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Arsenal fans on Twitter have been left dumbfounded as it was announced that academy product Gedion Zelalem had departed the club on a free transfer.

The 22-year-old has moved to MLS outfit Sporting Kansas City, bringing a six-year association with the club to an abrupt and unfulfilled end and leaving many fans frustrated.

When the midfielder became the youngest Gunners player in FA Cup history in January 2014 by making an appearance against Coventry City, there was much excitement among Gooners, who believed that the club had a genuine talent on their hands.

The belief that Zelalem would one day break through and become a first-team regular is clearly one that was still held by fans up until he moved on to his native USA on Monday.

However, the relevant internal parties at Arsenal seemingly felt something different and have allowed Zelalem to switch North London for Kansas.

Check out some of the best reactive Tweets from the Emirates faithful, below…

وجه محمود حسن تريزيجيه جناح منتخب مصر، والمُحترف في صفوف أستون فيلا، رسالة لمواطنه وجناح ليفربول، عقب الانتصار التاريخي للفيلانس على الريدز في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

وتلقى ليفربول هزيمة تاريخية على يد أستون فيلا بنتيجة 7-2، في المباراة التي جمعت بينهما مساء اليوم الأحد، على ملعب “فيلا بارك” بالجولة الرابعة من البريميرليج (طالع تقرير المباراة).

تريزيجيه لعب في المباراة كأساسي حيث لعب مُنذ صافرة البداية وخرج في الدقيقة 85، وقدم أداءً جيدًا للغاية، وصنع الهدف الرابع في شباك أدريان بطريقة مميزة. شاهد ملخص لمسات تريزيجيه فى مباراة ليفربول واستون فيلا

اقرأ أيضًا.. تعرف على تقييم تريزيجيه بعد فوز أستون فيلا التاريخي أمام ليفربول

وبسؤاله “كنت تود أن تكون ضمن من سجّلوا أهدافًا اليوم؟”، أجاب: “لا، هدفي ليس إحراز الأهداف فقط، بالتأكيد كنت أرغب في إحراز هدف، ولكن هدفي الأول أنّ يفوز أستون فيلا “.

وأضاف خلال تصريحات عبر شبكة “BeinSports” الرياضية القطرية: “طوال المباراة هدفي أن يفوز أستون فيلا، وحاولت فعل ذلك مع زملائي، بالنسبة لي الانتصار كان أهم بالتأكيد”.

وواصل: “ماذا إذا سجلت هدفًا وهُزِمنا في النهاية؟ الهدف لن يعني أي شيء، طالما أستون فيلا يفوز هذا هو الأهم”.

وأتم تصريحاته بالحديث عن صلاح قائلًا: “محمد اليوم أحرز هدفين، وأتمنى له التوفيق دائمًا، وأن يقدم ليفربول مستوى وأداء مثل الموسم الماضي”.

رشح رضا عبد العال المدير الفني لفريق طنطا، مدربًا بديلًا لـ رينيه فايلر المدير الفني لـ الأهلي حال رحيله عن القلعة الحمراء في الفترة المقبلة.

وترددت أنباء كثيرة في الفترة الماضية عن اقتراب رحيل رينيه فايلر من تدريب الأهلي مع بداية شهر أكتوبر المقبل.

وقال رضا عبد العال في تصريحات إذاعية عبر آثير “راديو مصر”: “رينيه فايلر منذ عودة النشاط عقب أزمة فيروس كورونا وهو ليس بمستواه المعروف ومجرد مؤدي فقط”.

وأردف: “من وجهة نظري أن أحمد كشري (مدرب أسوان) هو أفضل مدير فني في الدوري المصري بالدور الثاني منذ عودة النشاط، وبعد تقديمه لنتائج متميزة مع أسوان رغم الإمكانات”.

وأكمل: “أعتقد أنه من الصعب أن يتعاقد الأهلي مع مدير فني أجنبي جديد في الفترة الحالية، وستكون مخاطرة كبيرة بسبب صعوبة التعامل مع دوري أبطال إفريقيا ويجب النظر للمدرب المصري وأبناء القلعة الحمراء”.

اقرأ أيضًا | تقرير إيطالي: سباليتي مرشح لخوض تجربة استثنائية مع الأهلي حال رحيل فايلر

وواصل رضا عبد العال: “يجب مساندة أي مدرب جديد للأهلي سواء إعلاميًا أو جماهيريًا وأيضًا الأمر ذاته بالنسبة لباتشيكو المدير الفني الجديد للزمالك”.

واختتم: “أحمد كشري إذا تولى تدريب الأهلي سيحقق النجاح في ظل فارق الإمكانات مقارنة مع تجربته في أسوان”.

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Rangers midfielder Ryan Jack played alongside new boy Glen Kamara in the 5-0 Scottish Cup thrashing of Kilmarnock at Ibrox on Wednesday, and his comments to rangers.co.uk after the final whistle suggest that he enjoyed the experience.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Kamara completed his move to the Glasgow giants from Dundee on the final day of the January transfer window, but didn’t make his debut for the club until the 0-0 draw with St Johnstone last weekend – one Jack incidentally missed because of an injury issue.

However, the duo were both named in the starting XI as Steven Gerrard opted for a 4-1-4-1 system against Killie, and it proved to be a happy night for the hosts as Alfredo Morelos netted four times and Andy Halliday scored another in the comprehensive win.

Speaking post-match about his new teammate, Jack told rangers.co.uk: “Yeah it was good.

“Obviously I’ve trained with him a couple of times, and Glen’s a good footballer.

“I thought he was really good tonight and I really enjoyed playing alongside him. He’s good at keeping the ball, I really enjoyed it and hopefully there’s more of that to come.”

Budding partnership on the cards?

There might well be, with Jack’s comments certainly suggesting that he is keen to play with the Finland international more often.

The fact that Rangers have only just signed Kamara suggests that he has a big role to play at Ibrox in the coming years, while at 26 years of age his Scottish teammate has already established himself as a key man for the club.

The pair are likely to feature prominently in Gerrard’s central midfield both now and in the future with the likes of Scott Arfield and Steven Davis getting no younger.

Talk of Tottenham Hotspur’s summer transfer window intentions have come to light and there is one certain link that has proven to be divisive among the club’s supporters.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

It has been revealed by Gazzetta dello Sport that the London club are among those looking to sign Chris Smalling from Manchester United in the summer, with the England international having impressed on loan at AS Roma this term.

It is included in the report that any side looking to sign the 30-year-old would need to pay €29m (£25.3m).

There are some fans who are pleased about the idea of seeing Smalling come to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, suggesting that he is “better than [Davinson] Sanchez” and can “be a Jan [Vertonghen] replacement”.

He has made 21 Serie A appearances for Roma this season, scoring two goals and assisting one, while averaging 1 tackle, 2 interceptions, 4.5 clearances and 1.1 blocks per game.

Money talks: How much did Levy pay for each of these Spurs stars?

The above indicates how solid he has been for the side currently sitting fifth in the table, showing that he may be able to do a job for Spurs.

However, there are plenty of fans who are far from keen about the idea of having Smalling join their club, with one saying that Jose Mourinho “needs to be sacked immediately” if he brings the defender in.

The fact that he is 30 years of age does not help the defender’s cause, while one fan feels that they should be looking at centre-backs such as Nathan Ake, Kostas Manolas and Kalidou Koulibaly, rather than Smalling.

Another fan has offered the opinion that Smalling “suits Italian football” and would “look lazy” if he returned to England.

United fans on Twitter were often not happy with the Englishman’s displays, which suggest the following Spurs supporters are right the be wary of him.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans react to another of their links with a defender.

Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Mauricio Pochettino has been backed to take over at Boca Juniors by Argentina legend Diego Maradona, per Ole via Goal.

What’s he said?

The Argentine has been out of work since his sacking by Spurs at the end of November.

Jose Mourinho was subsequently installed as his successor, with Spurs winning four out of five games under the Portuguese’s management.

While Pochettino has been linked with a number of potential jobs, including the Arsenal post, Maradona, who won the World Cup in 1986, has told him to manage Boca instead.

Watch Spurs vs Brighton Live and Free with Amazon Prime on Boxing Day

Asked if he could take the job, he replied: “Boca have to take a technician to play and feel what Boca is. It’s not easy to sit in that chair.

“The best of all is Maradona [laughs].

“But now I will not go, there at some point it happens. But I would like Mauricio Pochettino.

“You have to call him and convince him to come to lead the biggest team in the world.”

Could be ideal

This is a superb shout.

Pochettino could return to his homeland and manage a club with a rich tradition of winning trophies.

Boca won the Argentine top-flight in 2016/17 and 2017/18, with the second being their 33rd title win.

No clues whatsoever: Which seasons do these iconic Spurs images belong to?

They have also won six Copa Libertadores trophies, three Intercontinental Cups and three Copa Argentinas.

Pochettino has spoken of wanting to manage in Europe again but this could be a good stop-gap; he could take over one of the biggest clubs in his home nation and potentially propel them to even greater success.

It would be a left-field move but it could just be perfect.

Meanwhile, Spurs legend Ledley King has tipped the club to do one thing. 

In the first gameweek since the events at the King Power Stadium the previous Saturday, the Premier League paid it’s respects to Leicester City chairman Vichai Srivaddhanaprabha and the four other passengers who lost their lives in a horrific helicopter crash.

We take you through all the talking points from around the grounds in another action packed Premier League gameweek.

150 Goals For Aguero

Man City once again proved that it is going to take a very good team to better them this season, with a 6-1 victory over Southampton on Sunday.

Sergio Aguero’s first half goal was his 150th Premier League goal, his next target will be Thierry Henry’s 175, which is the record for PL goals scored by a foreign player.

Aubameyang Unhappy

With Arsenal trailing to Liverpool at home, you would expect Unai Emery would want his two star strikers on the pitch but in a surprise move, Emery subbed off Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang in the 73rd minute.

The Gabonese striker shook his head as he walked off.  But the Spaniard was justified in his decision, as just nine minutes later Alexandre Lacazette equalised for the Gunners.

Richarlison’s Record

Richarlison arrived at Goodison with a lot of expectation on his shoulders, largely thanks to his hefty price tag.

But his two goals against Brighton not only confirmed his place as the Toffees’ number one striker, but were his 5th and 6th of the season after just 11 games.

For context, he only managed five for Watford in the whole of last season.

Raheem Sterling’s FPL Points Tally

It was another dominant display from Man City as they beat Southampton 6-1 on Sunday and another brilliant performance from Raheem Sterling.

The England forward scored twice and assisted twice to score 21 points in Gameweek 11, the highest score this season by any player.

Callum Wilson For England

There is no doubt about it, Callum Wilson is the best English striker in the Premier League right now.

The Bournemouth man once again impressed with the opener against Man United, taking his tally to six goals and four assists already this season.

Surely he can be expecting a call from Mr. Southgate next week?

Following three successive losses, West Ham finally got their first win of the season against AFC Wimbledon on Tuesday night.

The Hammers won 3-1 but in truth, they were made to work for the victory and were benefitted by Wimbledon being reduced to 10 men.

Moreover, West Ham had to come back from 1-0 down and for parts of the first-half looked as though they wouldn’t be able to break through.

Thanks to Issa Diop’s thumping header and late goals from Angelo Ogbonna and Chicharito, West Ham managed to get their first win of the season.

However, it was a massive struggle and once again the West Ham forwards failed to have much of an impression on the game.

Indeed, only Felipe Anderson and Marko Arnautovic have shown any real threat in front of goal so far this season.

Following West Ham’s win, Pablo Zabaleta rightly criticised the club’s inability to convert their chances.

The Breakdown

Against Arsenal, Anderson and Arnautovic created plenty of chances and realistically should’ve scored more against an Arsenal defence that contained Shkodran Mustafi and Hector Bellerin.

Moreover, with the attacking talent the club possesses, they should be providing much more going forward.

While it will take time for the squad to bed in and adjust to Manuel Pellegrini’s methods and tactics, they need to be converting more chances and quickly.

If Arnautovic is injured for a prolonged period of time, there’ll be an even lesser chance of them scoring from their chances.

West ham must get scoring if they have any chance of getting into the top-half this season.

West Ham fans agree?  

According to reports in the Daily Mail, Everton could more than double their money on summer addition Henry Onyekuru despite the fact that he is yet to kick a ball for the club.

The Toffees won the race to sign the Nigeria international in a £7m deal from KAS Eupen in June, but they immediately loaned him out to Belgian side Anderlecht as he didn’t qualify for a work permit to play in England.

However, the Daily Mail says that the 20-year-old is already rated at around the £15m mark following some impressive performances this term, with European giants Juventus and Atletico Madrid among the teams interested in the winger.

While Juve are keen having lost out to Monaco in the race to sign Keita Balde Diao in the summer, Atletico believe that the attacker could be the ideal long-term replacement for Fernando Torres.

The Daily Mail suggests the chance to take the money and reinvest elsewhere in the squad may be tempting for the Toffees, but it would be the wrong decision.

Here are three reasons Everton must keep hold of the in demand Onyekuru…

Goalscoring record

One of the reasons Everton wanted to snap the 20-year-old during the summer was because of his outstanding record with KAS Eupen – he ended the 2016/17 campaign with 24 goals in 41 appearances in all competitions, with the majority of those outings coming from the left wing.

However, if the Toffees were worried that he may be a flash in the pan or a one-season wonder, the Nigeria international has certainly shown that isn’t the case with Anderlecht already this term.

Despite the fact that he is playing for a team that is competing in the Champions League with bigger expectations, the forward has netted seven goals in 15 appearances in total.

Pace/Width

One of Everton’s biggest problems this season and the reason they lie 18th in the Premier League table and have taken just one point from the nine available in the group stages of the Europa League is because they have largely been toothless in attack.

It certainly didn’t help thatRonald Koeman sometimes chose to play the likes of Gylfi Sigurdsson and Davy Klaassen out wide when their preferred position is definitely through the middle, and the Toffees look to need all of the wide players they can get right now.

The fact that Onyekuru gave Paris Saint-Germain’s Dani Alves a torrid time with his pace and trickery in the recent Champions League clash between them and Anderlecht suggests that he is ready to make an impression in the English top flight.

Potential

When Steve Walsh left Leicester City to take up the position of director of football at Everton in 2016, one of his targets would have been to bring some of the best young talent across Europe to Goodison Park – beating off competition from other clubs in the process – and he did that with Onyekuru during the summer.

The 20-year-old looks to have huge potential and has many years to progress and develop before he reaches his peak, and it would be a huge mistake to cash in on him now and sell him one of European football’s heavyweights rather than giving him a chance in the first team – should he receive his work permit.

Do you agree, Toffees fans? Let us know below.

Although they’ve missed out on the title after taking the fight into the final few weeks once again, Tottenham can be rightly proud of their achievements over the last two seasons.

Since Mauricio Pochettino arrived at White Hart Lane, the focus has been on building something to last, and with an exciting young squad who are maturing together and gaining experience of title races and European football, he looks to have done that.

It was the Argentine’s first season in charge which laid the groundwork for what was to come in the next two seasons. In that first year, Spurs conceded 53 goals, ending the season with a goal difference of +5 and a worse defensive record than relegated Hull City. If it weren’t for Harry Kane’s 21 league goals, who knows where they would have finished.

The same can probably be said of any team with a goalscorer, of course. But it wasn’t the attack that was preoccupying Pochettino.

The very next season things changed dramatically: from one of the worst defences in the league (only four teams conceded more) in 14/15, Spurs had the best in 15/16. It was the first time since 1951 that they’d finished the campaign with the best defence in their division. Barring a collapse in the final few weeks of this season, though, they’re about to achieve that for the second time in a row.

It’s an incredible transformation, and has been down to the high pressing game that Spurs have implemented as well as the fact that having a defensive midfielder like Eric Dier, who could drop between the centre backs, meant the side could form a base to press from.

We all know about the system, but when you come into a club with such obvious defensive frailties and turn it into the best defence in the league for two years in a row, there must be more to it than just organisation – there must be something mental involved, too.

Indeed, when you look at Spurs’ record at the start of the last two seasons, you start to see that there is: this is a team who don’t get beaten easily. They’ve only suffered three defeats this season, and six last season (though that does include two in their final two games once the title game was up).

But sometimes when you’re geared up not to lose, you can go too far in that direction: you start to think about not losing rather than risking enough to win. After defeat to Manchester United in the first game of last season, Spurs went 14 games unbeaten between August and December, but they drew eight times in that run. In the first 11 games of this season, over half (six) were drawn.

These two runs to start the last two seasons have ultimately cost Spurs the title both times, leaving them with too much ground to make up on runaway leaders both times.

And so this summer is an important one for Mauricio Pochettino.

Not necessarily because Tottenham need to win a title, or because their best players or even their manager might leave if they don’t do as well next season. But it’s important because this team have played the best football in the league at times this year, and in order to take them to the next level and actually win the league, they need to turn some of those early-season draws into victories.

How do they do that? Well, perhaps the one thing they lack is a player who will take on defenders. There is only one player in Tottenham’s team who completes more than two dribbles per game, and that’s Mousa Dembele. And yet, as important as the Belgian’s ability to carry the ball forward is to the team, he isn’t dribbling past players in the most dangerous areas.

The next best player in the team is Erik Lamela, with 1.7 per game. That’s more like it, but this is a player who hasn’t played for Tottenham since October.

If Pochettino were looking to bring that sort of player into the team, however, there is one option that would kill two birds with one stone. Aside from the fact that Spurs don’t have a player with proven dribbling ability, they also don’t have Premier League winning experience. But there’s one player has both.

Valued by TransferMarkt.com at £25.5m, Leicester City attacker Riyad Mahrez would really fit the bill. He was last season’s player of the year, would bring pace, skill and guile to the side, and in the Champions League this season – arguably a better barometer of Leicester’s form, given their dismal Premier League defence – he has averaged 2.9 dribbles. Far higher than any Spurs player, and certainly in more dangerous areas.

The Telegraph have, today, reported that Leicester would be willing to let him leave this summer, too. And so it would seem like the perfect match: he’s available, and Spurs need a player like him.

Some would have their doubts about his ability to fit into a team who press so hard and so high. But it Pochettino wants to take Spurs to the next level, his squad arguably needs that sort of player. It would be harsh to describe Tottenham’s squad as ‘functional’, in the sense of lacking flair, but they are definitely lacking a player who can break through the lines by himself and score a goal out of nothing.

The first stage in the Pochettino revolution was to shore up the defence, turning defeats into draws. The next step is to turn those hard-fought draws into wins. And you do that by bringing in a player who can do what the rest of your squad can’t.

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