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Unai Emery threw away any chance Arsenal had of beating Manchester City by setting his side up to play in a 4-4-2 formation at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

On the chalkboard

An injury to Hector Bellerin and the absence of Ainsley Maitland-Niles meant Stephan Lichtsteiner had to play at right-back on Sunday, which immediately raised concerns over the Gunners’ chances of getting even a point at Man City.

Granit Xhaka’s absence raised concerns too, as the Swiss midfielder is the anchor that connects the defence and attack, and without his presence the midfield needed reshaping.

For whatever reason, rather than including Aaron Ramsey or Mohamed Elneny from kick-off so Arsenal could retain numbers in the engine room, Emery opted for just the two central midfielders, meaning that Alex Iwobi and Sead Kolasinac on the wings had to continually drop back to help out in defence.

A 4-4-2 was never going to work against Pep Guardiola’s side because the current Premier League title holders do not need to drag play towards the byline to open up defences. Instead, they cut between the lines and Arsenal offered no one to occupy this space.

Look away Arsenal fans! American Soccer Fan is back to troll more fans at the London Stadium in the video below…

Losing before a ball was kicked

Emery had to acknowledge the brilliance that City can muster, which is why he deployed Iwobi and Kolasinac as wide midfielders, to try and prevent the creation of chances on the wings.

Unfortunately, by also playing the Gunners’ two best strikers from kick off, it meant that Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi could not cut the space in between the lines as, with no one ahead or behind, they were forced to be everywhere and everything for Emery.

It is also why Arsenal conceded an opening goal within the first minute. Iwobi had to lift his head to try and spot someone to clear the ball to, only to realise he had no one available – that split second hesitation was all City needed to snatch possession back and play a killer pass.

When Arsenal beat Chelsea last month, the Gunners played on the front foot with the attackers applying pressure, and this was the only way they could have challenged City.

But by playing in a 4-4-2, the pressure could never be applied leaving gaps behind, and Arsenal essentially lost the game on this basis before a ball was kicked.

Kalvin Phillips has told Leeds United that he wants to sign a new contract at Elland Road, David Anderson reports.

The Lowdown: Villa links

The 26-year-old has once again been linked with a move to Aston Villa in recent weeks.

Villa, who tried to sign Phillips back in 2019, are reportedly leading the race for the England international this summer and are willing to pay £60m for his services.

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Phillips would also be offered a huge salary worth around £10m a year in the Midlands, but it seems as if he now wants to remain in Yorkshire.

The Latest: Positive talks

Anderson took to Twitter on Tuesday afternoon to provide a ‘big boost for Leeds’ regarding Phillips.

The midfielder has reportedly held talks with the board, which of course includes Andrea Radrizzani and the San Francisco 49ers group, and informed them that he wants to put pen to paper on a new deal this summer.

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The Verdict: Huge…

Phillips starred under former manager Marcelo Bielsa and looks set to be key in a new role for Jesse Marsch. The American has gone with a double pivot at Elland Road and only has four central midfielders on the books.

It is an area of the pitch that could do with bolstering in the summer, so knowing that their star midfielder wants to stay is massive. You could also say that a new deal for Phillips is well overdue, with his last extension coming in the club’s promotion campaign back in 2019/20 – he has since gone on to become England’s player of the year.

In other news: ‘Leeds feel…’ – Journalist now drops major injury twist after what he’s heard from Thorp Arch. 

An update has emerged on Rangers and Gio van Bronckhorst’s attempts to bring a new striker to Ibrox this month…

What’s the talk?

According to TEAMtalk, the Gers are eyeing up a deal to sign an attacker in the January transfer window.

The report claims that Rangers, Norwich, Newcastle and Crystal Palace are among the clubs interested in signing the QPR centre-forward, Lyndon Dykes, although it remains to be seen how much the west London outfit will demand for his services.

Get it done

Giovanni van Bronckhorst and Ross Wilson must get this deal done for Rangers this month, as Dykes could be a superb signing and improve their current options.

The Gers are not blessed with an abundance of physical players who are capable of mixing it up in individual duels against better teams. This is highlighted by Leon Balogun being the only Light Blues player who has won more than 1.8 aerial battles per game in the Europa League this season, whilst Joe Aribo (2.1) is the only midfielder or attacker averaging more than two per game in the Premiership.

Meanwhile, Dykes has won  4.3 aerial battles per game in the Championship this term for QPR, having averaged 4.8 last season. This shows that he offers a physical presence in the number nine role which Van Bronckhorst is currently lacking in his squad.

Scotland boss Steve Clarke previously lauded the attacker, saying: “Lyndon’s a confident lad and so he should be. He knows what he wants.

“He’s not a big-head, he’s nothing like that. He’s done the hard yards in football, from Queen of the South to Livingston and he’s earned himself a fantastic move to London. It’ll be nice to watch him in the Championship next season.

“He’s going to be working with a really good coach in Mark Warburton so Lyndon can only improve now for his club and hopefully his country as well.”

The £3.15m-rated bulldozer has also proven that he can score goals regularly. He has found the back of the net 18 times for QPR since the start of the 2020/21 campaign and has scored four goals in six starts for Scotland in World Cup qualifiers.

Therefore, he could add goals to go along with the physical boost with which he could provide Rangers. This is why the Light Blues must work hard to secure his services this month.

AND in other news, Van Bronckhorst must ruthlessly axe £900k-rated Rangers dud, he’s a “weak link”…

Everton will be going into the upcoming transfer window with the opportunity to patch over the injury crisis they have been suffering throughout the first half of the season, with Rafa Benitez expected to make additions that will help the Toffees climb up the Premier League table and find better consistency in the league.

What’s the word?

According to reports from Italian news outlet, Calciomercato, Everton are in pole position to sign Inter Milan midfielder, Matias Vecino, in the January transfer window.

With the Uruguay international’s contract ending in June 2022, the Toffees could get the player in a cut price deal if Inter should feel that they are interested in cashing in on him mid-season.

For Inter, Vecino has made 119 appearances, scoring thirteen goals and bagging seven assists from his central midfielder role in the side since he joined from Fiorentina in 2017.

The 30 year old was previously praised by former Inter assistant boss Cristian Stellini, who simply said; “Matias Vecino always delivers.”

Everton have some competition in securing the Serie A star’s signature as both Leicester and Betis Sevilla are also both named as clubs interested in the report from Calciomercato.

Solving problems at Everton

The signing of Vecino could be the perfect opportunity for Benitez to inject some experience and reliability into the midfield, with the latter in particular being a huge priority for the Everton side that has been struggling with finding consistency with their first team due to a large number of injuries.

One area that has been decimated in recent weeks and months has been in that midfield position, with the likes of Abdoulaye Doucoure, Allan, Tom Davies and Andre Gomes all facing spells out among others.

Despite suffering with a horrific knee injury that side-lined the £4.5M-rated Vecino for eight months and missing 37 games for Inter, since coming back in January 2021, the player has found his form and this season has made 15 appearances for Inter, scoring one goal so far.

The Merseyside club have struggled to establish a run of form in the Premier League this season, with only five wins and a shocking eight defeats from their first 17 games only picking up 19 points out of a possible 51 so far, that has, as a result, now left them in a vulnerable position in 15th.

Benitez can capitalise on the troubling availability of players in his current squad by adding some quality players to his injury ridden team when the transfer window opens in a few days.

In other news, Rafa must axe Cenk Tosun in the transfer window

Craig Hope has revealed what he has now heard about Newcastle United’s move to sign Jesse Lingard in the January transfer window.

The Lowdown: Midfielder wanted

The St. James’ Park faithful have been linked with the likes of Christian Eriksen and Yves Bissouma, suggesting that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium now want to bring in a midfield player after signing defender Kieran Trippier and centre-forward Chris Wood.

All of the players mentioned above have had previous experience in the Premier League, and so a move for Lingard before the deadline would make sense in this regard.

The Latest: Lingard update

As per The Daily Mail journalist Hope, the North East club are now ‘working’ on a loan deal to sign Lingard, but sources are saying that Manchester United are ‘reluctant’ to let him go at the moment:

“I’m told NUFC are working on a loan deal for Jesse Lingard, as per @samuelluckhurst, but sources say Man Utd are reluctant to let him go, as it stands.”

The Verdict: Sign

Getting in Lingard on loan would be a great piece of business from the new owners, as there would only be a minimal fee involved, plus they may have a chance to sign him for free in the summer when his contract expires, should he impress on Tyneside.

He has already shown what he can do when given the opportunities, scoring diamond’.

Nonetheless, with minimal game time at Old Trafford this season, and having recently been left completely out of the squad in the 3-1 win away at Brentford (Transfermarkt), the Englishman will want to prove his qualities once more, and the Magpies should give him that chance.

In other news, find out what big NUFC transfer news has been dropped live on air here!

Wolves shouldn’t consider making a move for Tottenham midfielder Dele Alli in the January transfer window, according to journalist Luke Hatfield.

The Lowdown: Alli linked with Spurs exit

The 25-year-old’s stock has fallen rapidly in recent years, going from one of England’s World Cup stars in 2018 to an outcast at Spurs.

Alli could leave the north London club in January in order to earn more playing time, considering that he has only started six Premier League games this season, and none since the end of September.

While Wolves haven’t officially been linked with a move for the midfielder, Paul Merson recently said on Sky Sports (via Molineux News) that the Old Gold should consider him as a prospective signing.

The Latest: Hatfield plays down interest

Alas, Hatfield has been quick to play down this potential transfer. Speaking to Give Me Sport, the journalist had no doubt that Alli would jump at the chance to join Wanderers but doubted that it would work out well for the Black Country outfit

He said: “It wouldn’t work if you’re Wolves. I could understand it from the player’s perspective because he’d want to go to a club where they’re not worried about relegation.”

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The Verdict: Not worth the risk

It is sad to see what has happened to Alli’s career, given the potential he had as a teenager, but the fire in him appears to have gone out, despite being hailed as a ‘machine’ by Rio Ferdinand.

While the 25-year-old’s natural talent is undeniable – he once scored 18 goals in a Premier League season in north London – he simply isn’t worth the risk for Wolves, with far too many ineffective performances thrown in for Tottenham under the likes of Jose Mourinho and Nuno Espirito Santo.

Alli has only scored three league goals since the beginning of last season, which sums up his struggles considering that he is an attack-minded player, and he hasn’t completed 90 minutes in a league outing since September. When you also factor in criticism of his application at times, it’s easy to see why Hatfield has his reservations about the Spurs playmaker succeeding at Molineux.

In other news, some Wolves fans are buzzing over an injury update. Read more here.

Aston Villa are interested in a deal to bring Nathan Patterson to Villa Park in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by 90min, who claim that Steven Gerrard has informed Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens that the 20-year-old right-back is one of his top transfer targets ahead of the winter market.

The report goes on to state that, while the 41-year-old manager does not want to ruin his relationship with Rangers by raiding his former side of their most promising talents, the former Liverpool captain nevertheless believes that a number of players at Ibrox are capable of making the step up to Premier League football, and will look to offer them a chance to do so at Aston Villa.

NSWE must move

Considering the remarkable talent Patterson developed into under the leadership of Gerrard at Rangers, in addition to the fact that Villa are somewhat short of cover for Matty Cash on the right-hand side of their defence, it would seem highly advisable for NSWE to grant Gerrard’s wish of signing the 20-year-old in January.

Having been handed his debut in professional football by Gerrard back in January 2020, Patterson has since gone on to make 22 appearances for the Gers first team, as well as having already been capped six times by Scotland at international level.

And, while the right-back’s game time has undoubtedly been limited by the fact that club captain James Tavernier is currently ahead of him in the pecking order at Ibrox, the £1.17m-rated youngster has nevertheless impressed when given the opportunity to do so, having already provided one assist and created one big chance over his three Scottish Premiership appearances this season.

The £4.9k-per-week defender has also highly impressed over his four World Cup qualifying fixtures for Scotland, scoring one goal, registering one assist and helping his side keep two clean sheets in their group, with Southampton striker Che Adams stating after Patterson’s goal in Scotland’s 2-0 win over Moldova last Friday: “Nathan’s an amazing player and a great guy off the pitch so I’m delighted for him.

“He’s a good young prospect coming through for the nation and hopefully he can continue and keep adding goals as well. These guys give us hope for the future. To keep getting club minutes is important, to keep building and growing as a player and learn their craft.

“But that’s what they’re doing. They’re delivering on cold nights in Moldova, so there’s no reason why they can’t do it anywhere else.”

As such, it is clear for all to see that Patterson is an exceptionally exciting talent, and one who there would very much appear to be room for in Steven Gerrard’s first-team squad at Villa Park, as the signing of the Everton-linked defender would undoubtedly be a big coup for Aston Villa.

In other news: Lange could transform Gerrard’s AVFC by signing “frightening” £20m gem likened to Mane

Celtic had a rather enjoyable afternoon back in Premiership action today following their Old Firm victory last weekend.

This time, Ange Postecoglou’s side secured a tantalising 7-0 victory over St Johnstone at Parkhead courtesy of six different goalscorers.

Three first-half strikes from Reo Hatate, Giorgos Giakoumakis and Daizen Maeda gave the home side a comfortable 3-0 lead at the midway point. A penalty from Josip Juranovic, a brace from Matt O’Riley and a clinching goal from Liel Abada gave Postecoglou and the home fans a lot to savour as they take another step closer to the title.On a day when many Hoops players had a lot to smile about, one player in particular lit up Parkhead and stole the show.Having opened the scoring for his team, Reo Hatate had 60 touches of the ball before being replaced by fellow midfielder David Turnbull in the 55th minute. Out of the 47 passes he attempted, 43 found their intended target, including all three of the long balls he attempted.He also had three shots on target in total and won the penalty that Juranovic put away in the second half, in addition to completing both of his dribbles, showing how tricky he was to play against. That was in stark contrast with his fellow countryman Maeda, who failed to complete any of his three dribble attempts.The 24-year-old also did his bit defensively by winning three of his four duels, showing how useful he was in and out of possession for his team.This performance ultimately earned the midfield gem an overall match rating of 8/10 from SofaScore, making him the joint-second highest rated Celtic player to start the game.Labelled an “outrageous” player by Aston Villa midfielder John McGinn, Hatate has shown once again today why Postecoglou chose to bring the Japanese maestro to Parkhead in the January transfer window.If the Australian coach can keep getting Hatate and the rest of the Celtic players to deliver performances like this throughout the remainder of the season, they should be a shoo-in to secure the Premiership title.In other news: £2.7m down the drain as Celtic had a howler on “difficult” £450k-rated Parkhead flop

Speaking to GiveMeSport, journalist Pete O’Rourke has made a promising Tottenham Hotspur transfer claim involving Barcelona playmaker Philippe Coutinho.

The Lowdown: Spurs yearning for attackers?

Since the departure of fan favourite Christian Eriksen to Inter Milan in January 2020, it is arguable that Tottenham have been missing his presence ever since.

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The Lilywhites have been linked with a few signings who can operate in that position recently, as the likes of Dejan Kulusevski and Jesse Lingard emerge among the most recent names.

Another is Coutinho, as Barcelona look to shake his sky-high salary off their books, with O’Rourke now making a promising transfer claim.

The Latest: O’Rourke makes Coutinho claim…

Speaking to GiveMeSport, the reporter has said that the Brazil international ‘would be interested’ in a move to Spurs if the Lilywhites and Barca can agree a deal.

O’Rourke outlined: “If they can agree a deal with Barcelona, there’s a real possibility that Coutinho would be interested in a move to Tottenham and a move back to London, which a lot of these top players do like to do.”

The Verdict: Get it done?

While Coutinho has seen his opportunities at the Camp Nou limited of late, there is little arguing that he has the pedigree to become a success under Conte at Spurs, as his displayed by his record with Liverpool.

Scoring 54 goals and setting up 45 others in 201 appearances for the Reds (Transfermarkt), he is already a proven player in England and has drawn plenty of acclaim, including from international colleague and former Anfield teammate Roberto Firmino.

The Brazilian even called his compatriot ‘magical’ and ‘phenomenal’, summing up Coutinho’s obvious ability, with the only drawback to a move arguably coming in terms of finances.

Coutinho would arguably have to take a seismic pay cut on his £380,000-per-week wages if the Lilywhites were to reach an agreement, but if Spurs can hurdle that barrier, there is little doubt that he would be a quality addition.

In other news: ‘Absolute no brainer’…Sky Sports pundit thrilled by ‘exciting’ transfer news out of Tottenham, find out more here.

Antonio Conte was given a shock over just how much work he still has to do at Tottenham Hotspur after they lost 2-1 away at NS Mura on Thursday evening.

The Slovenians, who are the lowest-ranked team in the Europa Conference League, took an early lead after a fine curling strike from Tomi Horvat, before Ryan Sessegnon found himself sent off after being given two yellow cards by the referee.

Harry Kane levelled the match in the second half with a delicate chip over the goalkeeper, before a Ben Davies slip proved costly as Amadej Marosa raced through in the last minute of the game to put his shot past Pierluigi Gollini in the Tottenham net.

There were some truly abysmal performances from a lot of Spurs players on the night, and The Transfer Tavern has used statistical experts SofaScore to analyse who were the three worst to have played at least 45 minutes:

Dele Alli (6.4)

Admittedly tied with second place with the same SofaScore rating (6.4), Alli sneaks into third given that he had less time on the pitch after being substituted off for Son Heung-Min in the 54th minute.

It was yet another frustrating evening for the Englishman, summed up by getting himself booked for having an argument with a Mura player just before he came off.

Alli lost out on five of his duels and failed to record a single shot or key pass, while only managing 29 touches of the ball in total as he struggled to make any real impact.

Japhet Tanganga (6.4)

Tanganga also received a 6.4 rating from SofaScore after being part of a defence which was nothing short of shambolic at times.

The centre-back lost out on three duels and failed to make a clearance or block any shots on his goal, while he was also guilty of losing possession seven times.

Pierluigi Gollini (6.1)

Perhaps inevitably, Gollini was given a bad rating (6.1) by SofaScore after letting in two goals, and with the second he would have especially felt as if he could have done much better.

The goalkeeper resisted from trying to play out from the back on multiple occasions, yielding just 25 touches of the ball, while he made no saves at all in the entire match.

Sessegnon received a 5.1 rating after getting sent off, but of course played less than 45 minutes after getting sent off just after the half-hour mark.

In other news, Spurs are ‘preparing’ a bid for this ‘monster’