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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Manuel Pellegrini could play Michail Antonio against Tottenham Hotspur after the international break, as reported by Football Insider.

The winger has recovered from surgery on a hamstring injury that has kept him out since he was forced off after eight minutes of the Carabao Cup game against Newport County in August.

As long as the 29-year-old goes through the international break unscathed, it seems as though he will be included in the squad to play the Hammers’ London rivals.

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This is a massive boost for the Hammers, especially when it is considered that this will be against Spurs.

Antonio has previous against them and that will give the fans optimism ahead of the clash.

He scored the only goal of the game in the final face off at Upton Park and he also added the winner in their first matchup at the brand new Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, a goal that was topped off with a typically entertaining celebration.

Not only is he something of a lucky charm against Spurs, he will be returning at a good time for Sebastien Haller.

When Tony Cottee spoke to FFC, he mentioned the lack of support the Frenchman has been given: “I think at times he’s been a little bit isolated up front, so he could do with a little bit of help.”

Before picking up the injury, Antonio spoke of how good it was to play with Haller, as reported by The Athletic: “It’s good that we have two people up there now who can play the big man game. We can both hold the ball up, we can both run in from behind, so we’ve had a nice little partnership going.”

With this in mind, having Antonio available could help bring the best out of Haller, who has now gone four games without a goal.

Considering how poor things have been in recent weeks for the Hammers, it will be a massive boost to their chances of beating Spurs if Antonio is able to feature.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

According to the Telegraph, West Bromwich Albion are keen to bring Dwight Gayle back to the Midlands in January as Slaven Bilic looks to put an end to his striking department woes.

What’s the word?

Reports suggest that Newcastle United are bracing themselves for activity surrounding their striker in the upcoming transfer window, which is no surprise given half the Championship have been linked to him in recent months – well, Leeds, Nottingham Forest, Middlesbrough, and Fulham.

Supporters at the Hawthorns will need no introduction to the 29-year-old as he enjoyed a fruitful loan spell last season – Gayle bagged 24 goals in 41 appearances.

This summer, Bilic signed two strikers to try and plug the void left behind by the goal-laden forward, but it hasn’t yet gone to plan.

Charlie Austin has just one league goal in 11 appearances, while Kenneth Zohore is marginally better with both his goals being two penalties this campaign.

Game over Zohore

Gayle’s small 5 foot 9 figure means he would offer a presence that no other striker at the club can, at least that appears to be the case at first glance.

But if the Magpies talisman was to return to Albion, Zohore is probably most at risk of seeing his Baggies career go up in flames as he possesses the most pace out of any of their other options – both Austin and Hal Robson-Kanu are 30-years-old.

One is also a predatory target man of sorts and the other a super-sub loose cannon.

Zohore gives Bilic’s frontline pace, drive, and power, which is all too similar to Gayle.

The former Cardiff City man has had two spells in the Championship before, where he was fouled on average 1.4 and 1.6 times per game with is similar to West Brom’s loan star last season as he was fouled 1.5 times per match.

This suggests that the opposition struggled to handle them because of the qualities they possess, and thus, they offer something too similar to both play together.

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Rated at £13.5m by Transfermarkt, Gayle would be a much-needed addition at the Hawthorns, but you have to fear for Zohore as he’s clearly become an £8m blunder.

Although, this saga will undoubtedly rumble on, just like it did in the summer. We’ll have to wait and see what comes of it.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Jordan Pickford and Everton travel to Turf Moor on Saturday where the current first-choice England keeper will meet his foe Nick Pope, as the Burnley man continues to push him for the number one spot.

Pickford has been involved with England ever since Gareth Southgate sought to replace Joe Hart in 2017, with the 25-year-old taking the number one shirt as the Three Lions approached the World Cup in 2018. In the process, the former Sunderland keeper edged past Pope, Tom Heaton and Jack Butland for the main jersey, but things are looking much different nowadays.

The tide is seemingly changing with the Burnley keeper having a significantly better start to the season than the Toffees man. Pickford was arguably lucky to sneak into the England side based on form as the Sky Sports’ power rankings omitted him from the 23-man squad, based on his statistical numbers.

He also fluffed his lines against Manchester City last weekend, drawing stern criticism from Everton fans for firstly failing to save Riyad Mahrez’s free kick and then almost gifting a goal with an irresponsible failed Cruyff turn in his own third, so it certainly feels as though the pressure is on Pickford to prove he can still be trusted.

Pope, on the other hand, comes with a reputation of steadiness between the sticks, even if he’s a more understated presence than Pickford. The Burnley man has the one cap to his name and was on the bench during each match at the World Cup. However, a shoulder injury kept him out of the squad for many months, which subsequently lost him his place in the Burnley goal, as Heaton returned by the time he was injury-free.

However, having secured the number one spot after Heaton’s move to Aston Villa, now is the time for the 27-year-old to make his mark on the Three Lions setup, and recent form suggests he’s ready to become Pickford’s England nemesis by capitalising on the Everton man’s sloppy start to the season with more assured performances.

Pope currently boasts 3.3 saves per Premier League fixture, whilst winning 0.7 aerial battles each game, and at the same time has conceded three goals less than the 25-year-old’s 12 at Everton so far. On the other hand, Pickford has averaged just 2.4 saves per game in the league, whilst averaging just o.1 aerial battles won per match.

The Burnley shot-stopper has made 24 saves this season, whilst making five high claims and seven sweeper clearances. In contrast, England’s current number one has stopped just 17 shots, made two high claims and two sweeper clearances.

Not only are the statistics significantly in favour of Pope reclaiming the jersey, but his overall performance on a consistent basis proves his worth as well – averaging a 6.86 rating on Whoscored compared to Pickford’s 6.32.

There is no doubt Southgate will be watching closely as Burnley host Everton to determine who takes the spot between the sticks against the Czech Republic and Bulgaria. Right now, it may just come down to whoever makes an error or pulls off a more important save, as the England boss certainly has a tough call to make.

But while it seems Pope can only really go up in Southgate’s estimations as the current second or third choice, Pickford needs to impress to ensure he doesn’t slide down the pecking order. After such ropey beginnings to the new campaign, another disappointing performance could prove incredibly costly. Nothing shows a player up more than failing to deliver in front of a direct rival, or in this case, a potential nemesis.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Tuesday night should have been a dream for Tottenham Hotspur youngster Troy Parrott.

A debut for the club, a comfortable win against League Two opposition and perhaps even a cheeky goal to top the night off.

It turned into a bit of a nightmare for the 17-year-old however, and he must be feeling more frustrated than most at the north London outfit’s situation.

Instead of being heavily involved, the teenager was often left isolated up top on his own against Colchester United, with little service to work with.

In that sense it is not really too surprising that he was sacrificed by Mauricio Pochettino in the 66th minute, but to see a midfielder in Christian Eriksen replace him while defensively-minded players like Eric Dier, Oliver Skipp and Victor Wanyama all remained on the pitch must have been frustrating.

Surely he deserved some time up top in a two with Son Heung-min – who also came on as Parrott left the field – for example?

That won’t be the only issue for the Republic of Ireland youngster, who has been making waves for his country’s U21s and Spurs’ U23 team so far this season – scoring twice in a 3-1 win for the latter against their Manchester City counterparts.

The Carabao Cup looked to be Parrott’s big chance to get some first-team minutes under his belt, with him perhaps being too young and inexperienced to be risked in the Premier League or the Champions League.

That situation could change if Harry Kane picks up an injury for example, but in the meantime you’d expect his opportunities to be limited – especially when Spurs are looking to get back to their best following tough starts to their top flight and European campaigns.

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It could mean that Parrott has to wait for the FA Cup in January for his next big chance, which should be a huge source of frustration for someone who may feel he didn’t make the most of his big opportunity on Tuesday.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

There were many positives to be taken away from Barcelona’s weekend clash against Valencia at the Camp Nou, not least the sight of Ernesto Valverde discovering his best midfield.

On the chalkboard

Even since Frenkie de Jong joined Barcelona this summer, supporters were very much waiting for him to come alive in Barca colours.

Valverde started off by experimenting with the young Dutchman, to the concern of fans.

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But now, it seems that not only has De Jong fully settled into the team but Valverde has also managed to find a solution to one of the key questions hanging over his head: the Blaugrana coach has finally found De Jong’s perfect midfield partners.

The perfect trident

In the game against Valencia, Valverde decided to start De Jong alongside Sergio Busquets and Arthur Melo for the very first time this season.

So far, only De Jong has played all four of the games of the new 2019/20 La Liga campaign while both the Spaniard and the Brazilian have been on and off, the former sitting out the curtain-raiser completely and the latter only making his first appearance on matchday three of the new campaign.

This suggested that Valverde was actually looking at different options, with other players like Sergi Roberto, Ivan Rakitic and Carles Alena all potential starters.

But now, the De Jong, Busquets, Melo trident has had its first real tango together and it ended in quite the rhapsody.

All three midfielders had a brilliant game against Valencia as De Jong racked up a goal and an assist, Arthur an assist and Busquets the second-highest touches in the game.

It also has to be pointed out that none of them had below 90% passing accuracy – De Jong had a sublime 100%, Arthur 95.7% and Busquets 91.7%. They also notched three, two and two key passes respectively.

Safe to say, Valverde has finally found his best midfield and if the early signs are any indication, this lineup in the middle of the park is here to stay.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Monthly Review series, which analyses what managers can learn from the previous month and what the coming month could have in store.

Leeds’ opening month of the season didn’t present them with too many issues.

Marcelo Bielsa’s men started in brilliant fashion with a win over Bristol City before going unbeaten until their encounter against Swansea.

Try as they might, the Whites couldn’t score and ultimately succumbed to a 1-0 defeat at Elland Road.

It wasn’t the ideal way to head into the international break and consequently, there is still room for improvement.

As we now enter September, there are two specific issues that Bielsa needs to get his head around.

Addressing the midfield

One of the glaring weaknesses, particularly against Swansea, was the midfield. Leeds have plenty of options in that area of the pitch but it was a significant issue during their defeat.

We covered an article detailing how Mateusz Klich and Adam Forshaw were effectively operating in the same space.

Despite both of them playing behind the striker, they left Jack Harrison isolated on the left and struggled to make inroads.

21 attempts on goal were had but only three of them were on target. Perhaps, therefore, more creativity and dynamism is needed in midfield.

An eagerly anticipated clash against Derby at Elland Road awaits following spy-gate and the playoffs last term so that will be one Bielsa’s men are keen to win and they’ll need to have come up with a solution by then.

Klich and Forshaw have only contributed to two goals in the league so it’s clearly an area that needs addressing. Tyler Roberts returned to the U23 side on Monday whilst Mateusz Bogusz is also waiting in the wings if required.

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New signing conundrum

Another issue Bielsa needs to address is how he introduces some of his new signings.

After failing to score against Swansea, it might be that bringing in the more potent Helder Costa and Eddie Nketiah is the way forward.

Neither have started in the league this season but the 64-year-old has hinted at using Nketiah in a partnership with Patrick Bamford.

Considering Harrison has been utilised alongside Leeds’ top scorer in a similar system already, it should be something that’s brought in steadily over the next month, especially after the Arsenal man’s three goals.

But Costa is also someone who’s been pushing for a start.

He has provided three assists in two starts whilst his 15 goals at this level dictates that he’s deserving of an opportunity soon, particularly if Harrison doesn’t improve his numbers on the flanks. He has just one goal this term so might be replaced.

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Growing up in a war-torn Serbia, Matic will have seen his fair share of racism and xenophobia. The midfielder might well have thought he had escaped those types of issues when he began playing professional football, but unfortunately, these problems are continuously occurring in the beautiful game.

It’s great to see the 31-year-old speaking out against this terrible trend which has no place in football, and hopefully, the recent reaction to the abuse Pogba has received will be a step in the right direction in terms of permanently eradicating racism from the game.

أشاد آندريس إنييستا أسطورة نادي برشلونة، بلاعب الفريق الكتالوني الحالي، بيدري جونزاليس، مشيرًا إلى أنه يظهر بمستوى أكبر من عمره.

بيدري انضم إلى برشلونة هذا الموسم، ويقدم مستوى مميزًا مع الفريق الكتالوني، بعد الانتقال إليهم قادمًا من لاس بالماس.

طالع أيضًا.. سوسو يسخر من تصريحات بيدري بعد مباراة إشبيلية وبرشلونة

وقال إنييستا في تصريحات لصحيفة “موندو ديبورتيفو” الإسبانية: “من الواضح أن بيدري لديه جودة كبيرة، أعتقد أنه في المكان المثالي لمواصلة النمو والاستمرار في استغلال إمكانياته”.

وأضاف: “أتمنى له الأفضل، والأهم أن يكون هادئًا، وأن يتركه الناس وشأنه، لأنه ما زال شابًا ولديه كل شيء أمامه، وأنا متأكد أنه سيكون له مستقبل كبير”.

وأكمل: “مقتنع وأعلم أنه مستعد جيدًا لكل شيء، ويعرف ما يجب عليه فعله، يستمتع بالكرة ولا يبدو أنه يبلغ من العمر 18 عامًا”.

واختتم: “لذلك هذا هو الشيء الأهم، أن يواصل النمو في برشلونة، وبالتأكيد سيكون مستقبل كبير للنادي، وله أيضًا”.

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Liverpool continue their pre-season challenges in the United States after suffering a narrow defeat against Sevilla on Sunday night.

It was a tightly contested game but the Reds couldn’t overcome the challenge of the Andalusian team, who clinched a 2-1 victory on the night.

But still, Jurgen Klopp was mostly happy with what he saw during the game, though he probably wasn’t as happy with a little friendly bust-up with Dejan Lovren in training prior to the fixture.

The Croatian centre-back shared an

/B0LWo_8Fq91/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link” data-lasso->Instagram snap with the boss that showed him winning an aerial duel against his manager, decking him to the floor in the process.

Of course, this was not something sinister nor was Lovren fined, contrary to what he stated in the image, captioning it with “getting a fine” along with a short apology to his manager.

We’re sure Klopp will let that one slide if Lovren can stay fit and firing throughout the forthcoming season, something he had trouble doing in the 2018/19 campaign.

حقق نادي تيجريس أونال بطل المكسيك وقارة أمريكا الشمالية فوزًا صعبًا على حساب أولسان هيونداي بطل دوري أبطال آسيا، بنتيجة 2-1 في الدور الثاني من بطولة كأس العالم للأندية 2020، في قطر.

واحتضن المباراة ملعب “أحمد بن علي” معقل نادي الريان في قطر، بقيادة الحكم الأوروجوياني الدولي إستيبان أوستويتش.

وتقدم أولسان هيونداي في النتيجة بالدقيقة 24 من زمن الشوط الأول، عن طريق رأسية كيم كي هي، بعد متابعة لركنية نفذها زميله يوون بيت جرام.

اقرأ أيضًا.. كافو: فخور بالتتويج بـ كأس العالم للأندية مع ميلان خلال مسيرتي الكروية

ولكن بعد مرور 14 دقيقة أخرى، نجح هداف تيجريس الحالي ومنتخب فرنسا الأسبق أندريه جينياك من إدراك التعادل في الدقيقة 38، قبل أن يضيف الهدف الثاني والتقدم لفريقه المكسيكي في الدقيقة الخامسة من الوقت بدل الضائع في الشوط الأول، من ركلة جزاء.

بهذا الفوز يصعد تيجريس إلى الدور نصف النهائي من بطولة كأس العالم للأندية ويواجه بالميراس بطل كوبا ليبرتادورس يوم الأحد المقبل في تمام الساعة السابعة مساءً بتوقيت “القاهرة” على ملعب “المدينة التعليمية”.

بينما ينتظر أولسان هيونداي بهزيمته الخاسر من لقاء الأهلي والدحيل لمواجهته في مباراة تحديد المركزين الخامس والسادس يوم الأحد المقبل، في تمام الساعة الخامسة مساءً بتوقيت “القاهرة” على ملعب “أحمد بن علي”. شاهد أهداف مباراة تيجريس وأولسان هيونداي