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Wolverhampton Wanderers captain Conor Coady has waxed lyrical about teammate John Ruddy, via wolves.co.uk, after he made his first Premier League start of the season on Saturday.

What’s the word, then?

The 32-year-old stopper has found his first-team opportunities limited following the arrival of Rui Patricio at Molineux last summer, but he was handed a rare start for the 2-0 win against the Bluebirds at the weekend.

The former Norwich City man would have been delighted to get a clean sheet and will be hoping that he gets the nod for the FA Cup quarter-final tie against Manchester United latest month.

When Coady was asked about his experienced teammate, he told wolves.co.uk: “He’s brilliant – he’s a huge part of this football club, as I’ve said before.

He’s a huge part of that changing room and you know what you’re going to get from the big man – he organises, he leads, he talks and you know he’s a fantastic shot stopper as well. He was superb.”

We’ve found Raul Jimenez’s No. 1 fan and… it’s a little scary. Check out the video below to see for yourself…

Nuno Santo doesn’t rate him

Despite a decent display against Neil Warnock’s visitors, Ruddy will more than likely be consigned to the substitutes’ bench again when the west Midlands outfit face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Sunday.

It may seem harsh to say that his Portuguese manager doesn’t rate him considering he played a huge part in their promotion last term, but his treatment during the current campaign tells a different story.

Santo could have easily stuck with a keeper who helped the team go up and has plenty of top-flight experience, but instead he moved to bring in a new one at the first opportunity.

From Coady’s comments it appears as though the 32-year-old still plays a big part in the dressing room however, even if he spends hardly any time on the pitch.

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A decade ago Scott Bain was cleaning Jamie Langfield’s boots at Aberdeen. On Thursday night the St Mirren goalkeeping coach was tweeting his praise for the Celtic keeper for his display in Valencia.

Bain’s career has taken off incredibly over the last 13 months, following his deadline day loan move to Celtic after a brief stint at Hibs.

Being on the bench as Celtic crashed out of last season’s Europa League tie to Zenit St Petersburg seemed to be far fetched but keeping Valencia down to a single goal in the Mestalla would have read like a ridiculous piece of fiction a year ago.

For half an hour on Thursday night, the 6 foot shot-stopper was well protected. But after the red card to Jeremy Toljan he was kept on his toes, pulling off two incredible saves to keep the Spanish side at bay until half time.

When called upon in the second half he was on top form until the 70th minute when the Celtic defence was cut open, allowing Kevin Gameiro to score.

On Sunday Bain returns to the day (domestic) job as Celtic look to power on in the SPFL, armed with the Bosman signing from Dundee that has racked up eight clean sheets on the bounce against Scottish clubs.

Here’s a look at what Celtic fans have been saying about Bain on Twitter…

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Jamie Carragher has had a major dig at Newcastle United goalkeeper Martin Dubravka after the club drew 1-1 with Wolves on Monday night.

Willy Boly scored a last-gasp header in injury-time to earn Wolves a point, with controversy surrounding the referee’s decision to award the goal.

What’s he said?

Boly jumped with Dubravka and appeared to have his hands on the goalkeeper as he headed into the back of the net.

Newcastle appealed for a free-kick but the official decided against blowing in favour of the Magpies.

And Carragher felt that the decision was correct, instead choosing to hit out at Dubravka’s decision-making.

Asked on Sky Sports if it was a foul, he said, per Chronicle Live: “No it wasn’t. You have to give great credit to Wolves.

“But the goalkeeper – and I think he’s been a great goalkeeper for Newcastle – he’s made a few mistakes of late.

Former Wigan & Fulham man, Jimmy Bullard recently showed that he’s still got it! Check out the video below…

“Willy Boly shows great desire to get there. He jumps earlier than the goalkeeper, his hands are resting on the goalkeeper but he has to do better. It is a contact sport. There can be contact. His hands go up to give him leverage and I don’t think it’s a foul.

“It looks worse when you really slow it down but I think the goalkeeper has to do more. If you run it at quick speed – it’s a little touch on him.

“And that isn’t the first time in the last few weeks he’s cost them.

“When Rafa signed Pepe Reina he signed him because he liked him punching. He didn’t like his goalkeepers trying to catch the ball and leaving themselves open to a striker coming in. If you look at it when it’s stopped you’d say it’s assault but it’s not.”

Newcastle manager Rafael Benitez chose to blame his goalkeeper, too, instead of calling for a foul, telling Sky Sports: “These kinds of balls you can do a little bit better – just punch the ball and finish.”

Carragher was taken aback by Benitez’s honesty, but has praised the Spaniard’s take.

He added: “I was surprised. It’s difficult for a manager to speak after the match but he’s basically said the goalkeeper’s made a mistake.

“There was probably enough in the challenge that Rafa could have come on and said ‘It was a foul’ and not everyone would have said you’re talking rubbish.

“Fair play to Rafa Benitez for being so honest and maybe looking at his goalkeeper who should have done better and no doubt, he should have done better.”

Carragher’s right

Carragher is correct in his assertion that Dubravka should have done better, and his harsh words and mention of Pepe Reina at Liverpool previously suggest that Benitez needs to have a word with his stopper about his goalkeeping practices.

The cross was difficult to deal with, it was swirling in the air, but his attempt to catch the ball opened the door to a mistake.

Benitez claims the Slovakia international should have punched the ball and that is an effective way of dealing with such a delivery – if the goalkeeper executes it correctly, it can relieve pressure on the defence and ensure there are no nasty surprises.

Instead, the goalkeeper missed his catch and was punished by costing his side two points.

The Magpies did not slip into the relegation zone as a result but they are just one point clear of it – they can ill-afford any more such errors.

Next time, Dubravka should swallow his pride, and punch the ball.

Everton are thought to be one of the Premier League clubs to have taken an interest in Diego Llorente throughout the current season.

The 25-year-old has been impressive with his performances for Real Sociedad for much of the campaign, earning himself a call up to the Spanish national side towards the end of 2018.

A former Real Madrid player, the centre-back has struggled at times with injuries but has shown that he is capable of being one of the Basque outfit’s best players when in the team.

And, according to a report by Diario Vasco journalist Jon Trueba, via Sport Witness, it appears Everton have also been impressed and looked to sign him in January.

It is claimed The Toffees made an ‘approach’ to the player’s agent, Juanma Lopez, who had then passed a message onto Real Sociedad about the interest.

However, they also note that nothing had come of it and as such remains in the north of Spain.

The Verdict:

The defensive areas, especially at set plays, have been a real concern for Marco Silva and his Everton side this season.

And, bringing a player of Llorente’s ability to Goodison Park may have been the ideal solution in helping them fix that problem.

Whether Everton look to reignite their interest in the summer remains to be seen, however, if the Spain international continues to perform as well as he can, a move for the 25-year-old could be likely.

Everton fans – thoughts?

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Birmingham City manager Garry Monk confirmed on Thursday that right-back Maxime Colin will miss the second city derby against Aston Villa at St Andrew’s on Sunday with a hamstring injury, and it gives Wes Harding a chance to avenge his Villa Park pain.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Monk announced via the official club website that the Frenchman will be missing for the visit of the Blues’ arch-rivals at the weekend, and it will be a big loss seeing as the boss said he considers the 27-year-old to be “one of the best full-backs in the league”.

Given Brum don’t have a huge squad or plethora of options to choose from it seems highly likely that Harding will step in at right-back, as he has done countless times over the past couple of months.

The 40-year-old City chief is confident that the 22-year-old can step up to the plate against Dean Smith’s men, telling bcfc.co.uk: “I have got no fears about any of the players, they have all shown they can contribute and they are all ready to go.”

That said, the 5ft 11in man will surely be looking to avenge the Villa Park nightmare he encountered during his side’s 4-2 defeat back in November.

Reaction time

While Harding has shown no signs of being affected by it, there is no doubt that his display in the reverse fixture wasn’t great.

Firstly he was asked to play in an unfamiliar left-back role, and he was torn apart by Albert Adomah time and time again – weirdly enough despite featuring on the opposite flank this weekend, he will likely come up against the same opponent.

His below-par display culminated in a late yellow card for a poor challenge on the Ghana international, and he will surely want to make up for it against their local neighbours at St Andrew’s on Sunday.

يرى الجنوب إفريقي بيتسو موسيماني المدير الفني للنادي الأهلي أن تدريب فريق الكرة بالقلعة الحمراء يشبه قيادة ريال مدريد أو برشلونة في أوروبا.

وأعلن مجلس إدارة الأهلي برئاسة محمود الخطيب بالأمس عن تعيين موسيماني مديرًا فنيًا للفريق الأول لكرة القدم ليصبح أول إفريقي يقود القلعة الحمراء في التاريخ.

وقال موسيماني في حوار أجراه مع قناة شوت اونلاين على موقع يوتيوب: “يجب أن تعرف أن عقدي الجديد مع صن داونز كان من المفترض أن يبدأ في الموسم المقبل، وكما تعلم أن كورونا أطاح بالجميع”.

وأضاف: “بالطبع أردت البقاء ولطالما قلت ذلك قبل أن أوقع عقدي الجديد لأنه يجب عليك البقاء حيث تحب، ولكن كرة القدم كالمعتاد الأمور تتغير بها وللآسف الفرصة جاءت بعد توقيع العقد”.

وتابع: “لكي أكون آمينا كان هناك فرصًا لتدريب الفريق ذاته وفرق أخرى لكنها لم تكن ملموسة مثل المرة الحالية”.

وواصل: “هذه المرة، عندما يقول لك الناس أنهم أرسلوا لك العقد وهل هذا يرضيك؟ أعتقد أن هذه قصة مختلفة لقولها، وبالفعل آتت فرصة كبيرة كونك مدربًا لم يخرج عن الحدود أبدًا وتحتاج إلى الخروج من منطقة الراحة الخاصة بك، كما أني أردت أن أظهر للمدربين المحليين أنه من الممكن أن يذهب أحدنا للتدريب في دوري كبير في القارة”.

واستأنف: “أعني أن هذا مثل تدريب ريال مدريد أو برشلونة في أوروبا أو فلامينجو أو سانتوس أو ريفر بليت أو بوكا جونيورز في أمريكا الجنوبية. إنه بمثل هذه الضخامة”.

وأردف: “بالطبع أنت تعلم أن المخاطر كبيرة في تلك الأندية الكبيرة وإذا نظرت أيضًا إلى سجل الفرق فلن تتمكن من الذهاب بسهولة لأنك ستعرف أن المدربين لا يستمرون طويلًا”.

واختتم: “لقد قلت نفس الكلام لنفسي أيضًا عندما دربت صن داونز ولم يمض على احترافي التدريبي سوى عام واحد ولكن انظر إلى النتيجة لقد مرت ثماني سنوات”.

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Arsenal seem to be stuck in somewhat of a lull at the moment. Mesut Ozil has started just two games since Boxing Day, Aaron Ramsey has signed a pre-contract agreement with Juventus and four of their first-team defenders are on the wrong side of 30.

Gunners boss Unai Emery has a rebuilding job on his hands this summer, but it will be even tougher after it was revealed that he will only be handed £40m to spend – he will have to be shrewd in his dealings, and maybe look to offload a name or two. Or three. Or four.

Arsenal have a number of stars who aren’t pulling their weight, and they aren’t exactly earning peanuts at the Emirates Stadium.

So, Football FanCast have taken a look at who Emery could shift off the wage bill this summer to free up some vital funds, based on figures from Spotrac.

Those who are (almost) definitely leaving

As previously mentioned, Ramsey has already signed a contract with Serie A champions Juventus, so his £6.24m salary will be struck off the wage bill in the summer.

Additionally, Danny Welbeck, Carl Jenkinson and Stephan Lichtsteiner are all out of contract and one would assume they are unlikely to be offered fresh terms. Respectively, they each earn £6.5m, £2.34m and £3.9m per-year.

Petr Cech, who earns £5.72m, has also announced that he will retire at the end of the season.

Those who look to have no future at the club

Arsenal have a number of players either out on loan or at the club who don’t appear to have any kind of future with the north London-based side.

The likes of Emiliano Martinez and Mohamed Elneny are currently on the fringes of the first team, with the former out on loan at Reading and the latter struggling for game time. Both have not set the world alight and have done little to catch Emery’s attention.

Argentinian stopper Martinez earns £1.04m, whilst Elneny is apparently on £2.6m each season.

Those who aren’t doing enough to warrant their wage

The Gunners have some astronomically high earners who simply aren’t pulling their weight.

Ozil has been told by Emery that he ‘needs to be consistent in training and for matches, without injury or being sick’ – the fact that he isn’t even keeping himself fit and available whilst earning a club-highest £18.2m per-year is ridiculous.

Other high earners such as Mustafi and Mkhitaryan have been below-par this season, failing to perform their duties to the level expected and certainly not to the level that their wages warrant. The German international takes home £4.68m, whilst the former Manchester United attacker’s salary is set at £9.36m.

Arsenal’s potential savings

If the Gunners can manage to offload the aforementioned names along with the ones who are certain to leave, then a staggering £1.165m will be freed up on the weekly wage bill, which means that the north Londoners will save £60.58m annually.

Depending on how much of that figure Stan Kroenke allows the Spaniard to have included onto the transfer budget remains to be seen, but if Emery can convince him to carry some of it over, that slim £40m will receive a much-needed boost.

It’s safe to say Unai Emery’s got Arsenal playing the beautiful football they became accustomed to under Arsene Wenger.

The flair’s back in their game, with goals pouring in from everywhere. However, one department he needs to work on is their defensive unit.

Not only do Arsenal need to be stronger down the middle, the Gunners also need more quality in the sides. Saed Kolasinac might possess a drive like none other, but is still quite lacklustre defensively, despite some relatively impressive showings during his time at the club.

The Gunners need a more reliable left back and according to reports (via The Scottish Sun), they’ve turned their attention towards Celtic’s Kieran Tierney.

The young left back’s been making headlines for all the right reasons in the Scottish Premiership, with his impressive performances for the Bhoys helping him gain attention. Arsenal are apparently ready to pay £25 million for the 21-year-old, who’s provided five assists in 15 appearances and also helped them Celtic keep nine clean-sheets (stats via Transfermarkt).

Despite being injured for a large chunk of the season, Tierney’s excellent work in recent years means he’s ready for the big leagues. Not only stable defensively with his assertive style and intelligence while defending, he also has pace and creativity to help boost any attack.

The young left-back can easily blend into Emery’s exciting system and elevate the Gunners’ style all around.

Indeed, he can form a healthy competitive partnership with Kolasinac, slowly growing into a complete left-back, who can slowly help fix the Gunners’ defensive frailties and add more thunder to their attack. With Nacho Monreal surely coming to the end of his FA Cup-laden time soon, Tierney would potentially be the heir Arsenal fans have been waiting for.

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They always say that the next match or the next trophy is the most important but for John Hartson a 2019 SPFL title win would be the sweetest of Celtic’s current run.

Neil Lennon started the sequence off before Ronny Deila took control. When things looked a little stormy Brendan Rodgers was drafted in to kick off an incredible spell of domestic success.

The Irishman quickly put out the challenge offered by Mark Warburton with Pedro Mendes unable to last a season and the unfortunate Graeme Murty left to pick up the pieces on both occasions.

This season Rangers raised the stakes considerably when they appointed Steven Gerrard. After winning the December Old Firm derby to draw level on points Jermain Defoe and Steve Davis were recruited but since the turn of the year Celtic have opened up an eight point advantage at the top of the table.

It’s 34 years since the league title last went outside of Glasgow and Hartson believes that the hype around their city rivals will make success this season something for Celtic to savour.

He told the Evening Times:

“If Celtic go on now and win the title, it’ll be the sweetest one of the last eight.

“This season was the season that Rangers really thought they had a chance. There was all the fanfare when Stevie Gerrard came in over the summer – and a time when Celtic were beset by a summer of frustration and public disharmony.

“Then there was that defeat at Ibrox at the end of December. I don’t think I have seen Celtic play so meekly in a long time against Rangers. So that fed fresh hope to the Ibrox support.

“And then there was the January transfer window with the arrival of Steven Davis and Jermain Defoe which caused all manner of excitement. And then all of a sudden, you get to February and Celtic are eight points clear at the top.”

The scenes at the final whistle on Sunday might suggest otherwise but no one at Celtic will be celebrating a title success in February.

That will change if the current lead is extended after the March 31 Glasgow derby but after losing four matches before the new year, Rodgers won’t let complacency anywhere near his squad.

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Aston Villa supporters have been left dumbfounded by the FA’s decision to charge the club for failing to keep control of its players during last Sunday’s Second City derby.

It was a game which involved a host of emotions, no less so than when Jack Grealish was shockingly punched by a supporter. However, Birmingham players reacted justly to the situation by consoling the Villa man. The same player then threw himself into the crowd after scoring the winner, but both clubs have now been hit by FA charges.

Villa fans are baffled that their club has been punished, slamming the FA for what they feel is an injustice. The reaction on Twitter was scathing, with individuals laying into English football’s governing body, calling them corrupt and out of touch.

Words continued to be thrown in the direction of the FA who were branded penny pinchers by one Villans fan as another suggested they’d completely missed the point.

Much of the debate centred around the incident involving Grealish as supporters failed to see no reason why he couldn’t celebrate in the nature he did after being assaulted.

However, there was some praise for Birmingham, despite being rivals, with some of the reaction hailing both sets of players’ conduct by commenting that there had barely been any confrontation.

Earlier this week, a Blues supporter was jailed for 14 weeks following the Grealish attack.

Here is the best of the reaction from the vocal Villa Park faithful…