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Newcastle have re-entered the race for Allan Saint-Maximin, according to reports in France.

What’s the story?

According to L’Equipe, via GFFN, the Magpies are chasing the OGC Nice winger after Les Aiglons dropped the asking price from €40m (£36m) to €25m (£22.5m).

The report says manager Patrick Vieira wants the 22 year-old out of the club due to his “lack of commitment, on-pitch selfishness and missing work-rate towards the end of the last campaign”.

Secondly, it adds that Nice hope to sign both Sofiane Boufal and Alexis Claude-Maurice this summer, so they need to sell Saint-Maximin to fund the moves.

Watford, AC Milan and Borussia Dortmund have also shown interest.

Watch Newcastle United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Missing: Skilful French forward

There’s no question Saint-Maximin is an exciting player – the young winger scored six times and added three assists in 34 Ligue 1 games last season, boasting a 7.21 average match rating, per Whoscored.

And with the speed and directness of Miguel Almiron on the left flank, Saint-Maximin’s average of 4.2 dribbles per game would certainly bring some excitement to Newcastle’s attack.

However, new manager Steve Bruce has coached a player like this before – an elite dribbler with sensational one-on-one ability, but with low end product and an attitude problem.

Of course, we’re talking about former Magpie Hatem Ben Arfa, of whom Bruce famously exclaimed during their time together at Hull: “I don’t know if Hatem is in Paris, that’s the truth.

“As for not playing for Hull City again, at the moment he is not in the squad.”

Ben Arfa had joined Bruce’s side on a season-long loan in the summer of 2014. Those comments came in December of that year, and the maverick Frenchman was sent back to Tyneside in January, before being released from St. James’ Park and joining Nice. He scored no goals and contributed one assist during his stay at the KCOM Stadium.

So, given that Bruce quite literally lost the last player of Saint-Maximin’s ilk to come under his tutelage, signing the youngster, whose behaviour both on and off the pitch has driven Vieira and Nice to drop their price by over a third, just seems like a recipe for disaster.

The Magpies should steer well clear of this one.

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Celtic fans are not keen on signing versatile Middlesbrough man Paddy McNair this summer.

It was reported last week that the Hoops were keen on making a move for the player, said to be valued at around £5m, with manager Neil Lennon later confirming to reporters that there is an interest in signing him.

The 24-year-old played 23 times for Boro last season and can perform a variety of roles, able to play in midfield, the centre of defence and even at right-back.

Celtic fans aren’t happy about Arsenal’s bid for one of their key players…

A product of the Manchester United academy, the 24-cap Northern Ireland man could be an effective squad option for the Hoops, who require competent back-up in the positions McNair is comfortable with.

It’s certainly debatable whether McNair is a direct improvement on any of the players currently at Celtic though, considering he’s never really held down a regular starting role, and as a result supporters have their misgivings about making a move for the player.

These fans took to Twitter over the weekend to share their thoughts…

أكد أحمد الأحمر قائد منتخب مصر لكرة اليد، على قدرة الفراعنة في تحقيق الفوز خلال مواجهة الدنمارك، في دور الثمانية لبطولة كأس العالم لكرة اليد التي تستضيفها القاهرة، خلال الفترة الحالية، في المباراة المقررة إقامتها في السادسة والنصف مساء غد الأربعاء، على صالة استاد القاهرة الدولي.

صعد منتخب مصر لدور الثمانية، بعد التعادل في المباراة الأخيرة أمام سلوفينيا، 25 / 25 ليتأهل المنتخب كثان المجموعة الرابعة ليصطدم بالمنتخب الدنماركي.

وكتب أحمد الأحمر، عبر حسابه الرسمي على “تويتر”: “إن شاء الله هنعمل أكتر حاجة عندنا وبإذن الله ربنا هيكرمنا”.

طالع | قبل مباراة الغد.. تعرف على تاريخ مواجهات مصر والدنمارك في مونديال اليد

ويأمل منتخب مصر في تخطي منتخب الدنمارك، والوصول للمربع الذهبي، خاصة وأن البطولة تقام على ارض مصر، بجانب الطموحات الكبيرة لدى الجميع بقوة المنتخب الحالي، لتحقيق نتائج ومركز جيد في هذه البطولة بفضل الخبرات الكبيرة التي يضمها.

إن شاءالله هنعمل اكتر حاجه عندنا و ربنا هيكرمنا 🙏🏻💪🏻🇪🇬 https://t.co/a0UC1Uv905

— ahmed elahmar (@AhmedElahmar) January 26, 2021

[ad_pod ]According to South American journalist Cesar Luis Merlo on Twitter, Southampton are set to make an offer to Brazilian side Gremio for defender Walter Kannemann.

What’s the deal, then?

It is being reported that the 28-year-old could be subject to a €12m bid from Saints and Premier League rivals Wolves, who are also said to be interested.

The centre-half has never played in Europe having moved from Argentinian side San Lorenzo to Mexican outfit Atlas, before joining Gremio.

He has made 86 appearances for his current club, contributing three goals and one assist, while he has five caps for Argentina.

Kannemann is all wrong for both Saints and Hasenhuttl

The manager at St Mary’s, Ralph Hasenhuttl, has already made two signings this summer in the attacking department with Moussa Djenepo and Che Adams both joining the club for a combined total of £30m.

Watch Southampton Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

So, the south coast side have already spent a decent amount of money to improve the squad and as a result without selling anybody other signings could be considered a financial risk.

And a defender in his late 20s who is unproven in not only the Premier League but all of Europe is by no means a guaranteed success.

Also, Hasenhuttl said in an interview with German newspaper SportBild back in June that his transfer policy over the summer is to bring in players under the age of 24.

Djenepo and Adams both fit the mould of that policy, so signing the Brazilian defender would be a left-field acquisition given the strategy which has been set out by the Austrian.

Southampton’s new man Moussa Djenepo divides opinion amongst fans in the video below…

Then there is also the fact that Gremio play with a four at the back and have done so for every game so far this season – the Brazilian league is only mid-way through.

Compare that with Saints’ set-up last year – they lined up with three at the back for 15 of the 23 Premier League games which Hasenhuttl was in charge of – and that could be an issue, although the 51-year-old could still choose to return to the 4-2-2-2 system that served him so well at RB Leipzig next term.

It is clear he does not fit the mould age-wise or in terms of experience, and therefore those in charge at St Mary’s should seriously consider looking elsewhere.

[ad_pod ]West Ham United fans have been left split over purported leaked kits being shared on social media by Twitter user West Ham Central.

With the Premier League season having drawn to a close and the Irons finishing 10th under manager Manuel Pellegrini, we have entered the season of kit launches.

And it appears that the Irons will be trialling a relatively new style of shirt in 2019-20.

If the leak is true, the Hammers will, of course, wear claret and blue at home, with the top half of the shirt being entirely blue, with claret shorts. This season, the club wore white shorts.

And the away kit will allegedly be an all-white number, with a claret and blue collar.

Supporters, naturally, have been left torn on the designs; some are in love with the away shirt, while others believe that the home kit needs some work.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

Pep Guardiola is an absolute perfectionist. As well as Oleksandr Zinchenko has done filling in at left-back for Manchester City this season, his boss will undoubtedly want a more natural option there later down the line.

In an ideal world, Benjamin Mendy stays fit and that is that position sorted.

But with that not being something the Frenchman is capable of doing right now, it is probably only a matter of time before Guardiola dips into the market for a new left-back.

And when he does, Jamie Redknapp believes he should only be looking at one player.

“After a brilliant year at Leicester in which he has become England’s first-choice left-back, [Ben] Chilwell has put the top six on alert,” the Sky Sports pundit wrote in his Daily Mail column as he tipped the 22-year-old for a big summer. “Man City need a left back and he’d be a perfect fit.”

All things considered, Redknapp is probably pointing Guardiola in the right direction here.

This season, after Andy Robertson, Chilwell has arguably been the best left-back in the Premier League.

Technically, he looks good enough to play in this Manchester City side. The Leicester City man can carry the ball and is capable of putting dangerous crosses into the box.

Ultimately, Chilwell can restore the width Mendy had been giving the Citizens out wide, which would be a massive boost for Guardiola’s men during the periods of games where things can get a bit too congested in the middle.

It will not be a cheap transfer, but money has never been a problem for Manchester City, especially when it has come to strengthening areas of the squad that have needed urgent attention.

There’s nothing better than beating one of your rivals to a signing. With that in mind, if Arsenal can bat off the competition to capture Hakim Ziyech it’d send a huge statement to the rest of the top six.

The 26-year-old right winger is another rising star Ajax have thrown into the limelight this season and the Mirror claimed in late April that the Gunners, Man City, Man United and Liverpool are all interested in signing him up. Indeed, Arsenal should put all their weight behind this guy and forget Dennis Praet.

Unai Emery’s side are also believed to be after Praet according to the Daily Star, but he’s miles behind Ziyech considering he’s still playing for Sampdoria rather than one of Europe’s top clubs. He may be younger, but Arsenal need success now.

Ziyech has shone in the Eredivisie this season, scoring 16 goals and making 15 assists. He’s even scored two and assisted three this Champions League campaign, so he can certainly perform in more competitive matches too. What’s there not to like about that?

He’d be a huge upgrade on their attacking players already, and that includes outgoing Aaron Ramsey. If they sign him he’ll make Arsenal’s attack unbearable to defend against because they’ve got such depth up there. It’ll have a phycological impact on their rivals too.

If Arsenal can beat their main rivals to his signature, it shows they’re ready to battle for the title with the likes of Liverpool and City. They have some way to go, but if they can pull this off, they can make it all the way.

Arsenal fans, what do you think it will take for Arsenal to challenge for the title next season? Join the discussion by commenting below…

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Leeds fans have bashed John Cross’ article in The Mirror after he labelled the club’s season a ‘glorious failure’ should they fail in their quest for promotion.

Cross criticised Marcelo Bielsa in his piece saying that the board’s choice to spend big on a manager rather than the playing squad may prove to be a costly mistake.

Fans took issue with The Mirror journalist’s synopsis that the season would be a failure if they don’t go up again.

The Whites have already secured a play-off spot just one year after finishing 13th in the Championship, which proves that huge progress has been made.

Bielsa has wholly transformed the club with largely the same squad that was nowhere near promotion last term.

To judge the Argentine’s first season at Elland Road as a failure would be incredibly short-sighted, the new manager has exceeded all expectations during his first year and has inspired optimism throughout the Yorkshire club.

Here’s what Leeds fans have been saying on Twitter…

As with every other club in football, West Ham United will be on the lookout for new recruits in the summer as they look to build on their rather successful season.

Manuel Pellegrini made a number of solid signings last year, with the majority of them having worked out rather well, and with a year under his belt at the club, the Chilean will be in a better position to be able to assess his squad properly and identify where he needs to make improvements.

Inconsistency continues to be a problem for the Hammers, as they constantly leak goals, whilst they struggle to create and score a number of opportunities themselves, with their midfield options sometimes coming under scrutiny.

Naturally, it would appear that Pellegrini could use the summer to try and improve the area, however, questions must be asked about whether one of his reported transfer targets would be the right man for the club to bring in and solve the issue.

Turkish media outlet Super Haber have claimed that West Ham are closing in on signing Besiktas’ Gary Medel – a player that the club appear to have been tracking for ages as links about a move to the London Stadium were rife in the winter.

The Chile international is very experienced – having won 118 caps for his country’s national side – and has also had a taste of Premier League action with Cardiff City back in 2013/14.

Medel could be available on a cut-price deal as his contract with the Istanbul outfit is set to expire in 2020, however, those positives may be the only ones that West Ham can potentially take from bringing him to the London Stadium.

Yes, the Hammers have looked poor defensively at times when it comes down to the middle areas of the field, but whether Medel is the type of player that they should be looking to bring in is questionable as there are doubts about whether he will be able to help the club go to the next level.

He may be a good passer of the ball and psychically tough, however, that can sometimes get him into trouble, as his discipline is something that leaves plenty to be desired. Although his love of a tackle is admirable, he has the tendency to pick up a number of yellow cards throughout a campaign and could end up missing a number of games through suspension.

Another question that many would be forgiven asking is whether Medel would be any better than the options that the club already have. With the likes of Declan Rice, Mark Noble and Pedro Obiang already in the squad, it would be difficult to see the Chilean being much better than them.

Also, does a transfer for the experienced midfield-general also match the ambition West Ham are supposedly trying to show? It would be hard to suggest he does.

West Ham fans, do you thin Medel would offer something different to the team? Or do you think the club should avoid signing him in the summer? Join in with the discussion below by sharing your thoughts with us.

أعلن الاتحاد الأوروبي لكرة القدم “يويفا” أسماء المرشحين لجائزة لاعب الجولة الأولى بمنافسات دوري أبطال أوروبا.

وحسمت مباريات الجولة الأولى للمسابقة الأوروبية، مساء الأربعاء، ورشح “يويفا”، أربعة لاعبين للجائزة. المرشحون لجائزة أفضل لاعب في الجولة الأولى من دوري أبطال أوروبا

ألفارو موراتا (يوفنتوس).

أنجلينيو (لايبزيج).

تيتي (شاختار دونيستك).

كينجسلي كومان (بايرن ميونخ).

موراتا قاد يوفنتوس للفوز على دينامو كييف (2-0)، وسجل هدفي البيانكونيري.

وأنجلينيو تألق في مواجهة فريقه لايبزيج أمام إسطنبول باشاك شهير، والتي انتهت بفوز الفريق الألماني (2-0)، وسجل هدفي اللقاء.

وتيتي ساهم في فوز شاختار دونيستك بثلاثية لهدفين أمام ريال مدريد، وسجل هدفًا لفريقه الأوكراني.

وكومان أحرز هدفين في مباراة بايرن ميونخ أمام أتلتيكو مدريد، التي انتهت لصالح الفريق البافاري (4-0).

Who is your #UCL Player of the Week? 🤔

⭐️ Morata
⭐️ Angeliño
⭐️ Tetê
⭐️ Coman#UCLPOTW | @FTBSantander

— UEFA Champions League (@ChampionsLeague) October 21, 2020