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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

According to The Daily Mail, Liverpool have joined the race to sign Jadon Sancho.

What’s the story?

The 19-year-old Borussia Dortmund starlet is said to be ready to leave the Bundesliga club. He was subbed off against Bayern Munich in Der Klassiker, Germany’s biggest game, after just 36 minutes, which is sure to have had a negative impact on his mindset.

The Reds are not the only team to be interested in the England international, though, with Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester United and Real Madrid all still said to have him on their radar.

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A better fit

In recent days, there has been a lot of talk regarding the Anfield outfit’s desire to sign Kylian Mbappe. The PSG star would cost an absolute fortune – €250m (£214m) was even quoted – and as such, it is being said that Jurgen Klopp and co would be willing to move on Mohamed Salah to Real in order to take the World Cup winner to Merseyside.

Whilst the 20-year-old is a marvellous footballer, that is a huge amount of money to spend on one player and, with the Egypt international valued at £135m by Transfermarkt, his transfer would unlikely cover the cost of the Mbappe fee.

Sancho, though, with a Transfermarkt value of £90m, would surely come in an awful lot cheaper, especially considering that recent incident.

Considering the way Liverpool play, Sancho would be a signing that makes more sense. He is far more of a team player than Mbappe. Last term, the former Monaco man may have scored 33 goals in Ligue 1, but he only managed seven assists.

Sancho, though, scored a more than respectable 12 goals in 26 Bundesliga starts, but racked up a huge 17 assists during that time as well. No-one in Germany managed as many. This season, he’s registered four goals and eight assists already.

The teenager, who moved to Die Schwarzgelben from Manchester City for £8m in 2017, could also be moulded by Klopp into the player they want him to be considering he has just one full season of professional football under his belt.

Mbappe, meanwhile, is already a superstar, and considering his goal tally at Le Parc des Princes, he is unlikely to take kindly to to the 52-year-old trying to modify his game in certain areas.

They are both fantastic players, but Sancho’s arrival would make more sense than Mbappe’s. It remains to be seen, though, exactly what the future holds.

Wolverhampton Wanderers may not be in action this week with the international break taking centre stage, but that hasn’t stopped them gearing up for a busy January transfer window.

That’s if you believe the latest reports emerging from Molineux.

Last month, Birmingham Live hinted towards a potentially active opening month in 2020 by claiming that the club have a centre-back and a central midfielder high on their wishlist.

This appears to be trending towards being somewhat accurate as they continue to be linked to both positions, and this week has seen them mooted with a potential move for Ruben Dias, once again.

Only this time, they face stiff competition from Premier League heavyweights Manchester City and Manchester United.

Portuguese newspaper O Jogo, via Sport Witness, have made these claims, stating that Dias has a release clause of €66m (£56.5m).

It remains to be seen whether the 22-year-old will become a Wolves player, but here’s what some of the writers at Football FanCast think…

Viji Jeevathayalan

“It’s a sign of the massive improvements Wolves have made, that they find themselves in the conversation with a player who has been linked with the two Manchester giants.

“Despite only being 22, Ruben Dias has played 102 times for Benfica and has built up a wealth of experience playing in the Portuguese top-flight and the Champions League. If Nuno Espirito Santo’s side can convince the centre-back to join them over both Manchester United and Manchester City, then that would be a real statement of intent.

“The ultimate modern-day centre-half, Dias combines great technique on the ball (he averages 67.5 passes per game at a staggering accuracy of 89.2%), and rugged physicality off it (he makes 1.5 tackles per game). Make no mistake, a January swoop would be a major coup for Wolves.”

Billy Meyers

“At first glance, this signing would seem much too far-fetched for me – Ruben Dias is playing for a Portuguese giant in Benfica and is a regular for the Portugal national team, whilst surely Manchester City and Manchester United will have too much financial might for Wolves. 

“However, the Midlands-based side have shocked us before in luring Ruben Neves to Molineux whilst in the Championship – they certainly aren’t strangers to securing a massive transfer coup. 

“To put it simply, this would be a brilliant signing in terms of the current day and for the future. At just 22, Dias is powerful, good on the ball and has plenty of pace in his locker, while there would definitely be value in bringing him to the club if possible given the ever-increasing craziness of the transfer market – who knows how much Dias could be worth in a few years?

“If there is even a shred of a chance for Wolves to sign Dias, they should jump on it.”

Domagoj Kostanjsak

“Honestly, Wolves can’t go wrong with signing him. Ruben Dias is one of those players that you struggle to find clear-cut flaws with, and he would definitely be a major swoop for the club.

“That being said, I reckon they could face some competition, but if they can somehow lure him in, that’d be a brilliant piece of business on their side, especially given their need of a good defender.”

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Lewis Blain

“Make no mistake. Ruben Dias would be an absolutely outstanding coup for Wolves and even the Premier League. It is the sort of signing that will elevate the club onto a dumbfounded level. If you think the Europa League is their ambition, then think again.

“The Portugal centre-back has become one of the best in the world in his role at the age of just 22 – if you want to believe Benfica president Luis Filipe Vieira in Tuttosport via Football Italia.

“He already has a UEFA Nations League winners medal, where he also won the Man of the Match in the final and a domestic title to his name. This is precisely the sort of player that Wolves need to be targeting if they are to progress as a club.

“Per WhoScored, Dias averages a phenomenal passing accuracy of 89.2%, 2.3 clearances and 1.5 tackles per game which makes him a superb fit for Nuno Santo’s system.”

تحدث مدرب فريق ليفربول يورجن كلوب عن الفرص التي أهدرها النجم المصري محمد صلاح خلال مواجهة ريال مدريد، مساء اليوم في بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا.

واستضاف ملعب الأنفيلد مباراة الفريقين في إياب ربع النهائي، حيث تعادلا سلبيًا.

وخرج ليفربول بتلك النتيجة من البطولة، حيث خسر مباراة الذهاب بثلاثة أهداف مقابل هدف.

وشهدت المباراة العديد من الفرص المهدرة من قِبل محمد صلاح. ملخص لمسات محمد صلاح أمام ريال مدريد

وقال كلوب في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “بي بي سي” العالمية: “افتقادنا للمسات الأخيرة للهجمات، وهذا ما يحدث لنا هذا الموسم، علينا انتهاز تلك الفرص”.

وأضاف: “نعرف عدد المرات التي ينهي فيها محمد صلاح تلك الهجمات وهو مغلق العينين، كان ينهيها بسهولة، لم يفعل هذا اليوم”.

واختتم: “محمد صلاح الليلة لم يكن هكذا، لم يكن الأمر على ما يرام تمامًا معه، وهكذا مع فيرمينو”.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

After seven games of the Premier League season, Southampton striker Danny Ings would probably have preferred a better start.

The former Liverpool striker has mustered just two goals in his seven league appearances, recording an average rating of 6.67 from WhoScored for his efforts so far.

However, one thing has been somewhat masking his underwhelming start to the campaign.

What is it?

Goalkeeping errors.

Ings’ two goals have both come courtesy of goalkeeping errors by the opposition.

His first Premier League goal of the season came after Liverpool stopper Adrian smashed the ball at him in an attempt to clear his lines, before it rifled beyond the Spaniard into his own net.

Following that blunder, the one-cap England international netted his second Premier League goal this term after Tottenham stopper Hugo Lloris tried to be too clever with the ball inside his six-yard box, where Ings robbed him and tapped home.

Neither of Ings’ two goals were of his own making – although you could praise his desire to press – but without those two mistakes, the Southampton No.9’s poor form would probably be more exposed.

What’s going wrong for Ings?

After moving to St Mary’s in a deal worth a fairly significant sum of £20m, you would expect more of Ings given how much he cost.

Since becoming a Saint, the 27-year-old has scored just nine goals in 31 Premier League appearances, a strike rate that isn’t too impressive for a player meriting such a fee, while also being one of international pedigree with experience of playing for Liverpool.

Ralph Hasenhuttl doesn’t seem to fancy Ings too much either, seeing as the Austrian has started the forward in just four of the Saints’ seven league games so far this term.

His double against Portsmouth in the Carabao Cup will hopefully do him some good, but as of now, goalkeeping errors are helping to mask Ings’ poor form in the Premier League.

It remains to be seen if he can climb out of the hole he currently finds himself in and actually start making things happen for himself.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

A little tweak looks to have been all it took for this guy to finally make a mark in the Second city.

Dan Crowley arrived with expectation in the summer but it has taken a while for him to show that the investment was worth it.

Throughout his career, Crowley has been played through the middle of the park, and predominantly as an attacking midfielder.

When he moved to St Andrew’s it seemed natural that he would carry on that role. In fact when he was first signed, the club website noted that:

“Style-wise, the creative Crowley has tended to be used as an attacking midfielder, often playing in the number 10 role”.

Given that the Blues played a 3-4-2-1 formation throughout pre-season with the width down the right-hand side coming from wing-back Maxime Colin, it would make sense to slot Dan Crowley with his passing proficiency into that attacking midfield role behind Lukas Jutkiewicz and act as the primary creator.

After all, this is a player who completed close to 85% of his passes and laid on seven assists last term.

However, with a change in formation to more of a 4-4-2 from boss Pep Clotet in recent games came a change in role for the 22-year-old.

Rather than operating in the centre, a role that was given to Ivan Sunjic instead, he has been operating out wide for the past couple of games and has finally been able to give us some tangible results, such as his only assists for far.

Thogden ranks all 24 Championship home kits in the video below…

His influence over proceedings has been increased and that was evident last Friday. The former Arsenal man played five key passes, the highest number he’s managed in 2019/20.

It’s certainly not a bad thing that he’s an adaptable player, there’s nothing wrong with being a utility player that can play multiple positions, James Milner has made a career out of it in the past couple of years.

Therefore, if he can keep showing his proficiency out wide, then it only goes to show that if Pep Clotet needs to make a change in strategy going forward, then Crowley’s place can be more or less assured.

Celtic fans were recently excited to learn that Spurs midfielder Victor Wanyama, who had been at the Parkhead club earlier in his career, was a target for them in the last window, with the manager Neil Lennon hinting that they might make another move for him in January.

Wanyama was a fantastic player at Celtic Park, turning in some splendid performances and delivering on some big occasions, including getting a famous goal against Barcelona.

He left Celtic for Southampton in a £12.5m move after talks about a new contract broke down, with his agent saying that a club in the SPL could never meet his financial demands.

Nevertheless, Celtic fans had appreciated the player’s efforts in the shirt and he departed on good terms with both the club and the supporters.

The club spent around £14m during the summer, and aside from securing the services of the likes of Greg Taylor, Christopher Jullien and Abd Elhamed on permanent deals they were also active in the loan market, bringing in Mortiz Bauer from Stoke and another former player in Fraser Forster, the big goalkeeper who was such a hit at Parkhead that they nicknamed him The Great Wall.

They also signed exciting Southampton winger Mohamed Elyounoussi for a year.

Wanyama would have been a different order of signing altogether, and would have brought a real presence to the midfield.

Fans would have been excited about that, and this is why so many were pleased when Lennon said that the idea has not been abandoned.

So could it happen in January?

It is possible, but there seems to be a view down south that Tottenham would prefer to see him go on a permanent deal, securing them at least some of what they paid Southampton back in 2016.

A move to Brugge, worth an estimated £13m, broke down in the summer because Wanyama didn’t fancy it and he seemed to hint in a social media post that he was keen on a return to Celtic Park.

But again, wages seemed to be the stumbling block, and they might well prove to be again.

That Lennon has not given up hope means that Celtic fans shouldn’t either, but perhaps they should not be too hopeful at the same time.

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Crystal Palace fans have been left displeased with the performance of Joel Ward after their latest Premier League setback.

They suffered a disappointing 1-0 defeat against Chris Wilder’s Sheffield United on Sunday but Ward was one of the players who took particular flack from the Selhurst Park faithful.

Despite boasting some impressive stats which included six tackles, they were left annoyed with his overall display and the fact he was partly to blame for John Lundstram’s winner.

One supporter said he never wanted to see Ward’s face again as his unforced errors were picked up on by another angry fan.

A further individual went as far as labelling the 29-year-old as the worst footballer in the Premier League. The fact Palace didn’t buy another right-back after losing Aaron Wan-Bissaka was also made reference to.

The defender was branded as poor but made four interceptions and eight clearances, per WhoScored. He didn’t offer much in attacking phases of play, however, failing to make a single key pass and completing just one dribble.

Roy Hodgson also has Martin Kelly who can play right-back and after this display, he may be preferred in Palace’s next outing.

Here’s the best of the reaction.

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Leeds United fans have been reacting on Twitter after former Yorkshire Evening Post writer Phil Hay and BBC Sport reporter Adam Pope said that midfielder Kalvin Phillips will face no further domestic repercussions following his straight red card against Cagliari at the weekend.

The 23-year-old was dismissed late on against the Italian side following a full-blooded challenge, and seemingly there were some concerns that being shown his marching orders could potentially affect his availability for the opening day Championship clash against Bristol City on Sunday.

The Whites star was of course a key component of Marcelo Bielsa’s team last season – he was named in the division’s EFL Team of the Year – as they finished in third position in the standings lost out in the play-offs, and he has also been the subject of interest from Premier League new boys Aston Villa, as well as Tottenham Hotspur during the summer transfer window.

Leeds supporters have been quick to react to the latest on the situation via the popular social media platform, and while some are clearly still fearful that they could be punished with some questioning the EFL having recalled how they have been on the wrong side of them in the past, others appear sceptical as to whether Phillips will still even be their player come the weekend.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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[ad_pod ]This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…According to respected Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano on Twitter, Juventus striker Moise Kean will not be included in any deal between the Serie A champions and Ajax as negotiations continue over the purchase of Matthijs de Ligt.

What’s the word, then?

Well, it has already been reported that the Toffees have had a €30m (£27m) bid rejected for the Italy international, and The Daily Mail believe that £31m should be enough to bring the promising young striker to Goodison Park.

The 6 foot teenager burst onto the scene last term with six goals in just five Serie A starts, whilst he also netted another in his one Coppa Italia appearance.

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Kean, 19, also grabbed the limelight at the Under-21 European championships this summer by scoring two goals in just two appearances – he is most certainly a blossoming young talent who looks to have bags of potential.

It is believed that the Turin-based side feel that a £31m deal for Kean makes financial sense, whilst sporting director Fabio Paratici is said to have some concerns over the teenager’s character.

Everton will be overjoyed with the latest update

The negotiations between Juventus and Ajax over the signing of de Ligt seems to be taking ages to complete.

We all know how difficult the Dutchman’s agent, Mino Raiola, can be in these types of discussions, and the deal seems to be stalling over his personal demands as well as Juventus offering well below Ajax’s €75m (£67.4m) valuation.

In that respect, throwing the £31m-rated Kean in as a sweetener very easily could’ve got the deal done given his value and his young age, so Romano’s tweet stating that the Italian won’t be used as a makeweight will be music to Everton’s ears as their transfer target remains on the market.

By keeping him out of negotiations, the Merseysiders will still be able to obtain the player who appears to be their main striking target given the fact he is the only centre-forward they appear to have bid for – they should definitely be overjoyed to hear that he hasn’t been snatched away in the deal for de Ligt.

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West Brom will begin the new Championship season without one of their most influential defenders as Ahmed Hegazi successfully underwent surgery to repair a long-term ankle problem, news which has left many at the Hawthorns feeling rather bittersweet.

The 28-year-old had been nursing the injury since the end of last season and fought through the pain to feature for his national side, Egypt, at this summer’s Africa Cup of Nations.

Despite the issue being manageable, Hegazi opted for surgery after speaking to the club’s medical staff upon returning to England this week. With the season just a fraction over a week away, the chances that the centre-back features is rather unlikely.

As a result, many of the Baggies support took to Twitter to share their thoughts. One stated that it will be a massive loss but it’s probably right the issue is sorted now, rather than deeper into the season. This was echoed by another fan who said it was good news in the long run.

Hegazi made 43 appearances last season as the club were defeated in the play-offs by eventual winners and West Midlands rivals Aston Villa.

The Egypt international originally joined the club on loan during their Premier League relegation season but the club exercised an option to sign him permanently at the very first opportunity.

One fan said Hegazi would be like a new signing upon his return to the first-team whilst another supporter said he was looking forward to him being a rock at the back again.

You can read the reaction from a number of West Brom fans below:

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