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Liverpool are staring down the barrel of a gun as they consider sending Divock Origi out on loan in January. Voetbal Nieuws has reported that the striker is hoping to secure a move to his homeland in order to boost his chances of a call-up to the Belgium team for next summer’s European Championship.

Whilst the move will benefit Origi, it could put the Reds under intense pressure for the rest of the season. They have already suffered a huge injury crisis in their defence, a blow to their attack could be the end of their title chances this campaign.

Liverpool must buy in the January window

Whilst the Belgian has slipped down the pecking order at Anfield, Jurgen Klopp will have just one recognised striker in his senior squad if he leaves in January. Takumi Minamino has been operating more centrally in his recent performances, but he has not yet proven himself as a long-term reliable back up to Roberto Firmino.

After the Reds met Sheffield United at Anfield at the weekend, Klopp admitted that it was a tough decision to let fellow striker Rhian Brewster leave this summer. The youngster has a buy-back clause in his contract with the Blades, but it’s unlikely Liverpool will activate this any time soon.

Mohamed Salah is confident in the No.9 role, but this season has shown that injury can creep up from nowhere. The current defensive crisis sees them without Virgil van Dijk, Joel Matip and stand-in centre-back Fabinho.

Klopp is having to call upon teenaged Rhys Williams for the time being, and whilst he did a good job against Midtjylland, it shouldn’t be taken as gospel that all youth players can step up in the club’s time of need.

Origi is undoubtedly a cult hero at Liverpool after his performance in their 2018/19 Champions League success. Despite not being up to scratch recently, he is still a fan favourite for the big shifts he has put in over the years. Caoimhin Kelleher has also paid tribute to the 29-cap international’s work ethic.

“He always comes up with massive goals,” the goalkeeper told Sky Sports. “He was unreal tonight and the whole team tonight, we had a never say die attitude and we kept going until the end.”

Equally rated by his teammates and fans, it will be tough to let go of two senior strikers within four months. The only way Liverpool can ensure this doesn’t come back to haunt them is if they recruit smart in the upcoming January window.

Letting Origi go is fine, just as long as Klopp and Michael Edwards have a replacement lined up to ensure that they have plenty of attacking cover for the business end of the 2020/21 campaign. However, allowing him to leave and not bringing in a replacement could have dire consequences as they would be a Firmino injury away from another crisis.

In other news, “World-class” Rhys Williams can be key for Liverpool, on one condition…

Wolves have every right to feel bitterly disappointed after the 2019/20 season as a late drop in form cost them a place in the Europa League.

The Midlands outfit will once again have their eyes on continental qualification this season, but there is a feeling that in order to get to that next level, they need to improve in some vital areas.

Nuno Espirito Santo’s side was looking rather threadbare this summer after Matt Doherty left for Tottenham and Jonny Otto’s ACL injury put him out for the foreseeable future.

Fortunately, Jeff Shi has brokered a number of deals to bring in some exciting players at Molineux, and we’ve ranked Wolves’ incoming transfers so far…

Marcal 4/5

What a piece of business this could prove to be.

Wing-backs are vitally important in Nuno’s system, and with Jonny out injured, Wolves were left with the inexperienced Ruben Vinagre as their only option on the left side.

Fortunately, they’ve been able to find a top-quality option in that position, and he was something of a bargain as well.

£2m for a full-back with Champions League experience will never be considered a bad signing, and he will alleviate a lot of the pressure that Vinagre may have been feeling after Jonny went down with an ACL last month.

Fabio Silva 3/5

If any other club were making this signing you’d laugh at them, but with Wolves getting these types of deals right so often over the past few years, it’s hard to completely disregard the idea that Silva could be a success.

We’re not going to pretend that £35m for an 18-year-old striker with just one league goal to his name represents incredible value because it looks atrocious when you put it like that, but he’s highly rated, and with Wolves building an exciting young roster, this signing could be one that takes a few years to pay off.

Vitinha 3/5

A young midfielder who has starred at Porto making a move to Wolves, where have we heard that one before?

Vitinha isn’t quite at the level Ruben Neves was when he arrived at Molineux, but this could be yet another example of Wolves’ links to Portugal paying dividends.

The 20-year-old looks like another youngster with a high ceiling, winning the breakthrough player award at the 2019 Toulon Tournament and playing a handful of games for Porto’s first-team.

This is a relatively low-risk signing on loan, but if he comes in and does well, Wolves’ option to buy him at the end of the season could look like a very wise move to make.

Glasgow Rangers have potentially been handed a massive boost ahead of their Europa League tie with Galatasaray on Thursday, with Younes Belhanda close to a move to Nice according to A Spor.

Midfielder Belhanda used to play for the French side, and he could be about to make a return to his former club.

It is reported that the Ligue 1 team will pay a fee in the region of €7m (£6.4m), with Belhanda one of the big earners at the club and therefore having drawn criticism.

During his time in Turkey, Belhanda’s performances have been mixed. In 108 games, he has managed 16 goals and 23 assists, but as the report states, some feel that the 50-time Morocco international does not contribute as much as he should given the wage he takes home – he is said to be earning €4m (£3.7m) a year with Gala.

On his day, though, he can be a fantastic player, as he often showed during the 2011/12 season as his 12 goals and six assists in Ligue 1 helped Montpellier to an unlikely title. Whilst this interest does not mean that he will not play on Thursday, his absence is obviously a possibility. And even if he does appear, his mind could be elsewhere. Steven Gerrard will not be relying on his opponents’ problems in their attempts to make the group stage, but this kind of situation certainly won’t harm his and the Gers’ cause.

Let us know what you think below!

After making just five total appearances for West Ham’s first-team, it seems Jeremy Ngakia is set to join Watford this summer.

The 19-year-old played just once following the Premier League’s restart, completing 81 minutes in the Hammers’ 2-0 defeat at the London Stadium to Wolves.

But now, according to both The Guardian and ExWHUemployee, the starlet is set to join recently relegated Watford following the expiration of his contract back in June.

The Guardian further claim that the teenager “turned down West Ham’s offer of a new long-term deal and even rejected their attempts to persuade him to sign a short-term extension until the end of the season”.

And after hearing about the update on Ngakia’s future, Hammers fans took to Twitter to share their reactions.

Some fans compared Ngakia to Domingos Quina, who also left West Ham to join Watford – the latter has since made just 22 appearances across all competitions for the Hornets, and played just four times in the Premier League in the 2019/2020 campaign.

After reportedly rejecting offers to stay at the London Stadium in the long-term, it certainly seems like a strange choice for Ngakia to head to Watford, who will now be playing Championship football next season following their relegation from the top-flight.

Spot the fact from the fib: Are these Premier League records true or false?

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Ultimately, the 19-year-old’s decision would surely have rested on ensuring more game-time at whichever club, and clearly he feels that he stands a better chance to do with the Hornets.

But for now, Hammers fans understandably don’t seem to be shedding too many tears at his exit.

A recent transfer report has left plenty of Leeds United supporters brimming with excitement this week.

According to Football Insider, the west Yorkshire outfit are ‘closely monitoring’ San Lorenzo striker Adolfo Gaich ahead of a potential summer move upon their long-awaited return to the Premier League.

It’s claimed that the Argentine forward has a release clause of £12m and has attracted interest across Europe, although his preference is thought to be a move to Italy’s Serie A.

And many at Elland Road would love to see him arrive…

The 21-year-old has bagged five goals in 13 appearances this campaign despite only playing 680 minutes, via Transfermarkt.

It’s led to one supporter likening the forward to Martin Palermo, who one played for Villarreal whilst others believe it would be a “big statement” to land him.

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Some other members of the United faithful were quick to suggest that this sort of news probably means that manager Marcelo Bielsa is going to stay.

There were even some lauding Gaich as the ideal sort of striker the Argentine likes as he’s “mobile” and runs about a lot.

Leeds currently have Patrick Bamford and RB Leipzig loanee Jean-Kevin Augustin to call upon to lead the line with the latter having an obligation to buy should the club clinch promotion in these final nine matches.

Therefore, it raises questions to if these reports are accurate, although one fan believes it could push the 26-year-old closer to the exit door.

AND in other news, Leeds fans go wild over Ben White report…

Frank McAvennie has said that Glasgow Rangers manager Steven Gerrard will move on if the club does not win a trophy this upcoming season, adding that he will definitely not make a move to Liverpool if that is the case.

The upcoming campaign will be Gerrard’s third since making the move to Ibrox to take up his first senior management role. As it stands, the former Liverpool man has failed to win a single piece of silverware – he will be hoping to rectify that next term.

McAvennie has told Football Insider that he believes it is now or never for the 40-year-old, saying that if he does not win something this campaign, then that will be the end of his time at the club:

“Stevie Gerrard has done well with Rangers but I think he will move if they do not win anything this year.

“He has got a big enough name and reputation to get a job in England but he will not get the Liverpool job if he has not won anything, I can tell you that for sure.

“Unless Gerrard wins something it will not happen. If he was managing Hearts or Hibs

and he came second they would have a street party. But it means nothing to Rangers or Celtic.

“You will not be remembered unless you are a winner in Scotland. He might go down to the

Championship and do what Frank Lampard has done.

“Stevie is learning his trade, lets be brutally honest about it.

“Rangers is a big club so he has pass marks from me but he will not get an A until he has won something.”

It is hard to disagree with McAvennie. In all fairness to Gerrard, he has done a decent job with the ‘Gers – after all, reaching the last 16 of the Europa League, a tournament in which they are still involed, is far from easy nowadays for a Scottish club. However, they finished the 2019/20 league campaign 13 points adrift of Celtic and, whilst they are clearly the second best side in the country, they are yet to get their hands on a trophy under their current boss.

Quite frankly, getting the Liverpool job is almost impossible without having proven himself elsewhere, especially if Jurgen Klopp is the man he has to follow. As McAvennie has said, next season is make or break for Gerrard.

Let us know what you think below!

Tottenham talisman Harry Kane has kept Spurs fans in the loop after he posted a video of Eric Dier, Lucas Moura and Son Heung-min training together at Hotspur Way. 

Kane has recovered from a hamstring injury and will be looking to make an immediate impact when football returns next month.

The 26-year-old uploaded footage of the Spurs quartet taking part in a game of teqball.

/CAvkhkZBHXE/?igshid=1gfa65iejsgjk

Kane’s teammate Eric Dier didn’t like being on the losing side and demanded a rematch in the comments section.

The England international is the club’s leading goalscorer this season and he has netted 11 goals and created 2 assists in just 20 Premier League games for Jose Mourinho’s side so far.

Mourinho’s men are currently eighth in the table, seven points behind Frank Lampard’s Chelsea, and the Englishman will no doubt be hoping he can rediscover his goalscoring form and lift the Lilywhites into the Champions League qualification places.

It is worth pointing out Spurs only won won three games in the league whilst he recovered from injury.

His strikeforce partner Son is the club’s second-highest goalscorer this season, scoring nine goals and creating seven assists in the English top flight, taking three shots per game, averaging more than one key pass and making at least two dribbles per match on average (via WhoScored).

Spurs fans will surely be excited to see the duo returning to duty, as the Premier League moves nearer to a return behind closed doors in June.
Tottenham fans, are you excited to see Harry Kane and Son Heung-min back on the pitch in a matter of weeks? Let us know down below!

Despite leaving the club in the January transfer window, there can be no doubt Christian Eriksen proved himself to be one of the best value for money signings in Tottenham’s recent history.

The Denmark international arrived in north London from Dutch giants Ajax for a reported fee of just £11.5m back in the summer of 2013, and he went on to enjoy a very impressive career.

As per Transfermarkt, he ended up making 305 appearances for the club, scoring an impressive 69 times and providing a further 89 assists. But with his original contract with Spurs set to come to an end at the end of this season, Eriksen was finally allowed to make the move to Inter in January, and it appears things haven’t worked out so well for him.

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According to Italian publication Gazzetta dello Sport, Inter boss Antonio Conte has been left less than impressed with the play-maker’s form, and has demanded him to improve his intensity.

After hearing about the report about their former player, Spurs fans flooded to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the situation.

Some Spurs fans didn’t seem shocked at all, with one supporter in particular saying that Eriksen had “peaked a while back”.

So it looks like Spurs cut their losses on Eriksen at just about the right time.

The Dane’s final few months in north London were nothing short of a disaster, scoring just twice in 20 Premier League games and finding himself in and out of the first-team.

And if the report on Conte’s thoughts are true, then Spurs may have dodged a bullet by refusing to extend Eriksen’s deal.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans react to their interest in this 15-goal striker.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Speaking on ESPN FC, Steve Nicol has claimed Jadon Sancho would be “crazy” to join Manchester United.

What did he say?

The Borussia Dortmund is one of the hottest properties in European football at the moment, following a meteoric rise whilst playing in the Bundesliga. The 19-year-old has scored 18 goals and provided 31 assists in 71 games across all competitions, and that form has understandably led to transfer interest from other clubs, including Manchester United.

Reports in recent weeks have claimed the England international is set to be a leading target for the Red Devils next summer, but Nicol believes that would be a major mistake on the part of Sancho.

He said: “I think he’s crazy if he goes to Man United. We’re talking about he’s struggling in a team that’s struggling (Dortmund) – Man United are going to be struggling for a couple of seasons, so I would stay away from there. Well if I was advising him, let me put it that way, I would like to see him at Liverpool.”

Champions League

Make no mistake about it, United desperately need to secure Champions League football for next season. The very best players – whether they’re in the peak years of their careers or up-and-coming stars like Sancho – want to be plying their trade in European football’s elite competition.

The Red Devils currently find themselves in seventh place in the Premier League, nine points off fourth-placed Manchester City. The gap is still something Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side can claw back, and if they manage to do it, their chances of landing Sancho would be boosted tremendously. So whilst it may seem “crazy” now to envisage the £90m-rated star at Old Trafford, it may not look the case at the end of the season.

Although Arsenal’s current predicament under Unai Emery may seem a far cry from previous eras of success at the club, these fans have been loving a video released regarding a former player’s final game in north London.

Patrick Vieira, who won three Premier League titles and three FA Cups during a nine-year spell at the club, wrote his name into the Gunners’ history books having made over 300 league appearances.

The Frenchman’s time with the club coincided with their most successful period in the modern era, and there can be no doubting that with Arsenal having won just four of their first 12 league fixtures in the 2019/20 campaign, these fans would love to see a return of their former captain in a bid to revitalise their domestic fortunes.

Following the release of a video showing Viera’s last game for the club, these fans have been singing his praises.

Here are some of the best reactions to the Frenchman’s finale in north London.