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Arsenal kept the pressure on the Premier League top four with a comfortable 3-1 win against Burnley at the weekend.

After their unbeaten streak was ended and exited the Carabao Cup at the hands of Tottenham, the Gunners needed a massive performance against the Clarets. Unai Emery was handed the perfect start with Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang opening the scoring after just 14 minutes before grabbing his brace in the second half. Despite a goal from Ashley Barnes, a late goal from Alex Iwobi ensured the hosts all three points.

The January transfer window is fast approaching, and it remains to be seen whether Emery will open his chequebook to improve his squad.

One man who should be on his shortlist is Borussia Dortmund wonderkid – Jadon Sancho. As a result of his incredible performances in the Bundesliga, his market value has skyrocketed to £63m according to the most recent valuations by Transfermarkt. The winger was considered one of the brightest prospects in the Manchester City academy before opting to join the German giants to receive more first-team opportunities – his decision has been fully justified so far, but a return to the Premier League shouldn’t be ruled out.

Sancho is currently one of the most in-form players in world football, helping Dortmund to the top of the Bundesliga table. The 18-year-old has linked up perfectly with Marco Reus, scoring six goals and registering seven assists so far this season. The England international has impressed fans and pundits alike with his electrifying pace and mazy dribbling skills.

It would cost a fortune to lure him to the Emirates, but there is no hotter prospect in the world right now and would be a serious investment for the future. Alongside Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette in the attack, Arsenal would have an attack to challenge for the title.

Arsenal fans, thoughts?

Loads of Newcastle fans have been reacting to some big Sunderland news, as Black Cats starlet Josh Maja is believed to have turned down the club’s final contract offer.

With 14 League One goals, Maja is one of the hottest prospects in the English Football League right now, and Sunderland could soon face the perilous prospect of losing him for free.

The 20 year-old’s current contract expires at the end of the season, and he has now told the club he will not sign their latest extension offer, according to Sky Sports reporter Keith Downie.

Pl>ymaker FC Exclusive: Jermaine Jenas reveals why Tyne-Wear is a more intense derby than anything London can offer – check out the video below….

The report from Downie claims the club offered Maja seven times his current wages, which perhaps implies he’s got bigger and better plans on his mind.

Lots of Newcastle fans have been reacting to the news, with some joking they should buy him just to loan him to League One promotion favourites Portsmouth, while others eye a genuine deal to bring the youngster to Tyneside.

Either way, you can find some of best Twitter reactions down below…

According to a recent report from The Daily Mirror, Aston Villa and West Brom are interested in a January move for Isaac Hayden. The 23-year-old currently plays his football at Premier League outfit Newcastle United and has done so since leaving Arsenal back in 2016, although a desire to move down south closer to his family has plunged his future at St James’ Park into doubt.

And reports suggest that Dean Smith’s Villa and Darren Moore’s Baggies are eyeing up a move for the midfielder this month, with the latter in need of beating the former to Hayden’s signature in a bid to bolster their promotion hopes in the second half of the season.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, while Moore’s side won’t be short of goals heading into the second half of the campaign, given they are currently the division’s top scorers with 54 from their 26 games, they may need to tighten up defensively if they are to secure an immediate return to the Premier League.

The Baggies have shipped 34 goals in the Championship so far this term which is the joint-most alongside Norwich City and Queens Park Rangers of those sides in the top nine of the division, while their tally of just three clean sheets clearly needs improving if they are to remain in the promotion hunt.

And while the addition of Mason Holgate to the defensive ranks will no doubt help them in their quest to be better at the back, having a more defensive-minded midfielder just in front of the backline screening and protecting them certainly wouldn’t go amiss – Hayden appears to be the man for the job.

The 23-year-old may have struggled somewhat for regular football at Newcastle this term, but the midfielder more than proved his worth to the Magpies in the Championship back in 2016/17 with 33 appearances for the North East giants that term, thus playing a key role in helping Rafa Benitez’s men win the title.

And with that know-how in getting the job done in the second tier, the Englishman would add a great deal both on and off the pitch in aiding West Brom’s promotion charge, a charge that has somewhat lost momentum in recent weeks with a draw against Sheffield Wednesday and a 2-1 loss at Blackburn Rovers last time out.

Villa themselves have also shipped plenty of goals so far this term to suggest that they could do with greater guile and industry in the middle of the park, hence the interest in Hayden, but with the Baggies in a slightly better position in the division and right there in the promotion picture, a move to the Hawthorns may be of greater interest to Hayden.

And given how much he could benefit the Baggies in the second half of the campaign, West Brom simply have to beat Smith’s Villa to his signature in a bid to enhance their promotion hopes.

West Brom and Aston Villa fans… what do you think? Let us know!

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In a fascinating interview with BeIN Sports, Jose Mourinho covered everything from the best team he has managed to how he signed Didier Drogba from Marseille in his Chelsea days, but what he said on managing unruly players is raising the most eyebrows.

There are no prizes for guessing who the former Red Devils boss may be talking about when he describes players who are ‘not the best professionals’ – Mourinho’s turbulent relationship with Paul Pogba dominated his tenure at Old Trafford, with the pair enduring their ups and downs, although there were more of the latter than the former.

Mourinho explained his view that the manager should not be responsible for player relations and that they should, instead, be allowed to focus on coaching their players while the ‘structure’ behind him/her resolves any confrontation.

The 55-year-old stated that situations where the manager has a ‘direct relationship’ with the player will always end in the former having to make ‘hard decisions’ – one assumes he might be talking about his decision to bench Pogba for the two games prior to his sacking in December.

Demanding that a manager has no interactions with his players beyond the coaching side of things and the club hierarchy deal with all fallout is a difficult request to grant, but maybe it would have made the difference at Old Trafford.

Here’s how Manchester United fans reacted to his comments on Twitter…

Why is Man Utd’s appointment of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer such a clever one? Ed Tarlton explains all in the above video for Pl>ymaker FC…

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Harry Kane has posted a fitness update on Instagram as the Tottenham Hotspur striker continues his recovery from a ligament injury.

The England international has been out since the 1-0 loss to Manchester United at Wembley and the BBC reported that the striker is set to be sidelined until March.

However, he has revealed that he is already walking unaided with trainers.

Kane has been in superb form this season, scoring a total of 20 goals and providing six assists in 31 games in 2018-19, per Transfermarkt.

Mauricio Pochettino is also without Son Heung-Min, who is on international duty with South Korea in the Asian Cup, and Dele Alli, who could also be absent until March, per Sky Sports, after sustaining a hamstring injury against Fulham.

An early return for Kane, then, would be a major boost to Spurs’ hopes of winning silverware this season; the club are third in the Premier League and still have a chance of winning at least one cup competition.

And fans are already getting excited over the prospect of the forward’s return.

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David Ginola could play a little bit.

The midfielder’s first taste of English football came with Newcastle United between 1995 and 1997, before he made the switch to Tottenham Hotspur.

Ginola played 100 league games for Spurs during his three seasons at the club and it would be fair to say that the supporters enjoyed watching him.

The Frenchman was an extremely talented technician, but also brought personality to the teams that he represented.

Ginola turned 52 on Friday and Tottenham’s official Twitter account was on hand with a special birthday message for the former France international.

As expected, that led to a number of the Spurs supporters lavishing praise on their former hero, with many claiming that they wish they had him now.

Indeed, Tottenham are currently struggling with injuries and Ginola could probably still do a job in the Dele Alli position until the Englishman returns in March (BBC Sport).

Ginola, who also turned out for Aston Villa and Everton, perhaps would not have the pace or fitness – and that is being kind – to compete at this level in his 50s, but his use of the ball would still be very special indeed.

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the adoring Tottenham fans can be seen below:

Playmaker FC Exclusive: “Wolves absolutely spanked you” – Jermaine Jenas gives damning verdict of Arsenal’s season. Check out the video below…

According to The Sun, Tottenham’s on-loan midfielder Josh Onomah has been linked with a move to the Bundesliga. 

Both Hoffenheim and Borussia Monchengladbach are interested in the 21-year-old, who is currently on loan at Championship outfit Sheffield Wednesday.

It appears to be the new phenomena in European football currently for German clubs to snap up young English players that are not getting a look in for their clubs. This has been on show this season with the immense success of Jadon Sancho at Borussia Dortmund, as well as players like Ademola Lookman last season.

This is a system that suits both the English and the German club. The Bundesliga outfit will get a high-quality player on loan or permanently for a cheap price, and the Premier League team get to send their players out to one of the most competitive leagues in Europe, where the standard is usually higher than the Championship.

Therefore, from Tottenham’s perspective, this deal seems to make wonderful sense, and should be one that they pursue if they have any ambition of Onomah making it at Spurs. A move to the Championship rarely sharpens a player enough for them to be ready for the top flight, whereas the Bundesliga will do just that.

Furthermore, Onomah has only played 11 games for The Owls this season, scoring three goals. He is not seen as a valuable asset at Hillsborough, and is not getting the game time or experience that Spurs will want to see. If these Bundesliga outfits are interested, Spurs should snap up the opportunity.

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Newcastle fans have taken to Twitter to react after Miguel Almiron took part in his first training session with his new teammates, following a £20m move from MLS Cup winners Atlanta in the January transfer window.

The Paraguay international’s arrival on Tyneside has been met with huge excitement from the Magpies’ fanbase, who have been starved of marquee signings for years – Almiron’s arrival finally broke the previous club-record fee set in 2005 when Michael Owen arrived in a £17m deal.

At 24 years of age, Almiron attracted Newcastle’s interest after a stunning season in which he helped Atlanta win the MLS Cup, scoring 12 goals and recording 14 assists in 32 starts from an attacking midfield role.

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia’s biggest football stars in the video below…

Almiron has only just started training as he needed to travel to Paris to collect his visa in order to play in England, and Newcastle fans on Twitter have expressed their excitement at seeing the mercurial No.10 strut his stuff in his new colours…

There’s no denying how brilliant Luka Modric was when he was at Tottenham, and since that point, he’s only gotten better. The Croatian midfielder was the magician in the heart of the Spurs team, and his departure left a gaping hole in the squad that has never really been directly replaced. 

He passed brilliantly, he was great from set-pieces, he dribbled, he scored – Modric genuinely did it all. And Spurs haven’t had a deep-lying playmaker quite like him ever since.

However, that doesn’t mean that nobody in a Tottenham shirt has been able to match him. In fact, former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has claimed that somebody is starting to overtake him as far as his importance to Spurs goes. Speaking during his stint on beIN Sports, Wenger has claimed that Danish midfielder Christian Eriksen is offering everything that Modric did and more at present under Mauricio Pochettino.

Wenger said: “He has developed extremely well. He can score, he can deliver on set pieces, he can give a final ball, he works very hard for the team.”

He continued: “You do not find players with so many qualities. He’s the player that Modric was before..but he scores more goals!”

Of course, Modric was a fantastic player for Tottenham, and that’s exactly why he earned a huge move to Real Madrid. Since then, he’s developed significantly, but in his absence, Eriksen has certainly filled the gap.

Generally playing on the left-hands side of the Tottenham attack, Eriksen is a focal point of the team. He’s able to score goals, he’s able to assist them, and he’s able to serve as the link between the midfield and the attack all the while.

He, of course, plays further forward than Eriksen ever did, but he’s mobile and agile, meaning that he can regularly drop back and help out in the heart of the pitch when required.

Modric scored 4 league goals during his final season at Tottenham, and that’s a tally that Eriksen has already beaten this season, wth the Dane bagging as many as 10 league goals per season in previous years.

The pair are different players, of course, but Modric and Eriksen share many characteristics. Wenger, though, isn’t wrong, and if there’s any trait that Eriksen has on the Real Madrid man, it’s his ability to score goals.

Thoughts?

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Robbie Fowler has told The Mirror that Jurgen Klopp will not hand over this Liverpool team like Sir Alex Ferguson did with Manchester United.

What did he say?

Last week, the 52-year-old signed a contract extension with the Reds that will take him until 2024. If he stays until the end of the deal, he will have been at the club for nine years.

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Writing for the newspaper, former striker Fowler said: “There will come a time when it (the squad) needs to be refreshed and rebuilt a little. They’re all at peak age – or heading ­towards their peak – but, in two or three years’ time, some will move on.

“To have Klopp overseeing that will mean there’s no chance of handing over like Sir Alex Ferguson did – an ageing team that needed some surgery.

“He has kids he’s bought who will come through and you can see from the signing of Takumi Minamino, ­Liverpool are always planning, looking ahead.

“Klopp hasn’t signed on for longer for that reason though. He’s done it ­because he has the balls to back himself. He knows he has a fabulous team, that they can get better and he wants to take them further.”

Liverpool bigger than Klopp

Klopp has changed Liverpool since taking over in 2015. With his leadership, they have risen to the top of European football, whilst they also top the Premier League table as well. If they win the title this term – they are currently 10 points clear at the top, and have won 16 of their first 17 games in the competition – he will become a bona fide legend upon Merseyside.

Can you name the result these iconic Liverpool images belong to? Give it a go now…

However, there will come a time when he will vacate the manager’s role, whether that be of his own accord or because the results drastically drop (that seems unlikely right now). Either way, Liverpool must make the right decision in replacing him. He will be a hard act to follow, but that does not mean that the next person to come in could not do a great job with the Reds.

The former Borussia Dortmund manager has done fantastically, but he is not bigger than the club. He must not be allowed to keep ahold of an ageing squad – like Ferguson did – without consistently looking to the future. The Red Devils led the Scot do what he wanted towards the end of his reign, as you saw with the signings of older heads such as Robin van Persie, but him allowing the likes of young stars such as Paul Pogba to depart shows that there was little forward planning.

Klopp must have a say in transfers, and must not be undermined, but it is important that the club’s hierarchy keep the club’s best interests in mind unlike what we saw at Old Trafford. For now, though, they should enjoy what could be a historic season on Merseyside – this kind of campaign doesn’t come around too often.

Meanwhile, this Liverpool man would be downgrading if he swapped Anfield for this European giant.