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According to a report in The Daily Record, Leeds United are one of five English clubs who have been scouting Motherwell winger Jake Hastie following some impressive displays, and suggests that the Yorkshire outfit are already on the lookout for their next Jack Clarke.

What’s the word, then?

Well, The Daily Record report that scouts from the Yorkshire outfit, Norwich City, West Bromwich Albion, Swansea City and Sunderland all watched the 19-year-old in action in his side’s 2-1 win against St Mirren on Wednesday, and witnessed him score a brilliant goal.

The Daily Record says Motherwell are facing a big battle to keep hold of the exciting attacker this summer with the raft of interest in the player, whom they say could be available for a cut-price development fee at the end of the season.

The report adds that the teenager and the club are some distance apart in terms of agreeing a new contract, and his future at Fir Park Stadium hangs in the balance even though he has only made five first-team appearances for them this term, scoring an eye-catching four goals.

Leeds looking for their next Jack Clarke?

Quite possibly.

It was no secret that the Whites youngster was attracting interest from a number of top flight clubs including Tottenham Hotpsur during the January transfer window, as per The Mirror, and while they will be confident of keeping them if they win promotion, it could be more of a battle if they fail to.

Even if the Yorkshire outfit do keep Clarke at Elland Road they will still want to look for another young player that can make a similar impact to the one that the 18-year-old has already made for them in the future, and Hastie would certainly be that.

The two youngsters have the quality and potential to be on either wing for years to come if Leeds decide to make their move this summer.

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

Crystal Palace supporters have been in high spirits in recent times after seeing their side get back to winning ways in the Premier League on Saturday.

Roy Hodgson’s men went into their encounter with struggling Fulham at Selhurst Park having drawn one and lost two of their last three league games, a run which saw them fall towards the division’s bottom three. But the Eagles now sit 14th in the table after a routine 2-0 success over Claudio Ranieri’s Cottagers, with goals from Luka Milivojevic and Jeffrey Schlupp inspiring the hosts to a seventh Premier League win of the season, which in turn moved them four points clear of the relegation zone.

As such, there have been many delighted Palace fans up and down the country in recent times, with supporters likely lauding a fine team effort from their side on Saturday to finally get back to winning ways in the league for the first time since January 2.

And while it was Milivojevic and Schlupp that came up with the vital contributions, it was the performance of Mamadou Sakho in the heart of the Eagles backline that epitomised everything brilliant about Palace at the weekend.

Ultimately, the 28-year-old has proven to be an inspired addition to the Palace backline following his arrival from Liverpool on a permanent deal back in the summer of 2017, what with the centre back excelling in a loan spell earlier that year to underline his importance to this Eagles side.

And the defender, but for the odd lapse in concentration, continues to prove his worth to Hodgson, and that was none-more-so evident than on Saturday as the France international produced another authoritative display to help Palace to a ninth clean sheet of the season.

The centre back may have only touched the ball on 58 occasions over the course of the 90 minutes, what with Fulham dominating possession for much of the encounter, but Sakho finished the contest with a staggering 98% pass success rate, misplacing only one of the 41 passes he attempted – for what it’s worth, no other Palace starter hit 90% on Saturday (as per WhoScored).

And having someone like that on the ball who is comfortable in possession but invariably picks a pass can only be good news in bringing calmness and a measure of control to the backline – Sakho certainly helped do that at the weekend.

Yet the former Liverpool centre back also did his bit off the ball as well to stop Fulham in their tracks, winning three of the five aerial duels he contested over the course of the 90 minutes, as well as making a joint team-high eight clearances and two interceptions to relieve pressure on the Palace defence.

Clearly then, Sakho helped deliver a performance of note both on and off the ball to help Hodgson’s side to a crucial three points on Saturday, with the £13.5 million-rated ace (as per Transfermarkt) the star in a great team display to underline just how much he epitomised everything brilliant about the Eagles at the weekend.

Palace and Fulham fans… what do you think? Let us know!

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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.

[ad_pod ]Leeds United took a step closer to promotion on Saturday afternoon with a narrow 2-1 victory over Championship strugglers Bolton Wanderers.The weekend result enabled them to keep pace with league leaders Norwich City, who sit two points ahead, albeit having played a game more than the Whites.Promotion fever has gripped Elland Road this season under Marcelo Bielsa, and it appears that it hasn’t taken long for January signing Kiko Casilla to embrace the optimism which has gripped the club in recent months.According to the Yorkshire Evening Post, Leeds’ number one has made a bold claim about the prospect of winning promotion this season:”It would mean more than winning the Champions League,” Casilla said. “It’s the objective we have and this is why I am here.”Clearly, it hasn’t taken Casilla long to appreciate the significance of the narrative which is unfolding in Yorkshire.The fact the 32-year-old stopper was on the periphery at Madrid and played little part in their Champions League triumphs has presumably influenced his stance, but that has not prevented the supporters from gushing over his bold claim.

Indeed, the fans on Twitter were clearly delighted by Casilla’s desire to help Leeds end their top-flight exile, and it seems his popularity has soared in light of his verdict.

Here’s what some of the Leeds fans had to say about Casilla’s comments on Twitter:

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.

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Crystal Palace knocked London neighbours Spurs out of the FA Cup on Sunday and, in doing so, progressed to the fifth round; the game could have been very different had the visitors not been hit with a string of injuries to a number of key players, but Spurs fans were more concerned with one of Palace’s players rather than their own.

Andros Townsend netted his seventh goal of the season in all competitions via the penalty spot and could have had a second but failed to fire either side of Paulo Gazzaniga, instead hitting the cutback straight at the Argentine.

The Eagles winger has played for an incredible twelve English clubs, including Newcastle and Championship leaders Leeds, but seems to have found a home at Selhurst Park after spending much 0f his Spurs career out on loan and is currently enjoying what is surely his best season in the Prem.

Naturally an energetic wide-man, the 27-year-old has been converted into an unorthodox striker this season by Roy Hodgson and is becoming quite good at arriving in the box – meanwhile, Spurs’ Fernando Llorente struggled to get any breathing room and took just 38 touches in ninety minutes as he failed to threaten Palace’s stand-in backline.

After netting from the spot, Townsend’s celebrations were muted, the reasoning for which was explained by the man himself on Twitter, leading to many Spurs fans applauding the number 10 for his class; others took it a step further by stating that they wish he was still in white.

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 above to see for yourself…

You can check out the best of the reaction below…

Mesut Ozil’s long-term future at Arsenal remains unclear despite remaining at the Emirates throughout January.

The German playmaker has looked a shadow of his former self in recent seasons and has struggled for both form as well as fitness under Unai Emery. The Spaniard has left the former Real Madrid man out on many occasions and opted to strengthen his squad by landing Denis Suarez from Barcelona on deadline day. With Ozil currently taking home £350,000-per-week, a summer exit could be likely.

The former Germany international would still command a decent transfer fee and offloading him would give Emery some valuable funds to source a replacement. Ending the current season in the Champions League would also be vital to secure a higher quality of player as well as bolstering their finances.

A perfect replacement for Ozil would be Lyon maestro – Nabil Fekir. Valued at £63m by Transfermarkt, the skipper has been one of the best performers in Ligue 1 for a number of years now. As a result, Liverpool were extremely keen to lure him to the Premier League during the summer before the move collapsed at the last minute due to an issue with his medical.

Nevertheless, Fekir has continued to impress at his current employers but has so far rejected an offer to extend his stay at the club past 2020. The 25-year-old has netted nine goals and registered five assists in all competitions this season and would love to link up with Alexandre Lacazette once again. Adding his creative ability and eye for goal to the Arsenal forward line could give the Gunners the boost they need to challenge for the Premier League title once again.

The playmaker is still improving – replacing Ozil with the World Cup winner would be a fantastic move by the club.

Arsenal fans, thoughts?

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Michail Antonio seems to have a personal vendetta against Liverpool, having always proven to be a thorn in their side when he has faced the Reds.

Against the Merseysiders on Monday night, that narrative was no different as the Englishman fired in what was his fifth goal in seven appearances against them, and in doing so put a real dent in their bid to increase their lead at the top of the table.

Whilst the former Nottingham Forest forward took his goal well – it was his only shot throughout the game – it was his work off the ball and an industrial approach from Antonio that made it difficult for Jurgen Klopp’s side to dominate the game.

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia’s biggest football stars in the video below…

The Hammers, on another day, could’ve won the game against a Liverpool side far from their best, largely thanks to some impressive numbers by Antonio in a tireless display.

As aforementioned, the 28-year-old hit his side’s only goal of the game with his only shot of the match, but he also managed to win a whopping four aerial duels, more than any of his teammates, and more than any player on the pitch but for Virgil van Dijk (seven).

Despite starting as more of a striker, Antonio still managed to defend from the front for Manuel Pellegrini, recording two tackles and two interceptions to go alongside his aerial dominance to truly pester the Reds all over the pitch.

The former Reading and Southampton man has helped blow the title race wide open with his heroic display, which has pleased the masses (barring Liverpool fans) greatly as some were fearful of the Merseyside outfit running away with it.

Additionally, after a dismal showing away to Wolves before Monday’s fixture, Antonio ensured that the London Stadium faithful forgot all about that as they witnessed what was a tactical masterclass from Pellegrini, made to work so effectively by Antonio’s excellent performance.

Crystal Palace had some highs and lows in January, in what turned out to be a mixed month. 

The Eagles came very close to beating league leaders Liverpool, and overcame Tottenham in the FA Cup- both being superb performances.

Equally, this was going to be a significant month in the transfer window, as they entered it with some glaring deficiencies in their squad that needed to be resolved.

With that in mind, these are the two biggest mistakes Crystal Palace made over the transfer window:

Not signing a striker soon enough

The chronic lack of form from The Eagles’ strikers has forced manager Roy Hodgson to field wingers Wilfried Zaha and Andros Townsend in that position for most of the season so far. They desperately needed a new striker and it should have been a matter of urgency. Therefore, it is bizarre that they waited until Deadline Day to bring in a new player.

Palace signed Michy Batshuayi on loan from Chelsea in the final hours of the transfer window, in what may be a very good signing indeed. The Belgian had a wonderful time with Borussia Dortmund in the Bundesliga last season, and while his loan at Valencia didn’t go to plan for the first half of this season, he still has undoubted talent.

But had Palace signed the 25-year-old, or a player of his ilk sooner, they may have avoided some troublesome results in January. The Eagles lost to Watford at home and drew with Southampton away. Had they had the striker that they were wanting, the results could have been different. They are only hovering four points above the relegation zone, and those sacrificed five points could prove to be costly.

Re-signing Bakary Sako

Now this is not necessarily saying that Bakary Sako is a bad player, but it is hard to see what he has done to warrant returning to Selhurst Park.

The 30-year-old was released by Palace at the end of last season, and was signed for free by Championship outfit West Brom. He started a total of two Championship games during his time with The Baggies, and while he may have worked his way back to fitness, he did not exactly take the team by storm.

He may thrive again at Palace, but this is a bit of a faux-pas by them signing a player that was deemed not good enough at the beginning of the season.

تسبب لاعب وسط الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي آرسنال، محمد النني، في حيرة لمدربه الحالي في الجانرز، ميكل أرتيتا، قبل مباراة وست هام يونايتد في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

ويستعد آرسنال لخوض ثاني لقاءاته الرسمية في البطولة مساء اليوم، السبت، في تمام الساعة التاسعة مساءًا بتوقيت “القاهرة” على ملعب “الآمارات”.

وأفادت صحيفة “ديلي إكسبريس” البريطانية بأن تألق النني كان مفاجئًا للجميع أمام فولهام في المباراة الأولى في الدوري الإنجليزي وعلى رأسهم أرتيتا.

اقرأ أيضًا.. طرابزون التركي: لا نستطيع تحمل راتب محمد النني

وقدم النني مباراة فنية رائعة في وسط الملعب بجانب جرانيت شاكا، وهو ما يضع أرتيتا في حيرة لأن في الموسم الماضي كان الإسباني يعتمد بشكل كبير على، داني سيبايوس، بجانب السويسري.

وتشير الصحيفة إلى أن وجود سيبايوس سيمنح وسط نادي آرسنال لمسة إبداعية أكثر من النني في حالة مشاركته، وربما يكون ميزة إضافية لكتيبة أرتيتا في مواجهة ديفيد مويس.

فهل يستغنى أرتيتا عن النني أم سيبايوس في مواجهة اليوم؟، خاصة بعد نجاح آرسنال في التوصل لاتفاق مع ريال مدريد لاستمرار الأخير على سبيل الإعارة لمدة موسم آخر.