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In a Q&A on The Chronicle, Lee Ryder revealed that players he had to spoken to at Newcastle are “excited” about the club’s new future.

What did he say?

The Magpies are deep in discussions over entering new ownership, and whilst things have not been ratified or confirmed just yet, Ryder has claimed that Newcastle’s stars are very much looking forward to a fresh era at St James’ Park.

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He said: “The players I have spoken to are excited about the prospect of a new era at the club. Nobody will complain about the chance to be part of the club when it enjoyed an elevated status. I just hope that people keep their eye on the ball.

“There are a few young players who need to be tied down on deals like Matty and Sean Longstaff. This would be a great time to sort their contracts out given the pair could be worth £100million to the club at some stage.”

Excitement

Whilst Newcastle fans are rightfully excited about finally escaping their Mike Ashley nightmare, the players themselves will no doubt be feeling similar thoughts of hope.

The work Rafa Benitez and Steve Bruce have done in ensuring the Magpies’ Premier League status over the past couple of seasons has meant that some major financial investment could really kick-start things and take the club to the next level.

The prospect of seeing major new signings will only excite the players as well as the fans.

With 70 minutes gone against AFC Bournemouth, Tottenham Hotspur were 3-0 up and cruising.

However, by the time that the game was over they were hanging onto their lead by a thread, following two goals from Harry Wilson.

Despite the late struggles, Spurs’ admin celebrated the win as the final whistle blew, with the three points coming courtesy of a Dele Alli brace and volley from Moussa Sissoko.

However, there were many fans who couldn’t get past how close the team’s defence came to falling apart, especially as it wasn’t the first time.

Against West Ham United, they conceded two goals to ensure hearts were still beating quickly in the final moments, while there were also two goals conceded in the Champions League against Olympiacos.

Therefore, supporters have demanded that their team stops shipping goals, specifically at times where they should be able to comfortably secure the win.

As well as the frustration, there was appreciation shown for Jan Vertonghen and his last-ditch tackle that made sure Spurs did eventually take all three points.

This came when Callum Wilson had been released through on goal, but the Belgian was able to make a sliding intervention when the Bournemouth man was waiting for the ball to drop.

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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…

Aston Villa will be looking to get their Premier League campaign back on track this Saturday after a disappointing performance last time out against Wolves, but despite the defeat against Nuno Espirito Santo’s side, the display from one of Dean Smith’s debutants could be giving the Villa boss a selection dilemma ahead of the clash against Newcastle.

Bjorn Engels was absent from the match-day squad for the encounter at Molineux, and making his first Premier League start, £12m summer signing Ezri Konsa stepped in at centre-back to put in an assured display against the club’s West Midlands rivals.

The 22-year-old’s passing success rate of 81.8% was only bettered by Tyrone Mings from Villa’s defensive quartet, whilst the former Brentford man also provided one key pass. 

This profile of defender – capable on the ball and able to contribute in linking up play – will be vital in Saturday’s game against Newcastle, particularly at home against a side from the bottom half of the table. Smith must look to play attacking, purposeful football in a bid to break down what will be a resilient team under the management Steve Bruce – Newcastle’s counter-attacking game-plan is evident from the fact they’ve averaged the least possession of any Premier League side this season.

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Although Engels’ has been a consistent member of the starting XI since arriving in the summer, making 11 league starts, Smith must consider whether Konsa’s performance against Wolves merits a second successive league start. While the old adage demands consistency at the back, experimenting with these defensive combinations could be crucial to the club retaining their top-flight status.

Konsa has shown his calm nature on the ball in both his league debut as well as in the Carabao Cup – where he scored in the 6-1 routing of Crewe – and giving the summer signing a chance to impress against Newcastle could be a shrewd move to break down a resilient, compact team who will be looking to hurt Villa on the break. 

Everton fans have reacted to a surprising statistic that shows the club ranks fifth in the list of teams who have faced the least number of shots across Europe’s top five leagues.The statistic provided by David Hughes, who collects date for Opta, reveals that Bayer Leverkusen, Getafe, Real Madrid and Manchester City are the only clubs to have faced a lower number of shots this season.

Indeed, the Premier League champions are the only English team above Everton in the ranking, with Chelsea just behind Everton on 95.

The graphic shows that Marco Silva’s side have faced 94 shots this season, which is surprising considering their goals conceded and position in the table.

Silva’s men have let in 18 goals in 12 league games so far – only five Premier League teams have conceded more.

Everton also sit 15th, just six points above the drop zone, which makes this statistic all the more surprising.

Many of the Toffees supporters have now pointed fingers at Jordan Pickford for letting so many in, as other fans touched on their awful defence from set pieces.

Another follower also pointed to the fact they have had an easy run so far, hence the lack of threat on goal.

Here’s how some of the Everton faithful have reacted…

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…

Barcelona’s latest encounter with Celta Vigo at the Camp Nou ended up being a success as the Catalan giants strolled to a 4-1 victory in front of their own supporters.

And by all means, it was a must-win game after their two disappointing results in the previous two bouts.

First they lost to Levante in La Liga the weekend before, and then only managed to tally a goalless draw against Slavia Prague in their midweek Champions League clash.

But even though that victory over Celta Vigo was exactly what the doctor had ordered, not everything went according to plan.

Their right-back, Nelson Semedo, unfortunately got injured and had to be substituted in the first half though, making way for Sergio Busquets who entered the fray.

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And with the injury to the Portuguese defender already officially confirmed by the club and their other right-back, Sergi Roberto, unavailable for the next game due to yellow card accumulation, Ernesto Valverde might have to put his trust in a former Barcelona B player, Moussa Wague.

The 21-year-old has been officially promoted to the first team at the beginning of the 2019/20 campaign but is yet to tally a single minute of game time under his belt.

Wague has been on the bench three times in the current campaign – in the games against Osasuna, Getafe and Inter Milan – but was not called into action in any of those.

It was a rather weird decision for Valverde to take considering we’re talking about a young player that definitely needs to play in order to develop.

This begs the question: why was he even promoted if he was never going to play in the first place?

As things stand, he would’ve fared much better with Barcelona B in the Segunda Division B where at least he would be guaranteed some game time regardless of the lower-tier opposition.

And now, with both of Barcelona’s right-backs out, Valverde could very well be forced to put some trust into the young talent.

In that way, this right-back issue the team is facing could be a blessing in disguise for Wague but it remains to be seen what kind of performance can he muster considering it would be his first game with the seniors in La Liga.

One thing is sure, the fans want him to play and all eyes may very well be on the 21-year-old after the international break.

Aw, how sweet – Marcus Rashford has responded to Harry Maguire’s congratulations post, in which he claims to be delighted to not have to face him on the opposing team, by reciprocating his joy that the pair will remain teammates for the foreseeable future.

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Having played against Rashford on eight separate occasions throughout his career, first for Hull City and then Leicester, the man affectionately dubbed “Slab Head” has won just once against his current teammate, drawing twice and losing a further five more.

Maguire joined Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United side for a world record fee in the summer after two years with fellow top-four hopefuls Leicester City. And after congratulating Rashford on hitting 50 goals for the club – a feat he completed against Norwich City on Sunday, despite missing a penalty – the defender dug up an image of the pair clashing with one another at Old Trafford.

Rashford responded accordingly…

The pair will be hoping to build on the club’s recent form, which has seen them win two in two games, when they travel to Stamford Bridge to face Chelsea on Wednesday.

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…

Kiko Casilla has been charged with racially abusing Jonathan Leko earlier this season, and if he’s found guilty it could have huge repercussions for Leeds United.

The Whites currently have the best defensive record in the Championship, and that is in no small part down to the efforts of the Spaniard who has looked a renewed figure this term.

As it stands, nobody knows whether Casilla will be found guilty, but Phil Hay has recently stated that he expects him to be, so there is a decent chance that he will be punished.

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The potential ban for the former Real Madrid man is up in the air as well, it’s a minimum six-game ban for instances such as these, but reports claim that the suspension could be as long as 12 matches.

Leeds have to be praying that the FA take a lenient stance on this one as a six-game ban wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world for the Yorkshire outfit.

Indeed, in Leeds’ next six matches they play just one team that is currently in the top half of the Championship, and even then that’s 11th placed Hull City.

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You would think that the Whites could comfortably pick up points from the majority of those games even without their first-choice goalkeeper, but if his ban is 12 games it could be catastrophic.

Leeds’ next six outings after that initial period are incredibly tough.

United have to play four promotion contenders in the shape of Fulham, Preston, West Brom and Sheffield Wednesday, and their two other games are against a recently-relegated Cardiff City and a Birmingham side that did the double over them last season.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side could certainly cope without Casilla for six games, but if he’s absent for the next 12 fixtures the Whites could be in a bit of trouble.

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

Leeds United vs Sheffield Wednesday should be an incredibly interesting matchup this Saturday.

Not only is it a Yorkshire derby between two historically massive clubs, but both teams are also duking it out at the top end of the table.

Huge match

Indeed, this battle between second and third in the Championship may have huge implications in the race for the playoffs as well as the automatic promotion spots.

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Wednesday are in fine form having lost only one of their last seven league games, while Leeds have been grinding out results to keep them in the mix in recent weeks.

It’d be tough to pick a winner in this weekend’s game, but there is one key battle between two players that may decide where the points go on Saturday.

Berardi vs Fletcher

This game could very easily be won by Sheffield Wednesday if Steven Fletcher can get the better of Gaetano Berardi.

With Liam Cooper only just back from injury it’s highly likely that the Swiss defender will be starting at centre-back, and the Owls striker could have a field day against him.

Garry Monk turned Leeds over twice last season while he was Birmingham manager, and a big part of his gameplan was to utilise the aerial strengths of Lukas Jutkiewicz.

The Blues striker won a staggering 24 aerial duels across the two games he played against United last term, and Monk has another aerial monster at his disposal for this weekend.

Fletcher not only has a significant height advantage over Berardi, but he also wins more headers per 90 than the centre-back does.

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The 31-year-old is in for a busy afternoon as well as Fletcher gets of 2.5 shots per 90 on average, but those can be counteracted as Berardi manages to block 0.7 shots per game.

Fortunately for Berardi, Fletcher isn’t great at drawing fouls as he is only impeded 1.2 times per game on average, which bodes well for a man who has been sent off eight times for the Whites.

The United defender has to be ready for a bombardment in the air on Saturday, and whether or not he can handle it may well be the deciding factor on whether or not the Whites pick up points against the Owls.

Despite grabbing a goal and putting in one of his finest performances to date, Marcus Rashford found himself on the wrong end of a Graeme Souness tirade after Manchester United’s 1-1 draw against rivals Liverpool.

Souness’ main point of contention is that the 21-year-old, who made his way through United’s academy system, simply doesn’t cut it as a world-class no.9, which is probably a fair assessment given he’s recorded just two goals in open play so far this term.

Two of the four he’s scored in 2019/20 have come from the penalty spot.

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“He’s not the finished article right now,” the former Liverpool manager said. “He’s not scored enough goals in the Premier League to say Man United can hang their hat on him being the man who’s going to take them back. He needs help.”

Neville, on the other hand, is quick to point out the development of Roberto Firmino, Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane as examples of what can happen if a club show some faith in their talent.

United made the decision to not recruit replacements for Inter Milan-bound Alexis Sanchez and Romelu Lukaku in the summer transfer window, opting instead to stick with Daniel James, Anthony Martial and our man in question, Rashford.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side have netted an average 0.72 goals per game in all competitions since they battered Chelsea on the opening day of the season.

Following Sunday’s game, Gary Neville and Souness got into a heated debate over Rashford’s future at Old Trafford…

Poor Solskjaer has to deal with this nightmare debate every time he goes to make a team selection.

Arsenal fans were left fuming after Kieran Tierney was left out of the Arsenal starting XI to play Sheffield United on Monday evening.The summer signing from Celtic has yet to make his Premier League debut following his £25m move to The Emirates.He has, however, played in both the Europa League and the Carabao Cup – against Standard Liege and Nottingham Forest respectively – though Unai Emery opted against utilising him in the clash with Chris Wilder’s men at Bramall Lane.Sead Kolasinac played at left-back instead and fans were disappointed as the Gunners slipped to a disappointing 1-0 defeat, wasting the chance to move third in the table in the process.

Lys Mousset’s solitary goal proved decisive following Nicolas Pepe’s horror miss in the first half.

And supporters were quick to take to Twitter to slam Emery for his team selection.

Take a look at the best of the reaction on social media below!