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Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has confirmed that his side will be without Thiago for the Carabao Cup semi-final first leg clash against Arsenal on Thursday night.

What’s the story?

Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of the game against the Gunners at Anfield, he said: “Trent and Ali trained yesterday (Tuesday). Div and Thiago not. That’s it pretty much.

“Like always in these times, all players, apart from the injured ones or in Africa playing (the) Africa Cup of Nations, who test negative should be available. Robbo got a little knock in the Shrewsbury game but is fine. I’m not sure if I forgot anybody but the rest are available.”

Klopp will be gutted

Klopp did offer a more detailed update on Thiago’s situation earlier in the week after speculation initially emerged suggesting the Spaniard would actually be out for the entire season.

He reassured: “No. Neither March nor end of season is in my mind. It is something around the hip. That is the situation he needs time. He didn’t train this week but we expect him to start rehab from Monday.

“It’s not the case that he is out until the end of season.”

While that in itself is a major relief to the Reds, it remains the case that Thiago will play no part in the first leg of their crunch Carabao Cup semi-final tie against Arsenal later tonight.

According to FBREF, he averages 72 completed passes per 90 minutes in the Premier League this season, with Manchester City’s own Spanish maestro Rodri being the only midfielder to have played at least 300 minutes who averages more with 77.

Thiago is the conductor of this Liverpool side when he’s in the team, and that ability to control the tempo of the game is something unmatched in the rest of the squad.

It’s a major hole that doesn’t have a quick fix, and with the added fact that Liverpool have lost their second leg home advantage due to last week’s postponement, being without Thiago is another major setback and huge blow for Klopp.

It’s sure to leave him gutted that he won’t be able to count on his midfield play-maker tonight.

Meanwhile, Liverpool are in interested in this star Klopp absolutely loves…

Celtic have been handed a major boost in their attempts to bring Jota to Parkhead on a permanent basis this winter.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Portuguese publication A Bola (via Sport Witness), who claim that Benfica would be more than happy for Celtic to activate their €7.5m (£6.5m) option to buy clause for the 22-year-old winger in the January transfer window.

Previous reports have suggested that, as a result of the Portugal U21 international’s success in Glasgow, Ange Postecoglou is eager to tie up the permanent signing of Jota this winter, in a bid to ensure the forward is not tempted by a more enticing offer from another club come the end of the season.

Fans will be buzzing

Considering just how important a part of the Celtic side Jota has become since his switch to Parkhead this summer, the news that Benfica appear to be more than willing to wave goodbye to the winger on a permanent basis is sure to have left Bhoys fans buzzing.

Indeed, over his 11 Scottish Premiership appearances this season, the £3.15m-rated man has scored five goals, registered four assists and created two big chances for his teammates, while, over his five Europa League fixtures, the £7.1k-per-week winger has bagged a further two goals, two assists and created four big chances.

These returns have seen the player, who Postecoglou dubbed an “unbelievable” talent, average a SofaScore match rating of 7.38 in the league and 7.40 in Europe, ranking him as the Hoops’ fifth-best and best performer in the respective competitions.

And, while it is true that Benfica’s stance on the forward’s potential transfer is not overly important – as Celtic can activate their option to buy clause without the Portuguese side’s permission – should the Liga NOS club have informed Jota that he could be in line for a starting spot at the Estadio da Luz next season, this may well have influenced the 22-year-old’s decision as to whether or not he would be willing to accept Celtic’s offer of a permanent deal.

As such, the news that Benfica will not stand in the way of Celtic’s swoop for the player who Postecgolou “wants to keep” is sure to come as a major boost for everyone involved with the club, as the Portuguese starlet remaining at Parkhead beyond the end of the current campaign is something that bodes incredibly well for the Bhoys’ future.

In other news: Ange could unearth Celtic’s new Robbie Keane with swoop for “bright” 18 G/A machine

Tottenham boss Antonio Conte is closing in on his first transfer window at the club and will have the opportunity to make his own signings to bolster his squad.

Spurs are seventh in the Premier League as it stands, winning eight and losing five of their 15 league matches to date.

The Italian head coach may want to make some additions to the side to aid their attempts to sneak into the top four and secure Champions League football for next season.

Key issue

One area in which he must strengthen is the number nine position. Scoring goals has been a key issue for the club this term and Harry Kane’s lack of form has highlighted Tottenham’s overreliance on him for putting the ball in the back of the net.

They have only scored 18 goals in the top-flight and Kane has contributed with two of those. This has caused major problems for Spurs because the England international is the only recognised centre-forward in the entire squad, with winger Heung-Min Son the solitary player with more than two league goals.

It was recently reported that Saussolo forward Gianluca Scamacca is of interest to Spurs as a potential Dusan Vlahovic alternative and Conte must ensure that a deal is done for his fellow countryman. He is a young striker with potential who could come in and offer support and competition to Kane in the Premier League, which could help the academy graduate to find his best form with his place under threat.

Scamacca has made a name for himself in the Serie A with an impressive strike rate over the past 18 months. He scored eight goals in 13 league starts for Genoa in the 2020/21 campaign and has bagged himself five goals in eight starts for Saussolo this term.

This means that he has scored 13 goals in 21 Serie A starts since the start of last season, taking his senior tally to 32 strikes, showing that he has the quality to score goals on a consistent basis at the top level. Therefore, he could arrive at Spurs and provide a much-needed attacking boost to Conte’s squad and solve a key issue in the short-term – their lack of an alternative option to Kane – and that is why the Italian must secure a move for him.

He could also have the potential to be an excellent signing for the future. Ex-Italy U21 coach Luigi Di Biagio previously heaped praise on the young striker, saying:

“He can become a very high-level centre-forward.”

“He has the technique of a 1.75 m tall player and the physicality of a 1.95 m tall player, like him. And then he is complete: right foot, left, head, he attacks from deep, but also plays on the edge for his teammates.”

At the age of 22, the beast has plenty of time left ahead of him to develop and Conte could look to mould him into the perfect striker for his system.

He has already shown that he has the maturity in his game to be a regular goalscorer, albeit he will need to show he can adapt to English football, and his age and pedigree suggest that he could grow into a top player in the years to come.

AND in other news, Conte must axe “awful” £28.8m-rated Spurs flop in January, he’s a “liability”…

Many Everton fans have been slamming the performance of Fabian Delph in their game against his former club Manchester City in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

The midfielder did not enjoy his return to the Etihad Stadium as he was hauled off after just 63 minutes for Salomon Rondon, with the score at 2-0 to the hosts thanks to a cool finish from Raheem Sterling after a sublime pass from Joao Cancelo in the first half, and a rocket from Rodri after the interval.

Bernardo Silva added a third goal late on when Delph was no longer on the pitch, but some Everton fans thought that he should have done better to try and block the shot from the Spaniard for the second goal as it rifled into the back of Jordan Pickford’s net.

Delph failed to block any of City’s shots in the match and also failed to record a single interception or tackle, while losing out on all three of his duels (SofaScore).

Everton fans hammer Delph

These Everton supporters slammed Delph’s performance on Twitter, with one Toffee fans claiming that the 32-year-old was ‘pathetic’ against the Premier League champions:

“#delph not good enough, sorry”

Credit: @Cstyles1878

“Allan is so sloppy and Delph do me a favour, go as far as you can from Goodison”

Credit: @abbot551

“Delph just stopped then, pathetic.”

Credit: @GOT_Micknick

“Allan air shot. Delph air shot. Bunch of clowns.”

Credit: @rulitos14

“Is Delph playing for City???”

Credit: @g4j4s4

“Delph is playing against us”

Credit: @Evertxn

In other news, find out what stadium news has left these Evertonians gushing

West Ham have lost their last two games which will be a disappointment to the team, the fans and David Moyes as the side has dominated their position comfortably inside the top four for a while now.

Moyes will be frustrated with two poor results, as the Hammers are now equal on points with Arsenal and could have done with taking even just a point this weekend to give themselves the opportunity to keep the Gunners at arms length.

West Ham have been dealing with a few fitness problems throughout the squad, with Angelo Ogbonna’s ACL injury becoming the latest big blow to the side, with the player being expected to be out for the rest of the season after having surgery last week.

One player that gave West Ham quite the scare on Sunday during the game against Manchester City was Aaron Cresswell.

Creswell has had a great impact on the side’s success so far this season, with moments of defensive brilliance for the team, including an impressive and committed goal-line clearance early into the second half on Sunday afternoon that lead to the defender sliding into the goal post.

The nasty collision saw the full-back in a lot of pain after his back made a hard impact with the goalpost, and the defender was quickly substituted off the pitch for Vladimir Coufal.

West Ham fans flocked to Twitter in despair at the thought of another defender being ruled out of action for the foreseeable;

One wrote; “Cresswell now injured alongside Ogbonna. Hope it’s just a knock and he’s back for Wednesday. But the replacements aren’t good enough. That’s what happens when you don’t invest @ GSB.”

Despite the knock, David Moyes spoke out on Sunday evening to give an update on Cresswell’s condition;

“He is okay, his back is stiff after going into the goalpost. He was in a spasm really and couldn’t move his leg well at that point.”

Fans will surely be buzzing that the defender seems to be okay and there will be no further extended injuries added to the list, especially in the defence area.

It’s not known whether the defender will be available for the midweek Brighton fixture, but could be expected back for a challenging clash against Chelsea at the London Stadium this weekend, an eventuality that will represent a huge boost to everyone at the London Stadium given his importance.

In other news: West Ham are interested in Wout Weghorst

Kris Commons has made a bold Rangers transfer claim regarding a move they should make in the next window.

What’s the talk?

The former Scotland international has urged the club to pick up the phone and enquire about a potential deal to sign Billy Gilmour, who they targeted in the summer, from Chelsea in January.

Commons has claimed that the 20-year-old could be a great replacement for Steven Davis, with his loan spell at Norwich currently under scrutiny due to his last league start coming on 18 September.

He wrote in the Daily Mail, via Daily Record: “If Gilmour is still twiddling his thumbs in January, Rangers should get on the phone to Chelsea and at least ask the question.

“Some people might think it would be a backward step to return to his old club. But Rangers are a different animal now compared to when Gilmour left in 2017.

“I’m a big fan of Steven Davis and he’s been brilliant for Rangers. But I would have Gilmour ahead of him all day.”

Imagine him & Aribo

Ross Wilson could land a dream Rangers midfield by bringing Gilmour back to the club. As Commons said, he could replace Davis and start in midfield alongside Joe Aribo and Glen Kamara.

Whilst Kamara provides the metronomic passing and ability to keep the play ticking over, Aribo and Gilmour could be the sources of the real action. They could form a fantastic partnership as the Chelsea man has the energy, work-rate and tenacity to buzz around the pitch and put out fires, winning the ball back and retaining possession, whilst the former Charlton wizard can use his ability to create chances going forward.

Aribo has scored two goals and created 1.9 chances per game in the Premiership for Rangers this season, averaging an excellent SofaScore rating of 7.04. Gilmour, meanwhile, has managed 3.6 tackles and interceptions per game for Norwich in the Premier League, winning 59% of his duels and completing 87% of his passes.

Upon being linked with him last year, Gers boss Steven Gerrard made his feelings on Gilmour clear as he said: “I think he’s pretty settled at Chelsea. Fabulous little player but there’s been no contact.”

This suggests that Gerrard would love to have the Scotland international at Ibrox. Should there be an opportunity to bring him in if Chelsea cut short his loan deal with Norwich, Wilson must then pounce and allow Rangers to use him and Aribo as an exciting pairing in midfield. The mixture of defensive ballast and energy along with creativity and drive could be an exciting one for fans to watch.

AND in other news, Fresh twist emerges on big Rangers problem which will leave fans buzzing…

West Ham United can put one foot in the knockout stages of the Europa League with another victory against Genk later this evening.

David Moyes’ side travel to Belgium with a 100% record in Group H, where they hold a six-point advantage over all three remaining teams. And they will head into kickoff in inspired form.

The Irons thrashed Aston Villa 4-1 on Sunday afternoon to cement their place inside the Premier League’s top four. They are now level on points with defending champions Manchester City, who they knocked out of the Carabao Cup this time last week.

Moyes will be tasked with the conundrum of resting players, whilst also maintaining their impressive performance levels, so it will be intriguing to see his lineup.

One name that could be facing the axe tonight is Said Benrahma after a mixed showing at Villa Park.

The £22.5m-rated Algerian winger delivered an assist for Declan Rice’s strike but that was more down to the English powerhouse as he drilled a scorcher home from long range.

Aside from that, he offered very little and it’s been a similar case over the last few games as his form has tailed off compared to the way in which he began the 2021/22 campaign.

Benrahma kickstarted the season with two goals and two assists against Newcastle United and Leicester City but in the subsequent eight outings, he has only scored one goal and provided one assist, as per Transfermarkt.

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Recently, The West Ham Way’s Dave Walker described the wide man as “most exciting player” the club have had since Dimitri Payet, also dubbing him a “match-winner.”

Elsewhere, the 5 foot 8 wizard was once dubbed a “true magician” by former Nice teammate Lorenzo Vinci.

However, on Sunday, he was hooked after just 68 minutes, having managed only three more touches of the ball (31) than goalkeeper Lukasz Fabianski (28), which goes to show his lack of influence on the game.

Furthermore, the 26-year-old dynamo failed to deliver a single accurate cross, made just one dribble from three attempts (33.3%) and won only three of his eight battles (37.5%), via SofaScore.

This sort of lightweight showing typifies the inconsistencies in his game but that’s understandable as there’s still some element of adapting to the Premier League, as well as other players such as Rice and Jarrod Bowen elevating their games even more.

It could be wise to bench him to spark a reaction and also hand an opportunity to players like Nikola Vlasic, who too need to impress the manager outside of top-flight action.

Moyes must be ruthless and axe Benrahma in Belgium tonight.

AND in other news, West Ham fans will love latest Daniel Kretinsky claim…

With West Bromwich Albion heading into Friday night’s Championship clash off the back of a highly impressive 4-0 win at Cardiff in midweek, a result which shot the Baggies to the top of the table, the Frenchman will certainly be hoping for yet another dominant display against Stoke City this evening.

However, with Michael O’Neill’s Potters side having also started their 2021/22 campaign in fine form, picking up 18 points from their opening 10 fixtures of the season and sitting fifth in the table, a win at the bet365 Stadium is by no means guaranteed for Ismael’s men.

Indeed, the 45-year-old will need to ensure that he selects the strongest possible starting XI for the fixture, something which has been considerably boosted by the early return of Matt Clarke, with the centre-back set to once again be available after missing the club’s last six Championship fixtures due to a hamstring injury.

Forget Bryan

While Kean Bryan was brought in to help cover the absence of centre-back duo Clarke and Dara O’Shea, the return of Clarke should see the Brighton loanee jump ahead of the former Sheffield United man in the centre-back pecking order. The 24-year-old has struggled to get up to match fitness since joining the club, having played just one minute of Championship football this season.

Indeed, over his three Championship appearances for the Baggies this term, the £2.7m-rated Clarke has averaged 2.3 interceptions, one tackle and 2.7 clearances and has won a highly impressive 7.3 duels per game.

These returns have seen the defender who Graham Potter dubbed a “quality” talent earn an average SofaScore match rating of 7.03, ranking him as Albion’s ninth-best performer in the second tier.

As such, with a tricky – and potentially very physical – game against Stoke coming up for Ismael and his side, it would seem advisable for the Frenchman to throw Clarke back into his starting line-up against the Potters. The £21k-per-week loanee has already proven with his statistics during his time at The Hawthorns that he can be something of a game-changer in the Baggies’ back three.

In other news: Sources reveal West Brom development on “committed” £28k-p/w ace, Ismael surely gutted

Lots of Everton fans have been left buzzing over some comments made by Rafa Benitez.

The Spaniard was asked by the media in his pre-game press conference ahead of the match against West Ham United to address the speculation of interest in him from Newcastle United, to which he claimed that supporters do not have to worry about him leaving anytime soon, and that he is ‘really happy’ at Goodison Park.

Benitez has made a bright start to life back on Merseyside, guiding the Toffees into the race for European football, and signed what now look to be bargains in Andros Townsend and Demarai Gray.

Nonetheless, it is no surprise at all to see so many Blues ecstatic to hear that he wants to stay, amid the speculation with one of his former clubs.

Everton fans on Benitez comments

These EFC fans were left buzzing as the comments from Benitez were shared on Twitter:

“Our manager, go get Stevie G Newcastle.”

Credit: @toblueforyou123

“Rafa >>>>>>>> Carlo”

Credit: @mrjosebas

“Man of his word, not like Carlo this snake.”

Credit: @gazzaitcho

“A truly committed manager and he’s got my backing, I hope he gets to spend soon.”

Credit: @daveblueallover

“Big Rafa the main man, getting this ball rolling big time!!”

Credit: @deanotheblue

“Never leave sir (subject to future results)”

Credit: @oas1878

In other news, find out which ‘parody’ Evertonians are slamming after an update before West Ham here!

Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee Morgan Gibbs-White scored on his debut for Sheffield United on Saturday afternoon.

The Blades thrashed Peterborough United 6-2 at Bramall Lane to move up to 18th in the Championship table.

Gibbs-White was responsible for the hosts’ fourth goal, driving into the top corner via a touch from Posh ‘keeper Christy Pym following Iliman Ndiaye’s lay-off.

Wolves let Gibbs-White go on Deadline Day

Sheffield United sealed a season-long loan move for Gibbs-White on the final day of the summer transfer window (via BBC Sport).

Wolves sanctioned the move even though they failed to recruit a new central midfielder themselves. The Midlands outfit tried to sign Lille’s Renato Sanches and Marseille’s Boubacar Kamara on deadline day but were unable to reach an agreement in either case.

Gibbs-White was also loaned out last season, only to be recalled from Swansea City in January. He finished the season with 11 Premier League appearances under his belt (via WhoScored).

The official Sheffield United Twitter account posted a clip of his goal, and here’s how some Wolves fans reacted.

Wolves fans flock to Gibbs-White footage

“Well done lad, wished you was doing it at the Molineux lad, keep up the good work.”

Credit: @gazowen8

“Right, give him back”

Credit: @ostledave

“Recalled in January because we fail to get our targets in again, bet your life on it”

Credit: @wwfcjoe_

“Honestly don’t understand why we sent him out on loan”

Credit: @LStradomsky

“Watch us recall him in January again”

Credit: @wolvesxcoop__

“I really don’t get why we let him go but I hope he has a great loan spell. What a hit that is!”

Credit: @LewyDeWolf

In other news, some Wolves fans were critical of this player in the win over Watford.