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Ahead of their Premier League clash against Manchester City on Friday night, Newcastle boss Steve Bruce might consider making a ruthless decision and dropping Miguel Almiron from his starting line-up.

With the season now winding down, and the Magpies’ safety secured for another year after both Fulham and West Brom saw their relegation back to the Championship confirmed in recent days, there’s a real chance for Bruce to just experiment a little and bring some fresh energy into the side.

And one way he can do that, is by axing Almiron.

The Paraguay international has endured another difficult season on Tyneside, with just four Premier League goals to his name all year – in fact, he’s been on a shocking run of form that has seen him fail to find the back of the net, or and provided just a single assist, since February 6.

A run of three months without a single goal contribution just isn’t good enough, even in the slightly more withdrawn role that he’s been used in lately.

And, last week’s performance against Arsenal was particularly disappointing, coming up against a Gunners side who had just been humiliated in the Europa League by Villareal and there for the taking.

As per Sofascore, the £75k-a-week earning ace’s 31 touches and 19 passes were even lower than goalkeeper Martin Dubravka, and was involved in barely anything of note.

He had absolutely no attempts on goal, and didn’t even managing a single dribble either. That’s not to mention the fact he also provided no key passes either, and it was no surprise Bruce eventually saw enough and took him for Joelinton mid-way through the second half.

After the game, The Chronicle’s Lee Ryder simply called it “one of his poorest displays of the season”, while Bruce himself admitted Almiron had a difficult outing, saying: “I think he’s played very well of late playing in that midfield area. But like us all (against Arsenal), we’ve found it a bit of a struggle. With what we’ve got at the top end of the pitch, I believe he’s still a very, very decent midfield player and can add goals and a bit of flair from it (midfield) like he has done.”

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Almiron’s work-rate and attitude is second-to-none, and there’s a lot to like about the way the Paraguayan goes about things. But sadly, the quality just hasn’t been there, and it’s holding the Magpies back. It’s time for him to be dropped from the starting line-up.

Meanwhile, Steve Bruce is eyeing this Premier League starlet…

A move for Wayne Rooney’s Derby County transfer target, Phil Jones, looks unlikely to be on the cards at Pride Park this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by the Daily Mail, who claim that the centre-back is an “immovable object” at Manchester United as his £110,000-per-week wage is putting off potential suitors, two of whom were reported to be Derby and Middlesbrough earlier this season.

Blessing in disguise

While the lure of attracting a player with 200 Premier League appearances to their name, in addition to one who has won a Premier League, FA Cup, League Cup and a Europa League title, may be tempting to many involved with Derby, there are a number of reasons why they should avoid moving to sign Jones, either on loan or permanently.

Firstly, the England international’s wages are a factor that simply cannot be ignored, as Jones’ six-figure weekly salary massively eclipses that of any other Derby player, including Rooney’s own earnings of £46,000-per-week, something that could potentially cause a significant knock to the squad’s morale – if the defender were to be brought in, even on a reduced deal.

Secondly, Jones is simply not worth an enormous salary, as the 29-year-old has made just two Premier League appearances over the past two years, neither of which have come this season – meaning that the centre-back’s match fitness is likely to be extremely lacking, as well as his capability to still be able to put in a high level of performance in a match being as good as anyone’s guess.

Finally, the financial resources that the loan signing of Jones would swallow – a season-long loan could set Derby back around £5,720,000 if they had to pay his entire salary – could be spent much more wisely, perhaps on investing further in the club’s youth setup, or even on younger and hunger transfer targets who have a much higher ceiling than the Manchester United flop.

As such, it would be highly advisable for Rooney to forget all about the signing of the defender who Martin Keown claimed “plays like he’s on roller-skates” and rather to concentrate his focus on building a team that is capable of a much more respectable finish in the Championship next season – if, that is, they avoid the drop this weekend.

In other news: Rooney must not repeat Bogle mistake over Derby starlet dubbed “one of the best” – opinion

Pep Guardiola has been handed a huge injury boost at Manchester City as Kevin De Bruyne has been passed fit to feature against Brighton on Tuesday night after missing recent games against Chelsea and Newcastle United through injury.

City travel to face Brighton on Tuesday evening and, although the game will be something of a dead rubber with Guardiola’s side having already secured the Premier League title and Brighton having secured safety, the Spaniard will undoubtedly be relieved to have his star midfielder back in the squad, as the Champions League final is now less than two weeks away.

De Bruyne has been one of City’s star performers in their exceptional season thus far, with his displays in the Premier League and Champions League key to their success in both of those competitions.

The Belgium international has contributed five goals and 11 assists in the Premier League so far this season, averaging a superb 7.56 rating from WhoScored, which not only ranks him as the top performer in Guardiola’s squad, but as the third-best player in the entire top flight this season.

His performances in the Champions League have also been exceptional, as his three goals and four assists have helped him to average an incredible 7.73 average rating from WhoScored, which ranks him as the seventh-best performer in the competition.

Therefore, it seems highly likely that he will start the final against Chelsea later this month, provided he doesn’t suffer an injury in the final two league games of the Premier League season, which is a huge boost for City’s chances of winning the famous trophy for the first time in their history.

The 29-year-old midfielder, who was described as “magnificent” by City teammate Ferran Torres earlier in the season, will hopefully be able to add some more control in midfield against Brighton if he features, as the Citizens looked vulnerable when losing possession against Newcastle United last time out.

Hopefully for Guardiola, the £90m-rated De Bruyne can remain unscathed on his return to action and rebuild his match fitness ahead of the final in Portugal later this month.

In other news… Txiki should swoop for “immense” Premier League star, he could be Pep’s next KDB

Leeds United look set to enjoy an exciting summer transfer window as news emerges from Thorp Arch about Marcelo Bielsa’s plans.

What’s the story?

The Whites have enjoyed a fine first season back in the Premier League and recently picked up some outstanding results against some of the league’s big boys, including a win over champions-elect Manchester City.

Football Insider have now claimed that a Leeds source has told them that “director of football Victor Orta is compiling a shortlist of midfield anchormen targets with the pedigree to provide cover and competition for (Kalvin) Phillips”.

The report added that the holding midfield role “has been identified as a key position for squad improvement by manager Marcelo Bielsa”.

Bielsa will be buzzing

Make no mistake about it, when Kalvin Phillips hasn’t been involved, Leeds have just looked a completely different team, and understandably so given his importance. In the ten games in which he hasn’t taken to the field in all competitions, the Whites have lost eight times, with their only victories coming against Southampton and Aston Villa earlier on in the season.

Bielsa doesn’t have a real like-for-like replacement for the England international, and it was a damning indicator that Robin Koch filled the holding midfield role against Brighton at the weekend despite being a centre-back by trade.

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It’s exactly why the Leeds manager will be buzzing that Orta is already getting things underway in terms of signing a new holding midfielder to help provide some competition for Phillips and also offer much-needed depth in that position.

Meanwhile, this Leeds transfer target delivered a masterclass at the weekend…

A ‘well-placed financial source’ has told Football Insider when they expect the potential takeover of Newcastle United to be completed.

As per the news outlet, there is ‘hope’ that the proposed deal between Mike Ashley and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) group could be completed ‘as early as July, or even June’.

The St James’ Park club are ‘privately confident’ that they will be given the green light by the Premier League for the takeover to be completed, and in recent weeks there has been a ‘growing sense’ that the hostility of the governing body to the bid has ‘thawed’.

Newcastle takeover hope

If what the source is saying is true, then it very much offers a lot of hope that the takeover in the northeast by the KSA consortium can be completed.

Of course, the KSA’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) would have to come back onto the table, and Steve Bruce’s team would likely have to avoid being relegated from the Premier League at the end of the current campaign.

Nonetheless, the deal is certainly not dead in the water just yet, with an arbitration hearing between the Tyneside club and the Premier League still to be scheduled.

The results of that case could go a long way towards painting a picture of the direction in which the bid is heading, but for now there has definitely been some hope offered to the Toon Army.

In other news, find out what big claim has emerged about a Magpies-linked manager!

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former Leeds United midfielder Carlton Palmer has called for perspective regarding Ezgjan Alioski’s career plans.

Alioski is being strongly linked with a move to Turkish giants Galatasaray in a development that has, understandably, not gone down well.

The 2000 UEFA Cup semi-final match-up between both sides, where Leeds supporters Chris Loftus and Kevin Speight were murdered by Galatasaray fans prior to the encounter, has not been forgotten.

It makes any potential move to the Turk Telekom Arena a controversial one. And while Palmer can understand the outrage these links have caused, the retired England international believes Alioski should be given some leeway if he does decide to sign for Fatih Terim’s side.

“It’s a difficult one that one, isn’t it?” Palmer said in an interview with FFC. “So he shouldn’t move to the club for what happened, which wasn’t his fault or anything to do with him?

“I understand that it leaves a bit of a sour taste and whatever, but that’s really nothing to do with the player. If at the end of the day it’s good business for the player and it’s good business for the football club, I don’t really think that should come into it.”

Alioski’s contract is up at the end of the season, so the left-back will be able to join Galatasaray or any other side on a free transfer. Regarding replacements, Leeds are currently being linked with Crystal Palace’s Patrick van Aanholt, who will also be a free agent in the summer.

Everton could force Carlo Ancelotti to make an instant U-turn over his plans for the summer market amid claims the Toffees are keen to sell Paris Saint-Germain target Moise Kean.

What’s the word?

According to Fabrizio Romano, the Goodison Park outfit have slapped a €50m (£43.5m) asking price on Kean as they look to cash in on the Italian’s successful season on loan at Le Parc des Princes.

PSG are hopeful of retaining the 21-year-old on a long-term deal, but are currently refusing to match Everton’s demands.

Kean has scored 16 goals and offered one assist in 34 appearances for the French powerhouse, and sits sixth in the Ligue 1 scoring charts with 12 strikes in 23 games.

Les Parisiens Sporting Director Leonardo is striving to negotiate a lower fee for the transfer of Kean, who he has long sought to sign permanently after failing to secure his signature while AC Milan’s Technical Director in the winter 2018 market.

Clubs from Italy’s Serie A would be expected to present their interest in Kean’s availability only should PSG fail to reach an agreement with Everton, following rumours that Juventus will do everything they can to re-sign the forward sold in 2019.

The Toffees paid Juve an initial £25m rising to £27.5m with add-ons to sign Kean during what would be Marco Silva’s final window at the helm, while the Turin giants hold a right to be informed of any future bid after Marcel Brands refused to include a buy-back clause.

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AC Milan and AS Roma have also been linked with potential moves to sign Kean in the next off-season should his future be away from Merseyside, where he is under contract on £53,000-per-week terms until 2024.

Should Everton let Kean leave?

Kean’s future is bound to be one of the hot topics of the summer transfer window, with PSG and Juventus both allegedly harbouring an interest in having the striker on their books for next season should he not return to Everton.

The Toffees rarely saw the best of what Kean had in store during his year at Goodison Park, with the eight-cap international only offering two goals in 31 Premier League games, but he has rediscovered his form in France to now be valued at almost twice what the Blues paid.

That would represent very pleasant profit for the Merseysiders, who would be expected to force Ancelotti and Brands to dip into the transfer market for a replacement with Joshua King likely to be released when his contract expires in June and Cenk Tosun put up for sale.

Doing so would also see Ancelotti make an instant U-turn on his claims from last week that he has not entertained the idea of any potential attacking reinforcements this summer.

“Honestly, we didn’t have a look at the market for next season because we are in the fight for European positions,” he said, via quotes by The Guardian. “But I can tell you that it [a striker] will not be the position we are looking for.”

To now sell Kean – who Ancelotti has previously described as a “great talent” – would force the Blues boss to backtrack on his comments with King nor Tosun seemingly up to his standards, and hire someone who can push Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison to reach higher levels.

AND in other news, Carlo Ancelotti faces a selection dilemma after a £16m-rated Everton star’s error-strewn weekend horrors…

Manchester United were sent a stark reminder of a huge transfer mistake in their 3-1 loss at the hands of Leicester City in the FA Cup.

Youri Tielemans dominated in the midfield for the hosts, completely controlling the middle of the park and even getting himself on the scoresheet with a well-taken low shot from the edge of the area.

With the likes of Fred, Donny van de Beek and Nemanja Matic having particularly poor afternoons in the heart of the Red Devils’ midfield, it must be hugely frustrating that the Belgian could actually have been lining up for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men instead.

Following his impressive stint on loan at Leicester, it was reported in the Belgian media that United were interested in signing the then AS Monaco man.

A move never came to fruition though – a failure that looks like a huge mistake just under two years on.

Tielemans has been inspirational for Leicester since arriving at the King Power Stadium.

In 97 appearances for the Foxes, he has scored 16 goals and notched 18 assists. For comparison, United midfielder Fred has scored just three goals and produced nine assists in his time at Old Trafford.

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Whilst it could be said that the Brazilian is far more of a defensive option, that was not immediately identifiable at the King Power Stadium on Sunday.

According to WhoScored, the two contributed the same amount of defensive actions throughout the game.

It is not just on the club stage that Tielemans is earning plaudits though. Belgium boss Roberto Martinez has been suitably impressed, labelling the 34-cap 23-year-old as an “enormous talent”.

Considering how he outperformed the Manchester United midfield on Sunday evening, it is hard to argue with that assessment.

Woodward then must be regretting letting Leicester secure the Belgian in 2019 having not managed to get him to Old Trafford.

AND in more news, take a closer look at Nemanja Matic’s awful showing in the loss against Leicester…

David Moyes could land a defender more productive than Craig Dawson by sealing a bargain swoop for Celtic-owned centre-back Jack Hendry this summer.

What’s the word?

According to 90min, the Irons have joined the race for Hendry ahead of the next transfer window as interest continues to swell for his services.

Hendry is currently on loan with KV Oostende and is expected to join the Belgian Pro League outfit permanently at the end of the season, owing to a £2m purchase clause in his contract.

But Oostende may look to make a quick profit, as scouts from West Ham, Leicester City, Crystal Palace and Newcastle United are all keeping tabs on his situation, while Burnley saw a bid rejected in January for the centre-back now excepted to be rated at around £10m.

Several Premier League and Championship clubs, along with Bundesliga duo SV Werder Bremen and SC Freiburg, plus AZ Alkmaar, Brondby IF and KRC Genk have also been touted as potential destinations for the 25-year-old previously.

Hendry has not ruled out a return to Celtic, either, with reports by the Mirror over the weekend claiming the three-cap international could chase a second chance at Parkhead while he eyes a return to the Scotland national side.

The centre-half has not represented his country since 2018 but has seen his profile grow this season, having helped Oostende go from a side that narrowly avoided relegation last term to one with a chance of qualifying for the Champions League at the end of the campaign.

Should West Ham sign Hendry?

West Ham are expected to be in the market for a new central defender at the end of the season, with Moyes said to be on the lookout for at least one or two senior options who can supplement the current group assembled at the London Stadium.

Whether Hendry is in the running remains to be seen, but the Celtic-owned enforcer could represent a cheaper option than most and is currently performing at a more productive level than the Irons are seeing from Dawson – who Moyes has confirmed he wants to retain.

The Hammers were not afraid to submit big bids for defenders last summer, with Sky Sports claiming that a £30m offer was made for Burnley’s James Tarkowski. The Sun also suggested a £25m bid was on the cards for Olympique de Marseille’s Duje Caleta-Car, who would have been presented with a £150,000-per-week contract.

Hendry could come at a fraction of those sums and has been lauded by Oostende boss Alexander Blessin, who noted in November: “He’s a great talker in defence. He makes the people he’s playing with better. You can see them listening to him.

“He’s been a tower of experience for us. Jack’s the most important member of the team this season and he’s one of the best defenders in the league. When you get signed by a club the size of Celtic at such a young age, then you obviously must have a lot of qualities.”

Dawson is likewise often lauded for his leadership for West Ham, yet has offered Moyes fewer successful tackles per game (0.5) in the Premier League this season than Hendry has averaged in the Pro League (1.2) to date, per SofaScore.

Hendry also averages more clearances (4.5) than Dawson (4.0), wins possession in the air more often (2.9, 76% to 2.6, 70%) and is yet to make an error that leads to a shot, while the Watford-loanee has committed two thus far.

Moyes may not install Hendry as a starting option next season but if the West Ham boss is looking for depth and does not want to spend excessively, winning the European-wide race may be a reasonable route to go.

AND in other news, David Moyes has confirmed his intent for West Ham to sign a £42k-p/w brute this summer…

With the advent of online gambling, it is needless to say that a lot of people simply avoid venturing into gambling since it could quickly turn quite addictive. However, thanks to new technologies surfacing every day, punters have the option to stop getting into problematic gambling with schemes such as Gamstop, Gamstop, Gamban, etc.

The operating body of Gamstop is a non-profit organisation, namely, The National Online Self-exclusion Scheme LTD. If you want to avoid getting addicted to online gaming then Gamstop helps you. But this service could not limit your accounts on non GamStop betting sites that aren’t on self-exclusion. It is a free self-exclusion service that allows punters to self-exclude themselves from casino sites and services which are registered with the UKGC.

The self-exclusion feature of Gamstop can be used with a registration process where the individual has to provide his/her basic details like:

Full name Date of birth Phone number Email address and Residential address

As mentioned, the registration process is quite simple and Gamstop also offers the time of period for which an individual wants to be in the self-exclusion agreement. They are:

Six months One year and Five years

After all the information is provided, a verification process is carried out with a third-party verification service provider, namely, TransUnion. After the verification, the reviewing option is given before finalising the registration.

Football Betting Apps Support Responsible Gambling and the Gamstop App

Here we will look into some football betting applications which support the inclusion of Gamstop in their agreement.

Betfair

Betfair is an online gambling platform through which an individual is able to bet on football matches. It is available in both Google PlayStore and in the IOS platform with a rating of 4.7 out of 5. It has multiple options of betting and has very wide options of gambling through football leagues and virtual tournaments.

The most important feature that Betfair has is that it uses Gamstop as one of its software to include the self-exclusion feature which is mandatory under the United Kingdom Gambling Commission. Betfair follows the protocols of responsible gambling and offers punters a chance to self-exclude themselves through schemes such as Gamstop. Alternatively, punters who have enrolled in the Gamstop service will not be able to access the Betfair site.

Bet365

Bet365 is a sports-based betting application with a solid 4.7 rating out of 5 which proves that it is widely popular among the gambling community. This application consists of several sports with in-play and pre-match features like soccer, football, horse racing, ice hockey, Lotto, and so on. Nonetheless, Bet365 promotes responsible gambling through the inclusion of Gamstop.

The application also makes sure that it provides a lot of features like self-exclusion, deposit limits, reality checks, and so on with which an individual can exercise a sense of self-control while investing real money into the games.

Paddy Power

Originally, Paddy Power originated in Dublin in the year of 1988. At first, it used to do business with a group of betting shops that are licensed in Ireland and in the UK along with managing Ireland’s telephone’s betting channel. Gradually, on the internet, Paddy Power became one of the most promising betting platforms as trusted betting sources said which offer sports betting, slots, poker, and so on. In 2016, Paddy Power collaborated with Betfair and created another platform named Flutter entertainment which is defined as a global platform where betting, gaming, and entertainment are provided.

Paddy Power being a UKGC registered platform ensures that the protocols of responsible gambling are followed strictly. Like every other application which has collaborated with Gamstop, Paddy Power offers the self-exclusion service and also other tools like self-assessment, take a break, budget calculator, and so on. Paddy Power gives the option of self-exclusion for a minimum of six months and once registered, the individual won’t be able to reverse the action.

Conclusion

In each and every football betting application, we saw how they ensure responsible gambling. Responsible gaming can be defined as a trait where an individual has fun in gambling without any financial pitfalls while investing more money than they could possibly afford. Needless to say, gambling can be addictive and people have lost fortunes for gambling addiction. Applications such as Gamstop, Gamban, Gamcare, etc are the key highlights when it comes to fighting gambling addictions. In other words, rule the gambling but do not let the gambling rule you.