Brighton & Hove Albion ended Newcastle United’s winning streak in the English Premier League with a 1-0 victory on Sunday afternoon.
Tomer Hemed was the Seagull’s hero on the day, netting early in the second half to send a long-distance travelling support home without the points.
Newcastle had the chances to get themselves back into the match, most notably through Jonjo Shelvey, Joselu and Mikel Merino but just couldn’t find a way past goalkeeper Mat Ryan.
The Magpies had won their previous three fixtures in the top-flight but will now have to attempt to bounce back in next week’s massive fixture at home to Liverpool.
That good form is probably why Newcastle fans are remaining upbeat about their chances of staying up this season after their promotion from the Championship last term.
They seem completely unfazed by the defeat and took to Twitter to share their thoughts on Sunday’s action in Brighton…
According to The Daily Mail, Arsenal are preparing a bid for PSV Eindhoven star Hirving Lozano after his phenomenal start to the season.
What’s the Story?
Arsenal Chief Scout Steve Rowley has been keeping a close eye on PSV Eindhoven forward Hirving Lozano, and the Gunners could be set to prepare a bid for the 22-year-old.
A Mexican international, Lozano only made the move to Europe from his motherland in July but has already set Dutch football alight…
How good has Lozano been this season?
Simply put, sensational. Lozano has only just arrived in Europe, following a July transfer from Pachuca to PSV, so would be forgiven if he had to adjust to the European game. However, the 22-year-old, who is valued at £9million on Transfermarkt, has hit the ground running.
In 6 Eredivisie games, Lozano has scored 6 times and has blown the Dutch media away with his supreme talents. Some have compared the Mexican to Luis Suarez, who also had a similar immediate impact upon landing in the Eredivisie.
Would Lozano be a good signing for Arsenal?
While Lozano still has plenty to prove regarding his talents, their has rarely been a player who has made such an impact in a European league in such a short space of time. This has sent scouts into overdrive, with many European elite clubs keeping tabs on the 22-year-old.
Lozano would not break into the first team immediately if he were to join Arsenal, but he could take some time bedding into their style of play, which complements his talents perfectly.
According to the reliable Twitter user @ExWHUemployee on Episode 61 of the West Ham Way radio show, West Ham United have held ‘informal discussions’ with Ronald Koeman as a potential replacement for the under-fire Slaven Bilic, but Irons fans are divided on the rumour.
While the Croatian relieved some of the pressure on his shoulders with a 3-2 win against Tottenham Hotspur in the Carabao Cup at Wembley last week, it instantly returned at the weekend when his side surrendered a two-goal lead to draw 2-2 with bottom-of-the-table Crystal Palace at Selhurst Park.
With the two-week international break following this weekend’s clash against Liverpool at the London Stadium the Hammers board could decide to make a change, and Koeman – who was sacked by Everton last month following a disappointing start to the season – may well be one of the main contenders to succeed Bilic if he is relieved of his duties.
West Ham supporters were quick to have their say on the story via social media, and they were divided with their opinions.
While some said he is “what we are screaming out for”, others said “please don’t let this be true”.
According to reports in the Mail on Sunday, Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho watched RB Leipzig midfielder Emil Forsberg in action for Sweden on Friday, and Red Devils fans have been quick to have their say on the player.
The 26-year-old has been in impressive form for the Bundesliga outfit over the course of the last season and a bit, while he put in a man-of-the-match performance in the 1-0 win in the first leg of his country’s 2018 World Cup play-off win against Italy on Friday.
The attacking midfielder has scored three goals and provided a further two assists in 14 appearances in all competitions this term, while he netted eight and registered a remarkable 22 assists in 31 outings in total last season.
Man United supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on the story, and while one said we “should sign Emil Forsberg”, another said “bring him to United and Lukaku won’t be complaining about lack of chances”.
It is not exactly breaking news that Leeds United fans love Pablo Hernandez.
The 32-year-old has been a class act during his time in the English game, and has contributed two goals and three assists in 16 Championship appearances this season.
The former Spain international scored Leeds’ opener in their 2-1 win over Middlesbrough last time out, and was keen to pay tribute to the club’s supporters when interviewed after the match.
Hernandez, who is valued at £2.3m by transfermarkt.co.uk, will actually see his current deal at Elland Road expire next summer, but the Leeds fans are desperate for him to sign another one-year contract.
It is not exactly the worst tactic in the world to hail the supporters following an important win, but Hernandez was already an incredibly popular figure in the eyes of the fans.
If the former Champions League semi-finalists are to challenge for promotion this season, Hernandez will have a big role to play.
A selection of the best Twitter reaction to Hernandez’s interview can be found below:
Being a young footballer is as much about seizing opportunities as talent. It’s almost impossible to fathom the number of prodigious English forwards as talented as Harry Kane who simply didn’t get the chance to usurp two high-earning strikers with proven scoring records like Emmanuel Adebayor and Roberto Soldado.
Multiply that across every position and every club in England’s top four divisions and that’s a gigantic number of young talents who simply never got the opportunity to show what they’re capable of.
That’s an indictment on the modern game in England, the causes and underlying factors of which remain a discussion for another occasion. The consequence is simple though; young players hoping for a professional senior career must take the opportunities that come to them, even if they’re not in their favoured positions and even if it requires modifying their games.
When gaps open in top teams, regardless of which area of the field they’re situated, it’s up to the young players to prove they can adapt enough to fill them.
With Oumar Niasse suspended for Everton’s next two games, pending appeal, and the failure to bring in a star striker during the summer an undoubted cause behind Ronald Koeman’s departure, that’s an important reality check for Ademola Lookman to bear in mind.
The 20-year-old is more support act than front-man, more inward-cutting winger than central focal point – rather tellingly, just one of his 13 senior goals have come when deployed as a centre-forward – but his pallet of raw attributes contains enough to provide a short-term solution to what has been Everton’s problem position throughout 2017/18. From there, his career well could springboard to the levels expected of League One’s most expensive export of all time.
The first and arguably most pivotal attribute is Lookman’s speed. He’s always been a frightening quick forward both with and without the ball, but that is of particular significance for an Everton side lacking pace in most departments.
Nowhere is that more evident than in the No.10 role, where Wayne Rooney, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Davy Klaassen have all struggled to provide the necessary dynamism this season. Lookman’s natural speed would compensate for that, creating the space those players need to show their quality by stretching the opposition. Should they manage to consistently thread them through, it would provide them with a go-to pass into the channels as well – the kind of areas where Lookman’s dribbling and delivery comes into play.
Secondly, Lookman can be a clinical finisher when given the opportunities. 45 league appearances for a Charlton side that plummeted out of the Championship during that time provided ten goals – a total that would likely have been far higher in a more talented team with greater confidence – and it was his scoring record for the south east London outfit’s youth system that saw him surge through the U18 and U21 age groups into the first team – just a year after being signed from non-league outfit Waterloo.
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That leads into Lookman’s third key attribute; his character and willingness to improve and learn. Signs of that at Goodison Park have been limited thus far, largely due to the lack of opportunities that have come his way, but this is a Premier League footballer who wasn’t even plying his trade with a professional club three years ago. Lookman has transformed exponentially during that time and risen to the challenges put in front of him; becoming Everton’s new goalscorer is just the latest of obstacles that once seemed insurmountable for the 20-year-old.
It remains an unusual route of progress for a young Premier League attacker. The common practice, as we’ve seen from Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial to name a few, is to prove they can impact the scoreline from out wide before being trusted as the central forward. But once again, it’s a question of what gaps in the first team are available, and a willingness to adapt to fill them.
Lookman’s already shown he can be an incredibly fast learner; it’s now down to whether he can hone his skills quickly enough to put himself in the reckoning to start up front in Everton’s next few games. For starters, he’ll have to rise above Dominic Calvert-Lewin – another young forward who is arguably a better candidate for the central striking role through his 6 foot 1 frame.
But Calvert-Lewin’s been given chances already this season and has struggled to look the part. He’s proved influential in moments, but the Toffees’ all-round play has remained dysfunctional. There are more causes than simply Calvert-Lewin, but he’s only sparingly provided the nous and goal-threat to consistently lead the line. Lookman, likewise, would change the dynamics with a greater emphasis on speed and attacking the space behind defences.
A few months ago, such a significant role for Lookman seemed incredibly unlikely, following a solid if unspectacular first half-season on Merseyside and a summer in which Everton set a string of club records in the transfer market. But David Unsworth knows the youngster – who Transfermarkt value at just £4.5million – well from the development team, has placed a huge emphasis on youth during his caretaker spell and issued Lookman a start out wide against Crystal Palace last weekend.
If anyone is going to give Lookman a chance up front, it’s surely Everton’s temporary incumbent.
Liverpool will be looking to pick up their third successive Premier League away win when they face Brighton and Hove Albion at the Amex Stadium on Saturday, and Reds fans want Joe Gomez to get the nod at centre-back after Joel Matip was ruled out for a month.
The Merseyside outfit come into the clash against the Seagulls on the back of 4-1 and 3-0 successes on the road against West Ham United and Stoke City respectively, and the in-form Mohamed Salah became the top goalscorer in the top flight after netting his 11th and 12th of the season as a substitute against the Potters.
Gomez has largely been used at right-back this season in the absence of the injured Nathaniel Clyne, but he could be moved across to the centre of the defence this weekend with Matip missing.
Liverpool supporters were quick to have their say on the England international via social media, and while one said ‘surely he has to come into the CB position’, another said “Gomez has to be his replacement”.
Sheffield Wednesday fans have been discussing making a shock swoop for Leeds target Matej Vydra, and nearly two thirds of fans are backing a big move.
Derby County are expected to offload some first team players this summer as the Rams look to trim their wage bill, and Vydra could be the first out the door.
The 20-cap Czech international, valued at £7.2m by Transfermarkt, has been heavily linked with a move to Leeds, and The Telegraph claimed this weekend an £11m switch to Elland Road is edging closer.
Marcelo Bielsa needs a proven goalscorer if he’s going to get Leeds moving towards the right end of the table, but they are also interested in Abel Hernandez, and Owls’ fans are clearly hoping they swoop in and steal Vydra while their rivals are hesitating.
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Wednesday already have Gary Hooper and Atdhe Nuhiu, and their first priority this summer should be a creative playmaker rather than a goalscorer, but £11m for last season’s top scorer is simply too good to pass up.
Fans clearly agree, as 61 per cent said they should make a move for Vydra, and we suspect a few Leeds fans might have influenced the poll in the other direction as well.
Either way, you can find the full poll results down below…
The Leeds United fans in the Transfer Tavern are hoping their club can return to the Premier League next season under the watchful eye of Marcelo Bielsa, but recent reports suggest that the Argentine is looking in all the wrong places in the transfer market.
The Breakdown
It’s no secret that Leeds United are in the market for a new centre-forward this summer as rumours circulate regarding a handful of potential targets. The likes of Abel Hernandez and Baghdad Bounedjah have been heavily linked with a switch to Elland Road, but a recent report from The Sun suggests that the club have added a Premier League striker to their wish list, namely Jordan Hugill of West Ham United.
After enjoying an impressive opening to the 2017/18 season with Preston North End, Hugill earned a chance to prove himself in the Premier League as West Ham paid £9.2 million to bring him to the London Stadium last January.
However, Hugill made just 3 cameo appearances totalling 22 minutes of competitive football in a thoroughly underwhelming opening to his career in East London.
Leeds’ interest is rather misplaced considering how miserably he failed to break into a team which was hardly firing on all cylinders in the final-third.
His record of 8 goals from 27 appearances for Preston prior to his transfer was hardly groundbreaking either, and if Leeds want to genuinely challenge for promotion next season they will need to aim much higher in the transfer market.
A natural target man by trade, Hugill is far from a good fit for Bielsa who has generally favoured mobile strikers in his career so far and, with that in mind, the recently-appointed manager would be wise to turn his attention towards alternative targets this summer.