Category: Football

Squad list submission deadline + central-defensive issues for Arteta

Morning all.

Today is October 20th, and it’s the deadline for clubs to submit their 25 man Premier League squads. I’m sure you all know the rules, but just in case:

Each squad contains no more than 17 players who do not fulfil the “Home Grown Player” (HGP) criteria.

The rest of the squad, up to a total of 25 players, must be “Home Grown”.

We can also use U21 players above and beyond the 25 man list. Obviously there’s an issue at Arsenal as we have too many non-home grown players to include them all, this was evident in our Europa League squad which saw Mesut Ozil and Sokratis excluded. It feels very much like both of them could be the ones to miss out in Premier League terms when we make our submission.

I don’t know what’s left to say about Ozil, I wrote about his situation here… Read the rest

"He's unreal", "My defender"- Man United fans praise star's outstanding performance

Manchester United fans absolutely lauded Aaron Wan-Bissaka for his humungous display vs PSG as he was instrumental in the brilliant 2-1 win.

The talented Englishman couldn’t be beaten no matter how many times the French champions tried and supporters couldn’t praise him enough.

Wan-Bissaka played so well that World Cup winner Kylian Mbappé had to switch flanks just to try and make an impact.

In fact, the superb full-back played so well defensively that he was able to break forward consistently and offer a threat on the other end of the pitch too.

Wan-Bissaka’s performances was hugely enjoyed by fans all over the world and it’s safe to say United have a gem of a defender.

… Read the rest

Liverpool dealt blow as star duo miss training ahead of Champions League clash with Ajax

Liverpool duo Joel Matip and Thiago Alcantara are set to sit out the Reds’ Champions League fixture against Ajax on Wednesday night.

According to the Mirror’s Dave Maddock, Fabinho is favoured to start alongside Joe Gomez in the heart of the Premier League champions’ defence.

Both Thiago and Matip have seemingly picked up their injures in the feisty Merseyside Derby on Saturday afternoon, but it’s stressed they’re not thought to be serious.

Liverpool are said to be cautious of upcoming schedule and can’t risk making things worse, after Virgil van Dijk picked up a horrific long-term injury at the weekend.

MORE: Liverpool starlet Harvey Elliott heavily studied Blackburn Rovers before agreeing to loan deal

The Reds’ squad are set to travel to Amsterdam today ahead of tomorrow night’s Champions League clash at the Johan Cruijff Arena.

In other (and happier) news, Naby Keita has taken part in training at … Read the rest

Confirmed: Barcelona announce new contract for four key players including temporary wage cuts

Following the 5-1 win in their opening Champions League group stage match against Ferencvaros, Barcelona have announced new contracts for four key first-team players.

As per the club’s official website, Gerard Pique, Marc-Andre Ter Stegen, Clement Lenglet and Frenkie de Jong have all penned new deals.

It’s added that these deals all include ‘temporary salary adjustment’ in a massive move that will help the cash-strapped side save money in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic.

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… Read the rest

Juventus impress with comfortable Champions League victory

Juventus put their struggles of previous weeks behind them with a comfortable victory against Dynamo Kiev tonight.

The Italian side come into the tie with mixed form, having drawn their last two league fixtures with Crotone and Roma, but looked much the better today.

We started the game in control, albeit while creating very few clear-cut goalscoring opportunities in the opening half, and we maintained a consistent level of possession as we continued to put pressure on our rivals.

We started the second-half with a little more impetus in search of a goal, and we didn’t have to wait long.

Alvaro Morata put his poacher instincts to good use as he pounced on the parried safe from the goalkeeper, beating the defender to reach to the loose ball to put us into the lead.

Shortly after we got to welcome Paulo Dybala onto the pitch for the first time this … Read the rest

Arsecast Extra Episode 378 – 19.10.2020

Welcome to another Arsecast Extra, the Arsenal podcast, with myself and James from @gunnerblog.

On this episode we look back in the 1-0 defeat to Man City on Saturday, a result/performance which has generated a lot of discussion, and which is interesting to analyse because of the way people have reacted to it. We chat about the scoreline in the context of other defeats there in recent years, and the selection decision Mikel Arteta made in using Willian in that particular role. How much was this game Arteta v Guardiola? Could we have been more adventurous in general or later in the match as we looked for an equaliser? There’s a lot on how to best make the team more attacking, there’s Aubameyang in the middle stuff, and praise for the impressive Bukayo Saka whose form might have an impact on the way we use the captain. We also … Read the rest

Detailed: Maguire and Lingard's injuries explained ahead of PSG clash

Harry Maguire and Jesse Lingard‘s injuries have been explained further in detail and it’s not looking good for Manchester United.

The English duo were confirmed absentees for the match vs PSG on Tuesday night but there’s no guarantee they’ll be ready anytime soon either.

United typically have an injury-prone squad so it’s no surprise the injuries have started given how the season has gone.

No real pre-season and not enough rest coupled with an intense international break was going to be difficult for any club and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have paid the price.

It may not even be the last of the injuries given how gruelling the Red Devils’ fixture list is looking over the coming period.

… Read the rest

Paul Joyce provides update on Joel Matip’s fitness; confirms defender underwent a scan

Rumours were rife this morning that Liverpool defender Joel Matip had suffered an injury during the Merseyside Derby and had visited a hospital.

While a video did surface online of the Cameroonian going into Spire in Merseyside, it seems suggestions of anything serious are wide of the mark.

Paul Joyce helped ease the nerves of Liverpool fans who had seen the clip by confirming Matip had been for a scan on Saturday – but nothing serious was detected.

See the well-sourced journalist’s tweet below:

MORE: Great news: Alisson should be back from injury next week, reports reliable journalist

Liverpool have confirmed fellow defender Virgil van Dijk is to undergo surgery after sustaining ACL … Read the rest

‘Full respect’ – Mbappe praises Rashford’s charity work ahead of Man United’s Champions League clash

Ahead of what promises to be an epic opening day Champions League group stage match between Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester United, Kylian Mbappe has taken the time to praise Marcus Rashford for his charity work.

The French World Cup winner also has a charity of his own, but appears to be completely in awe of the England international.

“It is about confidence and he is a player who plays with so much confidence,” he was quoted as saying by the Daily Star.

“He is one of the most dangerous forward players in England. Paul (Pogba) has spoken about how special he is – and he does not talk about players in such a way often.

“To tackle an issue as important as child poverty is one of the most important things that somebody can do – so I have full respect that he has been doing that and trying … Read the rest

Juventus set to return for Arsenal target Houssem Aouar

Juventus are expected to come in with another move for Lyon’s Houssem Aouar, with Arsenal also strongly linked with their own bid.

The French international was strongly linked with a move during the summer, before committing to stay with the Ligue 1 side shortly before the transfer window closed.

Juventus and Arsenal were both strongly linked, as well as other clubs, while Lyon were constantly refusing to rule out his departure.

While the player ended up staying in France, the feeling is that Aouar is destined to move to a bigger club in the near future, and Juve remain keen.

TuttoSport (via Sport Witness) claim that both clubs will even make the jump for the player in January.

Clubs are usually unwilling to discuss major exits in the winter window, unless demanding excessive amounts of money, especially if they are through to the next round of the Champions … Read the rest