View this post on InstagramGood battle to bounce back after the result on Saturday. Through to the next round! @WatfordFCOfficial ??⚽️A post shared by Andre Gray (@andregray_) on Sep 24, 2019 at 1:53pm PDT
View this post on InstagramImprove winning.A post shared by GERARD DEULOFEU (@gerardeulofeu) on Sep 24, 2019 at 2:40pm PDT
The message was loud and clear. They were happy to finally win, and now they want to build on it by claiming victory in the next round as well.
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It remains to be seen if this result can kickstart Watford’s season, but the players are seemingly buoyed by the win, and that can only be a good thing.
Loads of Sunderland fans have been reacting to a throwback video posted by the club’s official Twitter account, as they celebrated a home debut goal from fan favourite Julio Arca.
It’s not been a great few years for the Stadium of Light faithful. Back-to-back relegation seasons were absolutely brutal for the fans, while the actions of players like Jack Rodwell, Darron Gibson and Papy Djilobodji have only compounded their misery.
Things may be looking up after the latest rumours regarding a possible takeover though, and fans are also enjoying an old video of one of their favourite ever players.
Arca spent six years on Wearside, racking up 164 appearances, scoring 19 times and adding another nine assists.
And one of those goals came on his home debut, as he glanced in a header against West Ham.
He celebrated with more passion than the three aforementioned names put together ever had for the club, which is perhaps how he endeared himself to the fans so quickly.
You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…
علق رونالد كومان المدير الفني لفريق برشلونة الإسباني، على واقعة جيرارد بيكيه مدافع البلوجرانا وأنطوان جريزمان، خلال مواجهة باريس سان جيرمان.
وخسر برشلونة برباعية مقابل هدف ضد باريس سان جيرمان، في ذهاب دور الـ16 من بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا، في مباراة شهدت تراشقًا بالألفاظ بين بيكيه وجريزمان “طالع التفاصيل”.
كومان علّق على الواقعة في تصريحاته بالمؤتمر الصحفي الخاص بمواجهة قادش غدًا الأحد في الدوري الإسباني: “من الطبيعي أن تكون هناك بعض المشاعر الصعبة داخل الملعب”.
وأضاف مدرب برشلونة: “الأمر لم يكن جيدًا، بيكيه كان عصبيًا، وكذلك جريزمان، هذا أمر جيد بالنسبة لي، أن يغضب لاعب في فريقي عندما لا تكون الأمور جيدة”.
وأكمل: “بيكيه تعافى، قدم أداءً جيدًا ضد باريس سان جيرمان، وجاهز للمشاركة من بداية المباراة ضد قادش غدًا”.
وأشار: “في هذه الأيام، القوة البدنية أمر هام للغاية، الآن علينا تغيير سياسة انتقالاتنا، وعدم التركيز على المواهب فقط مثلما كنا نفعل، علينا أن نحقق التوازن بين أصحاب القوة البدنية والموهوبين”.
وعن حالة ديست: “سيرجينو ما زال في عمر الـ19، يحتاج للتعلم والتطور، عليه أن يكون أكثر تركيزًا وشراسة، لقد انتقل من هولندا إلى برشلونة، الأمر ليس سهلًا، لكنه يعتمد على مدى تركيزه في النهاية”.
وبسؤاله عن هالاند مهاجم بوروسيا دورتموند، اختتم كومان: “لن نتحدث عن التعاقدات الآن، عندما يأتي الرئيس الجديد يمكننا مناقشة هذا الأمر”.
Liverpool will be able to take heart from the fact they worked out how to beat Manchester City despite their penalty shoot-out Community Shield defeat, according to ESPN FC pundit Alejandro Moreno.
Moreno was commenting on the meeting he effectively described as a game of two halves, in which City dominated the first half before Liverpool took control in the second.
Despite City handing Liverpool an early blow in the annual curtain-raiser, Moreno felt that Jurgen Klopp’s side could take some positives despite missing out on success at Wembley.
Moreno said: “What you saw from both teams is the fact that they both got a clear idea as to how they could beat the other. Manchester City in the first half, doing the things that they were doing, were creating chance after chance – and with better delivery, it would have been a different score by half time.
“Then you go into the second half, and Liverpool then showed a very clear picture as to how they can beat Manchester City.
“When you press them, and you force turnovers, Manchester City have difficulties recovering. And the reason they have difficulties recovering is because they are used to having the ball, they commit those numbers forward, [and] by the time they lose the ball, there is no chance to recover – and now you’re defending in 1-v-1 situations with guys who are not comfortable doing it.
“Manchester City will take positives, Liverpool will take positives, and in the end, all of us benefitted from what was a very good game.”
Given his previous comments about the fixture, the German boss won’t be losing too much sleep over the result, with the Premier League getting underway at Anfield this Friday.
And with the Reds not necessarily at full strength on Sunday (with Golden Boot holder Sadio Mane out of the squad), there is even more of a reason to be positive about that result, as they managed to take last season’s treble winners all the way without one of their star players.
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…
Speaking to Football Insider, Darren Bent has tipped Aston Villa’s Andre Green to be an option in the Premier League next season.
What’s he said?
With Villa adding numerous new faces to the side over the summer, it’s easy to forget about a host of their fringe players.
Henri Lansbury and Birkir Bjarnason have both scored in pre-season whilst Scott Hogan even got in on the action last weekend.
However, one man who hasn’t been talked about much over pre-season is 20-year-old Green.
The winger became a bit part of the squad in the second half of 2018/19, but Bent is tipping him to remain an option in the upcoming campaign despite the jump to the Premier League. He told Football Insider:
“I’ve seen a little bit of him. Hopefully, he can get the opportunity, I thought he did well. I’ve seen him a couple of times and he’s impressed me.
“We’re dealing with a completely different animal in the Premier League, to stay in the Premier League you need goal scorers.
“I’d have him there as an option, maybe not as a first choice, he’s got time on his hands which is great.”
Green needs to be involved
The wide man spent the first half of last term on loan at Portsmouth, scoring once in six games in League One.
Therefore, it may have been somewhat of a surprise to see him brought back into the first-team set-up at Villa.
Green struggled for consistency but did show glimpses of the promising quality he has, scoring as a substitute against Sheffield United whilst also claiming an assist versus Sheffield Wednesday.
The fact he only contributed to two goals after returning might mean he’d struggle to make the step up to the top-flight but it would certainly be foolish if he wasn’t retained as an option.
Last season Villa somewhat struggled on the right-hand side with Albert Adomah scoring just four.
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Jota has been brought in to bolster that area of the pitch but behind him, Green can still make an impact if afforded the opportunities.
Of course, the Villans have been linked with another wide player in Trezeguet but there should still be enough games for the youngster to make an impact.
It’ll be a challenge for him, but as Bent says, Green has time on his hands.
Everton announced on Friday that teenage forward Kieran Phillips has signed his first professional contract with the Merseyside giants.
Phillips, who has penned a one-year deal until the end of the 2019-20 campaign, scored 12 times in 11 appearances in the Under-18 Premier League (North) last term.
In an interview, the 19-year-old revealed that he would be targeting a spot in the club’s double-winning Under-23 side in the new season.
It remains to be seen whether Phillips can become a future first-team star at Goodison Park.
However, the fact that the attacker struck 12 times in just 11 games in the Under-18 Premier League (North) last term shows that he certainly has talent at his disposal, and he’s a player you’d expect Marco Silva to keep a close eye on.
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The Everton fans have been on social media offering their views on the contract announcement, which has followed new deals for fellow youngsters Joe Anderson and Nicolas Hansen over the last few days.
And a selection of their Twitter reaction can be seen below:
Many Newcastle United fans are expecting Ayoze Perez to follow head coach Rafael Benitez out of St James’ Park in this summer’s transfer window.
On Monday, Newcastle’s official website announced that Benitez would not be signing a new contract with the Magpies, meaning that he will depart the club at the end of this month.
Perez has been strongly linked with a move away from the English team in recent weeks, having recently suggested that he was ready to depart this summer.
The Spaniard scored 12 Premier League goals for the Magpies during the 2018-19 campaign and is said to have attracted Tottenham Hotspur.
The 25-year-old – also linked with Sevilla in recent days – posted a tweet in the aftermath of the Benitez announcement.
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And that led to a number of Newcastle fans either urging the attacker to leave or claiming that an exit was now sure to take place.
A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:
Still got play-off headache Leeds fans? It really wasn’t the way anyone expected it to go. A disappointing end to a disappointing season. After looking like the favourites to go up at one point to not even getting to the play-off final… How did it go so wrong?
Marcelo Bielsa will no doubt be trying to find out just why his side tailed off so dramatically as the season progressed. They now find themselves in the difficult position where they have some top quality players who will want to go to the next level, while knowing that they HAVE to compete again next term.
So where were the biggest defining moments in their campaign? Here’s a couple of games we feel shaped Leeds’ season.
Leeds United 4-0 West Brom (Friday 1st March 2019)
Ahhh the good times, this win shot Leeds straight into top spot and really showed everyone that they’re here to fight until the end of the season. At this point, it was a three-horse race and you really thought that after seeing Leeds’ players literally walk all over fellow promotion fighting West Brom, that they would prevail. It truly was a mesmerising performance.
This is no doubt the type of performance that Bielsa will be looking to replicate next season.
Leeds United 1-1 Aston Villa (Sunday 28th April 2019)
The game that undone everything. One of if not THE most entertaining games in the Championship this season. The 1-1 draw against Aston Villa confirmed that Bielsa and Leeds’ players would have to look forward to the play-offs.
Despite the fact that it was their own doing, the draw was the nail in the coffin after recent poor results from the Whites, and it certainly was the biggest turning point in Leeds’ season, beginning their journey to the ultimate disappointment.
If only Sunderland had cashed in when they had the chance, Lamine Kone would never have been a problem. The Black Cats thought they had a real gem on their hands when they turned down an £18 million bid for the defender back in 2016, but only now do they realise how costly that move was three years ago.
Kone, who is now 30-years-old, has been a massive pain for Sunderland since they suffered the first of their back-to-back relegations in 2017. The French-born Ivorian international spent this season on-loan in Ligue 1 with Strasbourg and the good news is that, according to The Chronicle, that loan move has become a permanent one, but how the Mackems would have wanted him out of their hair before that.
There have been some pretty rotten players rock up on Wearside in recent years. Without even thinking about it, the likes of Jack Rodwell, Didier Ndong and Papy Djilobodji spring to mind, and now the club have got that particular trio off their books and Kone has also secured a permanent switch away things look a lot brighter at the Stadium Light.
From day one, Jack Ross made it very clear that Lamine Kone was not in his plans and that he had to find a future elsewhere, which the 30-year-old has now gone and done. It’s been a long time coming, but at least the Black Cats can prepare for yet another season in League One without having to worry about getting rid of Kone on yet another loan move for yet another season.
Are you pleased to be rid of Kone, Sunderland fans? Let us know!
Tottenham Hotspur take on West Ham United this weekend aware that a victory will place them in the driving seat to finish in the top four this season.
The club are currently four points clear of fifth-placed Arsenal and, with three games of the season remaining, could take a massive step towards qualification with a victory over the Irons.
Manuel Pellegrini’s side, meanwhile, are mathematically safe from relegation but are unlikely to overhaul Wolves and finish seventh.
The carrot of becoming the first team to beat Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, however, should be motivation enough for the Irons.
Football FanCast takes a look at where the game will be won and lost this weekend.
The Key Battle – Son Heung-Min vs West Ham’s full-backs
Son is almost certain to start against the Hammers.
A Champions League semi-final against Ajax looms for Spurs but Son is suspended for the first leg next week.
The South Korea international, then, will surely play this weekend and his form this season should worry the Irons; he has scored 20 goals and laid on 10 assists in 44 appearances in all competitions.
With Aaron Cresswell struggling with an injury – he has only just returned to training – Arthur Masuaku a decent attacker but a poor defender at left-back, and Pablo Zabaleta ageing at right-back, Son will have his pick of players to target throughout the encounter.
He is truly two-footed and could drift from the left flank to the right, terrorising each full-back in turn.
Pellegrini, then, would do well to instruct his wingers to track back routinely and offer protection to their defenders; stopping Son is integral to the Irons’ chances of victory.
The Key Dynamic – Rotation vs Consistency
Mauricio Pochettino is likey to rotate his squad with the Champions League semi-final clash with Ajax looming.
The two sides will play their first leg in north London on Tuesday, perhaps the biggest game in Spurs’ history.
Pochettino made a number of changes to his XI for the encounter with Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium in the Premier League, having seen his side knock Pep Guardiola’s men out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage.
The likes of Juan Foyth, Kyle Walker-Peters, Oliver Skipp and Vincent Janssen could all potentially play, with key first-team stars kept fresh for the encounter with the Dutch giants.
The opposite is true of the Hammers, with this perhaps the biggest game of their season.
Pellegrini, then, is likely to go for broke and pick his strongest XI. West Ham may well be confident, then, that they can potentially hand Spurs their first defeat in their new stadium.
The Deciding Factor – Goals, goals, goals
Harry Kane is injured, of course, and Fernando Llorente is becoming something of a burden to the team. His performance against Brighton & Hove Albion earlier this week was roundly terrible.
The pressure, then, is on Son to again find the net without Kane in the side, or else they will be hoping for a repeat of Christian Eriksen’s late heroics against the Seagulls.
West Ham, meanwhile, can select from the likes of Marko Arnautovic, Lucas Perez and Javier Hernandez. It is essentially out-and-out strikers versus versatile forwards.
Son is good enough to win that battle but so too is Arnautovic; it remains to be seen who will come out on top this weekend.
The Impact Subs – Vincent Janssen vs Manuel Lanzini
Soccer Football – Premier League – Tottenham Hotspur v Brighton & Hove Albion – Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, London, Britain – April 23, 2019 Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino and Tottenham’s Vincent Janssen REUTERS/Dylan Martinez 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 cont
Vincent Janssen made his astonishing return to action on Tuesday night, coming on as a substitute for his first appearance for the club since 2017 as Spurs attempted to break Brighton down.
He has endured a difficult time in north London, scoring just six goals in total, but has been needed as back up to Llorente with Kane injured.
He could again be called upon this weekend if Spurs are on the back foot and he will be chomping at the bit to prove his worth.
For the Hammers, meanwhile, Manuel Lanzini has a small chance of playing in the game, per ClaretandHugh.
He has been sidelined with a groin injury and, while he is more likely to play against Southampton, the club have not ruled out the possibility of him featuring versus Spurs.
A brilliant attacking midfielder with the ability to carve defences apart, Lanzini could have a major impact if introduced as a substitute, particularly if the scores are level in the second half.
Indeed, he is far more likely to positively influence the game than his Dutch counterpart, injured or not.