All posts by h716a5.icu

When it’s come to recruiting new strikers in the last few years, Wolves have often got things disastrously wrong.

The anomaly is Raul Jimenez. The Mexican has been nothing short of sensational since moving to Molineux, scoring 47 goals in 110 outings.

However, those who have joined the pecking order behind him have been rather lacklustre. The club’s record signing in Fabio Silva has only found the net on two occasions after moving for £35.6m.

The less said about Willian Jose the better. He joined on loan in January but is yet to score for the Old Gold in 10 appearances.

A similar failure has followed Patrick Cutrone. Once renowned as one of the most promising footballers in Italy, his career has gone downhill at a rate of knots.

Signed for £16m, the Italy international represented a bargain move. He was valued by Transfermarkt at £18m when he penned terms but he has not been worth the fee.

Cutrone spent the first half of 2019/20 trying to break into the team and occasionally he looked promising, scoring three goals. However, the fact of the matter is that the forward hasn’t netted in Wolves colours since December 2019.

Of course, loan moves have subsequently followed to Fiorentina and Valencia, but that sums up Wolves’ attitude towards Cutrone.

He has often been the scapegoat, a man they look to cast aside rather than nurture. Unfortunately, the striker doesn’t have a particularly healthy relationship with Nuno Espirito Santo either.

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Speaking about his Wolves career in the past, the £62.9k-per-week earner commented: “The fans loved me, they dedicated a chant to me. After all, I scored three goals in the few minutes I played. But I had a coach that preferred to focus on the ones who had been loyal to him.”

It was a sly dig from Cutrone, a player who has been rather harshly treated by Nuno.

The 23-year-old spent the opening half of this season on loan at Valencia but after failing to score in four outings, Wolves recalled him during the winter.

They viewed the Italian as someone who could offer cover in the absence of Jimenez, who sustained a fractured skull in November and hasn’t recovered sufficiently. However, after playing just 23 minutes of Premier League action, Cutrone was loaned to Fiorentina again.

His torrid tale has continued in his homeland, failing to score upon his return. As a result, Cutrone’s market value has unsurprisingly fallen since signing for Wolves.

He is now valued at just £9m by Transfermarkt, a decrease in value of 60% from when he first arrived in England.

Bearing in mind how his career at Wolves has gone, Jeff Shi will surely be looking to cast him aside for good in a few months time; it only feels right that they finally part ways.

That being said, they are very unlikely to make any form of profit.

AND in other news, Wolves must swoop for “outstanding” 6 ft 6 colossus, “he’s a great user of the ball”…

Carlo Ancelotti should strive to recall James Rodriguez at home to Burnley on Saturday in a vast shake-up to his Everton midfield.

The Colombian has missed his side’s last three Premier League fixtures with a minor injury sustained following last month’s Merseyside derby win away to Liverpool.

Rodriguez had helped to open the scoring at Anfield, with his perfectly weighted through ball finding Richarlison in the Reds’ box for an eighth assist in all competitions this season.

Everton have scored just twice in the top-flight affairs that Rodriguez has missed so far in March, with the Blues beating Southampton and West Bromwich Albion 1-0 before falling to a 2-0 defeat at Chelsea on Monday night.

Ancelotti’s side struggled to break down the Saints, Baggies and Blues’ backlines in each match played without summer signing Rodriguez pulling the strings, with Everton scoring from their only shot on target against Ralph Hasenhuttl’s St. Mary’s natives.

The Toffees struck home away to Sam Allardyce’s Hawthorns outfit from one of three shots on target, while failing to find the back of the net at Stamford Bridge last time out, with Andre Gomes’ 25-yard strike in first-half stoppage-time being their sole on-target effort.

With Everton also having lost each Premier League tie with relegation-threatened Newcastle this season, as well as dropping points to Fulham, Leeds and West Ham – who often sat back to absorb the pressure – former Blues defender Michael Ball is concerned by how Ancelotti’s men will unlock a route to goal against Burnley this weekend.

“The big question for me heading into this run of games is who is going to be the player to change the game? Who is going to be the one to unlock the opposition’s defence? And who ultimately is going to win us the game?” Ball wrote in his column for the Liverpool Echo.

“We have seen this season that we are really good at defending deep and then hitting sides on the counter-attack. But when asked to take the game to sides, we have really struggled to. However, starting this weekend, I would really like to see us take the game to Burnley and play on the front foot a bit more.”

Ancelotti can look to grant Ball his wish of seeing Everton play on the front foot against Sean Dyche’s Burnley by recalling Rodriguez to the starting line-up, should the Colombian be passed fit in time.

Rodriguez has been one of the Toffees’ most-creative players in the Premier League since moving to Goodison Park from Real Madrid in the off-season, with only Lucas Digne (6) providing more assists than the ex-Galactico (4), albeit having played 339 more minutes.

The midfield maestro also offers the highest volume of chances created per game with 1.7 key passes to Digne’s 1.4 and Gylfi Sigurdsson’s 1.1, who also boasts four assists, per WhoScored.

Lining Rodriguez up centrally beside Sigurdsson and with Digne to their left and Richarlison on the right, rather than in the centre-forward role the Brazilian has recently occupied, could be Ancelotti’s best route to unlocking the maxiumum potential of his options, given he will be without Abdoulaye Doucoure.

Digne has featured on the wing six times this season in all competitions, and returned half of his six assists in the role with two chances created helping to beat Fulham 3-2, as well as playing in Alex Iwobi to open the scoring during a 2-1 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Having his most creative weapons playing further up the field together may also help Dominic Calvert-Lewin return to form, having cut an isolated and often invisible presence during Monday’s loss to Chelsea.

Much will naturally depend on Rodriguez’s fitness, but Ancelotti should not leave the £31.5m-rated playmaker out against Burnley if the 29-year-old is ready to pull the strings again.

AND in other news, Everton will listen to offers for a £16m-rated ace who has failed to live up to his price tag…

In recent comments made on Twitter, ExWHUemployee discussed the impact Kevin Nolan has had since his appointment as a coach at West Ham United.

The Irons have been one of the more surprising success stories this season, with David Moyes and his coaching team transforming a side which finished just five points above the relegation zone last term to one currently occupying fifth place in the Premier League, well in contention for Champions League qualification with just 11 games remaining of their campaign.

Following the Hammers’ most recent victory, a 2-0 win against Leeds United on Monday night, ExWHUemployee singled out Kevin Nolan for praise on Twitter, claiming that the former West Ham midfielder’s set-piece coaching is another thing to add to the list of reasons to praise the 38-year-old.

Transfer Tavern Take

Since being appointed as one of Moyes’ assistant coaches back in February 2020, West Ham’s league form has been rather impressive, with the club winning 18, drawing nine and losing 13 of their 40 Premier League games played since Nolan’s arrival.

However, five of these 13 losses came over the coach’s first six games at the club, a period in which it could be argued the 38-year-old had still not had enough time on the training pitch to implement his ideas.

With West Ham having scored a league-high 14 goals from set pieces so far this season – something which ExWHUemployee claims falls under Nolan’s remit – it would very much appear as if the coach is indeed deserving of a considerable amount of praise for the work he has done with this West Ham side.

In other news: Many West Ham fans responded to this club update, find out more here!

Jose Mourinho looks to have been handed a big injury boost ahead of the Manchester City game, with Serge Aurier reportedly in contention to feature after recovering from the injury that kept him out against Everton.

The former PSG man has established himself as first-choice right-back this season under the Portuguese manager but missed the FA Cup tie earlier this week due to an injury problem.

Mourinho hinted in his pre-match conference that the Ivory Coast international might be fit for the trip to the Etihad on Saturday afternoon, whilst the Evening Standard have since reported that he could return at right-back having been assessed in training this week.

So far this season, Aurier has made 13 appearances in the Premier League, contributing two goals and one assist and averaging a solid 6.99 rating.

Spurs’ summer signing Matt Doherty was perhaps expected to be the regular choice in the Premier League under Mourinho but he has struggled so far this season, having averaged a much less impressive 6.72 rating for his performances in the top-flight.

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His disappointing start to life with the North London club was perhaps summed up when he was needlessly sent off against Leeds in the 3-0 win against Marcelo Bielsa’s side earlier in the season, whilst his last three appearances in the Premier League have all earned him below a 6/10 rating according to WhoScored.

Therefore, it is a big boost to have the £18 million-rated Aurier back fit, especially when you consider how impressive the 28-year-old was in the reverse fixture when Spurs won 2-0 despite City having all the possession and a plethora of goalscoring opportunities, with the right-back earning an impressive 7.47 rating for his performance on that day.

Certainly, with City having recently broken the English record for consecutive wins, earning their 15th straight success in all competitions with a 3-1 win against Swansea earlier this week, Mourinho’s side will have to be at their best if they want to leave the Etihad with some points, so having their first-choice right-back potentially available could be a huge boost for the Portuguese manager.

And, in other news, Spurs striker’s future looks under threat following WBA omission…

According to France Football, Tottenham Hotspur are one of the sides eyeing up a summer swoop for Sven Botman…

What’s the word?

It’s claimed that the north London outfit will try to convince the Dutchman into a move to the Premier League, though nothing has been agreed with either the player himself or his representatives.

Liverpool and Inter Milan are also mooted with interest in the 21-year-old defender.

Having signed Botman from Ajax for just €9m (£7.8m) as per De Telegraaf, via GFFN, it is thought that he’s now valued in the region of €30m (£25m).

Is Botman worth it?

If a new centre-back isn’t the top priority for Jose Mourinho and co this summer, then something is seriously wrong at Hotspur Way.

Last season, the club held the second-worst defensive record of any top-seven team in the Premier League and that problem has continued into this season, where a catastrophe of errors in the backline has been Spurs’ major Achilles heel.

Mourinho’s men have leaked more goals (27) than Aston Villa (26) and even Chelsea (25), who sacked Frank Lampard amid a run of poor form – how things change.

The Spurs boss has frequently chopped and changed his central options, though one player has remained constant in Eric Dier, who has started 21 of their top-flight outings, including four of their last five defeats as per Transfermarkt.

Botman, who has played only four more domestic matches than the Englishman this term, would be a major upgrade and should be signed at all costs this summer.

The Dutch gem, rated at £22.5m, is enjoying quite the season for the Ligue 1 leaders – indeed, according to WhoScored, no centre-back has contributed towards more clean sheets than Botman (13 total).

By comparison, Dier has only guided Spurs to six clean sheets in the Premier League, the last of which coming nearly two months ago at the turn of the year.

And when breaking down Botman’s defensive returns, he outranks the Spurs star considerably too.

In terms of work-rate off the ball, the 21-year-old is beyond clear, averaging more tackles (one) and interceptions (1.7) per game. At a tackle-success rate of 77%, it’s clear that many of Ligue 1’s attackers find Botman a difficult man to get past – the same cannot be said for Dier (0.8 tackles per game).

Whilst his positioning is ten times that of Dier, who only manages 0.9 interceptions per game.

This is often what lets the Englishman down – having moved into defence from midfield last term, he still cannot get in the right places at the right time, meaning his spatial awareness is actually quite shocking.

The Lille colossus is also a bigger and better threat in the air, managing 0.5 more aerial duels won per outing, via WhoScored.

Spurs rank 11th for this ability while six of their 27 conceded goals have come from set-pieces, so clearly there’s work to be done and Botman can help alleviate such a weakness.

At 6 foot 4, that’s hardly a surprise but given Dier is the same height, you can see why the Tottenham star should be doing better and it’s also no wonder that ex-PL defender and current Lille partner, Jose Fonte, “describes him as a machine and a man who doesn’t make mistakes,” according to The Times’ Duncan Castles on the Transfer Window Podcast.

That should be music to Spurs supporters’ ears as Dier has been as calamitous as anybody in the English top-flight this season, as seen by him conceding a clumsy penalty to Chelsea and then being caught out of position against West Ham at the weekend.

Also dubbed a “leader” by Les Dogues boss Christophe Galtier, it’s evident that Botman would not only be an instant upgrade but a massive one at that too for Spurs.

Mourinho desperately needs a new centre-back and the Lille sensation should, quite rightly, sit atop their shortlist ahead of the summer transfer window.

AND in other news, Levy can kill two birds with one stone in Spurs swoop for “insane” £40m-rated colossus…

They might not have come away with anything on Wednesday night, but Aston Villa showed once again why they are no flash in the pan this Premier League campaign.Dean Smith’s side have arguably been the stand-out performers this season, picking up some big results against big teams, and but for an incredibly controversial VAR call against Manchester City, may have earned a huge point at the Etihad Stadium.The Villans were desperately unlucky to be on the wrong side of a 2-0 score-line, but a number of their players produced superb performances as they more than held their own against the former Premier League champions, none more so perhaps than Matt Targett.The left-back was given the tough task of trying to deal with the pacey Raheem Sterling, and he more than held his own against the England international.His five tackles and four interceptions were both game-highs, and a testament of the kind of intensity he brought to the table out on the left-hand side – The Athletic’s Gregg Evans hailed his “immense” performance, and said that he’s been that way all season.

And writing in his post-match ratings, The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece said: “Like those next to him at the back, Targett enjoyed a spirited first half and kept Raheem Sterling at bay. Targett was cool in possession amid pressure on him as well and won his fair share of tackles and headers.

“Villa were far weaker after he went off for Taylor, even though Targett wanted to stay on. Targett was understated this evening and got the better out of Sterling, hence City taking off the England man.”

Dean Smith will desperately be hoping that his left-back’s injury is nothing too serious.

Meanwhile, this Villa man let Dean Smith down just as much as VAR…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Dean Windass has delivered his verdict on a potential return to Leeds United for James Milner.

The midfielder started his career at Elland Road but hasn’t played for the Whites since 2004. After leaving Yorkshire behind, Milner has gone onto play for Newcastle, Aston Villa, Manchester City and Liverpool.

He is now a multiple Premier League winner and he’s also earned a Champions League winners medal for his troubles.

Milner has previously been asked whether he would return to the club he rose through the ranks of as a trainee and he didn’t rule it out in 2019, saying: “I’m a fan. I always follow the team and the results. So you can never say no or even yes because just so much changes in football, you never know what happens.”

Football FanCast questioned Windass about a potential return this week and he admitted that although it would be a good fit for the player, he’d probably struggle to get into the side.

He said: “I think that’d be a good fit for him. But I think with James, he’d still want to play. And if he went to Leeds he won’t play, he will be just like he is now at Liverpool – a squad player. James will want to go on and play for an extra two or three seasons.

“I played until I was 39/40 in the Premier League and I wasn’t as fit as James Milner. So I’m sure that he won’t be looking at 35 – when I was younger, at 35 you retire. You get your pension and that’s it, you’re done. You play now until you’re 36, 37 or 38 and I’m sure that James will look that way.”

The £140k-per-week Liverpool midfielder played 50 times for Leeds between 2002 and 2004, scoring five goals in the process.

He was part of the side that were relegated from the top-flight 17 years ago so a return to Elland Road would be a fairytale ending to his career.

Certainly, as far as heading back to somewhere he loves, it would be a positive move for the 35-year-old. However, given his age, it’s unlikely he’d have what it takes to thrive in Marcelo Bielsa’s system.

You only need to look at the minimal impact Pablo Hernandez has had at the age of 35 this term. He’s started just two Premier League games all season.

AND in other news, Fabrizio Romano hints at possible “opportunity” for Leeds, it would usurp Rodrigo deal…

West Brom will be looking to build on last week’s first win of the 2020/21 season when they return to Premier League action this lunchtime.

Slaven Bilic’s men welcome a former manager in Roy Hodgson and his Crystal Palace side to the Hawthorns for the 12 o’clock kickoff.

The Baggies defeated rock-bottom Sheffield United to move out of the relegation zone over seven days ago, but now find themselves back in it after results last Sunday and yesterday.

Albion are dealing with several injury and fitness concerns, so the under-fire Croatian has plenty of decisions to make. Here’s the XI we’re predicting…

There could be as many as three changes this afternoon.

Sam Johnstone is a shoo-in to remain between the sticks as the Baggies’ first-choice goalkeeper whilst Bilic is likely to stick with the back three of Kyle Bartley, Branislav Ivanovic and Semi Ajayi.

However, he’s forced into at least one switch at left wing-back after Conor Townsend was ruled out with injury for the rest of the month and with Kieran Gibbs only fresh off dealing with an injury of his own as well as coronavirus, we could see young academy sensation Dara O’Shea take up a place as his replacement.

Darnell Furlong should be good to go on the other flank.

There is also a return for £10m captain Jake Livermore, who was another player that tested positive for the virus. He’s an integral part of Bilic’s squad and will surely be handed the reigns over Romaine Sawyers despite the 29-year-old filling in astutely.

His colossal presence in the middle will allow Chelsea loanee Conor Gallagher and Matheus Pereira freedom to roam further up the pitch, where the Albion manager could make a surprising final change.

Callum Robinson keeps his place as West Brom’s top goalscorer, but we could see summer signing Karlan Grant dropped to the bench after a string of underwhelming performances.

The 23-year-old, signed from Huddersfield Town for a total of £16m, has scored just once in six appearances and has recorded below 6.15 in four of those matches, as per WhoScored.

Hal Robson-Kanu could be the man to start instead.

It means Grady Diangana will have to once again settle for a place on the bench, alongside the likes of Rekeem Harper, Kyle Edwards, Kamil Grosicki and Cedric Kipre.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Carlton Palmer makes Slaven Bilic claim amid  “issues”…

Many Crystal Palace fans were not pleased with the performance of Christian Benteke during the match against Leicester City on Monday afternoon.

The South London side managed to pick up a 1-1 draw and this point will have pleased Roy Hodgson massively as his side had lost their last two games, having conceded ten goals in the two matches.

Benteke looked to have been turning things around at the Eagles, as he scored two against West Bromwich Albion and one against West Ham (Transfermarkt). However, his performance against the Foxes was not one that many fans were happy with. One even called him ‘anonymous’.

The Belgian picked up a 6.6 rating and it is easy to see why it was so low (SofaScore). He only managed one shot, which was off target, and he failed both of his dribble attempts. He also lost nine aerial duels, five ground duels and lost possession 23 times.

Hopefully, Benteke will soon be back to his goalscoring ways and in the December period, it is easy to get back on form as the fixtures come around thick and fast.

Here is what Palace fans said about the performance of Benteke:

“Been so poor since their goal. Benteke practically anonymous today and often out-muscled #cpfc”

Credit:@Olimite

“Further confirmation, if ever it was needed, that Zaha isn’t a centre forward, Townsend isn’t a premier league player, and Benteke shouldn’t even own a pair of boots! #cpfc”

Credit: @jonnysell

“Has Benteke actually won a header today?”

Credit: @Wheddsta

“Why did we bring Batshuayi in when he’s become 3rd choice? Not Benteke’s best game so should be bringing Michy on!”

Credit: @tgh316

“Benteke would be second to the ball in a one man race. Not only a terrible player technically but a lazy one too #cpfc #CRYLEI”

Credit: @PJeevesie

“We do look more defensively solid today. But it is at the expense of any attacking threat at all. Wilf and Benteke may as well not be on the pitch. Vardy comes on and it’s 0-1. #cpfc”

Credit:@MarkyP7

In other news, CPFC fans were fuming at one-star following the loss on Boxing Day. Have a read who it was here!

Stuart Dallas played through the pain barrier on Thursday night as he featured in his country’s latest European Championship qualifier. Despite his and the team’s efforts, it wasn’t enough to carry them into the competition as they fell to a 2-1 defeat to Slovakia.

The Leeds left-back picked up what looked like a serious arm injury during the fixture, but played the full 90 minutes, plus the extra time to determine the winner. No confirmation of a long-lasting injury has been given by the club, but it looked like it could’ve been a huge blow for the Whites fans. Should Dallas be sidelined, it could force Marcelo Bielsa to give young Leif Davis the nod.

Davis could be forced to step up to the plate

The 20-year-old has been limited to just 13 minutes of action this season, coming on as a substitute against Manchester City as Leeds held them to a draw. Davis managed to bag himself an assist last season despite playing only 192 minutes of football in total (via Transfermarkt).

However, despite his elusive status for Leeds, it’s clear Bielsa sees a lot of promise in the £90,000-rated defender. His versatility is something that could be of vital use to the manager this season, particularly if key members of the team pick up injuries or develop positive cases of coronavirus.

“I want to give an example,” Bielsa told Leeds Live when asked about promising members of the Leeds set up. “[Leif] Davis is a great player, full of future, resources and skills.

“In my opinion, Davis was far from the first team in our first year and after he worked a lot in the team, with brilliant willing, a lot of effort, dedication, he gives everything.”

The hard-working youngster could see the fruits of his labour pay off in the absence of Dallas. It’s clear that Bielsa is already a huge fan of his, he is just waiting for the right time to deploy the left-back. That time could be now.

In other news, Ouasim Bouy is surely headed for the door after rinsing Leeds’ money pot…