All posts by z3u9t.icu

Thiago is set to undergo a scan on the injury suffered in Liverpool’s 3-1 win over Wolves on Sunday, according to reliable journalist James Pearce.

The Lowdown: Thiago injured in win

The Reds suffered Premier League heartbreak on Sunday afternoon, beating Wolves at Anfield but missing out on title glory to Manchester City in dramatic fashion, but all supporters really care about now is the issue with Thiago.

He left the field just before half-time and didn’t return for the second half, in what was a hugely concerning moment ahead of the Champions League final.

The 31-year-old now faces a race against time to be fit for the clash with Real Madrid on Saturday evening due to what was believed to be a right hamstring injury.

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The Latest: Pearce provides update

Taking to Twitter, The Athletic‘s Pearce shared a comment from Jurgen Klopp that the news is ‘not good’, before offering the update everyone’s been waiting on.

Thiago needs a scan to determine the severity of the issue, which certainly doesn’t bode well with less than a week until Paris:

“Thiago set to undergo a scan. Would be a massive blow if he misses the CL final.”

The Times’ Paul Joyce has added his own update at lunch-time, claiming it is actually an achilles problem and it will be a ‘battle’ to make it in time.

The Verdict: ‘Massive’ indeed…

Not having Thiago for the Champions League final could be a genuinely game-changing moment, given the Spaniard’s brilliance and importance in midfield this season – he started seven of the last nine Premier League games and played 120 minutes in the FA Cup final.

Liverpool would lose so much control without him around, and with Fabinho arguably coming back slightly undercooked, Madrid could suddenly have a big advantage.

It certainly feels as though Thiago is now more likely to miss out, considering the final is only five days away, and it would be a horrible blow for him and the Reds, especially after he missed the Carabao Cup final through injury, too.

In other news, Liverpool have been linked with a move for a midfielder. Read more here.

Aston Villa are among the leading contenders to sign Atletico Madrid forward Luis Suarez this summer, according to reports from Spain. 

The lowdown: Suarez exit confirmed

Having joined Los Rojiblancos in 2020, the 35-year-old has already confirmed that he will be leaving the Wanda Metropolitano following the conclusion of the current La Liga season.

Since signing for Diego Simeone’s side, Suarez has scored 34 times in 81 outings, taking his club senior goal tally to 436 across spells with Nacional, Groningen, Ajax, Liverpool, Barcelona and now Atletico.

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Now it appears that a reunion with former Anfield team-mate Steven Gerrard could be on the cards in the upcoming transfer window…

The latest: Villa interested in Suarez

As per Spanish sources, Aston Villa, Inter Milan and Sevilla all ‘want to sign’ Suarez.

It is claimed that Gerrard ‘wants to meet again’ with the 132-cap Uruguay star in order to ‘fight to qualify for European competitions’ next season.

The report added that ‘several teams’ have shown an interest in the 35-year-old, who has ‘everything’ according to Gerrard when naming his best team-mates from his illustrious playing days.

The verdict: No-brainer

Whilst there is a danger of Villa Park becoming somewhat of an Anfield alumni reunion having already secured a permanent deal for Philippe Coutinho, adding Suarez to the squad would be a huge boost ahead of next season.

The Uruguayan has scored 13 times and registered another three assists in 43 appearances across all competitions in the current campaign, earning a 6.89 Sofascore rating from 34 La Liga outings whilst taking 1.6 shots per game.

Still holding a market value of £9m from Transfermarkt, signing Suarez on a free transfer to play second fiddle to frontline duo Ollie Watkins and Danny Ings would have to be regarded as a sensational piece of business if Villa can pull it off.

In other news: Former Villa boss reacts to £50m+ plus price tag for ‘fantastic’ ace

Tottenham Hotspur are keen to sign Youri Tielemans this off-season, according to reports…

What’s the word?

The Sun journalist Tom Barclay revealed to GIVEMESPORT that the north London outfit will attempt to secure the Leicester City dynamo amid interest from their local rivals.

“In midfield, they are interested in Youri Tielemans, whether they can get him or not is another thing. But I think a left-sided centre-back for Spurs, in particular, maybe wing-backs on both sides, potentially, are probably bigger priorities,” he said.

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“So, when you’re talking about probably £50 million-plus for Ward-Prowse, that’s a big fee for Tottenham and the way they do things. So, I’d be kind of surprised if they managed to do that, but that doesn’t mean they’re not interested.”

Arsenal have also been linked with a move to sign the Belgium international and The Sun believe they are the front-runners to secure him due to their placing in Europe for next season.

Midfield maestro

The engine room is perhaps amongst the least of Antonio Conte’s concerns heading into next season, considering a backup for Harry Kane and a left-footed centre-back are high on the agenda, but if the Whites can beat the Gunners to his signature, then they cannot afford to turn their nose up at him.

Tielemans would be something of a perfect signing for the Italian head coach as he not only offers steel in his own third but also creativity in the final third.

Paired alongside the more defensively-minded Rodrigo Bentancur – or even Oliver Skipp – the 25-year-old ace could form an excellent partnership heading into next term.

Once lauded as an “outrageous talent” by scout Jacek Kulig, Tielemans delivered nine goals and six assists last season, scoring the all-important winner against Chelsea to secure the Foxes their first-ever FA Cup, and he has since built on that with seven goals and four assists this campaign, via Transfermarkt.

The Athletic’s Rob Dawson has previously praised the Belgian as being a “creator” and has even earned some lofty comparisons to former Chelsea legend Frank Lampard, who is arguably one of the best box-to-box midfielders the Premier League has ever seen.

Currently, the £49.5m-rated maestro ranks as Brendan Rodgers’ third-best player in the English top-flight, where he has also averaged 2.2 tackles and 1.2 clearances per game, via WhoScored.

The midfielder, who former Anderlecht and Sweden midfielder Par Zetterberg believes is a “phenomenon”, would be a very welcome addition to this Spurs squad this summer.

It may not be a priority position but Conte would surely love a player of this calibre, providing goals and assists, as well as defensive stability to his two-man engine room.

AND in other news, Ben Jacobs drops Raheem Sterling-Spurs transfer claim…

Celtic sent scouts to watch Hammarby IF defender Mohanad Jeahze this week, according to Swedish newspaper SportExpressen and Fotboll Direkt (translated by Sport Witness). 

The lowdown: Hoops’ interest

This comes after an original report from the same source claimed that the Hoops were eying a £1.6million move for the Iraq international left-back this summer.

Formerly of Mjallby AIF, Jeahze has amassed 124 senior appearances during a professional career spent exclusively in Sweden.

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Now, a move to Glasgow could be on the cards as Ange Postecoglou steps up the transfer plans…

The latest: Scouting mission

As per the Swedish outlet, translated by SW, Celtic sent a representative to observe Hammarby vs Malmo on Monday night in the Allsvenskan.

The match ended goalless with Jeahze replaced on 68 minutes following a 7.10 rated Sofascore display containing 3/4 successful duels, one key pass and 79 touches.

Meanwhile, Hammarby sporting director Jesper Jansson has admitted that there is ‘certainly an interest’ in the 25-year-old when quizzed about the links to Celtic Park.

The verdict: Bargain move

The suggested fee for the four-cap Iraq ace makes this move a no-brainer as Postecoglou looks to add senior competition for places to the squad.

So far this season Jeahze – who was hailed as ‘class’ by Darijan Bojanic – has scored once and provided five assists in 14 appearances across all competitions, eclipsing the four direct goal contributions for Bhoys left-back Greg Taylor this term.

Overall, the Sweden-born star has earned an impressive 7.63 average Sofascore rating this season, making 2.7 tackles and 2.3 interceptions per game on average, showing he does his defensive duties with aplomb too.

Despite being untested amongst Europe’s elite, Postecoglou has already proven to be a savvy operator in the market and should be backed to sign whoever he sees fit, whether they’re a household name or not.

In other news… a Celtic ace has been backed to make a permanent move away from Parkhead this summer.

Glasgow Rangers are reportedly now ‘keeping tabs’ on Ross Stewart ahead of the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Play-off heroics

Stewart scored the only goal of the game as Sunderland beat Sheffield Wednesday 1-0 in the first leg of their play-off semi-final on Friday night, charging down defender Sam Hutchinson before eventually poking the ball home, with his work rate earning high praise from Black Cats legend Kevin Phillips.

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Earning the nickname the ‘Loch Ness Drogba’ dating back to his time at Ross County thanks to his battering ram style up front, that was his 25th goal of what has been a great season for him individually.

The Latest: Rangers lurking

Speaking to GIVEMESPORT, journalist Pete O’Rourke has shared that the Ibrox faithful are now ‘keeping tabs’ on Stewart ahead of the summer, and it would be ‘hard’ for him to turn them down:

“It looks like he’s obviously on their wanted list, Ross Stewart. It’s been talked about now for quite a few weeks that Rangers are keeping tabs on him.

“If Rangers do come calling, it’s going to be hard for somebody like Ross Stewart – a Scottish player – to turn down their advances.”

The Verdict: Sign

Given injuries to Alfredo Morelos and Kemar Roofe recently, Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s team could do with another striker in the squad, especially going into another season with an added European campaign.

Dubbed a ‘menace‘ by journalist Philip West, who writes for renowned SAFC podcasters Roker Report, Stewart has certainly proven that he knows where the goal is, and given that he has already played in Scottish football, he should be able to settle in nicely at the Teddy Bears.

Nonetheless, he has not hit his prime yet at 25 years of age, and so the summer presents the perfect time to buy him.

In other news, find out who Gers now face a ‘big fight’ to keep here!

Leeds United are back in Premier League action on Saturday afternoon as they take on leaders Manchester City at Elland Road.

Jesse Marsch’s side have put together a good run of form in recent weeks, going unbeaten in their previous five league games, and picking up 11 points in the process.

Despite that, the Whites still find themselves in the midst of a relegation battle, with both Everton and Burnley looking to bring them back, and Marsch will have a big task on his hand to get anything out of the game on Saturday against one of Europe’s top teams.

One huge decision the Leeds boss could look to make in terms of his starting line-up, is dropping Mateusz Klich from the fold, who apart from having a rather disappointing night at Selhurst Park against Crystal Palace last time out, was also seen in a confrontation with his manager.

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As per Sofascore, he made just two tackles, had no interceptions, and had no attempts on goal whatsoever, while he won just 50% of his total duels on the night – an indication of how things just seemed to bypass him in midfield.

Writing in his post-match player ratings for Leeds Live, Beren Cross gave him a measly four, saying: “Couldn’t bring any degree of control to the middle of the pitch. Hooked at the break after a few choice words from Jesse Marsch during the first period.”

Speaking after the game, Marsch himself said: “First, it wasn’t anyone’s best game. Klichy and I spoke after the match and spoke about things that could be better and then discussed how to handle the tough moments as well.

“Obviously, Mateusz is a more attacking player and Robin is a more defensive player, but there are different needs for different situations. I could see in the match we were struggling with the ball and even though Klichy normally helps us in those situations, I knew defending in that moment was going to be the biggest factor because Crystal Palace had the ability to unbalance us at times.”

If the reason behind axing Klich at half-time was to offer some greater defensive presence, then it’s imperative they have that from the get-go against a side like Manchester City who will no doubt be looking to fire on all cylinders in their attempt to preserve their lead at the top of the Premier League table.

Marsch simply has to make the ruthless call and drop the £3.6m-rated Klich from his starting line-up against Pep Guardiola’s side.

AND in other news – “My understanding” – Journo drops huge behind-scenes Leeds claim that’ll excite Marsch

Leeds United head coach Daniel Farke was left incredibly frustrated by his side’s lack of ruthlessness in the final third in their defeat to Burnley on Saturday.

After the match, the German head coach noted that his team had more “possession, shots, big chances, xG” than the Clarets in their Premier League clash, but they came away from Turf Moor with no points to show for their efforts.

Possession

31%

69%

Shots

4

19

Shots on target

3

4

xG

0.45

2.63

Big chances

1

4

Goalkeeper saves

4

1

Passes

292

615

The statistics in the table above show that Farke was right about the level of chances that his team created throughout the match, but they failed to score a single goal from 2.63 xG and four ‘big chances’.

Brenden Aaronson, arguably, missed the biggest chance of the match when he raced through on goal to fire his shot almost straight at Martin Dubravka, who produced the save.

Jayden Bogle, Jack Harrison, and Dominic Calvert-Lewin also missed opportunities to find the back of the net, as the home side scored two goals from four shots in the entire game.

It is hard not to feel a little bit sorry for Farke from an offensive perspective, as the players the board have left him with do not look clinical enough for this level.

Why Farke is not to blame for Leeds United's attacking problems

It can be easy to use outcome bias to pin all the blame on the manager when a team loses a game. Sometimes the manager is to blame because the coaching or the tactics lead to a poor performance that gives the players little chance of picking up a result.

However, Farke put out a team with a structure and a style that created three times as many ‘big chances’ as the opposition, and roughly five times as much xG, but it was the players at his disposal that let him down.

Football Insider reported last month that the head coach wanted two more attacking signings in the summer, Harry Wilson and Manor Solomon, but the club did not land either of them.

1

Crystal Palace – 33

Crystal Palace – 22

2

Man City – 27

Man City – 17

3

Liverpool – 24

Liverpool – 17

4

Chelsea – 23

Leeds – 14

5

Arsenal – 22

Man Utd – 14

6

Man Utd – 22

Arsenal – 13

7

Brighton – 18

Newcastle – 11

8

Leeds – 17

Nottingham Forest – 11

9

Newcastle – 15

Chelsea – 10

10

Everton – 15

Everton – 10

As you can see in the table above, Leeds rank within the top eight teams in the league for ‘big chances’ created, but they also rank fourth for misses.

They have missed a staggering 14 of the 17 ‘big chances’ that they have created, which is why Farke should not be blamed for the lack of potency in the final third, because his system has been one of the most effective in the league.

Calvert-Lewin, who has scored one Premier League goal, is one of the players who has let him down. The former England international has missed the most ‘big chances’ in the team (five), per Sofascore, and ranks third in the division for ‘big chances’ missed.

The summer signing from Everton has not stepped up and delivered enough quality in front of goal, which has left Farke in a difficult position without the signings that he wanted the club to make in the forward areas.

In The Pipeline

Football FanCast’s In the Pipeline series aims to uncover the very best youth players in world football.

The former Norwich and Borussia Monchengladbach head coach has been let down by the options he has in the first-team, which means that he may have to look to the academy.

Leeds United are brewing a potential upgrade on Dominic Calvert-Lewin in the form of 17-year-old centre-forward Harry Gray, who has excelled at youth level.

Why Harry Gray may be an upgrade on Dominic Calvert-Lewin

The teenage striker is currently out with a hip injury and is expected to be back in training next week, and he should be given a chance to impress once he is back up to speed.

There is no guarantee that Gray will be able to handle the step up to the Premier League as a 17-year-old striker, which is why it is harsh to judge Farke if he decides against such a risk, but his form at youth level suggests that he has the potential to be a breakout star.

The English striker scored four goals in four Premier League 2 matches before picking up a hip injury, per Transfermarkt, whilst he also notched a hat-trick against Scunthorpe in the National League Cup.

Gray, who was described as “seriously talented” by analyst Ben Mattinson, also scored eight goals in 11 matches for the U18s in the 2024/25 campaign, per Transfermarkt.

This means that the teenage marksman, who made his first-team debut against Stoke in the Championship last term, has delivered goals on a consistent basis at U18 and U21 level over the past 14 months or so.

24/25

8.85

3

23/24

13.63

7

22/23

6.50

2

21/22

6.22

5

20/21

18.21

16

19/20

16.11

13

18/19

6.17

6

17/18

5.44

4

16/17

1.25

1

As you can see in the table above, Calvert-Lewin’s form for Everton in the four seasons before his move to Elland Road does not suggest that he is likely to turn his current form around in front of goal.

He has consistently underperformed as a finisher in the Premier League, which is why it is not a surprise that he has missed five ‘big chances’ and only scored one goal for Leeds so far.

Gray, meanwhile, has been a lethal goalscorer who has found the back of the net week-in-week-out at two different age groups at academy level in the last two seasons for the Whites.

His impressive goalscoring rate for the U18s and U21s suggests that the club are brewing an upgrade on Calvert-Lewin, who has struggled to score goals on a consistent basis for most of his career, but it remains to be seen if he can make the step up in the short-term.

Worse than Struijk: Farke must drop Leeds dud who's "never going to push on"

Daniel Farke must drop this Leeds United flop who was even worse than Pascal Struijk against Burnley.

1 ByDan Emery Oct 19, 2025

The club’s current struggles in front of goal in the Premier League mean that Farke may have to fast-track his development and throw him in at the deep end once he is back from injury.

Glasgow Rangers manager Russell Martin made a big decision that immediately left some Ibrox supporters disgruntled when he took charge.

Martin sacked as Rangers manager

The Gers could only draw 1-1 away to Falkirk in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday afternoon, proving to be the final nail in the coffin for Martin, who was sacked hours later, with the club releasing a statement.

“Rangers Football Club confirms that it has parted company with Head Coach, Russell Martin. While all transition periods require some time, results have not met the club’s expectations. Assistant Head Coach, Matt Gill, and First-Team Coach, Mike Williamson, will also be departing.

“Russell and his staff have worked exceptionally hard throughout their time at the club. We thank them for their efforts and wish them well for the future. Further updates from the club will follow in due course.”

The brutal reality is that Martin endured a disastrous reign, struggling to impress in both the league and in Europe, and he called out his players early in the season, suggesting that all was not well straight away. Having clung on to his job as Rangers manager for a while, it felt like a matter of time until he was relieved of his duties.

It’s now a case of the Gers looking to nail Martin’s successor at Ibrox, with the likes of Sean Dyche and Steven Gerrard among the possible options to come in, and it is vital that the right choice is made.

Martin rarely made life easy for himself at Rangers, in terms of leaving certain players out and being stubborn with his tactics, and a new claim further highlights some of his poor decision-making.

Martin "disregarded" historic Rangers tradition

Speaking to Ibrox News, journalist Jonny McFarlane claimed that Martin’s decision not to wear a traditional suit as Rangers manager left some fans irritated – something he was warned about at the beginning.

While Martin was ultimately welcome to wear what he wants – fans are less likely to care if Rangers are winning – he didn’t do himself any favours by going against tradition. The Englishman was told about the attire that is expected of him, so to go against the grain is only risking making his job harder from the off.

He is surely going to go down as one of Rangers’ most disappointing managers in history, overseeing so many poor games and already seeing many points dropped in the league.

"Promising" £10,500-a-week Rangers player waiting for Martin to be sacked

Does he have a long-term future at Ibrox?

ByHenry Jackson Oct 5, 2025

After yet more dropped points at Falkirk, it felt impossible to see Martin turning things around and bringing success to Ibrox, so the right decision has been made.

Leeds United head coach Daniel Farke is slowly showing supporters and the wider footballing community that he has what it takes to manage in the Premier League.

It is hard to blame anyone for having doubts over whether or not the German tactician could lead a team to safety in the top-flight, given his record in the division with Norwich City.

Matches

38

11

Wins

5

1

Draws

6

2

Losses

27

8

Points

21

5

League position

20th

20th

As you can see in the table above, Farke won six of his 49 matches in charge of the Canaries in the Premier League before he was sacked after 11 games in the 2021/22 campaign.

However, he has been backed financially in a way that he was not at Carrow Road, which has allowed the Whites to enjoy a solid start to the season.

The West Yorkshire outfit are 15th in the table with eight points in seven games after two wins, two draws, and three defeats, which is a respectable return for the newly-promoted outfit.

Farke is now hoping to emulate the success that Marcelo Bielsa had in the top-flight in the 2020/21 campaign after his side were promoted to the big time.

Ranking Marcelo Bielsa's best Leeds United teams

The Argentine head coach initially joined the club in the summer of 2018 and led the team to a third-placed finish in the Championship, but watched his team lose to Derby County in the semi-finals of the play-offs.

It was a terrific first season at Elland Road for Bielsa, even if it ended in disappointment for the club in the play-offs, but the best was yet to come for the manager.

In the 2019/20 campaign, Leeds racked up 93 points with 28 wins and nine draws in the Championship, ten more points than they managed in the previous season, to earn promotion to the Premier League and the second tier title.

It is, therefore, fair to say that Bielsa’s team in his second season was better than the one he had in his first, as they won ten more points to earn promotion.

However, that promotion-winning team was not the best side that the Argentine tactician had during his time at Elland Road, because of what was achieved in the Premier League the following season.

Points

59

9th

Non-penalty xG

52.5

4th

xG

55.6

6th

Goals scored

62

6th

xGA

57.9

16th

Goals conceded

54

14th

As you can see in the table above, Leeds were fun to watch as a free-scoring newly-promoted side that fired their way to a top-half finish in the top-flight, which turned out to be Bielsa’s best achievement in his time in West Yorkshire.

He was sacked after picking up 23 points from 26 Premier League games in the 2021/22 season, which should rank as his worst team, followed by his first season, then his second one, and the ninth-placed finish in the top-flight as his best side.

The team in the graphic above was his most-used starting line-up in the 2020/21 campaign in the 4-1-4-1 formation, including stars like Kalvin Phillips and Raphinha.

With Farke and his team looking to emulate the success that Bielsa’s team had in their first season in the big time, would any of the club’s current stars make it into that best XI?

Chalkboard

Football FanCast’s Chalkboard series presents a tactical discussion from around the global game.

As good as Luke Ayling was, and as much as he was a terrific servant for the Whites, there is a case to be made for Jayden Bogle walking into that Bielsa side in the 2020/21 campaign on current form.

Why Jayden Bogle would walk into Marcelo Bielsa's best team

There were some question marks raised over the English full-back’s ability to make the step up to the Premier League this season, because of the Sheffield United team that he was a part of in the 2023/24 season.

Bogle played 34 of his side’s 38 league matches at right-back as the Blades conceded a staggering 104 goals, per Sofascore, the most by any team in a 38-game top-flight season.

However, the 25-year-old star’s start to the current campaign suggests that he is more than capable of delivering quality performances in the Premier League, winning the club’s Player of the Month award for August.

Bogle has started all seven of the club’s matches in the Premier League this season and Leeds rank fifth in the division for xGA (7.9), per FBref, which shows that he is currently part of one of the best defensive units in the division.

Whereas, as aforementioned, Leeds were 16th in the top-flight for xGA with Ayling as their first-choice right-back in Bielsa’s best team at Elland Road.

Appearances

38

7

Assists

0

0

Tackles per game

2.9

3.0

Interceptions per game

0.9

1.6

Clearances per game

2.0

2.9

Dribbled past per game

1.0x

1.1x

Possession lost per game

18.6x

11.7x

As you can see in the table above, Bogle’s current defensive numbers topple Ayling’s in the 2020/21 campaign, which may be part of the reason why Farke’s defence is performing better than Bielsa’s did.

On top of that, Ayling did not deliver any assists in that season in the Premier League, which means that Bogle’s current lack of assists in the top-flight should not go against him in this debate.

The former Blades star, who was dubbed “sensational” and a “massive signing” by pundit Micah Richards earlier this year, also delivered more goals and assists combined (ten) last term than Ayling did in the 2019/20 promotion-winning season (eight), per Sofascore, which suggests that he has more potential to excel as an attacking force.

Therefore, there is a genuine case to be made that the 25-year-old star is good enough in the present day to walk into Bielsa’s best team in the ninth-placed Premier League finish.

The new Phillips: Leeds star has made effortless transition to PL life

This Leeds United star has made an effortless transition to the Premier League in the same way that Kalvin Phillips did.

ByDan Emery Oct 7, 2025

Hopefully, the current campaign will be a success, with a similarly impressive league finish, and fans will be talking about which players would make it into Farke’s best team in the future.

Aston Villa excruciatingly missed out on a Champions League spot on the final day of the Premier League season as a controversial 2-0 away loss at Manchester United went completely against them.

Unai Emery’s men won’t have dwelled on this disappointment for too long, however, with the grandeur of Europe’s elite competition actually congesting their fixture list across a busy 2024/25, leaving them potentially a little empty in energy to push into those top five positions.

It could also be a summer of much change at Villa Park with Emiliano Martinez and Emiliano Buendia set to leave the West Midlands giants, alongside a whole host of exciting additions potentially entering the building.

Whenever it comes to new faces joining the Villans’ ranks, the Premier League high-flyers will surely always be on the lookout for their next Jack Grealish, with a reunion deal also not completely off the table.

Grealish's current situation at Manchester City

It’s been bubbling away in the background for some time now, but the former homegrown Villa talent could now finally exit the Citizens this summer, having been left out of Pep Guardiola’s camp for the upcoming Club World Cup.

Unfortunately for Grealish, his time at City has now been reduced to a sorry state of affairs, with the former £100m buy only starting seven top-flight games last season.

It’s a far cry away from the days where Grealish would terrorise many a Premier League defence donning Villa claret and blue – as seen in his 32 goals and 43 assists from 213 Villa contests – with the ultimate confidence boost needed for the 29-year-old to salvage his fading career potentially an emotional return to home soil.

However, Emery and Co. could instead go after this alternative target away from sentimentally snapping up Grealish, with this fresh target displaying shades of Grealish’s game all across his own bumpy career path.

The "special" Aston Villa target who has shades of Grealish

After all, Villa Park will be seen as a worthwhile next destination for this low-on-confidence winger, considering Marcus Rashford managed to collect a promising four goals and six assists this season just gone for Villa on loan, after the start of his messy Manchester United divorce came to the surface.

Jadon Sancho is also deep in his own exit route out of the Red Devils, with a report from TEAMTalk earlier this week speculating that United are desperately trying to offload their expensive flop, which has led to Villa taking an interest in the out-of-sorts attacker as a potential Rashford replacement.

There is some method to Villa’s madness here with Sancho displaying flashes of his “special” quality – as he was lauded by Enzo Maresca during his brief Stamford Bridge stay – at Chelsea, as seen in his promising tally of five goals and ten assists in West London.

With 12 strikes also next to his name during his cursed United stint, it’s not completely ludicrous to suggest that Emery can work his magic on another Red Devils outcast here.

His swagger down the left and ability to twist and turn defenders for fun at his peak, not far off Grealish’s own exuberant game, when confidence is also coursing through his veins.

Indeed, that similarity in possession is seen in the fact that Grealish ranks in the top 1% among his European peers for progressive carries per 90, as per FBref, while Sancho is not too far behind, amid his ranking in the top 13%.

LW

Sancho

61

7

11

RW

Sancho

19

4

0

CF

Sancho

2

1

0

AM

Sancho

1

0

0

LM

Sancho

1

0

0

LW

Grealish

121

24

23

AM

Grealish

26

1

4

LM

Grealish

11

2

2

CM

Grealish

8

0

2

CF

Grealish

3

0

0

RW

Grealish

2

0

0

SS

Grealish

1

0

0

Sourced by Transfermarkt

It’s even clearer from the table above where both Sancho’s and Grealish’s strengths lie, with Emery potentially getting the best out of the ex-Borussia Dortmund man to come by playing him down his preferred left flank, away from shoehorning him in elsewhere. With a transfer value of £31m, according to Football Transfers, a move could be a no-brainer.

Both players find themselves at a crossroads in their careers, with Grealish a certainty to leave the Etihad, alongside Sancho at Old Trafford – the latter could well thank Villa Park down the line for mending his broken career.

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