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Newcastle fans have taken to Twitter after Paul Merson made a quite ridiculous statement on Magpies boss Rafa Benitez, as the pundit compared him to Cardiff manager Neil Warnock.

The Sky Sports pundit said in his ‘weekly predictions’ column: “Rafa Benitez couldn’t have done what Neil Warnock has done at Cardiff though. No chance. Warnock is pulling up trees. He’s an unbelievable manager.”

Warnock guided the Bluebirds to an incredible promotion from the Championship last year, and has worked wonders so far this season, gaining 19 points from 22 games, one more than Newcastle have managed in the same timeframe.

However, Benitez guided the Magpies to a promotional campaign of their own two years ago, and managed to secure a top-10 finish last season against all odds.

The Spaniard has also won numerous European honours and has twice been named UEFA Manager of the Year, so Merson’s comments haven’t gone down too well with the St. James’ faithful…

According to The Sunderland Echo, The Black Cats’ striker Charlie Wyke has said that he needs to add more goals to his game this season. 

The former Bradford City striker has only featured nine times in League One this season since arriving in the summer with a knee injury. Another injury during the season has curtailed his chance of replicating his good form he showed with the Yorkshire club last season.

Fortunately for manager Jack Ross, Wyke’s absence has not affected the club as much as first feared as Josh Maja has hit some major form this season, managing 15 goals in 25 games in the league. However, with speculation surrounding the 20-year-old’s future, and Sunderland showing a dip in form, Ross will surely need Wyke to find his form quickly.

Wyke has only managed one league goal this season, which is a poor return for a striker. Although there is the caveat that he is recovering from injury, The Black Cats cannot throw their season away as they wait for Wyke to find form. Of course, the 26-year-old is a different type of striker to his counterpart Maja. At 6ft 2, his is more of a physical presence deployed to hold the ball up, whereas Maja is perhaps a more natural goal scorer.

But with Sunderland without a win in their last three league matches, Wyke may be the key to Sunderland snapping this poor run of form. In third place in League One, The Black Cats are out of the automatic qualification spot that they would have expected this season, and it is time that some of their big players stood up.

Leeds United supporters are expecting one deal and one deal only on transfer deadline day: the permanent transfer of Swansea City’s Daniel James.

With the rumour mill refusing to throw up any other reason for Leeds fans to feel expectant on deadline day, all eyes are on James’ potential move from south Wales to Yorkshire.

Can Leeds get a deal over the line? Tell will tell but murmurs emerging from both clubs suggest that it’s one which is set to go right down to the wire.

Interest in James has arrived during a month in which Bielsa has clearly felt the need to strengthen in wide areas following the departure of Samu Saiz, with Pablo Hernandez expected to play a key role at number ten for the remainder of the season.

But the 21-year-old winger was relatively unheard of until just a few months ago, so why exactly did Bielsa decide to put all his eggs in one basket and launch a transfer mission to secure his signature?

Well, Yorkshire Evening Post reporter Phil Hay has shed some light on the matter, citing Leeds scout Craig Dean as the man who introduced James to Bielsa with a series of video clips.

‘James is understood to have been picked out first by Craig Dean, a scout who once worked for Oxford United and is Leeds’ head of emerging talent for players between the age of 17 and 21 (James turned 21 in November).

‘The video clips shown to Bielsa appealed to him. James was quick, direct and minded to go past full-backs, providing crosses for players arriving in the box as Kemar Roofe and Mateusz Klich like to do.’

If Leeds are ultimately successful in their endeavour to sign James, Bielsa will be desperately hoping that his crosses do indeed find their way to the likes of Klich and Roofe in the final months of the season.

Craig Dean, who left Oxford United for Leeds in October 2017, may well have been a focal figure in identifying Polish teenager Mateusz Bogusz as a player for Bielsa to bring in, but his decision to recommend James is the one which could really make or break Leeds’ season.

While football supporters appreciate that scouts are working behind the scenes to identify players worth signing, it’s intriguing to get this level of specific inside information from Hay on a proposed deal which has been in the media spotlight for the best part of 7-10 days.

Dean has done his part; Bielsa has taken the advice and given the green light; now it’s down to Victor Orta to conclude the deal before the 11PM deadline.

Leeds fans – thoughts? Let us know below!

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Loads of Rangers fans have been running the rule over the week’s action, and let’s just say they’re not too happy with Alfredo Morelos.

Rangers took all three points from the Pittodrie Stadium on Wednesday night, but it was certainly not a walk in the park for Steven Gerrard’s side.

The Gers went ahead early when Alfredo Morelos smashed home a rebound from a Ryan Kent shot, before Sam Cosgrove levelled the scores for the hosts.

Pl>ymaker FC Exclusive: Jermaine Jenas reveals he would have snubbed Tottenham for Arsenal if they’d come knocking in 2005…

Morelos then grabbed his 23rd goal of the season in all competitions, stroking a lovely finish into the bottom corner thanks to another assist by Kent.

The Colombian was then sent off following an incident involving Scott McKenna, as both players were shown straight red cards after kicking out at each other.

Cosgrove and James Tavernier traded penalty kicks before Jermain Defoe wrapped up the three points with a late goal to make it 4-2, but all focus is firmly on Morelos.

The 22 year-old now has four red cards this season, three of which have come against Aberdeen, and he has already served a suspension for amassing too many yellow card as well.

He will now miss a cup match against Kilmarnock before two crucial league games unless the card is rescinded, and the Twitter reactions down below are running out of patience with their number 20…

Following the news that Allan Saint-Maximin will miss the remainder of the month and beyond with a hamstring injury, Newcastle United supporters have been pondering who they will play in his stead – with the likely option dissatisfying a few fans in the build-up to a challenging away trip to Burnley. 

The Magpies travel to Turf Moor on Saturday in a bid to continue their fine run of form that has lifted them to 10th in the Premier League table – with an impressive draw at home to Manchester City capped off by crucial victories at the expense of Sheffield United and Southampton.

However, following news that their player will be out for the next month, manager Steve Bruce and supporters have had to ponder a crucial decision over how they replace his influence.

The most likely answer, it appears, would be to play Christian Atsu in his place – with some fans praying that doesn’t happen and Bruce instead opts for another approach.

Here’s what they had to say on Twitter.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Loan Watch series, which takes a closer look at those players who are aiming to galvanise their careers away from the spotlight of their parent club.

While Wolverhampton Wanderers are enjoying another season at the top, the same can’t be said for one of their contracted players.

The west Midlanders are sitting pretty in sixth place while they have advanced into the knockout stages of the Europa League – they’ve only been back in the Premier League for 18 months.

Despite possessing a small squad, only 19 players have been used domestically, manager Nuno Santo still sent over a handful of players out on loan, including striker Rafa Mir who has been plying his trade across the Midlands at Nottingham Forest.

It would be fair to suggest that it hasn’t gone to plan whatsoever. The Reds do indeed favour the prolific Lewis Grabban, but whenever the 22-year-old has been given a chance, he’s been perpetually wasteful.

Per Transfermarkt, in 13 appearances, four of which are starts, Mir has failed to get on the scoresheet leading to fans blasting him in the past.

According to reports emerging in Spain this week, his time at the City Ground seems ‘certain’ to end in January with the club looking at other targets in the striking department.

El Periodico de Aragon also claim that this has alerted La Liga 2 outfit Real Zaragoza after they failed to clinch him in the summer.

Valued at just £2.7m by Transfermarkt, Mir’s time at Molineux could be fully over before it has even started, he’s played just four times for the senior side and if he can’t cut it in the second tier of English football, then what hope does he have if Wolves are to become a regular presence in Europe.

Instead of shipping him out on loan again, Nuno should look to sell him for the benefit of his career as he’s clearly not going to get ahead of Raul Jimenez or Patrick Cutrone this season let alone in the future.

His disastrous time in England is quite astonishing considering La Liga heavyweights Real Madrid were once in for his services, maybe that alone could garner some interest if he were to be put on the trading block.

No clues: Can you name all of these Premier League icons? Test your knowledge below…

Meanwhile, fans have been discussing the possibility of Raul Jimenez being available for €100m…

Wolverhampton Wanderers appear set for a busy January transfer window.

A couple of months ago, BirminghamLive reported that the club wanted to make central additions in both midfield and in defence and just last week, manager Nuno Santo pretty much confirmed this by revealing his intentions to bolster his squad.

The latest player to be linked is Hwang Hee-Chan, who is a striker for Austrian outfit RB Salzburg. The Telegraph believe that the Korean has become one of the club’s prime targets next month, although, there’s a possibility that he’s loaned back to his current club for the remainder of this season.

It is also thought that he has a release clause with figures between €20m and €25m being touted (£17m-£21.2m) but is it a wise move? or the wrong one?

Wolves currently have just two senior strikers amongst the first-team setup, Raul Jimenez and Patrick Cutrone, the latter of which they signed in the summer from AC Milan for £16m and has rarely featured this season, starting just three Premier League games.

Here’s what the writers at Football FanCast believe…

Matt Dawson

“While Wolves don’t necessarily need Hwang Hee-Chan in January, possessing Patrick Cutrone and Raul Jimenez at their disposal, it could be incredibly shrewd to sign the South Korean and then loan him back with a view to finally playing him in 2020/21. 

“Nuno’s men need to build on the quality they have and signing a player who has continuously delivered in the Champions League is a no-brainer, regardless of the players they already have in their squad. The forward has netted three goals and also registered three assists in his six European outings this term. Two of those goal involvements also came against Liverpool, so he’s got a prior history of performing against Premier League opposition. 

“The main positive for Wolves would be his creativity. Having laid on seven assists in the Austrian Bundesliga, he could be someone that gets even more out of Jimenez. No one in the current squad at Molineux has created more goals this season. He’d be a very smart signing.”

Viji Jeevathayalan

“It’s a real testament to how brilliantly Raul Jimenez has settled into life at Wolves, that the club’s £16m summer signing of Patrick Cutrone has barely started in the Premier League season. The latter has played just 12 minutes of football in the Molineux side’s last seven games in the top-flight. So why on earth should the club be thinking about signing yet another striker in Hwang Hee-chan? Jimenez is the undisputed number one option for Nuno Espirito Santo, and Hwang’s arrival would simply see him rot on the bench. It would be a tragic waste of money. The RB Salzburg forward has shown that he is a good player through his displays in the Champions League this year – he has scored three times and provided five assists. But Wolves have no need for him at the moment, and they should just keep the faith in Cutrone.”

Danny Lewis

“This would be a pointless signing for Wolves to make, considering Patrick Cutrone hasn’t really had that much of a look in, despite getting seven goal contributions from eight starts and 14 substitute appearances across all competitions. Hwang Hee-chan has shown that he is a talented player through his performances in the Champions League, but even so, it would be a waste of money and quality to have him fighting with Cutrone to be the main back-up striker to Jimenez. Wolves would be much better off spending that money on a centre-back or centre-midfielder.”

Lewis Blain

“This move should be a no-brainer for Nuno Santo and Wolves. The Korean’s record, as mentioned above, speaks for itself. If the club truly want to become regulars on the European stage and at the top end of the Premier League for years to come, then they need serious strength in depth, and that will only come with additions like this. Currently, the Portuguese boss heavily leans on Raul Jimenez with Patrick Cutrone suffering from a lack of game time, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t add Hwang Hee-Chan to his armoury. He brings Champions League experience and the sort of dynamism that no other player has at the club – you only have to look at the way he span Virgin van Dijk into next week earlier this season to see that. Pull out all the stops, Fosun.”

Can you score at least 80% on this Ultimate Premier League Quiz? Test your knowledge now…

In other news, Wolves should cut ties with this flop who has struggled to impress in England this season…

Tottenham Hotspur will be welcoming Brighton at their stadium this Thursday and that will be the perfect opportunity for Jose Mourinho’s troops to get back on track and move past their previous disappointing fixture.

Last Sunday, Chelsea came to Spurs’ part of London and successfully coloured it blue following a convincing 2-0 victory by Frank Lampard’s lads.

But looking ahead to the clash on Boxing Day, many Spurs fans seem to have the very same idea when it comes to building their preferred lineup.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

Seeing how they are facing Brighton at home and especially since some players will be unavailable due to various reasons, many of them seem to think this is a perfect opportunity to give Giovani Lo Celso a chance from the very start of the game.

Here are some of their initial reactions that you can see in the collection of tweets below:

One fan even stated that if Mourinho doesn’t pick Lo Celso against Brighton they should start questioning his methods already.

And seeing how the 23-year-old midfielder has only managed to tally 322 minutes under his belt since the beginning of 2019/20, it’s fair to say that he’s been treated rather harshly.

A true test for any Spurs fan: Can you match these iconic images with the right results?

For that reason, and especially considering some of the players have deserved to be dropped, as one fan below emphasises, maybe this truly is a perfect opportunity for the young Argentine.

One fan also pointed out that Mourinho doesn’t really have better options than to play Lo Celso, considering that his previous experiment with two holding midfielders didn’t really work and Heung-Min Son currently out suspended due to his red card he got vs Chelsea.

In other news, many Spurs fans were not really happy with one man’s horrible performance vs Chelsea…

Ralph Hasenhuttl appears to have thrown the breaks on Leeds United’s pursuit of Che Adams.

The Austrian boss’ recent comments make it seem highly unlikely that the former Birmingham City man will be joining the Elland Road outfit this January.

“I cannot consider that I loan him out because I need every player, especially in the attacking position, we don’t have that many.” Hasenhuttl said about Adams.

However, despite these words, some Leeds fans haven’t given up hope of signing him.

We already knew that the Saints needed to have a striker through the door before they allowed Adams to leave the club, and some fans seem to think that a deal can still be agreed despite the manager’s comments.

Others were more pessimistic on the matter as they implored the club to move on quickly and not waste any time chasing a player who is seemingly unable to leave his current club.

One concern was that Leeds would end up like they did last January when fans were quick to blame a lack of investment from Andrea Radrizzani for the club’s failure to gain promotion.

Another section of the Elland Road faithful wanted the club to now look towards other targets.

Glenn Murray from Brighton and Andre Ayew from Swansea were both touted as options by supporters, but as of yet there have only been concrete links to the latter.

In other news, Marcelo Bielsa’s recent comments may indicate that Leeds only need one signing this month.

According to Italian website BlogCagliariCalcio.net, Cagliari centre-back Ragnar Klavan is a potential transfer target for Everton, with manager Carlo Ancelotti specifically requesting that the Merseyside outfit ‘probe the possibility’ of making a move for the defender this month.

Of course, the Estonia international played for arch-rivals Liverpool as recently as 2018 before making the move to Cagliari, where he has become something of a mainstay in the Serie A side’s defence – he has made 31 appearances in all competitions.

At 34 years of age he would be something of a strange addition for the Merseyside outfit though, seeing as he would only be a cheap and short-term solution to their lack of depth in central defence.

While he would certainly provide some experience among the likes of Michael Keane, Mason Holgate and Yerry Mina, it remains to be seen whether this report is true and that Ancelotti has personally requested enquiring about a deal for the the former Red.

Watch Everton Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

Many Everton supporters have taken to Twitter to have their say on the surprise link, and unsurprisingly many are against the potential arrival of the veteran defender – no surprise given his age and the fact he used to play for Liverpool.

One even suggested they would rather have ex-star Phil Jagielka – now 37 years of age – back at Goodison Park instead.

One fan admitted that there were better options out there than the Estonian, but he also threw his support behind new manager Carlo Ancelotti.

It’s the dawn of a new decade in the Premier League, but how much do you know about the last 10 years?

That is fair enough given the 60-year-old clearly knows what he’s doing having led Everton to two wins from three so far, and the fact he has won top-flight titles in England, France, Germany and Italy, as well as three Champions Leagues.

In other Everton news, Toffees fans have called on the club to sign a 23-year-old Premier League player with outrageous stats this season…