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At time,s there’s nothing more frustrating than being a Crystal Palace fan during the transfer windows.

There’s usually a lot of hot air about the board doing business with their performances in the transfer market over the years (barring last year’s efforts) generally showing the club can resemble something close to a circus act when it comes to dealings.

For every Patrick van Aanholt, there’s also a Florian Marange, and that’s not to mention the more obscure players that have left supporters in total disbelief. If we’re being honest, most of the more bizarre signings came in the Ian Holloway era. Oh what a time to be alive!

Consider yourself the ultimate Crystal Palace fan?

Try your luck by taking our quiz below and see if you can get all the answers right – get one wrong and you could be the laughing stock of the fanbase…

AND in other news, Crystal Palace Festive Quiz: Can you remember their top 10 most expensive signings?

Crystal Palace defender James Tomkins is out of the Premier League clash with Wolves at Selhurst Park, Roy Hodgson has confirmed.

Tomkins has played in the full 90 minutes of four of Palace’s past five Premier League fixtures, including the draw at Arsenal and the 2-0 win at home to Sheffield United.

Hodgson recently revealed the £3m-rated 31-year-old suffered an eye injury during training which ruled him out of the midweek defeat to West Ham.

But this latest setback will come as a huge blow for the Palace boss, as Tomkins has re-established himself as a regular starter under Hodgson since the start of the year.

The Eagles have struggled defensively this season, as they have conceded 36 goals in 20 games in the top flight so far, bettered only by Premier League strugglers West Bromwich Albion, who find themselves bottom of the table.

Since his return to the starting line-up, Tomkins has been one of their standout performers, helping Palace record two clean sheets in a row for the first time since the 2019-20 season.

His contributions haven’t gone unnoticed, either, earning a solid WhoScored rating of 6.46 in the process. He is currently averaging more clearances (6.2) than any other player this season, which only reemphasises the important role he has played in the Palace squad this season.

Tomkins was a colossal at the back in Palace’s 2-0 win over Sheffield United, helping Hodgson’s side keep their first clean sheet since the 1-0 win at home to Southampton at the start of the season, which will cause the former England manager much frustration after his side conceded three goals against West Ham in his absence.

Gary Cahill and Cheikhou Kouyate are set to resume their shaky partnership in front of Vicente Guaita, and considering Cahill’s recurring injury problems in recent weeks, he could find himself exposed to a counter-attack from the likes of Ruben Neves and Pedro Neto.

Therefore, Hodgson will be hoping Tomkins can make a swift recovery ahead of their trip to Newcastle next week.

AND in other news, Crystal Palace can sign perfect Vicente Guaita replacement in Manchester United’s Sergio Romero…

David Sullivan risks paying the price for a January blunder amid reports West Ham United will look to sell Felipe Anderson for just £17m at the end of the season.

What’s the word?

According to Claret & Hugh, the Hammers are lining up a clear out at the London Stadium including Anderson and Andriy Yarmolenko after parting with Sebastien Haller last month.

David Moyes’ side are thought to be ready to take a sizable hit on the fees paid for the pair of unwanted wingers, whom Manuel Pellegrini and former Director of Football Mario Husillos spent £36m and £18m for respectively in 2018.

The Irons now reportedly value Yarmolenko at between £5-6m as they look to offload his £115,000-per-week salary on a deal running to 2023, while C&H claim Anderson is now only worth £17m in a potential £19m loss for the claret and blue outfit.

Anderson was signed from SS Lazio in 2018 for a then club-record fee, eclipsing the £22m that Pellegrini and Husillos had paid Toulouse for French defender Issa Diop earlier that summer.

The Brazilian winger is currently on a season-long loan with Liga NOS giants FC Porto struck last October, but has only featured nine times for the Dragoes across all competitions ahead of Sergio Conceicao’s title-chasing side hosting relegation-threatened Boavista on Saturday night.

Conceicao has so far not afforded Anderson a key role in his plans, with the £85,000-per-week Brazilian starting just one Portuguese top-flight fixture while being left an unused substitute five times and omitted from six matchday squads in the league to date.

Missed a trick

West Ham were touted to be considering recalling Anderson from his Porto horrors last month and strive to find a new temporary home for the 27-year-old, given his lack of game time at the Estadio do Dragao.

Fiorentina even emerged as a possible destination for the two-time international, but the Irons ultimately opted against terminating his Dragoes deal while Porto were cited as seeing the forward as having greater chances on the field in the near future.

That decision has now proven a blunder with Conceicao still leaving Anderson on the sidelines most of the time, and ignoring Fiorentina’s interest will represent a serious missed opportunity if Sullivan can only drum up offers worth around £17m in the summer.

West Ham would have expected Fiorentina to field Anderson far more often than Porto are, with Cesare Prandelli’s Artemio Franchi Stadium natives in a potential relegation fight having scored the second-lowest tally in the Serie A this season with 21 goals in 21 games.

Anderson may not have scored in his nine games for Porto and may have only offered one goal in 27 games for West Ham last season, yet knows the Italian league well from his time with Lazio and could have offered a threat beside Dusan Vlahovic and Gaetano Castrovilli – who are the only players to have scored more than twice in the league for La Viola to date.

Anderson scored 25 goals and provided 30 assists in the Serie A before joining the Hammers in 2018, and building on his numbers could have driven Sullivan’s asking price back up.

AND in other news, West Ham may face added competition to sign a highly-rated 6 ft 7 titan…

Tottenham Hotspur defender Matt Doherty could be in danger if emerging reports are to be believed…

What’s the word?

According to ABC, reported Spurs target Lucas Vazquez is set to leave Real Madrid this summer, which opens the door for Daniel Levy to secure him on a free transfer.

Just last week, the Daily Star (28th February, page 45) claimed the north Londoners were mulling up an offer for the 29-year-old amid uncertainty over his future at the Spanish giants.

This season, Los Blancos boss Zinedine Zidane has converted the winger into a right-back, often featuring in the absence of Dani Carvajal, so if Jose Mourinho is after a new right-sided defender, it may well spell trouble for their £15m summer investment.

Doherty in danger

Doherty was signed from Wolves at the start of the campaign but has struggled to make much of an impact at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, having been usurped by divisive liability Serge Aurier.

Indeed, the Irishman has only started nine times in the Premier League this term, which has led to speculation over his future in N17, already.

As reported by ESPN just a few weeks ago, the 29-year-old has a dubious future under Mourinho as the Portuguese boss remains unconvinced by his ability.

Therefore, any arrival in the role would surely see the club wave goodbye to him as it would be the final nail in the coffin.

Aurier has started 14 matches in the top-flight, largely missing out through injury, though his instant return to the starting XI at the weekend showed exactly who Mourinho favours more.

Even Japhet Tanganga was getting games at right-back over Doherty, which speaks volumes.

If Levy were to land Vazquez on a freebie in the summer, then you can only imagine that it pushes him closer towards the exit door, especially as the versatile £13.5m-rated gem has made over 55% of his appearances at right-back this term.

Whether he’d be an upgrade on Doherty is another matter.

However, only three other players have performed better for Madrid than Vazquez (7.19) as per WhoScored ratings, while he has contributed towards six goals in only 16 league starts, which is more than Aurier, Doherty and Tanganga combined (four).

Vazquez also tops the charts for tackles per game (2.5), not only proving to be a nuisance off the ball with an incredible work rate, but also a player capable of doing his defensive duties – to good effect too, as he’s successful 66% of the time, as per WhoScored.

You cannot understate his attacking influence either as the Spaniard sits second for key passes per game (1.9), meaning he’s contributing creatively up the field as much as he’s impacting the game at the back.

Doherty’s 1.5 tackles and 0.6 key passes, via WhoScored, simply aren’t a match for Vazquez, only reinforcing the view that he could easily be replaced come the summer.

Lauded for being a “reliable” workhorse by Zidane, Vazquez would surely be a welcome addition at Spurs, though given Mourinho’s extensive options in attack, the only foreseeable position for him would be at right-back.

Doherty should approach this summer with caution.

AND in other news, Mourinho must make a major U-turn over “special” Spurs star who’s “better than ever”…

Rangers are closing in on their 55th top flight title after cruising to a 3-0 victory over St Mirren at Ibrox, with Steven Gerrard’s men on the brink of a confirmed first league triumph since 2010/2011.

Ryan Kent opened the scoring for Rangers in what was to be a stroll for the Gers, with star striker Alfredo Morelos adding another soon after to give Gerrard’s side a comfortable two-goal cushion heading into the break.

Just after the restart, Ianis Hagi notched a third for the Teddy Bears who eventually managed to ease past St Mirren – with these supporters praising their talented young starlet Nathan Patterson.

The 19-year-old defender was handed a start by Gerrard this afternoon as James Tavernier continues his recovery from injury, and it’s safe to say there were a fair few who were impressed.

Find all of their best comments down below.

Gers fans hail Nathan Patterson

“Can I just say what a player Patterson is he’ll be better than tav in his prime.”

Credit: @Hagis_Left_boot

“superb and outstanding talent”

Credit: @Cammy26_2

“Nathan Patterson been immense since coming in to the team.”

Credit: @RangersBanter17

“Nathan Patterson is a future Rangers legend. Him and Bassey on either side”

Credit: @Rossmcc1872

“Nathan Patterson. What a wee player.”

Credit: @thisisibrox

“Patterson is superb, give him a Scotland call up”

Credit: @Glxn72

“Another class performance from nathan patterson”

Credit: @Itz_Cmdj

In other news: Many Rangers adored these comments, find out more here.

Steve Bruce may have to call on Jacob Murphy to feature at right-back when Newcastle United visit relegation rivals West Bromwich Albion after an injury to Emil Krafth.

The Toon boss revealed on Friday that Krafth will have to undergo late assessments on a “nasty” shin injury ahead of Sunday’s trip to The Hawthorns, having been forced off with the issue during last weekend’s 1-1 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Krafth underwent scans at the start of the week to assess the severity of his injury alongside Miguel Almiron and Allan Saint-Maximin, who have been ruled out until April with knee and groin problems respectively, and is now a potential doubt to face Sam Allardyce’s Baggies.

The Wolves match marked Krafth’s seventh start of the Premier League season and third in a row, having enjoyed his longest run in the side all term after falling out of favour following back-to-back appearances in October.

Outings against Burnley and Manchester United earlier in the campaign had proven to be the Sweden international’s only successive top-flight appearances until Newcastle visited Old Trafford following a 2-0 loss at Chelsea last month.

However, Krafth’s run in the side could come to an end this weekend, with Bruce unsure on his availability while speaking to the media on Friday.

“Krafth has got a nasty shin injury so we’ll see how they are today and tomorrow,” the Toon boss said.

Being without Krafth on Sunday could leave Bruce without a recognised right-back as he continues to await the return of Javier Manquillo, with the Spaniard only recently taking up light training sessions following his ankle injury sustained against Southampton in February.

Should Krafth be ruled unavailable for Sunday’s trip to West Brom, Murphy may emerge as Newcastle’s stand-in option after being called on in the role by Bruce previously this season.

Murphy has been given four of his eight Premier League starts during the 2020/21 campaign in a full-back role, while making the remaining seven of his appearances from the bench.

His performance at right-back against Wolves in October returned the 26-year-old’s best WhoScored match rating of the season so far at 7.74, while penning his second and third best grades against Leeds United (7.08) and Everton (7.01) in the role as well.

Those performances return an average 7.27 rating, compared to his overall seasonal score of 6.52.

The £25,000-per-week outcast, who has only played 40 minutes of an available 540 in the top-flight since 30 January, also averages a higher number of passes blocked (1.3) and successful dribbles (1.6) per league game compared to Krafth (0.2 and 0.2 respectively) and Manquillo (0.4 and 0 respectively), per WhoScored.

He may not have featured in the role recently, but should carry enough stock to warrant consideration for a long-awaited recall if Krafth is not passed fit in time.

AND in other news, some Newcastle players want a “very good organiser” lauded by those he’s worked with to replace Steve Bruce…

Noel Whelan has slammed Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf and the Scottish government after they threatened to postpone Glasgow Rangers’ Old Firm derby this weekend should they fail to receive safety assurances.

Whelan slams Yousaf’s Rangers threat

Last Sunday, the Gers were confirmed as Premiership champions after Celtic could only draw 0-0 with Dundee United. That led to thousands of the Ibrox outfit’s supporters taking to the streets of Glasgow to celebrate – not only did they break coronavirus regulations to do so, but a number of arrests were made after damage was done to public property (Sky News).

Yousaf has since claimed the Old Firm derby between the Gers and Celtic could be postponed if certain assurances are not made (Twitter). Speaking to Football Insider, Whelan has hammered this threat. He said:

“They’re the ones, the government, giving the guidelines.

“Make sure you’re there then, Make sure you’ve got everything in place to stop this from happening. It’s simple.

“They’re the ones that have to put things in place to make it safe, to keep fans away. It doesn’t take too much for that to happen. It’s like they want it to fail so they can whinge about something.

“Everybody knows how important the Old Firm is. Not just to the two sets of fans but football in general. Everyone wants to watch it, it’s a spectacle and one everybody looks forward to whether you support the clubs or not.

“It’d be shocking. It’d be a disgrace if it didn’t go ahead just because they feel that fans might breach certain Covid guidelines.”

Nuance

On the one hand, you can understand Yousaf’s point of view. Given the current pandemic we are currently living through, it is hardly good news to see thousands take to the streets regardless of the reason.

However, now the Gers have won the league, there is little reason for fans to go out in large numbers. The threat, therefore, comes across as scaremongering and shows little understanding of the situation. Any Rangers fans who do take to the streets are only jeopardising their club’s reputation.

In other news, Rangers fans react to this Sky Sports news.

Sheffield Wednesday are likely to go into tonight’s crunch match without one of their star performers…

What’s the latest?

According to YorkshireLive, Owls centre-back Chey Dunkley is facing ‘another spell on the sidelines’ after picking up a hamstring injury in training last week.

Indeed, the towering 29-year-old was a notable absentee on Sunday as Darren Moore’s side suffered a seventh successive defeat at the hands of league leaders Norwich City.

Whilst it remains to be seen how severe the issue is, hamstring problems can take several weeks to heal fully, so it would be a surprise to see him involved this evening as Wednesday host arch-rivals Huddersfield Town at Hillsborough Stadium.

Big blow for Moore

The Owls currently sit second from bottom, some seven points adrift of safety and of Birmingham City, who sacked their manager last week.

Tonight’s opposition aren’t too far away from being drawn into the dogfight either as the Terriers occupy 18th place, so tonight’s result is a crucial one for both teams but especially for Moore.

His new side need to start picking up points otherwise they might as well be planning for life in League One, at this rate.

And without Dunkley, the 46-year-old’s task gets even harder because the former Oxford and Wigan powerhouse has been one of the only shining lights in this miserable season.

In terms of average WhoScored rating for the current campaign, Dunkley ranks fifth (6.68), where he has proven to be the best centre-back at the club for reading the game having averaged two interceptions per game.

That sort of presence will be vital in thwarting the opposition, though that is something Moore is going to be without tonight.

He’s not just a colossal presence to have at the back either as he can chip in with goals too – at Wigan, he found the net 13 times. Only three Owls players have scored more than three goals this season, and they’re all forwards.

Speaking about his aerial ability and threat, former Latics teammate Sam Morsy lauded Dunkley “unbelievable” and claimed he was “lethal” in one to one situations, so his interception returns are now hardly a surprise.

Evidently, Moore could do with a player like Dunkley right now. He must find a way to stop the rot, and without the £10k-per-week beast, it’s a massive blow to his chances of doing so.

With only 11 games to play, the Yorkshire giants need him back sooner rather than later.

AND in other news, Moore could save Sheffield Wednesday thousands next season with “terrific” 20 y/o gem…

After signing from Manchester City for a reported fee of around £15m back in the summer of 2019, it’s fair to say Douglas Luiz has really come on leaps and bounds at Aston Villa.

The 22-year-old has been a permanent fixture in Dean Smith’s side since making the switch to Villa Park, already making 67 appearances for the first-team.

His form has even earned him international honours, picking up his first couple of senior caps for Brazil. It’s been no surprise then that his market value has absolutely sky-rocketed, more than doubling in value.

According to Transfermarkt, it now stands at £31.5m, and that’s a real testament to just how much his own play has improved, and how much Smith himself has helped him develop under his wing.

Speaking earlier in the summer, The Athletic journalist Gregg Evans, said of him: “He’s an absolute joy to watch now and I never thought I would be saying that. Villa have got a fantastic player in Douglas Luiz now, he looks like an absolute star, he could have played in that Man United team.

“He was better than (Paul) Pogba, I thought. I thought he was brilliant, hardly did anything wrong, hardly put a foot wrong. He won so many interceptions and made so many important blocks. When he gets the ball, he passes it nicely. He’s the best player in that Villa team at the moment because it’s just not working for John McGinn.”

Make no mistake about it, given how Luiz has developed at Villa Park since his move to the Midlands, Johan Lange played an absolute blinder in signing the Brazilian for the club.

If Villa ever contemplate selling him, or if rival clubs start showing some genuine interest in signing him, they know they could bring in a massive fee.

Meanwhile, this Villa man was shocking in the defeat to Spurs…

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie is confident his old side will progress under Dean Smith despite their recent struggles.

After a bright start to the season, the Villans have really underperformed of late. Following their recent 2-0 defeat to Tottenham, they have now won just one of their last five Premier League fixtures, a development that may leave some asking questions of the manager.

Smith has been unable to get the team firing in the absence of captain Jack Grealish, arguably showing that the Englishman’s system heavily relies on the attacking midfielder.

Nevertheless, Hendrie has complete faith in the former Brentford boss, firmly believing that he is the man to take the club forward.

When asked if Villa had perhaps peaked under Smith, Hendrie told FFC in an exclusive interview:

“No chance, not a chance at all. Since he’s come in, he’s been a breath of fresh air, he’s a Villa man himself. It’s well-documented where his background’s come from. Listen, the thing is, what’s gone against Villa this season is the reflection of last season of where they were so poor. They’re in a relegation scrap for most of the season, they end up just staying up by the skin of the teeth.

“And then this season, there’s been a few new additions, and they’ve done reasonably well. I feel that Villa possibly just overachieved a little bit this season if I’m being quite honest.”

The ex-Villa player also added:

“I think Dean’s done a fabulous job, I really do. I still think he can take us further on. I don’t feel that people should jump on the bandwagon of, you know, ‘he’s taken us as far [as he can]’ because I feel that he’s still got more to come.”

While Villa are certainly in a difficult period, sitting in 10th place and not that far off a Europa League spot, Smith has certainly done a good job overall this term.