All posts by n8rngtd.top

The way that Steven Gerrard is going about life at Ibrox is mightily impressive and if he can carry on bringing in young hungry players then the Gers will be well set to compete with Celtic at the top of the Scottish Premier League next year. However, one signing that they have to make for that to happen is that of Ryan Kent, who could be re-loaned.

The young Liverpool winger has been nothing short of stellar at the Glasgow club this season. His return of six goals and nine assists in 42 appearances in all competitions have seen him named the Scottish Premier League’s Young Player of the Year and it will come as a surprise to no one that Steven Gerrard has been talking about potentially re-loaning the young attacker.

Kent is one of many loanees who has made his way to Ibrox this season, but he has undoubtedly been the most successful of the season. Gerrard didn’t have much luck with his other loanee from his former club when he brought Ovie Ejaria in, but Kent has more than made up for that. The 220year-old also faces some uncertainties of his own, as he’s unlikely to make the grade at Anfield, but has been a class above Scottish football.

Gerrard will know this as well as anyone. It won’t bother him one bit that Kent looks to be better than playing in Scotland and he will be as keen as ever to bring in the youngster for more season, even if it is just a temporary one in Glasgow. There is a lot about Kent to get excited about, and if Rangers get him for one more year then there is a real chance that they can end Celtic’s domestic dominance.

We’re not going to claim that Kent can help Rangers win a treble of their own, but if the £1.58 million ace, as rated by Transfermarkt, finds himself back at Ibrox next season then Gerrard will have a much better chance of winning silverware, even if only the Scottish League Cup. Nine in a row is going to be tough to stop next season, but if the Bluenoses are to do it, they will most definitely need Kent again.

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According to Sky Sports, West Ham United have had a bid of £18m for Barcelona midfielder Andre Gomes rejected, with the La Liga champions looking for between £25m-£35m.

The Portugal international is very much in demand following an impressive season-long loan spell with Everton in 2018/19, and Sky Sports report that the Hammers won’t be dissuaded by the fact they have seen an offer turned down, and will do their utmost to bring him to the London Stadium.

The 25-year-old scored one goal and provided a further two assists in 29 appearances in all competitions for the Toffees this term, and generally impressed with his work both on and off the ball.

Manuel Pellegrini’s men clearly feel that the Barca man can strengthen their central midfield options, with Mark Noble getting no younger and Declan Rice potentially needing a new long-term partner.

Gomes certainly came up his fair share of opposition top flight midfielders during the campaign that ended earlier this month, and he showed that he has what it takes to go head-to-head with some of the best.

One of those is Leicester City’s Wilfred Ndidi, who has quickly established himself as one of the best defensive midfielders in the Premier League.

The Portuguese star wasn’t fazed by coming up against players like the impressive Nigeria international, and he showed the strength and grit he has in his locker in the photo above by outmuscling the Foxes ace.

The fight to sign Gomes could be interesting over the next few weeks, but the image is a clear indication is why West Ham must raise their offer to get a deal for the 25-year-old over the line.

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Manchester United will prioritise the signing of a right-back and give Eric Bailly one more chance to prove himself at Old Trafford, according to ESPN.

What’s the word?

United are in a need of a defensive overhaul after shipping 54 goals last season, the most of any club in the top ten other than West Ham.

With weaknesses at centre-back and right-back, it will be a tall order for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to enter next season with a fully revamped defence.

However, according to ESPN the club will not immediately chase a centre-back and will instead give their current crop, particularly Bailly, another chance to assert themselves.

The Ivorian made just 12 Premier League appearances last season and has endured a torrid time with injuries since his promising debut campaign in 2016/2017.

One deserved last chance

Bailly has had such a tough time over the last two years that it’s easy to forget how good he was in his first season at Old Trafford under Jose Mourinho.

Brought in from Villarreal, the defender made 37 appearances in all competitions while wowing spectators with his combination of speed, strength and dribbling ability.

Granted, the last two years have seen these traits overshadowed by frailness and inconsistency, but at just 25 years old there is every reason to believe that Bailly can get back to his best.

Soon after his incredible start to life in English football Ian Wright heaped praise on the centre-back saying: “You look at how good he is. Everything. Pace, athletic ability, defending, reading, strength, you think to yourself, yeah, you could see him being at United for the rest of his career.

“And if he does leave it will be Barcelona or Real Madrid. He’s that kind of player.”

While this quote doesn’t explain everything about Bailly’s ups and downs as a United player, it does show that he has the ability to reach the very top. The Red Devils would be remiss to lose him and miss out on a player who could realise that heralded potential and become, like Wright predicted, a fantastic servant at Old Trafford.

All eyes at Tottenham Hotspur should be firmly focused on Saturday’s Champions League final.

The adrenaline should be flowing through the bloodstream, as will the excitement and the nerves that such an occasion brings with it.

However, it seems Spurs have also had one eye on a particularly impressive talent that could be a dream addition to the side if the north London outfit were able to land him.

Andreas Skov Olsen might not be a familiar name to many, but he is certainly a player that has been making a huge name for himself within Denmark for Nordsjaelland.

According to a report by The Sun, Mauricio Pochettino had the 19-year-old watched last season and would have been impressed with the teenager’s performances in front of goal.

A left-sided winger, Skov Olsen scored a remarkable 26 goals in 44 matches across all competitions! Figures a striker would be delighted with let alone a wideman!

And, to make things even better for Tottenham, it is believed they are leading the chase to sign the Denmark Under-21 international because of Pochettino’s success in terms of working with the younger players.

It is understood that Everton are keen on the 19-year-old, while Bayern Munich and Barcelona have also checked on him.

Although Spurs already have a couple of quality options to choose from when it comes down to the wide positions, Skov Olsen would still have to be considered an excellent prospect – especially for the £10million reportedly needed to sign him.

The young Dane appears to have all the qualities and traits needed to make a name for himself in one of Europe’s elite leagues and with Pochettino’s guidance, who knows what the limit is for the teenager.

Tottenham fans, do you think Skov Olsen would turn out to be a dream addition for Spurs in the future? Let us know below!

With Phillipe Coutinho nothing but a distant memory, Liverpool have pushed on to greater things. Indeed, Jurgen Klopp’s side showed the didn’t require the Brazilian’s creative spark as they eased their way to a 2-0 win over Tottenham Hotspur in the Champions League final.

However, you can’t help but feel there remains a missing piece to the Klopp puzzle, as Liverpool push on to end a barren 29-year wait for an English top-flight league title.

That missing piece is Nabil Fekir.

The French international has been linked with a move to Anfield once again this summer, with the Express reporting that the Premier League’s top two are fighting it out for Fekir’s signature.

After a failed medical at Liverpool last summer, the Merseyside club will be hoping for a more successful resolution to a transfer with Fekir.

The Lyon-native is his hometown clubs creative spark, with everything going through the £63 million-rated man. He has a keen eye for a pass and silky quick feet when dribbling however, he also contributes both goals and assists to Lyon.

Fekir scored 12 goals and provided nine assists as Lyon qualified for the Champions League and reached the French Cup final this season.

In the second half of this season, Liverpool drew against West Ham, Leicester, and Everton, Fekir. All games where Klopp’s high energy attack couldn’t provide the creative spark to break down solid back-lines. If Liverpool had signed Fekir last summer, he could’ve provided the creative spark needed to break open a resolute defence.

Granted, it’s not an exact science by any means, but no one would doubt the fact that that the Reds’ engine room has looked a bit short of ideas at times. Yes, it’s been talked about a lot, but just imagine what they could have done with someone to play behind enemy lines.

Obviously, Liverpool are a great attacking side with goals shared among their front three however, it is very clear to see no one in both their midfield or defence have the eye for a pass. The ability to possess a player who can split open defences is crucial, especially for a team chasing the title. While Klopp and his side have achieved greatness in winning a sixth Champions League title, they could improve vastly by adding Fekir to their ranks.

Reds, are you still keen on Fekir? Think he can upgrade your squad? Join the discussion by commenting below… 

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Josh Cullen has returned to West Ham United after a loan spell at Charlton Athletic, but could he actually be utilised by the club next season?

On the chalkboard

The 23-year-old helped the Addicks gain promotion to the Championship, making 35 appearances in all competitions and playing 90 minutes in the 2-1 play-off final win over Sunderland.

A Republic of Ireland Under-21 international, he is making strides at that level too, sitting on the bench as the boys in green beat Georgia 2-0 in a Euro 2020 qualifier on Monday.

His senior debut cannot be far away – he has won 15 caps for the youth side – and he has also made a total of nine appearances for the Hammers.

They have been sporadic, though, and he last turned out for West Ham’s first-team in 2017/18, making five appearances in all competitions. Before that, he had four outings in 2015/16.

At the age of 23, the time is now for Cullen to step up under Manuel Pellegrini.

He is an assiduous central midfielder, capable of shooting from distance, while he is also strong in the tackle and a good distributor.

He has not played in the Premier League for any length of time but manager Pellegrini may be forced into it, depending on their summer dealings.

Back-up

Declan Rice has been a beneficiary of the club’s policy of promoting young players to the first-team and has emerged as perhaps England’s finest defensive midfielder, but he needs help.

Currently, only Mark Noble, Pedro Obiang and Carlos Sanchez are able to provide support in defensive midfield and the latter two are more than likely to leave the club.

If no replacements are found, there is a high likelihood that Cullen could be the man drafted in.

He will, of course, need a good pre-season and he may have to catch Pellegrini’s eye there.

But if he manages to do that, he could end up saving the club a fair few quid.

They have been linked with the likes of Stanislav Lobotka, of Celta Vigo, and Barcelona’s Andre Gomes, but each would cost a pretty penny, pennies that could be spent on other targets if Cullen forces his way in.

Football FanCast understands that Pellegrini has been told that he only has £30m to spend – that can be topped up by player sales – and therefore it makes sense for the club to promote Cullen instead of splashing the cash.

It would, of course, be a gamble. But if it pays off, the Hammers may well feel like they’ve won the lottery.

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Leeds’ fixtures for next season have been announced, and the EFL haven’t been kind to the Whites with their scheduling.

The festive period presents the Yorkshire club with some of the most challenging fixtures they could ask for, and if they want to get promoted next season they need to improve on how they performed around Christmas last year.

Last season

Marcelo Bielsa’s team can count themselves incredibly lucky that they picked up as many points as they did over the Christmas and New Year period last term.

The Whites rescued four points with three injury-time goals against Aston Villa and Blackburn either side of Christmas. In these matches, Leeds looked off the pace and slow, and they were only saved by a late bit of brilliance from Kemar Roofe both times.

It’s unlikely that the Whites will get away with that again this season, and their poor performances ended up catching up with them. The Yorkshire outfit would go on to lose four of their next six games, including winnable matches against Nottingham Forest and Hull. This run saw them loosen their grip on the automatic promotion spots.

Watch Leeds United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

This year their run of fixtures during that period is even harder; therefore, their performances need to step up.

This season

In mid-December, the Whites play two clubs who will expect to be promotion hopefuls in Cardiff and Fulham, before a Boxing Day clash with Preston who knocked Bielsa and co out of the EFL Cup last year.

The game after that is a tough away fixture at Birmingham City, who were the only side to do the double over Leeds last term.

Things don’t get easier from there – West Brom away on New Year’s Day is swiftly followed by a Yorkshire derby against Sheffield Wednesday.

Comparing this to last season’s run over the festive period, and you can see their fixtures are much tougher this time around.

United can’t allow themselves to lose focus around this time of year again, as last campaign it proved to be costly as the points they dropped around this time ruined their hopes of being promoted.

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Newcastle fans were stunned on Monday as the Magpies confirmed the impending departure of manager Rafael Benitez.

Benitez will leave St. James’ Park when his contract expires at the end of the month, Newcastle confirmed on their official site.

Now, the fact that their much-beloved Spaniard is leaving may not come as a huge surprise to a fan base who have become increasingly cynical the longer they have suffered under Mike Ashley, but the abruptness of Monday’s announcement was a huge shock.

Benitez has been strongly linked with a move to China, and it remains to be seen whether that will be his next destination.

Watch Newcastle United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

The Toon Army are now blasting the club on Twitter, unsurprising considering how highly they regarded their gaffer.

“Rafa” joined in 2016 with the club in free-fall, winning the SkyBet Championship in his first full season before guiding two really poor squads to tenth and 13th-place finishes in the last two campaigns.

Take a look at some of the best Twitter reactions to the Magpies’ stunning announcement down below…

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Aston Villa have been busy in the transfer market already this summer, adding Anwar El Ghazi, Jota, Wesley and Kortney Hause to their books on a permanent basis.

However, there is still plenty of work for the club to do. In a recent update, Alan Nixon claimed on Twitter that they were working on asking prices for Tyrone Mings and Neil Etheridge, but Jack Butland’s potential fee was too high.

Responding to the claim, there were mixed views shared as fans gave their opinions on the situation that was playing out.

One supporter said it sounded like Villa were being held to ransom by the clubs they were trying to do deals with but another said there was still plenty of time to get things done.

With asking prices for Butland and Etheridge high, two fans urged their team to go after Tom Heaton instead, making reference to the £5m fee they may have to pay. However, one individual was still keen to see the Cardiff goalkeeper arrive.

At the moment, the rate for the Stoke ‘keeper appears to be in the region of £30m.

Jed Steer recently signed a new deal with the club but it doesn’t appear as though the Villans are backing down in their pursuit of a new stopper.

Here’s the best of the debate from Twitter.

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Midfielder Youssouf Mulumbu has left Celtic less than a year after signing for the club.

Mulumbu arrived at the end of last summer’s transfer window but managed to make just three appearances before moving out on loan in January.

The player is currently at the African Cup of Nations with DR Congo, so his absence from Celtic’s training camp didn’t raise any eyebrows, but manager Neil Lennon has now confirmed his contract has been terminated.

Leigh Griffiths is ready and raring to go for Celtic next season. One fan discusses what we can expect from him in the video below…

Mulumbu won his move to the Hoops after impressing with Kilmarnock during the 2017/18 season and having returned to the club on loan this year, the Ayrshire club are no doubt again in the running to sign him up.

Celtic have already moved to strengthen the midfield area with the signing of Luca Connell and when you consider they have Scott Brown, Callum McGregor, Ryan Christie, Olivier Ntcham and others, they will not be left short by Mulumbu’s departure.

Hoops fans are unconcerned by his exit, taking to Twitter over the weekend to share their thoughts…