bill will certainly restrict them financially.

United want to tie Kalvin Phillips down to a new deal and getting rid of these players may free up some extra cash so that they can offer him a higher wage, after their first offer was rejected by the midfielder.

Not only could it cause problems financially, but it could also affect the squad harmony. Saiz is someone who could upset things as he is scheduled to return to training next week, and Bielsa can’t risk that.

Victor Orta and Andrea Radrizzani still have a lot of work to do as they need to finalise moves for a number of players who seemingly don’t have futures at the club.

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Per a report from Football Insider, Aston Villa are set to table a £15m bid for Neal Maupay.

What’s the word?

Aston Villa have already been busy in the transfer market, signing no fewer than four players already.

The club broke their transfer record to bring Wesley to the club whilst Jota has arrived from Birmingham. The Villans have also added Anwar El Ghazi and Kortney Hause to their ranks on a permanent basis.

However, the club are now looking to make Maupay a part of their squad too.

Back in April, The Mirror claimed there was an interest from the club but Football Insider now suggests a £15m bid is set to be placed for the striker.

The Frenchman was one of the best forwards in the Championship last term, finding the net 25 times in the league.

Perfect for Wesley

If Villa bring Maupay to the Midlands for the reported fee, it could see a £37.25m strike force put into action after they signed Wesley for £22.25m.

In many ways, they’d both be perfect for each other.

We’ve already detailed how Wesley is suited to playing in a two-pronged attack and therefore playing him and Maupay together, should he arrive, would be ideal.

The former Club Brugge man is a force in the air and is particularly good at bringing others into play, something that’s reflected in the nine assists he racked up in Belgium’s top tier last season.

Therefore, pairing him alongside a more technically gifted and quicker striker in Maupay has the potential to work a treat.

The big and small combination has worked brilliantly in the past, something that can be seen by reflecting on the partnership Salomon Rondon and Ayoze Perez developed at Newcastle last term.

A similar sort of relationship was also seen with Raul Jimenez and Diogo Jota at Wolves.

It’s a tried and tested method in the Premier League and there is the potential for Dean Smith to strike gold by pairing the two together.

Of course Maupay will have to sign first, but there is evidence from Wesley’s time at Brugge to suggest that he would benefit from the type of player the 22-year-old is.

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Christian Eriksen has expressed his desire to leave Tottenham Hotspur this summer, per Esktra Bladet.

The Denmark international has long been linked with a move to Real Madrid and has now finally opened up on his future.

Eriksen has been with the club since 2013 and made a total of 51 appearances in all-competitions in the 2018-19 season, as Spurs finished fourth in the Premier League and reached the Champions League final. He scored 10 goals and laid on a total of 17 assists.

The 27-year-old playmaker has yet to win silverware during his time in north London and has admitted that he hopes to make a “step up” in the summer transfer window.

He said: “I feel that I am at a stage of my career where I would like to try something new.

“I have the deepest respect for everything that is happening at Tottenham and it would not be something negative to stay. But I have also said that I would like to try something new.

“I hope that something will be decided this summer. That is the plan. In football, you never know when there could be a decision like that. It could be at any point. The best thing is always for it to happen quickly but in football things take time.”

It remains to be seen if Los Blancos will make a move this summer but is Eriksen right to want to leave the club in search of a new club and, potentially, silverware?

Football FanCast’s writers give their verdicts below!

Matt Dawson

“This is a difficult one to work out. The Spurs project is an exciting one and after seeing them reach the Champions League final it’s hard not to admire their accomplishments. However, Eriksen is someone who clearly hasn’t been too settled for a while now. Chances of immediate success would be enhanced if he joined one of Europe’s top clubs but I don’t think he’s good enough to perform consistently elsewhere. He should stick with Tottenham and believe in what looks to be a promising future for the club.”

Billy Meyers

“We can never know if a player is right to leave a club. Ex-Liverpool star Philippe Coutinho looked to be making the right decision when he joined Barcelona, only to then find himself cast aside whilst his former club dominates Champions League football. Eriksen is entirely within his rights to want a move away from Spurs, but it could very easily be a decision that he regrets due to the clear progress Mauricio Pochettino’s project is making.”

Jack Saville

“Absolutely. Eriksen’s time has come and I think it’s a move which will benefit all parties concerned. Pochettino has taken him to the next level since arriving at the club but the playmaker’s lacklustre performances in big games of late have been a major concern for the club. He has struggled to reach the pinnacle of his game in 2019 but his reputation should put Levy in the driving seat in negotiations. With just one year remaining on his current deal, Eriksen clearly has Tottenham’s best interests in mind by looking to move while the club can still make a massive profit.”

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Barring Aston Villa’s defensive frailties last season there wasn’t too much wrong with their squad. The fact they were able to achieve promotion tells the story.

However, there was one problem in a wide area, an aspect that’ll simply have to improve as the club gear up for a return to the Premier League.

To combat the lack of creative nous in that area of the pitch, they’ve signed Jota from Birmingham whilst also bringing back Anwar El Ghazi for a permanent stay.

The latter was by far Villa’s best wide player last season, ending the campaign with six goals and six assists during his loan spell.

Yet, there is still room for improvement.

One player who could further solve their issues on the flanks is Said Benrahma, a tricky winger the Villans have had a bid knocked back for according to Le10 Sport.

A Dean Smith signing at Brentford last term, the Algerian was one of the most threatening players in the Championship, scoring ten times and claiming 14 assists.

It was a phenomenal return given he only started on 29 occasions, but it’s his dribbling ability that proves to make the biggest difference.

In 2018/19, he averaged 2.4 dribbles per game, a stat that puts him far above anyone else in the Villa side.

To put that into context, El Ghazi managed just 1.2 successful dribbles a match. Given the Dutchman’s impact and his canny nature down the left-hand side, this is perhaps surprising.

Last season Benrahma completed a mightily impressive nine successful dribbles in a game against Sheffield United. The highest El Ghazi managed in just one game was four.

Focusing further on the Bees winger, he managed another six dribbles in a 5-1 win against Hull, a clash he found the back of the net three times in as he put in an outstanding display.

Villa will know all too well the threat he can provide and that’s why they must do everything they can to bring him to the Midlands this summer.

When the Villans travelled to Brentford last campaign, Benrahma was successful with five dribbles as he terrorised their backline.

The 23-year-old would come with the added benefit of being able to play on both wings too and should he join, he and El Ghazi would provide a serious threat to opposition teams.

With Leeds United suffering from yet another injury crisis at Elland Road heading into their most important game of the season, Marcelo Bielsa must be wondering just what on earth he has done to deserve such luck.

After beating Derby County 1-0 in their play-off semi-final first leg on Saturday, the Whites would have been extremely confident of securing a trip to Wembley Stadium later this month.

However, despite still being overwhelming favourites to overcome the Rams on Wednesday, Leeds will have to do so without their talisman and top-scorer Kemar Roofe who has been ruled out of the fixture with a calf injury (via BBC Sport).

Although Patrick Bamford would be the obvious choice to replace the former Oxford United forward, Bielsa may benefit more from taking a risk on Ryan Edmondson tomorrow.

A deadly finisher, the 17-year-old has been nothing short of sensational for the club’s under-23 side this year as his 19 goals in all competitions has allowed them to reach the Professional Development League final whilst also triumphing in the regular season in the North division.

Despite having only made two senior appearances for Leeds since joining the club in 2017 from York City, it is clear that he has all the ingredients needed to make a positive impression on Wednesday.

Whereas picking Bamford could end up being disastrous giving his recent lack of discipline in the Championship, handing Edmondson a start could prove to be a masterstroke of a decision by Bielsa as Derby may not know a great deal about the dangers that he possesses.

With Leeds needing a hero to step up in the absence of Roofe, there is no reason why one of their most exciting Thorp Arch prospects can deliver the goals needed to fire them to the Premier League.

What do you think Whites fans? Should Bielsa start Edmondson against Derby? Or is too big of a game to start the youngster in? Let us know below.

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Graeme Souness, a former Rangers player, has urged Celtic to appoint Neil Lennon on a permanent basis, per Sky Sports.

What’s he said?

Celtic were confirmed as SPFL champions on Saturday, as they thumped Aberdeen 3-0.

Lennon, of course, took over as manager following the departure of now-Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers mid-season.

The Bhoys have not lost with Lennon in charge but a number of fans have been underwhelmed by the club’s performances under his management and believe that a new appointment is necessary this summer.

Souness, though, thinks Celtic, who have also won the League Cup and can still win the Scottish Cup, simply have no other choice.

He said: “I worked with Neil Lennon for two years in television and he’s as good as anyone I’ve worked with.

“He gets his thinking from Martin O’Neill who got his from Brian Clough.

“Neil Lennon knows his stuff. I hope they don’t employ him as a Rangers supporter. But I want him to keep the job as he’s a good guy. They’d be crazy to get rid of him.

“If Neil wins the treble how much better can it get? He has fulfilled what he could do.”

Think outside the box

Lennon has done what was expected of him at Celtic.

The fact of the matter, however, is that pretty much any semi-decent manager could take Celtic to the league title in Scotland, particularly with Rangers as their only competition.

It would be good, then, to see the club take a leap of faith.

There is the potential this summer to bring in a fresh face with new ideas who can potentially take the club further in the one competition that really matters: the Champions League.

Lennon has shown previously that he is not the man to do that, despite that famous 2-1 win over Barcelona in 2012.

It is no surprise, though, that Souness is trying to look out for his friend by placing words like these in the public sphere. Even so, he’s wrong.