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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…

Phillip Cocu has told The People he could have joined Arsenal during his career.

What’s the story?

The former Netherlands international replaced Frank Lampard as Derby County boss in the summer, but before becoming a manager, he had a successful playing career, winning four Eredivisie titles with PSV Eindhoven and La Liga with Barcelona.

He had been talking about those days as a defensive midfielder and said: “I was playing for my first professional club, Vitesse Arnhem, when Arsenal came for me.

“Then, halfway through my career, when I was about to sign a new contract at Barcelona, there was a second chance. But in both cases, the clubs could not agree.

“They have the bigger mentality” – Spurs fans come to blows after the North London Derby in the video below…

Cocu instead of Vieira?

The 48-year-old was with Vitesse between 1990 and 1995 before moving on to PSV and FC Barcelona. He would end up making 540 appearances between the two clubs and also earned 100 caps for his country. It is fair to say he was one of the best defensive midfielders of his generation.

Had he made the switch to north London, he would have no doubt improved the Gunners. However, his arrival may have prevented the signing of the legendary Patrick Vieira. The France World Cup winner joined Arsenal in 1996 just before Arsene Wenger was appointed as the club’s manager.

The two were defensive midfielders, and there is no reason to believe that Cocu wouldn’t have been able to produce the same level of performances in the Premier League as he did in the Eredivisie and La Liga. As such, Vieira’s signing may not have been needed at all.

What would Wenger’s reign look like without the former Juventus hard-man, or indeed the English footballing landscape as a whole?

Vieira had a huge impact on the Arsenal side, and was a part of the famous Invincibles. Would Arsenal have had the same success without him commanding the middle of the park?

Unfortunately, it is a question we will never know the answer to. But it is hard to imagine Arsenal fans crying over the comments. After all, in Vieira, they got their hands on one of the best midfielders in Premier League history.

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أكد جورفان فييرا، المدير الفني الأسبق لنادي الزمالك، أن لاعبي الأبيض الحاليين قادرين على التأهل لنهائي دوري أبطال إفريقيا.

ويحتل الزمالك المركز الثالث في المجموعة الرابعة ببطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا التي يتصدرها الترجي برصيد 7 نقاط، ويليله مولوديه الجزائر في المركز الثاني برصيد 5 نقاط، والزمالك في المركز الثالث برصيد نقطتين، وأخيرًا تونجيث السنغالي في المركز الرابع برصيد نقطة واحدة.

اقرأ أيضًا.. الزمالك: لم نوقع عقوبات بعد الهزيمة أمام الترجي.. ومصير باتشيكو مرتبط باللاعبين

وأضاف فييرا خلال لقاءه عبر برنامج “ملعب البلدوزر” المُذاع عبر قناة “الشمس”: “تجربتي في الزمالك كانت غنية وناجحة، الكل تعاون معي ولم تكن هناك مشاكل”.

تابع: “هناك بعض الأزمات التي واجهتني خلال مشواري التدريبي مع الزمالك، مثل التأخير في راتبي الشهري”.

وواصل: “الزمالك يمتلك لاعبين جيدين وقادرين مع التنظيم الجيد على التأهل لنهائي دوري أبطال إفريقيا، اللاعبون يحتاجون أن يدخل المدرب في تفكيرهم أكثر، ويقوم بتهيئتهم نفسيًا لكي يعودوا لمستواهم”.

استكمل: “هناك ضغط كبير على اللاعبين في الزمالك، ويجب أن يكون هناك حكمة في التعامل معهم”.

وبسؤاله “هل أنت مع استمرار جايمي باتشيكو أم رحيله؟”، قال: “من الصعب أن أتحدث عن مدير فني آخر، من السهل التضحية بأي مدرب ولا يوجد فريق يفوز باستمرار”.

وبسؤاله “إذا تلقى عرض لتدريب الزمالك أو الإسماعيلي أيهما يختار؟”، قال: “صعب جدًا الاختيار، أريد النادي الذي يتمتع بالاستمراراية، بصرف النظر عن اسم النادي”.

أردف: “أتابع الدوري المصري بشكل مستمر، واللاعب المصري يمتلك مهارات تصنع الفارق في المباريات”.

وعن اللاعبين الجيدين في الدوري المصري، قال: “عبد الله جمعة ومحمد أبو جبل وعمر جابر ومجدي أفشة ويوسف أوباما”.

[ad_pod ]Four years ago, a certain Argentine defender arrived at the Etihad from Spain, and managed to leave a big mark on the team.Nicolas Otamendi joined Manchester City exactly four years ago yesterday and the rest, as they say, is history.Since 2015, the now 31-year-old centre-back has had a pretty good career with the Citizens, to say the least.Watch Manchester City Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

He has played a total of 173 games, even managing to tally eight goals and four assists to his name.

Just last season, in 2018/19, he took part in 33 games for Pep Guardiola’s troops across all competitions as he played his part in their great domestic success, clinching four titles for their trophy cabinet.

Now, he has taken to Twitter to celebrate this great moment.

So far in the new 2019/20 Premier League campaign, the Argentine defender has played one full game for the Citizens.

But he also participated in the Community Shield clash against Liverpool that also ended in a success for Pep Guardiola’s men.

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Leeds continued their unbeaten start to the season on Wednesday evening as they defeated Brentford 1-0.

Creating just eight chances, the Whites struggled to break down the Bees until Eddie Nketiah was introduced.

Another substitute in Helder Costa did all the work as he showed tremendous pace to get to the byline and then play the ball across for Nketiah to tap home.

It was a simple finish and almost mirrored the goal the pair combined for just over a week previous against Salford.

However, the main narrative leading up to the game surrounded Pontus Jansson, a player who had dedicated valuable service to the Yorkshire club, even being named in the PFA Championship Team of the Year last term.

The Swede was a popular figure at Leeds, something that was summed up by their supporters refusing to get drawn into the possibility of booing him in the build-up to the fixture.

However, after becoming Brentford’s captain, his return to Elland Road didn’t go to plan and his reaction at the full-time whistle showed he wasn’t too happy.

In this picture, Jansson fittingly stands dejected as he trudges off a pitch that brought him so many good memories.

The central defender played 120 times for Leeds but was rather forced out this summer due to a number of reasons.

Paul Bell claimed financial fair play was to do with his departure but arguably that doesn’t add up too much when you consider he left for just £5.5m.

Adam Webster, who was nowhere near the Team of the Year, meanwhile left Bristol City for £20m.

But there was also an attitude problem at the heart of the centre-back who was one of the players who wasn’t best pleased when Leeds allowed Aston Villa to score a goal last season.

Jansson would have been looking forward to returning to his old club but this time he was left with a rather sour taste in his mouth, leaving the stadium having lost against his former employers.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Injury News series, which considers the impact of the latest updates on players’ fitness

It has been confirmed that Divock Origi is set for a short spell on the sidelines and that could provide the perfect opportunity for Rhian Brewster to stake a claim for a first-team place.

What’s the latest?

The Belgian was handed just his third start of the season for Saturday’s visit of Newcastle, starting once again on the left-wing, but had a minimal impact before being forced off through injury, making only 5 passes in his 37 minutes on the pitch.

It will be a blow for the 24-year-old, who has found starting opportunities hard to come by since returning from a loan spell at Wolfsburg at the end of the 2017/18 campaign.

He has made a valuable contribution over the last few months though, scoring important goals against Barcelona and Tottenham in the Champions League, but now looks like he will be on the treatment table for a “short spell” with an ankle injury.

His absence has prompted Jurgen Klopp to call up Brewster to the matchday squad for the trip to Napoli, and it could be a great chance for the youngster to show what he is all about.

Making a good impression

Brewster is yet to make his debut for the Reds but the 2017 U17 World Cup top scorer has impressed at youth level for both club and country.

This season he has two goals in four games whilst impressing academy manager Neil Critchley, and the 19-year-old will be hoping to do the same with Klopp.

Watch Liverpool Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

He has previously featured in the matchday squad for important European fixtures against Barcelona and Tottenham, but he will hope to go one better this time around by getting onto the pitch.

The involvement of Brewster is positive for the academy, as it shows they will be considered if they’re good enough and show the right attitude, with Klopp offering a pathway to players like Trent Alexander-Arnold further evidence of that.

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…

Samuel Umtiti’s Barcelona career has unfortunately taken a swift tumble. Ever since his career was disrupted by serious knee problems, the great Frenchman’s game time has diminished greatly.

And with the news that he has once again been sidelined, maybe the time has finally arrived for Jean-Clair Todibo to assume a bigger role within the Blaugrana squad.

But Umtiti hasn’t always plagued by these fitness problems. It all started in 2018 with his first serious knee injury and since then the Frenchman has refused to have surgery to fix the issue, instead opting for alternative treatments.

And it seems that that decision has come back to haunt him as he hasn’t been able to completely shake the injury ever since.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

To make things even worse, Umtiti has also been struck by the infamous “FIFA virus” and suffered another setback during his outing with France just recently. This time, though, it’s his foot that’s proven problematic rather than his knee.

With all those injury problems, Barcelona might have a real conundrum to face but, luckily, there is still someone who can take over from Umtiti and finally make a big step up.

And it wouldn’t be the first time they tampered with the pecking order in their defence. Ever since Umtiti’s injuries have come to light, Barcelona have reshuffled the cards at centre-back. At first, Umtiti and Gerard Pique were the two designated starters but soon Clement Lenglet took over from Umtiti as the 25-year-old started experiencing issues with his knee.

But even with that being said, Umtiti was still the third-choice centre-back and, as such, he played 14 games last season in La Liga and started a total of 13 of those. Todibo, on the other hand, only played two in 2018/19 – the only two games in his Barcelona career so far.

His lack of opportunities made it clear that he would be limited to the role of fourth choice centre-back. It was a rather weird move by Barcelona, who were betting on an injury-prone player rather than putting some trust into the young 19-year-old talent.

Back then there still may have been some lingering optimism regarding Umtiti’s issues but now, with yet another injury coming his way, it is time to start investing into Todibo instead.

Having such a talented player rotting on the bench because of Umtiti should not be acceptable. If the former Lyon enforcer was fit and firing on all cylinders, then there would be no dispute at all.

But with the situation being as it currently is and Umtiti unfortunately spending more time in the stands than on the pitch, Blaugrana might want to reshuffle the deck once again.

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يرى مدافع تشيلسي سيزار أزبيليكويتا أنهم كانوا قادرين على تسجيل المزيد من الأهداف في مباراتهم اليوم أمام إيفرتون، في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

وفاز تشيلسي بهدفين دون رد، في ستامفورد بريدج، في الجولة السابعة والعشرين. أهداف مباراة تشيلسي وإيفرتون

وقال سيزار أزبيليكويتا في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “بي بي سي” العالمية: “كل انتصار هو خطوة للأمام، نعلم أنه كان علينا استعادة الفوز على أرضنا”.

وأضاف: “الليلة كان أداءً جيدًا للغاية، إيفرتون فريق صعب لكننا عملنا بشكل مثالي، إنه لمن دواعي سروري أن نرى الفريق يقاتل من أجل الكرة، وكان بإمكاننا تسجيل المزيد من الأهداف”.

وواصل: “أنا جزء من فريق يعمل بجد، كلنا نقوم بعملنا، ترى الطريقة التي نقاتل بها من أجل الكرة”.

وأردف: “ما زلنا بعيدين عن المكان الذي نريد أن نكون فيه، نحن على الطريق الصحيح لكننا لم نفعل أي شيء بعد، إنها عقلية جماعية، ونحتاج أن يعمل الجميع بجد”.

واختتم: “تشيلسي هو أحد الأندية الكبرى في العالم ويجب عليك القتال من أجل مكان ما”.

Barcelona finally clinched their first victory of the new La Liga season. And while it was certainly an impressive victory for the Catalans, their newcomer star Frenkie de Jong didn’t really have a game to remember. That happened for a simple reason: he was played out of position.

On the chalkboard

It was quite a spectacular night for Barcelona at the Camp Nou. Ernesto Valverde deployed a lineup without Lionel Messi, Luis Suarez or Ousmane Dembele, all of whom were out with an injury. Instead, we saw a much different, younger, less experienced but still hungry Blaugrana.

And while Antoine Griezmann and the young La Masia graduates Ansu Fati and Carles Perez caught the eye, the spotlight was somewhat taken away from De Jong. The young Dutchman started the game on the left side of the midfield trident and despite having a decent game, he was uncharacteristically quiet by the standards he set at Ajax – driving them to last season’s Champions League semi-finals.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

This doesn’t mean he gave a particularly bad performance but he wasn’t able to express himself fully or the way he probably wanted to. All of that was caused by a relatively new and unknown role and despite Barcelona winning the game comfortably, there’s still a feeling that De Jong was underutilised by not being fielded in the defensive midfielder position which he took up 42 times for Ajax last season.

Back to the original

On the night, the Dutchman still managed to rack up 95% passing accuracy, which was to be expected, but he was not hugely involved. As a matter of fact, he had fewer touches than any other outfield Barcelona player in that clash as he only tallied 73. Looking at his heatmap from the game, we can see that he was, in fact, used as a make-shift winger of sorts, which is definitely an area he should be operating in.

As a result, other than participating in the build-up and sending long balls, De Jong hardly had an impact he would have hoped for; no key passes and just one dribble as opposed to being among the players with most touches in the game against Athletic Bilbao, the one he played as the team’s pivot.

In addition to that, when playing in his natural position, he tallied 4/4 ground duels and six recoveries of possession while this wide role didn’t give him as much to show for with only three recoveries and 3/7 won ground duels.

Valverde would be wise to revert De Jong back to his roots and back to the original blueprint if he wants to get the best out of him. Of course, even when he was played out of position, the young midfielder still managed to perform to a respectable standard but it’s a far cry from what he can potentially provide for Barcelona at the base of the engine room.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…

Tottenham Hotspur fans were beyond ecstatic when the club completed the club-record signing of Tanguy Ndombele during the summer transfer window, for a fee Sky Sports reported to be £63m.

The Frenchman made an instant impression on the opening day of the Premier League season with a fine goal against Aston Villa, before the 22-year-old followed it up with an assist against Manchester City in their following top flight clash.

However, he then suffered a hamstring issue that kept him out against Newcastle United and Arsenal, and he hasn’t really looked great since he made his return to action as a substitute against Crystal Palace.

Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Whether he simply isn’t back to full fitness or not, the former Lyon man was particularly disappointing in the 2-1 defeat against Leicester City on Saturday.

He wasn’t at the races, and as well as encountering bad control on six separate occasions according to WhoScored, he was also dispossessed three times as well.

Having committed three fouls and having not been particularly great on the ball with a passing accuracy of less than 77%, it was hard to see what he was really bringing to the table at the King Power Stadium – whatever it was it certainly wasn’t worth £63m.

Off days can happen, but perhaps most worrying of all though was how lethargic he looked.

While the midweek Champions League trip could have played a part, you would expect an athletic 22-year-old to have a fair bit of energy but as Football London picked up on, he appeared tired throughout.

The fact that he was dribbled past on three occasions, as per SofaScore, and won just eight of the 20 duels he faced only goes to back that up even more, and it was a concerning performance in that respect.

Ndombele is a young player who clearly has a lot of quality in his locker, but he needs to show a lot more than he did against Brendan Rodgers’ men if he wants to ensure that Tottenham don’t end up regretting shelling out a huge transfer fee for him.

أكد يورجن كلوب المدير الفني لفريق ليفربول، على صعوبة مواجهة ولفرهامبتون يوم الإثنين المقبل، في الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

ليفربول صاحب المركز الثامن في الدوري الإنجليزي، يبتعد شيئًا فشيء عن تحقيق اللقب للموسم الثاني على التوالي.

طالع أيضًا.. كلوب: علينا التحسن دفاعيًا وديفيز سيحصل على فرصته في الوقت المناسب

وقال كلوب في تصريحات بالمؤتمر الصحفي الخاص بمواجهة ولفرهامبتون: “أتعاطف كثيرًا مع ما يقوم به نونو (مدرب ولفرهامبتون)، يقدم عملا رائعا في ظل عام غريب على الجميع”.

وأضاف: “لا يمكنك استبدال مهاجم بقوة وجودة خيمينيز، في الوقت نفسه، يبدو أن الفريق مستقر، ويقدمون أداءً قوياً في جميع المباريات، ولديهم قوة دفاعية”.

وعن حالة فيرمينو: “بوبي لم يكن معنا ضد لايبزج، هذا يعني أنه لا يستطيع اللعب الآن، لديه بضعة أيام وآمل أن يكون جيدًا، يحتاج للراحة ومن الصعب أن يكون جاهزًا ضد ولفرهامبتون”.

وأردف بالحديث عن جوتا: “كان في مستوى رائع قبل الإصابة، ما يجعل من واقع الإصابة أسوأ، يمكنه لعب جميع المراكز الثلاثة في الهجوم إنه يجعلنا أقوى بتواجده معنا”.

واختتم: “جوتا لعب 90 دقيقة ضد فولهام وهي ليست الخطة التي وضعناها له، لذلك لعب 60 دقيقة فقط يوم الأربعاء ضد لايبزج”.