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West Ham United are preparing a £3.5m bid for Cardiff City goalkeeper Neil Etheridge, as reported by Football League World.

What’s the story?

The Hammers are in the market for another goalkeeper option in January, with the Cardiff stopper seemingly towards the top of their wanted list.

Cardiff are said to be reluctant to let the 29-year-old leave the club for a minimal fee, as he has played 16 of their Championship games this season, keeping four clean sheets.

However, this has not stopped West Ham preparing a bid for the Philippines international during the winter window.

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Reigniting competition

If this move was to be completed, it could potentially reignite the competition between Etheridge and Lukasz Fabianski.

The Bluebirds goalkeeper will originally be brought in to act as back up for the fan favourite, who won last season’s Hammer of the Year award.

However, it is highly unlikely he will be content with fulfilling that role in the long term, considering he played every one of Cardiff’s Premier League games last term.

A football legend: How much do you know about the late, great Bobby Moore? Test your knowledge below…

This would mean that Etheridge could potentially give Fabianski the tightest competition he has had to face since signing for West Ham.

It could also see a previous level of competition between the two goalkeepers reignited from last season when they were the top two goalkeepers in the Premier League for the number of saves made.

Fabianski ended up being the man to top the charts for the 2018/19 campaign, reaching a total of 148 saves made.

Cardiff ‘keeper Etheridge was the only one who ran him close, eventually losing out by seven, as Ben Foster was the closest one behind him with 127.

If Etheridge does sign for the Hammers, he will be looking to overtake him, but in a different way entirely to last season.

In other news, West Ham fans have reacted to transfer links with a midfielder.

Liverpool fans have been breathing sighs of relief after it was announced that Craig Pawson will take charge of their crunch clash with Manchester United on Sunday.

The Red Devils are the only team to take points off Jurgen Klopp’s side this season after a 1-1 draw in the earlier fixture at Old Trafford. Adam Lallana cancelled out Marcus Rashford’s first-half opener to ensure that the shares were spoiled on the other end of the M62. Liverpool are currently top of the Premier League and unbeaten during the current campaign, 14 points clear ahead of Manchester City in 2nd place.

The Liverpool Echo’s Paul Gorst announced that Pawson would be in charge for the game, much to the relief of some fans. This is due to their dislike of official Martin Atkinson after he was the VAR official at Villa Park earlier in the season that disallowed Roberto Firmino’s goal during their 2-1 win. The goal was originally ruled out by the assistant referee. On closer inspection, Atkinson stuck with the original choice made due to Firmino’s armpit being in an offside position, as per the Liverpool Echo.

Check out some of the best Twitter responses from Liverpool fans down below…

Liverpool fans! What are your thoughts on Craig Pawson taking charge? Join the discussion and comment below…

So for yet another season, Arsenal have been involved in the Europa League – the proverbial ugly duckling of European football’s elite competitions. Nothing like the glitz and glam of the Champions League, and the added caveat of having to get used to the Thursday/Sunday schedule too.

The Gunners’ previous two campaigns have seen them go incredibly close to winning the whole thing, with Arsene Wenger leading the Gunners to the semi-finals in his final season in charge, and Unai Emery taking them to the showpiece finale in his debut campaign. Certainly nothing to be embarrassed about in terms of how far they have gotten in their two attempts.

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But there is no denying that the north London side may have achieved Champions League qualification in either of those campaigns if they had simply planned things better. When Wenger got the club to the semi-finals to face Diego Simeone’s Atletico Madrid, the Frenchman simply rejected the notion of trying to freshen things up or rotate a bit.

The first leg that saw them draw 1-1, saw him make just two changes from the team that beat West Ham only four days earlier. And then before the return contest in Spain, Wenger made numerous changes against Manchester United in an attempt to almost rectify his prior mistake, this time fielding youngsters like Reiss Nelson, Konstantinos Mavropanos and Ainsley Maitland-Niles.

It was indecision of the highest order, not knowing what to prioritise and how best to juggle fighting for the top four and challenging for the Europa League. It was a challenge that plagued Emery last year too, most notably in the way he quite dreadfully made a whole host of changes in the 3-2 home defeat to Crystal Palace.

Fringe players like Carl Jenkinson, Mavropanos and Mohamed Elneny, amongst others, were brought in, and the Gunners missed the chance to go three points clear of fifth-placed Chelsea with just four games to go.

Can you name all of these obscure Arsenal signings? Give it a go now!

Both Wenger and Emery found it far too big a task to decide which competition needed prioritising, and then when it appeared they looked to have decided on one, it was rather too little, too late.

Mikel Arteta must ensure that he has learned from his two predecessors’ mistakes in the art of decisiveness, and be a bit bolder in respect to what he feels is the best path to success.

Judging which teams are left in the Europa League and what their run-in for the Premier League looks like must all be assessed properly, and with a bit more care and thought. The Gunners have already been burned twice by two different managers. Arteta must ensure it doesn’t happen for a third time.

With the next round of Europa League fixtures in late February, Arteta has just over a month to plot out his path.

Meanwhile, Arsenal must avoid losing this much-criticised man due to their growing crisis.

David Moyes suffered his first defeat since returning as West Ham United manager at Bramall Lane last time out.

He will be looking to bounce back from that, especially as the Hammers go into the weekend’s fixtures just one point above the relegation zone.

The fact he comes up against his former employers should also provide added incentive for the recently appointed Irons manager.

With this in mind, he is likely to tinker with the team that lost against the Blades, with some of those alterations being forced upon him by injury.

FFC has predicted the starting XI he will use against Everton, with four changes to the team being made from the defeat on Friday 10th.

Darren Randolph suggested that he is fit when his signing was announced. It has also been reported that the Republic of Ireland international is in contention to start, so it seems likely that he will be between the sticks in Lukasz Fabianski’s absence.

Pablo Zabaleta, Fabian Balbuena, Angelo Obgonna and Aaron Cresswell all keep their place in the team. However, Cresswell is moved to left-wing-back, with Arthur Masuaku being a doubt due to a knee issue.

This should open up a space for Issa Diop to slot into the defence, having started just one of the Hammers’ last eight league games.

Mark Noble and Declan Rice are the undisputed holding midfield options, so it is only natural that they start here.

Call yourself a West Ham expert? How much did each of these January signings cost?

Sebastien Haller also features in the XI once again, but there are changes in the personnel supporting him. Ahead of the game, David Moyes hinted that Pablo Fornals could be used in the side.

Meanwhile, Robert Snodgrass, who impressed after coming off the bench against Sheffield United by sticking the ball in the net before it was disallowed.

With that in mind, Fornals and the Scotsman could be used with Felipe Anderson being a fitness doubt and Manuel Lanzini also dropping out of the team.

Meanwhile, West Ham fans were fuming after the club’s announcement.

Leeds got their first signing through the door on Tuesday as Elia Caprile was announced as a United player.

It seems as if the Whites aren’t going to waste any time following it up with their second acquisition as Adam Pope has delivered a definitive update on United’s pursuit of Ian Poveda.

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What’s been said then?

The BBC journalist delivered the news of Leeds’ third bid for Che Adams being rejected, but perhaps the most interesting part of his update was the very last sentence where he revealed that Poveda is set to sign for the Yorkshire club this week.

“Southampton reject 3rd offer from #lufc for Che Adams. Deal understood to be sizeable loan fee with option to buy for £20m if promoted.

“Club confident of bringing a forward in as they look at domestic & international market.

“Man City winger Ian Poveda set to sign this week.” Pope tweeted.

Clarke’s replacement

At the beginning of this transfer window we were told that Leeds wanted a goalkeeper, a winger and a striker.

The Whites reportedly wanted a winger to replace Jack Clarke, and this is exactly what Poveda can do.

Aged just 19, the winger can be a young backup option, but unlike Clarke, he will be a permanent signing, so the Whites can reap the rewards of his development for years to come.

So, how talented is Poveda? It’s hard to judge due to his lack of first-team experience, but he’s been compared to Bernardo Silva and David Silva, and he has been on the books at Arsenal, Barcelona and Man City.

You don’t get that far without having a bit about you.

In other news, Phil Hay has outlined Leeds’ stance on committing to a financial outlay this month.

West Ham United are trying to sign a right-back from a La Liga club, per journalist Alan Nixon.

The club have made two additions already in this window, acquiring goalkeeper Darren Randolph and midfielder Tomas Soucek, and they are also in talks to bring in Jarrod Bowen from Hull City, per sources.

Nixon, though, says that there is also a desire to bring in a right-back, with a La Liga youngster targeted before the 11pm deadline on Friday.

Any deal, it is said, would be a loan instead of a permanent move.

Who on earth is that?!?! Can you name all of these obscure January signings?

Separate reports have claimed that the player could be Moussa Wague, the Barcelona full-back.

Sport, via Sport Witness, claims that the Irons have made contact with Barca over a possible move for the 21-year-old.

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There are said to be other clubs interested, however, including Leganes, Nice and Torino, so the Hammers may face some stiff competition as they attempt to agree a deal for the Mali international.

Meanwhile, one former West Ham man wanted to return to the club!

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According to reports from Sky Italia (via The Daily Mail), Tottenham target Olivier Giroud is ready to boycott training on transfer deadline day.

What’s the word?

Spurs are still searching for a striker this month and as well as Giroud being on their list, it appears as though a move could still be on the cards for Willian Jose.

The Lilywhites have been linked with a switch for the Frenchman for the majority of this week, however.

Graeme Bailey understood on Tuesday that his agent was trying to engineer a switch before he followed that up by suggesting Chelsea would sanction his exit.

Calling all transfer experts! How much did each of these Deadline Day signings cost?

Despite that, the 33-year-old remains in west London, with a move to the north of the capital appearing some way off as we reach deadline day.

Yet, with a transfer to Lazio also potentially in mind, Sky Italia (via The Daily Mail) suggest he is set to refuse to train in order to finally seal his departure.

Desperation

With Harry Kane out injured, there is a clear need for an out-and-out centre forward to join the club. Steven Bergwijn has already joined but similarly to the likes of Lucas Moura and Son Heung-Min, he can play out wide, as well as through the middle.

However, attempts to land Giroud, who hasn’t scored all season in the Premier League, appear rather desperate.

The fact he might be easier to obtain given a lack of game time – he has started just twice in the league – makes it appealing but he is not the man to boost Spurs’ Champions League qualification hopes.

Spurs have relied on the goals of Kane for a while now, and with 17 already this term, bringing in someone like the former Arsenal man is a sign of their nervousness.

After all, he hasn’t netted more than that tally in top-flight football since his days with Montpellier towards the beginning of the last decade.

While Kane is out, they need to find someone more assured in front of goal. Time for that, though, may well be running out.

It’s really difficult to find a clear fault in Jurgen Klopp’s well-oiled Liverpool machine.

The champions of Europe and current league leaders in the Premier League are looking as good as ever and are destined to add to their trophy cabinet in 2019/20.

But even Klopp’s squad contains a handful of players who should be moved on in the summer.

So, with that in mind, here are three such players the Reds should move on when the summer window reopens for business.

Nathaniel Clyne

Nathaniel Clyne’s Liverpool career has faded into insignificance and it’s about time he left permanently.

He is yet to tally a single appearance in the ongoing campaign and while that can be partially explained by fitness issues, the 2018/19 wasn’t all that different as he played just 108 minutes of Premier League football for the club.

When we add the fact that his current contract is due to expire in the summer and that he’s still earning a decent amount of money with an annual salary of £3.64m, it suddenly becomes clear that a new contract is out of the question.

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

Xherdan Shaqiri

Xherdan Shaqiri’s big step up from Stoke City to Liverpool hasn’t really gone according to the plan.

The Switzerland international showed plenty of quality at his former club, bagging 15 goals and 15 assists, but the 28-year-old winger hasn’t hit the ground running at Anfield, as evidenced by the fact he has only made 40 appearances – just 18 of which were starts – since the summer of 2018.

During that time, Shaqiri netted seven goals and assisted five.

Despite his quality, he can’t possibly compete with the incredible front three Klopp has at his disposal.

And seeing how’s he earning £4.16m per year on a contract that runs until 2023, it’s fairly easy to see why it would be in Liverpool’s best interests to cut their ties this summer.

Adam Lallana

It’s always tough letting go of players that have genuinely contributed so much to the team and Lallana, despite suffering from a multitude of injury issues, is definitely one of those players.

The 31-year-old midfielder has once been a big part of the squad and has already played a total of 175 games for the Reds, but the pattern of the current season suggests there isn’t much room for him in the squad.

Since the start of the season, Lallana has mustered 754 minutes across all competitions, netting one goal and two assists in the process as well.

But with his contract expiring in the coming summer and him being on £5.72m per year, it does seem like the end could be looming on the horizon.

And according to the Daily Mail, Arsenal, Spurs and Leicester are all interested in securing his signature.

If Klopp was to bin all three of the aforementioned players, Liverpool would save £13.52m per year in wages.

Everton duo Tom Davies and Dominic Calvert-Lewin are still enjoying their holidays over in New York City and, having already gracing the general public with their questionable fashion choices already this week, they continued that trend late on Wednesday evening.

And, staying true to form, both Davies and Calvert-Lewin were pictured in attire most aptly described as interesting at best.

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The duo were apparently at the American Stock Exchange Building and were definitely dressed for the occasion, sharing their stylistic approaches on

/B8e9GqtHmT_/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link” data-lasso->Instagram once again.

But this time they even got a response from of the king of fashion in the footballing world, Hector Bellerin, who was seemingly impressed with what he saw in the snap.

He quickly responded with a short message of admiration and followed it up with a couple of emojis.

Getting the approval from the “drip king” Bellerin himself will represent some form of badge of honour for the young Everton duo who are also carving their own names in the world of fashion.

For better or for worse…

Meanwhile, many Arsenal fans were not really happy with Unai Emery’s recent comments on his stint with the club…

Wolverhampton Wanderers fans were voicing their approval over whether the club should build a statue of a legendary figure outside the ground after a fan posed the question.

Talking Wolves took to Twitter to ask fellow supporters if the club’s record goalscorer, Steve Bull, deserves to be honoured outside of Molineux Stadium and the answer was a resounding yes, despite the fact he already has a stand named after him. The Englishman enjoyed a brilliant career with the Midlands club, scoring 306 goals, including a mammoth 16 hat-tricks, in 547 appearances (via Soccerbase).

The veteran was a prolific scorer for the club during the 80s and 90s and played during the side’s time in the fourth division of English football (via Daily Mail). Supporters were adamant that the former Wolves man deserves to be recognised by the club as they answered the question. Here is a selection of tweets from fans:

Wolves fans, do you think Bull deserves a statue? Let us know your thoughts below!