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After defeat to Burnley at the weekend, Wolves’ season could be in danger of decline. It’s a testing week for the club and they now have to bounce back with two massive games against Manchester United and then an FA Cup semi-final with Watford.

The vast majority of their players were poor on Saturday but one man who did stand out was Adama Traore. However, Sky pundit Paul Merson wasn’t in agreement.

Merson’s comments are pretty outlandish and Wolves fans were in huge disagreement with him, sharing their views on Twitter.

A number of supporters picked up on the improvement the speedster has shown under Nuno Santo whilst one individual questioned what Merson was watching. Another fan labelled Traore as the club’s man of the match at Turf Moor, showing just how much he disagreed with the pundit’s opinion.

The former Barcelona man has had a largely inconsistent season, however, scoring one and only laying on a single goal for his teammates.

Here’s the best of the reaction.

The lottery of the play-offs brings both risk and reward for the teams who enter it each year throughout the footballing pyramid in England.

A side can finish twenty points ahead of the other three teams but if they do not perform over a two-legged clash, all their hard-work can be undone in a flash. However, whereas winning a league title to secure promotion brings with it its own joys, fans would argue that there is no better feeling than seeing your side triumph at Wembley Stadium.

In Sheffield United’s case this season, they may have settle for the play-offs despite being just two points behind Leeds United in the Championship standings. The Blades’ defeat to Bristol City saw them drop out of the top two as the Whites secured a stunning comeback at Elland Road, beating Millwall 3-2 to leapfrog their Yorkshire rivals.

Although there is still seven games to go for Chris Wilder’s side to usurp Leeds and claim a top-two finish in May, he will know that any further slip-ups could be terminal for the Blades. With tough fixtures against Preston North End and Nottingham Forest to come in the next few weeks, United will have to be at the top of their game to secure automatic promotion to the Premier League.

However, if they do fall short at the end of the season, it could be argued that they will enter the play-offs as one of the favourites to win the competition with West Bromwich Albion likely to be their biggest challengers. The Blades are currently scheduled to face Derby County in the semi-finals and will take confidence from the fact that they beat the Rams 3-1 in their most recent match-up.

Regardless of who they face in May, Wilder will be confident of beating anyone if his side can produce the form which they have been illustrating throughout the 2018/19 campaign. A promotion via the play-offs would not only give the club’s supporters a day to remember at Wembley Stadium but it would also hugely beneficial financially. Fulham’s 1-0 victory over Aston Villain the final of the competition last season saw them receive £94.7m this season which will eventually rise to a total of £174.8m over the next two campaigns (via the Independent).

On an individual basis, Wilder’s record when reaching the play-offs is a perfect one as he won his one and only final as a manager whilst in charge of Oxford United as the Yellows defeated York City to achieve promotion to League Two in 2010. This experience of triumphing could therefore prove to be vital for the Blades if they are to miss out on a top-two finish in the Championship this year.

What do you think United fans? Would you take guaranteed success in the play-offs over automatic promotion? Or should your club prioritise a top-two finish instead? Let us know below.

Rangers on course for runners-up medal after smashing Motherwell 3-0 on Sunday.

What a performance from Scott Arfield who bagged his first professional hattrick on Sunday to make it back-to-back wins for Rangers following the midweek victory over Hearts.

Two changes were made to the side who cruised to victory on Wednesday, the suspended Ryan Kent and Joe Worrall making way for Daniel Candeias and Nikola Katic.

The opening minutes produced scant little for the visitors to get excited about, and though Rangers typically saw most of the ball, it was the hosts who enjoyed the initial set of opportunities to take the lead, Jake Hastie shooting over while Charles Dunne fluffed his header wide from a corner.

After 22 minutes, however, it was the Gers who opened the scoring. Arfield, latching onto a move initiated by Daniel Candeias and Jermaine Defoe, kept his composure to silkily finish past ‘keeper Mark Gillespie.

Defoe continued to pressure in the forward positions and very nearly doubled Rangers lead but for the staunch work of Motherwell’s Gillespie, who did extremely well when meeting the Englishman’s low driven half-volley.

Arfield did what Defoe couldn’t minutes later. High pressure from Candeias and Ryan Jack retrieved the ball from the helpless Well defence, gifting the former the opportunity to play through the temporarily lethal Arfield, who again despatched his chance past Gillespie.

More pressing from Rangers rewarded them with their third and final goal on the hour mark. Jack involved again, this time winning the ball from Turnbull, played through Defoe into a one-on-one situation, and though the Englishman could’ve quite easily scored, he unselfishly played through Arfield to round off his hattrick.

Unsurprisingly Scott Arfield claimed the Man of the Match award for his three goals. However, we’d like to give a special mention to Jermaine Defoe as our ‘unsung hero’ on this occasion. The veteran striker was in top form at the weekend, and though he didn’t claim a goal, there was every bit of evidence to suggest that he will be a very important player going forwards for Rangers.

Defoe’s experience allowed him to find pockets of space which would’ve otherwise been neglected, creating more headaches for the Motherwell defenders than they could cope with, and his admirably unselfish assist towards the end of the match helped Scott Arfield create a moment he’ll likely never forget.

Special player.

Rangers fans, do you think the Defoe project is starting to work? Join the discussion by commenting below… 

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One of the main faults with Nottingham Forest this season has been a lack of pace in attack. Joe Lolley has been one of few shining lights from the 2018/19 campaign but aside from that, they’ve lacked many game changers.

But, trying to put right that lack of pace by introducing Arvin Appiah into the side has actually hindered both Lolley and the team itself.

It’s hard to criticise someone so young, but his introduction is a reason for why they’ve performed so badly recently, even if it’s not actually his fault.

On the chalkboard

Forest have witnessed quite a staggering drop off in recent weeks. Originally in with an outside bet of making the play-offs, all hopes have been scuppered with some very ordinary performances of late.

Fans had called for Appiah to start more games last month after comments made by his manager, but they may now be cursing their words after a string of poor displays by their side.

As a result of Appiah playing on the left wing, Lolley has been moved into a more central role and has not nearly had the same effect as he’s had from a wide position.

The former Huddersfield man has eight goals and 11 assists in the Championship this season, but just one of those goals have come from when he’s played behind the striker.

Therefore, it’s clear where Lolley needs to play; out wide. If Forest are to end the season on a high then O’Neill will have to move him back on the flanks.

Bedding in Appiah is a good idea ahead of next season. The 18-year-old is a hugely exciting prospect and deserves some minutes under his belt but not when it prevents their key player from doing the job he’s done so well throughout the current campaign.

To accommodate the England youth international then Lolley may be better suited to moving out to the right side of midfield, a position he’s already claimed eight assists from this season.

In fact, starting the pair of them in wide positions would almost certainly give them an improved dynamic going forward and must be something the boss is considering experimenting with towards the end of the campaign.

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Loads of West Ham fans have been running the rule over their defeat at Manchester United, and they’re all blaming one man for the result.

After a woeful performance against Everton and a fairly underwhelming visit to Chelsea, the Hammers owed their fans a good performance on Saturday evening.

And they arrived at Old Trafford intent on going for three points not just one, dominating periods of the match thanks to great performances from the likes of Declan Rice, Arthur Masuaku and Felipe Anderson.

Former Wigan & Fulham man, Jimmy Bullard recently showed that he’s still got it! Check out the video below…

Anderson thought he had put his side in front too, volleying home from inside the box before being flagged for offside. While it did appear to be the correct call at first, replays showed Diogo Dalot playing the Brazlian onside.

Paul Pogba then put the hosts in front from the spot after a rather dubious decision to award the penalty. Robert Snodgrass fouled Juan Mata, but the Spaniard didn’t even appear to be inside the box when the contact happened.

Pogba got his second of the day late in the second half with another spot kick, and needless to say Hammers fans are not happy with referee Graham Scott.

You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

[ad_pod ]In the heat of a promotion battle, it’s easy to get carried away. But when your team loses in the fashion Leeds did against Wigan on Good Friday there is always going to be someone who takes the brunt of the criticism.And after losing 2-1 in a game which could prove severely damaging to the Whites’ promotion hopes, Ezgjan Alioski was the one who found himself at the centre of attention.The Macedonian had a particularly poor afternoon down the left-hand side and as such was absolutely rinsed by Leeds fans on Twitter during and after the game.One fan claimed that if Alioski started the first game of next season he’d donate his season ticket to charity. Another said it was the worst performance they’ve seen from any Leeds player.His performance was so staggering to one individual that he bemoaned the player’s performance by saying he couldn’t believe what he was watching.The 27-year-old has played a major part for Leeds this season, having played 43 times. He’s also chipped in with the odd goal, finding the net seven times.

However, it now appears as though that’s the last Leeds fans want to see of him.

Here’s the best of the reaction.

Sheffield United sealed promotion to the Premier League this weekend with a 2-o win over Ipswich Town at Bramall Lane.

The Blades secured at least second spot and could even run out title winners if Norwich lose at Villa next week and United can take three points at Stoke City.

Manager Chris Wilder has done an absolutely superb job for United, and his unique way of his team being set up with over-lapping centre backs and all out attacking style have blown away most teams in the Championship this term.

However, that style will be under the microscope going into the Premier League, but here in the Tavern, we feel like Wilder should just stick to his guns and play the way he knows to shock the Premier League.

Of course, United will take some defeats and probably some fairly big ones along the way, but they might also come out on top against teams that Wilder will already be identifying as the sort of teams who they can target to take three points from.

The Blades will be scrapping near the bottom of the table you would imagine, but there is something special about the group of players Wilder has assembled, and it would be no surprise to see them shock the Premier League and do something similar to what Huddersfield did in their first season in the top flight.

It’s going to be hard for the Blades, and it’s going to be a different level to that they have seen in the Championship, but rest assured, if anyone can get United to be a success at the highest level, it’s Chris Wilder.

[ad_pod ]Liverpool crashed and burned in Catalonia on Wednesday night despite putting in a decent display at the Nou Camp.To say Barcelona’s 3-0 victory flattered the hosts is a resounding understatement, but Jurgen Klopp’s face told the whole story when the third goal went in.The gulf in class between mere humans and the extraterrestrial Lionel Messi was underlined with Barcelona donning a 2-0 lead, as the Argentine stepped up to whip a deliciously placed free-kick into the top corner of Alisson’s goal.In response to the exquisite strike, Gary Lineker hit the nail on the head with his assessment.

If ever there was a time when Liverpool fans could appreciate Lineker’s sentiments, it was immediately in the aftermath of his second and potentially tie-clinching goal.

The last time Messi faced Liverpool was in 2007, when he failed to score or assist in a two-legged tie which the Reds eventually won on away goals.

‘The little genius defies logic’ was a statement which certainly didn’t apply back then but, after years of avoiding the magician on the European stage, the otherworldly lexicon field which he commands across the football media has never been more pertinent to Liverpool fans.

They saw his logic-defying genius in all its glory last night, and it may well prove to be the difference between the two sides across the two legs.

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The widely hailed Ajax side who have defied pre-tournament predictions, odds and expectations to reach the semi-final of the Champions League took centre stage in the British media on Tuesday evening.

Under the watchful eye of Erik ten Hag, the revered team embraced the spirit of a club renowned for their revolutionary character and pioneering principles of totaalvoetbal, unpicking Tottenham with delicious ease, slicing, slaloming, flicking, showboating, passing and at times fighting their way to a gargantuan 1-0 victory at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Ajax wowed where Manchester City wilted. At the nucleus of it all was the match-winner, the goalscorer and often untouchable playmaker, Donny van de Beek.

David Hytner of The Guardian described his outing as a ‘complete performance at just 22′; The Times’ chief football writer, Henry Winter, gushingly claimed ‘Van de Beek turned a glittering Champions League semi- final ground into his playground,’; Fox Sports labelled Europe’s budding boy wonder as the ‘one player that embodies the never-say-die spirit of this Total Football-strutting team’.

That these quotes barely scrape the tip of the blonde haired iceburg underlines the extent of the hysteria Van de Beek has whipped up across world football.

For Daniel Levy and Mauricio Pochettino, however, this performance was one which they may well have envisaged almost two years ago. In October 2017, a report from the Dutch media outlet De Telegraaf (via Italian journalist Alfredo Pedulla) claimed that Tottenham were in the running for little-known Van de Beek’s signature.

Fleeting rumours linking Spurs with an integral member of what is rapidly becoming a golden generation at Ajax have arrived in patches thereafter. One of the more recent links was published in February this year, as Italian media outlet Calciomercato claimed he was on a Spurs shortlist with the likes of Adrien Rabiot, James Maddison, David Brooks and Carlos Soler.

And if Levy needed concrete validation to justify an unprecedented transfer splurge in the summer Van de Beek provided it with official signatures and stamps from the iron bank. But it is performances of this calibre on the big stage which naturally induce interest from far and wide, prompting cash-riddled vultures to swoop in ahead of the kettle.

According to Transfermarkt, the 5-cap Netherlands international is valued at just £22.5 million. To label that figure as unsatisfactory or completely and utterly barking mad would be an understatement; Transfermarkt will certainly be making necessary changes to that figure upon their next review.

Van de Beek, who has scored 16 goals in all-competitions this season, was Tottenham’s nemesis on the pitch last night: he played with a verve that hinted he was an experienced world class playmaker merely masquerading across the turf as a 22-year-old pretender, leaving everybody wondering what on earth has happened to Dele Alli, while he simultaneously upstaged another celebrated product of Ajax’s youth system in Christian Eriksen.

A 15th minute opening goal has left everybody associated with the club in a state of agony ahead of an unenviable looking task in Amsterdam next week, but that feeling has only been compounded by the implications of this match-winning display in the transfer market.

Times the aforementioned Transfermarkt valuation by three and we’re probably somewhere closer to a true valuation in light of another stunning display under the European spotlight. If Ajax are capable of attracting a £65 million fee for Frenkie de Jong they shouldn’t be too hard pressed to command a similar figure for their Champions League sensation.

That will leave Spurs in a predicament which, ironically, could hinge on Christian Eriksen’s future. How much a suitor is willing to pay for a player who critically lacked the imagination, swagger and end product of his fellow Ajax youth graduate will undoubtedly shape Pochettino’s transfer budget.

How Tottenham can stop Van de Beek from conspiring to embarrass the visitors to the Amsterdam Arena next Wednesday will be giving Pochettino sleepless nights, while Levy has been left to ponder how on earth a transfer target – and potential long-term replacement for Eriksen – has catapulted his stock into the footballing stratosphere just in time for the summer window when the Dane is likely to need replacing.

The implications of this internationally celebrated performance cut deep into the heart of Tottenham Hotspur.

Levy and Pochettino have been left disheartened with plenty to agonise over.

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Speaking to Football insider, former Leeds defender Danny Mills believes that Kiko Casilla has been an excellent addition to his former club’s squad, despite a handful of errors made by the new arrival since he joined in January.

Casilla most recently was at fault for two of Ipswich’s goals on the final day of the Championship season, but Mills has defended his casual style of play.

What’s been said then?

Mills stated that Casilla was a stressful goalkeeper to watch, but on the whole he believes that he has been reliable between the sticks at Elland Road.

The 41-year-old pointed towards the Spaniard’s ability to play out from the back and how that has helped him cement his place as the Yorkshire club’s number one.

Mills said: “He’s the most casual goalkeeper on the planet, he’s so laid back. The ball goes back to him sometimes you just think (puts hands over his face), ‘Oh my goodness, what’s he going to do?’

“He’s so casual but actually I think that’s been good because he’s got that ability to play out from the back, doesn’t seem to get flustered at all.

“I think he has been a good addition, goalkeeper is fine, it doesn’t matter if you’re a little bit crazy as long as you’re predictable and the players know he’s going to be laid back. They know he might take a chance or two and you can adjust to that.”

Needs to be reliable

It’s all well and good Mills saying that Casilla’s teammates can adjust to his unique style of goalkeeping, but when he is making costly mistakes questions must be asked.

The former Real Madrid man was sent off at Elland Road against Sheffield United earlier in the season. He may count himself lucky that he didn’t receive the same fate against Ipswich on Sunday, as he escaped with just a caution.

Mills says that the Spaniard’s backline can adjust to the keeper’s style, but it is impossible for even the best defenders in the world to accommodate when their keeper is dropping clangers and running the risk of being dismissed in important matches.

If Leeds are to be promoted to the Premier League, then Casilla needs to keep a cool head and make more rationalised decisions, rather than rushing out at any available opportunity and costing his team goals.