Robbie Savage cannot work out what is going wrong at Rangers, per BBC 606.
What’s the word?
Rangers beat Celtic 2-1 in December, moving two points behind Neil Lennon’s side at the top of the Scottish Premiership.
However, since then, they have played eight games in the top-flight, winning five, drawing two, against Aberdeen and St Johnstone, and losing to Hearts.
They are now 12 points behind Celtic, but Lennon’s men have been impeccable since that defeat to Steven Gerrard’s side.
Indeed, they have played eight games too, winning all of them, scoring 27 goals and conceding just four.
Rangers remain in the Europa League, unlike Celtic, as they beat Braga 4-2 on aggregate, though they were eliminated from the Scottish Cup at the weekend, losing 1-0 to Hearts.
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And Savage has said that he cannot diagnose the woes at Ibrox.
He said: “I watched that game against Celtic, when they won just before the winter break, you’re thinking, Steven Gerrard, he’s got the players, you can see the way the team is playing for him and then since the winter break, domestically, losing games, drawing games, losing yesterday against Hearts.”
He added: “I saw Steven Gerrard, his interview after the game, you can see how much it means to him and how he wants to do so well but domestically… I can’t say what’s gone wrong.
“Just before that winter break you’re thinking ‘you know what, this could be Rangers’ year’, because going to Celtic Park, winning that game, and just since then it’s not the same team.”
Harsh
The pace being set by Celtic is astonishing.
They have lost just twice this season, once to Rangers and once to Livingstone in October.
Celtic have scored 82 goals – 19 more than the Gers – and have been flawless since their defeat to their bitter rivals.
Indeed, Rangers have lost to Hearts twice this season; Celtic beat them 5-0 just three matchdays ago.
However, Gerrard’s side are still in the Europa League – Lennon’s men lost on aggregate to Kobenhavn – and that has to be something of a victory.
Claiming that Rangers aren’t the same team just because they have lost two games in 2020 is unbelievably harsh.
Meanwhile, Rangers fans have criticised one man after the weekend!
Jacob Ramsey left Aston Villa on loan in the January transfer window to join Doncaster Rovers and he has just been given a major award.
The attacking midfielder has won the club’s Goal of the Month award for his strike against MK Dons, which earned Doncaster a 1-0 win.
It was a team move, with Seny Dieng, Brad Halliday, and Jon Taylor all involved before Ramsey swept home a smart finish.
And it neatly caps a superb start to his time in League One.
He has made just three senior appearances for Villa, two of which came in the 2019/20 season, in the FA Cup tie against Fulham and the EFL Cup tie against Brighton & Hove Albion.
Since his move to Doncaster, though, he has played seven times and has scored three goals, including a brace on his debut in the 3-0 win over Tranmere Rovers.
The 18-year-old, born and bred in Birmingham, is an England youth international, too, having been capped by the U18s and the U19s.
With him in the team, Doncaster have won five of the seven games they have played, and sit ninth in League One, just five points off the play-off spots.
Ramsey’s award, then, is a neat little prize to win following an impressive start away from Villa and one has to wonder if his future will lie with the Midlands club.
He was something of a fixture for the U18s, playing 38 times and scoring 16 goals, while also providing four assists.
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The teenager has also been a key member of the U23s, playing 25 times, scoring eight goals and registering six assists.
He is ascending the ladder in the right way and one has to think that his time at Doncaster will only boost his standing in the eyes of manager Dean Smith.
Ramsey is one to watch for Villa fans.
Meanwhile, Villa are set to make a huge decision over this striker’s future!
Manchester United starlet Angel Gomes’ current contract with the Red Devils comes to an end in the summer of 2020.
This has prompted Chelsea to show interest in bringing the 19-year-old to Stamford Bridge after its culmination, as reported by The Metro.
United have already offered the teenager a contract worth £25,000-a-week and it is suggested within the report that Gomes’ representatives are unimpressed with the offer, indicating that he may not re-sign on these terms.
The club have defended their offer though, using Mason Greenwood’s extension as a benchmark for academy players who are making their step up into the first-team setup.
Gomes has been handed limited game time this season, making just six appearances for the first-team, and The Manchester Evening News have suggested this is because he hasn’t signed a new contract yet.
With the above in mind, FFC writers have given their verdicts on whether United should offer Gomes improved terms.
Jonathan Radcliffe
“Angel Gomes is obviously a promising player, but it is worth pointing out that Manchester United went and paid £47m to take Bruno Fernandes, a player who plays in his position, to Old Trafford in January, and he has already hit the ground running with three goals and four assists in nine matches – that does not bode well for the youngster.
“Whilst it would be damaging to lose him to a rival, it would be worse for his talent to be wasted. The Red Devils should look at the bigger picture and let him go.”
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Lewis Blain
“I see no reason why Manchester United should tie Angel Gomes down to a new deal. The Red Devils are on a bit of a resurgence from the dead and he’s not played a part in it whatsoever. To me, he’s just another Tom Cleverley, who is probably better off forging a career away from Old Trafford.
“In addition to this, he’s provided zero goals or assists in ten first-team appearances per Transfermarkt, so he’s not exactly proving his worth either. Solskjaer is also well-stocked in his position following the addition of Fernandes in January – he’s got Pogba to return, too.
“Regardless of his comparisons to United hero Paul Scholes, he just isn’t living up to expectations and isn’t worth fresh terms – unless he’s happy to be a mere squad player. Gomes ought to leave for the greater good of all involved.”
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Charles Jones
“Honestly, I don’t see Gomes having any real future at the top-level.
“The young attacking midfielder is quite simply too diminutive standing at a measly 5 ft 3, and that lack of physicality would be huge at Sunday League level nevermind when you’re coming up against some of the best athletes in the world.
“Okay, small players have done well before, Lionel Messi is arguably the best player ever, but if Gomes had the talent to be the next big thing surely he’d have already broken through?
“Ole Gunnar Solskjaer hasn’t been hesitant to play youngsters, look at Brandon Williams and Mason Greenwood for example, but for some reason he’s steered clear of Gomes.
“I don’t think they should bother even thinking about giving him a new contract.”
Danny Lewis
“Having already had a £25,000-a-week offer turned down by the teenager, the last thing United should be doing is allowing themselves to be held to ransom by a youngster who hasn’t had much of an impact yet.
“With this said, he is a talented player, so if a u-turn is taken and he accepts the current terms then he would still be worth keeping around at Old Trafford.
“Even if he may not be able to make it into the team, with the likes of Fernandes blocking his route into the starting XI, there will likely be a sell-on value that makes it worth keeping him around – while he can also be somebody to use off the bench or in the cups for the time being while he proves his game.
“However, there is no way that they should be allowing him to force their hand towards giving him more money, considering there have been plenty of youngsters who have broken into the side ahead of him.”
Meanwhile, a Twitter post has shown what Bruno Fernandes has been getting up to.
Tottenham Hotspur fans have been left gushing over their former midfielder Ryan Mason after he posted a throwback image to Twitter over the weekend.
With the United Kingdom stuck inside under lockdown, a little trend has emerged on social media whereby fans, players and whoever else that likes the sport of football get involved by uploading an image without any caption or context. Here’s what the 28-year-old put up:
The Spurs academy graduate enjoyed an eight-year spell amongst the first-team setup before leaving for Hull City, but his career would then be devastatingly cut short after he suffered a skull fracture in a match with Chelsea in 2017.
He’s clearly still adored by those in north London as loads of supporters replied to his tweet.
Here’s what has been said…
Mason played 70 times for the Lilywhites where he managed to find the net four times and also provided four assists, per Transfermarkt.
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He was lauded as everything from a Spurs “legend” to the “boss” while one supporter credited his role in kickstarting the Mauricio Pochettino revolution in north London.
Given the current circumstances sweeping the nation, some others offered up warm words to stay safe during this time…
There were plenty missing his exploits at the Lane, too. One further member of the Spurs faithful claimed he would love to have Mason in their midfield now, suggesting that he was quality on the ball and always worked his socks off.
However, it’s hard to see many central midfielders getting in the squad currently due to the vast range of options at Jose Mourinho’s disposal.
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AND in other news, Spurs should look to sign this “outstanding natural talent” in the summer…
Not only does he have to ensure that his team do not concede, but he also has the responsibility of launching attacks from deep, of distributing the ball well.
Of course, he also has to crunch into tackles and rob attackers of the ball, in order to keep the score down.
There have been plenty of world-class defenders in Premier League history.
Here, Football FanCast looks at some of the very best…
Rio Ferdinand
No centre-back on this list earned more top-flight honours than the former England man, which is a stunning achievement in itself. In many ways though, Ferdinand’s credentials for being the Premier League’s greatest centre-back lay in the fact he was much more than simply a talented and athletically imperious centre-half; during Ferdinand’s era, few central defenders offered his quality in possession, speed and agility.
It made him the perfect centre-back partner, capable of covering behind a more old-fashioned accomplice or bringing the ball into United’s midfield to link up with Michael Carrick and Paul Scholes – a vital component of the Red Devils’ ability to build attacks from the engine room.
If there’s one criticism of Ferdinand, it’s that he was only truly at his best when placed alongside someone like Nemanja Vidic who offered that physical and aerial dominance.
Still, he remains a genuinely brilliant centre-back.
Sol Campbell
A considerably less elegant centre-half but for what Sol Campbell lacked in style he more than made up for in sheer brutish physicality. In that sense, Campbell had absolutely everything; a towering leap, plenty of speed and the strength to wrestle a baby rhino. Add great positional intelligence and occasional running-back-esque marauds up the pitch into the equation and Campbell was easily one of the most feared defenders in Europe during his hey-day.
He was also a vital member of Arsenal’s Invincibles starting XI as it’s most defensive element, which is perhaps the strongest endorsement of the former England international’s credentials. Likewise, it takes an exceptionally brave man to trade the Tottenham captaincy for a place in the Gunners’ backline by way of a free transfer and mental toughness was a huge part of Campbell’s game as well; for varying reasons, he’s had to endure his fair share of stick and abuse down the years.
The obvious negative compared to the rest on this list though, is that Campbell is the only one to concede more goals than make appearances in the top flight. That’s largely due to his time at Portsmouth and Spurs’ many years wading through mid-table mediocrity.
Vincent Kompany
He won four Premier League titles at Manchester City.
And what always stood out most about Kompany, aside from the usual physical dominance and aerial ability, was how he played on the front foot, regularly stepping up to nick the ball and instigate a counter-attack rather than simply waiting for the action to come to him.
That underlines the attacking ethos the Sheik owners have attempted to create at the Etihad and the Belgium international has been a central figure in City’s stunning rise, captaining them from 2011 onwards.
A genuine machine in defence, and though injuries crippled his ability late in his career, he belongs on this list.
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Nemanja Vidic made the fewest Premier League appearances of any centre-back on this list but he was the second-most successful during that time, his five titles only trumped by defensive partner Rio Ferdinand. And that’s not a mere coincidence; he was the perfect foil to Ferdinand’s more technical style. While Vidic was no slouch on the ball himself, his greatest strengths resided in the more traditional centre-half job description – essentially, keeping the ball out of the net by any means possible.
Football – Stock 07/08 , 26/8/07 Nemanja Vidic – Manchester United Mandatory Credit: Action Images / Carl Recine
That required body-on-the-line blocks and last-ditch tackles, while few, if any Premier League defenders, have come close to matching his utter dominance in the air. He and Ferdinand produced arguably the most balanced and fearsome centre-back partnership in Europe during their best years and nine seasons together produced five titles, alongside a European honour in 2008.
There are drawbacks, though – chiefly that Vidic did have a knack for getting himself sent off – and also of collapsing in the face of Fernando Torres – and after a serious injury during the 2011/12 season, he was never quite the same force again.
John Terry
The complete centre-back, pure and simple. John Terry was the best in the world at defending the near post for pretty much his entire Chelsea career, but that’s only the tip of the iceberg of what the Captain, Leader, Legend offered the Blues. Much like Vincent Kompany at City, he was one of the the driving forces behind Chelsea’s rise under Roman Abramovich, captaining the team to five Premier League titles (the first and last a decade apart) and a Champions League in 2012.
On top of that though, Terry was simply an exceptional footballer up until a few years ago when his talents noticeably waned. Completely dominant in both boxes, a fantastic reader of the game and brilliant at distributing the ball with both feet – something that went unappreciated for much of his career.
Terry’s game lacked any real weaknesses and evolved over time to suit his age. Furthermore, it’s a testament to his mental strength that a player who drew such negative attention from the media, often rightly so, for a whole host of different reasons never allowed it to affect his performances or his ability to lead the team.
People have questioned whether he almost had too much influence at Stamford Bridge though, and whether that’s affected the success of the club over the years.
Many Celtic fans are in disbelief over the latest plans put forward by Rangers which outline the way in which they believe the Scottish Premiership should be sorted this season, and unsurprisingly it involves the Hoops not winning the league.
After football has been postponed due to recent events, the Scottish Professional Football League is set to crown Celtic champions as well as relegate Hearts after the 23rd of April, via The Guardian.
However Steven Gerrard’s side, who are 13 points behind the Hoops (via BBC Sport), are not happy with the idea, saying that they will oppose the plans to decide the division and instead want financial support. Their statement goes on to say, “For the avoidance of doubt, Rangers firmly believe the season is only complete when all 38 games have been played to a finish.” via Rangers.
Whilst there are arguments for both sides, it seems like the SPFL will let it go down to a vote, which is due to happen as soon as possible, via The Guardian.
Fans of the Hoops have reacted poorly to their arch-rival’s proposals and understandably so, as the title is within their grasp with only eight games left to play, via BBC Sport.
Newcastle United supporters have been reacting to Jonjo Shelvey’s claim that teammate Martin Dubravka is deserving of a “massive, massive move to a top European club”.
The comments have only just surfaced on social media from his interview with In the Box last week, popular Twitter account NUFC360 tweeted his remarks out.
Shelvey was tasked with naming his ‘Dream XI’ whereby he named his current shot-stopper as the man between the sticks but interestingly enough touted him for big things.
Although, it hasn’t gone down well with the St James’ Park faithful as they have been reacting in their droves with comments slamming the 28-year-old Englishman.
Dubravka originally joined the club in January 2018, initially on loan from Sparta Prague, before making the move permanent later that summer for a fee believed to be around £4m.
The 31-year-old keeper has gone on to feature 80 times for the Magpies, conceding 101 goals and recording 24 clean sheets via Transfermarkt.
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Southampton decided against heading into the transfer market in January.
Under Ralph Hasenhuttl, the club instead opted to shift players off the wage bill. Manolo Gabbiadini was allowed to move to Sampdoria while Wesley Hoedt joined Celta Vigo on loan and Cedric Soares headed to Inter Milan.
The axe was wielded – the players had played 43 Premier League games between them just this season alone – and no replacements were found.
It can be argued, of course, that the Saints were not looking to bring anyone in.
Hasenhuttl himself said in January that he simply did not need to sign a player.
“The team have shown that they have more potential in them than people thought,” he told Sky Sports. “We didn’t have to immediately bring new players in.
“We tried to create potential and quality, and I think we did that. That doesn’t mean we are not looking, because we are looking, but we’ll only do a transfer if it helps us immediately and also for the future.”
That, quite simply, has been proved to be a fallacy. In recent weeks, in particular, Southampton have roundly failed to defend. A loss to Cardiff City dropped the club into the relegation zone and the options at centre-back suddenly look remarkably thin.
Jan Bednarek and Jannik Vestergaard appear immovable at the heart of the defence but both Maya Yoshida and Jack Stephens seem to lack the basic awareness needed to keep clean sheets in a back three.
Stephens, indeed, stood in for Yoshida while he headed to the Asian Cup with Japan but he has never looked fully comfortable. It was his mistake that led to Cardiff’s winning goal – he did score the equaliser in the 2-1 defeat but, given the magnitude of his mistake, that is by the by after he gifted possession to the opposition.
Hasenhuttl’s plan not to bring in a player at the time was admirable but it now appears foolish. He cannot change his backline as he is unable to bring in a new face who can shore things up between now and May as the Saints battle bravely against relegation.
They are better than both Fulham and Huddersfield Town, the sides below them, but their standard of football has been so poor that it is faint praise. Newcastle United, in 16th, invested in January and so too did Cardiff, in 17th. They both look better for it.
Saints have to get by with what they have and it may well work. Hasenhuttl may rouse his men and inspire them. He has done it before – they went five unbeaten before their defeat to Cardiff – but the circumstances were different. Then, Southampton were buoyed by a new appointment, believing in a manager whose methods were new and exciting.
Now, the real test begins, as Hasenhuttl attempts to pull Southampton out of the mire. Winning is a fantastic habit because it is so hard to do; losing, on the other hand, is a terrible habit, as it can be so very difficult to break.
We will never know if new signings would have pulled Saints clear of trouble but one thing is certain – failing to bring anybody in has inevitably made the quest for survival harder.
أفادت تقارير صحفية إيطالية، أن نادي يوفنتوس يسعى لتمديد عقد لاعبه الشاب، جيانلوكا فرابوتا، بعد تألقه في مباراة سامبدوريا أمس.
يوفنتوس دخل مباراة سامبدوريا أمس برابوتا بمركز الظهير الأيسر، في ظل غياب أليكس ساندرو بسبب الإصابة.
طالع أيضًا.. تقارير: صفقة تبادلية دفاعية محتملة بين برشلونة ويوفنتوس
بيرلو وثق في لاعب فريق الشباب بـ يوفنتوس، وأعطاه الثقة للمشاركة في المباراة، وبالفعل استمر حتى الدقيقة 67 ودخل بدلًا منه دي تشيليو.
صحيفة “توتو سبورت” الإيطالية، أفادت بأن يوفنتوس سيلتقي مع وكلاء فرابوتا خلال الأيام القادمة، لمناقشة مستقبل اللاعب، في ظل عروض من بريشيا وفيتشنزا من أجل التعاقد معه.
وأشارت الصحيفة على أن يوفنتوس ليس لديه مانع من استمرار فرابوتا، مع ثقة المدرب أندريا بيرلو في امكانياته، كما أن اللاعب يرغب في البقاء والقتال من أجل مكانًا أساسيًا في الفريق الأول.