Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has plenty of attacking talent in his ranks, but for some reason the creative spark has been missing for the Reds this season.

On paper, everything is going swimmingly for the team as they sit second in the Premier League table, two points adrift of leaders and reigning champions Manchester City.

Liverpool remain unbeaten in the top flight, but the performances on the pitch have left little to be desired.

The front three of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane have struggled to recreate the scintillating form that earned them plenty of plaudits last season.

Now more than ever Philippe Coutinho’s absence is being felt due to the lack of creativity behind the attacking trio.

According to a recent report in The Sun, the Merseyside outfit are prepared to break a club-record fee to sign Barcelona ace Ousmane Dembele.

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The 21-year-old has been linked to a handful of high-profile clubs due to his disciplinary issues, but he has only been at Camp Nou since last year.

After the speculation emerged, we asked you if the price tag was too high, and the outcome is a tight one, but a large number believe that he is not worth the amount of money being reported.

Arsenal have started to prepare for life after Aaron Ramsey after a possible new deal at the Emirates was put to bed by the club and the Welshman since being linked with a move to the Bayern Munich.

But Unai Emery could start preparing for the future as early as January if the Gunners manage to secure the services of Villarreal midfielder Pablo Fornals.

According to the Sun, Arsenal are prepared to trigger his release clause of £17.8m in order to snatch him up in the upcoming transfer market and ease him into Emery’s system, while Ramsey finishes his final season at the club.

Fornals, who has two international caps for Spain to his name, joined Villarreal last year from Malaga and instantly became a regular starter in the team.

This season has seen him continue his consistency in Javier Calleja’s team and is proving to be an important figure in the side’s midfield. But, Villarreal have struggled to get good results in the La Liga and are sitting just outside of the relegation in 16th spot.

Arsenal, on the other hand, are looking to capitalise on the situation and offer him a better environment by introducing him to English football. The Gunners will need every bit of help they can get in order to finish Emery’s first season at the club on a high and maybe sneak into a Champions League spot.

Arsenal are currently unbeaten in 15 games, but have drawn their last four, suggesting that firepower is still very much needed and will need to have squad depth if they were to go all the way in the Europa League.

Easing Fornals into the Arsenal style of playing, would, therefore, be a good option for Emery that would also give him a good idea as to how and if he should replace Ramsey, once he leaves for the possibly the Bundesliga come May. The manager has had good success with fitting new players into the team this season with both Matteo Guendouzi and Lucas Torreira impressing in the midfield since moving to Arsenal in the summer.

According to The Nottingham Post, Forest are planning another spending spree in the upcoming January transfer window. 

In order to do so, the club are planning to unload midfielders Liam Bridcutt and Ben Watson, who are deemed surplus to requirements this season under Aitor Karanka.

Watson has not featured in over a month for The Reds, while Bridcutt has made only one appearance in the Championship so far this season, and would therefore free up some cash should they move.

However, while Forest have been keen to bring in new faces over the past few months- making 17 signings since the summer- there are inherent dangers with this approach that they have already experienced this season.

The most obvious danger of this approach is that it is hard for the manager to balance all players’ demands throughout the course of the season. Karanka has clearly struggled with this, which is why the likes of Bridcutt and Watson have not featured extensively this season.

However, the most pressing concern with this free spending approach is that it makes it very hard to generate continuity with so many players at your disposal. Forest made a fairly lacklustre start to the season, as Karanka chopped and changed the players that he had. It has only been in recent fixtures that The Reds’ form has picked up, and that is because it took this long for the Spanish manager to realise who his star performers are. Throw more players into the mix in January, and Forest could be in turmoil again.

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West Ham United will attempt to return to winning ways in the Premier League when they travel to Newcastle United on Saturday afternoon.

Newcastle looked to have turned a corner having won their last three in the top flight, the last of which was a 2-1 success at Burnley on Monday night.

West Ham, on the other hand, will enter this weekend’s clash off the back of a 4-0 defeat to Manchester City at the London Stadium.

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Both Newcastle and West Ham have collected 12 points from their 13 Premier League matches this season, and it will certainly be an interesting game.

The West Ham fans have been on social media discussing the outcome of the match, and it would be fair to say that a number have differing opinions.

One thing is for certain, another defeat for West Ham would lead to a lot more questions when considering the depth of their summer spending.

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the West Ham fans can be seen below:

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Loads of Leeds fans have been reacting to their win over QPR, and they can’t quite believe what Steve McClaren had to say about the Whites’ penalty.

Leeds were forced to come from behind at Elland Road on Saturday, as a well-taken brace from the unstoppable Kemar Roofe earned yet another three points for Marcelo Bielsa’s side.

QPR took the lead after a mix-up between Pontus Jansson and Kalvin Phillips, but Leeds dominated the match with 70 per cent possession and they definitely deserved the win.

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Roofe equalised in first half stoppage time from close range, and then slotted home from the spot after Toni Leistner handled the ball in the area.

McClaren thinks his side were unlucky though, and the ex-England manager has criticised the penalty decision that decided the match.

“Poor decision for the penalty. Very, very poor decision. It’s cost us a result I think,” he said post-game.

“Toni says it didn’t touch his hand and the referee’s position – wow. He’s got fantastic eyes. He can see through people I think.”

Leeds fans can sense some sour grapes from the QPR boss, and they’re certainly not going easy on him.

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

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Following the news of Joel Matip’s broken collarbone, which he suffered in the last seconds of the huge 1-0 win over Napoli, Liverpool are now in the midst of a significant injury crisis in defence. However, a player they signed in the summer should be able to help them out, thanks to his impressive versatility.

What’s the word, then?

Well, after it was revealed that the Cameroon international would be out for up to six weeks as a result of the untimely injury, the Reds will now have Matip, Joe Gomez and Trent Alexander-Arnold in the treatment room, leaving them just four fit senior defenders to choose from.

Star man Virgil van Dijk, as well as Alberto Moreno, Dejan Lovren and Andrew Robertson are the only defenders available to Jurgen Klopp amid a packed festive schedule, which means that he will have to be clever with how he utilises his squad.

We know that James Milner can play in either full-back position if need be, so we may see the former England international on the right hand side of defence for the next few games, as neither Moreno or Robertson would seem comfortable in swapping flanks.

Using Fabinho to full effect

The main issue of them all for Klopp following the unwanted Matip news is who he will choose at centre-back. Lovren is the only recognised centre-half who could come in to partner van Dijk, but Klopp doesn’t appear to trust the Croatian international too much – the 29-year-old has made just four Premier League starts this season.

Summer signing Fabinho has, in the past, played at right-back and at centre-back for Monaco and to great effect, using his 6′ 2″ frame impressively to dominate attackers as well as use his exquisite tackling ability and interception skills to nullify opponents.

It is up to Klopp whether he uses the Brazilian international at right-back, and plays Lovren at centre-back, or uses Milner at right-back, and plays Fabinho alongside van Dijk – whichever he chooses, the £44m capture of the 25-year-old looks to have been a shrewd one given just how many positions he can play.

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Newcastle United’s summer signing Fabian Schar proved why he is the best pound-for-pound signing in the Premier League this season, after a dominant performance against fellow relegation battlers Huddersfield helped earn his side all three points.

The Swiss international defender arrived on Tyneside from Deportivo for just £3m after the Magpies activated the release clause in his contract, a fee which is amazingly low for someone of the 26-year-old’s pedigree.

Schar has slotted seamlessly into Rafa Benitez’s backline alongside Jamaal Lascelles, showcasing a unique blend of defensive skills as well as ability on the ball which helps keep the ball out of his side’s net and build attacks going forward.

Crucially, with just three points between Huddersfield and Newcastle, Saturday’s trip to the John Smith’s Stadium was a huge game for the Magpies, as a loss or even a draw would’ve allowed David Wagner’s side to keep in touch.

Now, however, the gap between the pair is a huge six points, largely thanks to the commanding Schar. The former Basel man made three tackles, helping the Magpies to their fifth clean sheet of the season, whilst also making four interceptions.

Schar, playing in a back three alongside Lascelles and Ciaran Clark, seemed to suit the system perfectly. A three-man defence with Javier Manquillo and Kenedy as wing-backs allowed Schar to stroll forward into the space that the Spaniard ahead of him afforded, which allowed him to use his passing skills and ability on the ball to greater effect.

The summer bargain also managed to make a whopping nine clearances, and won four aerial duels against arguably one of the most physical sides in the Premier League.

As aforementioned, the three-at-the-back system allowed Schar to stroll forward at will, which can be justified by his two shots on goal.

All in all, if Newcastle are to survive a second consecutive season in the top-flight, it is crucial that they keep their £3m man fit. Additionally, for all the hate that comes his way, Mike Ashley’s stubbornness in backing Benitez may actually be the main reason why the Magpies even found a player of Schar’s ilk; had he bolstered the coffers a bit more, there is a huge chance that the club would never had signed him.

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According to Italian journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, West Ham United want to sign Inter Milan forward Gabriel Barbosa.

Inter signed Gabriel from Santos in August 2016, but he has only made 10 first-team appearances for the Italian outfit, scoring just once in the process.

Gabriel has seemingly got his career back on track at Santos, having scored 27 times in 53 appearances whilst back on loan at the Brazilian club.

The Brazilian will see his loan with Santos expire at the end of this month, however, and is heading back to parent club Inter.

Di Marzio says that ‘several English teams’ are interested in Gabriel, but West Ham currently lead the race for the 22-year-old, who has scored 85 times in 222 first-team appearances during his career.

With that in mind, we recently asked the West Ham fans whether they wanted head coach Manuel Pellegrini to move for his fellow South American next month.

And 100% of those polled urged their club to sign him.

The full results of the poll can be seen below:

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Manchester United midfielder Scott McTominay might well be available on loan this month following the departure of Jose Mourinho.

McTominay has made six appearances for United this term, and 31 in total for the Red Devils since stepping into the first-team picture.

The 22-year-old has often been criticised by United fans, but he was certainly a favourite of Mourinho.

Mourinho is no longer in charge of the 20-time English champions, however, and United might feel that a loan move to a Championship club is just what McTominay needs at this stage of his career.

The 6ft 4in ace has had a tough time in recent months, but he is capable of making a huge difference to a Championship club.

With that in mind, we put the question to the Leeds United fans – would you be interested in a move for the Scotland international this month?

Have your say down below and look out for the results…

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Leeds United suffered a 2-1 defeat at Queens Park Rangers on Sunday afternoon as they exited the FA Cup in the third round of the competition.

And the club’s supporters were not happy with the performance of Ezgjan Alioski.

The 26-year-old has scored four times and contributed three assists in 26 Championship appearances during the 2018-19 campaign.

However, a number of his displays have frustrated the Leeds fans in recent weeks.

And the club’s supporters again expressed their displeasure when discussing Alioski’s performance against the R’s at Loftus Road.

The versatile attacker played the full 90 minutes in a wide position, but struggled to make his mark as Leeds lost for the third time in their last three matches.

It seems that the Leeds fans agree when it comes to Alioski’s work-rate, but have seriously doubted whether he is a good enough footballer to be be operating at this level.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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