Gareth Southgate may have some of the world’s brightest talents to call on in attack for Euro 2020, but it has become shockingly clear that the defence is lacking. Long gone are the days when the Three Lions defence selected itself. Indeed, there hasn’t been a strong and steady defensive partnership since John Terry and Rio Ferdinand lined up alongside each other. With Luke Ayling putting in impressive performances at newly-promoted Leeds United, he could force his way into contention for a place in Southgate’s squad in the summer.

Calls for Change at the Back

Southgate seems adamant that he wants to stick with the 3-4-3 system that worked well for England in the 2018 World Cup in Russia. This means that he needs three quality defenders who can work alongside one another but also quickly shift the ball into attack.

In the most recent sets of international breaks, the manager has toyed with various combinations in defence with no preferred solution as yet. Southgate has been loyal to the out-of-sorts Harry Maguire, and likes to find a place for Eric Dier in his back line. Both of these players have been criticised for their defensive fragility, and shouldn’t be auto-inclusions on the team sheet.

On the right side of his back three Kyle Walker is favoured, a player who usually plays as a right-back at Manchester City. Although the 30-year-old has made few errors that have led to goals, his skills are arguably wasted at the back. He would much rather bomb forward and join in the attack, rather than stay back to help out the defence.

Incredible Versatility

Ayling is also a right-back by trade, and if he was only able to play this position there would be little chance of the Leeds United man making the England squad. This is because Southgate already has Walker, Trent Alexander-Arnold, and Kieran Trippier among others who could fulfil this role. That means that the right wingback position in the 3-4-3 is pretty much sewn up as well.

However, Ayling could offer a viable alternative to Walker on the right side of Southgate’s back three. The former Bristol City man has played in this position on a number of occasions for Marcelo Bielsa when the manager has been forced to make changes because of injuries. Ayling has shown solid defensive qualities when playing this role, and has proven his versatility.

The first time in the 2020-21 Premier League campaign that Ayling lined up in a back three was in the 3-0 victory over Aston Villa. Captain Liam Cooper was out for the game, but Leeds managed to keep a clean sheet in his absence. Indeed, Villa were limited to only four shots on target at Villa Park. When Ayling moved back to his role at right-back and Cooper re-entered the side, Leeds went on to concede eight goals in two games against Leicester City and Crystal Palace.

Despite these slip-ups, Leeds have gained credibility as a side that can stay in the top flight, and they are expected to have a strong season with odds of around 2/1 to finish in the top 10 at most UK bookmakers. Most sites provide a significant welcome bonus for anyone looking to take advantage of this as they aim to entice new customers. However, for anyone looking to find value the live markets are much more suitable as they provide the opportunity to take advantage of in-game situations across a wide spectrum.

Warrior-like Work Rate

Ayling would be an asset to the England squad as he could play in central defence or at right back if need be. Another attribute that he would bring to the Three Lions side is his warrior-like work rate. The 29-year-old lost four kilos when Bielsa took over, and this has shown in his overall fitness. He never stops running, and always seems to crop up at the right time. His highlight of the season so far was probably when he raced back and saved Jack Grealish’s shot off the goal line.

Ayling has taken a long, winding path to get to where he is today, but he looks like a worthy Premier League player now. If he can keep up his impressive performances all season, Southgate will have to consider him for his Euro 2020 squad.

Manchester United were outfoxed by Manchester City on their own home turf on Wednesday night, leaving Ole Gunnar Solskjaer with a lot of work to do as the club’s wait for silverware continues.

Goals from City duo John Stones and Fernandinho dumped the Red Devils out of the Carabao Cup semi-final, as Pep Guardiola’s side set up a Wembley clash with Tottenham Hotspur.

Hunting their first trophy since 2017, Solskjaer’s side seemed to have shrugged off early pressure from City after Bruno Fernandes and Marcus Rashford both squandered chances. But poor set-piece defending ultimately proved to be their undoing when Harry Maguire failed to deal with a free-kick from Phil Foden – Stones bundling home from close range to give City the lead.

And their suspect defence came back to haunt them after Anthony Martial and Aaron Wan-Bissaka combined only to clear the ball as far as the edge of the box for Fernandinho to hit the ball first time into the back of the net.

Several players were at fault for the sub-par performance, none more so than United left-back Luke Shaw, who arrived at Old Trafford from Southampton for £27m in 2014. He reportedly earns around £150,000-per-week, as per Spotrac.

SofaScore graded the 25-year-old as the worst player on the pitch by a country mile with a miserable 6.2 rating – he lost possession 16 times, failed to win any of his duels from six attempts, was dribbled past once and committed two fouls.

The Manchester Evening News gave Shaw a low grade of 5/10 and claimed he ‘let Stones go for the goal,’ while The Sun were equally scathing in their assessment, insisting ‘he found himself tucked in centrally and was often a passenger on the break.’

Not only did he look lethargic, but he was also uncharacteristically lightweight as well with his teammates Fernandes and Paul Pogba managing more tackles between them, as per SofaScore.

After Alex Telles’ arrival in the summer, Shaw may have been forgiven for feeling a little threatened. But his latest shocking display may have given him more reason to do so and he ought to be nervously looking over his shoulder after he suffered a horror show against Guardiola’s side.

United have now lost four cup semi-finals in the past 12 months following yet another semi-final defeat at the hands of City in the Carabao Cup. With a trip to Liverpool on the horizon, this could be Shaw’s last start for quite some time after this latest showing.

AND in other news, Manchester United could find their next Nemanja Vidic…

MatériaMais Notícias

A goleada do Vasco sobre o Madureira por 4 a 1 em São Januário, neste domingo, deixou o torcedor cruz-maltino animado, principalmente após assistir as ótimas atuações de Riascos e Nenê. Com isso, a dupla recebeu a maior nota do confronto deste domingo. Confira a avaliação de cada jogador do duelo.

Vasco

5,5
Martin Silva
Não teve muito trabalho no jogo. Quando o Madureira assustou, não foi bem. Poderia ter saído no gol.

6,5
Madson
É uma das melhores opções de escape do time. Quando apoiou, foi bem. Subiu de produção no segundo tempo.

6,5
Luan
Não teve muito trabalho na defesa e quando foi ao ataque achou belo cruzamento para o gol de Andrezinho.

5,5
Rodrigo
Um pouco abaixo de Luan. Estava na marcação de Daniel no lance do gol do Madureira..

6,0
Julio Cesar
Foi muito acionado no primeiro tempo e apareceu bem em alguns lances. Na segunda etapa, segurou mais lá atrás.

5,0
Julio dos Santos
Jorginho o escalou para melhorar a saída de bola do time, que recorreu ao chutão em várias oportunidades.

6,5
Andrezinho
Não foi muito bem no conjunto, mas fez um gol importante num momento em que o jogo estava difícil.

5,5
Mateus Pet
Foi discreto em sua estreia como titular. Se movimentou, mas pouco apareceu neste primeiro jogo do ano.

8,0
Nenê
É o craque desse time. Todas as bolas passam por ele. A melhor contratação do clube foi mantê-lo no elenco.

5,0
Jorge Henrique
Discreto no ataque. Importante na reposição para marcar as subidas do lateral adversário.

8,0
Riascos
Mostrou muita vontade em um jogo que foi bastante acionado. Foi oportunista e marcou dois.

5,5
Yago Pikachu
Foi um pouco melhor que Mateus Pet. Iniciou boas tabelas com Madson pelo lado direito.

6,0
Eder Luis
Um pouco melhor que Jorge Henrique. Foi rápido no lance do último gol e deu bom passe para Riascos marcar..

5,5
Bruno Gallo
Teve pouco tempo para mostrar alguma coisa. Entrou apenas para descansar Julio Cesar.

6,5
Jorginho
Para o primeiro jogo do ano, o time foi bem. Mas ainda falta muita coisa para melhorar em campo.

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Madureira

6,0
Rafael
Sem culpa nos gols. Mostrou-se seguro quando foi exigido.

5,0
Formiga
Teve muito trabalho na marcação no primeiro tempo.

6,0
Daniel
Teve muito trabalho com Nenê e Riascos. Na frente, foi bem e marcou.

5,5
Jorge Fellipe
Um pouco abaixo do nível do companheiro.

4,5
Ernani
Não acompanhou o ritmo de Madson no segundo tempo.

4,5
Everton
Ficou perdido no meio.

5,0
Ryan
Atuação ruim. Foi substituído no início do segundo tempo.

5,5
Leandro Chaves
Tentou levar o time ao ataque. Sem sucesso.

5,5
Arthur
Correu muito, mas sofreu com a marcação.

5,5
Geovane Maranhão
Tentou ligar o ataque com velocidade, mas esbarrou na boa marcação vascaína.

4,5
João Carlos
Sofreu com a marcação dos zagueiros e pouco fez.

4,0
Carlos Júnior
Pouco tempo em campo. Mostrou muito pouco.

5,0
Gerley
Não teve tempo para mostrar nada.

5,5
Alfredo Sampaio
Seu time foi bem no primeiro tempo, mas não conseguiu resistir por muito tempo e acabou goleado em São Januário.

Aston Villa have made some big-name signings recently, with players like Ross Barkley and Emiliano Martinez being brought during the last transfer window. They have been linked to Jesse Lingard in the past and there is now a fresh update on the player’s future.

The latest transfer update on Lingard

According to TEAMtalk, Lingard is ready to ask Manchester United to let him leave in January. His contract expires in the summer, so United will need to sell him this winter if they want to get any money for him. They could, in theory, extend his deal but this doesn’t seem to be likely at this stage.

Lingard also has interest from abroad with teams from Germany, Spain and Italy keen, as well as Scottish giants Celtic and Rangers, keen to sign him.

Would the Englishman be a good signing for Villa

Lingard is yet to feature for the Red Devils in the Premier League this campaign.

However, he has definitely shown he has the potential to succeed in the Premier League in the past, as highlighted by his performances in the division across the 2017/18 season, where he scored eight goals and six assists (Transfermarkt).

In the past, manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has praised the England international saying: “Jesse’s a big game player” but he’s yet to reward the midfielder with much game time.

Lingard also has 24 England appearances, emphasising he has an abundance of experience. A move to a club like Villa, where he should get more chances to play, could be ideal in unlocking the quality we have seen him show in the past.

With his contract expiring, Dean Smith’s side could get Lingard on the cheap, and whilst it could look like a risky signing, it could turn into a great one if they can get the Englishman back to his best and as such, it might be a gamble worth taking.

In other news, fans react to Gabriel Agbonlahor’s comments on this Bundesliga star.

Tottenham Hotspur couldn’t find a way past Crystal Palace on Sunday afternoon but their shortcomings didn’t stop them from relinquishing top spot in the Premier League.

Jose Mourinho’s side seemed content to sit on their slender lead after Harry Kane opened the scoring with a 30-yard strike, but they were made to pay for doing so nine minutes from regular time.

A cross from Eberechi Eze was spilled by Hugo Lloris into the path of Jeffrey Schlupp, who couldn’t miss from close range, meaning Spurs returned to the north-side of London with just one point.

The ‘Special One’ made wholesale changes from Thursday night’s table-topping victory over Royal Antwerp in the Europa League and also handed a surprise inclusion to Dele Alli, who had only made two of their previous 11 top-flight matchday squads prior to kick-off.

And despite making a solid case earlier in the week, Argentine playmaker Giovani Lo Celso, signed for just £27m, was snubbed for the return of Tanguy Ndombele and Moussa Sissoko – a decision from Mourinho that soon turned sour.

The 24-year-old has every right to feel aggrieved and perhaps even infuriated as he literally ran the show against the Belgian outfit – the only team that has defeated Spurs since the opening day of the Premier League season.

He didn’t do himself any harm last weekend either as the side ran out victorious against arch-rivals Arsenal too.

In his absence, Spurs lacked a real creative and energetic spark in the transition between midfield and attack – that much was seen when the £64m-rated maestro replaced the struggling Frenchman in the 67th minute.

Ndombele managed just one key pass from 27 accurate attempts, lost possession nine times and committed two fouls, per SofaScore.

In the Europa League, no Spurs player is averaging more key passes per game (1.8) then Lo Celso whilst in the English top-flight, the Argentine ranks ahead of the Frenchman, via WhoScored.

The “extraordinary” attacking midfielder very much deserved to start at Selhurst Park, and just maybe if he did, the north London outfit would’ve found that added spark in front of goal.

It was criminal to only bring the £70k-per-week dynamo on with a little over 20 minutes remaining.

AND in other news, Forget Lloris: £120k-per-week calamity badly let Mourinho down vs Palace…

أحرز الدولي الإسباني، تياجو ألكانتارا، الهدف الثالث لفريقه في شباك ساوثهامبتون، في المباراة الجارية بينهما الآن بالدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

ليفربول يُلاقي نظيره ساوثهامبتون على ملعب “آنفيلد”، وذلك ضمن فعاليات الجولة الثالثة عشر من الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

وسجّل ألكانتارا الهدف الثالث في الدقيقة 37، بعد تشتيت دفاعي خاطئ من الضيوف، ليحصل على الكرة ثم يراوغ لاعبين من ساوثهامبتون ويُطلق تسديدة قوية للغاية من خارج حدود منطقة الجزاء تسكن شباك الحارس مكارثي.

جوتا كان قد سجّل الهدف الأول لـ ليفربول في الدقيقة الثانية بعد جملة رائعة بينه وبين ماني وروبرتسون (شاهد هدف جوتا الأول)، وأضاف كذلك المُهاجم البرتغالي الهدف الثاني للريدز بعد أسيست من صلاح (شاهد الهدف الثاني). شاهد هدف تياجو الكانتارا في مرمي ساوثهامبتون

Manchester United spent huge sums of money in a massive spree in the summer as Ed Woodward sought to strengthen Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s squad in all areas.

Whilst Woodward signed Donny van de Beek from Ajax, and secured the services of both Alex Telles and former Paris Saint-Germain striker Edinson Cavani on transfer deadline day, the Red Devils have been unable to hit the ground running so far this season.

Lying in tenth place in the Premier League table, a point adrift of Wolverhampton Wanderers, Solskjaer’s side still have a lot of work to do as they head into December.

It’s about time Solskjaer starts to sort out some of the deadwood, as he desperately needs to lower the club’s colossal wage bill, and he may not have to look much further than Timothy Fosu-Mensah, who currently earns wages worth £15,000-per-week.

According to The Manchester Evening News, Solskjaer wants Fosu-Mensah to stay at Old Trafford as he is approaching the final seven months of his contract.

However, the versatile Dutchman, who can play as a centre-back or right-back, has only played 95 minutes of football so far this season, and was dropped from the first team for their past seven fixtures in the Premier League, via Transfermarkt.

It’s fair to say that he has been replaced by Axel Tuanzebe, who has turned out to be an able deputy at the back in recent weeks, whilst it would be wise for Woodward to cash in on the £5.7m-rated outcast in January whilst he still can before his market value falls even further.

The Red Devils may be reluctant to let go of another academy graduate after Angel Gomes left the club in the summer, but United chiefs will simply have to bite the bullet, as it is surely best for all parties involved if Fosu-Mensah moves elsewhere in the end rather than wasting away as an unused substitute on the bench.

Last season, the former Dutch international played just three games in the Premier League, whilst he averaged fewer than one tackle and one clearance per game, via WhoScored. By comparison, Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who is Solskjaer’s undisputed first-choice right-back, managed 3.7 tackles and 1.7 clearances on average per game in the top flight last term, as per WhoScored.

Rather than give him a new contract, Woodward must get rid of him for once and for all in the winter transfer window to raise surplus cash to spend on other areas Solskjaer urgently needs to address.

AND in other news, Manchester United: In-form Alex Telles spells trouble for Brandon Williams…

MatériaMais Notícias

O diretor de futebol do Coritiba, Valdir Barbosa, não escondeu sua expectativa com a possibilidade de o clube anunciar a contratação de Jorge Ortega. Em entrevista à Gazeta do Povo, o dirigente revelou que o atacante paraguaio é aguardado em breve na capital paranaense:

-Está tudo certo, estamos trabalhando para ele chegar na segunda-feira. Temos que ver apenas se vamos conseguir marcar os exames necessários porque nesse período de Carnaval tem uma certa dificuldade.

O jogador de 24 anos, que se desligou recentemente no Sporting Luqueño (PAR), teria visto com bons olhos a possibilidade de desembarcar no Couto Pereira:

-Ele assinou uma proposta contratual, que não é o contrato propriamente dito, e já pediu que encaminhasse a passagem.

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Ortega chegaria ao Coritiba com a responsabilidade de ser um centroavante de área:

-Nos chamou a atenção a performance dele como atacante 9, jogador de área, que nos últimos anos teve boas participações no Campeonato Paraguaio e na Copa Sul-Americana. Não é possível ter uma garantia, mas esperamos que seja o jogador para resolver o nosso problema na posição – afirmou Barbosa.

Tottenham Hotspur academy starlet Oliver Skipp continues to impress immensely at Norwich City.

The 20-year-old midfielder has been getting his first real taste of the men’s game in the Championship and has taken to the test like a duck to water.

Indeed, the England U21 international has started all 25 of the Canaries’ league outings, where he has thrived in a defensive midfield role.

Per WhoScored, Skipp has managed to average 2.1 tackles per 90 minutes with a success rate of 77.7%, meaning more often than not, the opposition are struggling to get past him.

This has even be reinforced by teammate Grant Hanley’s glowing endorsement of him to the local press in recent weeks, he believes the young Englishman is a dream for centre-backs like himself. Hanley told the Eastern Daily Press:

“Skippy’s got experience beyond his years really, he looks like he’s played at the top level for 10 or 15 years, it’s hard to think that he’s still so young,” and then added: “I know he gets a lot of credit but then he probably doesn’t get enough sometimes, because he does all the stuff that you love as a centre-half.”

The Hotspur Way academy graduate is also contributing further up the pitch as seen by his average of 0.8 key passes per game in the second-tier.

Whilst this may not be as creative as say an Emi Buendia (3.3 key passes per game) in this current Norwich squad or even that of a Christian Eriksen, a former Spurs great who managed at least 2.1 key passes per game in the Premier League for Spurs in all but his final campaign, it does hint towards him being a nifty box-to-box option in the future.

Perhaps he’s more of a Michael Carrick than any other ex-Spurs midfielder. He too was a player managed by Jose Mourinho at Manchester United, whilst during his time in N17, he was predominantly deployed as a defensive midfielder (33 of 75 appearances).

Neither player is going to set the pulses racing with spectacular and electric performances, but they do the dirty work that often goes unnoticed – Xavi once proclaimed that Carrick was a “complete player,” which makes his constant omission from international stardom all that more baffling. He only went to one World Cup and managed just 34 caps over his playing career.

The young Spurs sensation could be a rare exception to this style of player as he’s already been capped across U16s, U18s and U21s level.

Skipp’s progress at Carrow Road has been phenomenal thus far, and whilst he’s not going to be recalled this month, he is very much part of Mourinho’s long-term plans.

After agreeing to a contract extension, the Spurs boss said: “Everybody in the club is [happy], his team-mates are, I am and Skippy is or not he wouldn’t sign the contract. I think he’s genuinely Tottenham’s future,” before going onto claim: “I see this kid being one day a future captain here by his character, by his personality.”

Also lauded as “phenomenal” by the ‘Special One’ in the past, Skipp is clearly going to be part of the furniture at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for years to come, and his experience in Norfolk is only doing his career wonders right now.

AND in other news, Grealish 2.0: Levy dropped a massive Spurs howler over “devastating” £55m “game-changer”…

Liverpool have been handed a potential injury boost with Jurgen Klopp confirming that Joel Matip is set to miss just three weeks of action after suffering a problem with the adductor problem he suffered against West Brom in December.

Therefore, the Cameroonian defender should return before the end of the transfer window but that should not prevent the Reds from acting in January.

As it stands, Klopp has just Nathaniel Phillips and Rhys Williams available as natural centre-backs in his first-team squad and neither of those had appeared in the Premier League before this season.

Fabinho has, of course, been superb in his performances as a centre-back but the Reds cannot rely on him to perform superbly out of position in every single game he plays, so must look to bring in another defender in the winter transfer window.

The Reds do have the likes of Billy Koumetio and Sepp van den Berg waiting in the wings if required but having a solid defence is the key to winning titles, evidenced by the 15 clean sheets the Reds kept in the top-flight last season, so the Merseyside club should definitely be looking to add an experienced centre-back to their ranks in January.

The club will no doubt be regretting not replacing Dejan Lovren during the summer transfer window, after he joined Zenit St Petersburg, as whilst the Croatian was error-prone at times, he was an excellent back-up option for Klopp to have during his time with the Reds.

It has been suggested that Liverpool weren’t looking to sign a centre-back in January before Matip’s injury and with the former Schalke man only set to be out for three weeks, they may be tempted to stick with what they have for the rest of the season.

However, the 28-year-old has been extremely injury-prone during his time with the club and even when he does return from injury, there is certainly no guarantee that he will remain fit for the rest of the season, especially if he is expected to play twice a week.

Therefore, despite the positive update on Matip’s injury, Michael Edwards must rip up the previous transfer plans and ensure that Liverpool sign a centre-back next month.

And, in other news… LFC “baller” was Klopp’s one positive vs NUFC; he must start vs Southampton…