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Tottenham fans got a pleasant surprise in the Europa League fixture between Arsenal and Vitória de Guimarães as former player Marcus Edwards fired the visitors ahead at the Emirates.

The 20-year-old came through the academy at Spurs and was a highly-rated youngster, with Mauricio Pochettino once comparing him to Lionel Messi, but he didn’t make the most of his potential and was subsequently shipped out to the Portuguese side in September.

However, he showed great skill and composure to tuck the ball under Bernd Leno and his goal has sparked predicted elation amongst many Tottenham supporters.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Some are pleased one of their own academy graduates got the better of a fierce rival, whilst others have hoped that Daniel Levy included a buy-back clause in the deal which saw him depart.

Comparisons have also been made to Aaron Lennon – who scored the famous equaliser at the ground in the 2008 4-4 draw – as well as Serge Gnabry, the former Gunner who put four past Hugo Lloris for Bayern Munich earlier this month.

Edwards’ goal is seen as them getting their own back on their rivals, though Arsenal did go on to win.

Here are some of the reactions to the midfielder’s strike…

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

Aston Villa’s run of three games without defeat in the Premier League was halted by the reigning champions Manchester City on Saturday afternoon, but they can put things right this week by advancing in the Carabao Cup.

Dean Smith’s side host Wolves at Villa Park on Wednesday night knowing a victory would see them into the quarter-finals of the competition.

Last time out, the west Midlanders soared past a youthful Brighton & Hove Albion line up as the 48-year-old rung nine changes, which he has frequently done in the cup so far this season.

Based on that, Smith remains likely to rest several players in favour of those on the fringe of the squad – Keinan Davis, Ahmed Elmohamady, and Henri Lansbury should all surely feature if fit.

On the Chalkboard

However, the latter could be in the firing line come January if the latest reports surrounding the club is accurate.

The Daily Mail claim Villa are one of four Premier League clubs monitoring Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara, who was once on the books of Arsenal as a youngster.

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The 24-year-old has proved to be instrumental in Steven Gerrard’s engine room across matches in both the Scottish top-flight and in the Europa League – the 14-cap Finland international has played 15 times this term.

Given that Villa added Marvelous Nakamba and Douglas Luiz to their midfield of John McGinn, Conor Hourihane, and captain Jack Grealish in the summer, it seems unlikely that he would come in to replace any of these players.

All have played their part in the season to date, featuring in at least six of their ten Premier League matches.

Aston Villa’s summer signings’ performances so far this season are rated in the video below…

Whereas Lansbury continues to be a bit-part member of the squad with persistent niggles restricting him to three appearances this campaign.

Adding a player that has been competing on the European stage would certainly be one way to supplement their ambitions to remain in the big time, more so than hanging onto one of Steve Bruce’s signings, who has been blighted by injuries – he even only played six games in their playoff-winning season.

Patience may be wearing thin over the 29-year-old.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Luka Jovic was one of Real Madrid’s big summer scoops, but despite his successful stint at Eintracht Frankfurt prior to the big move, life in the Spanish capital hasn’t been that dreamy for the young Serbian.

Zinedine Zidane finally addressed the issue in his latest press conference.

What did he say?

It took Real Madrid a reported sum of £53.2m to land their 21-year-old target and lure him away from the jaws of the Bundesliga where he was definitely thriving.

Jovic managed to net 27 goals and assist seven more in the 48 games he played for Eintracht Frankfurt across all competitions in the 2018/19 campaign so Los Blancos’ interest wasn’t really that much of a surprise.

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What was a surprise, however, was Zidane’s reluctance to actually play the Serbian and give him a proper chance. As a result, he only tallied 218 minutes across seven games for the Galacticos so far in the ongoing season.

For that reason, the Frenchman was asked about his “demotivated” outcast by the press.

Here’s what he said in full:

“He’s not demotivated. He’s just arrived and he’s looking much better now than when he came in. He’s slowly learning Spanish and becoming part of the group. I will be counting on him and he’s important despite the fact he hasn’t played much recently.”

Not done yet

Zidane’s words will definitely come as a relief to Jovic, and to any football fan who enjoys seeing young talent thrive.

Watch Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale answer the internet’s weirdest questions in the video below…

His situation is a strange one, as even though he is presumably a bet for the future since he is very much at the beginning of his career, Real Marid’s recent rumoured transfer targets and preferences in the market have put the Serbian’s transfer under question.

After all, why would the club be on a lookout for a new striker to replace Karim Benzema if they already have one within their ranks?

Still, Zidane seems to believe there is a place for the young forward in this Los Blancos squad and just by stating the 21-year-old is important should at least give the Jovic fan club some hope.

By all accounts, he is not done just yet and his chance might be coming in the near future.

All he has to do is be patient.

Loads of Wales fans on Twitter appear to be split on Tottenham Hotspur defender Ben Davies following his performance in his nation’s 1-1 draw against Slovakia on Thursday night.

Ryan Giggs’ men would have been looking to pick up a win in Trnava to boost their chances of qualifying for EURO 2020, and they made a good start following Kieffer Moore’s first-half goal.

However, the visitors conceded just eight minutes after the break and the initial play leading up to the goal came down Davies’ side, although it would probably be unfair to blame the left-back for the subsequent series of events.

The 26-year-old has found first-team opportunities hard to come by in the Premier League for Spurs this season, featuring for just 106 minutes according to Transfermarkt – 90 of which came in the defeat against Brighton.

Wales supporters certainly appear undecided on the former Swansea City man’s most recent display for his country, with one individual labelling him as “outstanding”, and another saying he is “so, so average”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Nicolas Otamendi has had a month to forget in the blue of Manchester City, with him losing the ball to give Norwich a 3-1 lead a few weeks ago and diving in to allow Adama Traore to put Wolves 1-0 up last weekend. He’s off on international duty in the blue of Argentina now, and got 90 minutes under his belt in a 2-2 draw with Germany.

He was City’s most reliable centre-back in their ‘Centurions’ season, making more league appearances than any other player in his position (34). But since then, his recent form has clearly stuck in fans’ minds. Considering they’re now eight points off the top, his form is a real concern.

City’s official Twitter account updated their fans’ on his involvement with his national team on Wednesday night, and it was clear to see that some supporters have lost patience with the 31-year-old. They took to the replies to show their discontent that he was getting game time for Argentina, although some did show support for the centre-back.

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

Some fans were supportive, though:

How do you think the title race will play out over the rest of the season?

Wijnaldum is spot on in his summary of the result on Tuesday night.

Liverpool can’t do anything about the loss at Stadio San Paolo, but what they can do is stick together and work on making things right going forward.

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That starts with a tough game against Chelsea this weekend, but if Jurgen Klopp’s side win against the Blues, their loss to Napoli will be all but forgotten.

Luckily for Wijnaldum, his team have previously shown that they have the mental grit required to bounce back from these types of disappointments.

At the moment, Liverpool are not shy of options for the central-midfield position.

However, we feel that with the likes of James Milner and Jordan Henderson now over the age of 30 and Thiago Alcantara having hit that landmark back in April, they will need to add some young blood into their squad at some point.

What’s the latest?

Earlier last week, football pundit Don Hutchinson said that Liverpool could be one of the Premier League clubs that would be interested in signing Leeds United midfielder Kalvin Phillips in the next summer transfer window from the Yorkshire club.

He said: “Everything about him told me that he’s not going to be at Leeds for much longer. There is going to be Liverpool and Man United, all the big clubs are going to want him in the summer.”

Should Liverpool make a move for Phillips?

As a product of Leeds’ youth academy, Phillips made his senior debut for the Whites back in April 2015 in a 4-3 defeat against Wolves in the Championship.

Since then, the midfielder, who was labelled as “magnificent” by BBC pundit Alan Shearer as a result of his work alongside West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice during England’s Euro 2020 campaign over the summer, has made a total of 219 appearances for Leeds across all competitions.

During that time, he has managed to score 14 goals and provide 12 assists along the way.

Looking ahead to a possible summer transfer move for Phillips from Liverpool, we feel that even if the Reds were interested in signing the player, it could prove to be quite costly for the Merseyside club, especially with the midfielder apparently keen to sign a new and improved deal at Leeds even though his current contract isn’t set to expire until 2024. Transfermarkt currently values him at £36m, after all.

Also, with Henderson himself having recently put pen to paper on a new four-year deal that will see him stay at the club until 2025, it could be argued that the Reds still has some time before they consider bringing in a potential new midfield player to replace him.

That being said, the two England internationals are vastly similar. They have both completed just north of 85% of their passes and they are both strong in the tackle. Phillips won 2.3 tackles per game last term for instance while Henderson won 2.1 when Liverpool won the league in 2019/20.

In our view, for the time being, it feels as though Liverpool will be set to continue with the plethora of midfield options they currently have at their disposal. However, with the summer transfer window still months away, anything could change between now and then that could make signing a new midfielder such as Phillips a priority for the Merseyside club.

In other news: £7.5k-p/w Liverpool gem has seen his value soar by £25.2m in 2 years, he’s exceptional – opinion

Speaking exclusively to The Transfer Tavern, former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer does not believe Manchester City want to sell Bernardo Silva.

City boss Pep Guardiola confirmed that Silva wanted to leave the club during the summer transfer window, though nothing obviously materialised in the end.

The 27-year-old, who cost £43m, was not an automatic starter in the Premier League for the Citizens last season, with Guardiola naming him in his first XI on 24 occasions.

Even so, Palmer does not think City are desperate to let him go, while he also does not believe that the player himself is dying to leave the club, instead suggesting that he just wants more playing time at the Etihad.

“I think he just wants more game time,” the ex-Leeds United star said to TT. “I don’t think for one minute Man City want to let him go. I mean, he’s a top talented boy.

“If he gets minutes on the football pitch, I think he’ll be happy.”

Silva has featured regularly for City so far this campaign and scored the winner in a recent 1-0 win over Leicester City.

If it continues, then perhaps the Portugal international has a change of heart. With so much quality currently in City’s squad, though, he is going to have to battle to keep his place in the team.

Celtic announced on Friday evening that midfielder Luca Connell has joined Queen’s Park on loan.

As to be expected, a number of Hoops fans have been giving their thoughts to the news on social media.

Reliable journalist Mike McGrath shared reports that the 20-year-old was set to return to the League One side, and a season-long loan deal has now been confirmed by both clubs.

Connell is yet to make a competitive appearance for the Hoops after arriving from Bolton Wanderers in 2019, although he has featured for the club’s reserve side on a number of occasions.

The Irishman spent part of last season on loan with Queen’s Park, and he will now have the chance to gain more senior experience in Scotland.

Ange Postecoglou has plenty of midfield options to choose from when his Hoops squad is fully fit, so it appears as if he is happy for Connell to ply his trade elsewhere for the 2021/22 campaign.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/celtic-updates-13/” title=”Celtic updates!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

Celtic fans react

Celtic shared the news regarding Connell on their official Twitter channel.

Here is what these Hoops fans had to say in reply, with many not happy and one describing the decision as ‘ridiculous’, possibly due to Connell sill not featuring for the first team after joining more than two years ago.

“Hate this tweet”

Credit: @kianmcgrath03

“How is this testing him? He should be away to Ross County or Livingston. Someone where he might get game time in our league. Running riot in a part time league is ridiculous.”

Credit: @FrankSp52492559

“Crazy letting another CM leave when we are threadbare in that position.”

Credit: @darren6015

“what a silly decision, we literally needed him last night”

Credit: @aidencsc

“Absolute madness. Kids has bags of talent and we have no midfield!”

Credit: @CMcDBhoy

“Wasted.”

Credit: @RyanDuke27

In other news: ‘I’m sure’ – Sky Sports pundit says Desmond will take big Celtic action before January. 

Manchester United extended their unbeaten start to the new Premier League campaign with a comfortable 4-1 victory over Newcastle United.

Summer signing Cristiano Ronaldo marked his return to the club with a well-taken brace, predictably stealing the headlines on his first Old Trafford outing since leaving 12 years ago.

However, it was arguably another one of United’s household names that was the real star of the show for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s charges.

World Cup-winning midfielder Paul Pogba put in another fabulous performance on Saturday, controlling the centre of pitch with his incredible passing range and dictating the tempo of the game.

The 28-year-old also provided two assists for his teammates, taking his tally up to seven for the season after just four top-flight appearances.

And his underlying numbers were perhaps even more impressive. As per SofaScore, Pogba made three key passes during the 90 minutes, created one big chance and had a whopping 129 touches.

He also achieved a passing accuracy of 92%, won eight duels and pulled off two successful dribbles, leading to a match rating of 8.1 out of 10, the second-highest amongst any player on the pitch.

Doubt still remains over the Frenchman’s future in Manchester as he has now entered the final year of his current contract at the club, and after his blistering start to 2021/22, Solskjaer will surely be desperate for Pogba to put pen to paper on fresh terms as quickly as possible.

United’s Champions League campaign gets underway in midweek, and Pogba will be hoping to take his domestic form onto the European stage when the 20-time English champions take on Young Boys.

And, in other news…Report reveals MUFC make “excellent” £63m-rated gem top priority, Ole will be elated