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Some Tottenham fans have taken to Twitter to critique Dele Alli’s performance against Liverpool on Sunday, as Spurs threw away a 1-0 lead to lose 2-1 against the European champions.

Mauricio Pochettino’s men went ahead straight away through Harry Kane, but allowed Jordan Henderson to equalise in the second half before Mohamed Salah won the game from the penalty spot.

A numbers of Spurs players were ineffective, but Alli was almost non-existent as his poor form continues.

The former MK Dons star didn’t have a single shot on Alisson’s goal, let alone a shot on target, while he also failed to register a key pass against the Merseysiders.

The 23-year-old also didn’t embark on a single dribble, nor did he draw a foul for his side – Alli was also dispossessed on three occasions.

Disappointingly, the 37-cap England international still has just one Premier League goal to his name this term, having hit a mediocre five goals last season.

Let’s see how the Tottenham fans on Twitter reacted to his showing at Anfield…

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…

Premier League legend Alan Shearer has praised Andre Gomes and Yerry Mina after their performances in Everton’s 2-0 win over West Ham United.

What did he say?

Shearer picked Gomes and Mina in his Premier League Team of the Week in their respective positions. The Colombian defender kept a clean sheet against the Hammers, just as the former Benfica midfielder controlled the game along with Tom Davies in the centre.

The pundit told the Premier League website: “Everton barely gave the West Ham midfield a look-in and a big part of that was down to Gomes. He ran the centre of the park with his touch, technique and energy,” he said.

Shearer also touched on Mina, saying: “This was a powerful display by the Everton defender. They needed a leader and he fitted the bill. He was dominant at the back and didn’t give Sebastien Haller a sniff for West Ham United.”

Vital for Everton

Prior to the weekend victory over the Hammers, it had been a torrid time for Mina this season. The former Barcelona defender was part of a defensive unit that let in 13 goals in just eight games.

However, over the weekend, in form striker Sebastien Haller never got a chance to add to Everton’s woes and was well marshalled by Mina, who arrived on Merseyside in a deal worth £27.2m in 2018, and his fellow defenders.

Mina was a leader at the back, and with his 6ft 5 stature, he proved he is a physical presence for any attacker.

Gomes, who joined the Toffees in a £22m summer deal, started a game for Silva for the first time since he picked up an injury against Wolverhampton Wanderers. That match was the last time the Blues tasted victory in the Premier League, which just goes to show how important this man is for the team.

Simply put, Everton lost all four league games without Gomes, yet both of their last two league wins had him in the centre. The former Barcelona midfielder is incredibly important for the squad and he and Mina could end up being the catalysts in saving Silva’s job.

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 to The Athletic, former Manchester United goalkeeping coach Eric Steele has tipped Dean Henderson to compete with David de Gea for the number one spot at Old Trafford.

What did he say?

Henderson is in the midst of his second successive year-long loan spell at Sheffield United, but signed a new long-term contract with the Red Devils earlier in the summer.

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

Now, Steele has backed Henderson to challenge De Gea for a first-team role when he makes his return from Bramall Lane next year, and insisted he has the right characteristics to do so.

He said: “He has all the physical attributes you need. Plus that cockiness and confidence about him. He sees himself as the biggest challenger to David De Gea at Manchester United and I love that. Even though he is not at the club right now.

“I have no problems with that. He is doing the right thing and getting experience at a good club. He is still a young keeper. Peter Schmeichel didn’t come to Old Trafford until he was 28. David De Gea was the exception at 19 or 20. I have said this to Dean privately. He is still a young keeper.

Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

“Knowing Dean as I do, what he will be thinking is, ‘Richard Hartis (Manchester United’s senior goalkeeping coach) and Ole Gunnar (Solskjaer), please keep sending your scouts to Sheffield United’. He knows he is being watched. He knows what is required. Hartis will be asking, ‘Who is going to challenge De Gea?’ I am sure Dean will be thinking he can be the number one at Manchester United.”

Competition

Make no mistake about it, if Henderson thought it would be a difficult job to displace De Gea earlier in the summer, then the Spaniard’s bumper new contract has made his task that much harder.

United’s decision to hand the former Atletico Madrid man a fresh deal suggests they don’t have a massive amount of faith in Henderson to come in and become the number one straight-away. As always, pre-season will be key, but, if the 22-year-old can enjoy an impressive campaign in the top-flight with the Blades, then Solskjaer’s side will have a real conundrum on their hands.

Competition for places and the pressure of knowing that you have to perform on a week-to-week basis can increase the quality of performances from players. And, Henderson’s return to Old Trafford could spark a major upturn in form for both him and De Gea too.

Towards the end of last week, The Daily Record carried a story surrounding Manchester United’s reported interest in Lyon’s Moussa Dembele.

The publication claimed that United had actually been in contact with the French outfit over a potential swoop in the January transfer window.

However, it is alleged that Lyon value the 23-year-old in the region of £69.8m, which could well prevent the deal from going through.

Dembele has scored six times in 10 appearances for his Ligue 1 outfit this season, whilst he has managed 26 goals in 56 outings for the club in all competitions.

Despite the decent goal return, a number of United fans have laughed off suggestions that their club could spend close to £70m on the former Celtic forward.

Indeed, even with the team struggling in the final third – netting just nine times in the league – the club’s supporters are not interested in Dembele for that price.

A selection of the Twitter reaction is available to view below:

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

Garry Monk’s second game in charge of Sheffield Wednesday is a much tougher test this weekend, and that’s giving no disrespect to Huddersfield Town, who are tied-bottom having picked up just one point this season.

Fulham came out of the blocks early doors looking like they would be serious promotion contenders under former player Scott Parker winning three of their opening four games, but have since faltered to 11th in the table.

Wednesday host them at Hillsborough on Saturday, looking to continue Monk’s excellent start as Owls boss.

Just one point separates the two teams in the league, so how will the home side get the advantage in what should be a tightly contested affair?

On the Chalkboard

The one major weakness of the Cottagers is their ability in the air – they rank inside the bottom four in the Championship for aerial duels won per game at 17.1.

There is an argument that their style of football just simply isn’t about that considering they rank first for possession percentage in the league at 63.7%, so it’s clear Parker likes to play it on the deck – but when they face a physical side, they’ll still have to win their headers.

Wednesday, by comparison, are about mid-table in terms of winning these duels themselves though they have one man that can make it very difficult for the south-west London side.

Steven Fletcher has won 46 aerial duels this season at an average of 6.6 per game – that’s more than Fulham’s centre-back pairing combined as Alfie Mawson averages 4.4 and Tim Ream at 1.7 per match.

Watch Sheffield Wednesday Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

There’s quite clearly a mismatch there.

Monk will also need someone to supply the 32-year-old, and that is likely to be fellow Scotsman Barry Bannan.

The playmaking midfielder has made 16 key passes this season at an average of 2.7 per game and he comes into this weekend having recorded his second assist in five matches.

Bannan is also averaging 4.2 long balls per game and has recorded at least one cross in five of his six appearances.

Therefore, if Bannan can use his vision to pick out the aerial presence of Fletcher, they could well come out with the victory.

Despite their 1-0 Premier League defeat to Tottenham at Wembley over the weekend, it has still been a positive period in the season for Newcastle United and their manager Rafael Benitez.

The Spaniard recently watched his side beat Premier League champions Manchester City 2-1 on the day the club were able to agree a deal with Atlanta United for primary target Miguel Almiron.

And things could be about to get even better for Benitez and the St. James’ Park faithful.

The Breakdown

Speaking to Chronicle Live, Benitez confirmed that Mohamed Diame, Paul Dummett and Ki Sung-yueng are all close to returning to full fitness following their respective injuries and could be in line to be selected for the trip to Wolves next Monday.

After picking up so many injuries around the new year period, the return of the trio will come as a massive boost to Benitez as he looks to steer the Tyneside club to Premier League safety once again, something which he looks capable of easily doing.

Following a dismal start to the season, Newcastle now find themselves out of the relegation zone, albeit by just two points, having gained some big wins including their most recent one against Manchester City.

Ultimately, following that and the addition of Almiron, the mood at St. James’ Park has drastically improved with the return of Dummett and co only expected to add to that as the Magpies look to secure more victories in front of their home crowd.

Newcastle United are now reportedly in the picture to sign Erling Haaland in what is quite a remarkable transfer twist.

The Lowdown: Was ruled out

According to Bundesliga journalist Christian Falk just a few days ago, the 21-year-old is not considering a move to St James’ Park, effectively ruling them out of the race to sign the Borussia Dortmund superstar.

Various reports have also stated that him moving to Tyneside is unrealistic, despite the takeover from the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium.

The Latest: Haaland transfer twist

According to a fresh report from AS (via Sport Witness), though, ‘it is not out of question’ that Haaland could move to Newcastle, with the Magpies ‘in the picture’ for his signature.

However, Manchester City, Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid are also named as potential destinations for the Norway international.

The Verdict: Exciting

Even though it is very possible that Newcastle will miss out on the signing of Haaland due to the level of competition and the fact that they are still in a relegation battle in the Premier League, it is exciting for the Toon Army merely to be named in the conversation.

The striker has been nothing short of sensational while playing for Dortmund, averaging more than a goal per match over the past three seasons across all competitions (Transfermarkt).

Nonetheless, what a remarkable signing he would be for the Magpies if the new owners could somehow pull it off.

In other news, find out which elite manager NUFC ‘dream’ of hiring

Rangers assistant manager Gary McAllister has revealed that Ianis Hagi is in contention to face Livingston tonight after returning from a viral infection.

What’s the latest?

The winger has been ruled out since the last international break, but McAllister has confirmed that the 22-year-old has looked sharp in training, whilst giving an overall injury update.

He told the Glasgow Times: “Ianis is back and trained, he looked pretty sharp. Ryan Kent will be missing. Patterson has had an ankle issue recently but he trained and looked sharp today.

“Ryan Jack is still missing and working hard to get back to full fitness.”

Fans will be buzzing

Rangers fans will be buzzing with this update as it suggests that Hagi could be in with a shot at starting, or at least featuring, against Livingston tonight. His last appearance for the club came at the end of August in a 4-2 win over Ross County, with supporters potentially excited to see him back in action after a month out.

The Romania international has two goals and one assist in six competitive appearances this term, having managed seven goals and 11 assists in the Premiership last season. This shows that he has the quality to score and set up goals on a regular basis, which could provide Rangers with the spark they have been missing of late.

His manager Steven Gerrard, who previously dubbed Hagi an “outstanding talent”, has seen his side score just once in their last two outings. This suggests that they have been lacking in the final third, which is where the 22-year-old could come in and solve a glaring problem for the Gers. He has proven that he can contribute in key moments since the start of last season and could provide that quality now that he has returned to fitness. 

Fans will surely be buzzing to see the mercurial gem back in the starting XI and gaining some valuable minutes against Livingston in the League Cup. That could then allow him to get fully match-fit ahead of a return to Premiership action at the weekend against Dundee.

AND in other news, Gerrard must unleash £14k-p/w Rangers powerhouse tomorrow, he’s a brick wall…

Crystal Palace youngster Tayo Adaramola has been involved in first-team training ahead of the trip to Liverpool this weekend, The Palace Way report.

And, as to be expected, the images of the teenager has had plenty of Eagles fans talking on social media.

Adaramola, primarily a left-back who can also play in an advanced midfield role, signed professional terms at Selhurst Park last November.

The Irishman has made over 30 appearances for the club’s youth sides, and it seems as if he has caught the eye of Patrick Vieira.

The Palace boss has just one senior left-back option in his squad in Tyrick Mitchell, and it seems as if Adaramola is getting his chance to impress in training.

The Palace Way shared two images of the 17-year-old in training, one of which was alongside right-back Joel Ward.

Palace fans react

This is what these Palace fans had to say in reply to the images on social media…

“Interesting. Is he that good??”

Credit: @HunterCPFC

“Love that”

Credit: @LiamBro86

“Give him a season or two and he’ll light it up. Him as the offensive option, Mitchell as the defensive”

Credit: @Phillyconcarne

“He looks a real talent. There must be at least 6 players who could step into the first team this year. A fantastic crop of academy players.”

Credit: @sibarnes2000

“Not surprised, on the coverage I’ve seen over the last couple of years he’s destined to play first team eventually.”

Credit: @Meraki_IoM

“I thought Hannam was ahead of him in the pecking order.”

Credit: @Bannister121

In other news: ‘No no no’ – Conor Gallagher update has lots of Palace fans talking.