Leeds have won just three of their last nine games in all competitions, but the return of versatile defender Gaetano Berardi could solve several problems at once.
What’s the word?
The Whites had a terrific run through the difficult winter period, but have gone off the boil since Christmas, due mainly to injuries and suspensions.
Liam Cooper’s return coincided with Kalvin Phillips collecting a three-game ban, and Luke Ayling has been in really poor form since returning from his knee injury, as the club just cannot get its best players on the pitch and in form at the same time.
However, Marcelo Bielsa is set for a huge boost this week as Berardi returned to action on Monday, starting in the Under-23’s clash against Bolton.
If you told a Leeds fan last season that their promotion hopes would rest on the shoulders of Berardi they probably would have laughed you out of the room, but his presence in the first team will help Bielsa in more ways than one.
Who are the best away fans in the Championship? Pl>ymaker FC’s Thogden gives his top 10 in the video below…
On the chalkboard
When the 30 year-old does return, it could be very bad news for Ayling. Jansson and Cooper will presumably remain the first choice centre back pairing, and Berardi’s versatility means he can slot in on the right side.
Ayling has been looked a step off the pace since returning from injury himself, and some of his play with the ball at his feet has been truly shocking, while he also gave Swansea a pointless penalty last weekend.
While the tough-tackling Berardi’s return may be bad news for Ayling, it is most definitely good news for for players like Phillips and Jamie Shackleton, who can now focus entirely on doing their job in the midfield.
A chance to refresh the midfield
Phillips was forced to fill in at centre back over the winter, but having him back at full pelt in midfield makes all the difference, and with a solid back four behind him the youngster will only get even better.
Shackleton has also been asked to fill in at right-back at times this season, but will now be yet another option for Bielsa to rotate into the midfield if needs must, an area where depth is crucial in such a high-tempo system.
Berardi’s return gives Bielsa an extra option right across the defence, as well as a huge boost to the freshness and quality of a midfield that has run out of gas since the turn of the year.
The feisty 30 year-old is more important to the club now than he has ever been, and fans should be chomping at the bit to get him back in the side.
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s long unbeaten run since he took charge of Manchester United came to an end as his team were beaten 2-0 by Paris Saint-Germain in the first leg of their last 16 Champions League tie at Old Trafford on Tuesday, and Liverpool fans were quick to react to midfielder Marco Verratti’s display.
The 26-year-old actually missed out on facing the Merseyside club at Anfield in the group stages of the competition earlier this season because of suspension, but he showed exactly what he brings to proceedings against the Red Devils.
The Italy international produced a tireless display full of tackles and using the ball well when he had it, and once again proved he is one of the best in his position in European football as the Ligue 1 leaders took a step closer to the quarter-finals.
Liverpool supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on Verratti’s performance, and while one said they would “love to have him at Liverpool”, another said “if there’s one player I would want us to break the bank for, it’s Marco Veratti.”
Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…
Jurgen Klopp has gotten quite inventive with his excuses this season. FFC’s James Jones think he has no one but himself to blame for Liverpol’s poor form in the video below…
علّق النجم البرتغالي كريستيانو رونالدو، على تعادل فريقه يوفنتوس أمام روما (2-2) في منافسات الدوري الإيطالي.
وقاد رونالدو البيانكونيري للتعادل، حيث سجل هدفي السيدة العجوز في شباك ذئاب العاصمة.
وقال رونالدو في تصريحاته لـ”سكاي إيطاليا”: “حققنا نقطة مهمة فنحن لا زلنا في بداية البطولة”.
اقرأ أيضًا.. رونالدو يحقق رقمًا قياسيًا بعد هدفيه في مباراة يوفنتوس وروما
وأضاف: “بيرلو؟ المدرب تغير والأفكار اختلفت، لكني أرى فريقا مفعما بالحيوية واكثر سعادة، نحن نعمل وأرى مستقبلًا جيدًا لهذا الفريق، يوفنتوس يعمل بشكل جيد ومتحمس وأرى مستقبلًا مشرقًا لنا”.
وأتم رونالدو: “لقد أصبح موقفًا معقدًا وعدنا إلى المباراة حتى بعد البطاقة الحمراء لرابيو، لذا بحلول نهاية الموسم، قد تكون هذه نقطة مهمة”. أهداف مباراة يوفنتوس وروما
Crystal Palace fell to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of bitter rivals Brighton on Saturday, offering a performance far removed from their excellent display away at Burnley last week.
For other football fans, the bizarrely-named M23 derby – although the Palace and Brighton faithful detest to call it that – is a pointless one, however it is a huge game for the two clubs involved.
The loss at Selhurst Park, therefore, is gutting for Eagles fans who surely would have felt that their beloved club would understand the pain they are feeling this week – that doesn’t seem the case, though.
In this era of ‘big 6’ dominance, has finishing 7th become as good as winning a trophy? The Pl>ymaker FC squad have their say in the video below…
On Monday, Palace announced that season tickets for the 19/20 campaign are now available to be renewed and it’s safe to say that the SE25 faithful were less than pleased with the timing, let alone the fact that the prices had been upped.
The Eagles’ defeat on Saturday was their eighth at home of the season – a record which would surely see them relegated if not for their solid away form – and Palace fans on Twitter were rightfully angered by the ill-timed announcement…
In the first half of this Premier League season, Chelsea were pretty solid under Maurizio Sarri.
For most of it, only Liverpool had a better defensive record, putting into perspective how well things were going for the Blues at the back.
Rather, it was the team’s attack that was costing the west London club with Alvaro Morata epitomising how poor it had been.
However, after thrashings to Bournemouth and Manchester City among other terrible displays, it is clear defence is now the big problem area at Chelsea.
And while Sarri will be quick to point out that defending starts from the front and is done collectively, it is hard to look past David Luiz’s awful contribution in this mess.
Yet the 31-year-old is set to be handed a new contract (Evening Standard) in a development that could now have consequences for Andreas Christensen.
Christensen has barely featured in this Premier League campaign even with Luiz struggling for form, and that does not look like it is about to change now or in the near future following the news about his Brazilian team-mate.
Transfer ban or no transfer ban, Sarri seems set on having Luiz at the heart of his defence indefinitely, leaving Christensen in a difficult predicament.
Chelsea fans, does Luiz deserve his spot in the starting XI ahead of Christensen? Join the discussion by commenting below.
Everton’s pursuit of Thomas Meunier has been dealt a hammer-blow this week, with the Belgian expressing his happiness at current club PSG. Back t0 the drawing board for the Toffees, then, who are in desperate need of a new right-back to replace the waning Seamus Coleman.
What’s the word?
Well, speaking to French publication Le Parisien (via Le 10Sport), the defender said:
“I’m happy here, I love the city and the club.
“Is there anything about my situation in Paris? It’s football. I still have a contract until 2020.
“I am delighted here, I really love the city and the club. Probabilities, at the beginning of my career, were 0.0001% that I play one day for PSG. I have no reason to complain in reality.”
The 27-year-old has been in and out of the side this season as he vies for a starting berth with Dani Alves, although he knows that this is the reality when you are playing for one of Europe’s top clubs:
“I have play time, sometimes a little more, sometimes a little less. You have to take life philosophically. What happens to me here is simply unexpected.”
The 36-cap international was linked with a move to Goodison Park in the final days of the January transfer window but a move never materialised and it now doesn’t look likely in the summer either.
Back to square one for the Toffees
Despite an active summer transfer window in which Everton revamped their defence as Marco Silva took the helm – the Goodison Park outfit brought in Kurt Zouma, Yerry Mina and Lucas Digne to name but a few – the Toffees are still struggling at the back.
Having been a faithful servant to the Merseyside outfit over the years, Coleman deserves to be a regular starter but, unfortunately for the Irishman, he has fallen off this season and is no longer capable of getting up and down the right flank in the ways he used to.
At 30, the former Cork City man is far from the high-tempo, flying full-back he established himself as being in recent years and it is no wonder that Everton were seemingly keen to find a long-term replacement.
Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…
Meunier’s physicality and Champions League experience would have undoubtedly been massive assets for Everton but it would seem that they will have to move onto other targets now.
However, the 6-foot-3 behemoth would surely have set Everton far further back than a club in their position should be spending on a right-back when Leicester were able to sign Ricardo Pereira for just £19.8m in the summer. There are surely better value options for Marcel Brands and co to explore so perhaps this failed move is a blessing in disguise.
Between them Chelsea and Manchester United have won seven of the last fifteen FA Cups, an impressive duopoly that amounts to a modern-day strangle-hold on the tournament.
It is a mutual cup pedigree made all the more astounding by the fact that every single triumph was overseen by a different manager and this suggests no matter who is in charge there is something in the psychological make-up of both clubs that highly values a trip to Wembley in May.
It shouldn’t be forgotten too that for the last two years Chelsea and United have taken it in turns to be the losing finalists and while the doom-mongers insist that the cherished competition has lost its allure among the big boys this particular duo can hold their heads up high.
Of those seven gloried afternoons some were viewed as significant bonuses to round off successful seasons while others were more substantially welcomed, adding a silver gloss, even purpose to an otherwise disappointing campaign. There is no question that should either team go all of the way this time out the achievement will fall into the latter category.
It would matter greatly to Maurizio Sarri or Ole Gunnar Solskjaer – to Chelsea or United – to lift the cup in three months’ time as it will potentially redeem and restore a troublesome 2018/19. It will not have escaped their notice either that elsewhere across the ties only Manchester City remain as an intimidating obstacle.
How perfect then that the fifth round has pitted these desperate foes against one another in a fiery showdown at the Bridge this Monday and determining who needs progress more is easy at first glance but trickier when you dig a little deeper.
Soccer Football – Premier League – Crystal Palace v Chelsea – Selhurst Park, London, Britain – December 30, 2018 Chelsea manager Maurizio Sarri gives instructions to Eden Hazard REUTERS/David Klein EDITORIAL USE ONLY. No use with unauthorized audio, video, data, fixture lists, club/league logos or “live” services. Online in-match use limited to 75 images, no video emulation. No use in betting, games or single club/league/player publications. Please contact your account representative for fu
At face value it is Chelsea and Sarri surely who are in urgent need of a boost at present and who knows, with the right wind perhaps a trophy come the season’s end. After all it is they who were trounced beyond recognition last weekend at the Etihad Stadium, a comprehensive and mortifying loss that followed a recent 4-0 thumping at Bournemouth and with the meagre accruement of just seven league points this year, it is they who languish in genuine crisis.
Right now the implementation of Sarri-ball in England is a busted flush and worse yet it is being executed poorly by a set of players who have shown time and again that if there is an excuse to hide behind they will take it. It should be of huge concern too that the woeful performances have led to the Blues slipping outside of the top four.
What the nicotined Neapolitan wouldn’t give then for a rousing response from his side on Monday and a further three cup wins thereafter. A trophy (to possibly add to a Caribao Cup for an ultimately positive domestic double) would not only silence his critics but crucially offer him time and a summer transfer window to correct the glitches in his meticulous matrix. It would end an annus horribilis in hope.
As for the visitors the initial interpretation of how important Monday’s game is for them plays it down in comparison to their other ventures. An immediate resurgence of form and results under Solksjaer following the acrimonious sacking of Mourinho has seen the Red Devils claw back a long-standing deficit and become front-runners for a Champions League spot. It is surely that which they must maintain going forward at all costs, with a cup jaunt only proving a distraction they could well do without.
Perhaps. But then again, that ignores Tuesday’s loss to PSG which, when taken in isolation is hardly a disaster for United given the full circumstances. When coupled with a further cup defeat to Chelsea just six days later however it amounts to back-to-back failure that stymies the momentum so far accrued under the Norwegian. And it should not be under-estimated how vital a role momentum has played in turning United’s fortunes around.
Solskjaer then will be extremely keen to immediately right the wrongs that set in at Old Trafford this week and not risk losing the belief and optimism he has smiled so hard to attain. Furthermore, as an alumni of the Sir Alex Ferguson school of thinking he will view the FA Cup as a realistic route to glory, one it would be unprofessional to not go all-out for.
On a personal level the 45-year-old will be acutely aware too of the cup’s importance in helping him possibly secure his dream job on a permanent basis. Manchester United surely view a top four finish and a progression past the Champion’s League group stage as the base requirement for any given season and one has been achieved with the other now a viable target. A trophy though, won in an interim capacity after rescuing the club from calamity: how much would that assist his cause?
Determining who most needs a win this Monday night results in a score draw for both managers and both clubs. And with losing not an option you can forget about the possible upsets and fairy-tale quarter-finalists. It’s at Stamford Bridge where the real magic of the cup casts its unmissable spell.
Rafael Benitez and Mike Ashley’s strained relationship currently seems to be more stable than it has been for quite some time, with the controversial owner finally granting the Newcastle boss appropriate funds in the January window.
The result of Ashley doing so was the high-profile arrival of Miguel Almiron, who signed for a club-record £20m and will add a different dimension to a Magpies attack that was becoming frustratingly predictable.
Benitez has found a system that works and the club finally seem to be entering a place where they won’t be certain relegation strugglers season after season, although, if he doesn’t sign new terms at the end of the season, they will be back to square one.
Wolves Fan TV give us their outsiders take on the turbulent situation behind the scenes at Newcastle in the video below…
As put by The Telegraph’s Luke Edwards, there is a growing fear amid Benitez’s refusal to answer questions concerning his future at St James’ Park that he will finally quit at the end of the season.
The Toon Army certainly aren’t convinced that the Newcastle camp is completely settled just yet, with many of the belief that Benitez will be clearing out his office regardless of whether he guides the Tyneside outfit to another season of Premier League football.
غادر السويسري رينيه فايلر المدير الفني للنادي الأهلي المؤتمر الصحفي لمباراة فريقه أمام الترسانة اليوم الأربعاء في كأس مصر.
وانتصر الأهلي على الترسانة بهدفين مقابل هدف، في إطار منافسات دور الـ16 ببطولة كأس مصر.
وخرج فايلر من قاعة المؤتمر الصحفي اعتراضًا على سؤال من أحد الصحفيين بشأن رحيله عن تدريب الأهلي.
طالع أيضًا.. بالفيديو | الأهلي يعبر لدور الـ8 بكأس مصر بثنائية في الترسانة
يُذكر أن فايلر خاض مع الأهلي 44 مباراة في مختلف البطولات القارية والمحلية، ونجح معه في التتويج بلقب الدوري المصري الممتاز. لحظة خروج فايلر من مؤتمر مباراة الأهلي والترسانة
Salomon Rondon’s career at West Brom never really hit the heights expected. However, he’s enjoyed a mini-revival whilst on loan at Newcastle this season and as a result, his stock has risen.
But Baggies supporters have been busy reacting to some pretty bizarre comments made by pundit Tony Cascarino, suggesting he could be worth £50m. His performances may have improved under Rafa Benitez, but as one fan said, a striker rated that highly doesn’t hit his tally of goals by March.
Some Albion fans have used the opportunity to suggest that a permanent move for Dwight Gayle, already on loan at the club, could be on the cards in a possible swap with Rondon.
Other individuals have claimed that they should sell the Venezuelan whilst they still can, bemoaning his time at the club under Tony Pulis.
One fan acknowledged the fact he’d likely never play for West Brom again, with others hoping an apparent buy out clause in his contract is activated.
According to the Express & Star, he has a £16.5m buy out if they don’t go up but will cost more should the Midlands side get promoted.