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According to a recent report from The Daily Mail, James Rodriguez’s future is far from certain heading into the rest of the January transfer window. The 27-year-old currently plays his football at German giants Bayern Munich on loan from European champions Real Madrid, although a lack of regular game time under Niko Kovac this term has plunged his future into doubt.

And reports suggest that Premier League heavyweights Arsenal are eyeing up a move for the Colombia international, with reports suggesting that it may cost the Gunners just £3 million to seal Rodriguez’s services for the rest of the campaign – as such, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp should be seriously interested in the attacker, as he could be the man to help inspire the club to the Premier League title this season.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, the Merseyside giants have given themselves a wonderful opportunity to win their first league title since 1990 this time round, what with Klopp’s men sat at the summit of the division after 22 matches of the campaign, leading defending champions Manchester City by four points.

However, it was clear during their 2-1 defeat to the Citizens earlier this month that they still lack that creative and more attack-minded star in the middle of the park – Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner, and Jordan Henderson have again been impressive this term, but none of them possess that creative spark that the Reds are sometimes crying out for in that area of the field.

And with Adam Lallana’s fitness always something of a concern, and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain still months away from returning to full fitness after injury, Klopp may well look to the January window in a bid to land that midfielder the club need to take that step closer to Premier League glory.

And while 27-year-old Rodriguez hasn’t necessarily produced the goods for Bayern this term, his previous efforts for the German giants, Real Madrid, and indeed his country suggest that he could well be the answer to that midfield conundrum in the second half of the campaign.

The Colombian ace shot to prominence back in 2014 by excelling for his country at the World Cup in Brazil, thus earning him a move to Spanish heavyweights Real Madrid for whom he has scored 36 goals and laid on 40 assists in 111 appearances, equating to a direct contribution every 96 minutes of action.

And while he has found the going tough at Bayern this term in the second of his two-year loan spell at the Allianz Arena, Rodriguez performed impressively last time round with eight goals and 14 assists in all competitions to help Carlo Ancelotti’s side win the Bundesliga for the sixth successive season.

Clearly then, the 27-year-old possesses the sort of creativity and flair that wouldn’t go amiss in the Liverpool midfield – add in his adeptness at playing out wide, and Rodriguez’s arrival would give Klopp plenty of options heading into the second half of the campaign.

And for just £3 million, it would represent an absolute steal given just how impressive the Colombian has been in the last few years – players of his calibre simply aren’t available for £3 million, even it that would be just for the second half of the season.

Nonetheless, with the Reds in pole position to seal their first title of the Premier League era this term, Klopp should be looking at how he can plug possible weaknesses in his squad, and the arrival of Rodriguez would go some way to doing just that – it’s a deal that could inspire Liverpool to the league title this season.

Liverpool fans… what do you think? Let us know!

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Having smashed the world-record transfer fee for a goalkeeper when bringing him to Anfield, Liverpool immediately placed a lot of pressure upon the shoulders of £66.8m Alisson Becker (as per the BBC), but he has shaken those pressures off and further cemented his status as one of the world’s best all-round keepers.

How has he fared?

The blue-eyed Brazilian international has enjoyed a phenomenal start to life on Merseyside since arriving from Roma. Alisson has managed to keep 13 clean sheets in his 23 Premier League starts (as seen on the Premier League website), helping his new side sit four points clear at the top of the league ahead of the reigning champions, Manchester City.

Alisson’s saves have caught the eye, on the rare occasions that he has to make one due to the watertight nature of the Reds’ backline, but it is his footwork and passing range that has transformed Liverpool’s counter-attack and left opponents fearful of over-committing.

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Along with the Citizens’ stopper Ederson Moraes, Alisson is perhaps one of the best in the world in his position with his feet, often playing a crucial part in the build up to Liverpool’s goals with his juggernaut kicks and ability to drop the ball on a sixpence.

In his 23 league starts, he has let in just 13 goals, less than any other keeper has conceded. His expert passing ability is demonstrated by his impressive 79 per cent pass accuracy, an impressive number considering how often he attempts to break through the opposition with long passes.

For comparison, Everton’s Jordan Pickford, who has also started every league game, has a 55.6 per cent success rate (per Whoscored).

The Verdict

The haunting memories of Simon Mignolet, Adam Bogdan and Loris Karius are no more. Liverpool have immediately transformed one of the weakest areas of their team into arguably the strongest area, with Alisson perhaps being the most important player for Klopp along with Virgil van Dijk and Mohamed Salah.

Additionally, given the fact that Chelsea smashed the world-record fee for a goalkeeper not long after Alisson signed, when they bought Athletic Bilbao stopper Kepa Arrizabalaga to Stamford Bridge for a whopping £71m fee (as per the BBC), the value and significance of the modern day keeper has sky rocketed – £66.8m for Alisson, especially at just 26-years-old, could look like a snip in a couple of years.

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Everton have been boosted by the return of Yannick Bolasie, but Marco Silva’s comments on the winger do not make pretty reading.

So what’s the word?

Everton fans were taken aback to say the least when Bolasie returned to the club this week, and Silva’s comments perhaps only make his return more confusing.

The 29 year-old joined Aston Villa on a season-long loan last summer (per BBC), but struck just two Championship goals (Whoscored) and failed to impress the fans at Villa Park.

He has now taken the option to cancel his loan and return to Finch Farm, but the boss says he knew nothing about it until it was too late.

“No,” he said (per Sky Sports) bluntly when asked if he had consulted the winger about a potential return. “It was Bolasie’s decision to come back. He had this option in the agreement and he took that decision.

“I spoke with him when he arrived here at Finch Farm but not before he took the decision, no.

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“It is not a complication, not at all. He is a good professional; we took that decision (to loan him out) at the beginning of the season.

“Now he has come back we will take a decision again. Let’s see what will happen until the end of the market.”

Bye bye Bolasie

Silva is seemingly already eyeing up potential destinations for the winger, as the 29 year-old is simply not in his plans going forward.

If truth be told, it’s starting to look like the £25m move to sign him back in 2016 (per BBC) was a complete and utter disaster, as the DR Congo international has scored just twice in the league for the Toffees, and never really looked like fulfilling his potential.

With Theo Walcott, Richarlison, Ademola Lookman and Bernard all vying for places in Silva’s XI, it’s a no brainer that the club offload Bolasie, who is allegedly raking in a whopping £75,000 per week, according to Spotrac.

Great news for Lookman

Of course, bad news for one player can be good news for another, and Silva’s downright dismissal of Bolasie’s Everton prospects is a huge boost for Lookman.

The young winger was the subject of much controversy over the summer, as many fans were ready to give up on him.

However, the 21 year-old has been superb since breaking into the side, and with Walcott out of form the boss is placing tremendous faith in the youngster.

So, Everton fans, what do you think about Silva’s comments? Do you think Bolasie has a future at the club? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below…

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Fulham have confirmed the permanent signing of Lazar Markovic from Liverpool, per an announcement on the club’s official website.

The Serbia international moves to Craven Cottage after a dismal spell on Merseyside.

During the five years he spent at the club following a move from Benfica in 2012, Markovic made just 34 appearances in all competitions, per Transfermarkt.

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A number of loan spells failed to yield a positive result, either, as he was shipped out to the likes of Fenerbahce, Sporting CP, Hull City and Anderlecht.

He has now left the club on a permanent basis, signing a deal until the end of the season as Fulham bid to secure their Premier League survival under Claudio Ranieri.

Fans of the Cottagers, however, have been left less than impressed at the deadline day deal, with Markovic not seen as the kind of player required to take the club away from danger between now and the end of the season.

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Liverpool’s 1-1 draw at West Ham on Monday means they have now dropped seven points from their last five and allowed Manchester City to catch right up with them, despite the champions faltering themselves against Newcastle and Crystal Palace.

Their lacklustre showing at the London Stadium this week followed an equally uninspiring performance against Leicester – who, like West Ham, held them to a 1-1 draw – and a nail-biting 4-3 win against Crystal Palace. Being knocked out of the FA Cup by Wolves may prove to be a blessing in disguise in the Reds’ bid for the title but it still remains a poor result in a poor run.

What can Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool do, then, to ensure they nip this bad run in the bud and find a quick route back to top form? Read on to find out what we, here at Football Fancast, would do if we were in the charismatic German’s shoes…

Drop Naby Keita

None of the Reds’ midfield three were on form against the Hammers but Naby Keita must take much of the flack for his lack of imagination in the final third. This wasn’t the first time that the 31-cap Guinean international has failed to justify his price tag.

Using WhoScored’s statistics, the midfielder has averaged a match rating of 6.45 in the last four games, while his assist against Crystal Palace was his first in 18 Premier League appearances, in which time he has completed 676 passes – a poor return for a number 8 billed as one of the most well-rounded in Europe.

Keita hasn’t cut the mustard recently and Gini Wijnaldum hardly has to try to get the nod ahead of him.

Deploy Shaqiri as a CM in a 4-3-3

Klopp has experimented with different formations this year as he flirts with a 4-2-3-1 and sometimes a 4-4-2, whereas last season he swore by the 4-3-3 which allowed his team to press effectively.

The 4-2-3-1 accommodates summer signing Shaqiri, who is vying for the title of their best acquisition this season, and enables Mohamed Salah to play centre-stage.

Although he is naturally a winger, Shaqiri’s flair could make him the central midfielder to replace Keita and finally fill the creative void left by Philippe Coutinho’s departure just over a year ago.

The little Swiss has a hammer of a left foot and could surely learn the role. Shifting the 27-year-old inside would mean Klopp can continue with his tried and tested 4-3-3 and Liverpool’s front three would go back to their old ways – Sadio Mane has chalked up just one assist this season while Roberto Firmino is far more effective playing as a striker that can drop deep, rather than starting in that deeper role.

Fabinho in defence

The former Monaco midfielder was at the heart of defence alongside the ever-present Virgil van Dijk in a hard-fought 1-0 win over Brighton in January and impressed, recording 5 clearances and 2 blocks.

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Height is a commodity in the Reds midfield and by taking the 6 foot 2 Brazilian out in favour of deploying him in defence may see Liverpool lose some physicality in the middle of the park – nothing that the industrious James Milner cannot make up for, though.

Klopp may have been forced into deploying Fabinho as a centre-back due to the absences of Joe Gomez and Dejan Lovren, but perhaps this should become more than a one-off. He’s certainly seemed more reliable this season than Joel Matip – who he kept out of the lineup against the Seagulls. Perhaps this is the way forward while the previously impressive Gomez is out of action.

Newcastle will be keen to continue their good run of form when they visit Turf Moor on Saturday but it could be difficult for Steve Bruce to cope without one of his best players this season.

Injury to Allan Saint-Maximin means the winger faces a month out injured, and the timing couldn’t be worse as the Magpies face a busy festive period, especially as he could have proved the difference against Burnley.

However, the Clarets have not been as solid defensively this campaign as they often are, with 29 goals conceded in 16 league outings, having also lost five games out of nine at home.

That should act as encouragement for Newcastle, particularly as they have found some goalscoring form in recent games. They initially failed to score more than one goal in a single game until their 12th match of the season – the clash against West Ham.

Jonjo Shelvey has found a new lease of life under Bruce and already has five league goals to boast of this season. To put that into perspective, he managed just two league strikes combined in the previous two years.

As a result, Newcastle should be able to cope with Saint-Maximin if they alter their style a little, especially since a large portion of their goals have come from defenders and from set-pieces – with seven out of 17 scored via that route.

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Christian Atsu offers a like-for-like replacement for the Frenchman too and he is more than able to step up, while the Magpies’ boss has another big decision to make in regards to who leads the line.

Joelinton has really struggled of late and despite being dropped against Sheffield United he followed that up by achieving just 60% pass accuracy against Southampton, managing one shot throughout the match.

Andy Carroll, by contrast, has the ability to make himself a nuisance against a physical Burnley defence, and if he can replicate the eight aerial duels he won in 30 minutes against the Saints then he should be able to get his team higher up the pitch and into attacking areas with greater regularity.

It will be interesting to see how Bruce operates on Saturday, and whether his side will look to retain possession more often than usual. The Clarets have averaged the lowest amount of possession in the Premier League other than the Magpies, with 42%.

It is unlikely Bruce will sway from the system that has worked for him over the last few games, though, and that means the game will likely be won in both boxes, so finding a replacement for the injured Ciaran Clark will be crucial.

Luckily for Newcastle, they have an international in the form of Fabian Schar to come in. The defender is highly regarded by many in the north-east and his experience could prove vital in handling and stopping Chris Wood, who has been Burnley’s biggest threat with six league goals this term.

The 27-year-old faces a tough task to stop the Burnley striker but should he keep him quiet, then Newcastle will have a great platform to pick up another three points.

It was a difficult evening for Liverpool’s youngsters against Aston Villa on Tuesday.

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Well, that’s what the 5-0 scoreline will tell you. In reality, the Reds were far better than that. They actually managed more shots than their opponents, and also had 58% possession of the ball. Not bad for the youngest team in the club’s history.

Watch Leicester vs Liverpool Free Live and Free with Amazon Prime on Boxing Day

At 22 years of age, Pedro Chirivella was the oldest player for the Anfield outfit, and the most experienced one as well – this was the 60th professional appearance of his career to date. Perhaps in recognition of that, he was given the captain’s armband by Neil Critchley.

This decision garnered plenty of reaction from the club’s supporters.

Of course, Chirivella was the player who caused Liverpool to be fined following their match against MK Dons in a previous round. He was ineligible to play, but still took to the field anyway. It is some turnaround for him to now lead the club out at Villa Park.

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Many fans were impressed with his display.

With a SofaScore rating of 7.2, whilst also managing two key passes, he definitely stood out.

There were a few fans, such as the one below, who hoped that this would now earn him a move so that he can kickstart his career.

Indeed, at 22 years of age, he really should find himself a settled home where he can play on a regular basis. On this display, there should be some takers in the near future.

In other news, Tony Cascarino says this Liverpool winger would be a good fit for the Reds.

Plenty of West Ham supporters were showering praise on defender Angelo Ogbonna following his performance this evening.

The 31-year-old centre-back helped the Hammers to a second away win out of three in the Premier League as they defeated Southampton 1-0 at St Mary’s earlier to ease some of the pressure on manager Manuel Pellegrini.

The Italy international won three headers against the Saints as well as recording one successful tackle and making two interceptions and two clearances. [via WhoScored]

Ogbonna did his bit in stifling the threat of in-form Southampton striker Danny Ings, who had scored in each of his last five Premier League matches prior to today but was restricted to only one shot against the Hammers.

Football London writer Sam Inkersole lauded the 31-year-old’s performance as “absolutely immense” and gave him a nine in his player ratings, noting how he “stared down adversity in the second half with little to no fuss”.

These West Ham fans on Twitter also saluted Ogbonna’s display against the Saints this evening:

Did you think Ogbonna was one of West Ham’s best players this evening? Share your views in the comments section below!

Sunday was a dark day for Tottenham Hotspur.

Not only did they play abysmally against Chelsea in a derby that had an awful lot riding on it, but a section of their supporters disgraced them.

We have all seen the condemnation on social media of racist incidents in Italy and beyond, and during England internationals.

But here, on Sunday, there were three announcements about racist incidents after Antonio Rudiger, Chelsea’s excellent central defender, complained that he had heard monkey chants.

Cesar Azpilicueta, the club captain, reported the incident to referee Anthony Taylor, who sprinted over to the managers to inform them of the development.

Watch Spurs vs Brighton Live and Free with Amazon Prime on Boxing Day

Three separate tannoy announcements warned fans that racist abuse was interfering with the game and reminded them that there is no place for such hateful prejudice in football. Spurs have confirmed since that there was one incident and that an investigation is being carried out.

Emotions, of course, run high during derby games. Tottenham and Chelsea have a long and storied rivalry and the two clubs absolutely do not like each other.

But to resort to racist abuse when losing is lower than low and Spurs must now help police identify the culprits and, hopefully, ban them for life.

Their performance on the pitch, really, is secondary to those events, to those stomach-churning announcements that remind us that we still have so far to go to eradicate racism from both football and our society.

Stormzy, the grime artist and rapper, was asked earlier this week if the UK was a racist country. He replied, per indy100: “Definitely, 100 percent. It’s like: ‘Oh no, we’re not racist’. But there’s a lot of racism in the country.”

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His quotes were subsequently taken out of context and peddled as though he had said that everyone in the country was racist, rather than a small sub-section. Predictably, it led to some hateful backlash.

Sunday was yet another example that he was right to say what he said.

We have a long way to go, and, in football, Tottenham have to lead the charge as they look to find the culprits and hand out bans.

Meanwhile, one man could end up at Spurs due to “fate”. 

Back in April, a report from O Jogo stated that Jurgen Klopp is an admirer of Wolves left-back Ruben Vinagre, and approached the player at the end of Liverpool’s 2-1 FA Cup defeat to the Midlands-based side in January to confess his admiration for him.

In addition to making that confession, the former Borussia Dortmund coach reportedly asked Vinagre if he would like to live in Liverpool – interesting stuff indeed.

Nevertheless, any further links between Liverpool, Klopp and Vinagre have not been seen, although the 20-year-old’s performance against the European champions at Anfield on Sunday will have surely left the German boss salivating.

How did he do?

After Trent Alexander-Arnold delivered a masterclass against Leicester on Boxing Day with a goal and two assists, Vinagre dragged the England international back down to Earth with a humbling performance down his flank.

The Wolves No.29 had 77 touches of the ball – more than any of his teammates managed to have – while also recording an eye-catching six dribbles, which was more than any Liverpool player mustered up while only being matched by Adama Traore.

Vinagre also made three clearances, one block and took one shot, but perhaps should’ve had an assist to his name instead of an effort on goal as Raul Jimenez was open for a cross – the Mexican made his frustration clear to the Portuguese full-back soon after, yelling at him in anger after Vinagre blazed over the bar.

Surely won’t have put Klopp off

In that aforementioned FA Cup meeting between Wolves and Liverpool – the match that left Klopp starry-eyed over Vinagre – the left-back recorded an assist, as well as one dribble and four successful tackles.

Klopp may have reportedly confessed his admiration for the player as far back as January – almost a year ago – although after watching the former Monaco man deliver yet another good performance against his side, we presume that the former Mainz boss will not have been put off – not one bit, for he was excellent.

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