Harry Kane’s insistence on claiming a goal that has taken him one step closer to trumping Mohamed Salah to this season’s Golden Boot has dominated the headlines this week.
But it appears the majority of Tottenham fans don’t even rate the England striker as Spurs’ best match-winner – in other words, the player most capable of turning a game on its head with a moment of brilliance.
Indeed, after scoring a thunderbolt against Chelsea and finding the net past Stoke City, we asked Tottenham fans whether that title should belong to Christian Eriksen, while proposing Kane, Dele Alli and Heung-min Son as alternatives.
And our poll has revealed that a whopping 60% of Spurs fans think the 6 foot Dane is in fact the club’s key match-winner, perhaps because his goals have been so spectacular of late and perhaps because this has probably been the most consistent season of his Tottenham career.
Do you think Kane will beat Salah to this year’s Golden Boot, Spurs fans? Let us know by commenting below…
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Borussia Dortmund defender Mats Hummels, who is a target for both Arsenal and Manchester United, has revealed he is open to leaving the Bundesliga, Daily Star reports.
Hummels has been heavily linked with a move away from the Westfalenstadion since last summer, and may finally make a switch after a poor season with Dortmund.
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BVB have struggled near the relegation zone for much of the campaign, and the Germany international’s future at the club has been in doubt.
Two clubs keen on the centre-back are Premier League duo Arsenal and Man United, with both teams looking to add a world-class defender into their respective squads.
And now they’ve been boosted by Hummels admitting that he is considering a move aboard, which could see a summer bidding war between the two English clubs for his services.
“Some days I think I would definitely like to move abroad but then, other days, I think I don’t fancy it at all,” he said.
“Basically I think moving abroad would be good for my professional and personal well-being. Eventually, I’d like to leave the Bundesliga.
“I have had many conversations with the leaders of Dortmund, where I know I am a big part of the team, but I am yet to make a decision about my future.
“I’m being open about this because I’m not a fan of those who claim they are staying but, behind the scenes, have actually secretly agreed a transfer away from their current club.
“I will do what is best for my career and what I would like to do. Everyone knows how much I love it at Dortmund but I also want to make sure I’m part of a strong team with powerful players.
“Whether we are in the Champions League, the Europa League or have no European football at all, it will play no part in my decision-making.”
Hummels joined Dortmund from Bayern Munich on a loan deal in 2008, but made a permanent move a year later after a successful first season.
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Liverpool manager Brendan Rodgers has hinted that Raheem Sterling will play a bit part role for the rest of the season.
The teenager burst onto the scene this term, becoming a key member of the Reds’ first-team during the opening half of the Premier League season.
His fine performances even led to the 18-year-old securing his first international cap, with Roy Hodgson selecting him for November’s friendly against Sweden.
However, in recent weeks a dip in form, allied with Liverpool’s moves in the transfer market, has seen the winger play a more peripheral role on match days.
Rodgers believes that his starlet must be managed correctly if he is to on to fulfil his potential at the highest level:
“This is a kid we’re talking about, so we have to take a wee step back,” he is quoted by The Mirror.
“This league is so mentally and physically draining, it hurts experienced professionals and this boy has just stepped up from the Academy.
“The zip has gone and that’s down to fatigue. But was that to be expected? Yes it was.”
Sterling has been impressive on the whole this season, notching two goals and assists in 23 Premier League appearances.
As a result he is likely to be disappointed by his manager’s decision to ease him out of first-team action, but Rodgers says that he has talked to the player about it and explained his reasons:
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“I was talking to him the other day about this, and if he didn’t kick another ball this season he’s had a good one.
“So we have to nurture him and protect him – it’s just a very demanding league.”
Jurgen Klopp rang the changes – five in all – to protect his squad for the second leg of the Champions League quarter-final tie against Manchester City when his side made the short trip to Goodison Park for the Merseyside derby.
The Reds are 3-0 up from the first fixture between the two sides but Klopp was in no mood to take any chances with the likes of Mo Salah and Andy Robertson not even included in the matchday squad.
The result was a 0-0 draw in which Liverpool dominated possession, especially in the second half, but struggled to make it count in terms of clear goalscoring chances.
One man who got the nod was Danny Ings, who has had rotten luck with injuries and was starting a Premier League match for the first time since Brendan Rodgers’ last game in charge, also at Goodison.
He looked understandably rusty but Liverpool fans were ruthless in their appraisal of the Englishman’s performance.
We’ve taken a closer look at some of the criticism aimed in the direction of the man valued at £7.2m by Transfermarkt…
No Premier League manager quite enjoys a transfer bargain as much as Sam Allardyce.
The West Ham manager’s eclectic knowledge of the transfer market is renowned, but if you require further evidence of his ability to consistently sign value-for-money, just take a look at the summer window and the Hammers’ improvement since; on a modest budget of £30million, he’s transformed the Irons from habitual mid-tablers into genuine top four contenders.
Thus, with the January window upon us and the shops starting their post-Christmas sales, we’ve come up with FIVE bargains that should be taking the Hammers gaffer’s fancy this month.
With all accompanied by valuations under the £10million mark, Allardyce would be mad to ignore them.
AARON LENNON
Former England winger Aaron Lennon hasn’t seen too much Premier League action over the past few seasons amid Spurs’ managerial merry-go-round, but his defining strengths remain undoubted; a strong work-ethic, a decade’s worth of Premier League experience and lethal pace going forward.
He would add a new dimension to the Hammers’ attack whilst also maintaining the industrious themes the East London side are now famed for, providing a level of speed and energy, currently unrivalled throughout the West Ham squad, in the attacking midfield hub.
Aged 27, Lennon still has a good three or four years ahead of him and the Lilywhites are almost certain to sell this month – in fact, Sky Sports claim the former Leeds product will be the only player to leave White Hart Lane.
Mirror Football quote a £7million valuation, which should be within The Irons’ financial reach, but also label Everton as rival suitors.
YEVHEN KONOPLYANKA
Another bargain winger for the Hammers to consider is summer target Yevhen Konoplyanka, who Sam Allardyce launched an ill-fated £9.5million bid for back in July.
Having won three Ukrainian Footballer of the Year awards and the last two Ukrainian Premier League Footballer of the Year awards, the Dnipro star is considered by many to be one of the biggest talents outside of Europe’s leading top flights.
Furthermore, although West Ham failed to secure his services during the summer, they may have considerably better luck this January with the Ukrainian international, who first drew wide attention after netting a stunner against England at Wembley in 2012, entering the final six months of his contract.
The East Londoners will have to act quickly however; reports in December claimed negotiations over a pre-contract deal with Inter Milan have been ongoing for some time.
FABIAN DELPH
If we’re talking the Premier League’s best value-for-money bargain of the January window, it’s hard to look past Aston Villa star Fabian Delph.
It’s been a huge twelve months for the Midlands midfielder, earning the Villain of the Year award at the end of last season and more recently a spot in Roy Hodgson’s England squad, with three caps since his September debut.
Both achievements are a direct result of the 25 year-old’s energetic style of play, boasting a unique blend of industriousness, mobility and guile – epitomised best by the above goal against Chelsea last season.
Villa desperately want to keep hold of the Three Lions hotshot and Paul Lambert has issued a clear hands-off warning in regards to Delph and team-mate Ron Vlaar. But with his contract set to expire at the end of the season and Delph recently refusing improved terms on his current deal, the Midlands outfit will have little choice if approached with a respectable offer.
According to Mirror Football however, Liverpool are already preparing a £7.5million bid.
VEDRAN CORLUKA
With Winston Reid’s contract situation still waiting upon resolution, the issue of West Ham’s long-term defensive depth is creeping higher up Sam Allardyce’s agenda.
Plenty of defenders have been linked with an Upton Park move as a result, but one that particularly stands out, in terms of value-for-money, is Lokomotiv Moscow’s Vedran Corluka – available for just £4million this month according to The Daily Mail.
That name will sound familiar for good reason; the 28 year-old has already represented Manchester City and Tottenham Hotspur in the English top flight, totalling 119 Premier League appearances before moving to Russia in summer 2012.
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The 80-cap Croatia international boasts the 6 foot 4 stature of a towering centre-half, but also the quality on the ball, the pace and the anticipation to operate at right-back when required.
There appears to be some strong competition for his signature however; the Daily Mail also link Aston Villa and Leicester City.
DANNY INGS
West Ham are hardly short of firepower this season, with Andy Carroll, Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho all boasting healthy goal-returns, but the opportunity to sign an in-form Englishman at a discounted rate is just too good to ignore for the East London club.
Of course, I’m referring to Burnley’s Danny Ings; after initially struggling to adapt to the top flight, the 22 year-old is now amid a run of six goals and three assists in his last 13 Premier League appearances and that superfluous form has propelled the Turf Moor outfit up the league table.
Burnley understandably don’t want to sell and manager Sean Dyche has claimed he’ll only be forced to for silly money – as reported by the Daily Mail.
But with the England U21’s contract expiring at the end of the season and Burnley hardly famed for their financial strength, they will have to consider decent offers. The Telegraph claim Spurs are willing to pay around £7million, which West Ham could feasibly match.
After a really positive end to 2012 it’s not been such a great start to the new year for Coventry City. A disappointing defeat at home to Shrewsbury followed promptly by David McGoldrick’s inevitable exit, topped off with a 3-0 defeat to Tottenham in the FA Cup 3rd round.
The Shrewsbury defeat definitely sounds a lot worse than it was though. They raised their game and it was just one of those days in front of goal for us. If we continue to create that number of chances then we will carry on winning more games than we lose and that’s a fact.
The biggest worry I do have is whether or not we are going to be able to finish these chances that we are creating. Our main man in front of goal David McGoldrick has now completed his loan spell with the club and has decided against re-joining us.
I can’t hide my huge disappointment in this decision as he has been playing the best football of his career here at Coventry and it genuinely looked like he had found his home in football terms at least. He has been scoring goals for fun, terrorising defence’s and quickly became a firm fans favourite because of his quality and work rate. He finished his spell with the Skyblues with 17 goals from 25 games which is a sign of striker who knows where the back of the net is.
His decision however has surprised me. Not the fact he chose not to join back up with the skyblues but that he chose to join a club like Ipswich. Ipswich have been struggling this season and find themselves 19th only 5 points off of the bottom three with the worst goal difference in the league. They also are a club with a lot of good strikers on their books which include fellow new signing Aaron Mclean. He is therefore by no means guaranteed a first team place and he seemed in his time at Coventry like a player who wants to play.
I worry for him a little not only in the sense of the club he has chosen to play for who like Coventry have a reputation for ruining good players but the fact he is making the step up to the championship which he has so far failed to deliver in. He has spent a few seasons in the championship but has never been able to make a mark on it and has often been in and out of the team.
He is also going into a team where he is going to have to learn how they play. The way Coventry played suited his game perfectly and allowed him to be the main man of the team. If this changes which I’m sure it will at Ipswich I think he is going to struggle. We witnessed this in his last game for us when Mark Robin changed formation to 4-4-2. The team lost its balance a bit and McGoldrick seemed to lose his way and became unsure of where he should be with another striker up alongside him.
He has been a fantastic servant to the club in his short spell with us and for that I wish him all the best for the future and hope he makes a success of it at Ipswich. I don’t however believe that this will be the case and I’m worried his talents will once again be put into the background and become lost within the reserves and the subs bench.
McGoldrick is now the past for Coventry and Leon Clarke may be the future. Having seen him play both in these opening two fixtures for us and for his previous teams I am yet to be convinced of his talents. He is not the same sort of player as McGoldrick but I cannot stop myself from comparing them. My personal opinion is McGoldrick wins hands down on everything that a striker should offer. He is faster, has a better touch, holds the ball up better and from the goals I have seen clearly has a better finishing ability.
Another thing that worries me about Clarke is the number of clubs he has already been at despite only being 27 years old. Coventry will be his 15th club in his career with the majority of them being on loan. This worries me even more in that it seems almost as soon as a club signs Clarke they realise they have made a bad decision and loan him out. We are the 3rd club he has been loaned too since joining Charlton having only made 7 appearances for his parent club.
Whilst his overall goalscoring record is pretty appalling for a striker his goalscoring record in league one is something that could be promising for the rest of the season. He has scored 31 Goals in 40 appearances for four different League one clubs which is a prolific strike rate. If he continues this for us then we will have found a readymade replacement for McGoldrick and hopefully it will mean we won’t miss him too much.
Our first game without McGoldrick was the FA cup 3rd round tie against Tottenham Hotspur. We were all hoping for a repeat of the 1987 final but right from the start we could see this wasn’t going to be the case. Spurs came out 3-0 winners and it could of and probably should have been more. It was a disappointing day out for the club and the fans in the end which is a shame but it is time to get back to games which truly matter.
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Thursday’s Johnstone’s paint trophy tie at home to Preston is a huge game for the club. It is effectively the quarter final of the competition and I really feel it is a chance to bring some good times back to the club and get that winning mentality which we so dearly crave.
Julian Draxler has been a transfer target for Arsenal in more than one transfer window and Arsene Wenger clearly still holds an interest; he reportedly looked to bring in the German to the Emirates in January.
Given the array of attacking talent on show at Paris Saint Germain and the French club’s need to balance the books after bringing in Neymar, there is surely a chance that a deal could be done.
However, the Gunners’ North London rivals Tottenham should be in the hunt. They have already done a deal with PSG for another squad player in Lucas Moura and there is no reason why they couldn’t strengthen their own squad depth with Draxler too.
He has become known as a winger but has also seen gametime as a deeper lying central midfielder – similar to Kevin de Bruyne – and could ease some of the creative burden on Christian Eriksen.
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The Dane has been moved deeper in games that Tottenham have been chasing but maybe Draxler – valued at £36m by Transfermarkt – could provide that option for Mauricio Pochettino.
He certainly showed signs of that creativity in Friday’s match with Spain. Despite the fact that the Spanish dominated the ball, Draxler was still accurate with his passing and laid on three chances with a key pass.
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Two shots, two dribbles and two crosses also hints at a man who can do a little bit of everything and there is no doubt that he would add another dimension to the Tottenham attack.
It would also be a coup to land a man who has been so heavily linked with their bitter rivals in recent years and some might argue, it would be a sign of the times if Draxler plumped for Spurs over a move to the Emirates.
Arsenal will finish fourth, they always do. Oh wait, they might not actually do it this year, with a five point gap between themselves and West Ham – who occupy the fabled slot – heading into Christmas, while a host of other sides are all competing in a densely packed top half – 10th placed Liverpool are only nine adrift of the Hammers.
Although it’s not been the disaster booing at a train station in Stoke would suggest, mistakes have been made by Arsenal’s boss this season, who appears so unable to adapt and change it’s bordering on insanity… So which FIVE errors have been the most unforgivable? We at FFC Towers have had a little look…
Failure to replace Vermaelen
Even a casual observer over the summer could see that selling Thomas Vermaelen without a replacement in place was a bad idea. Yet, in his wisdom, Wenger allowed the Belgian to leave, and low and behold, the Gunners are short of cover at the back, with injury issues for Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny having been plentiful. In fact, the north Londoners have been so short on options that teenage rookie Calum Chambers has been shoehorned into the role, while the returning Mathieu Debuchy has also been used as a centre-half in recent games.
With £20m to spend in January, getting another body in is the aim for Wenger, who may turn to Winston Reid of West Ham or take a gamble on Celtic’s Virgil van Dijk.
Stubbornness in midfield
It’s a problem that’s been on repeat for a while now at the Emirates, and it’s not Arsene’s awful coat! The Gunners have been without a genuine holding midfielder for as long as we can remember, with various stars – Alex Song and Mathieu Flamini – having failed to replace Patrick Vieira’s influence in the middle of the park. A lack of fight and grit contributed to the feeling that Arsenal have a soft underbelly, which has been exposed on more than one occasion this term – Stoke away is a prime example.
The likes of William Carvalho and Song himself were rumoured targets over the summer, yet Wenger opted against deals.
Failure to adapt tactically
Arsenal have one way of playing under Arsenal. When it goes well, they’re irresistible, with pace, movement and technical excellence hallmarks of the Gunners’ style. Yet on an off day or in the event a team sets up to nullify their threat, they struggle. The first-half against Liverpool saw the Reds’ 3-4-3 set-up push the likes of Alexis Sanchez and Danny Welbeck deep, isolating Olivier Giroud. It took Wenger some time to adapt to the issues, and had it not been for wasteful shooting from the Merseysiders, the game could have been gone by the 45-minute mark.
Arsenal have also shown a reluctance and inability to ‘shut up shop’ in games when ahead, with the 3-3 against Anderlecht – a game the Londoners led 3-0 – particularly galling.
Over-reliance on youngsters
Hector Bellerin really impressed against Newcastle the weekend before last. However, the young Spaniard’s start to life in the Gunners’ XI was not so fruitful, with his debut at Dortmund a game the full-back will have all but erased from his memory by now. Emiliano Martinez has also been thrust into goal following a spate of injuries, while the much-maligned Yaya Sanogo has led the line on more than one occasion.
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Reluctance to freshen things up
Although it’s far from crisis time at the Emirates, things have not been going quite as swimmingly as was hoped for. Results have been somewhat predictable, while underperforming stars have been kept in the team in the hope of playing out of ruts.
But with the likes of Lukas Podolski and Joel Campbell waiting on the bench, there have been options to freshen it up. Between the pair – who both impressed at the World Cup earlier this year – a total of 374 minutes on the pitch have been racked up, which has led to criticism from sections of supports wanting something now and diverse.
Chelsea produced their best performance of the season to trounce Aston Villa at Stamford Bridge to move back up to third in the Premier League table.
The Blues had suffered a stuttering start under interim boss Rafa Benitez but have finally clicked into gear at a crucial point in the season, winning five of their last six games in all competitions, and provided more evidence of their improvement under the Spaniard.
For the visitors it was an afternoon to forget and manager Paul Lambert will be hoping morale in the dressing room hasn’t depleted to a critical level as they fight to remain clear of the relegation zone heading into the New Year.
Only three minutes had passed before the home side had drawn first blood when Fernando Torres met Branislav Ivanovic’s teasing centre to power home a header from 15-yards for his seventh goal in eight games.
It got worse for Villa as Chelsea effectively ended the game as a contest with two goals in five minutes towards the end of the half. David Luiz, reborn as a holding midfielder under Benitez, curled home a sumptuous free kick in the 29th minute to make it 2-0.
Ivanovic then showed the predatory instinct of a world class forward to head Gary Cahill’s mis-hit past Brad Guzan. The away side enjoyed 15 minutes of brief respite after the break before Frank Lampard capped his 500th league start with a goal straight from his copybook, rifling the ball into the bottom corner from 25 yards.
And in a torturous final 15 minutes the west London club struck a further four goals, Ramires slotting home from substitute Lucas Piazon’s pass before Oscar scored from the penalty spot after being fouled by Chris Herd.
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Eden Hazard added the seventh after showing sublime feet to work himself into space and driving the ball into the top corner from inside the penalty area.
There was still time for Piazon to miss a penalty on his league debut before Ramires blasted in his second to complete the scoring and cap a remarkable victory for Chelsea.
Liverpool left-back Andy Robertson is carrying a knock going into the Reds’ crunch clash with Manchester United so we asked you whether or not Jurgen Klopp should risk him from the start at Old Trafford.
The obvious alternative would be Alberto Moreno, who has shown his defensive frailties on more than one occasion in the past, but James Milner also deputised ably last season and would be a steady bet.
The arrival of Alexis Sanchez has left Jose Mourinho scrambling around to try and find the ideal attacking formula so it is tough to predict who will line up on the right for United as they seek to extend their advantage over Liverpool in the table.
Sanchez, Marcus Rashford, Juan Mata, Jesse Lingard or Anthony Martial – if fit – could get the nod to link up with Antonio Valencia down that flank.
No matter who he faces though, Liverpool fans were pretty unequivocal in expressing that it is the Scotsman – valued at £9m by transfermarkt.co.uk – they want on the left of their defence, with 89% of fans saying Klopp should take a gamble and field him from the off.
Take a look at the full poll results below…
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