Leeds United have confirmed the signing of promising Arsenal forward Eddie Nketiah on a season-long deal.
The 20-year-old prodigy joins the Whites as their sixth signing of the summer, following the arrivals of Jack Clarke, Helder Costa, Jack Harrison and Illan Meslier and Ben White before him.
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Leeds have also confirmed the youngster will be donning the number 14 shirt during his stint at Elland Road.
Of course, Nketiah immediately took to Instagram to share his first snaps as a new Leeds United player.
Nketiah captioned it as “New season. New challenge” and stated how he simply cannot wait to get started with his new team.
The forward made his maiden appearance for the Gunners back in September 2017 and just last season, in 2018/19, he made nine appearances for the senior squad.
He also appeared for England at youth level, climbing the ranks from their U18 to the U21 team.
The fans will have high hopes for the youngster, who has huge boots to fill amid Kemar Roofe’s departure.
Naturally, he will not be expected to emulate the prowess of Leeds’ top goalscorer last season, but he will need to step up to ease the pressure on Patrick Bamford and provide Marcelo Bielsa with an alternative option at centre forward.
Wolves cruised into the next round of Europa League qualifying by repeating their first leg exploits with another 4-0 whitewash against Armenian outfit Pyunik.
The result was the club’s highest-ever aggregate score in a European competition and the first time they have recorded back-to-back wins in Europe since the 1971/72 season.
There were goals from a quartet of players, all of which came in the second half with Pedro Neto, Morgan Gibbs-White, Ruben Vinagre and Diogo Jota all scoring – the latter with the pick of the bunch after netting a sublime overhead kick three minutes from time.
Nuno Santo’s men are now just two games away from the group stages with Serie A side Torino standing in their way.
The performance from one of Wolves’ goalscorers has particularly drawn mass debate amongst the Molineux crowd.
Gibbs-White scored his first competitive professional goal for the club after 57 appearances and fans are torn over the 19-year-old with one believing he’s still some way off the mark but another noted that he’s a brilliant talent.
One supporter claimed that you would expect the 5 foot 10 midfielder to shine against a team of Pyunik’s stature and one day he will be great but for now he makes far too many mistakes.
Another fan added that he couldn’t understand the abuse the youngster gets as he’s a local lad whilst one said that Gibbs-White just doesn’t get him excited.
Liverpool fans have taken a dig at 18-year-old Bobby Duncan amid claims that he wants to leave the club.
The Daily Mail suggests that he is frustrated by his lack of opportunities within the senior team and could move on as a result.
The same report claims Fiorentina are interested in taking him on loan.
Duncan appeared in pre-season for the Reds but hasn’t featured in competitive action yet.
The fact he reportedly wants to move on, however, hasn’t been taken too kindly by some supporters. One called him a narcissist whilst another said his head was too big for his own good.
It didn’t appear as though too many supporters were reluctant to see him depart. One simply told the teenager to get out of the club as a further fan said to let him go.
Duncan has an impressive record at youth level for the Reds, scoring 23 goals in 26 matches for Liverpool’s U18 side.
Unfortunately for him though he is quite far down the pecking order. As well as trying to get ahead of Roberto Firmino and Mo Salah, he also needs to beat Divock Origi and Rhian Brewster to a place.
Tottenham Hotspur fans have hailed Hugo Lloris after his excellent showing during the club’s 2-2 draw with Arsenal in Sunday’s north London derby.
The France international made a number of excellent saves throughout the encounter, notably from Matteo Guendouzi and Dani Ceballos, as Spurs took a share of the points away from their bitter rivals.
Per WhoScored, Lloris made six saves in total in a game in which the Gunners threatened to take all three points.
Indeed, Spurs took a 2-0 lead through Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane, only for Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang to restore parity.
Arsenal enjoyed a dominant second half but were unable to find a third goal in a rabid atmosphere and Spurs largely had Lloris to thank, with fans taking to Twitter to heap praise on their skipper after the club uploaded a highlight reel of his stops.
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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…
Real Madrid have once again spent big money in the transfer window with nearly £300m thrown at a number of new signings. But despite some exciting names joining the squad, their issues at the back remain unsolved.
On the chalkboard
By this point and after only one pre-season tour and three games played in the new 2019/20 La Liga season, it’s becoming pretty obvious: Real Madrid are leaking goals. During the summer when they were gearing up for the new campaign, Los Blancos played five games and conceded an incredible 16 goals, almost equalling their worst-ever tally from 1980 when they let 17 strikes rattle their net.
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When we crunch the numbers a bit more we get a rather worrying figure of 3.2 goals conceded per game, which is far too many for a club of Real Madrid’s pedigree and stature, not to mention their aspirations.
And the problems were not fixed at the beginning of 2019/20 either. In the first three games they played, the Galacticos conceded four goals, which is only two fewer than they’ve scored in the process. Clearly, there’s a glaring flaw in that squad: their defence.
Out with the old, in with the new
If Zinedine Zidane was looking for culprits for this crime, which he should be doing, he wouldn’t have to look much further than his own backline. All four of Marcelo, Sergio Ramos, Raphael Varane and Dani Carvajal have seen some better days. Ferland Mendy’s performance against Villarreal immediately showed how big of a difference it makes to have a good defender in the squad, but it was actually the centre-backs that have been questioned as of late.
Both Varane and Ramos have averaged only 1.3 tackles per game in La Liga so far this season and the Frenchman has only one interception per game while the Spaniard sits at 1.3. It’s safe to say that they haven’t really set the world alight with their performances and Zidane should be looking to bring more competition into the ranks.
Eder Militao is the only new centre-back who joined the squad but he’s yet to make his official debut in the competition, which might suggest Zidane is sticking with more familiar faces for now. And looking at the stats and Madrid’s leakiness in the back, that might not be the best of ideas.
Real have played a total of 21 games since Zidane’s return and in that period they’ve won eight, drawn six and lost seven games. Their goal difference is rather bad as well: 36 scored and 35 conceded with just five clean sheets.
Something has to change fast and it would be wise of Zidane to forget all about Neymar, who seems to be back on the table, and look for some new defenders instead.
This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…
Watford have sacked manager Javi Gracia and reappointed Quique Sanchez Flores to replace him.
What’s the word?
The Hornets are currently rock-bottom of the Premier League, having drawn one and lost three of their opening four games; they drew 1-1 with Newcastle United last time out following successive losses to Brighton & Hove Albion, Everton and West Ham United.
The Hornets board have subsequently taken action by sacking Gracia, who guided the club to an 11th-placed finish last season as well as to the FA Cup final, though they were beaten 6-0 by Manchester City.
Flores has been appointed as his successor; he managed the club in the 2015/16 campaign as they finished 13th.
A bizarre move
This is a bit of a weird one from Watford.
They have not taken a step forward with the reappointment of a manager who took the club to a worse finish than that achieved in 2018/19.
One feels that Gracia deserved some time, particularly after their excellent FA Cup run.
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But the club have seen differently and, thus, there is pressure on the club to turn it around.
That is all well and good but their next two games come against Arsenal and City.
The Manchester-born defender spent last season on loan at West Bromwich Albion, where he was trusted to hold the line for 30 Championship games for the promotion-chasing side. Blackburn Rovers are the latest club to host his talents on a temporary basis.
We’re sensing a potential Kompany replacement somewhere down the line, as it is clear the young prospect aspires to be like his parent club’s skipper.
Barcelona fans disliking Ernesto Valverde is a rather common theme and nothing particularly new.
But the Basque coach has seemingly angered them more than usual in his latest interview ahead of the Blaugrana’s clash with Villarreal at Camp Nou on Tuesday.
Valverde has stated that the team is enjoying the support of all the fans and that he hopes the same will happen once they face the Yellow Submarine.
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And this really hasn’t gone down well with the Cules on social media and Twitter, with many quick to react to his words.
Some of them accused him of lying and they stated that they do not support him but only the team.
Of course, they still want him gone from the club as soon as possible and they were pretty clear in debunking their coach’s statement; Barca, of course, lost to Granada on Saturday and currently sit eighth in La Liga, having won two, drawn one and lost two of their opening five games.
You can see some of their reactions and comments down in the tweets below.
Tottenham Hotspur fans on Twitter are raving over Atletico Madrid midfielder Thomas Partey following his latest display against arch-rivals Real Madrid on Saturday, with some calling for their club to sign the 26-year-old.
The Ghana international started in the centre of the park in the La Liga clash, which ended in a goalless draw.
Despite the game ending without the net bulging, he certainly made an impact against Zinedine Zidane’s men too, successfully completing four dribbles as well making three tackles and one interception, as per WhoScored.
Partey was playing something of a box-to-box role against Real, and it is no surprise that this performance in particular garnered plenty of interest from the north London outfit’s faithful.
One Tottenham supporter labelled him as “world class”, while another said “imagine him, Winks and Ndombele in midfield” for Spurs.
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The Sun reported quotes from the African midfielder’s agent earlier this year saying he has a release clause of €50m (£44.5m), which should theoretically be in Daniel Levy’s price range seeing as they bought Tanguy Ndombele for £62.8m this summer.
In today’s Everton roundup, we take a look at what news has been doing the rounds for the Toffees. There is a growing concern in the injury to Andre Gomes, Darren Bent believes Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s goal scoring record is a ‘big problem’, and the club are reading to join Arsenal in the race for Donyell Malen.
Concern over Gomes
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Report: As reported by the Liverpool Echo, there is a worry at the club over the injury to Gomes. The 26-year-old has not played since picking up a rib injury in the victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers. The ex-Barcelona man will miss the game against Manchester City on the weekend, with fears looming he may not be fit until after the international break.
Verdict: Unlike many other Premier League sides, Everton are quite alright in the injury department. However, the two in the physio room are both central midfielders; Jean-Philippe Gbamin and Gomes. This is a worry conceding it’s the visit of the champions next, but also because of the poor form from others in this position.
Tom Davies has played just 11 minutes of league action thus far, Morgan Schneiderlin received a 4/10 against Sheffield United, and Gylfi Sigurdsson has yet to threaten in front of goal after scoring 13 Premier League goals last year.
Gomes has had a topsy-turvy Everton career at times, but in general, the Portugal international has been a great signing for just £22m, and the Toffees will be hoping he is back sooner rather than later.
Bent rips into Calvert-Lewin
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Report: Speaking to Football Insider, former England international Bent was extremely critical of Everton forward Calvert-Lewin. He said: “I don’t quite understand, he had a tough (Under-21) European Championships, didn’t quite go to plan. It’s such night and day between him and Tammy Abraham at the moment because he was ahead of Abraham in the Euros.
“I think he’s (Abraham) scored more goals this season that Calvert-Lewin’s scored in any Premier League season. He might even score more goals now than Calvert-Lewin’s scored in total.
“Everton are in all sorts of disarray, they’re all over the place. (12 goals in 83 Premier League appearances) That there is a big problem, that is a massive stat. I like Calvert-Lewin, I think he’s a good player, works really hard, if you’re on his team, he’s one of those players you want but if you want someone to score you consistent Premier League goals, he’s not showing that.”
Verdict: Indeed, Abraham has scored more this season than Calvert-Lewin has in any other. The Everton forward bagged just six Premier League goals in 35 appearances last year, whilst the Chelsea forward netted seven in his first five games this season.
It is a worrying statistic for the former Sheffield United man, as he is now 22 and yet to establish himself at his own club.
As for the Toffees, they have put faith in their wide men for goals, with Bernard, Richarlison and Alex Iwobi all scoring for Marco Silva this season. These goals have been incredibly important, not just because of Calvert-Lewin’s poor form, but because Cenk Tosun has still yet to impress in Everton colours. The Turkey international has played just 35 minutes thus far after scoring only three times in 25 Premier League appearances last year.
Everton join Malen race
Report: As reported by the Daily Mail, Everton have joined the race for PSV Eindhoven star, Donyell Malen. It is believed the 20-year-old will cost a fee in the region of £50m, despite Arsenal initially selling him to the Dutch giants for just £500,000.
Verdict: The Toffees are lacking goals right now having scored only five times in the six games so far – the joint second lowest – and Malen could certainly be the answer to these concerns.
The forward has netted seven times in seven games in the Eredivisie and leads the way as the top scorer in the division, averaging a goal every 85 minutes. As alluded to, Calvert-Lewin and Tosun are yet to score this season, with the goals coming from the wide men, with Silva calling out for the man down the middle to pitch in on the goals.
Yes, Moise Kean could be the answer, but the Italian has not yet had a chance to prove his worth just yet. Furthermore, Malen has also scored in the Europa League for PSV and even bagged on his first call up to the Dutch national team in the European Championship qualifiers.
There is little doubting this man’s goal scoring ability, and Everton should seriously consider bringing him to Merseyside.
However, £50m is an almighty amount for a man who has only just broken onto the scene within the last 12 months.