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This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets… 

On Sunday afternoon, it was a dark day.

Wolves’ first game without mainstay centre-back Willy Boly, who has made such a crucial impact in Nuno Santo’s defence over the past 12 months or so.

The 28-year-old suffered a broken leg during training on Saturday morning after he slipped at the Sir Jack Hayward Traning Ground.

This week he will undergo an MRI scan and will also see a specialist to figure out the extent of the damage. Either way, it is a devastating blow to Wolves’ season prospects.

In his absence, the Portuguese boss surprisingly opted for Matt Doherty in central defence over the more natural Max Kilman or Jesus Vallejo.

Let’s just say that the experiment failed.

The Ireland international only played the first half in the new role, which tells you everything you need to know about how well it went.

Per SofaScore, Doherty managed a passing accuracy of just 76% and conceded one foul as Wolves drew with Newcastle United.

At half-time, Nuno dropped Leander Dendoncker in there from midfield, forcing Adama Traore into a more advanced role in a 3-4-3 formation, and the 27-year-old back to right wing-back.

The west Midlands club conceded in the first half, but not in the second, so I guess you could say they were stronger with Doherty in his more familiar role – the Magpies still had four shots at goal with three coming in the box during the final 45.

This all comes as a major worry over the next few months as Boly rates out as Wolves’ best player by WhoScored, having averaged 4.9 aerial duels won, three tackles and 1.6 interceptions per game this season.

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He’s a monumental loss in defence as the only game he didn’t feature in this campaign was the 5-2 loss against Chelsea – just one of their two defeats all season. He even was part of the defence to keep a clean sheet against Manchester City.

Nuno clearly doesn’t trust Vallejo or Kilman; otherwise, they would have started, the Spaniard was surely a shoo-in for that spot.

Therefore, expect some significant struggles ahead for Wolves as better teams will punish his absence.

Oh how the club must be rueing their failure to secure an extra central defender in the summer having been linked to Ruben Dias continually.

There will be no changes to the Leeds United team for Tuesday’s Championship trip to Preston North End.

Indeed, speaking at his pre-match press conference on Monday, Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa revealed that it would be a case of same again from the 1-0 win over Birmingham City at the weekend.

As a result, Pablo Hernandez will again miss out through injury, while Patrick Bamford will lead the line despite being replaced by Eddie Nketiah at the interval on Saturday.

Helder Costa and Jack Harrison will continue in the wide positions, with Tyler Roberts and Barry Douglas expected to be named on the bench once again.

As expected, a number of Leeds fans have been on social media offering their views on the update.

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And many are not overly impressed that the same XI will be sent onto the field once again.

A selection of the Twitter reaction is available to view below:

Aston Villa may have lost 3-0 to Manchester City on Saturday, but one major complaint from the fanbase actually had nothing to do with the football being played on the pitch.

Indeed, Villa fans weren’t happy as the team wore the new third kit for the first time ever.

The green and black number hasn’t gone down well amongst fans.

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You can understand where they’re coming from as well. The third strip looks awful and there’s no reason for them to have not worn the traditional claret attire, as there was no danger of a clash with City’s sky blue.

Unfortunately, there wasn’t even redemption with the scoreline as the reigning champions brushed Villa aside with relative ease.

Hopefully, we don’t see too much more of this kit for the rest of this season, but if Dean Smith’s side do wear this getup a few more times fans won’t be best pleased.

Here’s what the Villa Park faithful have been saying on Twitter.

Arsenal fans have been reminiscing about former Gunners great Dennis Bergkamp and his goal against Sunderland in 1997.

Bergkamp, 50, was revered for his exquisite finish against the Black Cats during the Gunners’ 2-0 win in the FA Cup third round at the old Roker Park stadium, where former Sunderland boss Peter Reid famously said: “I started clapping myself until I realised I was Sunderland’s manager”.

The Dutchman was later sent off after a bad tackle on Paul Bracewell which damaged his knee ligaments.

Bergkamp eventually retired in 2006 and played his final match for the club during their last ever game at Highbury, a 4-2 win against Wigan Athletic.

Supporters were jubilant as the club’s official Twitter account posted a reminder of the vintage goal that took the Gunners through to the fourth round of the FA Cup.

One fan said that he was the greatest player to ever wear the red and white shirt, while another said that his “jaw was on the floor” when he was watching the match live.

Here you will see the best responses from Arsenal fans:

Manchester United shot-stopper David De Gea was taken off in the second half of Spain’s clash with Sweden on Tuesday after injuring himself taking a goal kick. Reports from Sky Sports have stated that he will miss the Liverpool showdown as a result of his groin injury.The Spaniard seemed to sustain the problem in the first half of the game but demanded he carried on playing with the pain in his ‘abductor muscle’, said Spain’s head coach. De Gea would later take the goal kick and immediately gesture to the bench to be substituted off, before being replaced by Chelsea man Kepa Arrizabalaga.The 28-year-old would no doubt be a miss for United regardless of who they are playing. But as it is Liverpool up next for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men, the four-time Player of the Year will be needed more than ever. The Red Devils’ bitter rivals are top of the table and will need all hands on deck to stop Jurgen Klopp’s men and their 20 goals in the league so far.Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

As for his replacement, should De Gea be sidelined, Sergio Romero will most likely step in for the number one spot.

Romero has been a class act for United since signing from Sampdoria and has proved to be one of the best back-up keepers around over the years. The Argentine has played 46 times for the club and kept a very respectable 28 clean sheets and let in just 23 goals.

However, here’s what the fans have had to say about De Gea’s worrying injury…

In an interview with  The Evening Times former Celtic forward and Sky Sports pundit, Andy Walker, has claimed that any title challenge could go down “to the wire” this season.

His comments are inspired by the weekend’s developments that saw the Parkhead side lose their grip on top spot following the shock 2-0 defeat to Livingston.

Walker has been effusive in his praise of the Ibrox men which won’t go down well with his Paradise brethren, reflecting on Rangers’ recent form he claims that:

“It’s a real boost for Steven Gerrard to see his team react in the way they have since losing to Celtic at Ibrox. I think you have to admire Rangers and the way they have responded after losing that game”.

“Apart from the [Europa League] defeat against Young Boys, their response has been terrific. They obviously would have had a big lift from Celtic losing [to Livingston] and the crowd would have been up for it, the players were up for it”.

“And when you see Jermain Defoe coming in and taking the place of Alfredo Morelos, with the amount of goals they’ve scored already, as long as they steer clear of injury then Rangers have got every chance”.

“From middle to front, they’re creating chances and the response since losing to Celtic has been absolutely first class. And, make no doubt, the title race is going all the way to the end of the season”.

There’s no doubt about Rangers’ improvements in squad depth this season, being able to call up on Jermain Defoe as back-up to Alfredo Morelos for a whole campaign instead of Kyle Lafferty and being able to beat teams like Hamilton comfortably with a number of first-team regulars rested. The likes of Joe Aribo, Brandon Barker and Greg Stewart have all chipped in with goals this season, after all.

As with most close title races, the fine margins can be what decides who lifts the trophy at the end of the season and, at the moment, it is the Gers that are edging it.

A late winner against Kilmarnock and a single goal victory over St Mirren with only Borna Barisic’s excellent free-kick the difference between the two sides could easily have been four points dropped.

Compare this to Celtic in the last two weeks, two penalty claims turned down against Hibernian and Ryan Christie sent-off against Livingston after just 25 minutes. Five points dropped in two games that they would expect to win comfortably. All it takes is a bad referee decision or a moment of madness from an individual to cost a team points.

Rangers are in a better position to challenge Celtic for the title this year but October, after eight league games, isn’t the time to make the judgement. Until we get deeper into the campaign, Rangers have just made a good start to the season and Walker is just jumping on the bandwagon.

How do you see the title race going? Join the discussion by commenting below… 

Barcelona have finally started racking up some wins in their 2019/20 campaign.The Catalan giants have now won the last four games they’ve played and have even climbed up to the second spot in La Liga.Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

And one player that has definitely played his part in their renewed success is Luis Suarez. The 32-year-old has been blowing hot and cold at times but he has bagged six goals in eight games across all competitions and is seemingly back to his brilliant best.

But many Barcelona fans are simply not buying it just yet.

In fact, some even say that this red-hot form is just camouflage and that the Uruguayan forward is still very much a liability.

They bashed the 32-year-old star for having a bad touch and already being too old to start games for the Catalans.

If these comments are anything to go by, many of them simply won’t be fooled by this great run of form and lethality Suarez has been demonstrating as of late.

You can see some of their responses down below:

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Back in the summer, South American Twitter account De Primeira – whose biography states that they reveal exclusive content – reported that Crystal Palace were interested in signing Rangers forward Alfredo Morelos.

The Colombia international even retweeted the story himself on his official Twitter account, which turned the speculation up a few notches.

Another outlet named Rincon Escoces, which delivers Scottish football news in Spanish, also reported that the forward’s representative had ‘transmitted’ the Eagles’ interest in his client over to Rangers.

However, the interest failed to materialise into anything concrete from the Eagles, and Morelos remained with the Gers.

How has he done since?

Since the transfer window slammed shut, the 23-year-old has carried on his scintillating form from last season.

In the 2018/19 campaign, Morelos scored an eye-catching 30 goals in 48 games for the Scottish giants, while also recording 11 assists.

So far in the current campaign, the prolific marksman has found the back of the net 11 times in 14 games, with three assists also tucked firmly under his belt.

Crystal Palace should’ve made good on their interest

It doesn’t take a genius to work out that the south Londoners should have made good on their interest in the Rangers frontman, especially given their start to the season under Roy Hodgson.

The former England manager has seen his team score just four goals in six league games this term, the least of any side in the Premier League – Newcastle and Watford have also netted the same amount.

Out of their three strikers, only Jordan Ayew has scored for Palace this season with two strikes – Christian Benteke has once again been misfiring with zero goals so far and Connor Wickham has played just 15 minutes.

So, with that information in mind, coupled with the fact that Morelos has netted almost three times the amount of goals that Palace have scored collectively this term, it’s clear the Eagles should have tried harder to bring Morelos south of the border.

Perhaps he could have transformed their fortunes at Selhurst Park.

Aston Villa manager Dean Smith answered questions in regards to his tactical system following the defeat to Arsenal on Friday evening.

As to be expected, his comments – which were shared by reliable reporter Ashley Preece on Twitter – had a number of Villa fans talking on social media.

Smith once again went with three centre-backs but appeared to tweak a 3-5-2 formation to a 5-3-2. He first changed from a back four in September, with the formation earning wins over Everton and Manchester United, but they came away with nothing against Chelsea, Tottenham, Wolves and now Arsenal.

Mikel Arteta’s side dominated at the Emirates Stadium and ran out 3-1 winners, with Smith facing questions about his tactics after the game.

Talking to the media, as relayed by Preece on Twitter, the 50-year-old appeared to blame the lack of players available over the use of his system.

He raged: “It’s not about systems. We haven’t had players available. We came away from Old Trafford three games ago & everyone’s thinking it’s a great system. We lose a few games & everyone thinks it’s a terrible system. That’s the world I’m in. We didn’t do the basics right.”

Villa fans react

Preece’s post late on Friday evening had these Villa fans talking, with many not happy and one labelling Smith’s discontent as ‘very worrying’.

“uh oh, this is the beginning of the end imo”

Credit: @avjosh3

“Oh dear, sounds like Bruce.”

Credit: @EddAVFC

“I’m not Smith out yet but this is very worrying”

Credit: @callumavfc_

“sorry but if this doesn’t tell you that he’s losing it idk what will”

Credit: @jmxavfc

“Ergh this isn’t good. He’s starting to turn on the fans and force excuses.”

Credit: @VillaJaake

“he’s moaning at the fans now, get him gone”

Credit: @JackAVFC77

In other news: Stinging 3/10 verdict for Villa star who lost the ball 15 times v Arsenal

Flocking to Twitter, many Tottenham Hotspur fans slammed the first half performance of midfielder Harry Winks as they take on Crystal Palace this afternoon.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s men are aiming to maintain their 100% start to the Premier League season with a fourth victory on the trot at Selhurst Park, but they’re trying to do so without a number of players.

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Son Heung-min, Steven Bergwijn, Davinson Sanchez, Cristian Romero and Giovani Lo Celso are unavailable, with defender Eric Dier now also limping off in the first half of this Palace encounter.

Upon their team’s return to action in the English top flight after a torrid international break, many Lilywhites supporters are are less than impressed with midfielder Winks after his first half display.

Having had minimal involvement throughout the first 45 minutes and given away possession on several occasions, many believe he just hasn’t been effective alongside Oliver Skipp and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in Spurs’ three-man midfield.

Here’s what they had to say about the 25-year-old on Twitter, with one angry supporter calling him an “awful, awful footballer”.

Spurs fans slam Winks…

“Get Winks off my team forever”

Credit: @ManLikeGinola

“Winks makes me so sad as a player”

Credit: @king_thfc

“Winks already dropping a stinker”

Credit: @Spurswich

“Winks is an awful, awful footballer.”

Credit: @FingalTottenham

“Winks should’ve been axed this summer man”

Credit: @levxlz

“Why do we still have Winks”

Credit: @norflondon_thfc

“Please for the love of god sell Winks”

Credit: @Graemejoy1

“Harry Winks is useless.”

Credit: @Mihlz_G

“Winks is giving me a migraine”

Credit: @ChristinaZandes

In other news: Spurs source: Rising starlet could now be out for at least nine months after big injury blow, find out more here.