All posts by n8rngtd.top

A number of Liverpool supporters have been hailing Trent Alexander-Arnold’s latest venture, with the Reds hero funding a league for youngsters in the city.

Jurgen Klopp’s side suffered a poor day at the office on Sunday afternoon, with West Ham beating them 3-2 at the London Stadium.

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In truth, Liverpool were never fully at the races in east London, although one player who could come away with his head held high was Alexander-Arnold. The 23-year-old scored a stunning equaliser with a free kick late in the first half, and away from the pitch, he continues to do fantastic work as well.

According to The Athletic’s David Ornstein [via James Pearce on Twitter], Alexander-Arnold is paying for hundreds of five- and six-year-olds to play football in Toxteth and West Derby in what is called The Trent Alexander-Arnold League.

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Liverpool fans show their love for Trent

It is a wonderful gesture from Alexander-Arnold, who has displayed tremendous work both on and off the pitch, and these Liverpool fans have taken to Twitter to show their appreciation for the Anfield “king” for his philanthrophic act.

“King”

Credit: @CosmoKhan

“Good work from him”

Credit: @repeto

“Great to hear”

Credit: @jassonnnnlfc

“This boy”

Credit: @Hafsa_1M

“What a lad”

Credit: @unbearablekop

“Assist King on and off the field”

Credit: @Tawaz92

In other news, some Liverpool fans slammed one player’s performance against West Ham. Find out who it is here.

Celtic have been dealt a major injury blow ahead of their upcoming Scottish League Cup semi-final.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to a report by Football Scotland, who revealed that Celtic centre-back Stephen Welsh had to be withdrawn late on in Scotland U21s’ 2-0 defeat to Belgium on Tuesday evening.

The report went on to state that the 21-year-old looked to pick up a knock in a collision with one of his Belgian counterparts, before limping out of the UEFA U21 Championship qualifier at Tannadice.

Ange will be fuming

Considering the fact that Carl Starfelt is already a doubt for Saturday’s Scottish League Cup semi-final clash against St. Johnstone, the news that the Sweden international’s stand-in now also appears to be ruled out of the fixture is sure to have left Ange Postecoglou fuming.

Indeed, not only does Welsh’s injury leave the 56-year-old manager extremely short of options at the back, the Bhoys boss also appears to have lost one of his most promising young talents at Parkhead.

Over his five Scottish Premiership appearances this season, the £1.08m-rated man has helped his side keep two clean sheets and registered one assist, as well as making an average of 1.2 interceptions, 0.8 tackles, 2.2 clearances and winning 6.2 duels per game.

These returns have seen the Scotland U21 international average a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.12, ranking him as Postecoglou’s joint 11th-best performer in the top flight of Scottish football.

As such, the 21-year-old’s injury will undoubtedly come as a major blow to the Greek-Australian’s chances of securing a victory against St. Johnstone, a result that Postecoglou will be desperate for in order to have a shot at picking up the first trophy of his tenure as Celtic manager.

In other news: Ange could repeat Josh Adam disaster with 15 y/o Celtic prodigy, it’d be a big blow

Celtic fell to a 3-2 defeat to Bayer Leverkusen on Thursday as entertaining away trips in the Europa League continued for the Hoops.

Beaten 4-0 at Parkhead in the reverse fixture, Ange Postecoglou’s side put up a real fight, and goals in either half from Josip Juranovic and Jota had the visitors in front against the Bundesliga side.

However, despite heroics from Joe Hart, Celtic conceded twice late on, which means they will be heading into the Europa Conference League in the New Year.

Not every player had an evening to remember in Germany, as The Transfer Tavern looks into the three worst-rated starters by statistical specialists SofaScore.

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Anthony Ralston – 6.0/10

Ralston was Celtic’s joint-worst performer on Thursday evening, ending with a rating of 6.0/10.

The right-back was dribbled past on four occasions, made an error leading to a shot, lost the ball 14 times and was second-best in seven of his 13 duels.

He also didn’t have an influence in an attacking sense as he didn’t register a single key pass or complete an accurate cross.

David Turnbull – 6.0/10

Next up is Turnbull, who like Ralston also ended up with a rating of 6.0/10. The 22-year-old was alongside Callum McGregor and Nir Bitton in the middle of the park but struggled throughout.

He was successful in just one of his nine attempted crosses or long balls and lost possession on 21 occasions. Turnbull also missed a big chance, lost three duels, failed to make a key pass and didn’t attempt a dribble all night.

James Forrest – 6.2/10

Last up is Forrest, who made his first start in three months. He ended with a score of 6.2/10 and was replaced after 72 minutes for Liel Abada.

Forrest had just 27 touches all evening, failed to attempt a dribble, have a shot or make a key pass and lost the ball 11 times.

He also lost three duels and didn’t contribute defensively, but at least he came through the match unscathed in terms of injury.

In other news: Nicholson eyeing international midfielder and 16-goal forward for Celtic. 

While Steven Gerrard’s career as the Aston Villa manager has got off to a near-perfect start, with the 41-year-old’s side picking up back to back wins in his first two games in charge of the club, there is nevertheless much work to do for Gerrard if he is to transform the Lions into challengers for a European finish in the Premier League.

And, with the January transfer window fast approaching, the former Liverpool captain has already been linked with a host of potential signings, some of which appear to make a great deal more sense than others.

One such player who would very much fall into the category of being a good signing for Gerrard’s transfer team to get over the line this winter is Adrien Rabiot, whom Calciomercato report Aston Villa’s scouts watched in action in Juventus’ 1-0 defeat against Atalanta last weekend.

“Complete player”

While Juventus have not exactly enjoyed the best of campaigns over the past two seasons, with I Bianconeri finishing fourth in the league last year, in addition to currently languishing down in seventh this time around, Rabiot has nevertheless impressed for the Italian giants.

Indeed, over his 34 league appearances last term, the £27m-rated central midfielder scored four goals, registered two assists and created two big chances for his teammates, as well as making an average of 1.3 interceptions, 2.1 tackles, 37.7 passes and winning 4.9 duels per game.

These returns saw the £175k-per-week man earn a seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.09, ranking him as Juve’s fifth-best performer in Serie A.

As such, it is perhaps not surprising that Andrea Pirlo heaped a considerable amount of praise on the 26-year-old during his time in charge of Juventus, stating: “He is a complete player, I have rarely seen someone so strong both physically and technically. He doesn’t even know the potential for improvement he can have, and we work on the mental side of things to make him understand that he is a champion. He is improving game after game.”

As such, should Rabiot be able to refind this form following a potential January switch to Villa Park, the France international would undoubtedly become a crucial part of Steven Gerrard’s first-team squad, transforming Villa’s three-man midfield into one capable of securing European football, something that leads us to believe that Johan Lange and Christian Purslow must do all they can to secure a deal for Rabiot this winter.

In other news: “I’m hearing”: BT Sport pundit drops behind the scenes AVFC claim that’ll delight fans

Crystal Palace have been dealt an injury blow ahead of their trip to Leeds United in the Premier League after manager Patrick Vieira confirmed Joachim Andersen will not travel with the squad.

What’s the word?

The 25-year-old was unable to play any part in the Eagles’ 2-1 defeat against Aston Villa over the weekend after picking up a thigh problem, and it now appears as though he’s set for an extended stint on the sidelines.

“Joachim is not going to travel, he is not 100%,” revealed Vieira in Monday’s press conference, although there was also some positive news.

Star forward Eberechi Eze made his long-awaited return to first-team action last time out, coming on as a 60th-minute substitute following six months on the treatment table with an Achilles issue.

“I think it’s good for him, for the club and the fans,” said Vieira when asked for an update on his situation. “He needs to play games, he needs time to get to his best, and we will give him the support that he needs.”

Crystal Palace fans will be gutted

Despite Eze’s impressive progress in his quest to return to full fitness, Palace supporters will be gutted to learn that Andersen will be absent for the potentially crucial clash at Elland Road this evening.

The south London outfit’s seven-game unbeaten run came crashing down on Saturday, and Vieira will be desperate to get back to winning ways as soon as possible.

With only four points separating Leeds and Palace in the top-flight table, this midweek encounter could have a sizeable impact on the two sides’ fortunes for the rest of the campaign, and Andersen will be a big miss.

As per WhoScored, Andersen has averaged 1.5 interceptions per league game throughout 2021/22, 2.9 clearances and a whopping 6.3 long balls, placing him in the top three for each metric when compared to his teammates.

With winnable fixtures against the likes of Southampton, Everton and Watford coming up over the next few weeks, Palace will be hoping to see Andersen back in the starting lineup sooner rather than later.

And, in other news…Palace “lining up” swoop for “complete” £12.6m-rated gem, Vieira surely buzzing

Sheffield Wednesday are back in League One action tonight with an away clash against Portsmouth after being knocked out of the Papa John’s Trophy in their previous game following a disappointing 3-0 defeat against Hartlepool United. 

On the chalkboard 

In terms of which players Owls boss Darren Moore could pick in his starting XI to take on Portsmouth, who are just one place and one point behind his side in the league table, one man who started against Hartlepool and who we think should keep his place in the team on this occasion is Theo Corbeanu. 

Despite Wednesday not managing to score against the Pools, the 19-year-old showed how much of an attacking threat he can provide for them.

In his 90 minutes on the pitch occupying the right wing-back position, Corbeanu had 69 touches of the ball and completed 34 of his 42 passes, with two key passes, three crosses and one long ball.

From an attacking point of view, the teenager put in a valiant effort by having three shots at goal, one of which was on target, whilst completing seven of his eight dribbles. Defensively, the 19-year-old did his bit as well by winning eight out of his 12 duels as well as making two interceptions.

This performance earned Corbeanu a superb overall match rating of 7.4/10, making him Wednesday’s highest-rated player according to SofaScore as he was Moore’s shining light in what was a disappointing night for Wednesday.

With this in mind, the youngster has definitely put himself in with a shout of facing a much tougher opponent in Portsmouth tonight and showing Moore what he’s capable of producing.

Labelled in the past by Wolves under-23 manager James Collins as an “outstanding” player who’s “got a bit of everything”, Corbeanu has enjoyed a good run in the team by scoring two goals and providing two assists in his five previous League One appearances.

Taking all this into account, the 19-year-old definitely has what it takes to be a real game-changer in tonight’s big clash, with both Wednesday and Portsmouth in the mix for a promotion place.

In other news – Time to go: Moore must ruthlessly axe Owls flop in January, he’s not been good enough

Joseph Masi has dropped an exciting behind the scenes West Bromwich Albion claim.

What’s the talk?

In a recent post on Twitter, the Express & Star journalist revealed that Reyes Cleary has been training with the Baggies first team this week, as well as revealing that Valerien Ismael has been impressed with the performances of the 17-year-old centre-forward.

In his tweet, Masi said: “Reyes Cleary is training with Albion’s first-team and doing well according to Valerien Ismael. But the boss says the striker still needs to adapt to the intensity of senior football.”

Fans will be buzzing

Considering just how impressive Reyes Cleary has been for Albion’s youth sides this season, in addition to the fact that Ismael’s first team side are clearly lacking an out and out goalscorer, the news that the teenager is training with the senior side is sure to have left fans of the club buzzing.

Indeed, over his six appearances in the U18 Premier League, the youngster has bagged a whopping ten goals and provided one assist, while, over his nine Premier League 2 appearances after taking the step up to the club’s U23 side, the 17-year-old has scored a further seven goals.

And, when taking into account the £36k-per-week Norwich City loanee Jordan Hugill has scored one goal, provided no assists and created no big chances over his 18 Championship appearances so far this season – returns which have seen the 29-year-old average a SofaScore match rating of 6.53, ranking him as Albion’s fourth-worst player in the league – it is clear the forward is not of the standard required for the Frenchman’s side.

As such, should Ismael be planning to send Hugill back to the Premier League side this January, something it has been reported may well be the case, it would appear the 46-year-old has nothing to lose in unleashing the teenager – something which could well prove to be something of a masterstroke by the Baggies boss.

In other news: Huge blow: West Brom dealt further fitness setback that will leave Ismael livid

Much to the presumed dismay of many Newcastle United fans, the Tyneside club currently have the worst defensive record in the Premier League this season with a total of 41 goals conceded in 18 games.

With this in mind and the fact that the January transfer window is close to opening, signing some new defensive reinforcements should be at the top of Newcastle’s priority list.

One potential name that the Magpies could look to sign that may help fix their defensive issues is Arsenal defender Konstantinos Mavropanos.

Having been linked with a move for the defender earlier in the month, it has recently been reported that it could take a fee of €30m (£25.2m) to secure his signature.

Currently on loan at German club Stuttgart, Mavropanos originally signed to Arsenal back in the 2018 January transfer window from Greek club PAS Giannina.

With just eight senior appearances for Arsenal under his belt, the 24-year-old has not been seen as a regular figure for the Gunners, with this current loan at Stuttgart being his second loan spell away since joining the north London club.

So far this season, Mavropanos, who is currently valued at £15.3m according to Transfermarkt, has used his time with Stuttgart to show off what a capable defender he is by racking up an average of 5.8 clearances, 2.4 interceptions and 1.9 tackles per game in the Bundesliga.

With this in mind, it could definitely be worth Newcastle exploring the possibility of potentially signing Mavropanos, who has been described as being a “gladiator” on the pitch by Stuttgart head coach Pellegrino Matarazzo in January if the owners are willing to spend the money that it would take to sign the defender.

If Newcastle were able to sign Mavropanos in January, this would give Toon manager Eddie Howe the opportunity to axe current Magpies defender Ciaran Clark.

He hasn’t had the best run of games in recent weeks after getting sent off in the early stages of their 1-1 draw against Norwich City, which was described as being a “crazy stupid” thing to do by Alan Shearer.

That was then followed by making an error that led to Manchester City’s first goal in their 4-0 defeat at St. James’ Park.

Therefore, the former Arsenal defender would clearly be an enormous upgrade.

In other news: Hammond could save NUFC’s season with “colossal” £24k-p/w beast, “nothing fazes him” – opinion

Writing for La Gazzetta dello Sport, Italian reporter Carlo Laudisa has made a big Tottenham Hotspur transfer claim involving Chelsea striker Romelu Lukaku.

The Lowdown: Paratici eyes striker…

As per The Athletic, it is believed that a new centre-forward is on the agenda at Spurs as transfer chief Fabio Paratici and manager Antonio Conte eye alternatives to Harry Kane.

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The most hotly-linked forward by some distance has been Fiorentina hotshot Dusan Vlahovic with Spurs long credited to swoop for the Serbian.

There have been other names mentioned, like Mauro Icardi previously, but Laudisa has now made an exciting claim involving Premier League star Lukaku.

The Latest: Journalist makes exciting Lukaku claim…

According to the La Gazzetta journalist, the Chelsea forward could ‘decide to follow Conte to Tottenham’ in the summer, with his Stamford Bridge return making him unhappy thus far.

Indeed, amid his unrest at the Blues, it is believed that Spurs have emerged as a possible 2022 destination for the Belgium international.

The Verdict: Big claim…

This piece of news certainly comes as an exciting claim out of Italy, especially considering Lukaku’s obvious pedigree and the fact he has shone under Conte before at Inter.

Indeed, the 28-year-old bagged 47 goals and 13 assists in just two full Serie A seasons during the duo’s time together at the San Siro, and he has continued in that fashion when given the opportunity under Thomas Tuchel.

Managing to score consistently over his limited appearances, the German has called Lukaku ‘world class’ for his contribution at times over 2021/22 despite the recent unease between the pair.

It is clear that Lukaku has ability, but the devil is in the details, with Chelsea arguably unwilling to sell such an impactful, big-name player to a direct rival like Spurs. It is also debatable whether the Lilywhites could afford such a swoop given that Lukaku is valued at around £90m by Transfermarkt and commands a seismic £350,000-per-week pay package.

While Lukaku being linked with Spurs comes as a very interesting development, we believe that a move is less than likely later in the year.

In other news: ‘Absolute no brainer’…Sky Sports pundit thrilled by ‘exciting’ transfer news out of Tottenham, find out more here.

A journalist has revealed that there is now interest from Newcastle United in signing Sam Johnstone.

The Lowdown: Too leaky

The St James’ Park outfit have conceded no fewer than 42 goals in the Premier League so far this season, the joint-most along with bottom-placed Norwich City.

A change in goalkeeper could help, as Martin Dubravka has been disappointed with some of his performances when he has had to come in for the Slovakia international.

Nonetheless, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA) consortium have the money to go out and buy a new established number one for Eddie Howe, should he wish.

The Latest: Johnstone interest

Speaking on talkSPORT, journalist Alex Crook has revealed that Newcastle are now in a race with a number of other top-flight clubs to sign Johnstone, who is out of contract at West Brom in the summer.

He revealed: “I’m hearing Tottenham are joining the likes of Newcastle, Southampton and West Ham in showing a definite interest in Sam Johnstone.”

The Verdict: Get it done

If the Tyneside outfit can snap up Johnstone on a free, it would be a real bargain. He is currently rated at £7.2m by Transfermarkt, and being an England international, he could easily demand a bigger transfer fee, so getting him for nothing would represent very good business.

Even if he does not join until the summer, at the very worst the Magpies will be in the Championship. Therefore, if the Baggies do not go up, it should be a move that Johnstone would be fine in making.

He is ‘world class’ on his day, as Wolves legend Steve Bull says, and he could be a mainstay in the Newcastle side for years to come if he swaps the Midlands for the Magpies.

In other news, NUFC have now made a proposal for this Serie A beast