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Harry Maguire continues to attract criticism with Manchester United and England, but Gary Pallister remains on the under-fire defender’s side.

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• Centre-half stripped of captaincy
• Now struggling for game time
• England winger also out of favour

• What happened?

  It has been a testing 12 months or so for Maguire at Old Trafford, with questions constantly being asked of his value to the Red Devils cause. His performances for England – although steady enough at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar – have also seen the 30-year-old centre-half become an easy target and international scapegoat for many.

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  Harsh or fair?

  United legend Pallister knows a thing or two about operating in the Red Devils’ defensive unit – as a four-time Premier League title winner – and, speaking on behalf of , he told GOAL when asked about the sporting circus that Maguire finds himself at the centre of: “For two years there was no issue with Harry Maguire at Old Trafford. He was made captain. I don’t think he’s in the mould of a Bryan Robson, a Roy Keane or a Steve Bruce – it was probably as close as they had at Old Trafford, and therefore he was made captain. For two years he was fine. After the Euros, he got injured shortly into the season and I think they rushed him back a bit too quickly. He didn’t look himself, he made a few mistakes, the crowd started getting on his back and it’s been a tough time since then. I don’t know if he feels the pressure, if he’s anxious about things off the pitch. It’s been a difficult time. Apart from the last six months or so, he’s been exceptional for England as well. He’s not a bad centre-half. I can’t buy into that because he has been in European Championship teams of the tournament, he’s got how many caps for England, Gareth [Southgate] trusts him implicitly and I can’t buy into what everyone’s saying – 'he’s done, he’s washed up, he’s finished'. At the moment, playing at Old Trafford, it has been difficult for him.”

  Pressed further on whether Maguire is good enough for United – which is really the only question that matters when it comes to decisions on his future – Pallister added: “There was absolutely no problem for two years. He wasn’t afraid to bring the ball out from the back, he won his headers, won his tackles, he would join in. Nobody was looking at Harry Maguire and saying ‘he doesn’t look like a Manchester United centre-back’. He’s lost his place, the fans have been unsure and it makes it tough. It can be a lonely place, Old Trafford, if you don’t have the fans behind you. That’s probably played a big part in why he’s not in the team at the moment.”

• Leader of men?

  Maguire was stripped of the captaincy at United by Erik ten Hag ahead of the 2023-24 campaign. The armband was passed on to playmaker Bruno Fernandes, with Pallister saying when asked if the theatrical Portuguese is the right man to follow in the footsteps of iconic former skippers such as Bryan Robson, Steve Bruce, Roy Keane and Paul Ince: “I don’t think there is anybody there of that ilk. It will be interesting to see if eventually [Lisandro] Martinez does get it, because I think he sets a tone for Manchester United in the way he plays the game – he’s a fan favourite, he leaves everything out on the pitch, he’s committed, aggressive, he’s in your face, he’s the kind of footballer that I played with – Robson, Bruce, Keane, Ince. They were in your face captains and led by example and weren’t afraid to give people a rollicking if they needed it. Bruno’s not one of them, but he’s a voice in that dressing room. Erik thinks he’s the right man for the job. Sometimes when he’s screaming at referees and things like that, you scratch your head and wish he’d just concentrate on football, but he’s been an incredible player for United.”

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  Who’s in charge?

  Ten Hag has shown that he is not afraid to make big decisions, with Jadon Sancho another of those to have found that out the hard way. He was dropped for the trip to Arsenal, with his performances in training called into question, before claiming to have been made a scapegoat. Pallister said of that unfortunate saga, with Sancho currently training on his own: “It’s unusual for it to be played out on social media like it has been. Most of that kind of stuff was kept in-house in the days I played at Manchester United. It’s been aired in public a bit. I think they have had a clear the air meeting. I hope they have because it’s not nice to see. If we can get Jadon Sancho performing like he did at Dortmund, then you have got a helluva of a player on your hands. He’s shown it in fits and starts – his ability, he’s scored goals, he’s caught the eye in moments. It’s that consistency that he’s got to find. The club were brilliant with him last year, giving him three months off to try and deal with whatever was going on, and it’s not often you see something like that happen. He’s got to give the club due respect for trying to help him. Hopefully it gets sorted out behind the scenes. There is a role in there on the right-hand side. If he’s put a good week’s training, maybe he’ll get a chance.”

Liverpool are continuing to be linked with a move for Lille midfielder Renato Sanches ahead of the summer, and the Portuguese could be the ideal long-term heir for Jordan Henderson.

According to reports from Italy, the 23-year-old ‘seems destined’ to join Jurgen Klopp’s side this summer, as he continues to impress with his performances in Ligue 1.

Whilst the young midfielder is perhaps best known by a lot of Premier League fans for his torrid time on loan with Swansea City, Sanches has proved himself an extremely capable player in his time with both Bayern Munich and Lille, whilst also being one of Portugal’s stars of Euro 2016.

This season has seen Sanches has made 10 starts in Ligue 1 and in the games he has started, he has averaged a solid 6.97 rating for his performances, whilst also contributing one goal.

The midfielder has averaged a solid 89.1% pass accuracy in Ligue 1, whilst Henderson has managed an 87.3% pass accuracy in the Premier League.

Both Henderson’s and Sanches’ main strength is their passing, whilst the Portuguese international is also strong when it comes to dribbling, crossing and defensive contribution.

WhoScored (see links above) suggest that both players like to play long balls and play the ball off the ground often, which suggests that Sanches would fit into Liverpool’s style of play well.

Considering Henderson will turn 31 in June, the Reds arguably need to cast their eye towards the future and look at bringing in a long-term replacement for the influential captain, although his impressive fitness levels suggest that he has a few more years at the top at least.

Sanches also scores superbly on the scouting website FBRef, with his chance creation and progressive passing stats particularly impressive.

He was also well thought of during his time at Bayern Munich, with former manager Niko Kovac full of praise for the midfielder in 2018, saying:

“Renato has an exceptionally good technique, very good speed and a great body.

“It’s true that people fly off him left and right – just like they used to do with Lothar Matthaus.”

Therefore, the 23-year-old could certainly prove to be the long-term replacement for Henderson in this Liverpool side, as all the stats suggest that he would fit well into Klopp’s style of play.

AND, in other news… Edwards can rectify January transfer window blunder with summer swoop for 21 y/o centre-back beast

Sevilla striker Youssef En-Nesyri excelled at a potentially ideal time for West Ham United by hitting a hat-trick against Cadiz CF on Saturday, only to then deal the Irons a huge blow.

Reports by the Daily Star earlier in the week suggested that Hammers were preparing a new offer worth up to £32m, including add-ons, with the hope of signing the 23-year-old forward this month, after seeing a £27m bid knocked back earlier in the January transfer window.

Yet Sevilla, who signed the Morocco international for just €20m (£18m), are said to be relaxed as they demand no less than €40m (£35.5m) outright to release the man who fired them up to third in the La Liga table with a Man of the Match showing in Saturday’s 3-0 win.

En-Nesyri’s hat-trick at the Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan Stadium was his second in the space of only two weeks, after firing home thrice in a 3-2 win at home to Real Sociedad. He now has 12 goals in 19 games, more than any other player in the Spanish top-flight.

It was not only his goals that saw En-Nesyri stand out against Cadiz this weekend, as he dictated the flow of Sevilla’s attacking gameplan to warrant a match-high 10 out of 10 rating from WhoScored.

It was his best match rating of the season so far, having offered a game-high five shots – three more than anyone else – of which four were directed on target. He also provided two key balls from 14 accurate passes, which SofaScore deemed to have created two big chances for Sevilla to find the back of Jeremias Ledesma’s net as they awarded him a 9.8/10 rating.

En-Nesyri has now created five clear-cut chances for Sevilla to score in La Liga fixtures this term but remains without an assist, despite offering four times his average key passes a game (0.5). No forward in La Liga has created a higher number of chances where there is a reasonable expectation of a teammate scoring without a shot being converted.

He also moved his successful dribbles a match average to 0.4 after successfully driving play forward with the ball at his feet on two of his six attempts against Cadiz – only four attackers across Spain’s top-flight offer two or more successful dribbles a game. One of those four attackers is Sevilla winger Suso, who attempted (8) dribbles against Cadiz.

En-Nesyri also contested more offensive aerial duels (3) than any of his teammates on Saturday, while attempting one defensive aerial contest further saw the €50,000-per-week (£44.5k-p/w) marksman match his season average of two or more duels won a game with a 51% success rate.

En-Nesyri even confirmed after the match that he had been suffering with sight issues after the foul he drew late in the first-half that led to his second goal.

But for as good a performance as En-Nesyri produced, maybe at a high enough level for West Ham to match Sevilla’s demands for a winter sale, he went on to perhaps deal a huge blow to the Irons’ hope of securing a transfer this month.

“Nothing has changed, all this comes with work and concentration. Now we are going for more, for now, I’m staying at Sevilla, I’m going nowhere,” he told Movistar+, via quotes by Estadio Deportivo. “I want to finish the year here. It’s a great club and I want to be here.”

En-Nesyri’s declaration will likely be seen as a huge blow at West Ham as the club searches for a new striker to replace Sebastien Haller.

After all, the Moroccan’s match-winning performance against Cadiz saw En-Nesyri offer more shots (2.2, Michail Antonio) and key passes (1.5, Aaron Cresswell) than any Irons player offers per game in the Premier League, of those to have featured on more than five occasions, per WhoScored.

Moyes should be looking to do all he can to convince En-Nesyri to have a swift change of heart before the window slams shut, as well as urging West Ham co-owner and Chairman David Sullivan to present the extra millions needed for a transfer, as he looks to be player who could be a very useful addition to the Hammers.

AND in other news, West Ham consider January bid for “phenomenal” striker boasting 15 goals in 19 games.

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Widespread Twitter claims on Tuesday night said that on-loan Everton midfielder Mo Besic was one of three Middlesbrough players to mock the travelling fans following the club’s FA Cup exit at Newport County on Tuesday night, and Boro fans were quick to react on Twitter.

The Championship club would have had high hopes of reaching the fifth round and hosting Manchester City as a result as they made the journey south to face their League Two opponents, but instead they were on the end of a shock 2-0 defeat that saw them dumped out of the competition.

In what was a poor performance, it has been alleged by some travelling supporters that Besic, along with teammates Adam Clayton and Rudy Gestede, acted in appropriately towards them at the final whistle, with the Toffees man said to have mimicked somebody crying.

The Bosnia and Herzegovina international re-joined Boro on a season-long loan deal during the summer transfer window having enjoyed a similar temporary spell at the Riverside Stadium last term, but the latest incident hardly paints him a good light – if true, of course.

Middlesbrough fans took to social media to have their say on the 26-year-old’s alleged actions, and while one told him to “get out of our club now”, another labelled it as “disgraceful”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Arsenal’s Hector Bellerin may be out for the season but it’s given him a chance to show off his new accessory. Check out the video below to see for yourself…

Reacting to a development that Tottenham Hotspur are holding manager talks in the coming days, with Roberto Martinez featuring prominently (Football Insider), pundit and BBC Radio 5 Live commentator Alan Hutton has been left thrilled.

The Lowdown: Martinez links heat up

Over these last few days, Football Insider have brought developments in regards to the Tottenham manager hunt and have also dropped some pretty enticing claims involving former Everton boss Martinez.

They say that the 47-year-old is keen to take over at Tottenham and is making a ‘huge play’ behind the scenes, following that up with another claim that he is now featuring prominently as the Lilywhites schedule manager talks.

The Latest: Hutton thrilled by Martinez development

In reaction to this managerial development that Martinez is now high on the list for Spurs chiefs after his ‘huge play’, former Spurs defender Hutton has voiced his approval of the news.

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“I think he fits the bill. It’s exciting. It all comes down to the style of football that he plays,” Hutton explained to Football Insider.

“He wants to play the way Tottenham want to play. They want to play exciting football, attacking football and he fits that bill.

“I think the only problem, and I know these top managers will evaluate the squad and stuff, but he’s going to be with Belgium at the Euros until late on in the competition, probably. I can see Belgium doing well this year.

“For him to go far in that and then obviously come into the job in the summer, it’s very late. It’s a difficult one. I know he will be evaluating the squad and what he wants but there’ll be a quick turnaround.

“He’ll have to put his ideas and implement what he wants to do moving forward very, very quickly. It’s whether they can take on board what he wants really quickly before the season starts.”

The Verdict: Hutton bang on the money…

The Belgium international boss has, arguably, been one of the more underrated names to emerge on the Tottenham managerial list recently.

Having guided the Red Devils to their first semi-final since 1986 during their last World Cup outing in 2018, beating five-time world champions Brazil along the way (BBC), this experience proves he can manage big players on the biggest stages.

Promoting an attacking brand of football, allegedly fitting into the criteria of boss Tottenham are looking for, we agree that he is certainly a good match for Spurs, but it could indeed by a worry for fans to wait so long to get a new boss through the door.

In other news: Spurs in pole position to sign ‘sensational’ powerhouse, find out more here.

As shared by the club, Lukasz Fabianski has clinched the LFA Goalkeeper of the Year award as many West Ham United supporters share their delight at the news.

Fabianski has been a mainstay under manager David Moyes this season and has put in some impressive performances, with the Irons even rewarding him with a new contract earlier this campaign.

The Poland international, who signed from Swansea City back in 2018, has gone on to make 96 appearances for West Ham in all competitions and has made the joint-second most starts out of the entire team this season (WhoScored).

The London Football Awards saw fit to acknowledge his performances over 2020/2021 with the goalkeeper of the year honour as Hammers supporters flocked to herald this news.

As well as Fabianski, manager David Moyes also got honoured with his own award in coach of the year.

Find all of their best verdicts on this announcement down below.

West Ham fans ecstatic over Fabianski announcement

“Get in FABBBBB”

Credit: @joelitt78828048

“SUPER FABSSSSS”

Credit: @whuabi

“what a guyyyy”

Credit: @franknoble_

“We’re massive”

Credit: @geordiehammer77

“Quite surprised with this one but I ain’t complaining”

Credit: @Jackcoyi

“Get in there lad!!!”

Credit: @ntsikamsuthu

“Congratulations Lukasz well deserved”

Credit: @duncanscott3

“Well done Fab. You were awesome against Chelsea. Congratulations on this award.”

Credit: @CraigardH

In other news: West Ham fans react as club confirm ‘great news’, find out more here.

Rangers were heavily linked with a move for BSC Young Boys striker Jean-Pierre Nsame last summer and after another exceptional campaign from the Cameroonian international, it seems that Steven Gerrard and Ross Wilson made a mistake in not bringing him to Ibrox.

His performances in recent seasons have seen him being linked with several Premier League sides in recent weeks, with teamTALK suggesting that Newcastle, Southampton, West Ham and Celtic all said to be interested.

This season has seen the 27-year-old contribute 25 goals and nine assists in all competitions for the Swiss Super League side, so it certainly seems fair to suggest that he would have been an excellent addition to Gerrard’s side last summer.

Whilst the likes of Alfredo Morelos and Kemar Roofe have impressed this season, Cedric Itten has struggled and Jermaine Defoe has featured a lot less, so having a prolific goalscorer such as Nsame in the squad could have resulted in Rangers prolonging their cup runs.

It is something of a surprise that Young Boys were able to keep hold of him last summer, as he scored a remarkable 41 goals in all competitions.

His manager, Gerardo Seoane, was full of praise for the striker after his extraordinary season, saying:

“Jean-Pierre Nsamé has had an extraordinary season. He has really progress especially in terms of taking responsibility in the team. He is very physical, with an unbelievable ability in front of goal. He is very present in the penalty area and all the balls that comes, he puts them in the back of the net, thanks to his technic and strength.

“Jean Pierre (Nsame) is a great personality, with a great character and mentality. He is also present and hard-working and put his all for the team. He is not egoistic. He always puts the team first, that’s what I like so much about him because it is a big human quality and above all he is very humble and I’m very certain that he will have a great career.”

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The £6.3m-rated striker certainly seems as if he could be on the move this summer and if he goes on to impress in the Premier League, or even in the Scottish Premiership with Rangers’ rivals Celtic, then Wilson’s failure to sign him last summer should definitely go down as a disastrous decision.

And, in other news… Wilson set to hand Gerrard huge boost as £2.25m-rated beast’s Ibrox deal edges closer

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Steve Bull, who scored 306 goals for Wolves during his career, has claimed that his former club doesn’t want players like Cristiano Ronaldo to sign.

Ronaldo has been linked with a move to Wolves, with his agent Jorge Mendes helping a number of his clients join the club since they won promotion back to the Premier League.

The £491,000 per week striker would join eight other Portuguese players currently on the books at Wolves, and he has been rumoured to have wanted out at Juventus since they were knocked out of the Champions League by Porto.

Speaking on how Ronaldo would be a good move but also why Wolves don’t need someone like him, Bull told FFC:

“I can’t see why he would want to come to Wolves unless it’s a publicity stunt and he’s short of money.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/exclusive-andreas-sondergaard-wolves-premier-league” title=”Exclusive! Andreas Sondergaard talks all things Wolves”]

“If the rumour happens then it’ll be good for the club because it’ll be a massive PR buzz around the club, but we also don’t want that because we want players to come in and play for the club and stay.”

Wolves’ last big money signing was Fabio Silva from Porto when they paid £36 million for the 18-year old wh0 has scored just twice this season.

Since moving to Juventus Ronaldo has continued to showcase his goalscoring ability having found the net 75 times across three Serie A seasons.

Steven Gerrard looks to have been handed a boost at Ibrox this week after it was confirmed that Rangers captain James Tavernier has made his return to training after a lengthy injury absence.

The right-back has been out injured since Rangers’ 4-3 win against Royal Antwerp in the Europa League in February, and although Gerrard was able to steer his side to title success in the absence of the 29-year-old, his goals and assists have been a big miss.

Fortunately, assistant manager Gary McAllister has confirmed that Tavernier has now made his return to training, although it sounds as if he is doing solo training on the grass with physios rather than with the rest of the first team.

The former Wigan Athletic man has been in outstanding form ever since making the move to Ibrox in 2015 but has been sensational so far this season, contributing 11 goals and nine assists in 29 league appearances. That has seen him average a superb 7.76 WhoScored match rating, which comfortably ranks him as Rangers’ best performer in the Scottish top flight.

Tavernier couldn’t have timed his return much better after it was revealed that Nathan Patterson will be suspended for Rangers’ next four fixtures as a result of him breaking lockdown restrictions earlier in the year.

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This leaves Gerrard without a natural right-back in his squad at the moment, and after some disastrous performances from Leon Balogun in that position in recent games, the manager will surely be delighted that Tavernier is close to a return to action.

If the English defender can pick up where he left off before his injury, there seems no reason why Rangers can’t finish the league season unbeaten, whilst they will also be eyeing success in the Scottish Cup.

Gerrard is certainly a big fan of his captain and was full of praise for him earlier in the season, saying: “I think Tav is someone who, when he goes through the gears, is unstoppable, and we have seen that, or flashes of that so far this season.”

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Therefore, it is undoubtedly a huge boost for Gerrard that his best performer this season is edging closer to a return to first team action, as it seems clear that Rangers are a much better outfit when he is in the side.

In other news… Gerrard handed huge boost with “world-class” beast who was vital to number 55

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer has dismissed suggestions that Inter Milan boss Antonio Conte could replace Jose Mourinho at Tottenham.

Reports coming out of Italy (via Daily Star) claim Conte could leave the Italian giants in the summer if he is not backed in the transfer market, and have named Spurs as a possible destination.

With the north London club in a real battle to secure a Champions League spot after going on a very poor run during the January-February period, Mourinho’s job is now said to be on the line.

Palmer, however, believes sacking Mourinho would be a mistake and cannot see 51-year-old Conte ditching Milan for a return to London.

“I think it’ll be the wrong move to sack Jose, I really do,” the retired England international told FFC. “I don’t see the need to sack him, so when the media are talking about, ‘oh, well, he should be sacked’ and talking about replacements… I mean Conte’s just about to win the league in Italy. Why would he want to leave his club?”

Conte’s first spell in England was a very successful one. At Tottenham’s London rivals Chelsea, the 51-year-old managed to guide the Blues to the Premier League title in 2017 and the FA Cup in 2018.