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

Arsenal will travel to Old Trafford on Monday to face Manchester United in a match that could have huge implications for the race to finish in the top four.

Harry Maguire and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang are two men who could have a decisive say.

On the chalkboard

The Gunners have had the better campaign to date as they sit in fourth place after six games. They have won three of their first six Premier League matches, with their latest coming against Aston Villa last weekend.

The Red Devils have not had it so good, meanwhile, having won just two of their first six. They were particularly disappointing last Sunday, with West Ham needing to do little to earn their 2-0 victory.

This is a game that both teams will be desperate to win, then, and it should prove to be a thrilling encounter.

One battle, in particular, could prove to be key in deciding the outcome.

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Battle between two heavyweights

Aubameyang’s influence on the Arsenal attack cannot be understated.

He has already scored six goals in the Premier League this season, while he added another in the Europa League against Eintracht Frankfurt. In fact, he has scored in all but one match this campaign. The one fixture he didn’t bag in? The loss against Liverpool, the Gunners’ only defeat so far.

It is absolutely essential that Maguire is at the top of his game to keep the Gabon international under wraps, then.

So far this term, he has not faced any strikers of truly world-class quality. Jamie Vardy is the only one who is remotely comparable to that level, and the 26-year-old played with him for a number of years at Leicester City.

Against West Ham, the former Sheffield United man had arguably his worst game since moving to Manchester. In particular, he was found wanting as Andriy Yarmolenko opened the scoring. He left far too much space for the Ukraine international to take the ball and bury it into the bottom corner and he simply cannot afford Aubameyang the same sort of freedom.

The former Borussia Dortmund man, too, will need to keep an eye on Maguire in possession. He has averaged 63.8 passes per game so far this season, more than all but two of his teammates, while he has averaged 4.8 accurate long balls per game.

With United aiming to build from the back, Aubameyang cannot afford to allow the England international to feel comfortable on the ball. Pressure, whenever he has it at his feet, will be vital.

The two are huge players for their respective sides, and they are among the best players in the division.

Keep an eye on their duel during this match; it promises to be an important one.

يرى الإيطالي كارلو أنشيلوتي أن مشروع دوري السوبر الأوروبي، سيؤدي إلى اكتئاب كرة القدم، مشيرًا إلى أنه سيفشل في النهاية.

الاندية الأوروبية الكبرى تأمل في تغيير بطولة دوري أبطال أوروبا، وتسميتها بـ دوري السوبر الأوروبي، مع نظام جديد للبطولة.

وقال أنشيلوتي في تصريحات لصحيفة “ذا أتلتيك” البريطانية: “لا يمكن عمل بطولة الدوري السوبر الأوروبي، لدينا دوري أبطال أوروبا، هذا يكفي، دوري الأبطال يضع دائمًا الأفضل أمام الأفضل”.

وأضاف: “اللاعبون لا يستريحوا أبدًا، دوري السوبر الأوروبي سيصيب كرة القدم بالاكتئاب”.

وأردف بالحديث عن التحكيم في إنجلترا: “الحُكام في إنجلترا أفضل بكثير من الآخرين في إيطاليا وإسبانيا، يتعرضون لقدر هائل من الضغط”.

وأكمل: “في إنجلترا الحُكام أكثر هدوءًا، ويرتكبون أخطاء بالتأكيد ولكن بنسبة أقل، والمراجعة احترافية للغاية، ولكن رغم الأخطاء، فهم أفضل من غيرهم”.

وعلق المدرب الإيطالي على مستوى منتخب بلاده مع روبرتو مانشيني: “منتخب إيطاليا لديه مواهب رائعة، ومانشيني مدرب كبير”.

واختتم: “أراهن على أن منتخب إيطاليا سيكون بطلًا لـ يورو 2020، لديهم كل المقومات لتحقيق ذلك الإنجاز”.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

According to The Mirror, Arsenal are interested in bring Donyell Malen back to the Emirates Stadium.

What’s the story?

It has been an impressive start to the season for Malen. The 2o-year-old Netherlands international has scored 10 goals in his first 13 matches for PSV Eindhoven as the Dutch team sit third in the Eredivisie with two games in hand on leaders Vitesse Arnhem.

The forward has thus attracted some attention from clubs around Europe, including the Gunners. They are said to be monitoring the youngster, currently valued at £50m.

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Would represent poor business

The stats show that Malen is going through a purple patch right now. He is the top scorer in the league, and his first two caps for the Oranje are recognition of his recent displays.

However, Arsenal signing the youngster would represent incredibly poor business, and would show that the Emirates outfit’s hierarchy really have learned anything from previous mistakes.

Two years ago, the striker left the Gunners to move back to his homeland for just £500,000, which means that PSV are expecting a fee 100 times higher than that. Yes, he may have enjoyed an impressive couple of months so far this term, but that does not mean his services can demand such a hefty price.

Also, Unai Emery does not need to add another striker to his squad. He already has arguably one of the best in world football, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, at his disposal, whilst Alexandre Lacazette is also a star forward who has two goals in two starts in the Premier League this term.

The problem the former Sevilla boss has is at the other end of the pitch. Some of the defensive performances from his side so far this season have been hard to watch. Against Watford, for example, the north Londoners were outplayed in the second half and conceded a huge 31 shots. David Luiz has done little to shore up the backline since joining from Chelsea, and the whole back four continues to look shaky.

It is a problem they have suffered from for a while. In the last three full campaigns, no side in the top six has shipped more than the Gunners. Quite frankly, that is not good enough, and it needs solving soon. Forget spending a fortune on a player deemed not good enough just 24 months ago. Splash the cash on a top-class defender who can finally end their defensive woes.

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…

Do you know the saying about ‘those who cannot learn from history are doomed to repeat it’?

Well when you look it up next time, there’s a good chance that you’ll see a picture of Marcelo Bielsa staring back at you.

You’d think that games like the one at home to Wigan Athletic last season, when a team that was fighting relegation and reduced to ten men only to come and win it would have been enough to prove to him that there are no easy games in this division.

However, it looks as if Biela’s stubbornness and refusal to change his style of play have ended up costing him again.

Regardless of whether or not they feel that the red card in the first half was fair or not, if Leeds are a team that have serious aspirations of getting promoted, perhaps it’s time for Bielsa to start taking this league a little more seriously.

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If he and Leeds find themselves in a situation where they cannot beat a team that were near the bottom of the table, who haven’t won a game since the middle of August and who lost their boss two days before the game, regardless of the ‘new manager bounce’, then you have to question just how seriously the Argentinian is taking this division.

Compare Leeds’ performance on the weekend to how Fulham played them a couple of months ago.

Scott Parker and his team saw there was a weak team to be exploited and tore them apart on the night, with 935 successful passes and 84% possession.

He has spoken before about how he likes to carry a thin squad, well this game clearly tells you that when you start a player who is predominantly a full-back at centre-back that you can’t just rely on your attacking ability to get you out of a jam.

This is why you need to have strength in depth, something else he should have learned last year during their injury crisis. Alas, he failed to learn from that this summer as they only brought in six players on loan while losing 31 either on a temporary or permanent basis.

There is still a lot of the season left to play, and whilst they are only two points off the top of the table right now, it will remain to be seen whether or not they have the capacity, both on the pitch and in the dugout, to stay near the top as the season progresses.

Something has to give, and it might just be Bielsa’s methods.

Lots of Manchester United fans have taken to Twitter in the aftermath of the 1-1 draw against Liverpool, and have been quick to point the finger at one man for Adam Lallana’s 85th-minute equaliser.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka.

The England U21 right-back – who cost the Red Devils £50m back in the summer – had a fairly solid game from a defensive aspect as he so usually does, making three tackles – the second most out of everyone on the pitch behind Roberto Firmino.

However, his failure to close down Andy Robertson in the final moments of the match proved costly to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and the United players.

The Scotland international whipped in a cross which was then tucked away by Adam Lallana, resulting in the Red Devils throwing away yet another lead.

One fan below said that the former Crystal Palace man needs to get out to players quicker, whereas another supporter said that the 1-1 draw was not Wan-Bissaka’s best game by any means while also backing up the previous fan’s thoughts about closing Robertson down.

Let’s take a look at some more of the Twitter reaction…

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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 was only a couple of months ago when West Brom were experiencing the heartache of being knocked out of the playoffs on penalties by Aston Villa.

Then over the summer loan star Dwight Gayle returned to his parent club, Jay Rodriguez was sold to Burnley, and the Baggies’ squad was looking somewhat decimated – without a manager either, only adding to their woes.

Albion’s hierarchy had to make a crucial decision going into their second season in the Championship, and the move they made was to bring in Slaven Bilic on a two-year deal.

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That could have been considered quite the coup as the 51-year-old has managed both the Croatian national team and Premier League outfit West Ham United within the last decade.

He was then tasked with building a squad capable of challenging for the title, one that could fill the 46-goal void left behind by the departing strike duo.

Bilic made Kenneth Zohore and Charlie Austin permanent signings along with a selection of wingers on loan to try and fill that gap, but the most important decision he’s made has actually been making Matty Phillips the key figure amongst their attack.

The winger has already signed a three-year extension to his contract, citing the Croatian as a key reason to why – which is clear to see when looking at just how well the 28-year-old has been performing this season.

He made his 100th appearance in a Baggies shirt earlier in the campaign too in what could quite easily be a career-best year for Phillips.

The Scotland international has already scored four goals this season, meaning he needs just one more to match his best in the blue and white stripes – which happened in his debut season when Albion were still plying their trade in the top-flight.

Even though he’s only provided just the one assist this term, there’s plenty of football left to make ground on his best of eight at the Hawthorns.

And he has every chance to considering that he has started all eight matches for them in the league so far, recording the second-highest rating of anyone else in the squad at 7.18 per WhoScored.

If the winger continues to perform the way he is at the moment, the trend indeed suggests that he will be able to record his finest season in the west Midlands.

The only difference to other seasons is the fact Bilic is at the helm.

Last term, both former manager Darren Moore and then caretaker boss Jimmy Shan played Phillips in attacking midfield where he failed to score a single goal.

Therefore, Bilic’s impact can’t be underestimated – his influence has already been publically lauded by the 6 foot 1 wide man, so expect the Baggies’ star man to continue rising up.

Liverpool host their first Champions League fixture of the season tonight with Red Bull Salzburg the visitors, and fans are keen to see a midfield duo take to the field.

Naby Keita and Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain have not got as much game time as they would have hoped for so far this campaign due to various injury and fitness issues.

The latter has been match fit since making a return from an ACL injury at the end of last season, but so far Jurgen Klopp has taken care in his recovery and he has been limited to just four starts and 323 minutes as a result, excluding a small cameo in the Community Shield.

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Keita also featured in that season opener, but other than that has played only 63 minutes – all of which came in the Carabao Cup clash against MK Dons last week.

Due to their absences, fans are eager to see them in action at Anfield once more, with many believing they would work well in a trio alongside Fabinho. Since both Keita and Oxlade-Chamberlain have enjoyed a better pass accuracy than Jordan Henderson so far, they could be correct.

The following reactions show how excited fans are by the prospect of them both starting, and with Keita coming up against a former club it could be an enjoyable evening for the Guinea international.

Things aren’t going too well for Manchester United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer right now.

After a 2-0 defeat against West Ham in the Premier League towards the back end of September, the Red Devils only just managed to edge past League One outfit Rochdale in the EFL Cup, and on Monday threw away a lead against Arsenal in the Premier League, drawing 1-1 with the Gunners on home soil.

Last night, United were held 0-0 away at AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League and failed to register a single shot on target throughout the whole encounter.

It may have been a youthful-looking, experimental line-up from manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but lacking such creativity and attacking prowess simply isn’t good enough for a club as big as Manchester United, a club who are among the favourites to win the Europa League this term.

The club’s official Twitter account has this afternoon released their team news ahead of the trip to Newcastle United on Sunday, but many of the replies from supporters are following an extremely familiar trend…

United fans, what are your views on Solskjaer – do you want him gone? Let us know below!

This article is part of Football FanCast’s In The Pipeline series, which takes a look at some of the most promising young talent either linked with clubs or emerging from their academies…

Mason Greenwood may be the undoubted star in the making at the moment, but Manchester United have a clutch of promising youngsters waiting patiently in the wings for their break-out moments. The Old Trafford faithful have already seen a bit of Tahith Chong and Angel Gomes this season, but one man who could eclipse them all is Brandon Williams.

Not the most heralded academy prodigy out of the group the Red Devils currently possess, but the player with arguably the biggest chance of stamping his mark on the first-team this season. The 19-year-old completed his first full 90 minutes of the campaign in the Europa League against AZ Alkmaar earlier this month, and according to some United fans, was one of the few silver linings of a drab 0-0 draw.

How much money could you make busking for a week as a freestyle footballer? Find out in the video below…

As a right-footed left-back, Williams is in the mould of United stalwart Denis Irwin, and speaking after the game against the Dutch side, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer paid him a remarkable compliment.

“Top class, absolutely top notch. You won’t see a better full debut from a full-back anywhere. The boy is just going to improve and improve. He’s got the right mentality. I’m very pleased for him.”

Those comments will be music to the teenager’s ears, particularly with the Manchester side’s current struggles in his favoured position. First-choice left-back Luke Shaw has been out of action since mid-August with a hamstring injury, and whilst recent reports suggests he is in line to make a return sooner rather than later, Solskjaer may do well to hold off from throwing him back into the side.

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The England international has had a career beset by injuries, and has missed 103 games for United since signing from Southampton. There is absolutely no way for the Red Devils to wholeheartedly place their trust in the £27m-rated man, and that no doubt opens the door for Williams to seize his opportunity.

An injury-prone Shaw, and a make-shift defender in a 34-year-old Ashley Young, are his only real competitors at left-back. If Williams continues to impress in training, circumstances will surely dictate that he gets a run of games to show what he can do. And, judging by what Solskjaer thought of his full debut, there is no reason why he can’t be the academy prospect to make the most immediate mark on the team.

أفادت تقارير صحفية إنجليزية، أن الدولي البرازيلي دافيد لويز مدافع آرسنال، سيغيب لمدة 4 أسابيع عن الفريق بسبب الإصابة، ومن المُحتمل ألا يعود قبل نهاية الموسم.

دافيد لويز خضع لجراحة في الركبة يوم الأحد الماضي، وغاب عن مواجهة ليفربول السبت في الدوري الإنجليزي.

صحيفة “ديلي ميل” أكدت أن مدافع آرسنال خضع لجراحة في الركبة ويحتاج 4 أسابيع على الأقل للعودة، وقد يغيب حتى نهاية الموسم.

ولم يتبق في البريميرليج سوى 8 مباريات، والنادي الإنجليزي لديه إمكانية في الاستمرار بالدوري الأوروبي.

الصحيفة البريطانية أكدت أن أرتيتا يأمل في استعادة اللاعب البرازيلي خلال الفترة الأهم من الموسم، وسط المنافسة بالدوري الأوروبي، من أجل المشاركة في دوري أبطال أوروبا الموسم المقبل.

آرسنال يحتل المركز العاشر برصيد 42 نقطة، ويواجه صعوبة كبيرة في احتلال المركز الرابع المؤهل للأبطال الموسم المقبل.