All posts by n8rngtd.top

Ernesto Valverde is hardly the most popular figure at Barcelona at the very moment.

The Basque coach has lately become the biggest target for harsh criticism at the club and many of the Blaugrana fans want him out sooner rather than later.

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The latest proof of that came after Valverde’s pre-match press conference ahead of the clash with Eibar.

Barcelona’s boss talked about their opposition, praising them for how they can make every team’s life difficult due to their obvious qualities.

And of course, upon hearing their coach’s words, many of the Barcelona faithful decided to swarm social media and Twitter with their negative comments.

They bashed Valverde for being a useless and brainless coach and also stated that it’s, in fact, him who makes their lives difficult and not the opposition they will face this Saturday.

Needless to say, they weren’t happy with what their manager had to say before the game.

You can see some of their reactions and comments down in the tweets below.

Check them out…

Liverpool fans have been celebrating Jurgen Klopp’s transformation of the club after seven Reds players have been nominated for the latest prestigious Ballon d’Or award.

Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah, Sadio Mane, Roberto Firmino, Trent Alexander-Arnold, Georginio Wijnaldum and Alisson have been chosen from the squad. The German manager guided the Merseyside club to UEFA Champions League glory in Madrid after beating Tottenham 2-0 in the final and accumulated 97 points in the Premier League.

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The Reds have picked up where they left off last season as they are top of the Premier League and undefeated after nine games, only conceding seven goals.

Supporters were delighted about the progression that their side has made since Klopp’s arrival in 2015, with the German being the fourth manager of Liverpool in the last decade.

One fan said that the 52-year-old has done “absolute wonders” with the squad, while another described the achievement as “simply incredible”.

Here you will find some of the best responses from Liverpool fans:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

The performance of Robert Snodgrass gave West Ham a much-needed boost on Saturday and he could be a solution for Manuel Pellegrini moving forward.

On the chalkboard

There has been much discussion over the reasons behind the Hammers’ lack of goals this term, with fans criticising Felipe Anderson and Manuel Lanzini after recent performances, with neither creating many chances of late.

In the last match when both started – away at Everton – neither managed a key pass, which explains the team’s failure to score.

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However, Declan Rice believes the problem lies not in creating opportunities, but in being clinical and, according to the expected goals table, per Understat, West Ham should have scored 14.57 league goals, which supports the England international’s claim.

Either way, Snodgrass’ recall to the side against Sheffield United made the difference, as he put away a chance against the Blades which was similar to one Lanzini missed against Crystal Palace, and a repeat of that display could lead him to starting more often.

Change of role

The former Scotland international isn’t getting any younger at 32 and he has had his fair share of injury issues throughout his career. That has impacted his physical ability and as a result he may not be well-suited to playing on the wing anymore.

He achieved an average of 1.8 successful crosses last year, but playing in a central role he could be given the freedom to drift out wide and take up threatening positions, allowing him to provide service for Sebastien Haller.

Snodgrass also showed his intelligence and used his experience well to read play on Saturday, which subsequently allowed him to take up scoring positions – and he almost won the game late on but instead his effort came back off the post.

By contrast, Lanzini has no goals so far, and only one expected goal, which shows he is failing to take up the positions necessary to punish teams. If that continues he may find himself playing second fiddle to Snodgrass.

Rice described Snodgrass as having a “blinder” against Sheffield United, suggesting he was a “top pro” who has earned game time through his effort, and if he can be productive on a regular basis then he could be very useful for his manager.

His inclusion should also motivate Lanzini and send a warning sign regarding his form, prompting an improvement from the Argentine in the process.

Pellegrini now has a selection headache following Saturday’s game, but that’s exactly what he’ll want as he bids to take the Hammers to another level.

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Things have started to unravel at Southampton in recent years.

The days of developing players like Luke Shaw and Adam Lallana before selling them on for huge fees, coupled with their smart recruitment when signings players such as Sadio Mane, seem like a far cry right now.

After stepping into the hotseat in 2015, Ross Wilson was the man responsible for recruitment at St Mary’s. Wilson recently departed for Rangers following a spell in which he alienated plenty of supporters on the south coast.

With his departure still fresh in mind, let’s reflect on his tenure and take a look at some of his more questionable transfer dealings while at Southampton…

[snack_break title=”Mohamed Elyounoussi”]

Signed from FC Basel in a deal worth the substantial sum of £16m, Mohamed Elyounoussi looked to be a promising purchase for the Saints.

The Norway international had scored 23 goals and recorded 30 assists for Basel in just 84 games before moving to England, but things didn’t go as planned.

The 25-year-old never scored for the Saints, nor did he grab an assist in 19 appearances, before leaving to join Celtic on loan back in the summer.

A costly mistake, to say the least.

[snack_break title=”Wesley Hoedt”]

Another significant waste of money from Wilson.

The Dutch centre-back arrived at St Mary’s after Southampton handed Lazio £15m for his services.

You’d expect some degree of basic defensive competency for that price, but it’s safe to say Hoedt was thoroughly awful before he was sent out on loan to Royal Antwerp in the summer.

It’s unlikely there’s any way back for Hoedt with the Saints.

[snack_break title=”Guido Carrillo”]

Arguably one of Southampton’s worst signings in years, let alone just a poor purchase from Wilson.

The Argentine striker was signed from Monaco in a then club-record deal worth £19m, but the St Mary’s faithful are still yet to see Carrillo actually score a goal.

He has recorded just two assists in ten appearances for the club, and he has been on loan at La Liga side CD Leganes since July 2018.

What a huge waste of money from Wilson.

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The 6 foot 6 Dane is still at the club and has started eight Premier League games already this season, but he has been far from convincing in that time.

Signed for a fee of £18m, Southampton fans would have expected much more from the towering defender.

The Saints have conceded the third-highest number of goals in the Premier League this term with 16 concessions in nine games.

While the blame for the defensive record cannot be left solely at his doorstep, the former Borussia Monchengladbach man certainly needs to improve to avoid being labelled a flop.

[snack_break title=”Mario Lemina”]

This is a player who has looked decent in spells but has largely been a disappointment as well as a man who got on the wrong side of Ralph Hasenhuttl.

Lemina signed from Juventus in a deal worth £18.1m, seemingly arriving with real pedigree having played Champions League football and won titles with the Italian giants.

However, apart from the odd eye-catching slalom or moment of futile flair, the Gabon midfielder has been more trouble than good and was shipped out on loan back in the summer, following Carrillo, Hoedt and Elyounoussi into exile.

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Everton fans on Twitter have been fuming after they were denied a penalty for what seemed to be a blatant handball from Dele Alli.

The Spurs midfielder’s arm made contact with the ball from a corner, and his limb was certainly in an unnatural position.

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Indeed, the youngster’s arm was way above his head, and when VAR got involved it seemed inevitable that a spot-kick would be awarded.

However, the video assistant at Stockley Park decided that the incident wasn’t worthy of a penalty.

Fortunately, Everton ended up scoring later on, but the penalty decision could have been the difference between one point and three points for the Merseyside outfit.

With the Toffees currently sitting in 17th place every point counts, and you can understand why some fans were fuming with this decision.

Here’s what the Goodison Park faithful have been saying on Twitter…

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

According to Sky Sports, Hull City forward Jarrod Bowen is ‘mulling’ over a three-year contract offer from the Tigers, with Southampton said to be tracking the attacker along with Newcastle and Crystal Palace.

What’s the word, then?

Well, the Championship side are keen to tie down Bowen, Kamil Grosicki and Jordy de Wijs as they look to push for a top-six finish this season.

The 22-year-old has already scored nine league goals while also recording two assists in 15 Championship appearances this term – Bowen has also scored once in the Carabao Cup.

The 5 foot 7 forward’s current terms expire at the end of the campaign, although they do include an option for Hull to extend the contract by a further 12 months.

Southampton can’t afford another Che Adams-like mistake

We have already seen how a player who was smashing it in the Championship can quickly find themselves potentially out of their depth in the top-flight.

Southampton parted with £15m back in the summer to bring Che Adams to the south coast, after the forward hit 22 league goals last season.

However, the Englishman is yet to score for the Saints in eight Premier League appearances since arriving at St Mary’s, and he is so far proving to be a costly mistake for the south coast side.

Southampton have made a number of expensive additions in recent years, splashing out £18m on Jannik Vestergaard, £18.1m on Mario Lemina, £19m on Guido Carrillo and £16m on Mohamed Elyounoussi, all of whom haven’t set the world alight at the club.

As a result, the Saints simply can’t afford to spend big – Sky Sports suggest he is valued at between £15m-£20m – on Bowen if he could potentially end up flopping after making the step up to the Premier League.

Furthermore, does Ralph Hasenhuttl even need the Hull star? The Austrian currently has Adams, Danny Ings, Nathan Redmond, Sofiane Boufal, Moussa Djenepo and Shane Long at his disposal.

If they do take the plunge on Bowen, they can’t afford for him to turn out like Adams.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Sheffield Wednesday are surely about to embark on something they’ve not quite experienced in over half a decade as come the end of the season, several substantial decisions will have had to be made over their playing squad.

Garry Monk was finally appointed as the successor to Steve Bruce in September as his reign barely lasted six months at Hillsborough after he elected to switch south Yorkshire for his hometown Newcastle.

Whether that decision has paid off remains to be seen, but you’d like to think the 40-year-old is going to get a fair crack at getting the Owls to the promised land of the top-flight.

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He’s currently been operating with a squad that has been built by his previous incumbents, so the January transfer window will hand Monk an opportunity to put his stamp down on the blue and white stripes of Sheffield.

This period of time will only kickstart a much wider series of events as the bulk of this side have contracts up at the end of the season.

An entire starting XI’s worth of players see their current deals expire this summer – including Fernando Forestieri, Steven Fletcher, Sam Hutchinson, Morgan Fox, Kieran Lee, and Atdhe Nuhiu.

Monk will no doubt sit down and have a meeting with the club’s owner Dejphon Chansiri at some stage as The Star revealed he would have a big part in any decisions, but ultimately, the final say comes down to the Owls’ chief in command.

The majority of those players out of contract have been at the club for some time, going way back to when Carlos Carvalhal was in charge, meaning the core of this squad could well be split up before next season – which may be a weird feeling for some at Hillsborough.

The south Yorkshire club also have the oldest squad in the Championship, which could well be something that the manager wants to change, meaning a lot of those players could be culled this summer.

Therefore, these players have plenty to prove to the 40-year-old if they want to hang around under his new regime – none are guaranteed a new contract.

Wednesday currently sit three points from the playoffs as they have faltered slightly in recent weeks – over the course of three of their last five matches, the side have seen points snatched from their grasp, which surely would have had them closer to the league leaders West Brom.

It’s soon going to be crunch time under Monk with the next few months likely to shape how he sees his squad lining up on the opening day next August.

Arsenal fans have taken to Twitter to react after Swiss journalist Marcello Pelizzari gave an interview revealing a lot of information about Granit Xhaka and the midfielder’s next move, stating that, unless there is a dramatic turnaround, the 27-year-old will ‘100%’ leave in January.The Switzerland international – who has won 78 caps for his country – was recently stripped of the captaincy by Unai Emery after an outburst in the 2-2 draw against Crystal Palace, and Pelizzari has revealed a lot about where Xhaka’s next steps could be.

He details that the former Borussia Monchengladbach man has been linked with Newcastle, Borussia Dortmund and Inter Milan, although it is AC Milan where Xhaka could end up given his love of the city and the fact that Ivan Gazidis is employed by the Italian giants.

One supporter said that they were “really happy for him” following the news, whereas another simply said “good riddance”.

Let’s take a look at some more of the Twitter reaction…

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Why Joe Gomez was booed at Wembley Stadium on Thursday makes little sense.

The Liverpool defender was involved in an altercation with Raheem Sterling in the England camp after the two had clashed during the Reds’ fixture against Manchester City in the Premier League last weekend. However, the 24-year-old winger was the one who was dropped for the match, even if there has been some discussion as to whether Gareth Southgate made the right decision.

Sterling may be a fantastic player, but he was at fault – which he confirmed in his own words on Twitter after the match against Montenegro. 22-year-old Gomez cannot be blamed for his teammate’s actions, yet he received the brunt of the abuse from the crowd. No wonder he was said to be “devastated” afterwards.

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This is just the latest episode in a tense atmosphere between Liverpool and the national team. One Reds fan called into talkSPORT this year to adamantly say he was “Scouse”, not English, but there is truth in his and other people’s comments.

They are not the only fans to say so, whilst Jamie Carragher (BBC via The Liverpool Echo) even admitted that he cared more about playing for his club rather than the Three Lions.

There is apathy towards England from sections of the Anfield faithful. When the Reds were challenging for the Premier League title last term, there were many rival fans who didn’t want them to lift the trophy. Even though winning clubs are often disliked, it is hard to remember such a distaste towards one side.

The reaction and vitriol towards Liverpool’s Gomez makes it easier to understand why portions of the club’s supporters are against the national side. Why would you be fully behind a team whose fans boo their own player despite him doing nothing wrong, and damage his morale in the process?

The situation was made even worse by the fact that the England supporters appeared to be siding with Sterling, a player who is far from popular with a number of Reds followers after being booed himself.

Incidents like this will do little to reduce the fans’ apathy towards England. For all involved, it is a crying shame.

Against Crystal Palace on Saturday, Liverpool will be looking to consolidate their place at the top of the Premier League.

They currently lead the way by eight points, with Leicester City and Chelsea currently on 26 points to their 34. Manchester City, the current back-to-back champions, are a further point back, on 25. After 30 years without a title victory, Jurgen Klopp and co could make history this year.

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This weekend, though, they will be without Mohamed Salah, Sky Sports say. The Egypt international has been struggling with an ankle problem ever since that tackle from Leicester City’s Hamza Choudhury. He was named in the Pharaohs’ squad for their latest fixtures, but he withdrew.

The 27-year-old’s absence means that someone else will have to come in. And it appears that many Liverpool fans are backing the Belgium international to take his place.

They have taken to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.