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West Brom will return from the international break still winless in their opening eight Premier League matches and their task will not be any easier as they’ll face another one of the typical ‘top six’.

Having been narrowly defeated 1-0 by Jose Mourinho’s rampant Spurs side, they’ll head to one of the Special One’s former teams in just over a week’s time, Manchester United.

Whilst games against Aston Villa, Leeds United, Liverpool and Arsenal are all on the horizon before the first week of January is over.

Reports suggest that Slaven Bilic’s job remains in doubt with decision-makers at the Hawthorns mulling over the possibility of sacking him before the Premier League gets back underway.

Much of the blame can be attributed between the Croatian and the board’s lack of spending, but you have also got to look at the players themselves.

When doing so, you’ll quickly find one surprise name that is hugely underperforming and is perhaps holding the Baggies back somewhat.

Albion skipper Jake Livermore can probably count his lucky stars that he’s the captain of the side otherwise he’d be festering away on the substitutes bench. He has just not cut the mustard in the top-flight thus far.

You think Bilic knows it too having withdrawn the veteran midfielder early in each of West Brom’s last three outings.

Per WhoScored, the 30-year-old has averaged 2.4 tackles and 1.1 interceptions but has also conceded 2.5 fouls – the most in his career – as well as seeing his passing success rate decrease from 84.1% in 2018/19 to just 75.7% this season.

Only engine room partner Romaine Sawyers has a worse average rating of any Baggies player that has started three or more matches this season.

Sat on £46k-per-week, according to Spotrac, Livermore is among the highest earners at the Midlands club and whilst that is understandable given the fact that he wears the armband, he is just not justifying it with his performances out on the pitch.

It’s on Bilic to be ruthless here and axe his midfield general, it may well buy him some time should it spark the necessary reaction.

AND in other news, Baggies will forever regret Jenkins’ silly mistake over “swashbuckling” £16.5m titan…

Jose Mourinho will face his former side this evening as Chelsea play host to London rivals Tottenham Hotspur. The Lilywhites will be hoping to chase down their top spot after Liverpool’s draw against Brighton saw them leapfrog into first place.

Although Spurs boast Harry Kane and Son Heung-min who are in red-hot form, they will be without senior defender Toby Alderweireld. The Belgium international picked up a groin injury in their win over Manchester City and is set for several weeks out on the sidelines.

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, Gary Mabbutt discussed the impact of the 31-year-old being ruled out ahead of Chelsea.

“Obviously it was awful when you saw him go down,” the Spurs icon said. “You could see by the way he looked that it was going to be a groin injury. I’ve had a few of those before – abductor injuries – and they are very sore.”

In Mourinho’s press conference before their 4-0 Europa League win over Ludogorets, the boss clarified that Alderweireld’s injury would involve “between two and four weeks” fo recovery time as opposed to months. Whilst this is a piece of good news, Spurs could struggle to fend off the likes of Tammy Abraham and Timo Werner.

After Davinson Sanchez started against Ludogorets, Mourinho could hand Joe Rodon his first Premier League start alongside Eric Dier. The summer signing has made just two cameo appearances for the north Londoners since he joined, so starting against Frank Lampard’s attack-minded Blues will be a big test for the former Swansea ace.

A win, or even a draw today will see Tottenham return to the top of the Premier League as they continue their blazing form.

In other news, This Spurs transfer target could be perfect Son protege…

Southampton will be hoping to continue their impressive start to the 2020/21 Premier League season by picking up all three points against Sheffield United on Sunday.

The Saints secured an impressive 2-1 win against Brighton last time out, so will be confident when they face Chris Wilder’s side at St Mary’s, with the Blades having picked up just one point in the Premier League so far this season.

Following his winning goal from the bench last time out, it seems likely that Danny Ings will return to Southampton’s starting line up but considering the Saints’ strong recent form, it would be a surprise to see too many other changes.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Hasenhuttl to line his side up against Sheffield United…

Unsurprisingly, Hasenhuttl keeps faith in Alex McCarthy, with the shot-stopper no doubt hoping to pick up his fifth clean sheet of the season in Sunday’s game.

Jannik Vestergaard could be a threat with his height from corners, whilst Jan Bednarek continues to partner the Dane in defence, although it surely won’t be long until we see Mohammed Salisu make his first appearance in a Saints shirt.

Kyle Walker-Peters and Ryan Bertrand continue to start at full-back, with both having been mainstays in Hasenhuttl’s side so far this season.

There’s one change in midfield, as Nathan Redmond is restored to the starting XI after an arguably disappointing display from Moussa Djenepo in the win against Brighton – his 6.4 rating as per Sofascore was the joint-lowest of any Southampton player.

James Ward-Prowse and Oriol Romeu can continue their impressive partnership in midfield, with the duo having been two of Hasenhuttl’s standout performers in the Premier League this year – the duo are both in the top five for average match rating for the Saints as per Whoscored.

Finally, Ings is given the nod to start up front, ahead of Theo Walcott, who drops out after a poor performance against Brighton last time out.

Back in 2016, Lee Dixon was full of praise for the former Arsenal man, saying:

“His speed and quality on the ball is unquestionable.

“Now all of a sudden he is unplayable. He is thinking about the game. It seems like he has turned into a different player.”

However, Ings’ connection with Che Adams up front has been a key part of Southampton’s impressive run of form – the duo have 14 goal contributions combined –  and if those two can perform well, the Saints will surely have a good chance of picking up all three points against Sheffield United.

And, in other news… Southampton can exploit key SHU weakness by unleashing colossus “role model”

As the January transfer window draws closer, it’s become increasingly apparent that Glasgow Rangers could do with a couple more additions in the market. Namely, another wide option and a holding midfielder.

Despite their summer spending spree, Steven Gerrard faces some tough decisions ahead of the Premiership clash with St. Mirren as he looks to trigger a big reaction after the Betfred Cup exit.

Whilst the Ibrox boss will no doubt want to strengthen at the back, his wide options could do with his undivided attention too. Ianis Hagi has been in such fine form since the beginning of the month, having bagged two goals in his past three games, but Ryan Kent seems to be in some sort of a rapid decline and Kemar Roofe is in danger of being stretched too thinly.

Although Kent has showed glimpses of quality, he has been unable to produce magic as consistently as he managed last season.

What’s the word?

There’s no doubt Gerrard has a plethora of options out wide at his disposal with Jordan Jones re-entering the fold after serving a suspension for breaching rules. However, despite all of the options currently available, it’s fair to say that Rangers lack any real depth on the right-wing, as both Jones and Brandon Barker have been deemed surplus to requirements.

But there’s one player in particular who may be able to fix their problems once and for all.

According to The Daily Record, Airdrieonians winger Thomas Robert is still of interest to Rangers and Airdrie are bracing themselves for a bidding war in the January transfer window.

Premiership rivals Celtic, Hibernian, and Scottish Championship side Heart of Midlothian are also keen to land the Parisian-born right-winger, whose contract will run out at the end of the season.

Robert, the son of former Newcastle United star Laurent, has been in prolific form since the start of the season, providing four goals and two assists across all competitions so far, via Transfermarkt.

Perfect partner for Kemar Roofe

The 20-year-old scored directly from a corner against Clyde during the 4-2 win at the Broadwood Stadium at the weekend.

By comparison, Kent finds himself in the midst of a goal drought, with his last goal coming during the 4-0 win at home to Aberdeen last month.

Comfortable on both wings, Ross Wilson would be wise to sanction a move for Robert as not only would the set-piece specialist be able to provide cover and competition for Kent, he’d also be able to do the same for Hagi on the opposite flank. Just imagine him slotting into place alongside Roofe up front.

Airdrie manager Ian Murray heaped praise on the Frenchman following his latest impressive performance, saying: “It wouldn’t surprise me if we have a fight to keep him. Thomas has done really, really well.

“He showed his class again against Clyde with the corner kick, but it wasn’t just that, in the first half he was excellent, his touches on the ball, his movement, his timing in the releasing of the ball, the way he picked up space, was excellent.

“We’ve had loads of clubs looking at him, a few of them were pretty impressed.

“Were they impressed enough to make a bid, I’m not sure, but I think there are a couple who are not too far away from that.”

Despite his young age, Robert’s versatility would make him a most useful addition to the Govan-based Glaswegian giants, as both Kent and Roofe have been run ragged for most of the season so far.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers must unleash Calvin Bassey vs St. Mirren…

David Moyes must swallow his pride and start Said Benrahma after the Algerian brought an immediate spark to West Ham United’s offence at Southampton on Tuesday night.

The Brentford loanee was forced to settle for a seat on the bench at St. Mary’s with Moyes favouring a recall for Pablo Fornals on the left-flank, while handing Manuel Lanzini a first Premier League start of the season besides Tomas Soucek.

Lanzini rarely saw enough of the ball to make a telling contribution as the Irons were forced to settle for a scoreless draw on the south coast, where Soucek ran for miles to aid defensively on a night his offensive contributions were often ineffective.

Fornals also let Moyes down on his return to the starting line-up with the Spaniard frequently drifting into a central role and vacating his duties on the wing, ultimately restricting the visitors’ efforts with no true outlet to spring attacks down the channel.

Moyes ultimately saw enough from his starting options to replace Lanzini with Benrahma in the 60th-minute and immediately saw an uptake in West Ham’s attacking threat, with the summer arrival’s direct runs adding a different dimension to the side.

Even still, Moyes was not totally impressed by what the 25-year-old produced against Southampton, feeling the Algerian – who Paul Robinson believes can be a “fantastic” No. 10 – had to do better when denied a first West Ham goal by a fine close-range save from Alex McCarthy in the 85th-minute.

“The minute I saw it break to him I was expecting the goal,” Moyes said, via quotes by the Newham Recorder. “I haven’t had a chance to look at it back yet, but I am told the keeper made an excellent save.”

Moyes has been claimed to not fancy Benrahma’s talents, hinting toward the reasons behind the 6-cap international only starting two fixtures since moving to the London Stadium on an initial season-long loan.

But the former Manchester United boss must swallow his pride and accept that Benrahma must be starting for the Hammers, as the 25-year-old wizard has once again proved why he has to be playing in either a central or wide role and not from the bench.

No West Ham player recorded a higher number of accurate passes than Benrahma in the final half-hour at St. Mary’s on Tuesday night, where he completed each of his eight efforts of which six came in the final-third, per WhoScored.

He additionally beat his marker with his sole recorded attempted dribble and took a game-high two shots with one on target, double the total efforts attempted by Lanzini during his hour on the field.

AND in other news, a £7m-rated West Ham dud betrayed David Moyes with a sloppy Saints horror show.

Speaking to the press before Tottenham’s FA Cup tie against minnows Marine on Sunday, manager Jose Mourinho has shared his worry surrounding the ‘major concern’ of a postponement for their mid-week trip to Aston Villa – going on to say it would leave them in a ‘completely impossible’ situation. 

A COVID-19 outbreak at Villa Park has thrown Spurs’ encounter with Dean Smith’s men into serious doubt, and Mourinho is currently sweating over the prospect of a fixture pile up which could cause all manner of issues.

Mourinho speaks out over postponement fears

So much so, the Lilywhites boss has come out to declare that his side would ‘never’ accept playing three games in three weeks due to postponed fixtures – going on to call out the Premier League whilst imploring them to show ‘leadership’.

“I believe that it’s a completely impossible situation for a club to have three matches postponed, especially if that club plays in Europe.” explained the Tottenham boss.

“If it is a club that doesn’t play in Europe, there are always the UEFA fixtures, which are six to eight fixtures for Champions League teams and in the Europa League case even more. So for a Europa League team to have three matches postponed is impossible. Completely impossible. That’s the only thing I can say.

“We cannot be put in an impossible situation. So I repeat: to have three matches postponed is impossible. It’s not for us to find solutions, I think it’s the moment for the Premier League to show leadership and make decisions.”

Transfer Tavern take

Villa’s postponement does come as a ‘major concern’ for Spurs, as described by Dan Kilpatrick, with Mourinho making his feelings on the matter abundantly clear.

Given the implications of a fixture pile up and what it could mean for the club, the Lilywhites boss has every right to be sweating over a worrying development.

In other news: Kaveh Solhekol has dropped a major update on this Tottenham target, find out more here.

It appears winger Scott Wright’s move to Glasgow Rangers has moved one step closer after Ibrox boss Steven Gerrard admitted talks are “progressing well” over a pre-contract agreement.

What’s the word?

The Light Blues boss is said to be a big fan of Wright, 23, who has burst onto the scene at Aberdeen this season and is believed to be close to a move to Ibrox in the summer.

It is understood Gerrard has already ran out of patience with a member or two of his own squad – with the Rangers manager revealing he is considering several options to use in a swap deal to sign Wright from Derek McInnes’ side.

“There are different options,” Gerrard said, via The BBC. “There’s a possibility of one of our players going the other way.”

We shared a story with you earlier this week that Rangers could use outcast striker Greg Stewart as a makeweight to seal a move for Wright in January. However, he could instead send Ross McCrorie in the opposite direction to help to speed up the process.

Forget Greg Stewart?

As things stand, it seems unlikely that either the pair will play for Rangers again, with Stewart making just four appearances this season and McCrorie set to make his move to Pittodrie permanent this summer.

Stewart has already spent two spells at Aberdeen and his effectiveness has been a mixed bag. During his first stint with the Dons, he scored four goals, and managed to score just twice in all competitions in his second stint, as per Transfermarkt.

However, it’s no secret McInnes is an admirer of McCrorie after he described him as a “dream” signing as he starred in the win over Hibernian at the start of this season.

The 22-year-old has played 55 games for the Gers, scoring two goals and supplying one assist across all competitions from the defensive midfield, via Transfermarkt.

The idea of Rangers swapping a midfielder, who has been deemed surplus to requirements, for a forward who has been in such fine form this season is surely a no-brainer. At this stage, it is unlikely McCrorie will still be a Rangers player once the transfer window closes at the end of the month.

As such, Rangers could propose a swap deal that would benefit both parties, rather than dumping the Dons with a striker that they may not necessarily want nor need. After all, first-choice centre-forward Sam Cosgrove has still bagged three goals and two assists despite suffering an injury-stricken campaign.

If Ross Wilson can secure a move for Wright, this in turn could reduce the price the Dons will have to pay the Gers for McCrorie at the end of the season. Everyone wins.

AND in other news, Rangers can’t afford to lose Ryan Kent to Leeds United…

After beating Newcastle in their opening game of this season’s FA Cup, Arsenal take on Southampton at St Mary’s on Saturday afternoon hoping to take another major step in their bid to retain their trophy.

Mikel Arteta’s side are the record winners of the competition, and beat Chelsea in last year’s showpiece finale. But Southampton away from home poses a real challenge, and with the Gunners facing the Saints in the Premier League just days later in another crucial fixture, there could well be some big changes to the starting line up.

And with that in mind, below is a look at how the Gunners may shape up to face Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men in the FA Cup fourth round.

In goal, Bernd Leno will likely keep his place in between the sticks, with Alex Runarsson’s calamitous performances in the Carabao Cup seemingly ending any chance of him featuring.

In front of him, Hector Bellerin should return in place of Cedric, whilst Ainsley Maitland-Niles may get another opportunity to prove his worth on the opposite flank.

Saturday could also see the return of Gabriel, with the Brazilian having missed the past few games and seeing the likes of Pablo Mari and David Luiz partner Rob Holding in what has been a very strong run of form defensively for the Gunners – they’ve conceded just one goal in their past six games, including five successive clean sheets.

The midfield area should see a revamp with Arteta surely unlikely to risk Thomas Partey after his recently struggles with injury, and that could see Mohamed Elneny partner Granit Xhaka in the engine room.

Further ahead, the likes of Gabriel Martinelli, Willian and the £36m-rated Nicolas Pepe could all get their opportunities to start, with Eddie Nketiah given the nod up front as Arteta rests some key names amidst this busy schedule.

Predicted XI: Leno; Bellerin, Holding, Gabriel, Maitland-Niles; Elneny, Xhaka; Pepe, Willian, Martinelli; Nketiah.

Meanwhile, Arsenal must sign this “phenomenon”…

As Celtic’s Albian Ajeti claimed a ball from Scott Brown, turned his man and then buried an opportunity last Tuesday, he looked every bit a £4.5m player.

Truth be told, that’s very rarely been the case for the striker since he signed from West Ham last summer.

Though, just as he finds his shooting boots again, he’s been ruled out of this weekend’s clash by the dreaded Scottish FA.

Ajeti felt contact from Kilmarnock goalkeeper Colin Doyle and went down inside the area. Odsonne Edouard stepped up and slammed home the resulting spot-kick. However, the Scottish FA have now retrospectively banned the Swiss striker after a panel watched back the footage.

They believe that the forward conned referee Kevin Clancy in the way he fell to the ground. Celtic sources are reportedly astonished by the turn of events and for Neil Lennon, he is also aggrieved.

He reacted to the news by saying: “The keeper has made contact, he has gone down, the referee has given a penalty. I don’t see any simulation. Simulation is where there is no contact. There is obvious contact, you can see that quite clearly.”

The Hoops have appealed against the ban and will fight his cause in a hearing next Monday. However, he will miss their clash with Motherwell this afternoon.

It leaves Lennon with quite the dilemma. Ajeti earned a rare start on Tuesday and took it with hands. He was particularly lively and not only did he win the penalty, but he scored a tremendous fourth for Celtic.

Thus, it will represent a hefty blow for the Bhoys as they strive to bridge the gap to Rangers. The manager will now have to decide whether to bring Leigh Griffiths back into the fray or play Edouard up top on his own.

Lennon has fluttered between both systems in recent weeks. Griffiths and Edouard struck up a solid partnership in the 2-0 win over Hamilton – both scoring – but the former played just 45 minutes when they suffered defeat to St Mirren.

The Scot was on the bench when Celtic beat Killie but didn’t play any part in the game. Whether he returns to the starting XI is firmly in Lennon’s hands. He now has a big decision to make.

AND in other news, £7m Celtic brute could become a real star if Desmond hires “very demanding” 62 y/o…

Liverpool will undoubtedly be reeling from their shock defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion last time out in the Premier League. The Reds struggled immensely to make any sort of impact in the final third and as such, Robert Sanchez had quite an easy evening.

The Seagulls scraped through with a gargantuan three points thanks to a goal from Steven Alzate to go ahead just after half-time. Liverpool suffered the defeat on home soil, breaking the myth that Anfield is, and will remain a fortress.

Attention now shifts to their next league hurdle. The reigning champions will take on the season’s leaders in Manchester City and it will be a juicy watch for the neutrals.

Pep Guardiola and his men are unbeaten in their last 20 matches and have won the last 13 in a row, according to Sofascore. They are in blistering form despite not having Sergio Aguero and will be hungry to further upset Liverpool and their reigning season as champions.

After losing three of their last five fixtures, the Reds will be desperate to make a swift comeback against rivals City. But to do so, Klopp must reconsider the options he fielded against Brighton.

Starting Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain would be a bold but strong move from the German gaffer. The loss against Brighton showed that Liverpool rapidly ran out of options when it came to their creativity. According to Sofascore, Gini Wijnaldum had a poor performance in midfield, managing just 36 touches before he was hauled off the pitch. This is less than Caoimhin Kelleher put in, which is a concerning stat for a creative midfielder.

Indeed, Wijnaldum looked a shadow of the man who showed up against West Ham to grab himself one of Liverpool’s three goals.

For this reason, Klopp must consider his options and start the more elusive Oxlade-Chamberlain. The England international enjoys taking a crack at goal from outside the box, which could be exactly what the Reds need to thwart Guardiola’s tight defence.

The £21.6million-rated midfielder scored a goal of this nature against City before now. His wonder strike back in 2018 in the Champions League is undoubtedly one of his career highlights and arguably one of the goals of the competition.

The former Gunners ace has the raw pace and power of a winger, but brings it into a more central area, and that directness is what saw him average more shots and key passes than the Dutchman in the Premier League last season.

Having someone who can take a player on and beat them with a quick change of direction when defenders are camped back could be game-changing, with others having to desperately come back in and leaving their own man open. And then, you’ve got Oxlade-Chamberlain’s blistering pace to consider if Liverpool win the ball back and look to counter themselves.

If Klopp deploys the 27-year-old over Wijnaldum on Sunday, he has more chance of Liverpool finding their past a City side that has conceded just two goals in their last ten fixtures. It could be a real game-changer for the Reds.

In other news, Exclusive: Rob Lee drops verdict on Liverpool return for Danny Ings…