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Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter following the news that David Wagner will leave Huddersfield by mutual consent, and have said that they would like to see the German-American boss take over from Roy Hodgson at the end of the season.

Wagner departs the Terriers with the club propping up the rest of the Premier League with just 11 points to their name, and a measly two wins from 22 games.

However, the 47-year-old has operated on a shoestring budget for the majority of his three-year stay with the club, all whilst managing to achieve one of the most amazing promotions in recent history when he led Huddersfield to the Premier League via the Championship play-offs back in 2017.

Wagner also managed to keep the club in the top-flight against all odds last season, and will undoubtedly get another job at the top level in no time.

Intriguingly, some Palace fans are hoping that it will be with them having lost patience with Hodgson…

Tottenham fans are always a sad bunch during transfer windows. The Lilywhites always manage to leave the business late and often that can leave them empty-handed. Over the summer they signed no one, and now it looks like they’re set to repeat that, even if Bild are claiming they’re in the running for Timo Werner.

Timo Werner is one of the hottest prospects in European football at the moment. The young German striker has everything that a top front man needs. His pace, finishing, ability to read the game and tenacity to get in and force himself chances are traits that would serve him well in the Premier League, and if Tottenham could pull it off it would be a massive coup for Mauricio Pochettino.

However, it’s much easier said than done to sign a player like Werner. The German is being looked at by a number of different clubs. Tottenham will be competing with Liverpool, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund for his signature, not to mention that RB Leipzig will also be desperate for him to renew his contract. The Werner saga is only just beginning at the moment, and it would be a huge shock if Spurs came out the victors at the end of it.

You can read the LIlywhites’ thoughts on the Werner rumours here:

The Lilyhwites have no faith in Levy pulling this one off, and who can blame them after their summer window last year.

According to The Sun, Bournemouth will let defender Tyrone Mings go on loan to Championship outfit West Brom this month if The Cherries can sign Brentford’s Chris Mepham.

With that in mind, we are going to discuss the pros and cons of the 25-year-old moving to The Hawthorns:

Pros He’s a modern defender

West Brom’s defence has come under criticism this season for lacking confidence and composure on the ball. The likes of Craig Dawson and Kyle Bartley have come under huge pressure for being slow and cumbersome, and for a manager like Darren Moore who likes to play from the back, that does not help.

Mings, on the other hand, is much more comfortable with the ball at his feet, and has a keen eye for a pass. Meanwhile, he is still 6ft 5 and an imposing defender. He has not substituted finesse for physicality.

Versatility

Capable of playing as both a left-back and a centre-back, Mings could prove to be hugely beneficial to The Baggies this season. Just like Mason Holgate has shown so far playing as a right-back, this versatility serious will help Moore in rotating his squad throughout the season. He could serve as another deputy to Kieran Gibbs on the left flank when neeeded.

Cons Form

Since joining Bournemouth from Ipswich in the summer of 2015, the defender has been ravaged by injury which has seriously hampered his playing time. In fact, since arriving at The Vitality stadium, he has averaged under five Premier League games a season.

West Brom cannot risk signing someone for half a season that will need to take a couple of months potentially to find their form. This could be a risky move and could hamper their promotion chances.

Short-term

The Baggies have already signed Mason Holgate on loan this month, as well as having Tosin Adarabioyo on loan from the beginning of the season. That means they could potentially have three of their defenders leaving at the end of the season. For a team that could be in the Premier League next season, they will suddenly need to recruit rampantly to build a defence again. Then again, with the money they earn from promotion, they will be able to do that.

Neil Lennon’s third full season in charge of Hibernian saw the wheels come off in a manner akin to the famous old Jose Mourinho adage. Indeed, while the former Celtic boss is largely regarded as Hibs’ best manager in years, the season hasn’t ever really got going and his current suspension at Easter Road leaves the club in a mess.

Despite their status as one of Scotland’s biggest clubs, Hibs don’t tend to do continuity all too well. No consecutive top-four finishes in over ten years now are largely covered up (at least in an emotional sense) by the famous 2016 Scottish Cup win and it’s vitally important Leann Dempster gets this appointment right.

Lennon’s arrival at Easter Road came after Alan Stubbs who, despite delivering the one trophy so dearly craved by everyone in Leith, ultimately failed in his primary task – taking the club back into the Scottish Premiership. Prior to the Liverpudlian, the likes of Terry Butcher and Pat Fenlon endured shocking tenures in charge, so Lennon is currently the exception to the recent ruling of Hibs bosses.

Frustratingly for Dempster, there aren’t all too many stand out candidates right now. In fact, when Lee Clark is the man seemingly most open to the job, it’s probably not the best time to be searching for a new manager.

Still, an emotional move for Gordon Strachan has been touted (as per the Daily Mail via the Scottish Sun) and, while the former Scotland boss would certainly be a big name, we’re going to analyse to pros and cons.

Pro 1 – Status

Lennon’s appointment back in 2016 certainly brought a certain level of interest back to a club previously petering out. A huge name in Scottish football and a relative coup considering Hibs’ second-tier standing at the time, the same strategy could be applied to Strachan now.

One of the most successful Scottish managers of the modern era and a man who only left the national job recently, Strachan’s arrival would lift everyone at Easter Road.

Con 1 – Short-termism

At 61, Strachan would surely only be a short-term option. He’s unlikely to stay for years and build something and the idea of him coming to steady the ship may be a good one for the next few months or so, but where does that leave Hibs in the summer?

If he doesn’t get the new manager bounce, it could be a miserable end to his managerial career.

Pro 2 – Convincing the players

There does seem to be an element of discontent behind the scenes at Hibernian. The reports suggesting Florian Kamberi was a huge reason in the disagreement that led to Lennon’s suspension certainly speak to the potential narrative that the dressing room had been lost.

Hibs have a huge amount of attacking quality on offer and, as already proven this season, can beat anyone on their day.

What better way to convince the players that club do have ambition and raise the excitement levels than making a big name appointment?

Con 2 – Financial hit & thinking inside the box

Despite the emotional pull of finally bringing Strachan to the club he supported as boy, any potential deal may not make a huge amount of sense to those behind the scenes. Chariman Rod Petrie isn’t one to play fast and loose with his cash and, presumably, the ex-Celtic boss wouldn’t come cheap.

Kilmarnock have shown thinking outside the box when it comes to getting a new boss in can have major success, so perhaps some more strategical thinking behind the scenes is a better option.

The Verdict

Ignore the emotion and think outside the box. Gordon Strachan would be a big name but big names don’t always work and Hibs’ previous appointments along a similar line haven’t gone well at all, such as John Hughes and Mixu Paatelainen.

Granted, the former coach of the Tartan Army is probably a level above those names but why spend relatively big on a short-term deal? The likes of Gary Holt or Tommy Wright surely make more sense and that’s without even considering some of the more left-field appointments that have made the Scottish Premiership so much more interesting of late.

As long as it’s not Lee Clark. Anyone but Lee Clark.

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Tottenham Hotspur are monitoring the progress of Borussia Monchengladbach defender Matthias Ginter, per Sky Sports.

Spurs are aware of the need to recruit a new centre-back in the summer and are reported to have scouted Ginter ahead of a potential move in the next transfer window.

Of course, Spurs have not signed a player in the past two windows, with their last acquisition being Lucas Moura from PSG in January of 2018.

Ginter, though, could be the man to end that streak, despite rival interest from Arsenal.

The potential consequences of the move are wide-ranging, as Football FanCast explains below…

Alderweireld allowed to leave

Spurs triggered an extension in Toby Alderweireld’s contract earlier this season, which, in theory, ties him to the club until 2020.

However, the deal contains a clause that allows the Belgium international to leave the club if an offer of £25million is tabled this summer.

That seems to be something of a bargain in the current transfer market, and would surely be a blow for Mauricio Pochettino and chairman Daniel Levy, with prices inflated across the board.

But signing Ginter would go a long way to quelling any potential fan rebellion from his departure, and would clear a path for his exit to be completed.

The Germany international would not be an immediate upgrade on Alderweireld, but he could soon become just as important.

Sanchez replaces Vertonghen

Davinson Sanchez has emerged as one of the finest Premier League centre-backs since his move to Spurs in summer 2018.

He did not come cheap, costing a club-record £42m, but he has excelled under Pochettino’s guidance.

Check out Neymar’s controversial new haircut for 2019 and Xherdan Shaqiri as you’ve never seen him before in the video below…

Sanchez has already made 65 appearances for Spurs and, with 31-year-old Jan Vertonghen approaching the twilight of his career, it would be of little surprise to see the Colombia international partnered with Ginter on a regular basis.

The pair have the ability to forge a defensive partnership that could last for over a decade and, again, smooth over the phasing out of Vertonghen from the regular starting XI.

Spurs become emboldened in transfer market

Snatching Ginter from under Arsenal’s nose would be something of a coup for Spurs, who have endured two transfer windows of inactivity.

There have been plenty of links with players of British origin – James Maddison of Leicester City, Bournemouth’s David Brooks, Leeds United’s Jack Clarke and Hull City’s Jarrod Bowen have all been touted as potential targets by The Mirror – but Ginter could prove to be the first of many acquisitions this summer.

Pochettino finally appears ready to overhaul his squad and inject some youthful vigour, which could also pave the way for some summer departures.

Signing Ginter as a long-term defensive reinforcement could well prove to be the first brick in a wall of signings this summer as Spurs prepare for their first full season at the new White Hart Lane.

After all, if they are to stay competitive, the club have to invest.

Antonio Valencia’s time is surely up at Manchester United.

After falling out of favour from Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s progressive system, he must see himself staring at an exit from Old Trafford after a decade of service, over the course of which the Ecuadorian has performed a number of roles. Originally a winger, he even took up the legendary No.7 shirt at the Theatre of Dreams, though was pushed back into a full-back role not long after and now looks done at this level.

He was even linked with a late exit over the course of the January transfer window (as per the Sun) during which he reportedly snubbed moves to Newcastle United and Fulham.

The United captain’s hardly appeared under Solskjaer, with injuries and inconsistency plaguing his season and it’s time the Red Devils move on. We’ve seen just how important full-backs are to top-level teams these days and it’s time decision makers in Manchester splashed the cash to truly move on.

Valencia’s mistake-prone manner and drop in performance-level mean he’s not needed at United anymore, it’s simple.

So, with that in mind, we’ll look at THREE suitable replacements the club must consider.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka

A breakthrough star for Crystal Palace, Aaron Wan-Bissaka’s performances have attracted a lot of attention. He’s been a commendable part of their defence while showing promise going forward.

Wan-Bissaka only has one assist this season, yet his movement on the right-flank and ability to create chances is impressive. He’s helped Palace keep almost nine clean-sheets and possesses all the tools to succeed at Manchester United. Indeed, he’s got quite the future ahead of him.

Thomas Meunier

Meunier’s been a solid right-back for Paris-Saint German and shown fantastic capability going forward, while also maintaining his defensive duties well.

He’s scored three goals and assisted three in 16 appearances while helping them keep 8 clean-sheets. Meunier’s an asset for any attack-minded side and having voiced his liking for United, the Red Devils shouldn’t hesitate to sign him up.

Djibril Sidibe

Why not replace an experienced candidate with another one?

The World-Cup winning defender’s had a season to forget with Monaco, who are somehow struggling to survive relegation.

However, he wouldn’t hesitate if United came calling. Sidibe’s solid defensive knowledge along with his ability to go forward could help him fit in at United and help bring experience to their young defensive line.

According to The Northern Echo, Newcastle United want to sign Mason Holgate and Lewis Gibson from Everton during the January transfer window.

The report claims that the Magpies have been scouting Holgate throughout the campaign, with the club now ready to make a formal approach when the winter window opens for business at the start of next month.

Watch Newcastle United Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

But not too many of the Newcastle fans would welcome Holgate, who was widely praised by the Everton supporters for his performance at the base of midfield against Manchester United in the Premier League on Sunday afternoon.

Watch Man Utd vs Newcastle Live and Free with Amazon Prime on Boxing Day

Gibson, meanwhile, left Newcastle to join Everton in the summer of 2017, which has left some of the club’s supporters slightly confused, with one fan asking whether there was a buy-back clause in the deal that took him to St James’ Park.

A football legend: Can you get over 80% on this Gazza quiz? Find out now…

There was not too much positively from the Newcastle fans in general when it came to either player arriving at St James’ Park, but one supporter did claim that Holgate would be a brilliant signing for the club.

Meanwhile, a number of Newcastle fans were disappointed with the performance of one player in particular against Burnley at the weekend.

Manchester United’s 1-1 draw at home to Everton on Sunday evening will have brought fans back down to earth after their incredible derby victory over Manchester City last weekend. Supporters were back posting negative opinions on Twitter and Luke Shaw bore the brunt of quite a lot of fans’ frustrations.

He’s started five times so far this season but has only been rated an average of 6.57/10 for his performances on WhoScored. The 24-year-old has even younger competition in Brandon Williams and his three starts have led to 45% of fans on a Manchester Evening News poll claiming Williams should have started against the Toffees. After Sunday’s performance, Shaw hasn’t helped himself.

When United news aggregator United Xtra posted the half-time score of 1-0 on their page and asked for the fans thoughts, many shifted their attention to Shaw. They moved to slam him for his performance, and some nailed their colours to the mast in the Shaw/Williams debate too.

You can see some of their reactions to the tweet below:

Man United fans, what did you think of Luke Shaw’s performance against Everton?

With Liverpool now having three former Red Bull Salzburg players in their ranks following the signing of Takumi Minamino this week, the Austrian club decided to send out a cheeky tweet asking who the Reds were going to sign next.

The Japan international joins Sadio Mane and Naby Keita at Anfield as part of the Salzburg alumni, and the Merseyside outfit will certainly be hoping that the 24-year-old can go on to have a similar impact to the former – the ex-Southampton man has 72 goals in 147 outings for Jurgen Klopp’s men.

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Salzburg certainly have a lot more impressive players such as Erling Haaland, Dominik Szoboszlai and Hwang Hee-chan in their ranks, but Liverpool supporters largely decided to focus on a defensive player instead – and one who plays for Red Bull Leipzig, rather than their fellow franchise counterparts.

Watch Leicester vs Liverpool Free Live and Free with Amazon Prime on Boxing Day

The man in question is Dayot Upamecano, who has a release clause of €100m (£85m), that will reportedly reduce to €80m (£68m) if he fails to sign a new contract before the summer.

One fan said “make it happen” about the aged 21 Frenchman, who has made 93 appearances for Leipzig despite his relatively tender years.

Another fan focused more on what the France U21 international’s arrival at Anfield would actually mean, suggesting he could be the perfect long-term partner for Joe Gomez at the heart of the defence, when the likes of Virgil van Dijk, Dejan Lovren and Joel Matip move on.

Given Gomez is still only 22 himself, that is certainly an exciting prospect for the future.

Upamecano wasn’t the only Leipzig player receiving attention from the Anfield faithful though, with striker Timo Werner also mentioned alongsisde the 21-year-old in some tweets.

No clues: Can you name the season these iconic Liverpool images belong to?

Another centre-back in Ibrahima Konate, who has partnered his fellow Frenchman in the Bundesliga outfit’s backline, was also named – it’s clear that the Red Bull franchise are doing something right with so much interest in so many individuals.

In other Liverpool news, Georginio Wijnaldum has a critical job to do in the Club World Cup final against Flamengo on Saturday…

Takumi Minamino is still waiting for his grand debut for Liverpool.

The Reds officially confirmed his transfer from RB Salzburg last month and their new player will soon don the kit of the champions of Europe and current Premier League leaders. He could even feature on Sunday when Liverpool face Everton in the FA Cup.

Watch Liverpool Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

But football journalist Dave O’Connell was wondering what might’ve been going through his head as he watched his new teammates play from the stands during the Anfield clash against Sheffield United on Thursday night, as Liverpool won 2-0 with an incredibly dominant performance.

Many responding Reds fans were quite creative in that department and have promptly come up with a variety of replies.

Some of them simply think Minamino is well aware of the fact that he has joined the greatest team in the world…

But that’s also a part of the problem – the greatest team in the world has some phenomenal players and Minamino could very well be thinking about how could he possibly get a spot in a starting XI already performing so well.

After all, Liverpool not only dispensed of a team that had previously lost just once on the road in the Premier League, but also did it with 74.8% possession, 19 shots to the visitors’ three and a Premier League record 874 passes completed.

Accordingly, some think Minamino will be hoping he can be good enough to play at Liverpool’s standard, maybe even wondering what exactly Jurgen Klopp wants from him in the first place when he already has such a dominant side at his disposal.

Of course, that’s the trickier part of the equation but there’s also the shiny side, quite literally.

Much harder than you’d think… Can you name Liverpool’s top scorers for each of these 25 seasons?

Since Liverpool are currently firing on all cylinders in the Premier League with just two points dropped so far this season – and are also through to the knockout rounds of the Champions League – it seems that many fans are hugely optimistic about the future and believe Minamino might be thinking about all the medals he could win now that he’s one of the Reds.

Elsewhere, one of Liverpool’s players has been labelled as the most underrated player in the history of the Premier League…