All posts by h79snht.top

It has undoubtedly been a case of evolution not revolution at Spurs since Mauricio Pochettino took over.

Now that Chelsea have signed Antonio Rudiger for £30m (with one of the worst announcement videos of all time confirming it), Spurs have become the only side in the top eight yet to add a player to their ranks this summer.

While some would worry that a lack of transfer activity could see the North London side fall behind the likes of Arsenal or the Manchester clubs who have already made big signings, there is an argument that the lack of turnover in players will benefit Pochesttino’s side.

Looking at the Argentine’s transfer history over his three seasons in charge, he has always avoided a mass recruitment drive where he can, instead choosing to work with and improve what he already has as his disposal.

Last season it was only Victor Wanyama who broke into the first-team, as his 35 league starts made him the only one of Spurs’ signings to reach double figures.

In the campaign preceding that, Toby Alderweireld – considered by many to currently be the best defender in the Premier League – was the only man to command a regular spot, with Son Heung-Min only managing 10 starts in his debut season.

Going back even further to the 2014/15 campaign – Pochettino’s first in charge – we notice only Dele Alli and Eric Dier went on to make huge impacts despite a side full of ‘flops’ from the previous season like Roberto Soldado, Paulinho and Erik Lamela.

What is immediately striking is that none of those players commanded huge fees – particularly by today’s standards.

The most expensive of that cohort is Toby Alderweireld at £13.6m, a fee that would be considered a snip for such a consistent defender by modern standards.

Instead of big-money moves, Pochettino has gone about quietly improving the positions Spurs are struggling at while improving an already tight-knit and talented side.

One of his best performers last year was Son, for example, a player who was rumoured to be nearing an exit in the summer before.

It is an approach that is clearly paying dividends as well as the North Londoners have gone from fifth, to third, to second under the Argentine while the likes of Dier, Alli and Harry Kane improve year upon year.

Kane is almost the poster boy for this approach – a golden boot winner two seasons in a row despite not costing a penny.

While signings have been quiet on the ground, Spurs will have the likes of Josh Onomah – fresh from winning the U20 World Cup with England weeks ago – and a recovering Harry Winks vying for more playing time.

The only area you’d say Spurs desperately need to improve is a deputy for Kane. When their talisman was out injured last season, they drew a lot of games that could have been won with a more able striker leading the line.

And while Kyle Walker’s exit to Manchester City is a worry, Kieran Trippier and Kyle Walker-Peters will be eager to make the step up.

So while there are no new signings to cheer about yet, the future could still be very bright for Spurs.

Time will tell if Pochettino can win the league with such an evolutionary approach.

As reported by The Daily Mirror, Chelsea could be on the verge of making a surprise signing this summer with Danny Drinkwater ready to force through a move from Leicester City.

What’s the story?

With the Blues showing ambition in the transfer market this summer with moves for the likes of Alvaro Morata and Tiemoue Bakayoko, onlookers may be surprised with the latest target linked with a big move to Stamford Bridge.

The Mirror report that Antonio Conte is keen on bringing Danny Drinkwater to London, impressed by his work-rate and game intelligence, to bolster his midfield next season.

What’s more, Drinkwater is said to be on the verge of forcing the issue and is ready to tell the Foxes that he wants his big move.

Rated at £7.65m by Transfermarkt, it seems he’d be well within Chelsea’s reach, but does he have the quality to be a success at the Premier League champions?

Is he good enough?

It’s often difficult for players to make the step up from a club like Leicester City to Chelsea but there are signs he could have what it takes to be one that makes the grade. With experience of winning the Premier League trophy two seasons ago and playing in the UEFA Champions League last term, it’s not as if he is completely off the pace that the Blues will be trying to set next term.

He was key to that Leicester title-winning side alongside N’Golo Kante, who’s proven to be one of the best in a Chelsea shirt over the last 12 months. He did also get his football education at Manchester United, so has that background to call upon too.

However, where would he fit into Conte’s plans? Would he be a first-choice start in his illustrious midfield? That seems unlikely and in that sense Drinkwater could find it tough to be a success, despite his hard grafting nature.

He would need to prove himself with limited appearances, which is never ideal. However if he’s happy to fit into the squad and offer depth and back-up to his teammates then it could be a move that makes more sense than you might think at first glance.

According to reports in The Mirror, Aston Villa manager Steve Bruce has made an audacious attempt to sign out-of-favour Arsenal midfielder Jack Wilshere.

The Mirror says that having already brought the likes of John Terry and Glenn Whelan to Villa Park already this summer, Steve Bruce hopes that a big contract and bonuses could tempt the 25-year-old to drop down a division to the Championship.

While they may be one of the favourites to win promotion to the Premier League this term, the Midlands outfit took just one point from their opening two league matches, including a heavy 3-0 defeat to Cardiff City in the Welsh capital on Saturday.

Villa would prefer to bring the England international in on a loan deal, but The Mirror says that Arsenal would prefer to sell him on a permanent deal considering he has less than one year left on his contract.

Here are three reasons Aston Villa should avoid trying to sign Wilshere…

Competition

Aston Villa may be interested in bringing Wilshere to the Championship, but they could be facing a losing battle because if the 25-year-old does seal a move away from Arsenal, as he looks to have plenty of potential suitors.

The Mirror says that Newcastle United and Swansea City are both interested in keeping him in the Premier League and that Serie A outfit Sampdoria are also keen, while The Sun on August 13 says that West Ham United, Crystal Palace, Bournemouth, Juventus, Roma and Lazio also want the England international.

With that competition Villa shouldn’t be wasting time trying to get Wilshere when they could be focusing on targeting another player, or on their disappointing start to their Championship campaign.

Financial implications

While Wilshere would obviously be a brilliant signing for Villa at Championship level, the financial implications of the deal perhaps mean that the club should avoid moving for him at any cost.

The Mirror says that Arsenal would prefer to sell him permanently considering he has less than a year left on his contract, and the Daily Star reported last month that they could even demand a fee of £20m for the 25-year-old – something that would be way out of Villa’s price as they look to stay within the FFP regulations following their extensive spending last year.

Of course, his wages would be significantly high too and the England international would need to heavily compromise on those for the move to go ahead.

Injury record

One of the main reasons Wilshere looks set to leave Arsenal either now or next year is because of the injury problems he has suffered over the past few seasons.

The 25-year-old did well during a loan spell with Bournemouth last term, but he missed the end of the campaign and most of pre-season with a fractured leg and that would have to be a concern if he did move to Villa Park.

Automatic promotion back to the Premier League is the aim for Villa this season and they can’t really afford to take too many risks as they look to achieve that – signing someone with injury history Wilshere has would be doing exactly that.

Do you agree, Villa fans? Let us know below.

As reported by The Daily Mail, West Ham United are locked in a three team race to land Lorient attacker Abdul Majeed Waris this summer.

What’s the story?

With the arrival of Javier Hernandez, Hammers fans are hoping they’ve finally found the poaching striker they need to stick away chances in the English Premier League. However, other options are still needed if they’re to be a real force this season and it seems that Slaven Bilic has found another attacker that can play alongside the Mexican international.

The Daily Mail report West Ham have made initial enquiries to Ligue 1 side Lorient about bringing Abdul Majeed Waris to the London Stadium.

The paper reckon his club rate him at around £12m, putting him well within the Irons’ reach. However, the report also states that they’ll have to battle with West Brom and Burnley for his signature.

Who is he?

The Ghanaian international has been an effective force in Ligue 1 over the last two seasons since making the switch from Trabzonspor, scoring 21 goals in 58 appearances for Lorient.

That number is even more impressive when you consider he plays many of his matches on the left wing, although he does have the ability to play as a centre-forward too.

On the wing, his threat, pace and finishing ability could complement Hernandez perfectly and transform the Hammers attack. The fact he can play centrally also provides depth.

Can he be the missing piece of Slaven Bilic’s attacking puzzle?

England came from a goal down to beat Slovakia 2-1 at Wembley on Monday night and moved a step closer to qualifying for the 2018 World Cup, but West Ham fans were divided on the performance of goalkeeper Joe Hart.

The Three Lions knew that a victory would leave them on the brink of securing an automatic spot at Russia next summer, but they got off to the worst possible start as Stanislav Lobotka finished past Hart in the third minute.

Many believed that the 30-year-old could have done better to keep the effort out, and it may well have cast further doubt on manager Gareth Southgate’s decision to name the Irons loanee as his first-choice stopper.

West Ham supporters were quick to have their say on the performance of Hart via social media, and they were divided with their opinions on the goalkeeper, who has conceded 10 goals in the opening three Premier League fixtures of the season.

While some believe that he wasn’t at fault for the early goal, others believe he is a “fraud”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

It has not been an easy start to the season for Everton following an exciting summer of transfer spending, which amassed over £100m.The Merseyside outfit brought in the likes of Jordan Pickford, Michael Keane, Gylfi Sigurdsson and Wayne Rooney, but so far in the Premier League the team have earned just four points from a possible 15.In fact, Everton, who finished seventh in the table last season, have lost their last three league games in a row and have conceded nine goals.To make matters worse, the team failed to score in those matches, the most recent of which ended in a 4-0 loss to Manchester United.All eyes were on Wayne Rooney as he returned to his former club for the first time since leaving Old Trafford in the summer, but he was unable to make an impact.The Toffees conceded early to an Antonio Valencia goal, but they managed to hold off Jose Mourinho’s side until the 84th minute.In eight minutes, Ronald Koeman’s side let in three more goals, one of which was from the penalty spot.Despite the scoreline, Everton did perform better than in previous games, but their lack of firepower up front remains glaringly obvious.After the match, Kevin Campbell, who played as a striker for the club between 1999 and 2005, chose to remain optimistic when he tweeted his opinion.

Leeds United dropped off of the summit of the Championship table as they were beaten 3-1 by fellow high-flyers Cardiff City in the Welsh capital on Tuesday night, and Whites fans were far from impressed with Mateusz Klich on his first league start for the club.

The Poland international had yet to be named in Thomas Christiansen’s starting XI in the league but following a fine performance in the EFL Cup success against Burnley, and with Eunan O’Kane missing out at the Cardiff City Stadium because of illness, the 27-year-old featured alongside Kalvin Phillips in the middle of the park.

However, it was a night to forget for Klich – whose hesitation on the ball led to the first Bluebirds goal – and his teammates as captain Liam Cooper saw red on the stroke of half-time with the Yorkshire outfit already trailing 2-0, and he was eventually replaced by Ronaldo Vieira in the 68th minute.

Leeds supporters were quick to have their say on Klich’s showing via social media, and while some said he “isn’t good enough for this team”, others simply described his performance as “awful”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Scotland entered Sunday night’s 2018 World Cup qualifier against Slovenia knowing that a win would see them guarantee a spot in the playoffs.

Andrew Robertson was once again in the Scotland XI, with the Liverpool defender winning his 19th cap for his country.

There is no question that the 23-year-old is a key figure for his nation, but the same cannot be said for Liverpool, who continue to prefer Alberto Moreno in the left-back position.

Indeed, Robertson, who moved to Liverpool from Hull City in the summer, has only started three times for the Reds in the early stages of the 2017-18 campaign.

Robertson was a part of the Hull team that were relegated last season, but his performances saw him earn a move away from the KCOM Stadium.

The full-back is again expected to be on the bench for Liverpool’s Premier League clash with Manchester United next weekend, but the club’s supporters are desperate for the Scot to earn more first-team action.

Former Everton striker Tony Cottee has suggested that the club made a mistake in the transfer window.

The Merseyside outfit were one of the busiest Premier League outfits, spending more than £100m on new recruits.

Gylfi Sigurdsson was one of those players; in fact the midfielder was coveted by the Toffees for weeks before Swansea City agreed to sell him for £45m – a club-record fee for Everton.

Cottee, though, thinks that manager Ronald Koeman focused on strengthening the wrong areas of the pitch.

The football pundit believes that more energy should have been put into finding a replacement for Romelu Lukaku, who left the Toffees to join Manchester United in the summer.

The 25-goal man has been sorely missed at Goodison Park given that the team have scored just five league goals so far in the campaign.

Unfortunately for Sigurdsson, the Iceland midfielder has been singled out as a big mistake on Everton’s part; not because he is a poor player but because he is not what the club currently need.

Cottee told talkSPORT:

“I’m not surprised they are struggling to a degree if you look at their transfer policy. Gylfi Sigurdsson is a very good player but he wasn’t what they needed and £45m was a lot to pay for him.

“They have ended up with lots of number tens. They have got Barkley to come back, they have got Rooney, they have got Sigurdsson, and they are not scoring goals. It is no surprise that they haven’t got a goalscorer that Everton are in trouble.”

There is no question that Juan Mata is one of football’s good guys. While many are not switched on to life off the field, the same cannot be said for the Spanish attacker.

The 29-year-old is also a hugely popular figure with the Manchester United supporters, but he has been heavily criticised for his performance against Huddersfield Town at the weekend.

It was the Spaniard that lost possession in the build-up to Huddersfield’s first goal, while the attacker struggled to make his mark in the final third as United suffered their first Premier League defeat of the season.

He was far from the worst player on the field, however, with a number of his teammates putting in their poorest performances of the campaign.

Mata, who is valued at £27m by transfermarkt.co.uk, provided his weekly blog on Monday, where he insisted that United would learn from their mistakes against Huddersfield, starting with a trip to Swansea City in the EFL Cup on Tuesday night.

However, a number of the United supporters were unimpressed with the attacker’s comments, claiming that he should solely focus on improving his own performances.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be found below: