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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… 

Liverpool will face Bournemouth on Saturday as they look to consolidate their lead at the top of the Premier League. Although there are likely to be several interesting duels during the match, one battle in particular could play a big role in deciding the final outcome.

On the chalkboard

So far this season, the Reds are running away with the Premier League title. They have won 14 of their first 15 games in the league so far, and the other 19 teams in the division must be asking themselves how they can stop Jurgen Klopp and Co from a procession to the trophy.

Tasked next with trying to beat them is Bournemouth. They currently sit in the bottom half of the table, and have won just one in their last six. Eddie Howe’s men will be hoping they can cause their opponents some problems at the Vitality Stadium.

In this clash, there is one match-up that could have a telling impact on the end result.

Different attributes must come to the fore

Trent Alexander-Arnold has been fantastic going forward once again this term. To add to the 12 assists he picked up in the top flight alone in 2018/19, he already has six this term as well and we are not even halfway through the season. He was recently called Liverpool’s most creative player, and was even compared to Kevin De Bruyne by Reds legend Jamie Carragher (both as per ViaSport via Goal.com). It isn’t hard to see why.

However, questions have been asked over his defensive ability (Sky Sports via The Daily Mail). He has looked suspect at certain times, such as against Genk in the Champions League when he failed to mark Mbwana Samatta correctly, giving away a silly corner that led to the Belgian side scoring. He has been dribbled past 1.1 times per match, as well, which is the second-most amongst his teammates.

Diego Rico is likely to be facing him this weekend, taking up his position at left-back just like he has done in all but three matches in the league so far this term. The £6.3m-valued 26-year-old – as per Transfermarkt – has two assists, which has only been beaten by Ryan Fraser, but he also has the most key passes with 1.6 per match. With 1.9 crosses per game, he is clearly ahead of the other players to have played for the Cherries up until now this term. Defensively, too, he has done well, picking up two tackles per match as well as 3.2 interceptions.

He has been dribbled past one time per game, which does give the 21-year-old Liverpool star hope in attack, but he will need to concentrate on his defensive duties more than he has done in the past. Bournemouth like to attack down the left flank – 42% of their attacks have come there compared to just 35% down the right – so Alexander-Arnold should expect to be busy.

As good as Mohamed Salah is going forward, as his nine goals already in all competitions indicate, his 0.5 tackles per match show that he will not be much help in defence. If they want to keep this unbeaten run going, Rico must be kept quiet.

Liverpool will play Watford on Saturday as they look to consolidate their place at the top of the Premier League table.

As it stands, the Reds are currently eight points clear of Leicester City, and a further six ahead of champions Manchester City. A win against the Hornets would mean they have picked up maximum points in 25 of their last 26 league matches.

Can you name the result these iconic Liverpool images belong to? Give it a go now…

This, of course, will be their last fixture before they depart for the Club World Cup in Qatar. With the entirety of the first-team squad to travel to the Middle East, we are likely to see a heavily-rotated XI against the division’s bottom side.

Here, we try to predict Jurgen Klopp’s starting XI.

In goal, Alisson should remain. Given he is a goalkeeper, and he has already missed a number of games this campaign due to injury and suspension, there is no need to give him a rest.

At right-back, Trent Alexander-Arnold is likely to keep his place in the team. Had Dejan Lovren not injured his hamstring against Salzburg in the Champions League on Tuesday, the 21-year-old may have been able to rest, but Joe Gomez will now be needed at centre-back. Alongside the former Charlton man, Virgil van Dijk should start once again, but there could be a change at left-back. Andrew Robertson may be given a rest, which would see James Milner come into the side. With no natural back-up option, he is the best bet.

In the middle of the park, we could see two changes. Adam Lallana may take up a defensive midfield role that he has already played in this term, whilst Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain could start after scoring against Bournemouth. Georginio Wijnaldum is likely to stay in the side.

Up front, expect Divock Origi and Xherdan Shaqiri to be included. They both started against Everton, and scored three between them, so Klopp will be not be worried about giving the them the responsibility of starting here. On the left flank, Sadio Mane should be the man to be included. With 13 goals and eight assists in 24 matches this season, he has arguably been the Merseyside team’s best player this term. Although they could win this game without him, Klopp will likely want to keep him in the XI just for it to be slightly more comfortable.

In other news, Liverpool fans don’t want the club to sign this superstar.

Wolverhampton Wanderers are gearing up for a busy winter.

They’ll do battle with old foes Norwich City this weekend before hosting the defending Premier League champions Manchester City the day after Boxing Day, and then there’s the small matter of Liverpool less than 48 hours later.

The west Midlanders are also expected to be active in the transfer market as manager Nuno Santo revealed that he very much intends to bolster his squad in January, although he wouldn’t say too much on who or what position.

BirminghamLive claimed that the club were primarily after central options in defence and midfield, and that could well be the case looking at who they have been linked with since the summer.

One name that just won’t go away is Spanish playmaker Dani Olmo, who plies his trade in Croatia for Dinamo Zagreb.

Watch Wolves vs Man City Live and Free with Amazon Prime on December 27th

According to Sportske Novosti, Wolves sent scouts to watch the 21-year-old in action when Manchester City welcomed his side in the Champions League last week.

Olmo delivered by scoring Zagreb’s only goal in their 4-1 defeat at the Etihad Stadium, a happy hunting ground for the old gold having won there earlier in the season.

The attacking midfielder has scored seven and also assisted seven in 21 appearances in all competitions this campaign, per Transfermarkt, making him seem like a very worthy transfer target.

Although it remains to be seen whether or not a bid will come in for the former Barcelona man, his arrival would lump major uncertainty over the future of home-grown prospect Morgan Gibbs-White.

The 19-year-old academy graduate has barely featured this season and is currently out through injury. His return could coincide with any midfield addition next month, meaning his chances of earning game time under Nuno get even slimmer.

Calling all Premier League experts: Who do these unique statistics belong to? Find out below….

A loan move could soon become the only way to revive his career at Molineux – he’s made just one start in the top-flight this campaign, and despite playing an advanced role, he’s only ever got on the scoresheet once in his entire Wolves career.

That really puts things into perspective considering Olmo, who is rated at £27m by Transfermarkt, has bettered that sevenfold.

Gibbs-White will surely be worried about how January will pan out.

Meanwhile, Kevin Thelwell’s warning shouldn’t deter them from going for glory in the Europa League this season…

After the signing of Bruno Fernandes from Sporting CP in the January transfer window, Manchester United embarked on a stellar run of form before football was postponed.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side remained unbeaten across all competitions after the arrival of the Portugal international, and things are beginning to look up for the Red Devils as the Premier League returns later this month.

But whilst their attentions will be firmly on whether they can book a place in next season’s Champions League, the likes of Ed Woodward and co will also be keeping one eye on potential summer signings.

Can you name every one of United’s top goalscorers from the past 15 seasons? It’s a tricky one…

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And with reports in recent days suggesting that United are monitoring both Jack Grealish and Kai Havertz ahead of a move, the Manchester side will have to make a big decision on who they should prioritise.

But whilst Havertz has enjoyed a stunning few games since the return of the Bundesliga – he has bagged five goals in four games – Grealish is the one who Woodward should firmly be fixed on signing for United this summer.

The Aston Villa captain has been in inspired form throughout the campaign, and is trying to drag his boyhood side away from relegation back to the Championship this season.

In just 26 Premier League games, he has managed seven goals and six assists, including scoring a wonder strike at Old Trafford to claim a 2-2 draw back in December.

His form has even led to former Villa man Gabriel Agbonlahor insisting that Grealish would “walk” into the United side, whilst United’s own icon Gary Neville similarly waxed lyrical about him after a particularly impressive performance against Newcastle. He said: “Grealish is a talisman and tonight was a good night for him. They love him. I’m really impressed with him, he wanted the ball all the time. He looked like he ran the game tonight.”

And with the 24-year-old already Premier League-proven, there would be no real concern as to whether he could hit the ground running at Old Trafford, unlike Havertz. Whilst the German is about four years younger, moving from a different country and league poses its own challenges, regardless of ability.

Grealish would be more of a guarantee than the Leverkusen starlet, and what with him already being Villa captain, seems to have the mentality to lead and thrive at a demanding environment like United.

Arsenal legend Dennis Bergkamp spoke exclusively to the north London club’s Lockdown podcast (via Arsenal.com) when he was asked about how Robin Van Persie was perceived before signing for the Gunners for £4.05 million form Dutch club Feyenoord back on July 1st 2004, as per Transfermarkt.

Speaking about the former Manchester United and Netherlands international striker, Bergkamp said on the podcast:

“With Robin van Persie, he had some problems in Holland with his old team but as soon as he came there was a connection. The image he had in Holland was that he was very arrogant, that he was the sort of player who had the wrong attitude, but as soon as he came he had a lot of respect for us. 

“He started training sessions and he didn’t have a big mouth; he was learning, asking questions, my wife got on with his wife, slowly you build a relationship. It was mainly on the pitch, I was trying to lead by example and he mentioned a few times that he was learning from that. 

“Off the pitch as well, we had a few talks about certain things, about the Dutch national team and that sort of stuff, where he could learn from. I enjoyed just sharing my experience in those situations.”

It is perhaps surprising to hear how negatively perceived Van Persie was back in his home country, especially from his own club, to which he scored a total of 21 goals and made a relatively impressive 10 assists for a striker in 76 appearances in all competitions across three consecutive seasons before he joined, as per Transfermarkt.

Being a fellow Dutchman and playing in a similar position, perhaps it is unsurprising to hear that Bergkamp and Van Persie got on so well both on and off the pitch, and it seems as if the latter took it in his stride to learn from him based off of the numbers that he produced for AFC.

The 36-year old had managed to score a rather impressive 132 times and produce 56 assists in 278 games in all competitions across eight consecutive campaigns (via Transfermarkt).

Van Persie also managed to win the FA Cup with Arsenal in his debut term in 2005, whilst also winning the Community Shield in the same year and the year before, as he also picked up the north London club’s player of the year award in his final season as captain before signing for Sir Alex Ferguson’s Man United before the 2012/13 campaign.

RVP may not have been remembered fondly due to this transfer, but he certainly served the Gunners well.

Gooners, what is your best memory of Van Persie? Comment below!

Burnley manager Sean Dyche has urged caution with the use of academy players in the club’s remaining Premier League fixtures.

With the Clarets’ squad decimated by injuries and players out of contract, he was unable to pick the full complement of nine substitutes for Monday’s game at Manchester City, with the bench mostly consisting of youngsters who had never played a first team match.

Max Thompson did make his debut with a brief appearance towards the end of the 5-0 defeat, while Dyche indicated in yesterday’s press conference that he, Bobby Thomas and Mace Goodridge could all make the squad for this evening’s clash against Watford.

However, the manager does not want to throw them in at the deep end too early, saying: “They’re not ready yet. They’re good young pros who want to make good careers, but they haven’t had the relative experience yet.

“That’s why we’ve been stretched, because the chairman wants me to introduce the young players in and integrate them, but we don’t want to rush them in.” [via Lancashire Live]

Dyche has the Premier League’s second smallest and second oldest squad, with his 24-man group boasting an average age of 29.3 – only Crystal Palace have a smaller and older squad in the division. [via TransferMarkt]

Burnley’s bench against Manchester City consisted of goalkeepers Bailey Peacock-Farrell and Lukas Jensen, Jimmy Dunne (none of whom has played for their first team), Erik Pieters, Kevin Long (who has played just two league minutes in 2019/20), Thompson (who came on for his senior debut) and Thomas (who has never played at senior level).

That septet of substitutes starkly reflected just how stretched Dyche’s options were and, although Phil Bardsley has since agreed a new deal at the club while Ashley Barnes, Chris Wood, Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Robbie Brady could all return from injury, the manager is indeed working off a threadbare group of players compared to other Premier League clubs.

Dyche’s reluctance to throw raw youngsters like Thompson and Thomas up against seasoned Premier League professionals is understandable, given their complete lack of senior experience at any grade, never mind the top flight.

However, it is worth remembering that a teenage Dwight McNeil was thrust into the Burnley team against West Ham last season and responded with an eye-catching, goal-scoring display (as per BBC), subsequently going on to establish himself as a first team regular.

His example shows that players from the Clarets’ academy can thrive at this level and, with the club free of any realistic relegation threat, now seems a better time than ever to blend in some of the talented youngsters with their more experienced counterparts to get them acclimatised to Premier League football in a relatively pressure-free setting.

Burnley fans, do you want to see more of youngsters like Thompson getting first team minutes between now and the end of the season, or is Dyche right to be cautious with them? Have your say by commenting below!

Just days after a momentous victory in the north London derby against Arsenal, Tottenham headed to St James’ Park and got the job done in their clash against Newcastle.

With only a couple of games left in the season, Jose Mourinho’s side have appeared to hit form at just the right time, and know that a 100% record from here on out could see them clinch European football for the next campaign.

One man who certainly showed signs of stepping his game up in the game against Newcastle on Wednesday night, was Giovani Lo Celso.

Is it Mido or Pedro Mendes? This Spurs quiz will separate the loyal from the fake…

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And following Mourinho’s worrying update on Tanguy Ndombele, it’s perhaps become even more imperative that the Argentine really kicks on.

Speaking after his side’s 3-1 victory over the Magpies, the Spurs boss said: “I know that Ndombele will not help us because his injury will keep him out for the next two matches”.

It means the Lilywhites will be without a midfielder, who for all his troubles, has shown himself to be one of the more creative and crafty players in the squad, particularly for a player in his position – as per Whoscored, he has averaged 1.8 dribbles per game in the top-flight, scoring twice and setting up two more as well.

On the other hand, Lo Celso, whilst a first-team regular under both Mauricio Pochettino and Mourinho, hasn’t had the kind of same impact in terms of goal contributions.

Barring his assist for Heung-min Son against Newcastle, the Argentina international had only provided one other Premier League assist, and is still yet to score in the division too.

The £36m-rated star must take on more of the creative workload at Spurs now that Mourinho doesn’t have Ndombele to call upon even if he wanted to, and there were signs of him doing just that against Steve Bruce’s side.

As per Sofascore, he completed both of his attempted dribbles, had 61 touches of the ball, made 37 successful passes out of 39, and provided two key passes too.

With Leicester and Crystal Palace to come, Spurs will need Lo Celso’s creativity more than ever. Otherwise, they face risk undoing all the hard work they have put in, especially in these last two games.

Liverpool look set to part ways with Harry Wilson this summer after offering him on the market amid heavy interest. 

According to The Mirror’s David Anderson, the Reds are hoping to cash in on the winger in order to help raise funds for their own transfer business. A £20m price tag has been revealed and the likes of Leeds, Crystal Palace, Southampton and Newcastle are all reportedly interested in his services.

The Welshman is looking to play regular first team football, which is something Liverpool simply cannot offer with Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane untouchable on the wings.

Wilson enjoyed a solid 2019/20 season on loan in the Premier League withBournemouth despite their relegation. The winger contributed seven goals for the Cherries and will be hoping that his performances will prompt another club to come in for him.

Many Liverpool fans have responded to this news and are in agreement that Wilson’s time at Anfield has come to an end. One supporter has said that he is taking one for the team by ‘contributing to the Thiago fund’. Indeed, if the Reds can pocket £20m, they will be closer to meeting Bayern Munich’s asking price of €30m (£26.9.m) for top transfer target Thiago Alcantara.

Read more replies from the Anfield faithful here:

Do you think Liverpool should keep or sell Harry Wilson? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…

A number of Liverpool fans have hailed Kevin De Bruyne as a deserving winner of the Premier League Player of the Season.

Sky Sports reported that the 29-year-old Manchester City midfielder had scooped the prize ahead of Reds trio Jordan Henderson, Sadio Mane and Trent Alexander-Arnold, who had also been shortlisted, despite Pep Guardiola’s side finishing 18 points adrift of the champions in 2019/20.

De Bruyne registered a mammoth 20 assists in the league last season, seven more than the next highest player on the list (Alexander-Arnold, as per premierleague.com), as well as netting 13 goals in the division, including one against Liverpool in Man City’s 4-0 win at the start of July.

In 2017/18, when the Etihad Stadium outfit romped to the Premier League title with a 100-point haul, Reds winger Mohamed Salah was named Player of the Season after a 44-goal campaign which included 32 in the English top flight.

These Liverpool fans on Twitter felt that the “outstanding” De Bruyne “has been immense” for City and was a worthy winner of the individual accolade, with some Reds critical of a report in Manchester Evening News which claimed that Kopites were fuming over the Belgian’s recognition:

Liverpool fans, do you think De Bruyne deserved to get Player of the Season? Comment below with your views!

Tottenham Hotspur have ‘intensified’ their efforts to sign Inter Milan defender Milan Skriniar this summer, according to reports. 

Tanguy Ndombele continues to be linked to some of the biggest clubs in Europe but Tottenham have no intention of selling the club’s record signing any time soon, despite reported interest from Inter. It is understood that any potential transfer will be treated separately.

According to Tuttosport, as cited by Football.London, Spurs have stepped up their efforts to sign Skriniar in the summer.

The 31-cap Slovakian international has been a colossus at the back for Antonio Conte’s side this season, supplying two assists in the Serie A, making 1.2 tackles and 2.6 clearances on average per game (via WhoScored).

FCInterNews claimed, as relayed by Ricky Sacks, that Tottenham will try to convince the centre-back to move to north London before the transfer window closes in October.

Jose Mourinho rates Skriniar highly as the Portuguese seeks to strengthen his defence this summer and Inter will allow the 25-year-old to leave as long as Conte can find a suitable replacement.

The Lilywhites have already been linked with a number of centre-backs including Atletico Madrid’s Stefan Savic and Norwich City captain Ben Godfrey. However, Mourinho needs to fill the void left by former Spurs star Jan Vertonghen and Skriniar is a player who can get the job done, as indicated by his 2019/20 statistics.

Standing at 1,88m tall, the Slovakian is an imposing figure who commits himself to a tackle, with strong levels of concentration and the ability to spray passes left and right.

Conte has given the green light to let Skriniar leave the San Siro which is a bit of a surprise as he has been in brilliant form this season. However, Daniel Levy must take full advantage of the situation or face a bidding war for the defender, who is in hot demand in the summer transfer window.

Tottenham fans, do you think Levy should sign Skriniar this summer? Let us know your views in the comments below!