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After making his return from injury on Sunday afternoon, Sean Longstaff showed exactly why he simply has to be one of the first names on the team-sheet for Newcastle.

It was only just a couple of months ago that Steve Bruce laid down the gauntlet to his midfielder, insisting that he’s still got some way to go to recapture his best form.

He said: “Sean is in the last two years of his contract – we all know what capabilities he’s got he’s got to show it more often and more regularly. He’s got a lot of work to do, but he’s got healthy competition around him.”

But with his return to fitness, and Jonjo Shelvey being ruled out with injury, Longstaff had his opportunity to impress against Everton. And he didn’t disappoint in their Premier League clash.

Whilst Callum Wilson was the Magpies’ match-winner with two goals to secure all three points at St James’ Park, it was Longstaff’s midfield display that really set the tone for Bruce’s side.

As per Sofascore, his 7.3 match rating was the joint-second highest of any Newcastle player, only behind Wilson. And when you look at the underlying numbers behind his performance, it’s no surprise to see why.

Defensively, he stuck to his task well, making two tackles, one clearance and winning three duels. But it was his work on the ball that really caught the eye for Newcastle.

He boasted an impressive 88% pass accuracy, whilst he was also one of their most creative forces on the day as well, providing a team-high two key passes.

Not to mention the fact that he also completed three of his four attempted crosses, and found the mark with five of his seven long balls. That all led to The Chronicle journalist, Mark Douglas, to rave that Longstaff was enjoying his “best game for a while” on Twitter.

With Shelvey out of action for the foreseeable future, Longstaff surely has to keep his place in the starting line-up for the weeks ahead.

Phil Parkinson will be expected to name a vastly different line-up to face Mansfield Town in Saturday’s FA Cup First Round tie, with Sunderland afforded the chance to rest several key first-team regulars for their League One promotion push.

Goalkeeper Lee Burge and defender Bailey Wright have started each of the Black Cats’ 10 third-tier fixtures thus far, while Denver Hume and Luke O’Nien have opened nine matches and Lynden Gooch, Grant Leadbitter and Chris Maguire have fielded eight kick-offs each.

Burge is further the only first-team regular to have enjoyed all 900 minutes of available game time in League One this season, and is in line for a well-deserved rest when Sunderland host John Dempster’s Stags at the Stadium of Light.

Parkinson will favour drastic changes to the XI which beat Ipswich Town last time out, with the North East outfit likely to favour fielding young hopefuls and those frozen out that are eager to impress. So, with that in mind, here’s a line-up Sunderland could name at home to Mansfield…

Back-up shot-stopper Remi Matthews will be confident of earning his latest first-team appearance for Sunderland in their FA Cup clash with Mansfield, having previously featured in just two fixtures since joining from Bolton this summer – each coming in the EFL Trophy.

Matthews was unable to enjoy a clean sheet against either Aston Villa’s U23s or Carlisle United, though Parkinson will feel Mansfield present a great chance to see how the 26-year-old responds to watching each League One fixture from the bench this term.

Parkinson will also be keen to see how Dion Sanderson fares in defence following his debut against Rochdale last month, and could partner the Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee with Callum McFadzean and 20-year-old Ollie Younger to offer Hume and Bailey Wright a break.

McFadzean was brought to the Stadium of Light on a free transfer this summer following his release by Plymouth Argyle to offer competition for places, but is yet to make his first-team debut whilst building fitness in the U23s.

With Parkinson ringing the changes at home to Mansfield, midfielders George Dobson, Elliot Embleton and Daniel Neil may feel confident of featuring.

The Black Cats faced a fight to retain Neil’s services this summer with Premier League duo Newcastle United and Wolves both interested in the talented 18-year-old, per the Chronicle, but have only awarded the youngster minutes in the EFL Trophy having overlooked his services in each League One and EFL Cup tie this term.

Dobson, meanwhile, will be eager to utilise the FA Cup as his chance to regain a spot in the first-team having featured 24 times under Parkinson last season, only to lose his place following an opening-day red card and be left waiting for a second chance.

Parkinson has previously stated an intent to offer Sunderland’s young talents minutes in the cup competitions, much to Embleton’s glee after the rising star’s struggles with injuries, noting via the Chronicle: “They are going to be needed and they are going to get chances.

“The games come thick and fast with a lot of midweek matches, and I am confident that if they get their chance, they will take it.”

Parkinson’s rotation could come at the expense of forward Lynden Gooch, who the Black Cats boss has previously stated was left disappointed when omitted from the side after going four months without a League One start.

“Goochy has trained really well this week,” Parkinson said in September, via quotes by The Northern Echo. It was very hard for me not to put him in the team, but I just wanted to get the balance of the side right.

“He was disappointed, but he took it the right way. There’s going to be other players who will get left out in this long season, but you’ve got to accept the decision and you’ve got to come on the pitch and let your football do the talking.”

In place of Gooch, who has contributed five goals (two scored, three assisted) in League One this term, could enter a young up-and-comer who Parkinson has praised as a real “bonus” in 20-year-old Jack Diamond, who has offered one goal in his six senior outings to date.

“Another bonus for us as staff is that Jack Diamond has come back in this week and looked really good,” Parkinson told the official Sunderland website earlier this summer upon the winger’s return to Wearside after a successful loan spell with Harrogate Town.

Diamond’s first and only senior Sunderland goal to date came in October’s 5-3 EFL Trophy victory over Carlisle and is yet to taste defeat when fielded, and could be viewed by Parkinson as someone who can aid strikers Danny Graham and Will Grigg on Saturday.

Grigg is yet to find the back of the net in any of his four outings this term, with Sunderland’s £4million striker often left an unused substitute in League One under Parkinson.

The Black Cats would undoubtedly like to see more from the 29-year-old, while Graham’s search for further successful efforts likewise continues with blanks on the record in all bar one of the former U20 international’s nine appearances since re-joining as a free agent this summer.

Graham and Grigg must realise that Saturday’s FA Cup tie with Mansfield will be their best opportunity to impress Parkinson to warrant inclusion in the Sunderland manager’s league plans, or risk a continuing role on the bench.

AND in other news, Sunderland have the ideal chance to sign a modern-day gem for free.

West Brom are back in the big time but they face an almighty task of staying there having not picked up a single victory in any of their opening eight matches of the 2020/21 season.

Indeed, they could be merely another one-season wonder tracing the footsteps of Fulham and Norwich City in recent times.

A major Achilles heel of this Baggies side is scoring goals – only two teams have found the net fewer times, Sheffield United and Burnley, who occupy the only two spots below them in the Premier League table.

Whilst no Albion player besides Callum Robinson has scored more than one goal this season.

In their final top-flight campaign before relegation in 2018, the Hawthorns had a prolific goalscorer in Salomon Rondon, but how is he getting on now?

He would have certainly been good to still have around.

Where is Rondon now?

Upon relegation to the Championship, the Venezuelan international was sent to Newcastle United on loan, where he won the Player of the Year award after providing 11 goals and seven assists in 32 appearances, per Transfermarkt.

The Magpies then lost Rafa Benitez to Chinese Super League outfit Dalian Pro and the 31-year-old soon followed him there after they activated his £16.5m release clause.

A rather poor decision from former CEO, Mark Jenkins.

Over in China, Rondon has continued his form as a noted goalscorer, contributing to 21 goals, 14 of which scored by himself.

At the Hawthorns, he scored more goals (20) for Tony Pulis than any other Albion coach, whilst no manager has deployed him more than the flat-capped Welshman either, so he was clearly quite the favourite.

Jim White once lauded Rondon as “unbelievable” on talkSPORT (via This Is Futbol) whilst Lee Clark compared him to Les Ferdinand for his “swashbuckling” playing style.

If only he was still on the books in the Midlands, no other player offers his sheer power (4.6 average aerial duels won in final WBA season) and goalscoring finesse.

AND in other news, 43 y/o a VERY worthy candidate to succeed Bilic…

Liverpool are reportedly considering a move for RB Leipzig defender Ibrahima Konate ahead of the January transfer window and the 21-year-old could be a superb addition to Jurgen Klopp’s squad.

According to Bundesliga journalist Christian Falk, the French U21 international is on Liverpool’s shortlist ahead of next month, along with teammate Dayot Upamecano.

Konate has established himself as a regular in Leipzig’s first-team since joining from FC Sochaux-Montbéliard in 2017 –  making 83 appearances for Die Roten Bullen’s first-team, in which he has contributed four goals and one assist (per Transfermarkt).

The young defender is currently valued at £36.45 million by Transfermarkt and also reportedly has a £45 million release clause written into his contract with the Bundesliga side.

Therefore, whilst he would be a fairly expensive deal, Michael Edwards wouldn’t have to break the bank to sign him in next month’s transfer window, and at 21, he could go on to have a very long career with the Reds, meaning it could be a very sound investment.

Konate stands at an impressive 6 foot 4, so could be an ideal stand-in for Virgil van Dijk, as you imagine that he would be able to dominate the majority of Premier League attackers in the air, whilst also being a threat from corners.

The French defender could also be compared to Borussia Dortmund centre-back Mats Hummels, who Jurgen Klopp worked with during his time with Die Schwarzgelben.

Hummels has made 242 appearances under Klopp in his career so far, and similarly to Konate, aerial duels are one of his main strengths as a defender, which is unsurprising when you consider he is 6 foot 3.

Former Leipzig coach Ralf Rangnick was full of praise for the defender in 2017, saying:

“Ibrahima’s developed brilliantly here. He already has a lot of experience in the Bundesliga and on the European stage. We’re convinced of his huge potential.”

The RB Leipzig man also likes to play short passes, suggesting that he could fit in with Liverpool’s style of play, and therefore, considering the Reds’ current injury crisis, Edwards should do everything he can to bring in the 21-year-old next month.

And, in other news… Carlton Palmer reveals “massive blow” for Liverpool ahead of Wolves clash

Jeffrey Schlupp scored a dramatic late equaliser as Crystal Palace came from behind to draw 1-1 with Tottenham Hotspur at Selhurst Park on Sunday afternoon.

It looked like it was going to be a long night for Roy Hodgson and his side after Harry Kane opened the scoring but the Eagles fought back from a goal down to rescue a point in the closing stages of the game.

Spurs looked the more comfortable side, but Palace weren’t without their chances, as Wilfried Zaha forced a fine save from Hugo Lloris before Eberechi Eze hit the post shortly before half-time.

But Schlupp bundled home the equaliser to put a dent in Tottenham’s title ambitions to stay within touching distance of Aston Villa, albeit Dean Smith’s side still have two games in-hand by Sunday night.

Hodgson’s side have now recorded two wins and a draw from their past five games in all competitions

Spurs largely dominated possession but Palace looked dangerous when they did get forward as Benteke went close with two headers before Schlupp struck late to give the Eagles a well-earned draw.

It was somewhat of a surprise to see Schlupp, who currently earns wages worth £50,000-per-week, start on the wing instead of Andros Townsend but the right winger came alive halfway through the first half.

As per SofaScore, he received a high rating of 7.3 out of ten for his efforts – he took 35 touches of the ball, provided 11 out of 15 passes (73%), had two shots on target, one shot blocked and made two key passes, whilst he also made two tackles, two interceptions, one clearance and blocked one shot, which suggests that he was a constant thorn in Jose Mourinho’s side.

The Evening Standard seemed to agree as they gave Schlupp a 7/10 rating, whilst football.london were effusive in their praise of the 27-year-old, claiming he ‘holds the ball exceedingly well’ and added he is ‘a great attribute for the team.’

Whilst he was largely tasked with helping Nathaniel Clyne fend off Son Heung-min and Sergio Reguilon on the right wing, his attacking prowess cannot be underestimated, as he helped to secure what could prove to be a vital point.

Palace will next take on West Ham at the London Stadium on Wednesday night, knowing they could climb above the Lions into the top half of the table if they can come away with three points, and we suspect Schlupp may have a part to play off the back of this impressive performance.

AND in other news, Nathaniel Clyne can save his Crystal Palace career amid huge update…

Given Arsenal’s recent form, a 4-1 home defeat to Manchester City in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday night just seems par for the course.

The Gunners looked as toothless in attack as they have done all season, whilst their defending at times was bordering on the comical. Even Gabriel Martinelli’s energetic return to the starting line-up after nine months away with injury wasn’t enough to inspire a change in fortune for Mikel Arteta’s side, and their night was rather summed up by Alex Runarsson’s performance.

The north London side’s number two goalkeeper just looked all at sea from the very first whistle, completely misjudging a cross for Gabriel Jesus’ opener within minutes of kick-off.

And whilst he redeemed himself slightly with a superb sprawling stop at the feet of City’s fleet-footed Brazilian attacker, Runarsson undone all his hard work with the kind of howler that surely has people questioning why they chose to sign him in the first place.

But whilst the Icelandic ace was particularly awful, his teammate Ainsley Maitland-Niles was arguably even worse.

The England international started off the game as an inverted left wing-back, picking up spaces infield and trying to link together with Martinelli down the flank.

But the versatile Arsenal ace’s casualness on the ball let him down several times, and it made for a truly frustrating game for both him and the onlooking Arteta.

As per Sofascore, he lost possession an incredible 20 times over the course of the night, the most of any Arsenal player on the pitch. He also made no successful dribbles, sent no accurate crosses, made just 20 total successful passes, and lost seven of his nine duels too.

Arteta handed him a rare chance to impress from the off, and then, even when he was moved into central midfield for the closing stages of the game, he failed to grab his opportunity.

It surely would have left Arteta fuming, and wondering whether he deserves to be in the starting line-up for the Premier League clash against Chelsea.

Celtic are finally back to winning ways after suffering a wretched run of form recently. The Hoops have been ejected from the Europa League and have slipped massively behind Rangers in the race for the Premiership title.

Their inconsistent season has not just landed them 13 points behind the runaway league leaders, but talks of Neil Lennon’s exit have been rife. However, it seems that in his desperation, he has found the courage to experiment with his team.

This has already paid off in dividends and he must keep up these changes he has made in his team. Celtic will face Hearts on Sunday in the Scottish Cup final and Lennon absolutely has to start David Turnbull.

Turnbull must start vs Hearts

Along with the midfielder, the manager has given rare chances to the likes of Ismaila Soro and reserve goalkeeper Conor Hazard. Since making these drastic alterations, the Bhoys have won back-to-back games and will be in high spirits ahead of Sunday.

There’s a good chance he will start Soro and Hazard given their strong performances, but he must ensure that Turnbull is one of the first names on the team sheet.

Last time out, the 21-year-old was arguably the best performer on the pitch. According to Sofascore, the summer signing completed 93% of his passes, created two big goalscoring opportunities and provided the assist for Shane Duffy’s goal.

This wasn’t a fluke performance either. In Celtic’s Europa League fixture against Lille, Turnbull bagged himself another assist and scored a goal of his own in a thrilling 3-2 victory for the Hoops.

The £1.6million-rated gem has made just three starts this season but has already thrown his hat into the ring to become one of Lennon’s key players. Indeed, he has already impressed the boss after he waxed lyrical about his transfer and described him as having “a touch of class” about him.

If he starts against Hearts on Sunday, Celtic have a big chance of taking home the silverware.

In other news, Signing Mark McKenzie would be huge move from Lawwell…

DeAndre Yedlin was Steve Bruce’s real star as Newcastle United produced a defensive masterclass to secure a point at home to Liverpool on Wednesday night.

Bruce welcomed Jurgen Klopp’s champions to St. James’ Park and saw his players prove resilient in the face of danger to record the first goalless league draw between the Magpies and Reds since February 1974, 69 meetings ago.

The result also saw Liverpool fail to score in a Premier League fixture for the first time in 21 matches, having been denied throughout by a sublime display from Karl Darlow to prevent Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Liverpool had a string of chances during their time on Tyneside to end the year on a high and move five points clear at the top of the table, yet were forced to accept a stalemate with Fabian Schar saving Darlow’s clean sheet 10 minutes from time by clearing off the line after a fortuitous rebound for Sadio Mane.

Yedlin often had Mane, plus Reds full-back Andrew Robertson, in his back pocket as he continued to hold down honours at right-back in Bruce’s plans, after taking over the role at home to Fulham.

The 27-year-old, who continues to be linked with a move away from St. James’ with his £30,000-per-week contract due to expire next summer, has now started Newcastle’s last three league games and proved against Liverpool why the position has become his.

Yedlin continually brought exuberant overlapping runs in partnership with Jacob Murphy down United’s right-hand channel, while contributing an array of vital tackles and coming close to only his fourth-ever Toon goal when his 17th-minute effort was deflected wide.

Salah fell victim to the 62-cap USA international, whom Rafa Benitez once declared “I love this player” for, late in the first-half when Yedlin timed his challenge to perfection to snatch the ball as the Egyptian sought to release the trigger.

Yedlin saw out the midweek meeting with two successful tackles to his name in total, while registering two interceptions and six clearances, per SofaScore.

He additionally won five of his six ground duels, never committed a foul, was successful with his only attempted dribble and provided one key ball from 11 accurate passes, despite failing to connect with a Magpies teammate with his only cross of the night.

Javier Manquillo may have returned to the matchday squad at Manchester City on Boxing Day, while Emil Krafth once again took a seat on the bench at home to Liverpool, but both will struggle to displace Yedlin from the starting line-up should he maintain his current form.

AND in other news, an “unplayable” £75k-p/w Newcastle United player is in-demand ahead of the January transfer window.

Ross Wilson must answer Steven Gerrard’s call to action and secure Steven Davis’ future at Ibrox with a new contract for the Glasgow Rangers midfielder.

What’s the word?

As it stands, Rangers are heading for a king-sized change of the guard in the summer, with seven players set to be out of contract, including Leon Balogun, Jermain Defoe and Davis.

Davis is in the final year of his contract at Ibrox and they reportedly have yet to offer him a contract extension.

But Gerrard has urged the board to tie the 36-year-old down to a new deal.

Speaking before the Premiership clash with Motherwell at Fir Park, Gerrard told Sky Sports: “He’s extremely important both on and off the pitch. He sets standards that we try and match on a daily basis.

“The level he’s playing at, his consistency, his hunger for the game is still there.

“He’s a top professional so a lot of people look up to him and follow what he does.

“For me, it’s an absolute must that he’s here beyond this season.

“But now is not the time to talk about that.

“We’ve got three points to win and we’ll come to that at a later date.”

Keep Steven Davis at all costs

Gerrard’s latest comments should be words of encouragement for Rangers fans at a time when they risk losing the Northern Irishman for free.

Despite his age, Davis has been a vital cog in Gerrard’s side since regaining his place in the starting line-up last season, having made 21 top-flight appearances this term, the same amount as the ever-reliable left-back Borna Barisic.

Just like Barisic, Davis – who earns around £18,000-per-week at Ibrox – has become one of the club’s most consistent performers, as his performance levels have barely dropped below a 7.0 rating this season so far.

Only Barisic (8.0), Glen Kamara (7.6) and James Tavernier (7.5) scored a higher SofaScore rating for Rangers during the 1-1 draw with Motherwell last Sunday, as Davis was a holding presence in the midfield, winning five out of his seven duels overall (71%) with two tackles and two clearances as well.

His performances this season have overshadowed many of his teammates, too, as he ranks the ninth-highest among all of the Rangers players, averaging the third-highest amount of tackles and interceptions per game, as per WhoScored.

If you take a closer look at the numbers, Davis overshadows both his rivals in Ryan Jack and Bongani Zungu in almost every area, whilst he is often tasked with dropping deep to pick up the ball and bring others into play.

It would be a big blow for Gerrard, and for Rangers in general, should he depart Ibrox in the summer as a free agent, which is precisely why Wilson shouldn’t think twice about offering him a contract extension to fend off any potential suitors.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers must swoop for Siriki Dembele after his latest masterclass…

With Jeremie Frimpong closing in on a move to Bundesliga side Bayer Leverkusen, Celtic boss Neil Lennon has been left with a major headache.

The Hoops aren’t blessed with real strength in depth in that right-back spot, and Lennon even went with Kristoffer Ajer in that position in the disappointing 2-2 draw against Livingston in the Scottish Premiership at the weekend.

But one man who the Bhoys should really turn back to, is Anthony Ralston.

The 22-year-old has played just one game all season, and that came just a couple of weeks ago when he helped keep a clean sheet in a 0-0 draw against Livingston.

Other than that, he has not been seen at Celtic Park, but with Frimpong’s imminent exit, it’s surely time for Ralston to be given the chance to impress once more and see if he can finally deliver on his early promise.

Back when Brendan Rodgers was in charge, the then Celtic boss raved about the youngster’s ability, even after the Hoops were dismantled by PSG in the Champions League.

He said: “That is why I played him. You can’t have shrinking violets in that arena and one thing he isn’t is a shrinking violet. He is an 18-year-old, he is a young guy, but he doesn’t play young.

“He is strong, he’s aggressive and I think with players, when I put them in when they are young, they need to have certain personality traits. When you put a young player in a Champions League game you have to know they are not going to sink. He never did that. He was competitive, aggressive, strong. He’ll take a huge lift from that.”

The £5.5k-a-week earning ace hasn’t quite progressed as well as Celtic fans may have hoped for, making just 20 senior appearances in total since that PSG game a few seasons ago.

But with Frimpong heading for the exit door, Ralston may finally be offered an opportunity to stake his claim and really lay a marker down. Tonight’s Scottish Premiership clash against Hamilton may tempt Lennon into throwing the 22-year-old straight in.

Meanwhile, Celtic can clinch a bargain deal with this League One sensation…