Tottenham Hotspur recovered from a disastrous start in their Champions League knockout tie against Juventus in Turin on Tuesday night to secure a 2-2 draw, but Spurs fans were left unimpressed with Serge Aurier’s performance at right-back and are demanding more from him.
The summer signing from Paris Saint-Germain, rated at £18m according to Transfermarkt, started ahead of Kieran Trippier at full-back, but he looked shaky throughout the first half as his side quickly found themselves 2-0 behind.
Things got worse for the 25-year-old when he gave away a penalty on the stroke of half-time after he brought down Douglas Costa in the area, but fortunately for him Gonzalo Higuain missed the chance to get his hat-trick.
Tottenham supporters were quick to have their say on the Ivory Coast international via social media, and while one said “another terrible performance from him last night”, another labelled him as “a total liability”.
Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…
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When Sam Allardyce took over at Everton, it looked like he was finally being given the ‘big job’ he’s always talked about deserving.
The former England boss was never seen as sophisticated enough for a top four club back in the day, and over the last few years none of the new ‘big six’ would have dreamed of coming to call on him. But Everton, a team with aspirations to break into that cabal at the top of the table did.
In some ways it was a panic appointment: without a manager and seemingly in freefall, the Toffees looked to a ship steadier rather than a system builder. But in other ways it looked like it could have been inspired. Allardyce is known as one of the most meticulous and detailed managers in the league, and whilst that might be something of an outdated viewpoint (the likes of Pep Guardiola, Mauricio Pochettino and Antonio Conte are no stranger to the finer points of micromanaging) it’s certainly true that the man who kept Crystal Palace in the top flight last season is more than just a get-out-of-jail-free card.
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For Everton, a club with some fabulous players, but some serious squad limitations, I thought Allardyce was somehow the perfect man: the man who would find the strengths and play to them whilst also turning a flaky defence into one that stopped shipping goals.
It occurred to me that the former England boss had a point to prove and that for the first time in his career, he had the players at his disposal to do it. Whatever you think about Everton’s summer recruitment, there are some good players in the team who wouldn’t look out of place in a top six side.
Indeed last season the Toffees were threatening the Champions League places before a Merseyside derby effectively ended their hopes for a top four spot, and with nothing else to play for, the season fizzled out.
But instead of taking the technical side Ronald Koeman was trying to build and running with it to prove he can manage a top team, Allardyce seems to have out-Allardyced himself. He has taken a struggling team and positioned them squarely in the upper mid-table, which was his remit, but he’s done it in a way that’s proven the point of those who said that steering the liner away from the iceberg is about the height of his managerial abilities.
I don’t like reactionary football, but I also don’t like snobbery in football. If Allardyce had to play long balls in order to take unfancied Bolton into the UEFA Cup, then so be it: that’s simply playing to your strengths. And in fact, he did it in a particularly modern way at the time, becoming one of the first managers to really use statistics and player monitoring to their fullest.
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But we have to accept that there’s one rule for a plucky underdog and another when you’re in charge of a team who can spend £45m on one player: Everton and its fans don’t just want more, they demand it and so they should.
Everton will be safe, and they may even finish seventh. If they do, Allardyce should be lauded because in order to finish as the best of the rest from this position they’ll have had to win more games than an in-form Leicester who already have an extra point and a much better goal difference. If Allardyce manages that, he’ll have won plenty of games and you have to play well in order to do that.
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The worry, though, isn’t that the evidence doesn’t point to this being the case.
Allardyce had a huge chance with this job. He took over a team who were capable of so much attractive football and all he had to do was let them play it whilst shoring up the defence – something he’s an expert at already. He could have proved to the world that he’s not a reactionary coach or a dinosaur, and should have been given more of a chance years ago.
Instead, his Everton side is now just what most people think of when they think of the phrase ‘Big Sam’. He has time to fix that, but for this season it’s starting to run out.
Sam Allardyce was never expected to be a long-term solution to Everton’s managerial malaise, but there is no doubting that the veteran Premier League manager has fulfilled his MO.
Everton were teetering above the relegation zone when he came in at the end of November, having won just three games all season despite spending £130m on players last summer.
The Allardyce bounce effect has worked to a certain extent, though, with Everton seven points clear of the drop with ten games remaining.
The formerly disgraced England boss has always performed better in his first 10 games at a club than that club’s previous 10 games, and Everton owner Farhad Moshiri will need to think hard before releasing Allardyce from his 18-month contract in the summer.
But that is exactly what Moshiri is planning to do, with Diego Simeone and Luis Enrique being discussed as potential replacements for the current man in charge.
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Everton fans – we want to hear from you – do you think Moshiri should get rid of Allardyce in the summer? Have your say by voting below…
According to reports by Turkish media outlet Haberler, Newcastle United are interested in signing Besiktas midfielder Tolgay Arslan this summer, but they could face competition from Bundesliga duo Borussia Dortmund and Bayer Leverkusen in a potential deal that could have a big bearing on Jonjo Shelvey’s future.
What’s the word, then?
Well, even though the Tyneside outfit don’t know which league they will be in next season as they find themselves amidst a Premier League relegation battle right now, Haberler reports that they are already lining up potential transfer deals for this summer and that Arslan is on their shortlist of targets.
Haberler says that the two German clubs are also interested in the 27-year-old, who has become a key player for the Turkish giants with his current contract with them not due to expire until 2022.
How has Arslan done this season?
The central midfielder has impressed in the middle of the park for Besiktas, making 33 appearances in all competitions, and was a reported Tottenham Hotspur target last year.
The 27-year-old started three of his side’s six Champions League group games – it probably would have been more had it not been for illness and injury – while he was a late substitute in the 5-0 defeat against Bayern Munich in the first leg of their last 16 tie at the Allianz Arena last month.
According to WhoScored.com, the German’s main strengths are his passing, ability to make key passes and his dribbling, and he has an average passing accuracy of 89.4% in 25 appearances in the Turkish Super Lig and in Europe this term.
He has also made 14 key passes and successfully completed 36 of the 45 dribbles he has attempted, while he has also won 51 tackles from a defensive point of view.
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Would he be a good signing for Newcastle?
He certainly would be.
Arslan obviously has a good range of passing and is a midfielder that can dictate the play and have a positive effect in terms of defending and creating.
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The fact that he has played in the Champions League and is wanted by the likes of Dortmund show the quality he has, and point to the fact that he would be a huge success at St James’ Park.
He sounds similar to Shelvey?
He is certainly similar, with his variety of passing and his ability dictate the tempo from the middle of the park just a couple of his main attributes.
The arrival of Arslan on Tyneside would certainly more than hint at a summer exit for the 26-year-old, rated at €10m (£8.9m) by Transfermarkt, who was heavily linked with a move to West Ham United during the January transfer window and who has already been sent off twice in the Premier League for the Magpies this term.
West Ham United midfielder Cheikhou Kouyate has been called up by Senegal for their friendly matches against Uzbekistan and Bosnia and Herzegovina later this month, and Irons fans have no idea how following his poor performances on the pitch this season.
The 28-year-old has been a key player for the east London outfit in recent years, but his displays have often been below-par this term – including in the successive 4-1, 4-1 and 3-0 defeats David Moyes’ men have just suffered – and he has come under huge criticism from some of the London Stadium faithful at times.
Nevertheless, he has got the call for his country and he may well be starting for them at the World Cup in Russia in just a few months’ time, where they will come up against Poland, Japan and Colombia.
West Ham supporters have been quick to have their say on the news of the midfielder via social media, and while one said “literally no idea why”, another said “not a clue how he managed this”.
Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…
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Leeds United fans are worried attacker Pablo Hernandez will leave the club this summer after Paul Heckingbottom’s latest comments on the 32-year-old.
Speaking in his press conference on Wednesday, the Leeds boss was rather cryptic about the prospect of Hernandez signing a new deal, although the club are in discussions with the player.
Hernandez has been a stand-out for the Elland Road outfit this season, scoring seven goals and providing another seven assists and supporters are eager for him to extend his stay at the club beyond the summer, when his contract expires.
He may be entering the latter stages of his career at 32 years of age, but still has plenty to offer in the English Championship and could help the club in their quest for promotion to the English Premier League next term.
Fans though have been left worried at Heckingbottom’s latest comments, with some believing he could be the latest talent that is allowed to slip through their fingers.
Sunderland dragged themselves off the bottom of the Championship table and to within three points of safety with a 4-1 thumping of promotion-chasing Derby County on Good Friday.
Goals from George Honeyman, Ashley Fletcher, Aiden McGeady and captain John O’Shea breathed new life into the Black Cats’ survival bid and gave their fans a night to remember.
Gary Rowett’s Rams are dropping like a stone and questions have to be asked there but that should take nothing away from Chris Coleman’s side, who cast off the shackles and thrashed their hosts.
It was a night of so many positives for Coleman, who saw his January striking signing Fletcher net his first goal for the club and many Sunderland fans will be hoping that the result proves to be something of a turning point in their club’s season.
Not many of them saw a result like this on the cards – but they’re absolutely loving it nonetheless – and we’ve taken a closer look at the best of the reaction…
Manchester United fans will be looking for a reaction from their side when they travel to Bournemouth tomorrow night after the abject 1-0 home defeat to West Brom on Sunday.
The all-but-relegated Baggies were able to secure their Old Trafford win without coming under real pressure and Jose Mourinho has also realised that something has to change.
With the FA Cup semi-final clash with Tottenham looming on the horizon, Mourinho has revealed that he has already decided to drop some of his players after that putrid performance against Darren Moore’s side and that the match against Bournemouth represents an opportunity for those selected to force their way into his plans for Saturday.
Some might have expected this approach to go down well with United fans but many of them see it as Mourinho again diverting the focus away from himself and blaming the players again.
We’ve taken a closer look at some of the angry reaction to the comments made by Mourinho as he looks to win a second FA Cup to add to the one he won at Chelsea – by beating United – way back in 2007…
Our Manchester United fans here in the Transfer Tavern are wondering what has happened to their local hero Marcus Rashford in recent months, ever since the arrival of Alexis Sanchez – he’s had to be happy with a sub-role within the team.
The Englishman has been at Old Trafford for well over 12 years now, and many of our United fans in the bar feel like he’s not going to reach the heights for his childhood club if the minutes don’t start to pick back up.
This could be down to a lot of different things, Jose Mourinho has opted to use Sanchez on the left-hand side of the front three, a role in which Rashford was making his own, alongside the immoveable Lukaku upfront; there’s no real place for Rashford in the team at present. Many in the bar think that by making him switch to the right, it could bring something different to the team in terms of going forward, but reports say he’s not happy in that role.
With all that being said in recent months, the unhappiness and lack of game time are going hand-in-hand and with only grabbing eight minutes in the Manchester derby, seemingly being the final nail in Rashford’s recent decline. With reports of the England international not happy and wanting more first-team opportunities, it may be time for him to turn his back on his beloved club, and our landlord feels these TWO players should follow him out of the door…
Sergio Romero
The excellent backup ‘keeper has been a brilliant servant to the Red Devils over the years, despite largely playing second fiddle to undoubtedly the best ‘keeper in the world. With that in mind, it’s only a matter of time before the Argentine number one will have the thirst for regular first-team minutes, as playing in the odd cup game, should United still be in them, surely won’t be enough.
It’ll be hard to replace Romero, who is such a good stopper but his ambitions may lead him out of the Old Trafford door in the summer following the World Cup.
Daley Blind
The Dutchman is currently still out injured, which could signify the end of his United career as Mourinho seems to have settled on a more consistent starting eleven in recent times. Blind was one of Louis van Gaal’s signings and many in the bar remember him being touted as the possible long-term replacement for Micheal Carrick in the centre of the park when he arrived, although he hasn’t kicked on as first hoped.
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Indeed, he is now seen as more of a utility man in and around the back four.
Real Madrid star Gareth Bale has rejected a move to Liverpool in what was a proposed swap deal involving Mohamed Salah, according to Don Balon.
What’s the story?
A day does not seem to go by when the Wales international is not linked to a return to the Premier League.
Manchester United and Tottenham Hotspur tend to be the main clubs mentioned in the transfer gossip pages, but now Liverpool have emerged.
According to Don Balon, Real president Florentino Perez was keen on securing a deal that would see Salah move to the Bernabeu and Bale switch to Anfield.
However, the Welshman rejected the deal as he would only consider leaving Madrid for his former club Tottenham, where he spent six years before joining Los Blancos in 2013.
Would he even fit in at Liverpool?
Given that Bale was the most expensive footballer in the world not that long ago, it seems odd to suggest that he would not fit into a team.
However, Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp likes his teams to press and close down opponents, which could prove to be an issue for Bale due to his injury problems.
This season alone, the 28-year-old has struggled with calf injuries and hamstring problems, which has limited the attacker to just 16 La Liga starts.
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In total, Bale has made 28 appearances in all competitions and has still managed to score 13 goals and produce four assists, but a deal would not be worth losing Salah for.