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The life of a second-choice goalkeeper seems like one of the loneliest jobs in football, and it’s something Simon Mignolet is apparently set to commit to next season.

The former Liverpool number one has resorted to life on the bench following the arrival of Alisson last summer, and although Reds supporters have been enjoying life greatly with the Brazilian keeper in between the sticks, it’s easy to forget that Mignolet is a player still on the books at the Merseyside club, and it is looking like the Belgian keeper will remain for even longer.

According to the Times (subscription needed), Jurgen Klopp is set to keep Mignolet at the club next season as the Liverpool boss values the keeper’s attitude and approach to being number two to Alisson, and the former Sunderland man is taking a big gamble remaining at the Reds.

Mignolet might be the club’s number two keeper, but that doesn’t mean the 31-year-old has actually played a decent amount of games. Last season the Belgian shot-stopper played just two games for Liverpool, both of them resulting in losses as Alisson took the number one spot for both the Premier League and Champions League.

Compare this to other backup keepers playing for top-six clubs, with Petr Cech playing 22 games for Arsenal last season and Chelsea keeper Willy Caballero starting nine times for the Blues, and you can see that giving Mignolet the title of “backup keeper” is a bit off the mark.

Klopp has shown that he is someone who likes to stick with the best option, and for Mignolet next year, that can easily mean he is set for another campaign of sitting on the bench and watching Liverpool from afar.

Liverpool fans, should Mignolet leave this summer? Let us know!

أفادت تقارير صحفية أنّ نادي ليفربول الإنجليزي، مهتم بالتعاقد مع أحد لاعبي فريق إشبيلية الإسباني، في نافذة الانتقالات الشتوية المُقبلة.

وبحسب شبكة “سبورتس مول” البريطانية، فإن ليفربول يرغب في التعاقد مع الحارس الدولي الإسباني الشاب، ألفونسو باستور فاكاس، من صفوف إشبيلية.

وأوضحت الشبكة أنّ هُناك إعجاب من جانب المسؤولين داخل الريدز، بقدرات الحارس صاحب الـ20 عامًا.

اقرأ أيضًا.. تقارير: القبض على عمدة ليفربول بتهمة الرشوة

ليفربول، يملك في مركز حراسة المرمى، البرازيلي أليسون بيكر، والإسباني أدريان، والأول هو من يحرس عرين الريدز، وارتبط الثاني بخطوة الرحيل عن “آنفيلد”، في ظل تراجع مستواه إذ ورط الريدز في أكثر من مُناسبة عندما يُشارك بسبب إصابة أليسون.

وأشارت الشبكة إلى أنّ ليفربول، سيواجه مُنافسة من جانب نادي ريال مدريد الإسباني،  والذي يرغب كذلك في التعاقد مع ألفونسو باستور.

باستور لديه عقد مع إشبيلية ينتهي بنهاية موسم 2020/2021 الجاري، في 30 يونيو 2021، ويحق له التفاوض مع أي نادٍ؛ اعتبارًا من الأول من يناير القادم دون العودة لإدارة ناديه.

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West Ham United have a major problem they need to address.

As co-owners David Gold and David Sullivan continue to plot the club’s summer business – Aleksandar Mitrovic at Fulham is a target, while Salomon Rondon has been touted as a potential acquisition – there is a very real question to be asked about the club’s academy. Quite simply: where is the next star coming from?

Now, it is at this point that Hammers fans, as one, shout the name Declan Rice. And, yes, he did technically progress through the club’s youth ranks but the salient point is that he started at Chelsea. He only joined the Irons after his release from the Blues – that, clearly, was a mistake on the Blues’ part but it was simply a triumph of transfer strategy from West Ham instead of a major landmark in the club’s youth system.

In the first-team, only Grady Diangana, the 21-year-old who was in the starting XI just six times in 2018-19, has come through the academy. Mark Noble, the player who seems to have claret and blue blood running through his veins, started at Arsenal.

This wouldn’t necessarily be a problem if the Hammers squad wasn’t ageing as it is.

But there does not appear to be many players on the verge of a breakthrough; West Ham’s Under-23 team, amazingly, were relegated from the Premier League 2 this term. They ended the season with 26 points and lost 12 of their 22 games.

Now, of course, a number of Under-23 players are often sent out on loan – nine of the players listed on the official website in the development squad were shipped out this season – but even they have not had the best impact.

One such example, striker Toni Martinez, once hailed as the next great hope in east London, spent the season with CD Lugo in the Spanish second-tier. He scored just three goals in 27 La Liga 2 appearances.

Now, again, it bears repeating that this isn’t a big issue for most clubs in England; Manchester City, the best team in the land, have had one academy graduate, Phil Foden, come through in the last five years.

But West Ham pride themselves on being the “Academy of Football”. They have nurtured the likes of Rio Ferdinand, Frank Lampard, Joe Cole and Michael Carrick, England internationals and Premier League winners all.

This time around, it’s different. Perhaps the game has moved on. West Ham’s catchment area, after all, is remarkably close to that of Tottenham Hotspur, Arsenal and Chelsea; all three are probably better bets if a young player wants to grow and develop.

It might not matter to Gold and Sullivan; they splash the cash every summer and there appears little desire to bring through the next Ferdinand or Lampard.

But there should be.

It is what West Ham was founded on. They are a club who prides themselves on making stars instead of buying them and, let’s face it, they simply can’t afford to buy them, not in this inflated market.

They may well sign Rondon, a 29-year-old striker, this summer. And that’s fine, as he’ll probably be great.

But Gold and Sullivan need to take care of the youth academy too; they need to funnel cash into it and to attract the best young talent from across the country. It is a win-win.

If the next Lampard emerges, there is instantly a massive profit. If not, at least the Under-23s team will have some players who can save them from another embarrassing relegation.

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Speaking to Wolves’ official club website this week, former footballer Robbie Savage has hinted that stability is key for the club if they’re to achieve their ambitions.

What’s he said?

Wolves have been one of the stories of the season after being promoted from the Championship last term. They’ve been a joy to watch and now sit on the verge of achieving Europa League football for the 2019/20 season.

The club are confirmed to finish seventh in the league, but if Watford beat Manchester City in the FA Cup final then they’ll miss out completely.

The club’s Managing Director, Jamie Dalrymple, told Football Focus in quotes relaid by Birmingham Live in October that the club’s ultimate aim was to get European football.

But with Nuno Santo’s team now on the cusp, pundit Savage has claimed that stability will be vital for the Midlands side going forward. With that in mind, he hinted that there could be no limit in terms of Wolves’ future success. The Welshman told their club website:

“On 606 at the beginning of the season, we had a few Wolves fans call up saying ‘we’re going to get into the Champions League’ and ‘we want to win the league’ – we laughed, but you can see why they said that.

“We know what the aims and ambitions are and the way Wolves are going to do it, but stability is the most important thing in the Premier League. Stay in the league for three or four years, and then try to break into the top six. If they can do that, build each year, get better and better, then who knows what the limit is for Wolves.”

Wolves must capitalise on this season

As we’ve seen with Leicester since they were promoted, the sky is the absolute limit for clubs nowadays.

It would be extreme to suggest that Wolves have a chance of winning the title, but Savage is absolutely right to claim that stability is now the key. However, it’s also pivotal that they don’t get ahead of themselves.

Last season we saw Burnley finish in seventh place, only to be knocked out in the Europa League qualifying rounds and find themselves in danger of relegation.

Raul Jimenez is turning it on for Wolves and Mexico right now! He definitely deserves the song in the video below…

Wolves have a considerably greater amount of quality than Sean Dyche’s side but there is a danger, with the lack of squad depth they have, that they may suffer from a bout of second season syndrome.

Therefore, the club simply has to capitalise on their good season. If Nuno is able to build on their phenomenal campaign this time around, we could easily see Wolves making strides towards an even better league finish.

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Mesut Ozil has established himself as one of the most mercurial talents in the Premier League since he joined Arsenal from Real Madrid in 2013.

The enigmatic playmaker has the ability to be a world beater on his day but consistency has eluded him throughout his time in English football.

It’s a theme which supporters from Arsenal and elsewhere have picked up on, and now fans have taken to Twitter to underline his erratic form following a tweet made by talkSPORT.

The media outlet asked fans to name which player had the biggest gap from their best and worst performances, provoking plenty of responses in the comment section.

Some fans labelled the likes of Moussa Sissoko and Eden Hazard, both of whom have displayed strong levels of inconsistency in their respective careers, but Ozil was a name who consistently cropped up.

It’s fair to say that the ex Germany international showed tangible signs against Napoli that he is close to hitting top form, with his neat footwork and seamless ability to link the play enhancing the Gunners potency in the final-third.

But, as the fans have alluded to, it may now be some time before his next positive display.

Here’s what fans had to say about Ozil in response to the talkSPORT tweet…

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Former Arsenal star Charlie Nicholas has backed Tottenham Hotspur to beat Ajax in their Champions League semi-final, per Sky Sports.

What’s he said?

Spurs progressed to the last four after beating Manchester City over two legs, with the second leg perhaps the most controversial tie in the Champions League this season.

Mauricio Pochettino’s men lost 4-3 on the night but their third goal was vital, Fernando Llorente diverting the ball past Ederson with a combination of his hip and his elbow. The referee, Cuneyt Cakir, awarded the goal but ruled out Raheem Sterling’s last-gasp winner due to an offside in the build-up. With Spurs having won the first leg 1-0, they advanced on away goals.

Ajax, meanwhile, defeated Juventus 3-2 on aggregate, having thumped Real Madrid 5-3 in the Round of 16.

And Nicholas believes that the English club have the talent required to best their Dutch counterparts in the first leg at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on Tuesday.

He said: “Tottenham are hitting this awkward spell at the moment. Are they the favourites? They have never been here before. Ajax, as players, have never been there before but their side have on some occasions.

“This young side do not have any fear, they have five or six super young players who know how to get the job done. Dusan Tadic didn’t have the consistency at Southampton but he and Daley Blind have been great.

“Tottenham, on their day, with the pace of Lucas Moura, alongside the skill of Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli, are guaranteed to score. I feel Ajax will play and open up the game, Spurs could afford to let Manchester City come onto them, but they will see more possession here.

“I see Tottenham securing the first-leg advantage ahead of next week’s return in Amsterdam.”

Surprise prediction

As an ex-Arsenal man, this is something of a shocking prediction from Nicholas.

Indeed, this is a really difficult tie to predict for anyone who has followed both clubs in Europe.

Ajax have beaten two European giants already this season, eliminating both Juve and Real from the competition, and it would not be a surprise if they were to dump Spurs out too.

Mauricio Pochettino’s men, though, ran rampant against Borussia Dortmund – winning 4-0 on aggregate – and also earned a draw with Barcelona in the Camp Nou in the group stages.

The semi-final, then, could go either way and it is a surprise that Nicholas has come off the fence with a prediction that Arsenal fans are sure to disagree with!

يتفاوض 4 لاعبين من برشلونة الإسباني، على تجديد عقودهم مع الفريق الكتالوني في الموسم الجاري.

وبحسب شبكة “ESPN” تأتي هذه المفاوضات كجزء من إجراءات خفض الرواتب، في ظل تأثير وباء كورونا على الوضع الاقتصادي للنادي.

ويؤكد التقرير أن ثنائي البارسا، فيليب كوتينيو وأنطوان جريزمان، من بين اللاعبين، الذين يتفاوضون على عقود جديدة.

ويجري سيرجيو بوسكيتس وسيرجي روبرتو، محادثات أيضًا بشأن تجديد الشروط حيث يواصل برشلونة البحث عن طرق للحد من التداعيات المالية لوباء كورونا.

اقرأ أيضًا.. تقارير تكشف تطورات حالة جوردي ألبا قبل مباراة الكلاسيكو

وكان برشلونة قد أعلن عن تجديد عقود رباعي الفريق جيرارد بيكيه ومارك أندريه تير شتيجن وفرينكي دي يونج وكليمنت لينجليه بالفعل (طالع التفاصيل).

وأكد برشلونة أن العقود الجديدة للرباعي تتضمن تعديلاً مؤقتًا للراتب بسبب الظروف الحالية التي أحدثتها أزمة فيروس كورونا.

وقالت مصادر لـ “ESPN” إن هذا يعني أنهم قبلوا تخفيض أجورهم لموسم 2020-21 ولكن سيتم دفع أجرهم في السنوات الأخيرة من عقودهم الجديدة.

ويتفاوض كوتينيو وجريزمان، اللذان تستمر عقودهما حتى 2023 و 2024 على التوالي، على تعديل مماثل لعقودهما، مما سيساعد النادي على خفض الإنفاق لهذا الموسم.

It has been a fascinating automatic promotion race in the Championship this season, hasn’t it?

In what has developed into a three-way battle for the top-two positions, Leeds United, Sheffield United and Norwich City have all swapped places in recent months yet it is the Canaries who now find themselves five points clear of their rivals.

Nevertheless, with seven games left this season, there is still a lot to play for and so there should be no reason why Marcelo Bielsa’s Whites cannot win the title in May, especially if they embark on a long-winning run.

21 points from their remaining fixtures would see Leeds reach a total of 97 points which has been enough to finish in first position for the last twenty seasons in the second tier. Although this would be an almighty ask for Bielsa’s side, even five victories and two losses should see them challenge Norwich. The Canaries’ run-in includes tough fixtures against Sheffield Wednesday and Aston Villa who are both challenging for a play-off position whilst an away trip to relegation-threatened Wigan Athletic could prove to be a potential issue for Daniel Farke’s side.

If they do slip-up, Leeds should be prepared to take advantage and could use the goal of winning the title to avoid any complacency in the coming weeks. With Sheffield United just two points behind the Whites in the league, Bielsa’s men will need to be on top-form to fend off their Yorkshire rivals and so they could use this pressure to keep tabs with Norwich which will in-turn create a fascinating crescendo to what has already been a season to remember in the Championship.

Lifting the title in May has over the years traditionally resulted in the side maintaining their Premier League status for the following campaign with the only exceptions in the last six years being Cardiff City in 2014.

What do you think Leeds fans? Can your side still launch a late bid for the title? Do you think it matters how you achieve promotion? Let us know below.

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Tottenham Hotspur fans have rejected the idea of signing Gareth Bale from Real Madrid this summer.

The Wales international became a star at White Hart Lane between 2007 and 2013, earning himself a then world-record move to the Santiago Bernabeu.

However, things have turned sour in Spain for Bale, despite the former Southampton starlet winning four Champions League trophies as well as La Liga and three UEFA Super Cups.

The forward has been booed by the Santiago Bernabeu crowd on several occasions, leading to his agent calling the Real fans “nothing short of a disgrace”, per Sky Sports News.

There have subsequently been a number of perhaps optimistic suggestions from fans about a return to Spurs this summer, with The Mirror reporting earlier this month that he could be used as bait for Real to sign Christian Eriksen.

However, most supporters appear to be of a more sensible persuasion and have poo-pooed the idea, with many insisting that Spurs – who have not signed a player in the last two transfer windows – would never countenance the idea of signing such a global star.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

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Tottenham Hotspur are lining up a move for FC Copenhagen midfielder Robert Skov, according to Sky Sports News.

Spurs are one of a number of Premier League clubs currently watching the 22-year-old, along with the likes of Wolves, West Ham and Watford.

What’s the word?

Skov, a Denmark Under-21 international, has enjoyed a remarkably prolific campaign in his native country thus far this season.

Playing as a right winger, he has scored 24 goals in 38 appearances in all competitions and has also laid on six assists.

That tally includes the winner in Copenhagen’s only Europa League victory this season, a 2-1 success over Bordeaux.

Sky Sports News report that Spurs are keen to recruit a versatile attacking player who can support Harry Kane from the flank, and have subsequently identified Skov as a potential target.

The 22-year-old, who is yet to make his senior debut for Denmark, has only been with his current club for a season, having cost them just under £1million last summer, per the aforementioned report.

A gamble

Spurs definitely need a right winger this summer but recruiting Skov would be a gamble.

Copenhagen are almost guaranteed to turn a tidy profit on the player, with Premier League clubs circling.

It would mark a significant show of faith, however, if Spurs were to secure a player from the Danish top-flight.

Vincent Janssen is perhaps the example. Having scored 32 goals and laid on seven assists in just 49 appearances for Dutch side AZ Alkmaar, the north London outfit identified him as the perfect man to offer support to Kane.

Instead, he has scored just six times for the club and is almost certain to leave in the summer.

Spurs had better tread carefully around Skov, then.