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West Ham’s failure to sign one of their mooted transfer targets during the January window has come to light this week…

What’s the word?

The Irons were linked with a move for Spezia striker M’Bala Nzola throughout the winter, with Tuttosport (via Sport Witness) leading the claims as early as November.

It has now been revealed by the 24-year-old’s agent that the East London outfit failed with a bid for him. He told GrandHotelCalciomercato (via Football Italia):

“We received offers from three Premier League and three Serie A clubs and a club from the Bundesliga sounded out M’Bala. We were in advanced talks, we even discussed his possible salary, but then we asked ourselves if that made sense. Nzola needed stability and it was in a very good moment, so we thought it was better to stay at Spezia.”

Shades of Drogba

It’s now time for the Hammers to reignite this interest as their search for a new forward rumbles on.

The Angolan powerhouse has continued to light up the Serie A despite playing for one of the struggling teams and suffering from injuries. He has found the net 11 times in 24 appearances, including strikes against the giants of Napoli and Lazio, as per Transfermarkt.

Nzola has been described as a “very fast central striker who manages to attack space with absolute effectiveness. He is also difficult to deal with because he has enviable physical strength which makes him an extremely uncomfortable customer.”

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In some ways, this draws some nice similarities to Michail Antonio, who is David Moyes’ only current option upfront but it is his comparisons to a Premier League legend that should have fans excited if he were to arrive at the London Stadium.

West Ham insider ExWHUemployee spoke about the club’s links to the 6 foot 1 colossus earlier this year, and claimed: “He’s meant to be a bit like Didier Drogba in his physique and playing style.”

He would only need to be half the player of Drogba to be an instant hit in the English top-flight. The four-time Premier League winner bagged 164 goals in 381 appearances for the Irons’ local rivals Chelsea, primarily displaying a mix of explosive pace and brute strength.

On the above evidence, Nzola is cut from the same cloth and given Antonio’s success under the Scotsman, he would surely fit right into his system.

It remains to be seen how much Spezia would command for their star performer, especially as Fulham were said to have a €12m (£10m) bid rejected for him, too, whilst CIES only value him at €7m (£6m).

Whatever the price, Nzola could well be a massive bargain, so David Sullivan and co must do what they can to secure him this summer.

AND in other news, Imagine him and Rice: GSB could form dream West Ham duo by signing £30m “total animal”…

Celtic haven’t exactly had much luck on the injury front this season.

Of course, it would be hard to put the blame for the Hoops’ disastrous campaign on that alone. After all, their on-field displays at Parkhead have been rather pathetic.

That being said, make any team have to deal with an injury to a player as important as James Forrest and they’d struggle.

The Scot missed a period of 157 days and 35 matches with an ankle problem from September to February and has only just returned from another injury to the same part of his body.

It will be a welcome boost to have the winger in full flow again but one player they’ll definitely be without this week is Scott Bain.

The goalkeeper has been ever-present since John Kennedy was named interim manager but he will miss the clash with St Johnstone on Wednesday due to a finger issue.

Speaking in his pre-match press conference, Kennedy commented: “Scott Bain picked up a finger injury in the previous game against Rangers. We’re not taking any risks with that. There’s one or two others, again, who we won’t risk. But nothing major, we’re pretty much working with the same squad give or take one or two.”

Bain may not have been the most comfortable between the sticks this term but it still represents a huge blow to have him absent.

The stopper was at fault during Celtic’s battering in Prague during their dreary Europa League run while he could have done a lot better in the recent Old Firm derby.

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As Alfredo Morelos bullied Scott Brown to one side and sent a rasping effort towards goal, Bain was beaten all ends up. It was a powerful effort but it still crashed straight through him.

Unfortunately, his absence means that Vasilis Barkas will come into the XI. The Greek has deserved a second opportunity for a while now but he’s hardly been a consistent figure either.

Barkas has also been a calamity in goal and was another to pick up a slice of the blame in Europe.

When Celtic suffered defeat to AC Milan at the San Siro, the ‘keeper somehow let a Hakan Calhonoglu free-kick fly into the side of the goal that he was standing in.

Barkas has lacked authority and thus, the Bhoys defence shouldn’t be overly confident with him behind them either. This will his first start since January so expect him to be a little rusty too.

Kennedy will likely be gutted to lose someone he’s placed so much faith in since being handed the reins.

AND in other news, McKay must wield the axe on 5ft9 Celtic dud, Sutton dubbed him the “new Ryan Christie”…

Everton have been handed a massive boost ahead of their clash with West Ham United on Sunday afternoon.

Although they will be missing the services of James Rodriguez again, they will be able to welcome back one of their key players from a promising campaign.

Carlo Ancelotti was speaking late this week about his team’s chances at the London Stadium and confirmed that Abdoulaye Doucoure was fit again.

He said: “He is really important. He showed fantastic quality and has supported the team a lot when he played.

“It was a great surprise for us to have this type of player. He put a lot of energy into the midfield and to have him back for the next game will be really important.”

Ancelotti concluded: “Without him, we have had more problems. He is one of the most important players we had and he has been a really good signing. I hope he can show his quality in the last games we have before the end.”

The Frenchman has been absent for seven games now dating back to March 4th. The £120k-per-week earner has been missing as a result of a small fracture in his foot.

Everton posted pictures of the midfield general back in full training this week which represents a huge advantage to their chances on Sunday.

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The Toffees have been missing some muscle in the middle of the park without him with Andre Gomes struggling following his own return to injury.

The Portuguese was lumped off shortly after the hour mark against Arsenal and then won just two of his nine defensive duels in the defeat to Aston Villa last weekend.

Ancelotti appears to be buzzing that his combative midfield player is back and you can hardly blame him.

Prior to his two-month-long injury, the 28-year-old had only missed one league game all season after arriving from Watford for a fee of £20m.

Against a free-flowing West Ham side, having Doucoure back is absolutely vital. He and Allan will have a huge job on their hands if they are to stop the effervescent Jesse Lingard.

AND in other news, Imagine him & DCL: Everton must swoop for £24.9m gem who gives oppo “sleepless nights”…

Sunderland will be looking to all but secure a League One play-off spot on Tuesday evening in their clash with fellow promotion hopefuls Blackpool.

Having been on an excellent run of form since the appointment of Lee Johnson back in December, with the 39-year-old guiding the Black Cats to a run of 16 league games without suffering a single defeat between January and April, things have taken a turn for the worse in recent weeks at the Stadium of Light.

Over their last six League One fixtures, Johnson’s side have now picked up a shocking totla of just three points, losing to Charlton Athletic, Wigan Athletic and Blackpool, as well as drawing with Peterborough United, Hull City and Accrington Stanley – with the club conceding a whopping 11 goals in this run.

The Black Cats’ leaky defence has coincided with the loss of the Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee centre-back, Dion Sanderson, to a back injury, and the versatile central midfielder, Luke O’Nien, filling in at the centre of defence.

However, with the 26-year-old making a number of costly mistakes in recent weeks, as well as averaging a disappointing WhoScored match rating of just 6.3 over his last four appearances, it would be advisable for Johnson to move O’Nien out of the middle of his defence for Sunderland’s must-win clash with Blackpool on Tuesday.

As for his replacement, Oliver Younger would appear to be the ideal candidate to step in, as, while the 21-year-old does not have much first-team experience under his belt, the defender was impressive on his debut against Fleetwood Town in the EFL Trophy, as well as convincing Johnson that he was ready for a league start against Rochdale back in March.

And, despite Younger’s relative inexperience, his natural ability as a centre-back would likely benefit the structure of the Sunderland backline more than with O’Nien at its core.

Furthermore, considering O’Nien’s performances in recent weeks, there does not seem to be a great amount to lose in replacing the midfielder with the young defender, but there is very much plenty to be gained.

In other news: £382,000 a goal: Sunderland simply must axe “humble” flop, he’s cost them for years – opinion

West Ham United will be looking to get back on track when they head to Burnley in the Premier League this evening.

David Moyes’ side have recently succumbed to successive league defeats and now sit six points behind fourth-placed Chelsea knowing they could halve the gap with a victory at Turf Moor.

Last time out, it was the Blues who they lost to, so the 58-year-old has plenty to consider in terms of team selection.

The Scotsman also has an intriguing decision to make as some of the Hammers’ injured stars could return from injury.

Here’s our predicted XI as the Irons face the Clarets tonight…

There could be as many as four changes from the side that tasted defeat at the London Stadium last weekend.

As revealed by the Evening Standard’s Jack Rosser, Michail Antonio is in line to make a stunning early comeback from injury. “He is working with the physios and on the grass,” Moyes explained. “I wouldn’t rule him out yet but I don’t want to rule him in either. Let’s hope that he’s got a chance.”

The 31-year-old could be risked as the Irons have struggled to score in his absence, he’ll replace Pablo Fornals in attack, with Jesse Lingard going back to the no.10 role and Jarrod Bowen returning out wide.

They could be joined by Said Benrahma as Moyes switches away from using wing-backs. He’s preferred to Manuel Lanzini and Andriy Yarmolenko on the left flank.

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Declan Rice, Aaron Cresswell and Arthur Masuaku are all said to be pushing to feature but we expect that this game could come too early, so Mark Noble and Tomas Soucek should continue together in the middle.

However, Ben Johnson and Craig Dawson, who missed the Chelsea game through suspension, return to the starting XI in place of £18m-rated Issa Diop and Fabian Balbuena, even though his red card has been overturned.

The former Watford man partners Angelo Ogbonna in the middle, with Vladimir Coufal on the right and Lukasz Fabianski between the sticks.

AND in other news, GSB could sign Moyes’ next Yakubu with £17m bid for “ruthless” 20 y/o “revelation”…

Fans of Sunderland have been reacting to a post on Twitter, in which the Black Cats relayed footage of the club’s manager, Lee Johnson, discussing Tuesday’s disappointing defeat.

In a fixture that could have seen Sunderland close the gap to second-placed Peterborough United to just two points, Johnson’s side ultimately went on to blow their chance, as goals from Will Keane and Callum Lang cancelled out Charlie Wyke’s first-half opener, seeing relegation-threatened Wigan take all three points from the clash at the DW Stadium.

And, speaking in his post-match comments, Johnson was brutally honest in his assessment of Sunderland’s performance in the loss, suggesting that his side got what they deserved from the fixture because of the fact that the Black Cats simply did not do enough to win the game.

After Sunderland then relayed the manager’s comments on Twitter, fans of the club flocked to have their say on the matter, with many, despite being furious with their side’s performance, appearing to appreciate Johnson’s honesty.

So, what exactly did these Sunderland fans have to say in reaction to Lee Johnson’s comments?

“Listen tonight was dreadful and something we should expect from a team full of bottlers but fans calling for LJ’s head, come on. He has been fitting square pegs in round holes, it’s not his fault. These players were the cheap options brought in by SD and are simply not good enough.”

@gazk_mackem

“At least he is honest. Maybe a few of the players might look in the mirror and do the same.”

@N88YTH

“Boss says it as it is. Players didn’t do it tonight, cost us automatic that.”

@John67684101

“Brutal and honest assessment.”

@DanielJenks89

“Beaten man.”

@michaelfrost73

“Honest and visibly livid, sometimes you have to appreciate that. He could have covered it up but didn’t and I like it personally.”

@Doominick99

“Bang on.”

@bencainss

In other news: ‘Incredible’, ‘Never tire of watching this’ – Lots of SAFC fans buzz as ‘unreal’ footage emerges – find out more here!

MatériaMais Notícias

Foram quatro cerimônias olímpicas no Maracanã e, como herança, além da necessidade de ajustes nas arquibancadas, teto e outros pontos, o gramado do estádio ganhou um buraco. A situação do campo foi registrada nesta terça-feira pela Rádio Globo, com uma foto aérea.

O buraco está bem no círculo central e gera uma preocupação a mais para os clubes, especialmente Flamengo e Fluminense, que sonham em poder usar o estádio antes do dia 30 de outubro, que é a data prevista em contrato para devolução por parte do Comitê Rio-2016.

RelacionadasBrasileirãoFla x Flu no Maracanã ficou inviávelBrasileirão20/09/2016Rio 2016Rio-2016 promete esforço para devolver Maracanã, mas ainda não o garante a clubesRio 201619/09/2016

Estão recolocando o gramado no Maracanã, mas ainda há grande buraco no meio do campo. Confira foto: @emerson_rocha pic.twitter.com/HLrE3mz4yV

— Seleção Globo CBN RJ (@futglobocbnrio) 21 de setembro de 2016

Segundo Marcelo Rubens Paiva, um dos diretores das cerimônias dos Jogos Paralímpicos, o buraco foi feito para encaixar um robô utilizado na abertura da Paralimpíada.

– O palco do projeto inicial da cerimônia da abertura da Paralimpíada tinha 2m de altura. Porque tínhamos um robô KUKA para encaixar abaixo, que dançaria com a atleta Amy, cuja altura, dobrado, é de 1m30. Descobrimos que os atletas cadeirantes, que pediram para entrar logo no começo, não conseguiriam ver a cerimônia sentados ao redor. Decidiu-se cavar um buraco de 30 cm para encaixá-lo e atender ao pedido dos atletas. O palco ficou com 1 metro de altura. Não afetou a irrigação, nem é esta a obra que atrasará ou não atrasará a devolução do estádio ao futebol – escreveu Rubens Paiva, em seu blog no site do “Estadão”.

Com a propagação da imagem do gramado esburacado, Marcelo Rubens Paiva passou a rebater torcedores, especialmente flamenguistas, no Twitter. Os internautas contestam a versão do jornalista e diretor porque a imagem sugere um cenário muito mais grave do que o descrito por ele desde o início dos Jogos.

@marcelorubens isso tem 30 cm? pic.twitter.com/bA6byYE53e

— Vitor 15 dias ❤ (@vonvitor) 21 de setembro de 2016

O Comitê Rio-2016, segundo o LANCE! apurou, entende que o buraco não é um problema tão grave assim de ser resolvido, sendo possível cobri-lo em cerca de cinco dias. Mas o buraco não é o único problema a ser sanado no Maracanã. O gramado, pela previsão, só ficaria apto a receber partidas de futebol em 15 de outubro. Paralelamente a isso, o Comitê precisa desmontar diversas estruturas, como a tribuna de imprensa, e recolocar as cadeiras cativas. Na segunda-feira, o presidente do Rio-2016, Carlos Arthur Nuzman, explicou a dificuldade.

– A responsabilidade do Comitê é devolver o Maracanã como estava. Foram uma série de modificações feitas, questão de luz, som, alta tecnologia, fogos, tudo isso concatenado com música. Nosso objetivo é fazer o maior esforço possível. Já tivemos o pedido feito pelos clubes. Mas o mais importante é que possamos entregar e queremos fazer poder atender aos clubes, mas garantir isso hoje é impossível – afirmou Nuzman na ocasião.

O buraco tem 6m comprimento, 4m de largura e 1,5m de profundidade. Ele foi feito no centro do campo, para não afetar o sistema de drenagem do estádio, que não tem tubulação na área central do campo. A base do gramado será totalmente reconstruída, segundo o Comitê. O buraco será preenchido por quatro camadas, sendo uma profunda de argila, para compactar a base, outra de 10cm de pó de pedra, como base de sustentação, outra com 10cm de Brita 0, para ajudar a drenagem, e outra de 30 cm de areia com matéria orgânica, para fixar a grama.

Esta primeira operação deve durar entre 10 e 15 dias. Depois, serão necessários outros cinco dias para retirar a grama, que foi desgastada pelas cerimônias, e preparar a nova. Em seguida, a organização precisará de mais cinco dias para colocar o novo tapete de grama, que esta em Saquarema. Depois, ainda será preciso esperar 10 dias para o campo ficar em condições de uso frequente, sem danos.

“Nosso compromisso sempre foi devolver o Maraca em perfeitas condições até 30 de outubro. A operação está dentro do prazo. Vamos fazer de tudo para deixar o campo novo até esta data. Mas não podemos sacrificar a qualidade pela pressa”, informou a assessoria de imprensa do Comitê.

MatériaMais Notícias

Vila Nova e Atlético Goianiense se enfrentaram na tarde deste sábado e fizeram um bom jogo no Estádio Serra Dourada. Equipes ficaram no 0 a 0 e só não marcaram porque pararam na trave algumas vezes. Dragão perdeu a chance de colar no líder da competição, que é o Vasco.

Com o empate, o Dragão caiu para a terceira colocação, somando 39 pontos em 23 partidas disputadas. O Colorado está em 12º, com 30.O próximo compromisso do Atlético Goianiense é na terça-feira, contra o Luverdense, às 19h30, no Estádio Serra Dourada. O Vila joga só no fim de semana, sábado, contra o CRB, no Rei Pelé, às 21h.

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O JOGO

A partida começou bastante equilibrada, com as duas equipes brigando bastante pela posse de bola. Primeira boa chance foi para os colorados, com Moisés, que de cabeça colocou Kléver para trabalhar. Dragão encontrava bastante dificuldades para furar o bloqueio adversário. Primeira chance do alvinegro aconteceu no fim do primeiro tempo com Júnior Viçosa. Atacante chutou, Saulo defendeu e Maguinho tirou na linha do gol. Pouco depois, Viçosa carimbou o travessão do Vila Nova.

Treinadores mexeram nas equipes, mas jogo permanecia da mesma maneira após o intervalo, muita marcação e poucas chances de gol. Pelo lado do Atlético Goianiense, todas as boas oportunidades eram com Júnior Viçosa, dessa vez chute passou tirando tinta da trave. O Vila respondeu com Moisés, que de longe acertou a traave de Kléver.

Confira outros resultados deste sábado na Série B

Oeste 3 x 3 Paraná
Tupi-MG 0 x 1 Bragantino

Nottingham Forest suffered a costly defeat on Tuesday evening, falling to a slender loss to Luton Town at the City Ground.

The loss is particularly worrying considering that Chris Hughton’s men are now just 11 points clear of the relegation zone, with sides below them having as many three matches in hand.

However, there were signs throughout the clash that could give the club reason to be optimistic in avoiding relegation to League One.

Manager Hughton was impressed with how his side managed to create opportunities. Following the game, he said that Forest were “very good”, having some presentable chances to open the scoring before the break.

The statistics agree with that sentiment, with the hosts having had 19 shots throughout the game, forcing Luton stopper Simon Sluga into four saves.

The fact that Forest were creating opportunities is a positive sign. It is, in fact, something that they have managed throughout the majority of the campaign.

At their current rate, the East Midlands side are taking 11.6 shots per game according to WhoScored, which is in fact the sixth-highest in the Championship.

Of course, that does not mean all too much if the team are just attempting pot shots from distance, which to an extent is true. Approximately 40% of Forest’s shots this season have come from outside of the penalty area – only Reading, Barnsley and Huddersfield Town have a higher percentage.

However, judging by the expected goals model (xG), Hughton’s men are actually creating very presentable chances.

They currently possess an xG count of 40.07 which is dramatically higher than their number of actual goals scored, 28.

That disparity in these numbers can come down to one of two aspects: poor fortune i.e. excellent stops from opposition goalkeepers or indeed, poor finishing.

Whilst that poor finishing could potentially hamper Forest for the rest of the season, there will hopefully come a point where the chances indeed start finding the back of the net with more regularity, swiftly moving the club away from the drop zone. After all, they are certainly more creative than any of their relegation rivals.

Hughton’s men just need to keep generating chances at the rate they currently are and their luck in front of goal will hopefully turn.

AND in more news, we analyse Glenn Murray’s awful performance in the defeat against Luton…

After a superb victory in the Europa League on Thursday night, Arsenal return to Premier League action when they take on Tottenham in the north London derby.

Mikel Arteta’s side ran out 3-1 winners against Olympiacos in Greece, with the Gunners well set to progress to the next round of the competition.

The Premier League has been far more difficult for Arsenal, however, with a 1-1 draw at Burnley last week seeing them lose yet more ground in the race to finish in a European place for next season.

Despite going with a strong line-up against Olympiacos, Arteta will surely want to earn his first victory against Spurs, and that should see very few changes made to the team.

With that in mind, below is a look at how the Gunners might take to the field for Sunday’s clash against their arch-rivals.

In goal, Bernd Leno will be hoping to keep his first clean sheet in nine games in all competitions, with the Arsenal defence shooting themselves in the foot against both Olympiacos and Burnley last week.

The back four could see one key change, with the £85k-a-week earning Pablo Mari coming in for Gabriel, despite the latter scoring a stunning header to give the Gunners the lead in midweek – it would certainly be a bold call to make, but Arteta appears to really fancy Mari in the Premier League, with the Spaniard starting the last three games in the competition.

In midfield, Thomas Partey was taken off early in the second half on Thursday, but Arteta was quick to confirm after the game that this wasn’t down to any injury issues, so the Ghanaian should line up alongside Granit Xhaka once again.

Further ahead, Martin Odegaard, Bukayo Saka and Willian should all keep their places from Thursday, with the latter actually moving to top spot in the assist charts for Arsenal with his performance against Olympiacos despite being much-maligned at times this season.

Gunners top scorer Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang leads the line once more, hoping to score in this fixture just as he did last term.

Predicted XI: Leno; Bellerin, Luiz, Mari, Tierney; Partey, Xhaka; Saka, Odegaard, Willian; Aubameyang.

Meanwhile, Arsenal could sign a Xhaka upgrade in this Premier League star…