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West Ham United prospect Nathan Holland has yet again been impressing for the Hammer’s youth sides, and some fans are making a case for the 21-year-old to be included in Manuel Pellegrini’s first-team squad.

Holland is yet to break into the senior team despite being 21 years old, though he was given a 57 minute run out against Oxford United last month.

His lack of involvement, however, suggests that Pellegrini is reluctant to integrate him.

The winger has been in impressive form this season, bagging two goals and providing three assists for the U23 side.

Despite a 4-3 defeat against Cheltenham Town earlier this week, Holland was in excellent form against Michael Duff’s side, and ExWHUemployee called for the academy prospect to be given a “proper chance” in the first-team picture shortly after the game.

Whilst Pellegrini’s side are currently in impressive form in the Premier League having risen to eighth in the table, some West Ham fans believe Holland should be given an opportunity beyond the U21’s.

Check out some of the best reactions below to the latest performance from the club’s highly-rated prospect…

Victor Wanyama has spoken out about his failed summer move to Club Brugge by assuring fans that his focus is to get back into the Spurs team and give his all for the club, but supporters aren’t convinced he has a future.The 28-year-old has had an injury-hit two years which has resulted in him making only 23 starts for the club since the beginning of 2017/18, dropping down the pecking order in the process.Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Despite his fitness injuries, he believes that it “won’t be difficult” for him to win his place back, but many Spurs fans think differently.

Not only does he have a new signing in Tanguy Ndombele to contend with, but also youngsters like Oliver Skipp, who some supporters think is a better player than Wanyama.

As a result, they believe he shouldn’t be anywhere near the first-team, primarily due to the fact he has declined as a footballer, likely due to the constant injury issues he has had to endure.

Here are some of the reactions from Spurs fans who think his time is up in North London.

James Milner has had a long and successful career.

The midfielder has won pretty much all there is to win at club level, including the Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and the League Cup.

Watch Leeds United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

With all of his recent success, it can be hard to remember that it wasn’t always so rosy for the former England international.

Indeed, he suffered relegation as a teenager at Leeds United, of course made even more heartbreaking by it being his boyhood club.

This week he appeared on BT Sport’s What I Wore, and he discussed how he felt when Leeds went down.

“It was horrible, it was probably one of the worst moments of my career.” Milner said.

The 33-year-old opened up about how it felt to see his boyhood club relegated to the Championship.

You can clearly tell that Milner still cares a lot about the Yorkshire outfit, as he went on to say that they belong in the Premier League.

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…

In between the sticks, Southampton have a bit of a problem.

Angus Gunn has made the No.1 shirt his own so far this season – starting all eight of the Saints’ Premier League games – although he has been far from solid.

The former Manchester City and Norwich glovesman has made errors in each of his last three league outings against Bournemouth, Tottenham and Chelsea, while he has also shipped the third-most goals in the Premier League with 15.

However, the fact that he is ahead of No.2 Alex McCarthy right now speaks volumes about the quality of Ralph Hasenhuttl’s options – the Austrian’s comments on his goalkeeping situation pretty much sum the problem up.

What did he say?

The former RB Leipzig boss said: “I think the last games from Angus haven’t been the best so far.

“I think he has shown this season a few important games for us where he kept clean sheets and saved us points for sure.

“I am in the good position that I have two goalkeepers that are on the same level.”

Sums up the problem

Hasenhuttl mentions that both shot-stoppers are “on the same level” – those four words pretty much sum the problem up at St Mary’s.

There’s no point having two keepers when neither is significantly better than the other – Southampton have a number of players aside from the keepers who aren’t a clear level above their teammates, which is the bulk of the issue.

If everyone in a red and white shirt is of average quality, then it’s not a positive to have a number of those players on the same level.

Is Jan Bednarek much better than Jannik Vestergaard?

Is Che Adams much better than Danny Ings?

Is Cedric a substantial upgrade on Yan Valery?

No.

A lot of players at Southampton do feel very much on the same level – average. Hence why the Saints are currently sitting in 17th with just seven points out of a possible 24.

Contrary to what Hasenhuttl says about being “in the good position” of having two goalkeepers on the same level, that isn’t a positive if both men aren’t very good – a sentiment applicable to a number of Southampton players.

One of the biggest sensations in European football over the past couple of seasons, Jadon Sancho has enjoyed a meteoric rise since joining Borussia Dortmund.

The former Manchester City starlet has been running the show over in the Bundesliga, and enjoyed a remarkable season last year by scoring 13 times and providing a further 19 assists across all competitions.

His start to the current campaign has been similarly fruitful, scoring four goals and setting up seven more. It is that kind of form that led to reports earlier this year claiming Manchester United had placed him at the top of their targets list for next summer.

Now, The Daily Mirror have provided an update on their pursuit of the England international by suggesting the Red Devils are ready to meet Dortmund’s transfer demands in order to sign him.

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After hearing the news regarding Sancho, United fans flooded to Twitter to share their thoughts about the latest development on the situation.

Many supporters of the Manchester side made it clear they are absolutely desperate for the club to sign the 19-year-old sensation.

Check out some of the reaction of United fans below:

Charlton welcome Preston to The Valley on Sunday in what should be an exciting game given the form of both sides.

Preston, under former Norwich boss Alex Neil’s guidance, has his Preston side sat 2nd in the Championship table having won seven of their 14 league games so far – they are just two points off 1st-place West Brom.

In the Addicks’ case, they have also won seven games, and are just three points off their opponents for this Sunday – the south Londoners would go above Preston if they manage to win by four goals.

Lee Bowyer has a few injuries to deal with. Jonny Williams looks set for at least two months on the sidelines, while Lyle Taylor is still yet to return from a knee injury.

Let’s take a look at the XI Bowyer should put out for this top-nine Championship clash…

We think that Bowyer should start with the same formation that he went with last time out against West Brom.

In that 2-2 draw against the Championship leaders, Bowyer set his side up in a 5-3-1-1 formation, focusing on a tightly-packed defence and a goal threat in Conor Gallagher and Macauley Bonne – the pair of them have ten league goals combined.

It worked against one of the division’s high-flying sides in West Brom, and with Preston just a couple of points behind them, it would be sensible to keep the same shape for Sunday’s game.

There are, however, a few changes. Gallagher started as a central midfielder at the Hawthorns last time out, but we feel that he would be better suited to attacking midfield against Preston with Beram Kayal replacing summer signing Erhun Oztumer in the side – the Chelsea loanee is too deadly in front of goal to be kept in a deeper role.

Bowyer must focus on packing his midfield and ensuring they screen the backline effectively, as Preston have a few dangerous players who may feel confident given their form so far this term – we outlined two potential danger-men who Charlton must keep an eye on this weekend.

A point against the league leaders is admirable, so we aren’t changing too much about the lineup from that game. But Gallagher’s goalscoring threat must be moved closer to the final third with a less attack-minded option in Kayal coming in to offset that.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Off the Bench series, which places in-game managerial decisions and squad selections under FFC’s microscope.

Sheffield Wednesday succumbed to just their second defeat of Garry Monk’s reign at the south Yorkshire club, but it was one that could have easily been prevented if the 40-year-old made a bolder choice in either starting Atdhe Nuhiu or bringing him on much sooner.

Snapshot

The Owls thought they had won the match seven minutes from time when substitute Jacob Murphy headed home a close-range attempt, but the home side fought back with two goals in the final three minutes.

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First, Tosin Adarabioyo looped a header over Keiren Westwood before John Buckley’s first senior goal clinched all three points for Tony Mowbray’s side.

Monk meanwhile opted for just one striker in attack and didn’t change it up until there were less than 15 minutes left on the clock.

Off the Bench

The decision to omit a presence like Nuhiu may have cost Wednesday the match, or at the very least, some form of points.

Prior to the game, the only loss on Monk’s record was a 1-0 defeat to Hull City, and that was in the absence of top goalscorer Steven Fletcher.

But in this match, he was given far too much to do on his own, the 32-year-old had five of their 17 shots at goal, when we have seen that a 4-4-2 or a formation utilising two up top has paid dividends on multiple occasions.

None more so than when the Owls stuck four past Middlesborough in the space of just half an hour – the Kosovan was a nuisance, assisting Adam Reach’s goal while winning a total of 13 aerial duels.

The 6 foot 5 colossus just simply offers Wednesday something that no other player can, and if he started the match alongside Fletcher or even if he was brought on ten or 20 minutes earlier, then the result could well have been a different story.

Instead, they were made to suffer with another underwhelming performance from Joey Pelupessy, who lost possession 12 times while managing a dire 58% passing accuracy rate, per SofaScore.

Liverpool fans have responded in a positive fashion after it was revealed that Michael Oliver will take charge of the Reds’ title clash at Anfield against Manchester City on Sunday.

The Reds will take on the Citizens in their first of two games after being unable to beat Pep Guardiola’s side last season. They, of course, lose out to them in the Premier League, despite accumulating a record 97 points.

There were fears that Martin Atkinson would take charge of the titan clash but those worries quickly eased.

Jurgen Klopp’s side will go into the game at Anfield unbeaten and with 10 wins out of their first 11 games, having only dropped points against Manchester United. Meanwhile, their opponents Manchester City sit six points behind the Merseyside club after falling to defeats against Norwich City and Wolves respectively.

Supporters were relieved to see the appointment of Oliver and reacted positively on social media.

Here you will find some of the best comments from Liverpool fans ahead of the game:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Even though it’s still fairly early in the 2019/20 season, alarm bells might start ringing in the Catalan capital. And even though Ernesto Valverde will have to fix multiple issues in his squad, their attacking woes should be top of their priority list.

On the chalkboard

The last two games were a really low point in Barcelona’s ongoing campaign.

Things were not exactly sunshine and rainbows before that but the 3-1 defeat to Levante last weekend and the goalless draw in the Champions League against Slavia Prague highlighted some of the major issues they have in their squad.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

And somehow, despite the Blaugrana being completely stacked in the attacking front with the likes of Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez, Antoine Griezmann and Ousmane Dembele, they seem to struggle in the attacking phase immensely.

It seems that chance creation and the disconnection of their forward line is what is causing the Catalans most of their issues at the moment.

Firing blanks

Even though Barcelona created more chances than Slavia Prague last Tuesday, tallying 14 shots compared to the opposition’s five, the number of touches in the team was quite alarming, to say the least.

Just the fact that their attackers were totally disconnected from the game with Frenkie de Jong, Arturo Vidal, Antoine Griezmann and Lionel Messi having only 243 touches between them, while their centre-back pairing of Clement Lenglet and Gerard Pique had 240 is worrying enough.

Watch Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale answer the internet’s weirdest questions in the video below…

It signals that the Blaugrana have a real problem with actually involving their forward players in the game in the first place.

But it’s also not the only worrying instance when those problems in their attacking phase were apparent.

Throughout the season, Barcelona often get outgunned and outperformed by the opposition.

In La Liga, this disparity is not as emphasised as much as the Catalans’ tally of 12.1 shots per game as opposed to conceding 9.7, but the Champions League is more alarming with 12.8 shots per game vs 13.3 conceded per game.

Some of the better examples of this were apparent in their defeat to Levante when both teams managed nine shots, in the first game against Slavia Prague when they were outgunned 24 vs 13, the clash against Borussia Dortmund (13 vs seven) and Osasuna (15 vs eight).

Needless to say, for a team that has so many attacking talent, including that little Argentine fella, these are quite disappointing statistics to have under their belt.

If Valverde wants his team to start improving, he will have to somehow solve this huge issue within his squad.

As the international break takes place, many young English talents have a rare chance to shine and play 90 minutes of football. The likes of Callum Hudson-Odoi and Mason Greenwood, who would not typically start on a regular basis in the Premier League, now have a chance to really show what they can do.

One man in particular who will be heading into the international fixtures full of motivation and intent is Phil Foden. The young Manchester City star has established himself as one of the brightest young talents in the country under the guidance of Pep Guardiola.

Now, as he is likely to start for England U21s against Albania, Foden has a real chance to stake a claim for a starting role under the Spaniard. The 19-year-old is yet to start a league game for City this season and has had to settle for EFL Cup games for his chance to shine.

Foden has, however, played in two Champions League games, where he has scored and assisted for the Citizens. If the academy graduate can replicate the type of performance that saw him thrive in the 5-1 win over Atalanta, where he created four big chances, Boothroyd’s side will have a great chance of collecting a victory.

City’s playmaker-in-chief, David Silva, was back in the squad for the defeat to Liverpool, although a solid performance from Foden could put him in contention for a starting berth against Chelsea. Up next for the champions is the visit of the Blues before they face off with Shakhtar Donetsk, where a win would see them qualify for the next stage of the Champions League.

After this City face trips to Newcastle United and Burnley, where the youngster should certainly be considered.

In truth, with a positive performance on Friday, Foden should be chosen for the Shakhtar clash, as City already have some breathing space in Group C.

There is also the inevitable departure of Silva, who stated in June that he will leave the Etihad Stadium after ten glorious years in Manchester.

Now, Guardiola has the chance to see Foden get plenty of action for England and the City boss, and the supporters, would be wise to keep an eye on his performance.