All posts by z3u9t.icu

While Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side overcame a rather large hurdle in the Premiership title race on Thursday evening, securing a 1-0 win over third-placed Hearts, the victory came at quite a significant cost for the 56-year-old manager and his side.

Indeed, Jota, Stephen Welsh and Anthony Ralston all had to be substituted due to injury, while Carl Stafelt also appeared to finish the fixture with a knock to his knee.

As such, it looks as if Celtic will travel to Dundee United today with something of a depleted squad. However, speaking after the Hearts game, Postecoglou suggested that the injuries picked up by a number of his regular starters will, in turn, provide an opportunity for those who are yet to get many games under their belt this term.

The 56-year-old said: “We saw on Thursday night that Adam Montgomery had to come on and he has not played for four or five weeks. We still have a fair chunk of important games coming up after [Real] Betis so it makes sense to get some minutes into some of the other guys so that when we call on them they will have played in this period.

“James McCarthy, Mikey Johnston, Liel Abada and Nir Bitton all come into that category. There is an opportunity to get some minutes into their legs and have them ready when required.”

Postecoglou must unleash Johnston

One of the players Postecoglou mentions above, Mikey Johnston, would appear to be in more need than most for regular first-team minutes, as, since his return from injury earlier this season, the 22-year-old has started just once for the Hoops.

Indeed, the winger has endured a frustrating last couple of years at Celtic, with the £900k-rated man featuring in just 10 fixtures last season due to injury, as well as missing a large portion of the start of the current campaign with a knock.

However, the former Scotland U21 international has proven that, when he is fully fit, he can be an extremely useful player in the Bhoys’ attack, scoring six goals and registering six assists over 22 appearances back in 2019/20, as well as bagging five goals and one assist over 23 appearances in 2018/19.

Furthermore, Celtic captain Callum McGregor is quite clearly convinced of the £7.9k-per-week forward’s ability, with the 28-year-old midfielder stating: “He’s such a brilliant talent, bags of ability, bags of potential and he’s one as well that the manager’s asking a lot of him physically.

“He’s responding really well and the guys are doing some great work with him in the physio department and sports science to really get him to a level where he can go and make that impact. Against Hibs, I thought he was sensational.”

As such, with it being clear that Postecoglou simply must begin rotating his side more frequently if he is to avoid a catastrophic injury crisis at Parkhead, the 56-year-old must unleash Johnston against Dundee United this afternoon, as the winger could well prove to play pivotal in Celtic’s Premiership push this season – if given the chance.

In other news: Ange must seal Celtic deal for “prominent” £13m-rated beast who “stole the show” in EL

When it comes to replacing Carlo Ancelotti as Everton manager, it will be a particularly hard task.

The Italian is one of the most decorated managers of the modern era so his exit from Goodison Park will be felt hard by Farhad Moshiri and the club’s hierarchy.

They have shortlisted former Everton bosses David Moyes and Roberto Martinez as they eye a successor while they’ve also considered figures synonymous with the red side of Merseyside.

Rafa Benitez has been linked with the vacancy but a fierce rival of the Toffees down the years is also under consideration from the top brass; Steven Gerrard.

The former Liverpool skipper played 33 times in the Merseyside derby, ending on the losing side in just five of those clashes. He tormented Everton with ten goals and four assists but it’s hard to deny he wouldn’t be a good appointment.

Supporters may not approve of such a rival joining their club but there is one area where the ex-midfielder has thrived since becoming a manager.

Gerrard is currently in charge of Rangers where he recently led them to their first Scottish Premiership crown in ten years. It was a historic triumph for the 41-year-old who guided his team through an entire league season without tasting defeat.

At the same time, he steered Rangers to the latter stages of the Europa League as he proved he can fight on multiple fronts.

It was a season that saw Sir Alex Ferguson turn against his loyalties to call the Englishman “magnificent.”

It’s hard to argue against that assessment. After all, the defensive record the Gers put together under Gerrard was nothing short of sensational.

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This would prove beneficial for an Everton side who shipped 48 goals this term, the third-worst record in the Premier League’s top ten.

Defensive mistakes littered their play, particularly towards the back end of the campaign where Mason Holgate slipped up against Aston Villa and then Ancelotti watched Manchester City dispatch the Toffees 5-0 on the final day.

However, Gerrard could revive Everton in this department because he turned Rangers into a defensive powerhouse.

The Liverpudlian saw his backline concede just 13 league goals as they kept an extraordinary 26 clean sheets. As for their record across every competition, they managed to achieve 34 shutouts.

Compare that to the Toffees and the difference is night and day. They only kept 12 clean sheets from their 38 league outings this term, a respectable but fairly ordinary tally.

They’ve held talks with Nuno Santo to be their new manager but if they’re looking for a defensively sturdy coach, he cannot be considered. Wolves kept even fewer clean sheets than Everton this term with only ten in the Premier League.

As the Goodison Park outfit harbour ambitions of qualifying for the Champions League, they will need to shore up their backline to have any chance. Gerrard could well elevate their hopes if given the opportunity by Moshiri.

AND in other news, “Exciting” 43 y/o keen on landing Everton job, he’s a better option than Nuno Santo…

According to reports from Portugal, sources close to Jose Mourinho have rubbished the rumours that the manager left Tottenham Hotspur because of the club’s commitment to the newly-formed European Super League.

With the news of Mourinho’s sacking coming shortly after Tottenham confirmed that they are one of the six Premier League clubs who will be joining the European Super League, rumours began circulating on Twitter that the 58-year-old refused to lead Spurs training because of the club’s decision to join the newly-formed tournament.

However, according to TVI reporter Henrique Marques (via Sport Witness), sources close to Mourinho have revealed these claims are “absolutely false”, with the insiders adding that the manager would never refuse to work with his team.

Transfer Tavern Take

While the news of Mourinho’s sacking certainly came at a surprising time, even without the confirmation from the sources mentioned in the report, Tottenham’s results so far this season are more than enough justification for Daniel Levy to want rid of the 58-year-old.

At present, the north London side occupy a disappointing seventh place in the Premier League table, having also been dumped out of the Europa League last 16 by Dinamo Zagreb, as well as the FA Cup by Everton.

As such, it would very much appear as if the proof was in the pudding for Mourinho prior to his removal as Tottenham manager on Monday.

In other news: Spurs eye £21.75m swoop for 6 ft 5 powerhouse after Levy turns nose up at £36m deal – fine out more here!

Renowned Glasgow Rangers podcasters Heart & Hand have been left reacting to some injury news that has now emerged on Kemar Roofe.

The Lowdown: Team news

Speaking in his pre-game press conference ahead of the match, Giovanni van Bronckhorst revealed that Aaron Ramsey has been ruled out for the next few games through injury, but should be back for their home leg against RB Leipzig in the UEFA Europa League semi-final.

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The Dutch manager confirmed that they also have a ‘problem’ with Roofe after he injured his knee last time out, and the club now hope that he too will return for the home leg.

The Latest: Podcasters react

Taking to Twitter, Heart & Hand gave their immediate reaction to the news on Roofe, claiming that it is a ‘huge blow’ for the Ibrox faithful:

“Huge blow losing Roofe but it is what is. Fingers crossed he’s back for 2nd leg.”

The Verdict: Not ideal

It is certainly not ideal to be losing Roofe for the next few matches, especially given that Alfredo Morelos is already out.

The striker has come off the back of four goals and two assists in his last three appearances in all competitions, including a hat-trick away at St. Mirren last time out in the Scottish Premiership (Transfermarkt).

He has made an impact not just in the SPFL, but the Europa League and Scottish Cup as well, and has certainly stepped up to the plate in Morelos’ absence.

Nonetheless, his injury now leaves the Teddy Bears a little light up top.

In other news, find out what fresh transfer update this Gers insider has now dropped here!

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former Newcastle defender Steve Howey was shocked to see Steve Bruce’s defensive approach to the game against West Bromwich Albion.

Howey did try to look at the 0-0 draw in a positive way and acknowledged that the Magpies didn’t get beaten, which saw them keep their heads above the bottom three despite Fulham’s win at Anfield.

Despite being without his two top scorers in Callum Wilson and Miguel Almiron, Bruce opted for going without a recognised striker. Instead, he opted to play Joe Willock as a false nine.

Newcastle had both Dwight Gayle and Andy Carroll on the bench, with the latter coming on for a cameo that lasted less than one minute when the team were locked at 0-0 with the 19th-placed Baggies.

Howey admits he was surprised by Bruce’s decision but was pleasantly proved wrong for the first 15 minutes when Newcastle had a number of chances via Ryan Fraser and Joelinton.

The former defender told FFC how he expected Bruce to set up differently against a bottom three side.

He said: “I was kind of surprised by the way the manager set up, but that’s his prerogative.

“In all fairness, it kind of semi worked for the first 15 minutes. I was covering the game for sky yesterday, and Newcastle had chances, they had chances.

“Obviously, you didn’t want to get beat but at the same time, I think they’ve only won three games and they’ve struggled to score goals.

“So, whilst on social media, I kind of put the positive spin that I can put on which was the fact that we didn’t get three points, but neither did they.”

It appeared to be a must-win game for Newcastle, however, Bruce’s pragmatic approach earned the Magpies a point which kept them out of the bottom three.

Newcastle now face Aston Villa and Brighton & Hove Albion before the international break which could turn out to be a crucial period for both manager and club.

The last thing Farhad Moshiri and Bill Kenwright will have envisaged this summer was finding a new manager.

Carlo Ancelotti was supposed to lead Everton to greatness but instead, the Toffees are now back at square one after his departure to Real Madrid.

The Italian left Merseyside behind with a lot of unfinished business and they now look set to replace him with Nuno Santo.

He left Wolves a number of weeks ago and after a move to Crystal Palace fell through, is primed and ready to take on the Everton hot seat.

His appointment shouldn’t fill supporters with too much excitement but he has been a consistent and reliable figure in the Midlands for four years.

Nuno has a year’s experience of European football but with Everton holding ambitions of a place in the Champions League, they need someone with a bit more know-how.

That man could be Erik ten Hag. Also fielding interest from Tottenham, the Dutchman is one of the most improving coaches around.

The Athletic claimed that Everton have the 51-year-old on their shortlist last week and as a result, they should engage in discussions with him.

After all, Ten Hag’s style of football and his philosophy is everything the Toffees should lust after.

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He has won the Eredivisie on two occasions and was named the fourth-best coach in the world by FIFA during 2019 for his incredible Champions League run with Ajax.

They reached the semi-finals of the competition in 2018/19, knocking out Real Madrid but losing to Spurs in the dying embers of the last four.

Ten Hag’s record with the Dutch giants is rather incredible. Ajax have scored 452 goals in just 167 games with him at the helm, leading to a goal difference of +299.

A keen exponent of the high press, the coach has taken great influence from Jurgen Klopp but he also raves about Pep Guardiola; “I learned a lot from Guardiola. His philosophy is sensational, what he did in Barcelona, Bayern and now with Manchester City, that attacking and attractive style sees him win a lot,” he said.

The Ajax boss has tried to replicate that in the Netherlands and has combined elements of Barcelona’s captivating style with the total football created by the late Johan Cruyff.

Daley Blind told BT Sport (via Planet Football) in May 2019: “Johan Cruyff’s philosophy and spirit still flows around in this club. Erik ten Hag is doing very well now. He wants us to play attacking football but most of all without any fear.”

The Independent’s Will Magee added: “When it comes to Ten Hag’s favoured style of play, the Cruyffian influence is unavoidable. There is a reason that his approach has been dubbed ‘Total Football 2.0’.”

This shines through in the interchangeable nature of his side’s play. Unlike Nuno, Ten Hag is extremely flexible in the way he wants his players to set up.

The full-backs push high while Ajax’s wingers are capable of moving inside and occupying spaces in the middle, as well as on the flanks.

As for Dusan Tadic, he operates in a frightening fashion as a roaming forward, leading the line astutely with 76 goals and 70 assists in 149 outings.

With total football the modus operandi by which Ten Hag lives, he’d be a stellar acquisition for Everton.

He looks like a man with all of the tools to fix their mediocre league finishes.

AND in other news, Moshiri can make the biggest statement of his Everton tenure by hiring 51 y/o “genius”…

Everton have decided to offer 20-year-old starlet Ellis Simms fresh contract terms, as reported by the Liverpool Echo.

The Lowdown: Everton gear up for 2021/22

As the Toffees look to get their ducks in a row ahead of the 2021/22 season, you could be forgiven for thinking that player imports were the only concern of the Goodison Park hierarchy.

Everton have been linked with the likes of Matheus Nunes from Sporting Lisbon in recent weeks [ToffeeWeb].

However, preserving their key crop of young talent has also seemingly become a priority for the Merseyside giants this summer, in particular, Simms, who may become a younger alternative for the now-departed Joshua King [Guardian].

The Latest: Simms has been offered a new deal at Goodison Park

The Oldham-born forward has been given the chance to sign an extension at the club, as his current contract is due to expire in the summer of 2022, meaning he would be free to sign a pre-contract agreement with a foreign club next January [Liverpool Echo].

Despite this, the Finch Farm product has previously discussed a move away from Merseyside, saying in a previous interview: “Who knows what the future will bring?” [Liverpool Echo].

The Verdict: Simms should receive first-team openings next season

Undoubtedly, Everton fans will be hoping that those at the club do all they cato keep hold of their premium talent. Enjoying a sparkling 2020/21 on loan at Blackpool; he helped the Seasiders to promotion from League One, scoring 10 goals from 23 appearances [Transfermarkt].

Once labelled ‘outstanding’ by Everton Under-18’s coach Keith Southern, he is someone with a bright future in the game and it would be a blow to lose his services [Liverpool Echo].

Nevertheless, the inkling that he has been guaranteed some sort of future at the Blues through having a new deal on the table is a positive for the Everton faithful.

Should he elect to stay at Goodison Park, the Toffees should look to pre-season as an opportunity to bed him into a senior environment as he’s shown whilst out on loan that he’s deserving of a chance to make a name for himself at Goodison.

In other news, Lawrie Sanchez has commented on Everton coach Duncan Ferguson.

In one of the biggest transfer roller-coasters in recent memory, Daniel James looked set to join Leeds United, before eventually seeing a move from Swansea collapse at the final hour.

Such was the drama, the deal and all the behind-the-scenes footage of it made it onto the Whites’ documentary released by Amazon.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side had reportedly agreed a loan deal with the Swans in the 2019 January transfer window, with the move being made permanent for around £8.5m if the Whites earned promotion.

However, it all fell apart in the closing stages, and while it seemed like Swansea completely blindsided Leeds by pulling the rug from under the table, it appears the Yorkshire club left their counterparts with no option after looking to weight things heavily in their favour.

According to a report by BBC Sport: “It is understood Leeds wanted to defer the initial loan fee until the summer, while the proposed permanent transfer fee following potential promotion, would have been spread out over as much as three years.

“It is believed Swansea chairman Huw Jenkins felt he was not prepared to accept the terms and brought a halt to discussions.”

Since then, James has, of course, made the move to Premier League level with Manchester United, and while he hasn’t exactly set Old Trafford alight, has begun to feature more prominently under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer in recent weeks – he’s started four out of the last five top-flight games, including scoring against Newcastle in a 3-1 win.

Now, CIES value him at the £60m mark, a quite remarkable rise for a player who had a deal gone through with Leeds, the Whites could have signed on a permanent basis for less than six times that.

And as if to underline that point about Leeds missing out on a potentially exciting talent, James struck the winner for Wales in their World Cup qualifier against the Czech Republic on Tuesday night, getting on the end of a Gareth Bale cross.

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Given that the Yorkshire club supposedly missed out on James because they were playing extremely stingy with the way the transfer fee would have been broken down, this surely must go down as a shocking blunder from Victor Orta.

And at still only 23, the Welshman has got plenty of time to develop even further and make Leeds regret that 2019 call even more.

Meanwhile, Leeds keen on striking deal for this starlet…

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been reacting to an article from Keith Jackson in the aftermath of the latest Old Firm clash.

On May 2nd, the Gers hammered Celtic 4-1 in the last Old Firm game of the season – it was their fourth win in five attempts against their fierce rivals in 2020/21 (Sky Sports). It means the Gers are still unbeaten in this season’s Premiership and they have just two games left (BBC).

The clash also marked Scott Brown’s last Old Firm appearance – he will join Aberdeen at the end of this season. Jackson has suggested that a highly-ranked Rangers official made a crude gesture towards Brown in the tunnel after that match, although Celtic have not chosen to lodge an official complaint since.

Unsurprisingly, this did not go down well with many Rangers supporters. The article from Jackson was shared on his official Twitter page, and it attracted plenty of attention from Gers fans, one of whom called it “embarrassing”. These supporters took to the social media platform to share their thoughts.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the Jackson piece below

“What an embarrassment Keef, imagine putting your name to such a toadying piece. Brown deserves every verbal, he lorded it over poor Rangers sides, he was a classless moron still goading his opponents and opposition fans, even when substituted at Ibrox he was still mouthing off.”

Credit: @Stanspadowski72

“Embarrassing article. Happy for Griffiths blowing his nose on corner flags and tying scarves to posts when playing against guys like Keirnan and Goss yet nothing said. Poor Broony finally exposed as the plastic hard man that he is”

Credit: @DangerousD1969

“Hibs & Saints have just made the cup final and this is what you decide to write about ? Brown, Griffiths and even Lawwell have had digs at Rangers over the years, it’s football that’s what happens. Pathetic stuff.”

Credit: @scottkirkwood72

“Laughable stuff from Jackson here yet again! The same Rodgers who bolted at the first sniff off the EPL! The same Brown who made a career of goading other players and fans!”

Credit: @deanomac55

“Keith this screams sour grapes. Scott Brown has been the luckiest footballer in Scotland in the last 50 years. He deserves a good old slagging for his and his teams performances this season.”

Credit: @Sneddon0472

“Brown has been dishing it out for years so forgive my lack of sympathy here. You reap what you sow, as they say. “Provocatively goaded”? Give me peace.”

Credit: @mox1872

In other news, many Rangers fans were livid at this journalist’s comments.

Tottenham Hotspur have entered the race to sign highly-promising central midfielder Ilaix Moriba…

What’s the word?

That’s according to the Daily Mail, who claim Spurs are exploring a potential move for the 18-year-old Barcelona prodigy before next week’s transfer deadline.

It’s thought that the north London outfit has held talks with representatives of Moriba in the past week but are cautious over their prospects of sealing him due to the competition vying for his signature.

Arch-rivals Arsenal, as well as fellow Premier League sides Chelsea and Manchester City have been mooted with interest, whilst the youngster rejected the La Liga giant’s initial offer of a new deal.

Moriba’s contract runs out in a year’s time, so the Catalan outfit may be forced into a sale sooner rather than later.

Get it done!

After the signing of Bryan Gil and links to another young midfielder in Pape Sarr, it seems as if the club’s hierarchy, led by new sporting director Fabio Paratici, are planning for an exciting future at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The arrival of Moriba would add an interesting dimension to Nuno Santo’s midfield and following his breakthrough last season, he could compete for a first-team place right off the bat.

Already valued at £22.5m, the teenage wonderkid made 14 league and four European and domestic cup appearances, in which he scored one goal and provided three assists, as per Transfermarkt.

Whilst these numbers hardly jump off the page, the glowing endorsement over the type of player he is, should do.

“He’s physically very strong, but he’s also a very intelligent player,” claimed Denis Silva Puig, who coached Moriba on Barcelona’s Juvenil A team. “Most people don’t appreciate this. Here he’s called the ‘[Paul] Pogba of Barca’ because he’s like a young Pogba, but also he is very, very intelligent—and that is his big potential. He is a top player, no doubt.”

Also lauded as a “box-to-box” no.6 by another former youth coach Oscar Hernandez, Moriba is likely to be the next big thing to emerge from Barca’s famed La Masia academy.

His sort of presence alongside the likes of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and the re-emerging Dele Alli could be one exciting prospect – especially for the latter, who could do with a box-to-box sort to allow him to thrive in a more advanced role, something that was executed every so well under Mauricio Pochettino.

Moriba and Alli could spearhead the engine room for several more years to come.

AND in other news, Bye-bye Ndombele: Paratici could find Spurs’ next Dembele in £26m “outstanding talent”…