All posts by z3u9t.icu

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been criticising the performance of Joe Aribo in their 2-1 win at home to Hibernian on Sunday afternoon.

Despite a red card given to Ryan Porteus after just half an hour after Kevin Nisbet had given the visitors an early lead at Ibrox, it took until the 78th minute before Alfredo Morelos struck the winner to give Steven Gerrard’s men all three points.

While there were some good performances for the Light Blues, Aribo seemed to struggle throughout the game. He lost out on eight of his duels, the most of any of his teammates, while he also failed to record a single shot on goal or key pass, losing possession on 15 separate occasions in the match (Sofascore).

Rangers fans on Aribo’s performance

These Gers supporters on Twitter slammed the 25-year-old’s performance against Hibs, with one fan even going as far as to claim that the Nigeria international is a ‘waste of a jersey’:

“Kamara, Hagi and Aribo shouldn’t be near the team the now. 3 are far too slow, though Kamara is a player.”

Credit: @bg724

“Aribo and Hagi. Not remotely interested”

Credit: @martinsuth90

“Hagi, Wright and Aribo have all been anonymous”

Credit: @SY97Ger

“Aribo can’t even make a simple pass”

Credit: @Davidjmae12345

“25 mins in. No shots on target. Defence a shambles again. Midfield creating nothing again. Aribo…waste of a jersey.”

Credit: @55andcounting55

“Joe Aribo has a good game every 10 games”

Credit: @michaelc_1872

In other news, find out which Ranger player’s display was praised by numerous fans

As per a report in Italian newspaper La Repubblica, via Sky Sports, a fresh Tottenham Hotspur transfer claim has emerged involving Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku. 

The lowdown: Big money flop?

Signed for £97.5million from Inter Milan (Sky Sports), Lukaku has struggled to recapture his best form back in the Premier League.

So far this season the Belgian has managed 12 goals and two assists and caused uproar in December following an interview whereby the 28-year-old discussed a difficult time settling in at Stamford Bridge.

Now a fresh claim has come from Italy suggesting a summer move could be on the horizon…

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The latest: Reunion on the cards?

According to La Repubblica, as cited by Sky Sports, Spurs are interested in signing the powerful frontman.

A possible return to the San Siro has also been suggested but it appears that the north London club are in the mix to sign the out of favour 101-cap star.

Previously hailed as ‘unstoppable’ by Italian legend Christian Vieri, the 2020/21 Inter Milan player of the season may cut short a contract that is supposed to run until 2026 (Transfermarkt).

The verdict: Match made in heaven?

Lukaku spent two seasons with Tottenham boss Antonio Conte in Milan, where he made 95 appearances while scoring 64 goals and registering 16 assists.

Clearly, the Italian coach had the zeitgeist on how to get the best out of the Belgian, including tailoring his diet in order to improve output, helping the player lose half a stone (seven lbs).

Should the coach be able to rediscover the striker’s best form then this deal would be a no-brainer in order to bolster the Lilywhites’ squad.

But, with four years remaining on a deal at London rivals Chelsea and a likely astronomical asking price, transfer chief Fabio Paratici may be best served to look elsewhere for cheaper support for Harry Kane.

In other news: Journalist endorses reported Tottenham move for England man! Find out more here.

Tottenham Hotspur winger Steven Bergwijn is attracting interest ahead of the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

In recent comments cited by SoccerNews (via Sport Witness), Erik ten Hag suggested that he would be willing to make a move for the 24-year-old forward in the upcoming winter market, as well as revealing that he is currently exploring the possibility of securing a deal for the Netherlands international.

When discussing Ajax’s January transfer business, the 51-year-old said: “I may repeat myself, but we want to improve. If there is an option for that, we will investigate it. Whether we also investigate Bergwijn’s situation? We investigate everything. We are professionals.”

Levy must axe Bergwijn

While it is undeniable that Bergwijn is a player who can produce a moment of magic for Spurs, such as his incredible debut goal against Manchester City, whether or not the forward has proven worth his £27m transfer fee is another – much more debatable – matter entirely.

Indeed, over his 21 Premier League appearances – only 13 of which came as starts – during his first full season in north London, the £26m-rated winger scored just one goal, registered three assists and created no big chances for his teammates, as well as taking just 0.7 shots and making a mere 0.6 key passes per game.

These returns saw the player who Nuno Espirito Santo dubbed a “unique” talent earn a disappointing seasonal SofaScore match rating of 6.56, ranking him as Spurs’ worst performer in the top flight.

Things have not improved much for the £73k-per-week winger this term, averaging a SofaScore match rating of 6.70 over his six league fixtures, as well as being awarded just three minutes of first-team football since Antonio Conte’s arrival at the club.

Indeed, it has been reported that the Italian is far from the 24-year-old’s biggest fan, with Dutch journalist Mike Verweij even claiming that Conte has spoken just “two words” to Bergwijn during his short time at the club.

As such, with Bergwijn’s resale value still likely to be relatively high, it would seem a wise move for Daniel Levy to cash in on the forward this winter. As it seems unlikely that the Dutchman will become an important part of Conte’s first-team squad at Spurs, his hefty weekly wage could easily be put to better use by the 52-year-old in January.

In other news: Paratici can seal Conte’s dream Spurs signing in 6 ft 1 beast he dubbed “outstanding”

Leeds United are one of many teams interested in Rob Dickie ahead of the January transfer window…

What’s the word?

That’s according to The Athletic, who claim that the Yorkshiremen are among several sides keen to sign the Queens Park Rangers defender. Many of their Premier League rivals, including West Ham, Southampton, Wolves and Burnley are also mentioned.

Whilst no asking price is specifically mentioned by the report, it’s believed that the Championship outfit would command at least eight figures – give or take £10m – though Transfermarkt value him at just £2.7m.

QPR managed to squeeze nearly £20m out of Crystal Palace for Eberechi Eze last summer, so they are capable of driving a hard bargain.

Bielsa needs him

On the face of it, another centre-back addition is perhaps the last thing on Victor Orta’s agenda but given the injury nightmare that manager Marcelo Bielsa has suffered, it wouldn’t go amiss to add a talent like Dickie.

The likes of skipper Liam Cooper, Pascal Struijk, Robin Koch and Diego Llorente have all faced time on the sidelines since the start of the season. It’s gotten so bad that Luke Ayling had to partner the German in the middle against Arsenal last time out, despite both only just returning from their own injuries.

Standing at a whopping 6 foot 4 and right-footed, the 25-year-old would hand the Argentine a very reliable option to his backline, especially as he’s equally adept in a four and a three.

“Rob is so comfortable on the ball. Physicality, aerially strong, passing: his technical base is so sound. He’s a very talented player,” claims his manager, Mark Warburton.

The Athletic go as far as comparing him to Manchester United defender Harry Maguire in terms of playing style.

Currently, Dickie ranks as the Rs’ best performer on the season so far, averaging a 7.16 rating on WhoScored. An average of 3.9 aerial duels won, 1.8 tackles, 1.5 interceptions and 82.2% passing accuracy, via WhoScored, would certainly back up the aforementioned praise and likeness.

Also lauded for his leadership and being an “unbelievable man” by his former Oxford boss Karl Robinson, the QPR star would surely be a player that Bielsa would love to have at his disposal.

For a little over £10m, it could be quite the steal.

AND in other news, Bielsa dealt gutting Leeds United transfer blow ahead of January…

Tottenham Hotspur are set to sanction the departure of promising academy gem Dilan Markanday this week…

What’s the word?

That’s according to Sky Sports reporter Lyall Thomas, who delivered an update on the situation to fans on Twitter this week.

“#Blackburn are close to agreeing [on] a deal to sign #Tottenham winger Dilan Markanday,” he said. “The context around this is that #Tottenham have wanted Markanday to sign a new contract and go out on loan, but he wants a permanent part of a senior first team and he’s good enough. A string of Championship clubs offering him the chance, including #Blackburn.”

Indeed, this certainly appears to be the case as fellow reporter Michael Bridge delivered his verdict to GIVEMESPORT.

“No confirmation yet, but I understand that Markanday’s contract runs out at the end of the season, so you’d assume it was a permanent deal.”

Terrible news

Spurs now seem set to lose out on one of their most exciting young talents, one that is a boyhood supporter of the club.

Markanday has been in electric form for the U23s this season, scoring 12 goals in only 14 appearances in the Premier League 2 and he has done so playing in a variety of attacking positions – largely, upfront and on the left flank.

A winger by trade, the 20-year-old seems a nice fit for Antonio Conte’s system as he can provide valuable backup to the likes of Harry Kane and Heung-min Son.

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However, he just hasn’t been trusted to feature under the Italian, whereas players like Dane Scarlett have. Baffling.

The Barnet-born starlet envisaged spending his whole career at the club, as he revealed to the Independent back in November.

“The dream is to play for Tottenham for the next 15 years, playing every game, but obviously I know things might not work out and there are going to be ups and downs. But all I can control is the controllables and things will work out for the best,” he claimed.

Dubbed a “big talent” by broadcaster and Spurs fan Greg Jenner, it seems inexcusable to let a player with Markanday’s talent and attitude leave the club this month, instead of tying him down and plotting out plans for him to become a first-team star.

Just as Jenner is angry, much of the Lilywhites faithful are too – many were left dubbing the youth system a “joke.”

It wouldn’t be the first time that the club has lost a promising talent, either. You only have to look at what Noni Madueke has done in Holland to see why this is a major mistake.

No wonder many are fuming with this news.

AND in other news, “I’ve just had a message”: Duncan Castles drops Spurs transfer bombshell, Conte will be livid…

This season, Jadon Sancho has been making quite the impression at Borussia Dortmund.

The 18-year-old, who won his first senior cap for England last November, is now a starter at the Bundesliga outfit and is making regular goal contributions from his position out wide.

The winger, of course, joined Dortmund from Manchester City back in the summer of 2017 and has recently spoken about what motivated him to make such a move.

The Breakdown

“Why Dortmund? It speaks for itself: youngsters get opportunities,” Sancho told FourFourTwo in an exclusive interview.

“You’ve got to thank Dortmund, because it’s unheard of for a team that gets 80,000 fans at every home game to put so much faith in youngsters. It was crazy how many clubs wanted me – it shows how well you’re doing, but I always felt Dortmund was right for me.”

Ultimately, it is fair to say Sancho’s move to Dortmund has worked out and extremely well one might add. From a Manchester City perspective, though, what does their former winger’s comments about youngsters getting opportunities at the Signal Iduna Park say about them?

It sounds almost like a jibe at the Citizens, who just do not offer that in this moment of time in their quest for trophies. For all of the success they can guarantee and money they can offer, the Etihad looks a place where exciting young players do not wish to be with Brahim Diaz also recently following Sancho out of the exit door.

And while supporters will be quick to point to Phil Foden, the 18-year-old looks to be the exception rather than the norm.

Sancho’s success could now lead to an exodus of young English players leaving their clubs to venture into a foreign league with Chelsea’s Callum Hudson-Odoi looking like the next name who could be about to follow in the England international’s footsteps.

Celtic sanctioning the sale of Kyogo Furuhashi in the January transfer window would be a disaster for Ange Postecoglou.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a claim made by Stuart Hodge, with the journalist stating his belief in an interview with GIVEMESPORT that, with Southampton reportedly interested in signing the centre-forward in the January transfer window, should the Hoops cash in on the 26-year-old, it would represent a clear lack of ambition from the Parkhead side.

Speaking about the interest in Kyogo, Hodge said: “If they sell Kyogo Furuhashi after six months, then, I’m not saying it’s going to lead to protest because you never know, but it would be the most telling nail in the coffin of the lack of ambition that Celtic now have – if they were to do that.”

Fans would be fuming

Considering just how impressive the £4.86m summer signing has been for Celtic so far this season, should the club indeed decide to sell the Japan international in the winter market, it would undoubtedly be a decision that would leave fans of the club fuming – as Hodge suggests.

Indeed, over his six Scottish Premiership appearances this term, the £1.8m-rated man has already found the back of the net four times, as well as taking an average of 2.3 shots and making 0.8 key passes per game.

However, it is not only in the league where Kyogo has been prolific in front of goal, as the centre-forward has also scored three goals over four Europa League qualifying fixtures, bagged one goal over two appearances in the Europa League proper and netted one goal in one appearance in the Scottish League Cup – taking his total haul for the season to nine goals in 13 games.

As such, it is easy to see why Hodge believes that selling the striker in January would represent a lack of ambition on the part of Celtic, as it very much appears as if the 26-year-old possesses the ability to fire Celtic back to glory in the current campaign.

In other news: 61 game-changing actions prove Ange is finally living up to his biggest Celtic promise

Liverpool head into Thursday evening’s Champions League quarter-final second-leg meeting with Benfica knowing that any result better than a two-goal losing margin will see them progress to the semi-finals of the competition – something that, considering their dominating 3-1 victory at the Estadio da Luz last week, would appear an extremely likely outcome.

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And, with Jurgen Klopp revealing in his pre-match press conference that he has a fully fit squad to pick from ahead of this evening, the Reds’ comfortable lead on aggregate could well lead to the 54-year-old selecting a somewhat rotated squad against the Eagles – especially with another showdown against Manchester City coming up on Saturday in the FA Cup semi.

So, will the German make any changes to the side that started the 2-2 draw with City last weekend? Here’s how we think Liverpool could line up against Benfica…

With Klopp’s fully fit squad boasting an exceptional amount of strength in depth, we predict the 54-year-old will make six changes from his starting XI at The Etihad on Sunday.

In the back five, Alisson gets the nod between the sticks, while both centre-back Ibrahima Konate and left-back Kostas Tsimikas come into the XI for Joel Matip and Andy Robertson respectively – with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Virgil van Dijk retaining their spots at right-back and centre-back.

In the middle of the park, after highly impressing in the first leg, Naby Keita makes a return to the side alongside Jordan Henderson – who drops back into the six – and Thiago Alcantara in Klopp’s three-man midfield, with the £180k-per-week Fabinho – who journalist Declan Carr dubbed “woeful” against City – dropping to the bench.

Finally, there are wholesale changes in attack, with all three of Mohamed Salah, Diogo Jota and Sadio Mane being afforded a rest, while Harvey Elliot – who journalist Tom Barclay labelled a “wonderkid” – Roberto Firmino and Luis Diaz all come into the XI.

AND in other news: Liverpool in talks to sign “absolutely crazy” £42m talent, it could be bye-bye Salah

An exciting Rangers transfer update has emerged, regarding a player Giovanni van Bronckhorst is keen on bringing to Ibrox this month…

What’s the talk?

According to Bologna Sports News, via the Daily Record, a decision is imminent from winger Andreas Skov Olsen in regards to where he will be playing his football in the second half of the season.

The report claims that Sampdoria and the Gers are two of his options as he prepares to leave the Serie A side on loan for the next few months, with a final call set to be made in the coming days.

Bologna Sports News have also followed this with another snippet on the Denmark international, claiming that they would also be open to selling him on a permanent basis if the right offer came up. The Italian side would like a fee in the region of £5.8m for his services.

Excited

This update will surely leave Rangers fans feeling excited as it appears as though they will know sooner rather than later whether or not he will be playing in Scotland this season.

The initial report indicates that it may be a straight shoot-out between Sampdoria and van Bronckhorst’s side and the former may have the advantage of being in the Serie A, which means that Olsen would remain in a division he knows well and would not need to move countries for the transfer.

However, he may want to try a new adventure and test his skills in the Premiership with Rangers. Fans would be buzzing if he does decide to make the switch to Glasgow as he’d make be an excellent addition to van Bronckhorst’s playing squad.

The attacker has registered two assists in five Serie A starts this season, whilst right-sided Gers duo Scott Wright and Ianis Hagi are both yet to manage a single assist in the Premiership. This suggests that he would come in and provide an extra level of creativity to the team on the right-wing, handing the likes of Kemar Roofe and Alfredo Morelos more service to thrive off in the coming months.

In ten games for Denmark in this year’s World Cup qualifiers, he has produced five goals and three assists for his country whilst averaging an excellent WhoScored rating of 7.39. He has been able to perform at the top level for the Danes and could, therefore, have the quality required to come in at Ibrox and be a hit out wide, which is why fans will be excited by the prospect of him arriving this month.

AND in other news, “In talks” – Campbell drops crushing Rangers transfer claim, it’s a nightmare for GVB…

Now Eddie Howe is through the door at St James’ Park, the Saudi Public Investment Fund (PIF) are eyeing another major Newcastle United appointment…

What’s the word?

According to the Telegraph’s Matt Law, former Chelsea technical director Michael Emenalo has emerged as a leading candidate to become the Magpies’ new director of football.

“Newcastle United make Michael Emenalo their top choice for the director of football job following talks in Saudi Arabia. More talks to follow. Would be a huge coup for the new ownership,” he tweeted earlier this week.

It’s thought that the 56-year-old travelled to Saudi Arabia to hold talks with Newcastle’s new owners and has now become their first-choice option for the role.

Talks are expected to accelerate during the international break, whilst Emenalo is said to be a big fan of Howe, having spoken glowingly about him during recent discussions.

Game-changing hire

Whilst the appointment of the former AFC Bournemouth stalwart is huge for the club, especially post-Steve Bruce, the arrival of the Nigerian could be exactly what PIF need to truly revolutionise the northeast sleeping giants.

During Emenalo’s time at Stamford Bridge, he won the Premier League three times, the Champions League, the Europa League, the FA Cup and the League Cup, whilst he played an integral role in appointing those managers that led the Blues to glory and was key to their impressive recruitment.

It was the 56-year-old who spotted and signed talents like Kevin De Bruyne, Romelu Lukaku and Thibaut Courtois. He also helped convince Eden Hazard to make the switch from Lille.

Furthermore, he had plenty of influence on their academy, which in recent times has seen players such as Mason Mount, Reece James, Tammy Abraham and Fikayo Tomori go on to become first-team regulars, both in west London and elsewhere.

These are all elements that have been lacking from St James’ Park for several years, if not forever, so by appointing the former Monaco man, PIF could genuinely change the Magpies’ fortunes – starting deep behind the scenes.

None of Newcastle’s most-recent starting XI had an academy graduate in it, with Sean Longstaff the only member on the bench, whilst the club’s transfer dealings over the past few seasons only further highlight the need for someone like Emenalo – think club-record £40m signing Joelinton, for example.

So forget Howe, the ex-Chelsea supremo could be the final piece of the puzzle for the Magpies’ new ownership, and it’s a decision that could be game-changing for the club.

On the above evidence, those around Tyneside should be absolutely buzzing.

AND in other news, David Ornstein drops major Newcastle update that’ll surely leave Eddie Howe gutted…