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Many Glasgow Rangers fans are livid at comments from Charlie Nicholas, who slammed the Gers’ achievements this campaign after their Scottish Cup defeat at the weekend.

The Gers romped to the Premiership title this term – they remain unbeaten in the league (BBC) – but they were unable to match that level of success in the cup competitions. A run to the Europa League round of 16 was impressive, but defeats to St Mirren and St Johnstone in the Betfred Cup and Scottish Cup respectively will no doubt have disappointed Steven Gerrard.

However, while the Ibrox outfit managed to get their hands on their first major trophy in 10 years, Nicholas has called the 55-time Scottish champions “chokers” and suggested that Gerrard must make things right at the club (Daily Express via Daily Record).

As you can imagine, his comments did not go down well with some Gers supporters. These fans took to social media platform Twitter in their droves to criticise the former Scotland international’s quotes, wich one Ibrox supporter called “drivel”.

Let’s see what these fans had to say about Nicholas’ comments

“Whit??!!! Kent in particulars had a great season. If we had held on and won the other night he’d be singing their praises!”

Credit: @nicol_euan

“53 Goals and Assists between them this season, is he alright???”

Credit: @Robleghorn

“The zoomers are out in force today”

Credit: @matalihan123

“Printing drivel like this is why they don’t get access to the Rangers players & manager”

Credit: @AHW140

“Something else man honestly”

Credit: @DuckStaunch

“Defenders and goal our best players? I agree to an extent, but 81 goals scored in the league to say Morelos and Kent has been poor is embarrassing given they’ve both contributed to 53 goal involvements with goals and assists”

Credit: @Ross90141394

In other news, Rangers are eyeing up this in-demand winger.

Fede Valverde and Marco Asensio were on target as Real Madrid overcame a poor first half to ease to a 2-0 La Liga win over mid-table Osasuna.

Osasuna had the better chances in the first half on Saturday, forcing injury returnee Thibaut Courtois into a few neat saves. But they couldn't find the net and were ultimately made to pay for it.

After the break, Vinicius Junior had a goal ruled out for offside, before Jon Moncayola lashed a volley just outside the post.

Federico Valverde eventually grabbed the winner, bursting into the Osasuna box to sweep Vinicius Junior's cut-back into the far corner and continue his sudden bounce back inspired in part by good news about his partner's pregnancy.

Marco Asensio added a second in stoppage time to mark a relatively comfortable win.

GOAL rates Real Madrid's players from Estadio El Sadar…

• Goalkeeper & Defence

  Thibaut Courtois (7/10):

  A welcome return to the side with Liverpool looming on Tuesday. Was busier than he would have liked, but will certainly take a clean sheet.

  Nacho (7/10):

  Solid once again at right-back. Has been a bright spot amidst a few rocky weeks.

  Eder Militao (7/10):

  Kept busy in the air against the physical Ante Budimir. Made some excellent defensive recoveries.

  Antonio Rudiger (6/10):

  Could have been sharper in his passing, and was the more exploitable of Madrid's centre-backs.

  David Alaba (6/10):

  Got forward a lot to support Vinicius, but his final ball was lacking. Put in a solid defensive effort to gear up for a potential matchup with Mohamed Salah on Tuesday.

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• Midfield

  Luka Modric (6/10):

  Classy as usual. Seems to be steadily getting his legs back after a rusty January.

  Eduardo Camavinga (7/10):

  Wonderful defensively, and his attacking work is continuously improving. Probably won't start against Liverpool, but made a case for it.

  Dani Ceballos (6/10):

  Retained his spot in the side after a fine run of form. Didn't offer much going forward, and was the first Madrid midfielder to be removed.

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  Attack

  Federico Valverde (7/10):

  He was relatively quiet until he burst into the box for Real Madrid's opener. Not his best showing, but Valverde bagged a vital goal, and his form in that department after a rough post-World Cup stretch is wonderful to witness.

  Rodrygo (5/10):

  Looked a bit lost in a central position. Isn't the answer when Benzema is injured.

  Vinicius Junior (7/10):

  Ran a lot, was fouled a lot. Perhaps should have scored after carving an opening for himself. Provided an excellent assist for Valverde before getting a goal. Deserves more protection from the referees.

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  Subs & Manager

  Marco Asensio (7/10):

  Came on, was quiet, then scored a goal. Job done.

  Dani Carvajal (6/10):

  A surprise cameo after he appeared set for a night off.

  Alvaro Rodriguez (7/10):

  Grabbed a late assist in his La Liga debut.

  Carlo Ancelotti (6/10):

  The Madrid manager took very few risks with a Champions League knockout tie three days away, leaving Karim Benzema and Aurelien Tchouameni out, while benching Dani Carvajal. Got a result, despite an underwhelming showing. All eyes turn to Tuesday.

For the past four months, Leicester City have clearly been on the lookout for a midfielder.

Foxes manager Brendan Rodgers expressed his intentions to bring in a midfield player in the January transfer window but a move did not materialise, whilst the East Midlanders have recently been linked with the likes of Yves Bissouma, Tomasso Pobega and Boubakary Soumare ahead of potential summer transfers.

However, it might have all been so different had Leicester secured the signature of Weston McKennie under a year ago.

It was reported during the summer 2020 transfer window that the Foxes were interested in the services of the American and were vying with Premier League rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers for his signature. Again, a switch did not come to fruition, the then-Schalke 04 man surprisingly signing for Juventus instead.

He has gone on to have an overwhelmingly positive impact in Turin since his arrival. At the time of writing McKennie, rated at £22.5m by Transfermarkt, has made 37 appearances in all competitions for Juve, scoring six goals and providing two assists.

For comparison, only James Maddison and Youri Tielemans of Leicester’s current crop of central midfielders can boast more than the former FC Dallas star’s eight goal contributions this season.

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McKennie’s form has certainly not gone unnoticed by those in Italy, either. Juventus coach Andrea Pirlo has gone as far as to say that the American is a “rock” in the Italian giants’ midfield – a huge compliment considering that he has had to vie with the likes of Arthur Melo, Aaron Ramsey, Adrien Rabiot, Rodrigo Bentancur and others for a starting berth.

Considering his excellent displays, Leicester will reflect on a huge mistake in not bringing McKennie to the King Power Stadium last year, a clanger which has only been exacerbated by Rodgers’ reported recent hunt for a midfielder.

AND in more news, take a look at which new deal could be a future clue for Leicester… 

The club's academy has a long and proud history of success, producing one superstar after another

From the Busby Babes to the Class of ’92, it is in Manchester United’s DNA to build from within. Perhaps no major club is more synonymous with developing young talent, with homegrown greats Sir Bobby Charlton and Ryan Giggs becoming icons of Old Trafford and the game at large.

There are too many to name all at once. The Babes – many of whom tragically perished in the Munich air crash of 1958 – are part of the soul of the club.

Meanwhile, the Class of ’92 are still adding to their legacy as football club owners, prominent television pundits and more.

And in around those more famous eras was a constant flow of talent, making the United production line unique in the game. Below, GOAL picks out the club's greatest academy graduates…

• Offside Sports
  

  Duncan Edwards

  No list could be complete without Edwards.

  For those who played with or against him, the consensus is that he may have gone on to be regarded the greatest of all time.

  A powerhouse, he was capable of playing almost anywhere and was the crown jewel of Busby's Babes.

  Tragically died as a result of his injuries sustained in the Munich air disaster.

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  Sir Bobby Charlton

  One of the greatest players of all time, Charlton won it all.

  He was both a United legend, who fired them to European Cup triumph in 1968, and an England great, who led the Three Lions to World Cup glory two years earlier.

  Only Wayne Rooney and Harry Kane have scored more goals for England – and only Ryan Giggs has played more games for United.

  Won the Ballon d'Or in 1966.

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  Nobby Stiles

  Another United and England legend, who starred in the '66 World Cup triumph.

  Despite his diminutive stature, Stiles was as hard as they come. His shepherding of Portugal icon Eusebio, in both the World Cup and then again in the 1968 European Cup final against Benfica was a masterclass in the art of marking.

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  George Best

  The most famous footballer of his generation, whose legend lives on to this day.

  Best would leave defenders with twisted blood and was a marketer's dream, with pop-star good looks and a rock-n-roll lifestyle.

  His was a star that burned bright and faded far too soon as his alcohol addiction caught up with him.

  At his peark, he was the poster boy of Busby's last great United team. He won the European Cup but should have gone on to achieve so much more.

The Blues have become one of England's most successful clubs thanks primarily to the many stars bought after Roman Abramovich's takeover in 2003

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  GK: Petr Cech

  A bargain buy from Rennes at just £7 million ($9m), Cech achieved immortal status among Chelsea fans by playing a pivotal role in the club's greatest ever triumph: the 2012 Champions League final win over Bayern Munich.

  After saving one penalty from Arjen Robben in extra-time, the goalkeeper stopped another two spot-kicks in the shootout.

  Alongside that historic success at the Allianz Arena, Cech won four Premier League titles, four FA Cups, three League Cups and the Europa League during his spell at Stamford Bridge.

  Cech finished his career at Arsenal but, such is his high standing at Chelsea, he returned to the club after retiring to become the Blues' technical and performance advisor.

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  RB: Branislav Ivanovic

  Branislav Ivanovic endured a slow start to his Chelsea career after arriving from Lokomotiv Moscow in 2008, but once he got his chance, he never looked back.

  The right-back would go onto win three Premier League titles and FA Cups, one League Cup and both the Champions League and Europa League.

  After John Terry, Ivanovic is Chelsea's highest-scoring defender and was the match-winner in the 2013 Europa League final against Benfica.

  Across 377 appearances, he went from outsider to a pivotal figure in the most successful era in Chelsea's history, as underlined by the fact that he still has a close relationship with Roman Abramovich.

• IAN KINGTON
  

  CB: John Terry

  As far as Chelsea fans are concerned, three words sum up John Terry: captain, leader, legend.

  Arguably the club's greatest ever player, the central defender was lauded for both the quality of his play and his will to win.

  A graduate of the club's academy, Terry was known as 'Mr. Chelsea' at Stamford Bridge as he was a constant in the starting line-up during the club's golden era.

  He made 717 appearances after breaking through as a teenager and went on to lift five Premier League titles as captain, as well as a Champions League, five FA Cups, three League Cups and the Europa League.

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  CB: Ricardo Carvalho

  Ricardo Carvalho was part of the Roman revolution, arriving at Chelsea from Porto alongside Jose Mourinho, with the pair having just won a Champions League together.

  The Portuguese central defender became John Terry's perfect partner, creating perhaps the meanest defensive duo in Premier League history.

  Terry's commitment and leadership was wonderfully complemented by Carvalho's speed and mastery of the 'dark arts' of defending.

  Carvalho won three Premier League titles, the FA Cup and two League Cups in his six years at the club and he helped the club claim a seat at the top table of European football. 

Wednesday's all-London final was finally won by Chelsea, but both Premier League sides contributed players to the competition's best XI

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  1Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang | Arsenal

  Arsenal's Gabon international failed to make much of an impact in the final as Arsenal were squeezed out by their London rivals, but nevertheless smashed eight goals overall to help his side to Azerbaijan.

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  2Luka Jovic | Frankfurt

  The Serbia sensation smashed 10 goals over a wonderful Europa League campaign, including one in each semi-final leg as Frankfurt lost out narrowly to Chelsea. 

  That brilliant form, as well as a similarly impressive season in the Bundesliga, has seen 21-year-old Jovic become one of this summer's hottest properties as the transfer market resumes.

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  3Olivier Giroud | Chelsea

  So often the forgotten man, the French forward came into his own in a sparkling Europa League run that included a goal in the final. 

  Giroud netted 11 in the competition to take the top scorer award, proving that he can still play a part in Chelsea's plans.

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  4Giovani Lo Celso | Betis

  Lo Celso had a lot to prove this season after being released on loan by Paris Saint-Germain, and he rediscovered his best form starring for Quique Setien's enterprising yet inconsistent Betis side. 

  It was in the Europa League where the Argentine most impressed, scoring five goals in seven appearances and adding an assist as Betis made it to the last 32 before going down to Rennes.

Celtic’s search for a new manager has turned into somewhat of a circus. Rumours are flying all over the shop but we could be about to finally find out who is hired the Bhoys’ new head coach.

Eddie Howe has emerged as the favourite in recent days as the Hoops have moved away from Roy Keane.

What’s the word?

Howe is reportedly in advanced talks with the Celtic hierarchy to become their new manager. He has held discussions with majority shareholder Dermot Desmond and performed due diligence on behind-the-scenes matters.

According to the Daily Mail, he is already working on his backroom team. However, in a surprising turn of events, he wants to bring his own technical director with him in Richard Hughes.

Nick Hammond left his role as Head of Football Operations this week, a position which was reportedly being changed to a Director of Football. That role was set to be filled by Manchester City’s Fergal Harkin.

A deal was 90% done but news that Howe wants to bring Hughes with him instead puts a cloud of doubt over Harkin’s future.

Sportsmail reported that Howe is happy to stick with John Kennedy and Gavin Strachan, but wants Hughes to oversee a restructuring of the football operations. It is also claimed that former Celtic man Mark Burchill – now a scout at Bournemouth – is also in line for a job.

Bad news for Celtic

Hughes is currently technical director at Bournemouth but news that Celtic could now move away from Harkin shouldn’t be welcomed by supporters.

The latter has developed a reputation as a transfer guru during his time with Manchester City and has been in charge of their loan system.

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That has allowed Harkin to help the development of young players, streamlining the transition from youth team to senior football.

He has worked with the likes of ex-Hoops Patrick Roberts and Olivier Ntcham, while he played a large role in the progress of City first teamer Oleksandr Zinchenko.

For a club like Celtic who have neglected some of their younger players this season, this would have been a great appointment.

Instead, they’re looking at a director who has arguably spent poorly on the south coast of England. Although he built a squad which ultimately got promoted to the Premier League, some of his signings after Bournemouth came up were abject.

He spent £19m on Dominic Solanke, a player who has scored just 15 times in 81 outings for the Cherries. Hughes also played a role in bringing Jordon Ibe to Bournemouth in a deal worth £15m. The 25-year-old was released last summer after netting only five goals in 92 matches.

Considering some of the deals Hammond concluded at Parkhead – namely Albian Ajeti and Vasilis Barkas – this wouldn’t necessarily be an upgrade.

AND in other news, Imagine him & Edouard: Celtic must sign 16-goal gem who plays “in the style of Robben”…

Writing for football.london, Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Alasdair Gold has relayed news that defender Malachi Fagan-Walcott has suffered a fresh injury blow that his Dundee boss described as ‘severe’ – with the youngster’s loan north of the border now cut short.

Fagan-Walcott suffers injury blow

Fagan-Walcott, who made his senior debut for the Lilywhites during their Champions League second leg tie against RB Leipzig in 2020, was sent out on a temporary spell to Dundee in a bid to accumulate more game time.

However, as Gold relays this news, the Lilywhites man has now suffered a fresh injury blow after recovering from knee surgery before January – with the player now returning to north London as a result.

Dundee manager James McPake provided a bleak assessment when first confirming the scan, revealing that Fagan-Walcott’s injury was ‘pretty severe’ and it is in fact a tendon problem.

Transfer Tavern take

Time will tell exactly when Fagan-Walcott returns from this latest injury setback, but it certainly comes as another blow in his bid to become a regular Tottenham first teamer in future.

Having recovered from surgery to then pick up a serious tendon problem, the 19-year-old will be hoping his latest fitness issues don’t keep him off the field for too long in a detriment to his development.

In other news: Tottenham could lose this ‘top class’ player, find out more here.

The pair delivered doubles for their respective sides and were instrumental in securing hard-fought wins

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  1Danny Welbeck | Arsenal

  Welbeck scored twice and assisted the other goal in Arsenal's 3-2 victory against Southampton.

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  2Ayoze Perez | Newcastle United

  The Spaniard was directly involved in both of Newcastle's goals against Leicester, assisting one and scoring the second.

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  3Christian Eriksen | Tottenham Hotspur

  Eriksen netted both goals and also made two key passes in Spurs' 2-1 win against Stoke, which moved them level on points with third-placed Liverpool. 

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  4Paul Pogba | Manchester United

  Pogba netted twice in Manchester United's comeback win at the Etihad over their local rivals, with just 97 seconds between his two finishes. 

Celtic would be taking a huge ‘gamble’ if they appoint Enzo Maresca as their new manager, according to Kevin Phillips.

The Hoops are weighing up the candidates for Neil Lennon’s permanent replacement after the Northern Irishman resigned in February.

Maresca has been one name mentioned as a potential successor, with Italian journalist Nicolo Schira even claiming he was Celtic’s ‘first target’ for the job.

Phillips explains why Maresca may not fit the bill

However, Phillips – the English Premier League’s Golden Boot winner in 1999/2000 – has issued a warning.

He pointed out that there is a requirement for immediate success at Parkhead and that swiftly dethroning Rangers may be too big an ask for Maresca, currently in charge of Manchester City’s under-23s.

“It would be a risk because Celtic need to be challenging next year at the very minimum. They really need to win the league,” Phillips told Football Insider.

“To take a young manager, who has no experience of Scottish football or managing a first team is a big ask.

“Rangers are flying so I think Maresca would be a big risk. If it was a long-term rebuild and they hadn’t won the title in years then maybe. It would be like when Rangers appointed Gerrard.

“But next season Celtic need to be challenging for the league at the very least. Maresca would be a gamble.”

Enzo Maresca’s credentials

As Phillips mentioned, Maresca has not taken charge of a team at senior level before, but he has been an assistant coach at Sevilla and West Ham (Transfermarkt). He worked under Premier League-winning manager Manuel Pellegrini at the London Stadium during the 2018/19 season.

The 41-year-old Italian is doing an excellent job with Man City’s youth side. They are two points clear at the top of Premier League 2 with a game in hand and their goal difference of +30 dwarfs that of the teams below them.

The big question, of course, is whether he can make the step-up to senior football management.

Transfer Tavern verdict

As much as Rangers’ celebrations are a galling sight for Celtic fans after watching their side win nine consecutive titles, perhaps they could actually afford to exercise some patience.

The Gers will take some catching regardless – they’re 20 points ahead with six games remaining and they haven’t lost a league game all season.

Perhaps the Hoops should be willing to accept a little more short-term pain for long-term gain. After all, their Glasgow rivals have bought into a project with a previously unproven coach in the form of Steven Gerrard, and the signs are very promising for him. Maybe Celtic could have similar success if they take a punt on Maresca.

In other news, this former Celtic player is reportedly interested in the job.