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According to The Sun, West Ham are set to accept the £35m-plus bid for Marko Arnautović, which could see the Austrian leave the London Stadium by the end of the week.

The article says that the bid has come from Chinese Super League outfit Shanghai SIPG, who significantly increased their offer.

From West Ham’s perspective, they will not want to lose their star man, but for a potentially huge sum, they should jump at this chance.

Of course, Arnautović won the Hammer of the Year award last year, and was unanimously voted to be the club’s best player. He has continued this season in a very similar fashion. However, he has had fitness issues this season, and this could be a sign of things to come.

The Austrian is also 29 years of age, and it may be unclear how much longer he has in his prime. While he may still have a good few seasons at the top, The Hammers probably do not have long to ask for such an extortionate fee for him. His value will only decrease, and the club may be getting out at the right time.

Furthermore, Arnautović has a long history of being a nuisance and disruptive figure at any club. If he is not given his way and allowed to leave the London Stadium, he could be a much greater hindrance than he is a benefit to the club.

With a price like this, West Ham have a chance to continue their rampant summer spending, and can build their squad even further for the future.

According to a recent report from The Sun, Cedric Soares looks set to leave Southampton in this month’s transfer window. The Portugal international made the move to St Mary’s back in the summer of 2015 after a 16-year association with Portuguese giants Sporting Lisbon, although struggles for regular game time under new Saints manager Ralph Hasenhuttl has plunged his future into doubt in recent weeks.

And a recent report from The Sun suggests that Hasenhuttl is set to offload the right back to Italian heavyweights Inter Milan as the new Southampton chief seeks to streamline his squad, although Cedric’s imminent departure looks set to leave the Austrian slightly short in the right back department.

As such, the Saints should seek to replace the 27-year-old before next week’s deadline, with Rangers’ James Tavernier the man they must look to land.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, while Cedric has arguably struggled in the last 18 months to produce his best football on the South Coast, there is little doubting that he has been a great servant to the Saints ever since joining the club back in the summer of 2015.

The Portugal international, who helped his country win Euro 2016, came in at a tough time given Southampton sold highly-rated right back Nathaniel Clyne a matter of weeks earlier, yet Cedric more than compensated for his departure with several impressive efforts over the course of his first few seasons at the club.

In fact, the 27-year-old has gone on to appear 119 times for the Saints in all competitions to underline his level of consistency, and while things haven’t been particularly great for both he and indeed the club on the field in recent times, he has continued to give everything for the club.

But with his future seemingly away from St Mary’s, attentions are likely turning to who Hasenhuttl may seek to replace the Portuguese star with, as at the moment Cedric and Yan Valery are the only senior right backs at the South Coast outfit – and with Valery only 19, relying on him between now and the end of the season would be a big risk.

Yet luring the highly-rated and dynamic Tavernier away from Ibrox would give Hasenhuttl another extremely accomplished option in the right back department, not just defensively but going forward as well.

The 27-year-old Rangers man made the move north of the border back in 2015 and has since been an absolute revelation, scoring 35 goals and laying on 53 assists in 177 appearances for the Gers, equating to a direct contribution every 178 minutes.

And for someone who always turns out at right back, very occasionally at wing back but mainly in a natural right back position, that is an extraordinary return to underline just how effective and composed the Englishman is in the final third of the field.

And it’s his ability to get up and down the right flank in Steven Gerrard’s team to impact things in both boxes which might well be of interest to Southampton boss Hasenhuttl – he needs players who are dynamic and show a high-level of intensity, and it appears that Tavernier has got that.

And having done a fine job in buying from Scotland before, albeit chiefly from Celtic in the form of Victor Wanyama, Fraser Forster, and Virgil van Dijk, a move for Tavernier could well reap the rewards just like the aforementioned trio.

As such, with Cedric reportedly (as per The Sun) on his way out of St Mary’s this month, Hasenhuttl must turn his attentions towards Tavernier as the man to replace the Portugal international.

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

Wolves are having a fine season in the Premier League this season and could even compete for a place in Europe if they can continue to perform.

The Molineux club are impressing many onlookers with their style of play and never say die attitude, and they played out a pulsating 4-3 win over Leicester City this weekend as they picked up another valuable three points.

However, things should never stand still for a club like Wolves, who will be keen to make sure they keep on improving under manager Nuno Santo.

To do that, they might well need to make one or two more big statements in the transfer market, and we think they can do that by signing highly rated Bayer Leverkusen winger Leon Bailey.

The speedy Jamaican is once again having a decent season for the Bundesliga outift, and a move to the Premier League is bound to be of interest to him at some point in the future.

At just 21, time is on the side of Bailey, but he would fit into Wolves’ style of play and ethos under Santo, and valued at £35m, he would show the rest of the league that Wolves do indeed mean business as they look to make a name for themselves as Premier League regulars.

Lightning quick, and with a keen eye for goal, Bailey would be a fine addition to an already excellent attacking line up at Molineux.

Wolves fans, what do you think? Good signing? Let us know in the comments!

Aston Villa have been linked with a handful of new players in recent days as Dean Smith looks to bolster his options ahead of the promotion race, and a recent report suggests he has turned his attention towards a fantastic talent. 

Sometimes reality does not mirror expectation and Nathaniel Chalobah’s career of underachievement serves as an acute reminder of how misfortune can shape the careers of precocious footballers.

According to a recent report from Sky Sports, Villa have approached Watford over a loan deal for Chalobah, who wants an increase in first-team opportunities to force his way into Gareth Southgate’s plans.

The story of Chalobah’s career has panned out in a similar fashion to that of Chelsea’s Ross Barkley: Watford’s outcast was hailed as a huge talent when he was breaking through the ranks at Chelsea as a youngster, but his career has failed to materialise into anything exceeding mediocre and suddenly he is 24-years-old.

The shelf life of a footballer is so limited that it’s not outlandish to consider 24 as edging towards the midway point in an average career at the top level, so it’s no surprise that Chalobah is looking for first-team opportunities.

Injuries rather than his quality, though, have dictated the pattern of his career. During his first spell at Watford in the 2012/13 season, manager Gianfranco Zola made a bold claim about Chalobah which is yet to turn prophetic (via Watford Observer).

“He can go as high as he wants to. He has all the qualities to become a top player but he just needs to work hard every day and not lose the desire to work hard in training.

“The common mistake for players of his age, when they play and are having compliments like I am giving him right now, is to stop learning.

“It is too early; he has the potential but he has to really keep his feet on the ground and work hard.”

When Chalobah burst onto the scene at Watford his performances stunned those who saw him grace the turf at Vicarage Road; he was classy in possession, mature beyond his years and clearly an exceptional talent.

The manner in which his career has plummeted into insignificance is a genuine shame, but a January move to Villa could be the transfer which resurrects his career. Playing under a manager like Smith, who places huge value on technical quality and strives to implement a possession-based philosophy, Chalobah would be well placed to develop while simultaneously offering Villa an option of Premier League quality in midfield.

That Gareth Southgate called Chalobah up to the England squad last October speaks volumes about how highly he is regarded, but he will never build upon his brief flirt with international football until he acquires regular opportunities.

The final hours of the January window will undoubtedly shape the outcome of the Championship season for Villa, and if Smith can get a genius deal over the line for Chalobah there is no question it would represent a priceless boost for everybody involved with the club.

Aston Villa fans – thoughts? Let us know below!

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Everton currently find themselves in the mire having lost four of their last five – including a 3-2 defeat to Millwall in the FA Cup – as pressure mounts on Marco Silva to start delivering the results.

The Portuguese has impressed in his last two roles – he couldn’t prevent Hull’s relegation in the 2016/17 season but ensured it went down to the wire, while he also did a good job at trigger-happy Watford the year after until a poor run led to his dismissal in January.

However, the 41-year-old is currently facing what is arguably his biggest challenge in the Premier League yet as he looks to take Everton to the next level – he is failing thus far.

Taking over from Sam Allardyce, who was sacked in May 2018 despite taking the Toffees from 13th to 8th, Silva has hardly been an upgrade on his predecessor from what we’ve seen despite there being such staunch resistance to the former England boss from those in the stands at Goodison Park. Win, lose or draw, Allardyce always seemed to end up the pantomime villain.

What could have been, then, if unpopular Allardyce was still at the helm?

Defence sorted & through in the FA Cup

Allardyce received criticism during his six months in charge of the Merseyside outfit for his direct approach, despite getting the results required to achieve an eighth place finish.

Say what you want about Big Sam, but one thing he guarantees when taking a job is that he will sort out the defence and it is highly unlikely that, had he been kept on for this season, Everton would be conceding in the manner they are under Silva.

The defeat to Millwall epitomised the struggles Everton have had at the back – all three goals were conceded from set-pieces as Silva opts for a zonal marking approach that clearly isn’t working.

Allardyce, while it might not be exactly what the fans want, would rather forego attractive football in favour of defensive solidity to avoid the kind of simplistic lapses that cost the Toffees so dearly against Millwall. Everton would likely still be in the competition with Allardyce at the helm, while also climbing the Premier League table.

Lukaku replaced instead of signing Richarlison

The area most in need of improvement is Everton’s strike force – Richarlison has been deputising up front in the absence of a quality striker but a man of his talents should be on the wing, driving at players rather than occupying the centre-backs.

Silva brought his former Watford colleague to Goodison Park in the summer, with the Brazilian commanding a £50m fee. There is no doubt that he is a good signing and possibly the best they’ve made in recent years, but Marcel Brands and co would have been better served addressing the lack of a clinical centre-forward first – something Allardyce would surely have been keen to address as powerful front-men have been a hallmark of his most successful teams.

The Toffees have been crying out for a striker of Romelu Lukaku’s ilk since the big Belgian departed in 2017 and, had Allardyce still been in charge for the summer transfer window, it’s certainly less likely that Everton would have signed Silva’s golden boy, Richarlison.

Instead, that huge sum, or even half of it, could have been spent on a new centre-forward to lead the line and provide Allardyce with the kind of target man that suits his game-plan. Despite Allardyce’s reputation for defensive football, Kevin Davies, Andy Carroll and Christian Benteke have all enjoyed affluent spells under him.

Changing stereotypes

When he succeeded Ronald Koeman in November 2017, Allardyce was presented with a squad that at face value was simply underachieving, but was a complete mess in reality.

The club had spent £145m on new arrivals, only two of which have been consistently solid performers – Gylfi Sigurdsson and Jordan Pickford – while others are no longer in Everton blue having flopped completely.

Allardyce managed to turn things around and guide the Toffees to an eighth place finish, despite the preconceptions about how his tenure would turn out.

Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin may be out for the season but it’s given him a chance to show off his new accessory. Check out the video below to see for yourself…

The former West Ham and Crystal Palace boss has garnered a reputation for being a relegation-beater and not much more than that. But had he been in charge of Everton for the 2018/19 season and kept getting the results, then that stereotype of his style of football would be getting debunked right now.

Ultimately, the aim at Goodison Park is to take the step up that would see them challenge the Big Six and, while Allardyce might not have done so in the most fashionable way, it is possible that he would be far closer to doing so this season than Silva currently is.

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According to Calciomercato, Roma are planning to hand a huge new contract to Arsenal target Cengiz Under.

What’s the story?

The Italian publication claim that Under is one of a number of first team stars that the Serie A club are looking to hand new deals to, with Nicolo Zaniolo, Edin Dzeko and Daniele de Rossi also mentioned.

Arsenal, Tottenham Hotspur and German giants Bayern Munich are credited with holding an interest in Under, but the report goes on to state that Roma are planning to triple the 21-year-old’s wages.

If Under was to agree to such lucrative new terms with the Italian capital club it would surely come as a huge blow to the Gunners, who may find that the winger’s new wages make it impossible for them to attract him to the Emirates Stadium.

The indoor football skills in the video below have to be seen to be believed…

Set to miss out

Arsenal certainly need a new winger. Alex Iwobi is currently the only out and out wide man in Unai Emery’s senior squad.

Under would make for a fine addition too. The 10-cap Turkey international has been in fine form this season and has all the attributes needed to be a success in the Premier League. His pace and power make him a nightmare for opposition defences to deal with.

However, it looks increasingly unlikely that the Gunners will be able to get a deal done for Under after this new contract blow, so Emery will likely have to look elsewhere in the summer to find the winger he needs. 

Sheffield United fans have hailed John Fleck after his two-goal haul against Aston Villa on Saturday.

The midfielder’s brace gave Chris Wilder’s men another three points and moved them into fifth in the Premier League.

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And supporters flocked to Twitter to hail the 28-year-old after another dynamic performance.

The Scotland international was also on the scoresheet against Burnley and Manchester United earlier in the season, while also providing an assist against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men.

However, Fleck was also booked in the encounter, meaning that he has now collected five yellow cards in the top-flight.

As a result, he will be suspended for the encounter with Brighton & Hove Albion on December 21st.

And a few supporters are concerned that his absence could adversely affect the Blades.

Their concerns, though, may prove unfounded, with United losing just four games all season – the same amount as Manchester City – and with those defeats coming against Leicester City, Southampton, Liverpool and Newcastle United, form suggests they should be able to overcome the Seagulls.

Meanwhile, Chris Wilder has a decision to make over one Blades ace.

N’Golo Kante is currently a hot topic on the footballing stage.

El Desmarque have remarked that the midfielder wants to leave Stamford Bridge in the not so distant future and has set his sights on European giants such as Real Madrid, Juventus, Bayern Munich and even Barcelona.

But the Catalans are now seemingly out of the race. If the new report coming from Mundo Deportivo is to be believed, the Blaugrana have no interest in the midfielder reported to cost around €100m (£84.9m).

It does sound like a harsh verdict on a player that’s held in pretty high regard both among the fans and managers alike. Arsene Wenger heaped praise on him when talking to beIN Sports last summer (as quoted by Goal):

“He is one of the most influential midfielders I’ve seen play football. He constantly makes simple decisions and never overcomplicates it.”

With 156 appearances for the Blues already, he’s also been a major piece of their jigsaw ever since his arrival. But even with that being said, this snub from Barcelona could indicate a big change is shaping up in the world of football and Kante’s kind – for all their quality and skill – might be a dying breed among the very top clubs.

The 28-year-old Frenchman has spent the vast majority of his career playing as either a central or defensive midfielder, as per the games Transfermarkt have in their database, and is mostly known for his incredible ability to break up play, intercept the ball and initiate those transitions.

We can see as much in his career average of 3.4 tackles and 2.5 interceptions for the games documented by Whoscored, which is an incredible achievement in itself but only becomes essential when Kante is actually playing for a team that thrives in such an environment. And top teams in modern football rarely do.

Nowadays, if you are in a big team, chances are you’ll be the one constantly attacking, constantly dominating the ball while facing a low-block and a squad that’s willing to turtle up, weather the storm and hit on the break.

In that scenario, Kante’s skillset becomes limited to snuffing out the odd counter-attack, rather than winning the ball back and starting breaks of his own – a defining characteristic of his role at Leicester City and Chelsea under Antonio Conte.

After all, how is he supposed to tackle and intercept the ball when he’s mostly involved in big possession plays and structural attacks? This is not to say that the Frenchman doesn’t have qualities other than his defensive and transitional contributions.

On the contrary, this season he has tallied three goals in the Premier League already while in 2018/19, he could boast with five goals and four assists in total and across all competitions.

Clearly, there’s more to this midfielder than just tackles and interceptions. But still, those are his most unique and established strengths – that’s the environment that gets the best out of him. Yes, he’s decent in other aspects as well but for the likes of Barcelona, being decent on the ball isn’t really enough.

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The likes of Frenkie de Jong and Arthur, highly technical midfielders who can also do the defensive part well, are more welcoming reinforcements for the Catalans, and a similar thing can be concluded for Chelsea as well.

Frank Lampard’s renaissance has also rejuvenated the likes of Mateo Kovacic and Jorginho, two of the Blues’ players who were struggling under Maurizio Sarri.

But now that Chelsea are also transitioning to an attacking force that dominates play – with 57.6% possession in the Premier League and 55.2% in the Champions League – maybe Kante’s expertise are slowly but surely becoming less relevant at Stamford Bridge as well.

Of course, there are exceptions to the rule with big European teams that love to defend and hit on the counter – the likes of Atletico Madrid and Juventus could be examples of squads that prefer a slower approach to games and value a good defence over a sensational offence. Likewise, every top club will be involved in big games where Kante’s sheer energy is crucial.

In general, however, it feels like top teams would benefit more from an elite midfielder who’s able to break the lines, cut the deep blocks open and create opportunities than splashing the cash for a deep-lying ball-winner who thrives when out of possession and setting the attacks against the run of play.

When everything we’ve just said is taken into consideration, Barcelona’s “no” to a World Cup winning midfielder and two-time Premier League winner is no longer such a surprising verdict.

Not only that but it also may be an indication of what the future holds for those lying deep in the midfields of Europe’s biggest clubs. Play-breakers are becoming less and less prevalent, with playmakers starting to reign supreme.

Elsewhere, many Spurs fans were absolutely buzzing with links to a player that sliced through their team in their last encounter…

The North London rivalry has always been a good one to watch from afar and even though neither Tottenham Hotspur nor Arsenal have been at their best this season, that still didn’t take anything away from their classic encounters down the years.

Still, it seems that the power is slightly shifting towards Spurs as BBC have crunched the numbers and discovered that Daniel Levy’s outfit have managed to tally a better point average in the last decade.

Tottenham have 1.854 per game while the Gunners’ count stands at 1.852.

Of course, by the looks of it, the difference truly is minimal but it was enough for many of the fans to poke fun at their arch-rivals, stating they are in the mud and in decline.

You can see some of their comments down below:

But some of the fans were more realistic and they were also quick to point out that despite being better in the average point tally, Spurs actually have no trophies to show for during that period of time.

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Their rivals, however, did pick up a couple of them along the way, which is what matters the most at the end of the day.

One fan even called it a pointless statistic but it’s a small victory nonetheless.

Let’s see if Jose Mourinho can be the one to break this curse and finally land Spurs some silverware.

Meanwhile, many Spurs fans reacted to one of their players finally penning a new contract…

Leeds and Manchester United have one of the most heated rivalries in English football history.

There’s no hiding that the two clubs absolutely hate each other, but that hasn’t stopped them from doing business over the years.

It’s a rare occurrence, but a handful of players have swapped white for red and vice versa, and each time it happens it creates headlines.

Watch Leeds United Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

Eric Cantona, Alan Smith and Rio Ferdinand have all switched sides in the past 30 years, and with rumours circulating that Kalvin Phillips has caught the eye of the Red Devils we caught up with one man who has also previously crossed the divide.

Danny Pugh exclusively spoke to Football FanCast about his move from Manchester United to Leeds in 2004.

“I found it fine to be honest. Perhaps it was different for me because I didn’t play that much. I played a handful of games for United, so maybe it wasn’t such a major deal for me or a major issue,” said Pugh.

“But it is a big move, it’s a big life decision and not many people have gone either way, players have done it before, but not many have done it.”

The 37-year-old went on to speak about Phillips’ potential move to Old Trafford and how he thinks he’d cope with the move from Yorkshire to Manchester.

“I think he’d be fine. I think it would be a big decision to make. He wouldn’t be able to get around locally as much if he was playing for Man United, so it would be a huge life-changing decision for him and something he’d have to consider.” Pugh stated.

“A lot of times you have to make these decisions purely based on footballing reasons, and I think a lot of it will be down to how Leeds finish the season.”

“I like him as a player, I think he’s done really well, but he’s at a club that could go to the Premier League next season, he’s a local lad so it’d be a big decision, but it’s one he’d have to consider if it did come around,” he concluded.

Leeds fans have previously been confident that Phillips wouldn’t join their rivals, but Pugh makes a great point here.

A footballer’s career is short and playing for Manchester United would bring untold riches as well as a shot at silverware, so if the Red Devils do come knocking, the Yorkshire Pirlo would have a huge decision to make.

In other news, Leeds’ opposition may be playing into their hands with one tactic.