All posts by h79snht.top

With seven goals in his last seven games, Aston Villa’s Jonathan Kodjia is on fire right now. The Villans have benefitted from the Ivorian’s razor-sharp form, with seven wins since their defeat at Newcastle in late February, and although promotion via the play-offs is, if not mathematically impossible, extremely unlikely, the feeling around the club is good.

Indeed, in the wake of their 1-0 win over QPR this week, owner Dr. Tony Xia took to Twitter in positive mood…

The victory came courtesy of an early goal from that man Kodjia, who blasted the ball into the travelling side’s net after a neat pass from Leandro Bacuna.

Naturally, Xia’s tweet gained quite a lot of attention, with Villa fans seizing on it to beg the Chinese businessman to tie the 27-year-old down to a new contract…

Not everyone was obsessed with Kodjia, though, with a fair few taking the chance to tahank Xia and talk up plans for next season…

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Pep Guardiola’s decision to field Jesus Navas at right-back away at Arsenal on Sunday even threw off Manchester City’s official Twitter account – who put Fernandinho at No.2 and the occasional Spain international in his customary role on the right wing.

So those who didn’t fully take in the 90 minutes at the Emirates Stadium and instead awaited the post-match analysis of ropy defending from both sides to determine their opinion of the encounter probably assume Guardiola’s latest grand experiment didn’t quite pay off.

It’s certainly true the Citizens paid twice for disorganisation in their own third, the kind of disorganisation you’d expect when a 5ft. 7″ attacker is thrown into defence, especially when tasked with nullifying the world-class threat Alexis Sanchez can offer from the left wing.

Yet, as our infographic shows, the statistics tell a rather different story, one of Navas performing far better than expected in his new role – suggesting Guardiola saw enough evidence to warrant giving hisÂexperiment a few more test runs.

Navas finished up with a staggering eight tackles and four interceptions – the best returnsÂof any City player – showing he was no defensive liability against one of the most feared winger-forwards in the Premier League, although two fouls in addition to a yellow card did demonstrate his naivety.

But the 31-year-oldÂalso made an impact at his more customary end of the pitch, creating the joint-most chances of any player involved in the match alongside No.10s David Silva and Mesut Ozil, predominantly via his deliveries from out wide.

Of course, one decent game doesn’t make Jesus Navas an established right-back. But performing that well, especially against Sanchez, who had only one shot at goal, suggests Guardiola’s ploy paid off. And looking ahead to a summer in which Bacary Sagna and Pablo Zabaleta may leave the club, the often-maligned Spaniard represents an interesting, unorthodox alternative.

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There is no questioning what Jurgen Klopp’s priority should be in the transfer market this summer – improving a defence that has conceded the most goals of any side in the Premier League’s top seven.

Liverpool’s last Premier League outing against Crystal Palace provided enough evidence on its own; Christian Benteke was uncontested inside the box to put away the Eagles’ first goal in a 2-1 win, whilst his brace came via some frankly amateur defending from a corner – the ball passing through three Liverpool defenders before finding its way to the Belgian striker.

According to the Liverpool Echo, Klopp is already on the case. The Reds are allegedly ready to pay a club-record transfer fee to sign Southampton’s Virgil van Dijk, who is valued by his current employers at a whopping £50million.

No doubt, the Netherlands international was in phenomenal form during the first half of the campaign, until having his season ended prematurely in January by a nasty tackle from Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy. But is he really worth £50million? And if so, should Liverpool pay it considering the effect he could have on their top four chances in the coming seasons? Let us know by voting below…

According to reports from Mirror Football, Manchester United are hoping to jump ahead of the pack in the race to sign Fulham’s in-demand wonderkid Ryan Sessegnon.

The attacking left-back is just 16 years of age but has played an important role in the Cottagers all-but mathematically securing a playoff spot this season, producing five goals and three assists in 25 second tier outings.

Having also netted against Premier League opposition in the form of Hull earlier this term, Sessegnon is rapidly gaining a reputation as one of English football’s most exciting young talents.

Liverpool, Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Manchester City are all reportedly in the hunt for the teenager’s signature, but now United want in on his services as well.

So, Red Devils supporters, would you back a summer transfer swoop for the Fulham sensation? Let us know by voting below, and we’ll publish the results of our poll later this week…

According to The Sun, Liverpool will make a move for former Chelsea man Mohammed Salah, if they fail to lure Julian Brandt to Anfield.

What’s the Word?

Jurgen Klopp is rumoured to want Brandt as his number one target this summer. However, the 20-year-old German international has expressed concerns about his playing time at Anfield, especially since he is guaranteed a starting spot at current club Bayer Leverkusen.

According the these latest reports, Klopp has come up with a contingency plan in the form of former Chelsea winger Mohammed Salah. The Egyptian had a torrid time while at Stamford Bridge; rarely featuring in the first team and struggling to come to terms with the English game.

Despite this, his form surged in Italy and it is now though that Roma will take no less than £20 million for the winger.

How good has Salah been this season?

The 24-year-old has made 40 appearances in all competitions for Roma this season, scoring 17 goals in the process. Despite these impressive stats, the Egyptian has struggled in his second season far more than his first in Italy. It now looks as though Salah may be interested in a move away from the Stadio Olympico to re-find his sparkling form of the previous campaign.

Would Salah be a good fit for Liverpool?

Many Liverpool fans would be well aware of how close their club were to signing Salah four years ago, before he chose Chelsea instead.

While some may not be able to forgive the Egyptian for turning down the chance to play in the famous red, it has probably worked out for both parties.

Salah has grown as an athlete and as a man during his time in Italy, and his lightning pace, phenomenal stamina and eye for goal is a perfect fit for the Liverpool of today. Providing that he can adapt to Klopp’s ethos quickly, I would expect the Egyptian to flourish and prove his doubters wrong.

With the furore surrounding the future of Manchester United target Antoine Griezmann taking up much of the back pages at the moment, it seems that many United fans may have forgotten that the club are also in the race to sign a number of other top talents from around Europe.

One of those talents is Victor Lindelof who is close to joining Manchester United, according to reports in Portugal. Record claim the Sweden international is set to sign a long-term contract after his current club Benfica agreed a transfer fee with the Red Devils.

Although United have defended well on the whole this season, Jose Mourinho doesn’t appear completely convinced by his current options at the back, chopping and changing throughout the campaign, so bringing in a defender of his own choosing could have a huge impact at Old Trafford.

Manchester United fans have taken to Twitter to express their thoughts on Victor Lindelof and the 22-year-old’s proposed move to Old Trafford…

Manchester United supporters received some bad news on Thursday morning with regards to their pursuit of Atletico Madrid star Antoine Griezmann.

The Court of Arbitration for Sport announced that the Spanish club’s appeal against a transfer ban has been rejected.

Atletico were hit with the punishment by FIFA after illegally signing academy players, and now that CAS has upheld the ban, the club will be unable to make signings until 2018.

This could affect the future of Griezmann, who has been heavily linked with a big-money move to United.

According to Deportes Cope, the France international has already informed Atletico that he wants to leave the club this summer.

These latest developments are likely to leave Atletico desperate to keep hold of Griezmann, but The Independent claims that if United meet the striker’s £87m release clause, then the Spanish outfit are powerless.

It will be up to the player to make the final decision, but he could feel growing pressure from Atletico considering that they will be unable to secure a replacement until January.

On the flip side, Simeone cannot convince Griezmann that the club are moving forward if he is banned from recruiting top-quality signings, which could force the forward out of the door.

Some United fans believe that Atletico’s inability to sign new players this summer means that the deal for Griezmann will collapse, while others think that the Red Devils should focus on other targets.

The season is barely finished in Scotland but Rangers are already deep into their pre-season preparations, taking on friendly matches and bedding in their six new arrivals at Ibrox so far.

It’s been necessary. Incredibly the Light Blues kick-off their first competitive match next Thursday against Luxembourg outfit Progres Niederkorn in the 1st Round of UEFA Europa League qualifying.

Such is the state of the Scottish European co-efficient these days, teams have to enter Europe at a very early stage and fight across the continent for the right to reach the group stages of the both competitions. Most of the time these ties are against relatively unknown teams and throw up big surprises for fans to get to grip withs.

Not only do Rangers know their opponents for this round but they also know their potential opponents in the next round with the 2nd Qualifying Round also drawn.

What are the must know facts about all of these teams? We’re here with FOUR bits of info Rangers fans need to know ahead of the qualifiers…

Progres Niederkorn have never won a European match

Despite having not competed in Europe for years, there’s no doubt that Rangers fans will be full of confidence heading into next week’s tie and for good reason.

Their opponents have never won a match in UEFA competition in 12 attempts. The most illustrious side they’ve faced on the continent is Real Madrid, who beat them 12-0 on aggregate in the European Cup in 1978.

Since 1982 though they’ve only featured in Europe on one occasion. That came in 2015/16 when they were beaten 3-0 on aggregate by Irish Shamrock Rovers despite a credible 0-0 draw at home.

They’ve only scored one goal in Europe full stop, conceding a massive 40 goals in return.

It all points to a rather easy first test for Pedro Caixinha this summer and although the Light Blues faltered last season, they should be far too strong for a side that finished 4th in the Luxembourg National Division.

Progres’ biggest goal threat is Remi Laurent

If Progres Niederkorn are to get anything out of their tie against Rangers then it’ll likely come through French striker Remi Laurent. After scoring 93 goals in eight years in the French lower leagues, the 30-year-old joined Progres last summer and has been a big success at the club.

He scored 24 goals in 26 matches, an exceptional scoring rate and even though the standard of the Luxembourg National Division is unlikely to be high, it’s certainly a rate that should register on the minds of fans ahead of next Thursday.

The new look Rangers defence is untested and though you’d like to think Pedro Caixinha has marshalled his defence into shape in pre-season, they’ll have to ensure they are all in step with each other or there could be a surprise goal in store from main man Laurent.

AEL have a decent recent UEFA record

If Rangers make it past the 1st Qualifying Round as expected then the difficult ramps up a notch with a potential tie against Cypriot side AEL Limassol. They too have to overcome a 1st Round tie but you’d expect them to take care of St Joseph’s of Gibraltar with ease.

Since Rangers’ absence from European football, AEL don’t actually have too bad a record given them come from a tiny country like Cyprus.

In 2012 they reached the group stages of the UEFA Europa League after securing a massive result against Partizan Belgrade in Champions League qualifying, parachuting in after being knocked out by Anderlecht.

In that group stage they ultimately finished 4th but did secure a famous 3-0 win over Marseille.

In 2014 they entered into Champions League qualifying once again, being put out by Zenit St Petersburg but not before beating them 1-0 at home and potentially causing a massive shock.

Of course it’s a few years down the line but it shows that they are no pushovers at European level and a long flight to the baking heat of Cyprus isn’t exactly ideal for Rangers.

This is St Joseph’s debut season in Europe

If AEL Limassol succumb to a massive shock against St Joseph’s of Gibraltar then the 2nd Qualifying Round would be a far easier affair. Part-time St Joseph’s have never competed in Europe but enter this year after finishing third in the Gibraltan Premier Division, a massive 18 points behind second-placed Lincoln Red Imps.

Gibraltan football is still in its infancy at a Europe-wide level and it’s less about results for these teams and more about building towards the future.

The only name Rangers fans may know in the St Joseph’s team is goalkeeper Jamie Robba who has 8 caps for the Gibraltar national team including against Scotland at Hampden.

He also faced Germany and despite losing the match 4-0 he was in lightning form, making a number of superb stops to keep the score down against the world champions.

According to reports in the Daily Mail, Chelsea are closing in on the £35m signing of Monaco midfielder Tiemoue Bakayoko.

The Blues have been heavily linked with the 22-year-old over the course of the last couple of months but there has been little progress in securing the deal – until now.

Bakayoko was one of the French outfit’s stand-out players last season as they won the Ligue 1 title and reached the semi-finals of the Champions League, and Antonio Conte wants the France international to strengthen his midfield.

The Daily Mail goes on to suggest that Nemanja Matic could move to Manchester United if the deal for Bakayoko eventually goes through.

Chelsea supporters were quick to have their say on the latest twist in the long-running transfer saga via social media, with many hoping the club wrap up the deal quickly as they have been hearing the same rumour for the last month or so.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

According to Mundo Deportivo, former Liverpool and Sunderland defender Javier Manquillo is set to sign for Newcastle in the next few days.

What’s the Story?

Having been told he has no future at Atletico Madrid, Jvaier Manquillo is set to join Newcastle United, according to reports in Spain.

The 23-year-old has spent the last three seasons on-loan away from his parent club, at Liverpool, Marseille and Sunderland respectively. However, Manquillo is now rumoured to want a permanent move away and Newcastle are now ready to complete a deal for the defender.

How good was Manquillo last season?

It was truly a season to forget for Manquillo during last campaign at the Stadium of Light. Playing in a team struggling to find any form whatsoever, the Spaniard featured in just 22 games for the now-relegated side and was a part of the worst defensive line in the entire league.

While the 23-year-old is certainly capable of more, it was a truly detrimental season for Manquillo’s progression, which is why it is surprising to see Newcastle keen on his signature this summer.

Is Manquillo a good signing for Newcastle?

This all depends on the transfer fee that Atletico Madrid demand for their young defender. Let him go cheaply and he will be well worth the gamble, especially as a back-up for both full-back positions. However, if Newcastle pay over the odds and Manquillo fails to live up to expectation, he will be considered a flop that wasn’t even good enough for their relegated arch rivals.