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Some Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter to react after Declan Rice defended Wilfried Zaha from spitting allegations while speaking to The Mirror.Zaha was forced to take to his Instagram to dispute claims that he had spat at Rice in the Eagles’ 2-1 win over West Ham in September, after he was barged off the ball by the West Ham academy graduate.

In truth, it simply looks as if the Ivorian spits at the floor innocently while disputing a refereeing decision, with no intention to aim it at Rice – the England international was a number of yards away from Zaha at the time, anyway.

Rice said: “Some fans said Wilfried spat at me but I didn’t see anything. I have seen clips of it and it looks like he just he just spat on the floor, so I agree with Zaha that nothing happened. He really didn’t do anything.â€

A few Palace supporters below respect the 20-year-old’s decision to come out and defend a fellow professional, while a couple of others took the opportunity to use Rice’s quotes as reason to keep the West Ham faithful quiet.

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

Loads of Tottenham Hotspur fans on Twitter have hailed Brighton and Hove Albion defender Lewis Dunk following his display against them at the weekend, with many suggesting the north London outfit should sign the 27-year-old.

It was another dreadful defensive display by Spurs at the Amex Stadium just days after they conceded seven at home to Bayern Munich, which certainly left question marks over their defence.

Of course, the contracts of the centre-backs that started against the Seagulls – Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen – both expire in the summer, and as of yet there has been no progress in terms of either committing their futures to the club, although The Daily Mail report that talks are taking place with the latter.

What has gone wrong at Tottenham Hotspur? Spurs fan George Achillea attempts to make sense of it all in the video below…

That said, they are apprehensive about offering the 32-year-old more than an extra 12 months, and should Spurs lose the Belgian duo they will likely need to strengthen their defensive options.

It appears supporters were impressed with what they saw from Dunk as he marshalled Harry Kane well in a 3-0 victory, and if Tottenham did sign him he could very well proive to be a reaplacement for Vertonghen or Alderweireld if they do go.

While one labelled him as “a leader”, another said the centre-back “would be a great signing for us”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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…

Real Madrid had a mixed season so far in their 2019/20 campaign.

After quite a rocky start Los Blancos finally gathered some pace and managed to propel themselves to the top of La Liga, where they’re currently enjoying the view from the summit.

But things are not looking as rosy in Europe.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

After two fixtures played, Real Madrid have a 3-0 defeat against Paris Saint-Germain and a 2-2 draw against Club Brugge at the Santiago Bernabeu under their belts.

By all means, not really a dreamy start.

For that reason, and especially with the recent injury to one of their talismans, Toni Kroos, Zinedine Zidane will need a new leader to give the Galacticos a little push.

The German midfielder has been doing exactly that with his recent performances, dropping masterclasses left, right and centre, but now, in his absence, Luka Modric might have to step up.

Watch Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale answer the internet’s weirdest questions in the video below…

His recent display for his national team, however, might prove he is definitely up for the task.

The 34-year-old veteran scored one of the goals for Croatia against Hungary but did a lot more than just that. He also tallied two key passes, 93 touches on the night and five accurate long balls while maintaining 91% passing accuracy as a whole.

This should prove to Zidane that Modric has still got it and should not be discarded just yet.

Of course, with recent whispers of Real Madrid potentially going for Christian Eriksen in the near future, the Croat’s position and role in the team might come under threat.

But if performances like the one against Hungary are any indication, then Modric should still surely have a part to play in the upcoming campaign.

He is, however, already 34 and the question of his longevity on the pitch should be brought up sooner rather than later.

Let’s see how long Real Madrid feel their midfield talisman can keep going.

Only time will tell.

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…

Arsenal’s second-highest scorer in history, Ian Wright, questioned why Unai Emery did not start Mesut Ozil or Dani Ceballos against Manchester United on Monday whilst covering the match for Optus Sport.

What did he say?

The Gunners faced the Red Devils earlier this week at Old Trafford in what was a rather dour game played out by two of the Premier League’s fallen giants. In the end, the match ended as a 1-1 draw.

Watch the Flying Pig tear into Ole Gunnar Solskjaer and Jesse Lingard following Man Utd’s limp draw with Arsenal in the video below…

In midfield, Emery chose to go with three defensively-minded players in Granit Xhaka, Lucas Torreira and Matteo Guendouzi. Wright, it seems, did not agree with this gameplan, saying at half-time: “In respects to the selection, you look at it now, yes, no Ozil, no Ceballos, creative midfield players.

“No one to really get the ball and control the game from an Arsenal perspective so Arsenal can get on the ball and maybe get their players into it.

“Everything is on the actual counter-attack so its going to be interesting to see what he does because at the moment it looks like we’re just waiting for something to happen and then give it to our top man Aubameyang to nick a goal and I don’t think it’s a good enough tactic.”

Too negative from Emery

It is baffling as to why the former Sevilla boss chose to start with that trio in the middle of the park. First and foremost, they are all similar types of players. Their best play comes facing their own goal rather than attacking the opponents’ net. Between them, they have a combined total of 15 goals and 25 assists in 254 appearances for the north London outfit (Torreira: 3G and 5A in 58; Guendouzi: 1G and 4A in 55; Xhaka: 11G and 16A in 141).

Against Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side, there was no need to play so pragmatically. In the last two games before this fixture, the 20-time English champions had lost 2-0 against West Ham and were taken to penalties by Rochdale. They were clearly a side low on confidence, and were there for the taking.

Watch Arsenal Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Ceballos and Ozil would have both added some extra attacking quality to the team, and that could have seen the Gunners edge proceedings. The former already has two assists since joining in the summer, whilst the latter, with 52 goals created in the Premier League for Arsenal, is in the top 40 on the all-time list.

The plan could still have been for Aubameyang to nick a goal, but he would have at least had more service in his attempts to do so. Wright’s theory of Ceballos and Ozil making the side more dangerous was eventually proven, even if not directly by either player.

The 23-year-old came on with 55 minutes on the clock, and within 200 seconds the Gunners were level through the Gabon international. Ceballos’ sheer presence and offensive intent alone seemed to create a few extra problems for United’s backline.

This should be a lesson for Emery. When a side is there for the taking and is in the midst of a poor run of form, they need to be put under pressure from the start. In this case, the 47-year-old showed too much respect, and that is something he must avoid in the future.

Rangers host Feyenoord tonight in the Europa League in what will be an emotional atmosphere following the passing of former Rangers skipper Fernando Ricksen after a long battle against Motor Neurone Disease. But how will the Gers line up at Ibrox?

Steven Gerrard has sprung selection surprises before – Jermain Defoe picked ahead of Alfredo Morelos for the Celtic clash being the most recent – and could well do so again against a Feyenoord team currently sitting a lowly seventh in the Dutch Eredivisie.

There are four areas where he is likely to make changes from the weekend – left-back, centre-half, midfield and in attack – but we anticipate these will be done through just three switches in personnel.

Borna Barisic could replace Andy Halliday at left-back. Halliday has been poor this season, no more so than against East Fife, and isn’t a natural defender by trade anyway – so it makes sense for Barisic to come back into the side.

Filip Helander could also beat Niko Katic to a place at centre-half. Football Insider reports that Katic is facing the axe after coming under fire from Connor Goldson against Livingston and considering Helander’s experience with 84 Serie A appearances under his belt, the summer signing could be a crucial asset on the European stage.

With Ryan Jack’s availability still unclear, we’re tipping Glen Kamara to join Steven Davis to protect the defence, pushing Scott Arfield into a more advanced position where he can support the front-line. He notched up 12 goals and seven assists for Rangers last season, albeit just one strike coming in the Europa League.

That also solves the issue of Ryan Kent’s injury, with Arfield essentially taking his spot as part of the Rangers attack.

Overall then, three personnel changes are anticipated for tonight’s game.

West Ham are back in action this afternoon as they look to return to winning ways in the Premier League.

David Moyes and his squad head to his old stomping ground, Goodison Park, to face an in-form Everton side who are above them in the standings.

Right before the international break, the Irons suffered only their second defeat of the 2021/22 campaign, losing late to newly-promoted Brentford at the London Stadium.

It leaves the Hammers in tenth place, though a victory up in Merseyside could see Moyes’ men overtake the Toffees, who currently occupy a spot in the top six.

There are plenty of selection headaches facing the Scotsman, however. He hinted at injury troubles in his pre-game press conference and it remains to be seen how fatigued some of his players are after the break, with many out serving their respective countries.

The starting XI that tasted an agonising defeat to the Bees is the manager’s usual team but with only one clean sheet in seven outings, perhaps it is time to tweak the backline.

Kurt Zouma should remain but maybe Moyes could opt for his fellow countryman, Issa Diop, over the vastly-experienced Angelo Ogbonna, who was amongst West Ham’s lowest-rated players (6.4) against Brentford.

The French duo struck up a very good partnership in their win over Dinamo Zagreb in the Europa League, whilst his three 90 minute appearances this campaign have coincided with three clean sheets.

In recent seasons, he has struggled for game time, particularly under Moyes but Diop looks a different animal and it could be time to trust him in the Premier League.

He’s certainly going to outlast the likes of Craig Dawson and Ogbonna, who are in the thirties.

Valued at £13.5m by Transfermarkt, the 24-year-old beast was described as a “colossus” for his part in their Carabao Cup win over Manchester United by assistant manager Stuart Pearce, echoing the thoughts of Jose Mourinho, who once dubbed him a “monster” for a similar performance against the very same team in 2018.

At Old Trafford, the 6 foot 4 star recorded two tackles, three interceptions and two aerial duels won, via WhoScored, proving to be an absolute rock up against Jadon Sancho, Anthony Martial and last season’s loan sensation Jesse Lingard.

The Toffees are not only in-form but on their day, they have a lethal frontline, including England international Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who has bagged 19 goals in 36 league games since the start of last season, and Richarlison among others.

Diop’s aerial and physical ability could be exactly what Moyes needs to help secure a clean sheet against his former side, so on the above evidence, it would be a wise decision to unleash Diop from the off today.

AND in other news, David Moyes drops worrying West Ham injury claim ahead of Everton clash…

West Ham face Manchester United for the second time this week as they begin their Carabao Cup campaign this evening.

David Moyes takes his side to his former stomping ground for the third-round clash at Old Trafford and he is left with plenty to think about in terms of team selection, with fixtures aplenty in the coming weeks.

The Irons will return to Premier League action on Saturday, when they return to the north to face Leeds United, before hosting the first-ever Europa League group stage game at the London Stadium in just over seven days time.

United will be the more confident of the two sides heading into this clash, having defeated the Hammers 2-1 on Sunday afternoon, though it came close to being a different story as club captain Mark Noble missed a last-minute penalty to salvage a point.

But what sort of side could we see from Moyes tonight? Here’s what Football FanCast are predicting…

Both the Premier League and the Europa League should take priority for the east Londoners, so it would not be a surprise to see some form of rotation in Manchester today.

There could be as many as eight changes as Moyes weighs up the return of Michail Antonio. We’re expecting the 58-year-old to keep his leading talisman fresh for the test of Leeds this weekend in what is a massive call, so Jarrod Bowen may well lead the line once again.

He, along with Pablo Fornals and Said Benrahma, are the only players to remain from Sunday’s defeat.

We could see two further debuts for the Hammers’ summer signings, with Paris Saint-Germain loanee Alphonse Areola coming in for veteran Lukasz Fabianksi between the sticks, and he may have a new back four in front of him.

The likes of Aaron Cresswell, Kurt Zouma, Angelo Ogobonna and Vladimir Coufal should be rested alongside Antonio, meaning Arthur Masuaku and Ryan Fredericks take up the full-back positions with the vastly-experienced Craig Dawson partnering Issa Diop, who impressed in Croatia last week, in the middle.

Whilst two of West Ham’s Czech stars aren’t likely to feature, new arrival Alex Kral could make his first bow for the club, partnering Noble in the middle, handing both Tomas Soucek and Declan Rice a well-earned rest.

They could be joined by Manuel Lanzini in a three-man engine room.

Predicted Hammers XI vs United (4-2-3-1): Areola; Masuaku, Diop, Dawson, Fredericks; Kral, Noble (c), Lanzini, Benrahma, Fornals; Bowen.

AND in other news, Moyes must unleash “exceptional” West Ham titan tonight, could be big in the long run…

Flocking to Twitter, many West Ham United fans have slammed the performance of winger Andriy Yarmolenko despite their team cruising to a comfortable 2-0 win at home to Rapid Vienna last night.

David Moyes’ men maintained their 100% start to the Europa League season with a routine victory at the London Stadium and remain top of Group H as a result.

[web_stories_embed url=”https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/web-stories/west-ham-developments/” title=”West Ham developments!” poster=”” width=”360″ height=”600″ align=”none”]

West Ham immediately took control of the contest and it took just under half an hour for them to open the scoring, with Declan Rice tucking away a close-range opportunity for 1-0.

The Irons had more chances to finish off Rapid Vienna, most notably Jarrod Bowen’s squandered opportunity, but it was Said Benrahma who eventually capped off a memorable night with his neat little finish in added time.

However, despite the fantastic result and performance overall, many fans couldn’t help but notice another off-day for Yarmolenko regardless of his involvement in the build-up to Rice’s goal.

Indeed, barring the sumptuous pass to Michail Antonio in that passage of play, it appears that the Ukraine international didn’t impress. Hauled off after 76 minutes, he completed zero successful crosses, had no shots on goal and touched the ball just 33 times according to SofaScore.

Here’s how some West Ham fans reacted to his “pathetic” display, and it’s safe to say many aren’t impressed, with one even describing him as “useless”.

West Ham fans slam Yarmolenko…

“Defence was solid. I’m actually a fan of Vlasic, I do think he needs to do more to really prove himself but I think he looks promising. Yarmolenko should be a customer service rep, not a footballer for West Ham United”

Credit: @WHUFCBilly

“I was stunned by how bad Yarmolenko was. We played with 10 men while he was on the pitch. And I felt very sorry for Ben Johnson. He had little protection from Yarmo the whole game. In fact I don’t want to see him play for our club again.”

Credit: @Kennycandb

“Yarmolenko wouldn’t get into my Sunday league team”

Credit: @WhufcFc1

“I try and try and try to support Yarmolenko, but he is kinda useless.”

Credit: @CouchPotatoUK

“Yarmolenko is actually so bad”

Credit: @MuseTheHammer

“Pathetic display from Yarmolenko yet again”

Credit: @CzechHam

“Yarmolenko absolutely nicking a living”

Credit: @AndyyWest

“I really hope we can find a buyer for Yarmolenko in January. He’s just not good value for money”

Credit: @Aandysilve1

In other news: West Ham source: GSB set sights on signing ‘outstanding’ star for Moyes, talks already held! Find out more here.

The Birmingham Mail’s Ashley Preece has dropped an exciting claim about Aston Villa starlet Jacob Ramsey.

What’s the story?

With 22 appearances to his name in the Premier League last season, the 20-year-old enjoyed a real breakthrough campaign at Villa Park, establishing himself as a key part of Dean Smith’s first-team squad.

Preece has now suggested that the midfielder’s emergence onto the scene could have ramifications in the way they approach the transfer market, saying: “I think Jacob Ramsey could save Villa a fortune. I did note down in pre-season that he looked much bigger in stature, he’s really a size now like a boxer. Glided past Chelsea at the Bridge, and that will build his confidence. He can go to Stamford Bridge and give Saul the runaround like he did, and that will bode well.

“He backed up his Newcastle performance with another one at Chelsea, and let’s see what he can do this season. A really good start for Ramsey. He could save Villa millions.”

Villa fans will be buzzing

As Preece says, Ramsey does appear to have filled out a bit more since playing for the club last season, much like another talented young starlet in Carney Chukwuemeka.

It was quite telling that, earlier this season, Preece admitted that while Villa would look at the potential option of loaning Ramsey out, his own prediction was that he would stay in the Midlands.

He said: “Villa will look at both options. Smith rates him highly. It was his first year playing PL football last season, let’s not forget that and he’ll be much better now for 21/22. I think he’ll stay and will look to improve considerably once again.”

With his ability to play as a number ten, deeper as a central midfielder, and even out wide on the right, the 20-year-old’s versatility is a very useful tool for Smith.

It’s been telling that the Villa manager has been more than happy to throw Ramsey into the deep end in difficult circumstances against the Premier League’s top teams like he did against the Champions League winners last week.

Lots of Villa fans have already voiced their delight about Ramsey when he signed his new contract earlier this year, and this latest claim about how he could save the club “millions” is sure to have them buzzing even more at the prospect of him developing into a top-class star at Villa Park.

Meanwhile, Villa must try and sign this star in January…

Reliable reporter Kieran Devlin has revealed Celtic didn’t make an enquiry over former St Johnstone man Ali McCann this summer.

The Lowdown: Hoops links, Preston move

McCann was linked with a late switch to Parkhead, however, a £3m asking price for the 21-year-old seemingly put the Hoops off.

The central midfielder was on the move on deadline day, though, joining Championship side Preston North End on a four-year deal.

Reports suggested a £1.2m fee was agreed on between Dominic McKay and the Saints, and it appears as if Celtic were never in for McCann after all.

The Latest: Devlin claim

Devlin, Celtic’s correspondent for The Athletic, shared a story on Wednesday looking at the Hoops’ summer business.

He replied to a subscriber in the comments section who labelled it ‘bizarre’ for Celtic not to move for McCann, with Devlin making a 10-word claim, believing the Hoops and CEO McKay never asked the question.

“Club didn’t enquire about him as far as I know.”

The Verdict: A missed opportunity?

McCann made close to 100 appearances for St Johnstone, and at the age of 21, could have been a shrewd signing by the Hoops for a relatively low fee.

He picked up The Athletic’s SPFL Young Player of the Year Award last season and helped his side win both cup competitions during the 2020/21 campaign.

Celtic have had success in picking up a young Scottish midfielder in David Turnbull, so they may have missed a trick when it comes to McCann, especially with James McCarthy and youngster Liam Shaw being the club’s only additions in that department this summer.

In other news: Another Celtic summer signing, as well as Urhoghide, isn’t impressing under Ange, says Devlin.