All posts by z3u9t.icu

Some Liverpool supporters are concerned about Naby Keita representing Guinea during the international break, due to his recent injury record.

The 26-year-old has had a frustrating Reds career to date, never quite managing to hit the heights many expected of him when he arrived.

Keita joined from RB Leipzig back in the summer of 2018 – he actually signed the previous year – with many expecting him to become Liverpool’s star midfielder.

It hasn’t quite worked out that way, however, with the Guinean falling behind the likes of Fabinho, Jordan Henderson and Gini Wijnaldum in the pecking order.

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While Keita’s performances haven’t always been up to the required standard, injuries are the main thing that have held him back, with constant absences from the team allowing him no rhythm.

When fit, he is an effective player who has proven his worth many times for Liverpool, but his inability to stay injury-free is a stumbling block.

According to RTE, Guinea’s national team have persuaded the Reds to allow Keita to face Mali next Wednesday, sending him back to Merseyside straight after the game.

Liverpool fans react to Keita’s international call-up

These Liverpool supporters took to Twitter to give their thoughts on the situation.

“Bad feeling about this”

Credit: @justdatguy_

“For once, Keita needs to take responsibility on his Liverpool career and future. The guy can’t get a run of games. Always injured. He should discuss with the national team and sit out these games atleast till end of the season. If he comes back injured, it’s on him this time”

Credit: @Iam_Ram2128

“OMG! If he comes back injured, that should be the end of his Liverpool career tbh”

Credit: @Smartooski

“I swear to god if he comes back with a broken leg”

Credit: @LivyLFC

“Seems obvious what happens next…..”

Credit: @andyj4mes

“If he gets injured from this I think that’s it for Keita with us”

Credit: @A_MKHIZE_SA

“There is Southgate and then there is this other Fool. We literally trying our best to train amd keep Naby Fit and they go and do this everydamn time”

Credit: @pearlserery

In other news, some Liverpool fans have been reacting to a fresh transfer link with a Premier League midfielder. Read about it here.

Mike Ashley can set Newcastle United on a brighter path by replacing Steve Bruce with Swansea City head coach Steve Cooper.

What’s the word?

According to the Mirror, the Jacks gaffer is on a seven-man shortlist of likely options for the Toon to consider should the axe fall on Bruce’s Tyneside tenure.

The Magpies are approaching their sacking season for under-fire managers, with Steve McLaren relieved of his duties and replaced by Rafa Benitez with 10 games remaining of the 2015/16 season.

Alan Shearer also replaced Joe Kinnear in the hot seat with eight games to spare in the 2008/09 campaign, but – like Benitez – was unable to avoid relegation with not enough time left on the clock to change the fortunes at St. James’ Park.

Newcastle have 13 games to play in the current term to save their Premier League status for another year, with Bruce’s side currently just three points clear of the relegation zone. They have also lost 14 of their 25 fixtures played to date – only basement boys Sheffield United (20) and West Bromwich Albion (15) have been beaten more often.

Ashley is now nearing his hit or stick moment with Bruce, and there are said to be several candidates in with a chance of taking over in Benitez, Roberto Martinez, Graeme Jones, Eddie Howe, Sean Dyche, Cooper and a possible Toon return for Alan Pardew.

Newcastle are not currently seen as a priority for Ashley, who is focusing on his Fraser Group high street empire, while Chronicle Live report that the United owner is reluctant to pay Bruce a seven-figure pay-off amid a lack of gate revenue.

But things could change quickly if the Magpies lose to Wolverhampton Wanderers and 18th-placed Fulham beat Crystal Palace this weekend, with Ashley’s stance thought to be dependent on Bruce keeping Newcastle out of the bottom three.

Should Ashley hire Cooper?

It remains to be seen if Ashley takes any action on Bruce’s position anytime soon, but the Newcastle owner can set United on a brighter path by appointing Cooper as his replacement.

Newcastle could face a lot of competition to hire Cooper, not least from Swansea with the Welsh outfit in the midst of a Championship promotion battle, but also from Crystal Palace.

The Eagles are said to have been impressed by his record at the Liberty Stadium and see the 41-year-old as a potential replacement for Roy Hodson, whose contract is up at the end of the season.

Cooper is also an attractive coach for his connections from the Young Lions fold, while his knowledge of the emerging youth talents in the country are seen to have given his current side a boost in the transfer market

He won the Under 17 World Cup with England’s youth ranks in 2017 after orchestrating a comeback to beat Spain 5-2 in the final, having trailed 2-0 in the first half. And those connections would certainly be useful at St. James’ Park this summer, where funds are expected to be tight and several gaps will need to be plugged.

Former England international Kevin Phillips additionally once lauded Cooper for doing a “fantastic job” at Swansea, while The Guardian describe his Jacks side as being built on solid foundations in Freddie Woodman – the Toon loanee has 16 clean sheets in 28 Championship games this season.

It would surely take a lot to prise cooper away from the Liberty Stadium, which may not appeal to Ashley after paying Sheffield Wednesday £4m for Bruce, but hiring the Swansea boss could be the best route to securing a brighter future on Tyneside.

AND in other news, Newcastle are exploring a deal to sign a £31.5m-rated star for free this summer…

Many Liverpool fans are not impressed with who has been appointed to take charge of Thursday’s crunch clash against Chelsea.

The Premier League have announced that Craig Pawson will be the referee for the game at Anfield and with Paul Tierney as the VAR official.

Jurgen Klopp’s side have won just once from their last five encounters, in a slump that saw the German tactician admit that their title charge was over for this season.

Last time out, they managed to comfortably beat Sheffield United at Bramall Lane though, with a 2-0 win, with Curtis Jones and a deflected Roberto Firmino strike sealing the deal. Victory on Thursday would see them jump Chelsea and West Ham into the top four, although the Hammers will have a game in hand.

But after being on the end of several controversial VAR decisions this season, supporters were not optimistic about the Premier League’s decision and feared that more judgments may be given against their team.

Pawson and Tierney didn’t impress these Kop fans

“Pawson and Tierney,match made in hell”

Credit: @Gavstar79

“Tierney on VAR is a disaster. I can already imagine him drawing those red & blue lines way of the mark.”

Credit: @NAtanason

“Pawson will award a soft penalty. Tierney will tell him it’s a stone wall one.”

Credit: @Liverpool3131

“Well that’s us stuffed then”

Credit: @DenMar7777

“Just wanna go back to the days where you didn’t care which refs are on your game”

Credit: @FowadZ23

“Why can’t we just have a decent referee for once”

Credit: @JustinC94019825

In other news, Ex-Liverpool star makes surprising team news claim regarding £20m big-name star.

Lee Johnson has made himself quite clear this winter. He wants to sign players capable of stretching the play in the final third.

If Sunderland are to achieve promotion, then those individuals must also be capable of scoring goals.

What’s the word?

The Black Cats’ festive and New Year period has been a rather disastrous one. Four games were postponed due to the ongoing pandemic and their 0-0 draw with Northampton last weekend hardly did enough to raise spirits.

However, the addition of new players this month could add a great deal.

Carl Winchester from Forest Green has been linked but a new target on their radar is Hibernian forward Kevin Nisbet.

According to The Scottish Sun, Sunderland have already made contact with Hibs in a bid to sign the 23-year-old.

It’s reported that the Mackems have asked for a valuation of the player ahead of a January switch. He was signed for £250,000 but considering his form, would likely cost Sunderland more.

Bye-bye Grigg

If Sunderland sign a new striker this month, then it would have two positives. Not only would it bump £4m signing Will Grigg down the pecking order, but it would also significantly boost their promotion hopes.

Grigg has failed to score at all this season and besides Charlie Wyke, they lack natural goal scorers. However, if they bring Nisbet to the Stadium of Light they’d have an exquisite finisher, one who has a habit of beating goalkeepers.

The forward has found the net on 12 occasions in all competitions for Hibs this season and it’s that kind of record that the Mackems have been crying out for.

Their top goal scorer in league football last term was Chris Maguire with ten strikes so it’s clear they need one thing in order to boost their promotion bid; more goals.

Nisbet would provide that in abundance and if a certain Jack Ross can get the best from him, surely Lee Johnson can as well?

Ross’ football wasn’t the most pleasing on the eye in the north-east but he’s extracted enormous results from the young striker in Scotland.

Speaking about Nisbet this season, the former Sunderland manager said: “Both feet, headers, tap-ins, longer range ones. Today (11/23/20) he played as a lone striker and that’s not something he’s had to do a lot this season, he’s played against Nir (Bitton) and Kristoffer Ajer who are two good players.”

Ross continued: “To show he can handle that and work tirelessly, and then get his reward, he’s been a brilliant signing for us and his goal return is excellent, at this season to have that number of goals is terrific and I don’t see that changing.”

Considering some of the defenders he’s defeated in the SPFL, he would surely be a big threat in League One. Kristjaan Speakman needs to sign him.

AND in other news, Sunderland could find their new Bailey Wright in £750-p/w gem once dubbed “faultless”…

With just 31 minutes of Premier League football under his belt this season, Leeds United starlet Leif Davis hasn’t had too many opportunities to impress.

Marcelo Bielsa has stuck to the tried-and-trusted option of Ezgjan Alioski at left-back, but if the Leeds boss is keen to get the best out of the 21-year-old Davis, then he would be wise to throw him into the starting line-up.

Speaking on The Inside Elland Road Podcast after a game with QPR last season, Yorkshire Evening Post journalist, Graham Smyth, said: “When Leif Davis came on, he just really showcased his pace. Legs were tiring and QPR were maybe a little bit more open because they were 2-0 down away from home and thinking they had to go for it a little bit and Davis just exploited that space on the left flank.

“For a defender, that is terrifying, somebody coming on with that kind of pace. It was reminiscent of Gareth Bale against Inter Milan, pushing the ball ahead and backing himself to beat anyone else to it.”

And according to The Athletic’s Phil Hay, Davis is highly-rated by those in and around the club, saying: “He’s very well thought of, is Davis, and he has been since he came, and of the Under-23s, he’s really been as involved as most under Bielsa and has quite often been the go-to player when Bielsa’s needed a left-back.

“The bottom line is that at Leeds, they think an awful lot of Davis, and they think that he’s a bit of a steal for what they paid to sign him from Morecambe.”

If Leeds do genuinely rate Davis highly, then this surely represents the perfect time for him to step in for Alioski. The 28-year-old has had a difficult season thus far at Elland Road, and could do with being dropped from the team.

In Davis, Bielsa already has someone who he can use to provide the type of attacking spark and drive that Alioski was known for bringing to the table, and he may even surprise him from a defensive standpoint too.

With Newcastle United up next in the Premier League, it’s perhaps the perfect time for the Leeds boss to start one of the club’s most promising young players and put the underperforming North Macedonian international on the bench.

Meanwhile, Leeds must try and sell this Radrizzani disaster…

Could this be Neil Lennon’s final match in charge of Celtic? Quite possibly.

Although he received the backing of the board after their 2-2 draw with Hibernian, they have now suffered three defeats in a row to Sparta Prague, Ross County and AC Milan.

In the process, ten goals have been shipped in what has been a disastrous period for the Hoops.

Time, therefore, is surely running thin on the ground for their manager.

A match against St Johnstone should be a Celtic win if things follow the script, but as we know, it has merely been torn to shreds in 2020/21.

Nonetheless, here’s the team we’re predicting Lennon to go with.

We’re tipping the Bhoys to make two changes from that side that were hammered by Milan just a matter of days ago.

Vasilis Barkas was hopeless between the sticks and as a result, Scott Bain comes back in to play in goal.

A further change is at centre-half where the £5.4m-rated Christopher Jullien replaces Nir Bitton at centre-half. Diego Laxalt and Hatem Elhamed keep their places at full-back which means Jeremie Frimpong gets another opportunity further forward on the wing.

Lennon singled him out for praise in that role on Thursday so deserves more chances to demonstrate what he’s capable of in the final third. The boss issued the following three-word statement at full-time on Thursday: “Frimpong looked outstanding.”

Tom Rogic scored in midweek so plays ahead of Olivier Ntcham in central attacking midfielder. Mo Elyounoussi has been ruled out for a few weeks so there is no place for him in the side. Defender Shane Duffy is also a doubt.

In other news, Celtic are on the verge of making a big mistake with Dembele…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former Southampton footballer Carlton Palmer has reacted to Alex McCarthy’s positive coronavirus test as Southampton prepare to play host to Premier League leaders, Liverpool, at St Mary’s on Monday night.

McCarthy has been an integral part of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side this season thus far, keeping seven clean sheets in 16 league games, via Transfermarkt.

The Saints manager, who has only recently returned from a period of self-isolation himself, confirmed that McCarthy may also be unavailable for the FA Cup clash with League One side Shrewsbury Town.

“After the last round of tests, we have one positive case now with McCarthy, so he’s out for the game on Monday and maybe also the Shrewsbury game, as he has to self-isolate for a period,” Hasenhuttl said.

Valued at £5.85m via Transfermarkt, the veteran goalkeeper has started every single game across all competitions for the Saints so far this season.

Only Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez has kept more clean sheets in the top-flight since the start of the season, with McCarthy averaging 2.9 saves per game, as per SofaScore.

However, despite their latest setback, Palmer isn’t too worried about his former team’s prospects, as he believes they have the strength in depth to adapt to the ever-changing environment.

He told FFC:

“It’s one of those unfortunate things that’s happened to most Premier League teams this season that they’ve lost one or two players to the virus.

“And it’s one of those things, these things happen, they happen to everybody, and it’s how you adapt. Of course, you’re always going to miss your best players, but it’s about how you adapt as a team and that’s what the pandemic has proven in life.

“It’s about who’s resilient, who’s strong, that’s what it’s proving now.”

Hasenhuttl does have the luxury of several options at his disposal – he will most likely hand Fraser Forster a rare start and could also call upon the services of one-time England U18 international Harry Lewis if required.

AND in other news, Southampton suffer Alex McCarthy blow before Liverpool clash…

Glasgow Rangers fans are far from happy with the comments made by Bill Leckie.

The Gers have been in stunning form so far this campaign on the pitch. After 18 games, they remain unbeaten, whilst they are nine points clear of their fierce rivals Celtic at the top of the Premiership. Not only that, they are currently joint-top of their Europa League group after two wins, against Standard Liege and Lech Poznan.

However, in recent days, some issues have arisen. It was revealed earlier this week that George Edmundson and Jordan Jones broke coronavirus regulations to attend a private gathering at the weekend. The Gers revealed they will launch an investigation into the matter.

Writing for The Scottish Sun, Bill Leckie says that the actions of the Gers duo are worse than those of Boli Bolingoli, who flew to Spain, and the eight Aberdeen players who went to a bar earlier in the season. This has outraged the Gers supporters, and they took to Twitter to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what they had to say about Leckie below

In other news, Rangers fans hammer this duo.

A lot of talk and uncertainty is swirling around Neil Lennon’s position as the head coach of Celtic. The Hoops were ejected from the Scottish League Cup on Sunday after Ross County beat them 2-0 at Celtic Park. This loss is now the third in their last five fixtures and tension is mounting for the manager.

The 51-time Scottish Premiership winners have hit a slippery slope this season and their chances of bagging a tenth consecutive cup are looking dimmer by the day. As it stands, Celtic are trailing to rivals Rangers by an enormous 11 points and despite their two games in-hand, the odds are heavily against them.

Carlton Palmer spoke exclusively to Football FanCast about Lennon’s future with the club and whether his time is running out.

“It’s always difficult, I never like to call for managers to go,” the pundit admitted. “I just think it’s very difficult. We all have too short memories. Neil Lennon’s done a fantastic job – well, when you say he’s done a fantastic job, he took over partway when they were flying. But still, I think it’s a bit early for them to start calling for his head.”

This is Lennon’s second stint as manager of the Bhoys, originally being appointed in 2010 and winning three league titles with them before announcing his departure. However, the connection between the club and the manager was clearly strong as he returned to the hilt of Celtic in February 2019.

“He should be given a bit of time to turn it around,” Palmer continued. “Sometimes you’ve just got to stick with them.”

Lennon has certainly achieved a lot with the reigning Premiership champions. He led them to three domestic trebles, dubbed the ‘treble treble’ and is highly regarded for this. However, this campaign has been extremely difficult and disappointing for a club with such a rich history.

If the Hoops break their nine-season consecutive champions run, it looks likely that Lennon will be thrown to wolves whilst Steven Gerrard basks in glory.

In other news, Celtic could evoke memories of 2001 by hiring Martin O’Neill…

Everton boss Carlo Ancelotti will have been left encouraged with what he saw from Dominic Calvert-Lewin as Gareth Southgate awarded the Premier League’s hottest striker his senior England debut against Wales.

Calvert-Lewin started the international friendly held at Wembley Stadium on Thursday night in an attacking trio alongside Southampton’s Danny Ings and Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish, and impressed early doors with the opening goal of the night after 26-minutes.

Solid footwork on the wing from Grealish opened a pocket of space for the Aston Villa playmaker to perfectly lift the ball into the penalty area, where Calvert-Lewin had broken free between the defenders to nod home wisely under Wayne Hennessey.

The goal put Calvert-Lewin’s name down in the history books as the first Everton player since Gary Lineker against Turkey in October 1985 to score for England at Wembley, and came as the stuff of dreams for the 23-year-old.

“It’s a shame there are no fans here to celebrate and my family aren’t here,” Calvert-Lewin told ITV Sport after the game, via quotes by Goal. “It’s bittersweet in that sense but to score on my debut it’s the stuff of dreams.

“I’ve worked very hard to get here, it’s felt like a long road but I’m very happy to be here and to get the opportunity and the goal.”

Calvert-Lewin has already taken the Premier League by storm this season with his best start to a campaign since moving to Goodison Park, having struck home six goals in four games with an average 3.8 shots per match – only Tottenham Hotspur’s Heung-Min Son has found the net as much.

Now breaking onto the international scene with a debut goal would have encouraged Ancelotti even more, as the Italian will have been heartened to see the forward take what he has learned beyond Goodison Park and display his talents on a wider stage.

The Sheffield-born star’s goal was typical of who Calvert-Lewin has become in the past year as he drifted off the defenders to find the space, but it was not only the header that made his performance stand out despite being taken off on the hour mark.

Southgate also utilised the £21.6m-rated ace’s hold-up abilities to bring other players into the game, while Calvert-Lewin’s clever runs in behind the Wales backline offered his Three Lions teammates an option to pick out whenever they looked forward.

Calvert-Lewin may now find he makes it two outings from two when England host Belgium on Sunday evening in the UEFA Nations League, with Southgate noting after the Wales affair that certain players were brought off early as he looked ahead to more important fixtures.

“We definitely felt there were players we needed to protect given the balance of the squad and how we see the next week or so playing out,” said Southgate, via Sky Sports.

AND in other news, Everton are in need of drastic action with a forgotten player after failing to deal with his situation over the summer.