All posts by z3u9t.icu

A number of Sunderland fans have hit out at winger Lynden Gooch for his display in the 3-0 defeat to Sheffield Wednesday on Tuesday evening.

Gooch earned a first league start since September to make his 11th appearance of the season in all competitions. However, he couldn’t help the Black Cats suffer a third straight League One defeat.

The USA international failed to spot Theo Corbeanu unmarked out wide in the early stages and reacted too late as the Owls man opened the scoring at Hillsborough.

As per Sofa Score, Gooch, who was withdrawn after 72 minutes, failed to have a single shot on goal, lost the ball on 13 occasions and lost seven of his 12 duels.

It was a night to forget for all of Lee Johnson’s men, but these Sunderland supporters singled out Gooch for criticism.

Sunderland fans react

This is what some had to say about the 25-year-old, with one labelling him as ‘abysmal’, whereas another called him ‘Wednesday’s man of the match’.

“Can he be sold?”

Credit: @brownh1989

“GOOCH SHOULD HAVE BEEN DRAGGED OFF DURING THE FIRST HALF… ABSOLUTELY ABYSMAL…”

Credit: @Casual7Observer

“Sheffield Wednesday’s man of the match so far: Lynden Gooch”

Credit: @AdamJamesRoper

“Gooch is a complete waste of a shirt. To the point he actually makes us worse. O’Brien can’t do anything quickly, Doyle all over the place at the back. Too many passengers.”

Credit: @Powell_Matthew

“Gooch is abysmal. He should not be coming out for the second half…its like playing with 10”

Credit: @Muggins1025

“That first half was an embarrassment. I don’t think I ever want to see Lyndon Gooch in a Sunderland shirt ever again. Couple others too!”

Credit: @e_sunderland

Celtic manager Ange Postecoglou has addressed the absence of Nir Bitton from the matchday squad in the Hoops’ 2-0 victory over Ross County on Sunday. 

The lowdown: Bitton’s importance to Celtic

The 30-year-old has endured an injury-ravaged time at Parkhead, missing 99 matches in a nine-year stint as a Bhoy with varying degrees of problems including a lengthy spell on the sidelines with a serious knee issue.

Despite the injuries, the Israel international has still amassed 269 appearances for the Hoops and has been a favourite of several managers at Parkhead over the years.

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Following the player’s latest non-appearance, Postecoglou has explained the situation surrounding the defensive midfielder…

The latest: ‘Slight issue’ for Bitton

Speaking to BBC, as quoted by the Daily Record, the 56-year-old has revealed the latest on the Israelim saying: “He’s got a bit of an issue. A slight issue.”

Bitton has not been seen in action since a fleeting 28-minute appearance in the 2-1 win over Rangers at Ibrox on April 3, having been an unused substitute in the subsequent 7-0 rout of St Johnstone.

The verdict: Worrying signs

Although Postecoglou seems undeterred by Bitton’s latest issue, unfortunately the problems keep mounting up for the 39-cap ace.

So far this season, the man who has been described as ‘fantastic’ by the Celtic manager has scored twice and provided two assists in 36 appearances across all competitions.

With Bitton out of contract in 2023 (Transfermarkt), the upcoming summer is a pivotal one for him, as the experienced midfielder will likely be hoping to receive a new deal, whilst the club could be considering selling him in order to avoid losing their man for nothing.

To that end, the Israeli will be desperate to play a part in this season’s run-in to try and secure a new contract.

In other news, one expert has made a key claim regarding the ownership of Celtic. Read more here.

West Ham United could seal their biggest signing since Dimitri Payet amid emerging reports ahead of the January transfer window.

In some ways, it shows the substantial progress the east London outfit have made under David Moyes, going from relegation contenders to competing for a place in the Champions League – and more than holding their own.

There has been a lack of ‘marquee’ signings in recent years but that’s not a bad thing as their recruitment has been pretty spot-on, with relatively unknown names like Tomas Soucek and Vladimir Coufal becoming crucial influences on the pitch.

Having Jesse Lingard on loan and splashing £30m on Champions League winner Kurt Zouma is certainly a step in the right direction, but everything could be eclipsed by the prospective arrival of Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder Denis Zakaria.

According to Italian outlet Calciomercato, the Irons are among the teams interested in signing the 25-year-old this winter as he attracts interest from across Europe, though they’ll be battling Premier League rivals Everton, as well as Serie A giants Juventus, for his signature.

Gladbach head coach Adi Hutter is desperate to bolster his playing squad next month but he’ll only be able to do so if he garners some more income, so selling the Switzerland international could be in his best interests, especially as the player is out of contract in the summer and is currently valued at £24.3m.

A new central option in the midfield engine room may be the least of the Hammers’ concerns but they simply cannot turn their nose up at sealing a player of Zakaria’s calibre for a bargain price in January.

Of course, club captain Mark Noble is retiring, plus there may be some doubts over loanee Alex Kral’s credentials. Meanwhile, there are always doubts and reports on the future of Declan Rice at the London Stadium.

He is a player who has earned comparisons to a whole host of midfield greats, ranging from Patrick Vieira and Zinedine Zidane, to Paul Pogba and Toni Kroos.

“It’s not easy to compare him to the greats of the past, but he combines many qualities that were really defined by Michel Platini and Zinedine Zidane,” claimed international and domestic teammate Yan Sommer.

German football legend Lothar Matthaus once stated: “I’m glad that Gladbach have found another pearl. At his age I was earning my first stripes for Borussia. He reminds me of Toni Kroos at that age.”

The 40-cap beast has consistently put up impressive numbers in the Bundesliga and for his country – as per WhoScored, Zakaria has averaged 2.3 successful tackles, 1.6 interceptions, 1.4 dribbles and 1.1 shots per 90 minutes over the course of his career.

By no means would he be a flair player like Payet once was, but the box-to-box dynamo would be a major coup for the club, one which would shock many around the continent, just as it did with the silky Frenchman all those years ago.

Zakaria, who has been dubbed a “very complete footballer” his former manager Marco Rose, would be a sublime addition for head of recruitment Rob Newman to secure. He must do all he can to win the race to sign him this winter.

AND in other news, 87 touches, 100% dribbles: West Ham gem who “caught the eye” has given Moyes a dilemma…

Everton have been very active already in the winter transfer window, securing the signings of two young defenders, Nathan Patterson and Vitaliy Mykolenko, while Rafa Benitez is rumoured to already have his eye on his third young player to bring into the team.

What’s the word?

According to journalist, Pete O’Rourke, Everton are eyeing up a potential move for Nottingham Forest’s James Garner in the January transfer window.

O’Rourke put out a tweet to his followers on Friday morning;

“Everton are eyeing a move for Manchester United midfielder James Garner who has impressed again on loan at Nottingham Forest in the first half of the season. #EFC #MUFC #NFFC”

The £3.6m-rated gem, who was previously hailed as “impressive” by team mate, Fred, is on loan from his parent club, Manchester United, at Nottingham Forest for a second season, and is rumoured to be catching the eye of the Merseyside club thanks to his impressive performances in the Championship, that have helped to put the side just six points shy of a playoff place.

Fans will be buzzing

Adding young prospects to the side is always a move that will leave fans buzzing, especially in this case, when you look at how well Garner is getting on at Forest this season.

The midfielder, who is originally from Birkenhead in Merseyside, has been putting on great performances, scoring five goals and bagging one assist from his central defensive position in the side since he joined on loan just under a year ago.

According to SofaScore, the defensive midfielder has been successful in an impressive 73% of his dribbles and has won a 52% majority of his duels, midfield attributes that could really benefit this defensively poor Everton side.

The Toffees have been leaking goals more than they have been scoring them in the Premier League this season, and adding that extra cover alongside Allan in midfield could really work wonders when attempting to control games better, especially when their current ball possession average is 39.7% and are losing possession of the ball 144.7 times on average per game, both of which are shocking statistics and need improvement.

Everton’s Spanish manager could make a great signing in Garner, especially when you look at his defensive midfield attributes, he could become a great asset for the club, and at just 20 years old, has the potential to grow into a fantastic player with the right guidance.

In other news: Benitez could make his third signing of the window in Dejan Kulusevski

Tottenham have held talks with Valencia over a loan move for Bryan Gil, AS report.

The Lowdown: Gil’s struggles

Gil was brought to the club during Nuno Espirito Santo’s time in charge but has struggled to make an impact in north London.

The 20-year-old is yet to start in the Premier League and has had to make do with appearances in various cup competitions. The left-winger is still awaiting his first goal as a Spurs player and has registered just one assist in 20 games.

It now seems as if he could depart on loan in the final days of the January transfer window in what could be a busy end of the month.

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The Latest: Spurs demands

According to AS, Spurs want a £1.5m loan fee for Gil, with Valencia reluctant to pay that.

Tottenham also want them to pay a percentage of Gil’s salary, with Conte now giving the green light for the Spaniard to depart.

Valencia have maintained contact in recent days and have held talks, however, it seems as if a possible loan fee without an option to buy could be a stumbling block.

The Verdict: Correct call?

It hasn’t worked out for Gil in his first season at the club, so allowing him to gain regular first-team football ahead of the 2022/23 season could be a shrewd call in the long run.

The club signed the young playmaker for a reason, so they are absolutely correct to be seeking a mere temporary exit with no additional buy option.

That said, Fabio Paratici could do with bringing an attacking player in before signing off on a loan for Gil.

Moves for Adama Traore and Luis Diaz seem to have collapsed, so an exit for Gil may be one that has to wait until the final hours on Monday to go through, providing there is an attacking arrival before that – perhaps a certain Dejan Kulusevski?.

In other news: ‘Agreement reached’ – Spurs breakthrough as player Conte and Paratici love now ‘happy’ to sign.  

Back in January of 2019, Brendan Rodgers’ Celtic side were reported to be extremely interested in the signing of a relatively unknown right-back, who went by the name of Timothy Castagne.

Indeed, The Daily Record claimed that the Hoops had made the Atalanta full-back their top priority in the winter window, with Rodgers viewing the Belgium international as a direct replacement for Mikael Lustig – who looked as if he would be leaving Parkhead at the end of the 2018/19 campaign.

However, despite offering £8m for the then-23-year-old’s services, the Bhoys failed to get a deal over the line for the promising defender, with Atalanta believed to be looking for a figure in the region of £12m in order to sanction the right-back’s sale.

And, in May of 2019, after finding himself much more involved with Gian Piero Gasperini’s first-team squad, Castagne himself revealed just how close he came to joining Celtic, stating: “It’s incredible how quickly things in football can change.

“In December, I wasn’t starting any games and there was an £8m move to Celtic on the table. It looked like I was leaving, but the club wanted £12m and the deal collapsed.

“Since then, having not played for 13 games, I played just about every other game and we qualified for the Champions League. So it’s been an unbelievable turnaround for me.”

However, flash forward 16 months and Castagne would eventually find himself playing for Rodgers, although not at Celtic Park.

Indeed, in September 2020, Leicester City parted with £21.5m in order to bring the then-24-year-old full-back to the King Power, since which time the Belgian has gone on to establish himself as a first-team regular with the Premier League side.

Furthermore, his prominence in the English top-flight has also seen his market value soar, with the £63k-per-week defender now being worth around £25m in today’s market – something that will undoubtedly leave an incredibly sour taste in Celtic mouths.

Indeed, while £12m certainly would have been an eye-catching fee for the Hoops to cough up for a little-known right-back, the 26-year-old who Gerry Taggart dubbed a “proper player” has since proven he would have been well worth the outlay – both financially and in terms of performance – leading us to believe that Celtic had something of a nightmare when missing out on the full-back in 2019.

AND in other news: “Understand that…”: Journalist drops big transfer update, it’s bad news for Celtic

A number of Manchester City fans have reacted negatively to reports linking Declan Rice with a move to the Etihad Stadium.

The Athletic’s West Ham correspondent Roshane Thomas wrote in a mailbag for the website on Friday that there is “every chance” of the Premier League champions making a transfer offer in 2022 for the England midfielder, who was reportedly a target for the Cityzens this year as well. Man City fan feed @City_Chief later shared the update via Twitter.

A core presence in the Three Lions’ run to the Euro 2020 final in the summer, Rice has also drawn admiring glances from the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United, with some reports claiming that West Ham had placed a £100m price tag on him to ward off prospective suitors. Incidentally, that was the same amount which City paid to Aston Villa for his England team-mate Jack Grealish in August.

Despite his tender age, he has already captained David Moyes’ side on numerous occasions and exceeded 150 first team appearances. City reportedly want him as Fernandinho’s long-term successor at the Etihad, with Rice and Rodri potentially playing together or even vying for just one place in Pep Guardiola’s midfield.

Man City fans don’t want Rice

These City fans on Twitter weren’t overly keen on the idea of the club making a big-money move for the “overpriced” West Ham midfielder, with some stating their preference to see City academy starlet Romeo Lavia promoted to the senior squad instead and others believing Rice to be surplus to requirements given the presence of Rodri at the Etihad.

“Behave”

Credit: @pinner_stewart

“He’s so bad. Along with Southgate, Kane and Mount, one of the major reasons we didn’t win the Euros. Just promote Lavia”

Credit: @EthanGaffiney

“Oh my word, another English player. Gonna get overpriced”

Credit: @BuhleQavile

“One of the most overrated players I’ve ever seen. Rodri is 10x the player Rice is. This fella can’t make a progressive pass to save his life and is slower than a snail facing counters. Just promote Lavia or even get Kalvin Phillips who defo is better than Rice”

Credit: @JamesMcSilva

“Please no. We already employ Rodri who is 10x the player Rice is”

Credit: @mxnciteh

“Why? Good player but he won’t be the worth the stupid money we would have to pay + Rodri is better.”

Credit: @King_Kevin100

In other news: This development prior to the Club Brugge game had lots of Man City fans excited

Leeds United supporters would be ‘devastated’ if Kalvin Phillips joined Manchester United, former Elland Road man Paddy Kenny says. 

The lowdown

Samuel Luckhurst, Chief Manchester United writer for The Manchester Evening News, reported this week that The Red Devils are ‘working on’ a summer move for Phillips.

They intend to sign a defensive midfielder in the summer and the Leeds man features on their shortlist, along with West Ham United’s Declan Rice.

In the words of talkSPORT’s Sean O’Brien, there’s a long-running ‘feud’ between Leeds and Manchester United, and so it may be particularly hurtful for Whites fans if he makes this move.

Phillips is under contract at Elland Road until the summer of 2024 and is valued at £45million by Transfermarkt.

The latest

Kenny feels that Phillips is in a similar situation to Jack Grealish last summer, who left boyhood club Aston Villa to join reigning champions Manchester City in a £100million deal.

He thinks the temptation of moving to Old Trafford may prove to be too strong for Phillips.

Kenny told Football Insider: “He’s Leeds through and through but we saw that with Jack Grealish didn’t we?”

“He’s Villa through and through but he decided to sign for Manchester City last summer.

“If an offer like that comes in, it might never come again. Can you afford to say no?

“It’s like Lampard at Chelsea. He didn’t know if it was going to work out but that offer might not come again, you have to take it.

“It will be interesting to see if this move happens. The fans will be devastated if he does go.

“As a player, you have to look to the future and Leeds are a big club but Man United are one of the biggest in the world.

“It’s a difficult one to turn down, that’s for sure.”

The verdict

Leeds players have, of course, crossed the divide before. The likes of Eric Cantona and Rio Ferdinand have been lured to Manchester in recent decades.

Even last summer, the two clubs did business, with Dan James moving to Yorkshire in a £25million deal.

But in reality, the Leeds faithful may have nothing to fear. Insider Dean Jones recently revealed that Phillips is becoming ‘more and more convinced about staying’ and signing a new contract.

He’s apparently ‘really impressed’ by the work new manager Jesse Marsch has done, and he may well envisage a bright future in his current surroundings.

In other news, an insider has shared this further update on Phillips.

Aston Villa are open to moving Trezeguet on during the January transfer window.

That’s according to The Daily Mail’s Tom Collomosse, which has had some Villa fans talking on social media.

Villa have already been extremely busy when it comes to transfer activity this month, with Philippe Coutinho and Lucas Digne arriving.

Axel Tuanzebe cut short his season-long loan to move to Napoli and Anwar El Ghazi is joining Everton on a temporary basis, while Trezeguet is another player who could depart over the coming weeks.

According to Collomosse, Trezeguet is thought to be available for transfer this month. The 27-year-old is currently away with Egypt at the Africa Cup of Nations and has missed the majority of the campaign through injury.

His first appearance of the season came in the 2-1 defeat to Brentford, and it seems as that could turn out to be his final outing in a Villa shirt.

Villa fans react

@villareport shared Collomosse’s claim regarding the winger on Twitter. This is what these fans had to say in reply, with a mixed response.

“NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO”

Credit: @alexiawhite

“Whilst it feels harsh on El Ghazi and Trez it would seem to me that Gerrard is getting rid of those who aren’t quite good enough for the level he wants. Removing sentiment from it I agree, but I’d be sad to see them both go for various/obvious reasons.”

Credit: @Benjmeister85

“I’m sad”

Credit: @catrinavfc

“Really?”

Credit: @ZM_AVFC

“The clear out has begun”

Credit: @DOUGLASLUlZ

“Good don’t wanna see that diver in a villa shirt again”

Credit: @ryanavfc7

In other news: ‘Called it a week after Gerrard arrived’ – Lots of AVFC fans flock to Ornstein’s transfer update.   

A number of Wolves supporters are delighted after a report claimed that Max Kilman could be on the verge of a first international call-up for England.

Bruno Lage’s side drew 0-0 away to Norwich City on Saturday afternoon and finished the weekend sitting sixth in the Premier League.

There have been a number of strong performers for Wanderers this season and Kilman is undoubtedly one of them. The centre-back has started all 13 of his team’s Premier League matches in 2021/22 to date and it appears as though his performances have caught Gareth Southgate’s eye.

As per WhoScored, he is Wolves’ fourth-best performer overall and ranks top for interceptions per match (1.5), second for clearances per game (3.4), third for headers won per game (1.8), joint-third for tackles won per match (2.4). Those figures indicate a no-nonsense, well-rounded defender.

According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein [via Talking Wolves on Twitter], Kilman has impressed the England boss and may be considered a left-footed centre-back option in Southgate’s future squads. The journalist wrote:

“The Athletic has been told his form has not gone unnoticed by Gareth Southgate and it’s believed Kilman is on England’s radar and has been discussed as a potential option at centre-back.

“Kilman is playing on the right of a back three for Wolves, but he’s one of the very few left-footed options Southgate could call upon. If he continues his excellent form for Wolves – and Southgate watched him during the recent 2-1 victory over Everton at Molineux — he may be joining his club skipper Conor Coady in the squad before long.”

Wolves fans react to potential Kilman call-up

These Wolves fans took to Twitter to show their happiness at the news about Kilman, who one supporter proclaimed to be the “GOAT”.

“World Cup is ours”

Credit: @ElwellLewis

“Get Coady’s mate out and get this GOAT in”

Credit: @Finsabu

“Well deserved”

Credit: @TrincaoBall

“Mings in the mud”

Credit: @Cal_Wood1990

“Yes!!!”

Credit: @pjsaturday63

“Great”

Credit: @WolvesNumber37

In other news, a journalist has talked up Wolves’ interest in one player. Find out who it is here.