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‘Doing really well’: Ancelotti impressed with ‘dynamic’ Everton player who has ‘improved a lot’
Carlo Ancelotti has showered heaps of praise on Everton midfielder Tom Davies in his press conference today. Ahead of Everton’s Premier League clash against Fulham on Sunday, Ancelotti has spoken highly of Davies and it will surely boost the youngster’s confidence. The 22-year-old struggled to make an impact under Ancelotti last season, and there were even suggestions that he should be sent out on loan. With Everton bolstering their midfield this summer by signing Allan and Abdoulaye Doucoure, it was feared that Davies would really struggle to get games. However, he has made eight Premier League starts this season and has got better with time. He was outstanding against Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup on Wednesday, and many fans felt that it was his best performance to date. Ancelotti seem...
‘I am positive’: Mikel Arteta provides update on Folarin Balogun’s contract situation
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has provided an update on the contract situation of Folarin Balogun ahead of the Premier League game against Leeds United on Sunday. The 19-year-old striker has less than five months remaining on his Gunners contract and the club have yet to convince him to sign a fresh deal. Balogun is said to want regular first-team football and that appears unlikely with Alexandre Lacazette, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Eddie Nketiah preferred ahead of him. The youngster is still awaiting his Premier League debut for the club but Arteta is optimistic about committing him to a new long-term contract. “No, I’m still very positive that Flo is going to stay with us and it’s what we’re trying to do as a club, and it’s what I’m trying to do as a manager,” he told the club’s offic...
‘World-class’: Jurgen Klopp raves about £140k-per-week Leicester star
Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp has showered praise on Leicester City striker Jamie Vardy ahead of the Reds’ trip to King Power Stadium on Saturday. The Reds have lost two games in a row, and are heading into this game on the back of a miserable 4-1 defeat against Manchester City at Anfield. With 10 points behind league leaders City already – who have a game in hand – Liverpool cannot afford to drop further points if they are serious about retaining their Premier League crown. Klopp has confirmed today that the Reds will be without Fabinho for this game. The Brazilian midfielder – who has been playing as a makeshift centre-back this season following the injuries to Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez – has been outstanding for the Reds, and his absence is a massive blow. It remains to be seen what c...
Penalty Kings Part II: The Bruno bounce
The art of penalty-taking is certainly not as easy as most people make it out to be. The fact that the xG assigned to a spot-kick is only 0.76 clearly indicates that the taker has a lot to do if they are to convert their big chance from 12 yards out. While most penalties are centred around mind-games between the shooter and goalkeeper where they both try to pre-empt the other’s move, two players have been changing this. They are Jorginho and Bruno Fernandes, who have extremely unconventional penalty-taking techniques, which involve a jump just before the ball is kicked. Jorginho was the inventor of this technique, and we analysed his penalties in the first part of this series, which you should read before getting stuck into this piece. Now, onto Bruno Fernandes’ penalty technique. The Brun...
‘There’s been an evolution’: Bielsa really impressed with two Leeds players
Marcelo Bielsa has showered praise on Leeds United duo – Patrick Bamford and Raphinha – ahead of the Whites’ trip to Arsenal on Sunday. In his press conference today, Bielsa has said that he is impressed with Bamford’s evolution and that the praise he is getting is fully ‘deserved’. He has urged the former Chelsea striker to maintain consistency for the rest of the season. Bamford earned a reputation for himself for being a very reliable team player, but doubts were raised over his conversion ability. Popular football pundits – Jamie Carragher and Darren Bent – have praised him heavily, suggesting he deserved a chance to play for England. The 27-year-old has been in brilliant form this season, managing 12 goals in the Premier League, and his strike against Crystal Palace was the 100th goal...
Ole Gunnar Solskjaer confirms injury boost with Man United star back in training
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has provided a positive injury update ahead of the Premier League clash against West Bromwich Albion on Sunday. The Red Devils have been inconsistent with their performances over the past few weeks, winning just two of the previous five games in all competitions. Ahead of the Baggies clash, Solskjaer provided positive news on the injury front by confirming that Eric Bailly has returned to training following a shin problem. However, the Norwegian added that neither Paul Pogba (thigh) or Phil Jones (rehabilitation after knee surgery) will be available to face Sam Allardyce’s side on the road. “We’ve had a rare opportunity to do a bit of training and recovery – Paul [Pogba] is out, but Eric has been training, which is a boost to us,” he said in t...
Ancelotti says two players won’t play on Sunday + Everton star to sign deal ‘next week’
Everton will face Fulham at Goodison Park in the Premier League on Sunday. With two big games coming up against Manchester City and Liverpool, Carlo Ancelotti will be hoping to get the winning momentum going with a victory against the Cottagers. The Toffees are heading into the game on the back of a thrilling 5-4 win against Tottenham Hotspur in the FA Cup in midweek. Dominic Calvert-Lewin picked up a knock in that game, and the England striker won’t be available for selection against Fulham. Ancelotti has confirmed that Jordan Pickford will also miss out. Calvert-Lewin & Pickford unavailable for Sunday. Wednesday a realistic target for both, according to Ancelotti — Patrick Boyland (@Paddy_Boyland) February 12, 2021 Calvert-Lewin has been sensational for the Toffees this season, manag...
Report: Everton plotting summer move for German centre-back
According to Bild, Everton are keeping tabs on Freiburg centre-back Keven Schlotterbeck ahead of potential summer swoop. According to BILD, Everton have shown an interest in signing Freiburg central defender Keven Schlotterbeck. Young, talented and has a contract that’s expiring at the end of next season. Probably wouldn’t cost too much to sign this summer. — Stefan Bienkowski (@SBienkowski) February 12, 2021 Sportslens View The 23-year-old has around 17 months left on his current contract at the Bundesliga side and is expected to be sold when the next transfer window opens. Everton are not short of options at centre-back, but they clearly can do with more quality and depth. Carlo Ancelotti’s pipped Tottenham Hotspur to a place in the FA Cup quarter-finals following a 5-4 victo...
Penalty Kings Part I: The Jorginho jump
Although facing a goalkeeper from 12 yards with no-one else in your way might not seem too daunting a task to most, Manchester City fans will lead you to believe that it is one of the more difficult aspects of the game. Recently, İlkay Gündoğan (who was – and still is – in the form of his life) joined an elite club of Cityzens who have a penalty success rate of less than 70% in the Premier League, including Kevin De Bruyne, Raheem Sterling, Gabriel Jesus and Riyad Mahrez. Welcome to the club bro https://t.co/h0qs8pp7fF — Raheem Sterling (@sterling7) February 7, 2021 On the other hand, the likes of Jorginho and Bruno Fernandes (who are dubbed ‘penalty merchants’ by the same fans that watch their team attempt to send spot-kicks into lower Earth orbit) have scored 44% of their combined c...
‘We’re losing’, ‘Leeds will put us to the sword’ – Some Arsenal fans react to news ahead of Whites’ visit
Leeds United visit Arsenal on Sunday and will look to leave London with all three points in order to keep their chances of finishing in the top half of the Premier League table alive. The Whites are currently 10th in the standings following 10 wins, 10 losses and two draws, and a victory at the expense of the Gunners will be huge. Arsenal are right below Leeds, with a point separating both sides, and Mikel Arteta’s men will be desperate for a win following back-to-back defeats at the hands of Aston Villa and Wolverhampton Wanderers. Both sides played out a goalless draw at Elland Road back in November, but Leeds will fancy their chances of scoring and picking up a win following a double injury blow to the north London side. Defensive midfielder Thomas Partey and versatile defender Kieran T...
Neymar out for four weeks; will not feature in Barcelona v PSG
Neymar left the pitch last night during Paris Saint-Germain’s 1-0 win over Caen in the French Cup after he was fouled multiple times early in the second half. Clearly injured, there was concern over whether the Brazilian would be able to recover in time for PSG’s Champions League second-round tie with Barcelona next week. L’Equipe had initially announced that Neymar was certain to miss the Tuesday game against Barca, with PSG later confirming (via CBS Sports’ Jonathan Johnson) that Neymar will be out for a period of four weeks with a left adductor injury. This will come as a serious blow to PSG’s Champions League hopes as until now, they had considered themselves favourites in the upcoming tie with Barca given the off-pitch turmoil and injuries plaguing the Catalan club. Given that&nb...
PSG still favourites for title but can Depay or David engineer a stunning upset?
Out of Europe’s big five leagues, Ligue 1, the top division of French football, gets overlooked the most. While some people have been bored of Paris Saint-Germain’s dominance in the league over the last few years, that hasn’t been the case this year with this season set for a dramatic climax. At the time of writing only six points separate first to fourth, so here is an in-depth analysis of all the teams in the race for the French title. AS Monaco – current position – 4th The underdogs at the moment in the top four, principality side AS Monaco have pulled themselves back into the reckoning for the French crown this season. AS Monaco are the only side to have prevented PSG from claiming the title since the 2012-13 season with their success in the 2016-17 campaign. While the current Monaco s...
