[ad_pod ]Leicester City defender Harry Maguire is set to be fit to face Liverpool at Anfield on Wednesday evening, after making a full recovery from a knock sustained in the dramatic 4-3 loss to Wolves in the Foxes’ last Premier League outing, as reported by the club’s official Twitter account.

Whilst that may seem like good news for Claude Puel and Leicester, it could also be a blessing in disguise for the Reds.

Why could it be a good thing?

Whilst the England international is undoubtedly the Foxes’ best defender, his few weaknesses could be exploited to the maximum against Jurgen Klopp’s side. The 25-year-old is a commanding, physically imposing presence who is surprisingly very good on the ball, although his lack of pace and noticeable immobility could and should be taken advantage of at Anfield.

Those of you who remember this same fixture on Merseyside from last season should recall the joy Mohamed Salah had against the former Hull City man, in which he turned Maguire and made him look foolish before slotting into the back of the net.

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…

Could the same happen again?

Maguire has since embarked on a memorable World Cup campaign with the Three Lions, becoming a household name in the process as he won admirers from all over the country, although he may not be the same player against the Reds on Wednesday evening.

Leicester are in a bit of a rut and have lost four of their last five games, and after being cut apart by Wolves like a hot knife through butter on more than one occasion last time out, the game against a Liverpool side who are top of the league could expose Maguire in noticeable fashion.

Salah is one of the quickest players in the league, and his new role as a central striker will see him come up directly against Maguire – if you were to ask me who I think would win the battle, I’d say the Egyptian could have a very fun evening against the team from the east Midlands.

قال مدرب فريق إيفرتون، كارلو أنشيلوتي، أن رؤية اللاعب الإسباني تياجو ألكانتارا وهو ينتقل إلى صفوف فريق ليفربول، حطمت قلبه.

وكان ليفربول قد أعلن، أمس الجمعة، حصوله على خدمات تياجو ألكانتارا من صفوف بايرن ميونخ بعد سلسلة من المفاوضات بين الناديين.

وقال أنشيلوتي، في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “ليفربول إيكو” الإنجليزية: “انتقال تياجو ألكانتارا إلى ليفربول؟ لقد حطم قلبي (مازحًا)”.

وأضاف: “تياجو صديق، إنه لاعب رائع، لاعب خط وسط رائع، لقد حالفني الحظ في مسيرتي لتدريب أفضل اللاعبين، وتياجو واحد منهم”.

وسبق لـ تياجو ألكانتارا اللعب تحت قيادة أنشيلوتي، عندما كان الأخير مسؤولًا عن تدريب بايرن ميونخ الألماني.

اقرأ أيضًا.. كيف تحولت بوصلة ألكانتارا من التجديد مع بايرن ميونخ إلى ليفربول؟

وواصل: “الشيء الجيد الوحيد في هذا التوقيع هو أنه أصبح جارنا في المدينة وهذا كل شيء، أعتقد أنه اختار الفريق الخطأ، يمكنه اختيار الفريق الأزرق وليس الفريق الأحمر، أنا أمزح، إنه لاعب رائع وكلوب صديقي سيكون سعيدًا”.

وعاد من جديد ليؤكد: “نعم، هذا التوقيع حطم قلبي”.

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Blackburn Rovers recently announced that manager Tony Mowbray has reached the two-year mark in his tenure at Ewood Park.

Mowbray took charge of Rovers in February 2017, at which point the club were struggling in the Championship. The 55-year-old manager was not able to keep them in the second tier, but he had instigated an improvement in form and retained his position into the new League One season.

Venky’s Ltd, the owners of Blackburn Rovers, retained faith in Mowbray and were repaid when he brought the club back into the Championship at the first time of asking.

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

Now, Rovers are undergoing a period of poor form, having lost their last four league outings, but they look to be safe from any relegation fears this time around. Considering the state of the club when Mowbray came in, the coach must be commended for the work he has done in steadying the ship and restoring the side as an aspirational one, rather than a fearful, failing one. 

Following the club’s two-year announcement, plenty of Rovers fans took to Twitter to applaud the work Mowbray has done so far…

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According to an interview with Danish media outlet Ekstra Bladet, via HITC, Sampdoria defender Joachim Andersen has confirmed that he would be interested in joining Tottenham Hotspur in the summer.

The Independent reported in January that Spurs were lining up a £35million bid for the centre-back, though no move materialised, but Andersen has given the north London outfit hope that the transfer could happen this summer.

What’s the word?

Andersen has missed just one game for Sampdoria in Serie A this season, through suspension, and has made a total of 23 appearances in all competitions.

The defender signed a new contract in November, amid reported interest from Inter Milan.

Former Wigan & Fulham man, Jimmy Bullard recently showed that he’s still got it! Check out the video below…

However, he says he is open to a move away from the Italian club and name-checked Mauricio Pochettino’s side.

He told Ekstra Bladet, per HITC: “It’s hard to say [which is my favourite league]. England, Spain or Italy. But it comes mostly to the club, which must have a good plan for me, and it must make sense in the long term.

“I have to take the right steps at the right times. So I don’t really care if it’s Tottenham, Inter or Atlético Madrid.”

Spurs currently have Toby Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen and Davinson Sanchez at centre-back, but there is a clause in Alderweireld’s contract allowing him to leave the club for £25m in the summer.

Replacement plans

Spurs appear to be making plans for Alderweireld’s departure.

The Belgian has been a stand-out performer for the club but it looks as though his time in north London is coming to an end.

Vertonghen, too, is 31, approaching the twilight of his career.

Andersen fits the profile of Mauricio Pochettino signings – he is just 22 and has played for Denmark at various youth levels.

He is yet to play for the senior side, but Spurs have a history of crafting young prospects into top-level international footballers.

Andersen could be the next to thrive under the Argentine.

أكدت قناة “سكاي سبورت إيطاليا”، أن أرتورو فيدال سيتوجه هناك غدًا من أجل الخضوع للفحص الطبي مع إنتر ميلان.

وكشف التقرير أن برشلونة وافق على رحيل فيدال إلى إنتر ميلان مقابل مليون يورو فقط، بالإضافة إلى المكافآت.

من المتوقع أن يسافر فيدال غدًا لإجراء الفحص الطبي يوم الاثنين، حيث سيوقع عقدًا لمدة عامين.

اقرأ أيضًا.. بيانيتش يعلق على مشاركته الأولى مع برشلونة.. ويكشف عن تعليمات كومان

كان أنطونيو كونتي يطلب لم الشمل مع نجم يوفنتوس السابق منذ اللحظة التي تولى فيها منصبه كمدير فني في إنتر ميلان.

وقد سبق ولعب فيدال تحت قيادة كونتي في صفوف يوفنتوس، حين كان الأخير مدربًا للسيدة العجوز.

West Ham fans will be over the moon to see Marko Arnautovic commit his long-term future to the club.

Speculation raged on throughout January after it emerged that an unnamed Chinese club were interested in the Austrian international. Bids of around £35m were rejected by the Hammers but rumours persisted that Arnautovic was keen to make the move to Asia. However, the former Stoke man put an end to the links by committing his long-term future to the London Stadium, penning a new long-term contract.

Manuel Pellegrini is now able to build his team around his star forward and improved form in the coming weeks could help secure a return to Europe. Ending the season in a European place would benefit the Hammers greatly in the summer as they would be able to attract a much higher calibre of player.

One man Pellegrini could look to lure to east London is Hoffenheim maestro – Kerem Demirbay. Valued at £18m by Transfermarkt, the 25-year-old has established himself as one of Germany’s top midfielders despite struggling with injuries in recent seasons. Finally, Demirbay is back to full fitness and is showing fans exactly what they’ve been missing out on.

The former Borussia Dortmund man is one of the world’s most complete midfielders, effortlessly combining defence and attack. He loves to get stuck in, averaging 2.3 tackles per game, but also has the quality to dictate the tempo of the game. Demirbay’s creative ability would be music to the ears of Arnautovic as the German has averaged an incredible 3.2 key passes per game in the Bundesliga this season (WhoScored).

Demirbay, who was once linked with Liverpool, has all the attributes to be a massive success in England and Pellegrini should do all he can to lure him to the Premier League.

West Ham fans, thoughts?

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Leeds United supporters are bound to be hoping for changes this weekend when Marcelo Bielsa takes his promotion-chasing side to the north east to face Tony Pulis’ Middlesbrough.

Defeat against Norwich City last weekend made it three defeats from five for a side who have looked more than capable of ending their top-flight exile this season.

Daniel Farke’s exuberant side ran riot at Elland Road, though, evoking fresh concerns amongst the Whites faithful regarding their promotion credentials.

With those concerns in mind, plenty of fans are looking for Bielsa to mix things up when Leeds travel to the Riverside Stadium on Saturday, with one player in particular on their radar.

Indeed, Izzy Brown’s form for the development squad in recent weeks has forced some supporters to urge Bielsa to select him this weekend, despite his claim that he will need to play six to eight games before his fitness recovers, as per Yorkshire Evening Post.

Brown has been in electric form in recent weeks, with four goals in four appearances for the development squad hinting that he possesses a killer instinct in front of goal.

Leeds’ downfall against the Canaries may well have been defensively but that has not prevented supporters from suggesting it could be time for Bielsa to include the 22-year-old in the squad.

That the Chelsea loanee is still two appearances short of the six games Bielsa has hinted he needs suggests he’s unlikely to feature, but the Argentine is hardly one to do things by the book.

It would be a shock to select him for such a high-profile clash considering his lengthy absence from senior football, but that has not stopped the fans on Twitter from urging him to make that call.

Here’s what some of the Leeds fans have had to say about a potential call-up for Brown this weekend:

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Liverpool will go head-to-head with Everton this weekend and if spirits weren’t high enough in the Reds camp after the 5-0 demolition of Watford on Wednesday, Jurgen Klopp has announced that Roberto Firmino may be in contention.

The Brazilian missed out against the Hornets due to an injury he suffered in the stalemate with Manchester United and Sadio Mane deputised up front, with Divock Origi occupying Mane’s left-wing spot.

Both stepped up in the 27-year-old’s absence, with the Senegalese netting a tasty brace and the Belgian scoring a well-worked low drive as the Reds ruthlessly ripped their visitors to shreds.

Who have been the biggest title race bottlers? Liverpool? Spurs? The Pl>ymaker FC squad discuss in the video below…

Last season Firmino was perhaps more essential to the Anfield outfit’s success than Mohamed Salah, purely because the team just doesn’t seem to click when he isn’t in it; Wednesday proved this is perhaps no longer the case and, if anything, Liverpool were better off without the former Hoffenheim man.

It would be almost unthinkable for Klopp not to bring the number 9 back in but after Origi’s impressive midweek display lots of Liverpool fans on Twitter aren’t too keen on the idea of dropping the versatile forward in favour of restoring Firmino in the starting XI…

Manuel Pellegrini is surely expected to strengthen his options at right-back during the summer transfer window.

The Hammers signed Ryan Fredericks from Fulham in the summer but the Englishman has struggled to adapt to life in the Premier League. Instead, Pellegrini has used Pablo Zabaleta on the right flank for the majority of the season. However, his long-term future at the club remains unclear with the ex-Manchester City man fast approaching the end of his career.

The 34-year-old has reportedly (as per Claret and Hugh via City Watch) been offered a coaching role at the London Stadium but is yet to confirm whether he will retire from the professional game. Nevertheless, Pellegrini must bolster his options on the right side of defence. Reports from the Daily Mail suggest West Ham are lining up Manchester United veteran Antonio Valencia on a free transfer.

Instead, the Hammers should make a move for Strasbourg flyer – Kenny Lala. Valued at £10.8m by Transfermarkt, the 27-year-old has proved to be a fantastic addition since signing on a free from Lens in the summer of 2017. Lala has been one of the most consistent performers in Ligue 1 this season which should make the West Ham scouts sit up and take notice.

The Frenchman has been a constant threat from the back, scoring an impressive four goals as well as registering nine assists from defence. His blistering pace and dribbling ability make him a nightmare to deal with and would cause plenty of headaches for Premier League defenders. Not only does Lala excel offensively, he doesn’t neglect his defensive duties, averaging an impressive 2.5 tackles per game in Ligue 1 this season (WhoScored).

With his contract set to expire in the summer, West Ham should grab themselves a bargain.

West Ham fans, thoughts?

Steven Gerrard’s quest in winning back the Scottish Premiership has been tarnished with their recent draw to St. Johnstone.

While Gerrard made the Gers dream big with an encouraged fight to Celtic, they’ve fallen short of the mark.

However, all is not lost for Gerrard’s side. There’s still the prestigious Scottish Cup to play for, which has evaded the Gers for almost a decade. If not anything, the narrow win against Celtic before New Year’s proved that Gerrard’s taught them how to win the big matches, something they’ll need in the Cup.

With dominating victories in the earlier rounds, Rangers have proven they’re taking the competition seriously. Considering it’s the only remaining cup they could win, Gerrard will now instil his focus into winning it. Being trophyless for a long time, having last won the Scottish second-tier in 2016 and a proper competition in 2011, Rangers fans are desperate to see some gold.

If Gerrard’s thrilling football’s proved anything, they can definitely dream to expect silverware at the end of the season. Having brought in the experienced Jermaine Defoe in the winter and goal-machine Alfredo Morelos having scored 27 goals in all competitions (stats via WhoScored), The Gers look favourites for the Cup.

They face bitter rivals Aberdeen in the quarter-finals and beating them at the Pittodrie Stadium would be the icing on the cake. However, unlike other seasons, Rangers aren’t convinced at considering a derby win as a trophy. They’re going all out this time, as Gerrard will make sure this sizzling attacking football ends their trophy-drought.