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West Brom could be the “ideal” location for free-agent Jack Wilshire to land, according to Harry Redknapp.

What’s the word?

Speaking to The Sun on Sunday (01/11, page 60), the former Spurs, Portsmouth and West Ham boss claimed it was a shock to see the 28-year-old without a club.

He believes that two of the three promoted teams could do with a player of his experience, he said:

“When you’ve been in football as long as me, there isn’t much left to shock but seeing Jack Wilshere without a club certainly does.

“Jack would be ideal for someone like Fulham or West Brom, and if you were paying him on appearances, there would be no risk.”

Worth a shot?

Whilst a move for the ex-Arsenal maestro would be a massive gamble to make, it could be one that saves the Baggies’ season.

Many will be put off by Wilshere’s injury history but that’s something he has claimed he is fully over – speaking to the Times in September, the former England international revealed his desire to be playing every week.

“I’m still only 28 and feel fit, strong and ready to play. I am still incredibly hungry, ambitious and desperate to play football and achieve success.”

Jack Wilshere after West Ham exit

Since then, he was released from his £100k-per-week contract and is now without a club.

182 appearances in the Premier League, 35 across the Champions and Europa League, and 41 goal contributions, per Transfermarkt. It’s not every day a player of this calibre becomes available – for free.

Throughout his career, Wilshere drew comparisons ranging from Barcelona duo Xavi and Iniesta, to England legends Paul Gascoigne and Wayne Rooney.

It doesn’t stop there, World Cup-winning duo Marco Reus and Bastian Schweinsteiger have also waxed lyrical about his abilities – the former dubbed the dynamic midfielder a “perfect player” whilst the latter hailed him as “one of the best players there [is].”

Aside from Jake Livermore, Albion lack experience at the very top of the game and as Redknapp says, anything like a pay-as-you-play deal could well be a masterstroke from Luke Dowling and the club’s hierarchy.

AND in other news, West Brom must rue not signing £80k-p/w “game-changer” during the transfer window…

Sunderland have been linked with a loan move for Chelsea goalkeeper Nathan Baxter, according to the Evening Standard.

The Black Cats lost last season’s first-choice goalkeeper Jon McLaughlin earlier this summer as he completed a move to Scottish Premiership side Rangers.

Phil Parkinson, who guided the Wearsiders to an eighth-placed finish last term, is under increasing pressure to turn around the club’s fortunes next season and gain promotion to the Championship.

A potential replacement for McLaughlin had been Wolves and former Aston Villa stopper Matija Sarkic, who has been linked with a move to the Stadium of Light of late.

However, it is now being reported that Baxter could sign on loan instead, with the Evening Standard claiming that Sunderland have joined Championship duo Birmingham City and Derby County with interest in the 21-year-old.

The report added that Blues manager Frank Lampard is keen for Baxter to leave on loan to either a Championship or League One club after having spells with the likes of Ross County, Yeovil Town, Woking and Solihull Moors in the past.

Another ‘keeper target reported of late for Sunderland is Remi Matthews, who is available on a free transfer after leaving Bolton Wanderers.

It seems that Sunderland have a good shortlist of potential new ‘keepers but it remains to be seen who they will target first.

Sarkic has been a long-term target and, despite fresh interest in Baxter, the Wolves goalkeeper may still be the Wearsiders’ main target, given that he has been on the radar for some time.

Do you think Baxter would be a good addition to the Sunderland squad? Let us know in the comments section below…

Liverpool’s Trent Alexander-Arnold has been named the PFA Young Player of the Year.

The young Scouser scooped the award following his stellar season with the Reds. Not only did he contribute to the club’s first Premier League title, but he tallied 13 assists for the season, behind only Kevin de Bruyne, who topped this particular metric with 20 (via Premier League).

Alexander-Arnold is just the fifth Liverpool player to win the award as he follows in the footsteps of Ian Rush, Robbie Fowler, Michael Owen and Steven Gerrard (as per liverpoolfc.com). James Pearce has reported on the 21-year-old’s achievement and duly branded him ‘the best right-back in the world’.

Loads of Liverpool fans are firmly in agreement with Pearce’s statement and have flocked to his tweet to praise the young defender. One supporter has commented by saying that The Athletic reporter is talking ‘just facts’.

All eyes will be on Alexander-Arnold next season as he continues his rise to stardom. Since 2017, he has skyrocketed in market value, spiking from just £1.3m then to a mammoth £99m currently (via Transfermarkt).

Read some replies from the Anfield faithful here:

What kind of Liverpool future do you think is in store for Alexander-Arnold? Join the conversation in the comments below!

After going more than a week without a game following their 2-0 victory over West Ham, Tottenham were brought back to reality with a shuddering halt against Sheffield United on Thursday night.

Jose Mourinho’s side were brushed aside 3-1 by the Blades at Bramall Lane, and there was certainly an air of controversy over how the result came about. The Lilywhites saw Harry Kane’s first-half equaliser ruled out by VAR due to a handball infringement spotted by VAR, and it is safe to say the Spurs boss was not happy after the match.

But whilst the north Londoners are right to have their gripes with VAR and the officiating, it doesn’t take away from the fact they produced a pretty toothless performance – over the course of the 90 minutes, they managed just two shots on target, and that despite averaging a whopping 68% possession.

Is it Mido or Pedro Mendes? This Spurs quiz will separate the loyal from the fake…

World Class score: 95% | Expert score: 80% | Veteran score: 65% | Intermediate score: 45% | Amateur score: 30% | Try Again: 5%

And one man who badly let down both Mourinho and his teammates, was Lucas Moura.

The Brazil international was given the nod to start, in what looked like on paper to be a rather exciting front three behind Harry Kane. The likes of Heung-min Son and Steven Bergwijn joined him in attack, and the pace and directness of the trio surely made for an enticing prospect.

Instead, Lucas went completely missing, and his biggest contribution in the game was when he got inadvertently involved in the chalked-off Kane goal.

As per Sofascore, he registered just one shot (and even that was off target), made no dribble attempts, no accurate crosses or long balls, and just one key pass.

And perhaps most worryingly for Mourinho, was that Lucas just didn’t seem to get to grips with the Blades’ physicality. Chris Wilder’s side won more total duels (both on the ground and in the air), and made more tackles, interceptions and clearances as a side as whole – and that was clearly reflected in the way in which they bullied Spurs’ Brazilian winger.

He won just four of his 13 ground duels, and lost possession a staggering 24 times whilst he was on the pitch – both stats comfortably being the highest of any Spurs player.

The £80k-a-week star simply wasn’t at the races, and in a game when they needed him to be fully firing on all cylinders, he simply disappeared.

AC Milan have entered negotiations with Tottenham Hotspur to sign Serge Aurier this summer, reports say.

Recent reports revealed AS Monaco have entered the race to sign the Spurs defender, although Aurier could become a concrete target for Stefano Pioli’s side if Milan sell Davide Calabria or Andrea Conti.

Now Italian transfer gurus Fabrizio Romano and Gianluca Di Marzio are both reporting, as relayed by Ricky Sacks, that the Serie A giants are holding talks with Tottenham to sort out a deal in the summer. Romano has even gone so far as to suggest that he is their “main target.”

Milan have identified the 60-cap Ivory Coast international as their number one priority for the right-back position and hope to reach an agreement as soon as possible.

Di Marzio claims that the Rossoneri value the 27-year-old at somewhere in the region of €12-15m, which could prove to be a stumbling block, as Daniel Levy will surely want to recoup significantly more than that for the full-back.

The Spurs chairman spent £23m to prise Aurier away from Paris Saint-Germain in the summer of 2017, and it is likely Milan have fallen short of the mark.

The Ivory Coast captain nearly left the Lilywhites last year after finding himself out of favour with former boss Mauricio Pochettino, before establishing himself as Jose Mourinho’s first-choice this season. He played 33 games in the Premier League, made 2.8 tackles per game, averaged 1.4 interceptions and completed 2.5 clearances on average (via WhoScored).

However, the board have grown tired of Aurier’s antics on-and-off the pitch, and Mourinho is now racing to find a replacement in the summer, with Norwich City’s Max Aarons at the top of the list.

It seems like there is genuine interest in Aurier,and it may be the perfect time for Levy to cut his losses, although fans will have to wait and see if a deal can be completed before the start of next season.

Tottenham fans, should Levy sell Aurier this summer? Let us know down below!

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

Former Everton midfielder Don Hutchison reacted quickly and made his feelings clear on Twitter on Tuesday night following the sacking of Carlo Ancelotti by Napoli.

What did he say?

Despite the problems behind the scenes, the Italian was perhaps surprisingly relieved of his duties by the Serie A outfit despite overseeing a 4-0 Champions League success against Genk that guaranteed their progress through to the knockout stages of the competition.

Hutchison quoted the news on Twitter and wrote: “He wants Arsenal but go on Everton”.

The former Scotland international may get his wish too, with The Telegraph reporting that the 60-year-old is now the Merseyside’s first-choice to replace Marco Silva and take over from caretaker boss Duncan Ferguson.

Could they really get him?

It would surely take some persuading given he has been managing one of the best clubs in Italy and one that has been competing in the Champions League, but if Ancelotti is open to the prospect of returning to the Premier League then the Toffees are certainly a viable option.

Did he play for Everton? Simple question but a lot tougher than you think…

Majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri has shown that he isn’t afraid to spend money in the transfer market, which would suggest that the experienced Italian, who won the Premier League title with Chelsea in 2010, would be backed when it comes to bringing in new players too.

Meanwhile, any worries that Arsenal could want him – as Hutchison indicates – may have been quashed already by the reliable David Ornstein, who suggests the 60-year-old isn’t the profile of manager they are looking for in their search for Unai Emery’s successor.

That could leave Everton with something of a straight run to Ancelotti then, and he would have to be seen as an exciting appointment.

In other Everton news, Paul Joyce has suggested the club is “on the brink” of appointing a 56-year-old as their new manager…

Jamie Redknapp believes Manchester United will be a “powerful force” to be reckoned with when the Premier League restarts. 

Before football was suspended in response to the coronavirus crisis, United had gone 11 games unbeaten, and key players Marcus Rashford and Paul Pogba are now fully fit after long injury layoffs. The Red Devils duo have made a full recovery and will be available for the Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur on Friday.

Redknapp feels their return will give the team a huge boost going into the fixture. Speaking to The Sky Sports Football Podcast, the former Liverpool star said: “There are important players coming back.

“If you look at Manchester United right now, they’ve got a young man in Marcus Rashford who is now fit for his team. That’s going to be amazing to have him back for United.

“It’s like a brand new signing – one of the best centre forwards in the world or wide players, wherever you want to play him. So I think United will look at that and think ‘we’ve got a real chance’.

“It will be interesting to see the dynamic in midfield, too, with Paul Pogba coming back as well. There’s so much talent in that area now and if you can get that midfield working together then you’ve got a really big chance.

“Teams will be nervous about United. The likes of Chelsea that are already in the top four will be looking over their shoulder.”

It is hard to argue with Redknapp here, as Rashford is United’s leading goalscorer this season, so having him back should be a huge fillip for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. The 22-year-old, who recently made the headlines for his open letter to the government, scored 14 goals in 22 games in the Premier League before sustaining a back injury in January.

Although Pogba has only played 521 minutes of competitive action, he has averaged 2.3 key passes per game, via WhoScored.

Solskjaer’s side are currently fifth in the table, just three points behind Frank Lampard’s Chelsea with nine games remaining of the 2019/20 campaign. As it stands, the tie with Tottenham is surely a must-win as both teams seek to challenge for Champions League football next season.

Meanwhile, former United boss Jose Mourinho has been beset by multiple setbacks, as Spurs stars Dele Alli and Japhet Tanganga will miss the match later this week, and it remains to be seen if Giovani Lo Celso will be available for selection.

As Rashford and Pogba have missed a chunk of games due to injury, they will surely be looking to prove a point and make up for lost time.

United fans, do you think the return of Rashford and Pogba will make a massive difference? Let us know in the comments below!

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Tottenham Hotspur fans have hailed Jose Mourinho after BT Sport showed his passionate reactions to the club’s goals against Olympiacos in the Champions League on Tuesday.

Spurs fell 2-0 behind against the Greek side, leading Mourinho to substitute Eric Dier before the half-hour mark, with Christian Eriksen introduced.

Dele Alli scored on the stroke of half-time to halve the deficit before Harry Kane equalised in the second-half.

Serge Aurier then scored an excellent third, arrowing a half-volley from the corner of the box into the bottom corner.

Kane then completed the scoring with an excellent header after a fine delivery from Eriksen and the BT cameras captured Mourinho kicking every ball on the touchline.

And fans have been left delighted by the clips, with Spurs now winning their second game on the trot under Mourinho’s management following their 3-2 success over West Ham United on Saturday.

Take a look at the best of the reaction on Twitter below!

Meanwhile, one Spurs man should be fearing for his future. 

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

It really has been a long while since someone managed to challenge Juventus for the Serie A title.

In fact, the Bianconeri have won the last eight Scudettos, establishing a true monopoly over the Italian top-flight. This year, however, there are some big challengers who want to usurp the throne.

Probably the most serious one are Antonio Conte’s Inter Milan.

The Nerazzurri are currently sitting top of the table and one point above Juventus. Of course, we are still very much in the early stages of the 2019/20 campaign and maintaining the momentum will be crucial.

And it seems that Conte believes adding more reinforcements to his squad is the way to go.

Watch Italian Football Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

Just recently, reports coming from Sport Mediaset (via Calciomercato) have stated the Nerazzurri are willing to go all-in for Fiorentina’s Federico Chiesa in the near future.

Of course, seeing how the 22-year-old is currently valued at £54m by Transfermarkt, Conte will surely have to fork out large sums of money to get him.

The same report, however, states that Inter will, in fact, offer €30m (£25.4m) and two players, namely Dalbert and Matteo Politano, to land their target.

Seeing how the young winger is really performing rather well in the ongoing season, having already scored three goals and tallied four assists across all competitions for Fiorentina, he does seem like someone who could aid Inter in their pursuit of the Serie A title.

One other thing that makes him a juicy target for Conte is his ability to be deployed anywhere across the forward line. This season, for example, we’ve seen him on both flanks and as a centre-forward, as per the games Transfermarkt have in their database.

And seeing how the Nerazzurri only really have two natural wingers in the form of Politano and Alexis Sanchez, who is currently also out injured, Chiesa would slot into their squad quite nicely and add some more firepower in the process as well.

Not to mention that the 22-year-old could possibly be a long-term solution since he is still at the very beginning of his career.

But since we’re talking about a young player with a bright future, they are bound to run into some competition.

Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool, for one, have also been linked with Chiesa and it seems that Inter could go head to head with the Reds for his signature, as per a report coming from La Nazione (via Calciomercato).

The 22-year-old is a prolific winger and we all know such players are a big part of Klopp’s system, with both Sadio Mane and Mohamed Salah representing two integral cogs in the Liverpool machine.

From his point of view, securing someone who could potentially take over the mantle in those wide areas does sound like a good idea and currently, as the champions of Europe and leaders of the Premier League, Liverpool does look like an attractive destination for any player.

One thing is for sure, though, Fiorentina might be fighting a losing battle if they intend to keep the youngster at the club.

In other news, Tottenham Hotspur should use the Jose Mourinho factor to land one of their old targets…

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Kyle Walker-Peters’ time at Tottenham Hotspur is surely up.

The young right-back was not training with the Spurs first-team before their Champions League clash with Red Star Belgrade, per The London Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick, and appears remarkably unlikely to add to his four appearances already this term.

In total, the 22-year-old has made 23 appearances for the north London club but he has reached a crossroads now.

It was supposed to be his opportunity. Spurs sold Kieran Trippier to Atletico Madrid in the summer and the logical thing to do appeared to be to promote Walker-Peters to be Serge Aurier’s understudy, particularly if they decided against buying a replacement.

Indeed, the latter came true – Spurs did not buy a right-back in the summer but Pochettino instead opted to promote Juan Foyth to the role.

When the Argentine sustained an injury, Aurier was picked to start. He has not enjoyed a good season thus far.

Per WhoScored, he has garnered a rating below six on three separate occasions. He was sent off against Southampton and conceded a penalty as Spurs lost 2-1 to Liverpool at Anfield. The Reds’ winning goal came from that spot-kick.

Even still, Walker-Peters can’t get a look in.

This is a promising right-back with a major upside. He played 90 minutes against Manchester City and was remarkably solid, winning four tackles, making one interception and two clearances. He played 90 minutes on the opening day in the 3-1 win over Aston Villa, too, but just 62 in the loss to Newcastle United.

He has not even been in the squad since in the top-flight. Walker-Peters did start the penalty shootout defeat to Colchester United in the Carabao Cup but, really, the less said about that the better.

It has become apparent, though, that Pochettino simply doesn’t trust him; that he doesn’t believe he can rely on him in the biggest games.

At the age of 22, Walker-Peters has perhaps another decade, if not more, at the very top of the game but it is not going to happen for him at Spurs.

At this point, one has to imagine he would be better off attempting to find himself a new club.

The chance doesn’t look like it is going to come his way in north London.