All posts by h79snht.top

In the post-Big-Sam era at West Ham there has been a fresh sense of optimism.

Slaven Bilic has arrived amongst a wave of investment from the board andthe move to the Olympic Stadium has brought about a feeling of ambition to the Claret and Blue part of London.

The arrivals of Enner Valencia, Diafra Sakho and Alex Song last summer were just a taster of what we were to expect for the summer of 2015. Angelo Ogbonna, Dimitri Payet and Carl Jenkinson have all arrived this summer  and, by all accounts, this will not be the end of a potentially seismic change in the threat of West Ham.

It is also reported that Alex Song is due to join on a permanent deal this summer.

The fans of the club  were demanding a winger or striker, with Stewart Downing seemingly on his way back to the north-east. So here are five ‘star names’ West Ham could still sign this summer…

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Javier Hernandez

Fresh from a loan spell with Real Madrid, a signing of Hernandez’s stature would be massive for West Ham. The Mexican international would bring welcome competition for Diafra Sakho for the central striking berth.

His goal scoring record at both club and international level is up with some of the best finishers in the game, but limitations make a move to a top European club unlikely unless Chicarito is willing to sit on the bench once more.

For West Ham to bring in a player from the Bernabeu and Old Trafford would be yet another statement of intent going into the new season.

Adrien Rabiot

Amazingly, Rabiot is still just 20 and the PSG man has been around the highest level of the European games for several seasons now. Unfortunately for him, the emergence of Marco Verratti and continued class of Thiago Motta have made any progress to the first team very challenging.

Rabiot boasts an exceptional pass percentage from last season and at his age will be looking for a move where he can guarantee starts throughout the season. The potential of the Frenchman is still unquestionably high and would bring an extra layer of class to the West Ham midfield.

Kevin Mirallas

One who looks to be on the move this summer, with Spurs interested, Mirallas could be the extra winger that Hammers fans are crying for. The Belgian is another from this incredible generation and brings goals from a wide position whilst offering a direct dribbling threat to his full-back.

The Everton man is comfortable moving into the channels to create space for an overlapping full-back, whether it be Aaron Cresswell or Jenkinson, and his eye for goal could see him used as a second striker.

Mirallas would not be an extortionate purchase and his Premier League experience should reduce any potential settling in time.

Paul Georges-Ntep

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This tricky dribbler from Rennes has shown great promise in Ligue 1. His contribution of nine goals and five assists last season would be a welcome addition to the West Ham side and additional depth with a Europe League campaigning looming.

Ntep can play on either side of the pitch and frequently looks to cut in for a shot at goal. At the tender age of 22, there will be inconsistencies in Ntep’s game and any fan base or manager will need to be patient, but if they were to see the Frenchman reach his potential he would be one of the danger men in the Premier League.

Gervinho

Despite nearly leaving Roma this summer, Gervinho is still available as the Italians look to strengthen.

Many English fans will not have best memories of the Ivorian, but he re-found his form whilst in Italy and begun to look like the player that made Arsenal initially invest in him. The ex-Gunner found some goal scoring form with the Italian giants and his pace finally became of use to stretch games.

The 28-year-old is significantly more experienced than many of the alternatives and would bring valuable European experience for the impending Europa League campaign.

Gervinho would not offer too much in the creation of chances, but as a supporting striker could be quite an asset.

Tottenham Hotspur revealed on Friday that key midfielder Victor Wanyama was back in first-team training following a lengthy absence.

The 26-year-old, who was excellent for Spurs last season, has not featured since the second weekend of the 2017-18 Premier League campaign due to a knee problem.

Wanyama had been tipped to return to action in November, but it is understood that he suffered a series of mini-setbacks in his recovery from the issue.

The former Southampton midfielder is now closing a return to the first team, however, after taking part in a training session for Tottenham.

It is unlikely that Wanyama, who is rated at £22.5m by transfermarkt.co.uk, will be available for Tottenham’s trip to Swansea City on January 2, but he could be involved against West Ham United two days later.

There is no question that Tottenham have missed Wanyama’s bite in the middle of the park, and the club’s fans have revealed their delight at the Kenyan’s return.

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A selection of the best Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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Nobody can fault the efforts of Dale Stephens and Davy Propper this season. The midfield duo have featured in every minute of Brighton’s Premier League campaign, contributing three top flight assists amid all of their tireless work in the middle of the park.

That dependence though, suggests Chris Hughton would be open to signing another midfielder before the end of the January transfer window, should an opportunity allow.

Judging by Beram Kayal’s performance against Crystal Palace last night, however, Hughton already has at least one solid alternative to fall back on in the form of the 5 foot 10 midfielder.

The 29-year-old is only just coming back into the side after being sidelined through injury at the start of the campaign but appeared to be up to full speed last night, providing a Man of the Match display in the FA Cup Third Round clash.

Indeed, the 30-cap Israeli international made the most tackles and completed the most dribbles of any player on the pitch, produced the second-most created chances of any Brighton player and completed a whopping 94% of his passes in an impressive all-round midfield display from the former Celtic man, which was central to the Seagulls progressing to the Fourth Round by beating their fierce rivals 2-1.

Having been at the Amex since 2015, Brighton fans and Hughton will already be aware of what Kayal can offer the team – he made 43 appearances as they achieved promotion last season. But returning to form after an injury layoff just as the January window opens, Kayal’s performance last night was a timely indicator that Hughton doesn’t need to spend big on another midfield option and can focus his funds on other departments this month.

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As reported by The Daily Mail, midfielder Callum McGregor believes the Celtic squad will be hoping that Moussa Dembele stays on in Glasgow beyond the January transfer window.

What’s the story?

The paper say that the Frenchman is a £20m target for English Premier League trio Everton, West Ham and Brighton, meaning that Dembele’s days at Celtic Park could be numbered.

Receiving a figure like that would smash the outgoing transfer record at the Hoops, potentially money unable to be refused if offered this month.

However, like supporters, Celtic midfielder Callum McGregor is hoping that Dembele isn’t coming to the end of his career in Scottish football.

As quoted by The Daily Mail, the Scotland international said:

It’s just about him wanting to be here to kick on, work hard and be part of this group. Obviously all the boys love him and want him to stay and to be part of it. I don’t think he’ll be thinking of going anywhere. In the main, everyone is focused on being here and I don’t think they are thinking about getting away. They just want to keep being successful and staying part of this group.

Should the Hoops sell their star striker or is it time to cash in on his transfer value?

Stick or twist?

There are massive benefits to selling Dembele this month. Not only is the player likely at the peak of his value at Celtic right now, the cash rich clubs of the English Premier League notoriously enjoy a January spend during a period of mid-season panic, further driving up the potential fee.

The striker has had his fair share of injury problems this season and he has failed to replicate the consistent scoring of his first term in Celtic colours, perhaps tempting the club into taking the money.

However, keeping him at Celtic Park for another six months has its own upsides, not least helping the Hoops secure a second domestic treble in a row and progressing in Europe past FC Zenit. Dembele is undoubtedly still the best striker at the club and has the quality to make an impact in the knockout stages of the UEFA Europa League.

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While selling him right now makes sense from a financial point of view, selling him is a risk in playing terms, especially without a replacement lined up.

On Tuesday morning, Marca claimed that Newcastle United were prepared to listen to offers for Spanish midfielder Mikel Merino.

However, Magpies boss Rafael Benitez denied the rumours during his press conference on Tuesday afternoon.

Benitez insisted that the 21-year-old would not be leaving on deadline day despite what had been widely reported by the Spanish media.

The Newcastle fans are unconvinced, however, with many believing that the midfielder could still be sold before the winter transfer window slams shut on Wednesday night.

Merino only made his loan move from Borussia Dortmund permanent in October – signing a five-year contract with the Premier League club.

Merino, who is valued at £9m by transfermarkt.co.uk, has made 18 Premier League appearances this season, but just 12 of those have been starts.

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There is no question that the Spaniard is a popular figure with the Newcastle fans, and many are extremely fearful that he will be sold on transfer deadline day.

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According to reports in The Telegraph on February 5, former Watford manager Marco Silva is reportedly a target for West Ham United if they don’t keep David Moyes on at the end of the season, but Irons fans are not convinced that he would be a good appointment for them.

The Telegraph reported that the east London outfit had already decided that their Scottish boss wouldn’t be kept beyond his current contract even if they stay up – a story which has since been denied by the club – highlighting the currently unemployed Silva as a potential target.

The 40-year-old was sacked by Watford last month following a breakdown in the relationship between the Portuguese boss and the board – as well as with his players – after he was denied the opportunity to speak to Everton about their vacant managerial job back in November.

West Ham supporters were quick to have their say on Silva via social media, and while one said “I’d much rather have Eddie Howe”, another said “never understood the obsession people have with Marco Silva”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Aston Villa got back to winning ways in the English Championship on Saturday, defeating Sheffield Wednesday 4-2.

It was a hugely important three points, especially after poor results in recent matches, and Steve Bruce’s side showed tremendous spirit to come from behind twice to secure victory in the final five minutes of the match.

With the match poised at 2-2 heading into the closing moments, Conor Hourihane popped up with a fierce shot to put them ahead before Robert Snodgrass slotted home a penalty in injury time.

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Fans were delighted with the performance and result for the most part, but did have criticism for midfielder Josh Onomah, whose substitution on the hour mark was the catalyst for the comeback.

Supporters are now calling for him not to be selected in future, believing that the likes of Callum O’Hare would be a far better option.

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Is it time to stop playing the Tottenham Hotspur loan star?

Fans took to Twitter to share their thoughts…

Steven Pienaar announced his retirement from football this week, and needless to say Everton fans are missing him already.The 35 year-old made 189 Premier League appearances for the Toffees, scoring 20 league goals along the way.His announcement left some fans yearning for the good old days, reminiscing about the passion and fight players like Pienaar and Tim Cahill showed for the Blues every match.Everton have hit a wall this season. This was supposed to be the season where they break into the league’s elite, but none of the summer’s big money signings have made the desired impact. Sandro Ramirez has been loaned out to Sevilla, Davy Klaassen has hardly played and Michael Keane has been a disappointment.The club posted several tributes to Pienaar, which was met with mixed responses from the fans. While some had nothing but positive things to say, others couldn’t miss the opportunity to have a dig at their club’s current condition.A selection of the responses can be seen below…

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Thierry Henry has praised Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain after the midfielder disputed the Frenchman’s earlier criticism.

Henry was heavily critical of Oxlade-Chamberlain when he made the move from North London to Liverpool this summer, but says the Englishman deserves plaudits for his form at Liverpool.

“I still don’t know what he’s good at,” Henry said when the 24-year-old left Arsenal, comments that were recently branded “stupid” by the midfielder.

Oxlade-Chamberlain had a tricky start to his career at Anfield, making appearances from the bench in thrashings at Manchester City and Spurs.

Since then however, the speedy ex-Gunner has found his feet in Jürgen Klopp’s system, and even started adding end product to his performances, something he always lacked at Arsenal.

He has three goals and five assists in the league for Liverpool this season, after only managing nine goals and 14 assists in 132 league games for the Gunners.

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Henry said in his Sky Sports column:

“At Arsenal, there has always been a lot of debate as to what Oxlade-Chamberlain’s best position is.

“One day he was a wing back, one day he was a left winger, one day a right winger and on another a number 10. That was the problem, we just didn’t know.”

“For Liverpool, we are now seeing a midfielder that puts the pressure on the opposition at every opportunity, he wins the ball back, he scores goals and also gives assists. Now we can see clearly what type of player he is.”

As Henry says, Oxlade-Chamberlain was a utility man at Arsenal, moving positions every week and never really finding his best form. Klopp has deployed him mostly as an advanced central midfielder with two more defensive minded players supporting him, and he has flourished.

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The 24-year-old has been in fantastic form recently, providing assists to Mohamed Salah in both of Liverpool’s last two fixtures. He will be hoping to keep his starting place for the trip to Old Trafford next weekend.

If Oxlade-Chamberlain can keep his form until the summer, he should be at the top of Gareth Southgate’s list for central midfielders, especially if the likes of Eric Dier and Jordan Henderson are placed behind him to do the dirty work.

Liverpool fans, let us know your thoughts in the comments below.

According to Telefoot, Paris Saint-Germain are considering a move for Manchester United goalkeeper David de Gea at the end of the 2017-18 campaign.

What’s the story?

It is generally accepted that De Gea has developed into the finest goalkeeper in world football over the last couple of seasons.

The 27-year-old arrived at United from Atletico Madrid in the summer of 2011, and has been absolutely outstanding for the Red Devils in recent years.

Real Madrid continue to be linked with a move for the Spain international, but according to Telefoot, PSG are also in the race.

The report claims that the French giants – who have again fallen short in the Champions League this season – want an upgrade on current number one Alphonse Areola.

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There is no question that PSG have the finances to compete for De Gea’s signature, but it would be a huge surprise if United held off interest from Real Madrid just to sell to the French giants.

Should United fans be worried?

De Gea’s contract with United will expire in the summer of 2019, and the club are currently working on a fresh deal for the Spain international.

The goalkeeper, who is valued at £45m by transfermarkt.co.uk, came extremely close to joining Real Madrid in the summer of 2015, only for a faulty fax machine to prevent the deal from taking place.

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De Gea has continually insisted that he is happy at United, and the club’s progression since Jose Mourinho took charge places the Red Devils in a strong position.

The PSG project might well be of interest to De Gea, but the French side disappointed in the Champions League once again, and it is difficult to imagine the goalkeeper leaving United for any team other than Real Madrid.

Things are certainly looking up at United following a difficult few years, which makes any deal at the end of this season extremely hard to believe.