All posts by h716a5.icu

The signing of Sandro Ramirez was pretty much an unmitigated disaster for Everton and will go down in history as one of the worst ever sanctioned by Steve Walsh, the Blues’ former Director of Football.

The Spaniard arrived on Merseyside in 2017 for what then seemed like a bargain £5.25million fee as the Toffees triggered a release clause in his contract with Malaga, after he had scored 16 goals in 31 games the season prior.

But former Everton boss Ronald Koeman would not see the same output from the promising striker he’d signed, as Sandro offered next to zero impact with just one goal in 15 appearances before ditching royal blue for his first spell away on loan.

“There was a lot of interest in Sandro because, of course, he’s a goalscorer, he’s young and he has a big future in the game,” Koeman said upon his unveiling, via quotes by Sky Sports.

“We have been trying to bring in good players so we can have greater productivity in the team and he will bring that. He will bring a lot of good qualities and he’s a really good goalscorer, too.”

Goals would continue to be scarce over the coming years as Sandro endured a drought in front of the net lasting 710 days, with the former Spain U21 international failing to strike home a second Everton goal and firing blanks for loan sides Sevilla and Real Sociedad.

He ultimately ended his barren run in November 2019 whilst with Real Valladolid and saw out that term with four goals in all competitions, but it proved to be too little too late as Everton agreed to mutually terminate his contract earlier this month so that he could join SD Huesca on a free.

It capped a miserable and expensive three years for Everton, who flushed more than £12.4m down the drain through the signing of Sandro having awarded him a £65,000-per-week deal on top of the fee paid to Malaga.

Everton managed to avoid handing over even greater sums through the loan spells they orchestrated, with Sevilla understood to have covered the striker’s contract in full during his half-season in Andalusia, while Sociedad paid two-thirds of his wages during his time at the Anoeta Stadium.

Valladolid also paid an unspecified portion of Sandro’s lucrative terms, meaning Everton may have paid out less over the 25-year-old’s time under contract, but it also remains to be seen how much the Blues agreed to pay in order to avoid the final year of his deal.

The potential Koeman felt he saw in Sandro is something the striker never managed to live up to in three years as an Everton player, but he could now find himself in a position to prove the Dutch coach was right, abbeit far, far too late from a Toffees’ point of view.

Sandro was given his Huesca debut at home Valladolid on Sunday and opened his account for Michel’s side early in the second half to complete a two-goal comeback, just five minutes after Waldo Rubio had converted from the spot to double the visitors’ advantage.

The Toffees flop could not further contribute any efforts on goal or key passes during his 34 minutes on the field, per SofaScore, yet he impressed his new boss having entered the action just seconds before finding the net.

“He is not responsible for scoring the goals [but] he has a lot of talent” Michel said, via quotes by Marca.

Sandro has a long road left ahead of him in order to restore a reputation that has been left in tatters after years of struggling to score, but he is on the right path to putting his torrid time as Toffees player behind him and prove that Everton did more than waste in excess of £12m.

AND in other news, Everton will be in heaven over a 29-year-old whose causing his former side to regret accepting a summer transfer.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho was left fuming with his team’s display on Thursday evening as they succumbed to their first defeat since the opening day of the new season.

The north Londoners squandered the lead in Group J after losing 1-0 in Belgium to Royal Antwerp. It was so bad that the Portuguese wanted to change his entire starting XI at the break.

He did, however, make a shock quadruple substitution, taking the likes of Dele Alli and Steven Bergiwjn off after a lacklustre opening 45.

In those changes, perhaps most surprisingly was Giovani Lo Celso, who was arguably the best player on the pitch in a white shirt. The fact that no other player, even those that played the entire duration, recorded a high rating (7.3) speaks volumes.

Per FotMob and SofaScore, the 24-year-old was still his creative self, delivering two key passes, but also quite industrious as he put in five tackles, made five recoveries and won 86% of his ground duels.

After he was withdrawn at the break, Spurs then failed to register a single attempt on target in the second half. They also recorded half the number of successful dribbles Antwerp could manage and lost possession 99 times – they missed the energetic Argentinian in the heart of the engine room.

Therefore, some of the blame must fall at the feet of Mourinho. It could have been a totally different game if the £31.5m-rated dynamo was kept on the pitch.

If he wanted Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s influence, then perhaps he should have dragged Harry Winks off, which would have allowed the £70k-per-week sensation to play a more natural advanced role.

The England international has previously lauded his teammate as an “exciting player” whilst Spanish football expert Guillem Balague once dubbed him “extraordinary.”

This is the sort of star that Mourinho ought to be building his team around. That half-time calamity may only dent his morale and confidence now. It was a scandalously wrong call.

AND in other news, FORGET Alli, £36m-rated Spurs passenger should’ve been hooked instead…

After seeing their strong start to the season halted by back-to-back defeats to Everton and Chelsea, Crystal Palace bounced back with a 4-1 win over Leeds United at Selhurst Park before the international break.

The Eagles kicked off the campaign in style after they stunned Southampton at St Mary’s, before Roy Hodgson’s side picked up their most impressive result of the season so far when they thumped Manchester United in a 3-1 victory at Old Trafford.

But with an away trip to Turf Moor on Monday night, Palace will know they will have a tall order if they are to keep their newfound momentum going against Burnley.

Jeffrey Schlupp is one player in particular who has fallen out of favour in recent weeks. Having started five of their first eight fixtures in the Premier League this season, the 27-year-old was replaced by Eberechi Eze in the second half during the defeat to Wolves, before he was benched for the following game against the Whites.

However, Eze will be assessed by Palace medical staff after he withdrew from the England U21 squad last week, which has paved the way for Schlupp to earn a recall to the starting line-up.

Schlupp and Wilfried Zaha could carve up Burnley’s leaky defence once again, with the pair scoring seven goals and supplying seven assists between them in total in the top flight last term.

It was their partnership in the 2-0 win over Sean Dyche’s side back in November 2019 that caused the Clarets all sorts of problems, and Hodgson described him as an “underrated” talent, heaping praise on his individual attributes.

The Ghana international – who is a real threat in the air and bombs up and down the flank like a machine with a limitless battery – has an impressive record against Burnley, as he has scored two goals and won three out of five games in the Premier League so far.

Giving Eze the time to recover and bringing the £9m-rated Schlupp in instead could be decisive if Palace are to pick up a vital three points tonight.

AND in other news, Cahill and Schlupp start, Eze misses out: Crystal Palace Predicted XI vs Burnley…

When Raul Jimenez went down against Arsenal last weekend, everyone feared the worst.

The noise that erupted around an empty Emirates Stadium after he clashed heads with David Luiz was horrendous, but thankfully, the Mexican is set to make a full recovery.

Jimenez will be out for a period of time with a fractured skull and as a result, Fabio Silva – the club’s record signing – could be set for an extended run in the side.

It would mark the first occasion he’s had the opportunity to really prove himself to Nuno Santo, but is a new striker already in Wolves’ crosshairs?

Last summer it was reported that Nuno Santo’s side were interested in signing Braga forward Paulinho.

A move didn’t materialise but their manager Carlos Carvalhal has recently admitted that he could be on his way to England as soon as next summer.

Speaking to A Bola about several players, including Paulinho, he said: “I believe at the end of the season they will move. Who knows, maybe to England.”

Wolves ears will surely be pricked by hearing that news, especially with Jimenez currently out injured and being linked with a move away so relentlessly.

Signing Paulinho as his potential successor would certainly be a good idea. He has already torn English opposition to shreds this year and has all the attributes needed to thrive in Wolves’ attack.

Against Leicester in this season’s Europa League he had four shots and scored one goal. His tricky nature led to him being fouled on four occasions, while he also completed an accurate cross despite playing down the middle.

He caused the likes of Jonny Evans plenty of problems, and judging by Carvalhal’s assessment, it’s clear why.

“It was the one who surprised me the most. I was expecting a good Paulinho player, that’s the image I have to play against him: a player with the ability to connect, attack space, technical ability, finish, more with his left foot than with his right but with both feet, and also the head game.”

The ability to connect and attack pace is something that Wolves’ dynamic attack is so good at. Just think of the way Daniel Podence and Pedro Neto linked up against Arsenal on Sunday.

A combative presence, Paulinho is also good at holding the ball up like Jimenez and uses his frame to win more aerial duels than the Mexico international.

So far this term, he 28-year-old has managed to win 2.1 headed battles a game in the league compared to Jimenez’s record of 1.5 per match.

If Paulinho is destined for England as his manager hints, Wolves would be an ideal destination.

Meanwhile, check out who STOLE the show besides Pedro Neto v Arsenal…

Celtic were eyeing up a move for Philadelphia Union defender Mark McKenzie back in the summer transfer window, but no agreement came to fruition. Now though, a new update has emerged as Sky Sports report that the 21-year-old would be open to a move in January if the Hoops come knocking again.

McKenzie has admitted that he would love to follow a similar route to Virgil van Dijk, who famously built his way up to becoming one of the best central defenders on the planet.

Not only would joining Celtic help the US international’s career, but it would be a huge signing from the struggling Scottish outfit.

Why Celtic must sign Mark McKenzie

The Hoops have been completely derailed by their Glasgow neighbours this season as Rangers continue to dominate the Premiership. As it stands, they are leading what is now a one-horse race by a whopping 13 points and the reigning champions will likely have to settle for second place.

It will be a huge blow for Celtic to lose out to their arch rivals, but a strong January window could put them in good stead to make an immediate comeback.

They’ve struggled with a very inconsistent squad this season, with many players disappointing in their performances. One man who has not had the desired effect is Shane Duffy, who could be looking at the club terminating his loan move from Brighton early due to his lacklustre displays.

Indeed, the centre-back is on thin ice and could completely ruin his chances of a permanent move to Parkhead. But from Celtic’s point of view, they should be prioritising McKenzie over Duffy. The former was recently lauded for being a “Rolls-Royce” of a player and he could seriously improve Celtic’s backline.

According to WhoScored, the £60,000 per week Union ace has averaged more tackles (1.6) and clearances (4.6) to Duffy’s respective 0.8 and 3.4 each game this season. McKenzie has also been more eagle-eyed when it comes to creating chances, completely more successful long balls (4.5) than his counterpart’s 3.4 per 90 minutes.

Whilst his stats are already more impressive on paper, he is also seven years younger than Duffy, who finds himself out of favour at Brighton due to Ben White’s rise into the spotlight. He could be looking at an almost identical situation if Celtic commit to bringing “natural leader” McKenzie across the pond in January.

In other news, Rangers transfer blow could be big positive for Neil Lennon…

Michael Keane stole the show as Everton beat Chelsea 1-0 on Saturday with the England international helping to form a brick wall in front of Jordan Pickford’s goal.

Carlo Ancelotti named an all-central defender backline for the visit of Frank Lampard’s Blues to Goodison Park following injuries to full-backs Lucas Digne and Seamus Coleman, while losing makeshift left-back Fabian Delph to a hamstring strain.

Losing the width in defence helped ensure Saturday’s affair was an exasperating afternoon for Everton, who were forced to work hard for a win sealed through a 22nd-minute penalty converted by Gylfi Sigurdsson.

Chelsea controlled much of the proceedings as the strived to find a way to move atop the Premier League table, but were consistently thwarted by an Everton unit who Alan Shearer felt worked well together in closing down any spaces the visitors sought to occupy.

“They defended as a team; they didn’t give up any space. Keane, I thought was magnificent, along with the other defenders,” Premier League icon Shearer said while speaking on BBC One’s Match of the Day as he enthused over Keane’s display.

“They just worked together, there was no space. They came up against a wall all afternoon. Everton, I thought, were brilliant.”

Keane stood out from his backline partners Yerry Mina, Mason Holgate and Ben Godfrey – who has now featured in each defensive position since moving from Norwich for £20m this summer – as he led the line in protecting Pickford’s goal.

Ancelotti had named Keane as his captain for the prior week’s draw at Burnley for he felt the ex-Burnley man is a “professional guy, dedicated, and really cares about this club”, and saw that enthusiasm remain despite Sigurdsson taking the honour at home to Chelsea.

No player for either side registered more clearances on Saturday than Keane, who dealt with danger on 10 occasions while intercepting the ball twice and winning five of his six aerial duels, per SofaScore.

He further lost possession just four times as Keane recorded 32 touches, found teammates with 15 of his 19 passes and saw the ball remain with Everton with two of five long balls.

Mina, meanwhile, made only five clearances, Godfrey two and Holgate eight, while each were less successful in the air than Keane with four, two and zero successful duels.

Keane may not have worn the armband against Chelsea, but the £65,000-per-week centre-half dealt with Chelsea with all the hallmarks of the defensive leader Everton need him to be.

And that was a major reason to why they not just kept a clean sheet, but also defeated the Blues at Goodison Park.

In other news, Marcel Brands has landed a huge break in his bid to final rid Everton of Steve Walsh’s £42m blunder.

Many Southampton fans were full of praise for midfielder Ibrahima Diallo following his side’s 0-0 draw against Fulham on Boxing Day.

The 21-year-old made his first Premier League start for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side at Craven Cottage and asserted himself as a possible mainstay in the near future.

Per Sofascore, Diallo made three tackles, two interceptions, and accumulated a pass success rate of 85%, the highest from the visiting team.

Diallo signed a four-year contract at St Marys following his £11m move from the French side Brest and continues to settle into life in England.

Unsurprisingly, supporters were delighted to see Diallo perform at such a high level as he provided a possible taster of what can be expected from the Frenchman going forward.

Fans impressed with Diallo

“Lacked a lot of big players out there, notably Ings, Romeu and Jannik. Not sure why Long played but he didn’t do much as usual. Diallo looks like a good little player. Not over the moon with a point, but as long as we keep picking up those points then all good #saintsfc”

Credit: @matt_kempez

“On the plus side, after a slow start Diallo is definitely one for the future #SaintsFC”

Credit: @miserygutscoop

“1/3 not bad

Seriously though, Diallo probably the best of the bunch, promising signs. Stephens did alright too considering.”

Credit: @KingslandMush

“Not a bad performance, just one of those days. Thought Diallo grew into the game well, and very impressed with his stamina considering it was his first 90 minutes. Onto West Ham”

Credit: @StrangerIngsy

“Weird subs, thought Djenepo especially could of made an impact earlier. MOTM for me was Diallo. Extremely composed, thought Stephens was good too. Perhaps a crucial block in last second. Should of won. #saintsfc”

Credit: @andrewhal20

“Diallo looked promising. Some nice touches and runs but a lot to learn as well. Liked the look of him #saintsfc”

Credit: @L1minus10

In other news, Southampton fans rush to social media after transfer claims regarding Demarai Gray emerge.

Max Aarons showed against Barnsley on Saturday what sort of player Marcel Brands can add in the January transfer window should Everton look to sign the Norwich City full-back.

According to TEAMtalk, the Toffees are one of the 20-year-old’s biggest admirers ahead of the winter market, having seemingly decided that now is the perfect time to find the long-term successor for Seamus Coleman.

Carlo Ancelotti is keen to secure his future right-back well before Coleman’s contract expires in 2022 and could look to tap into Everton’s array of scouting reports on Aarons, as the Goodison Park natives have monitored the Canaries’ up-and-coming talents for the past two years.

Norwich fended off interest in Aarons from FC Barcelona and Bayern Munich in the summer, with the powerhouse duo both recognising the London-born talent as one of the best young full-backs in Europe.

Manchester United are also eying Aarons in the January sales after failing to seal a deal in the off-season, but face paying close to £20m for the defender Daniel Farke has called on to start all 23 Championship fixtures since Norwich’s return to the second-tier.

Farke is a vivid advocate of Aaron’s abilities and believes the full-back, who Ronald Koeman is a keen admirer of, is only just getting started.

“Max is outstanding in many topics. I can’t praise him enough for what he has done since his first appearance,” said Farke, via quotes by the Pink Un. “When you have the clubs interested in him who were interested, it is easy to lose the ground under the feet.

“Maybe you think you know everything about football. He is always looking to work harder. Never ill, never injured. If the best clubs in the world are interested, then maybe there is not that much more space to improve.”

Aarons had a mixed day as Norwich edged a 1-0 win over Barnsley on Saturday to stay four points clear of Swansea City in first place, as he perfectly teed up Todd Cantwell for a volley in the first-half that the midfielder blazed over but he also came close to costing his side the win.

The £5,000-per-week prospect misjudged the flight of a late diagonal ball forward that gifted Michal Helik space to snatch a point, only for the Tykes defender to fluff his lines and divert a low cross wide from close range at the back post.

Aarons frequently lost possession, too, with the 20-year-old turning the ball over 25 times, while misplacing 17 of his 46 passes, failing to find a teammate with one of two crosses, losing five of seven ground duels and one of three aerial contests, per SofaScore.

He was additionally dribbled past once, failed to register a single successful tackle and lost in three of four attempted dribbles, but stood up to record 75 touches, two interceptions, a clearance and play a key ball.

Ancelotti would see Aarons’ display against Barnsley as the player work in progress, with plenty of positives but also more than a few negatives, in his search of Coleman’s eventual successor.

AND in other news: Marcel Brands must axe a total dud costing Everton £600k-a-game.

Southampton take on Shrewsbury Town in the FA Cup on Tuesday evening, hoping to secure their place in the fourth round, where a trip to the Emirates to face Arsenal awaits.

After the original game was postponed due to an outbreak of the virus in Shrewsbury’s squad, both sides will be relieved to be able to play the game on Tuesday night at St Mary’s.

Unfortunately for the South Coast club, they are going through something of an injury crisis right now, with a number of key first-teamers currently sidelined, meaning that the Austrian manager will likely have to turn to his youth players in order to find a way past the League One side.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects the Saints to line up against Shrewsbury, with eight changes from the starting team that lost against Leicester…

Fraser Forster’s performance against Liverpool in the Premier League recently was impressive, so Hasenhuttl should hand him the start in goal ahead of Alex McCarthy.

In defence, only Jack Stephens keeps his place and he partners 19-year-old Allan Tchaptchet at centre-back, as he is rewarded with a first-team debut after featuring on the bench in recent fixtures.

Yan Valery replaces Kyle Walker-Peters at right-back, whilst Jake Vokins comes in for Ryan Bertrand, with both first-choice full-backs perhaps deserving of a rest.

There are two changes in midfield, as 20-year-0ld winger Will Ferry also makes his debut on the left-hand side, with Hasenhuttl extremely low on options in that position after the injuries to Moussa Djenepo and Nathan Redmond.

James Ward-Prowse is another to be rested, after playing every minute in the Premier League so far, which allows for a third debutant in Kgaogelo Chauke, who starts alongside Ibrahima Diallo in central midfield.

Finally, Shane Long and Dan N’Lundulu come in for Theo Walcott and Che Adams up front and hopefully, those two will be enough for Hasenhuttl’s side to see off the League One strugglers.

And, in other news… Southampton will surely rue not signing £18m beast who “makes scoring goals look so easy”

David Moyes should avoid launching a move for West Ham United to sign Cagliari Calcio striker Giovanni Simeone during the January transfer window.

What’s the word?

According to Gianluca Di Marzio, the Hammers have identified Simeone as a potential option to bolster their forward ranks following the £20m sale of Sebastien Haller to AFC Ajax earlier this month.

Simeone is one of the latest names being linked with a mid-season move to the London Stadium after scoring five goals in 16 Serie A appearances this season, in a Cagliari side that sits just a point above the relegation zone after losing their last five games.

The Sardegna Arena natives are keen to use the winter market to rejuvenate Eusebio Di Francesco’s options and have former West Ham striker Simone Zaza in mind after securing Alfred Duncan on loan from Fiorentina, but must first sell at least one of their current strikers.

Simeone, the son of Atletico Madrid boss Diego Simeone, is one option under consideration, as is Leonardo Pavoletti, who could be used in a swap deal to sign Zaza from Torino.

Zaza 2.0

Cagliari are likely willing to part ways with Simeone in the January transfer window as the £15.5m-rated attacker has failed to score in any of his last 10 Serie A outings, with the 25-year-old’s last goal coming in a 3-2 defeat to Bologna at the end of October.

West Ham signing Simeone would effectively see the east London outfit sign the player Cagliari hope to replace him with in Zaza, who moved to the Premier League on loan for the 2016/17 season for £4.5m only for his deal to be terminated prematurely in January.

Zaza failed to score in any of his 11 outings for the Hammers across all competitions, while a knee injury meant he returned to Juventus having only opened five top-flight games and an EFL Cup tie in claret and blue.

Moyes should not hang his hat on Simeone faring any better, should the striker even accept a move having stated in November that he wishes to remain at Cagliari for some time yet.

“I think I’m growing; Cagliari can help me a lot to keep doing it. The sports centre is beautiful, and the club is working very well,” he said, via quotes by Football-Italia. “I’m fine here and I want to stay for a long time.”

But the €53,000-per-week (£47k-p/w) forward has only proved to be extremely wasteful in the Serie A this season, with Simeone averaging a solid 1.6 shots per game but only scoring from 0.3 of those efforts, helping him to miss four big chances or one every 263 minutes, per SofaScore.

His actions elsewhere on the pitch have to be questioned, too, with Di Francesco critical of Simeone’s decision making.

“Simeone tends to throw himself into every situation, sometimes a bit too much, but was a little more organised and a team player today,” the Cagliari boss said following Simeone scoring a brace against Torino in October.

Moyes is unlikely to see a player like Simeone as a positive at West Ham, where Michail Antonio scores with 0.5 of his 1.9 shots per game in the Premier League, so would be far better served looking elsewhere than the Sardegna Arena in search of his Haller replacement.

AND in other news, a £22.5m-rated West Ham man will not be a part of David Moyes’ plans for the rest of this season…