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Player Analysis: Jakub Sylvestr’s Link-Up Play
Following Chennaiyin FC’s hard-fought draw against ATK Mohun Bagan, Enes Sipović was doing post-match media duties. There, he was asked who the better striker was – Igor Angulo or Roy Krishna – since he had played against and contained both of them. He jokingly replied, “Jakub Sylvestr”, a response that many may not have taken seriously since the Slovakian forward has only netted the solitary goal this season, whereas Angulo and Krishna have eight and five respectively. However, Jakub Sylvestr is a different kind of forward to Igor Angulo and Roy Krishna, he is a playmaking striker. Usually, a striker is supposed to be the recipient of a playmaker’s work, as is the case with Angulo and Krishna, but Sylvestr is a rare exception to this. A good comparison to Sylvestr this season would be Har...
Report: Wolves plotting January move for Arsenal-linked £270k-a-wk striker
According to The Sun, Wolverhampton Wanderers are keen on signing Spanish striker Diego Costa when the winter transfer window opens in January. The 32-year-old is a free agent after Atletico Madrid mutually terminated his contract yesterday, and he isn’t short of suitors ahead of next month’s window. Costa has plenty of interest from clubs back home in South America, the Middle and Far East, while Arsenal have also been linked with an interest as manager Mikel Arteta looks to bolster his striking options next month. The Brazil-born hitman won two Premier League titles with Chelsea, scoring 52 goals in 89 English top-flight games, and Wolves are contemplating whether to bring him back to England. Nuno Espirito Santo’s side could be without Mexican striker Raul Jimenez for a large chunk of t...
‘Delete tweet’ – Rio Ferdinand disagrees with Leeds’ post as Radrizzani takes responsibility
Leeds United have hit back at Amazon Prime pundit Karen Carney after she claimed that they only got promoted to the English Premier League at the end of last season because of the coronavirus. The Elland Road outfit returned to the top-flight for the first time since 2004 after winning the 2019-20 English Championship campaign, and Carney insists that the pandemic-enforced break helped them get over the line. Leeds came close to sealing promotion in 2018-19, starting the campaign on an impressive note in what was head coach Marcelo Bielsa’s first season in charge. However, the Yorkshire giants ran out of steam and failed to advance in the play-offs, with many blaming the Argentine’s demanding style of play for the club’s inability to sustain their promotion bid at the end of the season. Le...
AC Milan keen on adding Wilfried Zaha to their ranks ahead of January transfer window
AC Milan is currently enjoying one of their best seasons in recent memory, leading the Serie A table while going unbeaten through their first 14 matches. With their first Scudetto since 2010/11 in their sights, the Rossoneri are keen to add some more firepower in the final third in the upcoming transfer window. According to the Sun UK, Stefano Pioli’s side is interested in securing the signature of Crystal Palace standout Wilfried Zaha, who is currently enjoying quite the campaign at Selhurst Park. The Ivory Coast international is on pace for the best season of his career, already bagging eight goals in just 14 appearances for Palace. There’s been a bevy of clubs interested in the pacey forward in the last year and a half, with Arsenal, Chelsea, Everton, and Tottenham all previously being ...
Predicted Arsenal starting XI: Arteta to make two changes, 28 y/o dropped
Arsenal will travel to Amex Stadium to face Brighton on Tuesday night, and you can watch this and other Premier League games live online. The Gunners finally returned to winning ways after beating Chelsea 3-1 in the London derby on Saturday. Mikel Arteta will hope that the result will spring new life into their campaign as they look to get themselves out of the present mire. With games coming thick and fast, the Spaniard needs to rotate to keep his squad fresh. At the same time, he would be wary of making too many changes to the side that earned them their first Premier League win after seven games. This is the team we expect Arteta to use against Brighton: Goalkeeper: Bernd Leno – who saved Jorginho’s penalty against Chelsea in the last match – should keep h...
Arsenal interested in signing Diego Costa on a free transfer
Arsenal are interested in signing Diego Costa on a free transfer, according to Spanish media outlet AS. The Atletico Madrid striker has six months remaining on his deal but has requested the club to terminate his contract with immediate effect so that he can take care of some family problems. He was absent from the Spanish club’s training session on Monday as he looks increasingly certain to leave the club in January. In January, Costa would be free to speak with clubs regarding a free transfer in the summer if Atletico refused to cancel his contract. The club are aware of this and are open to letting him leave the club next month as long as he does not join a direct rival. It would also allow them to get his wages off their books and look to sign a new striker. They were linke...
‘Fight our corner’, ‘100% agree’: Many Everton fans react to club official statement
Everton were due to play Manchester City in the Premier League at Goodison Park on Monday night, but the game was postponed on medical grounds due to an increase in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the City squad. The Toffees released a statement on their official website: Everton Football Club regret the postponement of tonight’s match against Manchester City – not only for the 2,000 fans who would have been attending, but for supporters on Merseyside and across the world. Our players were prepared for the game, as were both the team staff and everyone at Goodison. Matchday is the most important date in our calendar. And this was a big one. Whilst Everton will always have public safety uppermost, we will be requesting full disclosure of all the information that Manchester City provided to t...
Rio Ferdinand drools over ‘massive’ Arsenal talent who is ‘going to be a huge, huge player’
Rio Ferdinand has hailed Arsenal youngster Gabriel Martinelli as a ‘tremendous’ player and has predicted that he would become a ‘huge player’ if he stays fit. The youngster – who joined in the 2019 summer window for a reported fee of £6m from Brazilian outfit Ituano – is rated highly at the club, and several Arsenal players and Mikel Arteta himself have showered high praise on him from time to time. Last season, the youngster netted 10 goals from just 16 starts across all competitions. He has recently returned to action following a six-month spell on the sidelines, and Arteta has promised to use him wisely. He impressed during Arsenal’s defeat against Manchester City and produced a superb performance last week in the London derby win against Chelsea. On Saturday, Martinelli and B...
‘The conundrum’: Rio Ferdinand suggests the ‘big question’ Everton face next month
Former great Manchester United defender turned popular football pundit Rio Ferdinand has been left impressed with Everton following their win against Southampton last week. The Toffees have been missing a number of key players, especially their full-backs, but Carlo Ancelotti has found a system to counter the problem. The use of two centre-backs in the full-back roles has helped them solidify the defence, and it has left Ferdinand very impressed. Everton find themselves third in the Premier League table behind Leicester City, although they have a game in hand. The Toffees were supposed to play Manchester City on Monday night but the game was postponed on medical grounds due to an increase in confirmed cases of COVID-19 in the City squad. Ferdinand says that Everton will have a big dec...
‘Difficult’: Tim Sherwood claims 27 y/o star ‘not guaranteed’ to be in the Villa side now
Popular football pundit Tim Sherwood has suggested that Ross Barkley might find it difficult to get into the starting line-up at Aston Villa at the moment. Villa have been in excellent form this season, and have remained unbeaten in the entire month of December. Dean Smith’s side are playing with loads of confidence and they have moved up to fifth in the Premier League table, having played two games less. Barkley, who joined Villa during the summer transfer window on loan, picked up a muscle injury in November, but the club has not felt his absence. Villa give the impression of a happy unit this season, and they seem to be enjoying their game. It’s been a remarkable turnaround considering that they narrowly avoided relegation on the final day of last season. The former Villa boss has been ...
Chennaiyin FC 0-0 ATK Mohun Bagan: Report, Ratings & Reaction as Both Sides Take a Point From an Intense Clash
The penultimate Indian Super League fixture of 2020 was somewhat of a repeat of last season’s final, as 7th-placed Chennaiyin FC took on 2nd-placed ATK Mohun Bagan. Both sides were in decent form, as the Marina Machans were unbeaten in their last three games and the Mariners won their last two matches, but one of those runs was sure to end tonight. A tasty fixture was in store, and here’s what we made of it: Report Chennaiyin FC looked very nervous in the opening stages, but they had the first big chance in the 5th minute of the match when Jakub Sylvestr brilliantly slipped Rafael Crivellaro in behind the defence with a reverse pass, but he failed to beat Arindam Bhattacharya at his near post from close range. Three minutes later, Lallianzuala Chhangte had a look from the left of the ...
Report: West Ham open talks with Inter to loan former EPL star in January
According to Italian sports journalist and transfer expert Nicolo Schira, West Ham United have opened talks with Serie A giants Inter Milan as they look to sign midfielder Christian Eriksen on loan when the winter transfer window opens next month. #WestHam have opened talks with #Inter for Christian #Eriksen on loan. The danish player waitng for a call from #PSG, where is coming his mentor Mauricio #Pochettino. #transfers — Nicolò Schira (@NicoSchira) December 29, 2020 The Denmark international has struggled to impress since moving to San Siro last January and isn’t in the plans of manager Antonio Conte. He has been linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain, with a reunion with former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino reportedly on the cards ahead of the Argentine’s expected move to the Parc ...
