New Southampton manager Mark Hughes is reportedly eyeing a summer move for Stoke City midfielder Joe Allen if the club secure their Premier League status and he stays on at St Mary’s this summer, and Saints fans have been quick to react to the rumour.
Hughes got off to a positive start in his first match in charge of the club on Sunday as his team beat Wigan Athletic 2-0 to reach the semi-finals of the FA Cup, and it appears as though he is already making plans for next season even though his current deal is due to run out at the end of the campaign.
The 54-year-old boss brought Allen to the Britannia Stadium from Liverpool when he was in charge of the Potters in 2016, and now it appears as though he believes the 40-cap Wales international can improve the south coast outfit, too.
Southampton supporters have been quick to have their say on the link via social media, and while one said he “could be Davis’ long-term replacement”, another said “what’s not to like…?”
Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…
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According to The Sun, Everton and Bournemouth are targeting Egyptian 23-year-old winger Mahmoud Hassan this summer.
What’s the story?
Hassan is currently on loan at Turkish side Kasimpasa from Anderlecht. He is expected to feature for Egypt at the World Cup in Russia this summer.
Galatasaray are also monitoring the wingers situation, who has netted 12 times and got three assists this season in Turkey.
The Sun are reporting that he will enter the final year of his contract this summer and the player has no desire to return to Belgium. He will be hoping to make a big impact in Russia and seal a dream move to England.
What impact would Hassan have in the Premier League?
The winger has stared in a struggling team in Turkey. Last summer he was heavily linked with Liverpool but that just proved to be rumours.
He is a relatively unknown quantity in England but his highly regarded in Egypt and will be an important player alongside Mo Salah in the World Cup for the African nation.
He is a quick, very right-footed and nimble player with an eye for goal and seems to be a threat to defences. One thing both Everton and Bournemouth have struggled with this season is goals.
Everton have been searching for a striker since Romelu Lukaku left and seemed to have found someone in Cenk Tosan.
Sam Allardyce appears to have secured safety for Everton and is looking to bolster his squad for next season. Yannik Bolasie’s return to fitness and the signing of Theo Walcott have given Everton attacking thrust but Big Sam will still feel he needs to add attacking options.
Everton believe Hassan will provide this threat and competition for Walcott and Bolasie. Eddie Howe is also looking to add attacking options.
The Cherries have been heavily reliant on Josh King and Calum Wilson for goals. While they have no shortage of wingers, Junior Stanislas, Ryan Fraser and Jordon Ibe have failed to cement a place in Howe’s team.
Hassan’s pace and skill is exactly what both managers are looking for. As per The Sun’s report, he could cost them less than £2million which is a bargain in today’s market.
However, he is an unknown and unproven quantity. At 23, he should be entering the prime of his career but is yet to establish himself as a household name.
While the fee would not be a risk, buying Hassan might be a gamble and going for someone more proven might be better for the clubs. Dipping into the market and buying players from the club who get relegated might be a shrewder policy.
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Even if he does impress in the World Cup, this is no guarantee that he will perform at club level. The prime example of this is Hal Robson-Kanu, who’s impressive performances for Wales in Euro 2016 caught West Brom’s eye. He has struggled to get the goals and West Brom were forced to go back into the market for a striker.
If he was to choose a Premier League club, Bournemouth will be a better fit. Under Howe, Hassan will be able to play an attacking brand of football which enjoys. Allardyce will inevitably choose defensive stability and will be more inclined to trust players with more Premier League experience.
While Mahmoud Hassan has impressed in Turkey he is yet to justify a move to a Premier League club. But with his low price tag could be a gamble worth taking.
There’s still a lot of football left to be played.
The Premier League title may be done and dusted, but for Liverpool it feels all about the Champions League now – a competition with which they have a mythical relationship. And yet, they certainly cannot forget about the league.
It would be a mistake to think that the top four race is over. Manchester United, perhaps are all but guaranteed a top four spot, but the other three teams in the race for the final two places can’t relax. If Tottenham beat Chelsea on Sunday, that race will likely be over. If the result goes the other way, the battle will continue.
That’s why Liverpool can’t just focus on dumping Manchester City out of the Champions League over the next two weeks: they have to think about their participation in that competition next season, too.
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Next weekend sees the Reds travel to Goodison Park to face Everton in the Merseyside derby in between the two legs of their European quarter final, and this week they travel to Selhurst Park, the scene of arguably Liverpool’s most famous – and most overstated – capitulation.
“Crystanbul” was a collapse by a Liverpool side aiming to win the title, but it’s not where they lost the title. The title was lost days earlier when the Reds lost to Chelsea – throwing away a three goal lead against Palace didn’t cost them the title because a win wasn’t enough: they needed a margin of victory in the double figures to claw back Manchester City’s goal difference lead.
What it did do, however, was give Palace their own myth. It gave them the belief that they could beat Liverpool – something they’ve kept with them: they’re now something of a bogey team.
The Reds have lost four of their last seven Premier League games against the Palace, and this season’s 1-0 victory at Anfield came at the expense of an Eagles side managed by Frank de Boer and in the middle of the worst to a season in Premier League history. Since then, though, we’ve seen how much of a struggle Palace away has been for the top six teams – Arsenal and Manchester United scraped 3-2 wins, whilst Manchester City could only manage a draw thanks to a last-minute penalty save.
The week after an international break is often a strange one. Players come back from the break in a different mindset, they’ve played with different players, and it takes a while to get their head back into the club game again. With one eye understandably fixed on Wednesday night’s Champions League quarter final first leg, Liverpool could be there for the taking by a Palace side who have only one thing to worry about, and that’s getting points to stay in the division.
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There’s still a lot of football to be played in this Premier League season. The battle for the top four isn’t over, and the fight against relegation will likely rumble on into the final weeks. This weekend, both battles at opposite ends of the table will collide. But just after an international break, with one eye on a massive Champions League tie, and travelling to a team which believes it’s Jurgen Klopp’s bogey team, will Liverpool slip up?
Liverpool will be playing in their biggest game of the season this evening as they take on Manchester City in the second leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash at the Etihad Stadium.
At the moment, the Merseyside outfit hold a commanding 3-0 advantage following a blistering first half at Anfield last week.
Mohamed Salah notched up his 38th goal of the campaign, while Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and Sadio Mane also found the back of the net, all within 31 minutes.
City failed to claw themselves back into the game, and due to the lack of away goal, the tie is firmly in Liverpool’s hands.
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However, Pep Guardiola’s side are not soon-to-be Premier League champions for nothing, and they are more than capable of causing an upset at the Etihad this evening.
Many supporters are keen for ex-Liverpool star Raheem Sterling to be the hero, while the Reds’ following are urging their team not to sit back.
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Manager Jurgen Klopp suggested to reporters in his pre-match press conference that his players will not be instructed to defend for 90 minutes, and will instead adopt the attacking flair that they have become synonymous with.
Arsene Wenger’s impending departure from Arsenal allows for ample opportunity to reminisce over his past glories on his extended lap of honour before he leaves the Emirates Stadium next month.There are too many memories from the Frenchman’s Gunners reign to count but one that the club’s fans will never forget is clinching the league title – for a second time – at the home of their bitter rivals Tottenham back in 2004.As the 14-year anniversary of that historic triumph ticked around just a day before Arsenal host Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals of the Europa League, their fans took the opportunity to take a trip down Memory Lane.Some were happy, potentially because the protracted process of unseating Wenger is finally complete, to look back and laud the Frenchman’s achievements, while others found it depressing to see just how different the level of performance was back then, compared with the current team.We’ve taken a closer look at the reaction to one of Wenger’s greatest Arsenal triumphs….
With Manchester United now mathematically assured of a place in next season’s Champions League, attention is beginning to turn to Jose Mourinho’s summer transfer plans and how he plans to reinforce his squad in preparation for a title challenge next time around.
Arguably the most divisive figure in those transfer plans is Marouane Fellaini, valued at £10.8m by Transfermarkt. His contract is due to expire in the summer but Mourinho wants the Belgian to sign a new deal and his late match-winner against Arsenal will have done his hopes no harm at all.
With Michael Carrick set to retire at the end of the season, United may only need one new face in the engine room this summer but their fans would appear to disagree.
We’ve taken a closer look at the reaction as the club’s fans appear to want more midfield improvements in the forthcoming transfer window and are not happy…
Manchester City have plenty of talented players within their squad, and given the fact that they recently lifted the Premier League trophy, it is unlikely that many members will want to leave.
If anything, manager Pep Guardiola is expected to strengthen his squad in an attempt to challenge on all fronts next season.
A story has emerged, though, claiming that the newly-crowned England champions could potentially lose talented youngster Pablo Maffeo.
The 20-year-old, who moved to the Cityzens’ youth academy from Espanyol in 2013, is currently on loan at La Liga side Girona.
The full-back has impressed against frequent Ballon d’Or winners Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo.
Maffeo is yet to get his big break at City, which has prompted other clubs to come sniffing around.
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According to Eurosport, Stuttgart have made a record £7.9m bid for the right-back, and City are yet to decide whether or not to accept the deal.
Judging by the reaction on social media, the fans are keen for Maffeo, who is contracted until 2019, to remain at the club.
Arsenal said goodbye to long-serving manager Arsene Wenger on Sunday, winning 1-0 away to Huddersfield Town in the English Premier League.
On an emotional day for the club, the Frenchman managed to secure one last victory, ending the Gunners’ dire away record in the top-flight since the turn of the year.
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang’s goal in the 38th minute was enough for all three points.
While the win was welcomed by supporters, the performance was a reminder for some that there’s many players in the squad they’d love to get rid of this summer.
One of those is Danny Welbeck, who appeared from the bench to replace the goalscorer in the 67th minute.
He was largely ineffective in his time on the pitch and fans are pretty fed up with him, with plenty looking for the club to perhaps get rid of him this summer, or at least sign an upgrade.
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Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City have smashed all manner of records en route to winning the 2017/18 Premier League title.
One way to look at City’s accomplishments is that the former Barcelona manager has achieved feats within two years that Sir Alex Ferguson was unable to muster in 20 Premier League seasons.
Why has Guardiola been able to etch this City side into the history books in a way Ferguson’s United seldom managed; certainly not breaking so many records – most points, most wins, most goals – all within one campaign?
One argument is that the standard of the Premier League has decreased in recent seasons. This may seem contrary as the top flight’s middle class has never been richer or better stocked with internationals but there is weight in the argument.
Fergie’s United used to win games on aura alone, but so do City, and there is a pragmatism within the top flight now that ensures avoiding a morale-busting thrashing at the hands of Guardiola’s men is seen as something to be proud of.
Many mid-table sides have gone in pursuit of greater flair, which is not exactly conducive to putting up strong resistance in the face of a long afternoon trying to bloody the nose of a rampant side.
However, the overall quality of player has gone up – each team now has players who can cause damage – so it likely runs deeper than that.
There is also an argument to suggest that Ferguson’s style of play left the door open to a greater extent than even Guardiola’s aggressive brand of football does.
One word that former United stalwart Gary Neville mentions constantly when talking about the club’s traditions under Ferguson is ‘risk’.
That left the door open for the odd aberration when the balance between risk, reward and slickness of performance was slightly out, undermining any hopes of churning out a machine-like season in the manner City have produced this time around.
Yet, there is one, more practical reason behind Ferguson’s comparative ‘failing’. City have been able to focus squarely on the Premier League since their elimination from the Champions League at the hands of eventual finalists Liverpool in early April.
In truth, if the prospect of a Champions League and Premier League double was still on the cards, City would not have been so hell-bent on breaking records, which are great but pale in comparison to trophies.
Ferguson’s greatest title winning teams, especially in 1999, 2007, 2008 and 2009 were generally fighting for multiple honours towards the sharp end of the season.
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Around the turn of the millennium represented United’s best opportunity to set an unassailable record; it is at that period where the difference in desire to set the record under even the notoriously driven Ferguson and the obsessive Guardiola becomes clear.
Guardiola also has experience of maintaining standards throughout title processions, garnered and honed throughout his time with Bayern Munich but that should not diminish his achievement, unmatched by the man who is undisputedly the greatest manager of the Premier League era.
Real Madrid could make a bid for Liverpool target Alisson as Roma plan to resist offers until after the World Cup, according to The Guardian.
What’s the word?
The rumour mill has churned out many stories regarding Liverpool’s apparent hunt for a new goalkeeper.
Following Loris Karius’s blunder-filled performance in the Champions League final defeat to Real Madrid in Kiev, the speculation has intensified.
Alisson has regularly been a name associated with the Reds, and now according to The Guardian, Liverpool could face a battle to sign the shot-stopper.
The report claims that Roma are planning to knock back any offers tabled for the Brazilian until after the World Cup.
In addition, Real Madrid could also launch a move for the 25-year-old, who has been capped 23 times by his country.
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Should Liverpool embark on a bidding war?
The Guardian claims that Roma want around £79m for their shot-stopper.
It is unclear whether Liverpool would be willing to match that figure, but Roma could end up taking advantage if both the Reds and Los Blancos make their interest known.
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Signing a goalkeeper should be at the top of Jurgen Klopp’s list, but they do not want the Alisson pursuit to drag all the way through the summer window.
If possible, any deal for a new shot-stopper should be sorted as quickly as possible so that they can get a full pre-season with the team.
Alisson certainly meets the criteria that Liverpool need, but they should continue keeping an eye on other targets.