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Arsenal visit Manchester City this weekend and will be hoping to pile more misery on the reigning Premier League champions while subsequently reducing the gap on London rivals Spurs – the Gunners, though, are thin in defence due to a number of injuries but this may be a blessing in disguise.

On the chalkboard

Unai Emery will surely be scratching his head over how he can approach Saturday’s clash with City; Sokratis Papasthathopolous, Hector Bellerin and Rob Holding are completely out of the picture, while Laurent Koscielny is being assessed (per Arsenal’s official club website).

The former Sevilla boss has chopped and changed frequently in a bid to find the right blend in his Arsenal side, but the lengthy list of wounded means his options are limited.

However, the lack of defenders may mean Emery is forced into a three-at-the-back approach, particularly due to the lack of pace now that Bellerin is sidelined. If the Gunners’ honchos tuned in for City’s defeat to Newcastle on Wednesday night, they would see that this is the key to besting Pep Guardiola’s men.

Flood the midfield

City have lost four Premier League games this season, three of which have come against teams in the bottom half. Crystal Palace got the better of the Etihad Stadium outfit before Christmas and the Magpies ran out 2-1 winners on Wednesday night – Palace played with five men in midfield while Newcastle’s wing-backs offered their men in the middle plenty of support, which is crucial to thwarting the likes of Kevin De Bruyne and David Silva.

Nacho Monreal’s lack of pace would surely leave him exposed on the counter by Raheem Sterling or Riyad Mahrez and so tucking the Spaniard into a back-three might be the best option, with Sead Kolasinac providing cover at left-wing-back. At the same time, the Bosnian and (most likely) Ainsley Maitland-Niles on the opposite flank can push up to support the engine room and help congest the middle of the park.

With Alexandre Lacazette and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang up top, the Gunners still possess plenty of attacking talent to upset the Cityzens – playing with three-at-the-back enables both to start and Emery to play the five-man midfield which is becoming City’s kryptonite.

Pl>ymaker FC’s Theo Ogden was at the Emirates on Friday to see Alexis Sanchez come back to haunt Arsenal. Check out Gunners’ fans reactions in the video above…

Newcastle fans will be encouraged by their side’s performance despite losing to Tottenham at the weekend.

Spurs pinched a narrow 1-0 victory at Wembley after a Martin Dubravka error in the 83rd minute allowed Son Heung-Min to score the only goal of the game. Despite being unable to build on the win against Manchester City, there was plenty of reason to be optimistic after a decent display against Mauricio Pochettino’s men.

Benitez has his January signings to welcome into the starting eleven with Antonio Barreca making his debut from the bench. The £20m addition of Miguel Almiron will prove to be the difference maker for the Magpies. If the Paraguay international can display his magic, staying in the Premier League shouldn’t be a problem.

Turning his attention to the summer transfer window, Benitez should be keeping tabs on Huddersfield star – Philip Billing. Valued at £6.3m by Transfermarkt, the Dane joined the club in 2013 and progressed through the youth ranks to become an important member of the first-team. Huddersfield’s time in England’s top division looks to be coming to an end after registering just 11 points so far this season and Biling is likely to be snapped up.

The 22-year-old is a giant on the pitch and his presence in the engine room would give the Magpies some much-needed grit. Despite his size, Biling is also quality in possession and would thrive alongside Jonjo Shelvey. Still improving and developing, the Denmark international has massive potential and with his contract set to expire in 2020, he could be available for a great price.

Biling has already proven himself in the Premier League and could be the man to unlock Almiron in the Magpies attack.

Newcastle fans, thoughts?

Dreams of promoting into the Premier League are diminishing away for Aston Villa. Having fallen close to ten points off a playoffs place, the Villains have to wait another season to dream of playing in England’s top-flight. However, in order to compete for the Championship title next season, Dean Smith needs to hold onto his biggest assets.

The biggest star in the Villains’ season has been striker Tammy Abraham. The loanee from Chelsea’s provided some blooming moments for the fans throughout the topsy-turvy campaign, lighting up Villa Park with his goals.

He’s scored 20 goals in the Championship so far, working very hard in the final third to rally his side forward. Abraham’s practically provided one-third of Villa’s total goals all by himself and that showcases how clinical he’s been in the Championship.

With a dribbling success of 52%, 21 key passes and 70% passing accuracy (stats via Who Scored), he’s been more than just a mere finisher for the Villains, often orchestrating his own goals. The young striker’s movement, eye for goal and ability to thrive in such a limited environment proves how key he is to the team.

Villa needs to do their best to extend his loan deal or sign him up permanently and build the team around him next season. If they get a stronger defence along with a creative midfield to compliment Abraham, the youngster can be the driving force to get them back into the Premier League.

Thoughts?

أكد مجدي عبد الغني، عضو مجلس إدارة اتحاد الكرة ونجم الأهلي السابق، أن السويسري رينيه فايلر، المدير الفني للأحمر، سيرحل عن الفريق خلال الفترة المقبلة.

كشف مصدر داخل الأهلي، عن اقتراب رحيل المدرب السويسري رينيه فايلر المدير الفني للمارد الأحمر عن الفريق.

أقرأ ايضًا.. هل يرحل قبل دوري أبطال إفريقيا؟.. فايلر يرفض حسم مصيره مع الأهلي

أضاف عبد الغني خلال مداخلة هاتفية عبر برنامج “البريمو” المُذاع عبر قناة “TEN”: “فايلر سيرحل عن الأهلي خلال الفترة المقبلة، من الممكن أن يكون اتفق مع إدارة الأهلي على لعب بطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا ثم الرحيل، إذا حدث غير ذلك سيكون تهريج بكل تأكيد”.

تابع: “فايلر قام ببناء اسمه داخل الأهلي، لم يكن معروفًا لأي أحد، كان يجب وضع شروط جزائية في حالة خسارته لبطولة إفريقيا”.

وواصل: “كان يجب على مسؤولي الأهلي تأمين أنفسهم بشكل أفضل مع فايلر بالتوقيع معه لمدة موسمين، ومن الخطأ عدم وضع شروط جزائية فى شهر أكتوبر الأمر الذى يمنح فايلر الرحيل بدون أي أزمة، بطولة الدوري أي مدرب يستطيع تحقيقها الأهم هو بطولة إفريقيا”.

استكمل: “الأهلي من صنع اسم فايلر، ولم يكن له أي إنجازات قبل تدريبه الأهلي ولم يكن معروف وفوزه ببطولة الدوري ليس إنجازًا”.

أردف: “الأهلي سيتأثر برحيل فايلر، قبل مباراتي الوداد المغربي بنصف نهائي دوري أبطال إفريقيا، بكل تأكيد الأهلي سيهتز فنيًا في حال رحيل فايلر وأي مدرب سيأتي في هذا التوقيت سيكون منتحر بسبب صعوبة الموقف”.

أكمل: “إدارة الأهلي ستكون في أزمة في حالة رحيل فايلر، بسبب عدم وجود مدربين أجانب مميزين في التوقيت الحالي”.

اختتم: “المدير الفني المناسب للأهلي، مختار مختار يجب أن يحصل على فرصة مع الأهلي لديه خبرات كبيرة، وتاريخه أكبر من أشخاص كثيرة”.

[ad_pod ]Tottenham fans have taken to Twitter to react after Son Heung-Min put in a terrific performance against Borussia Dortmund, as Spurs took one step into the Champions League quarter-finals with a 3-0 win over the Bundesliga leaders.The South Korean international, who has truly stepped up in the absence of Harry Kane and Dele Alli, scored a terrific volley against Lucian Favre’s side to open the scoring – his ninth goal against them means he has netted against Dortmund more than any other club throughout his career.Son’s strike was his 11th goal from the last 16 games, and he has truly emerged from the shadows to become one of Spurs’ most important players.Most of the north London-based club’s supporters probably feared the worst when Kane and Alli suffered their respective injuries, but the former Bayer Leverkusen forward is helping them forget all about the English duo.Let’s see how the Spurs supporters reacted on Twitter…

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Borussia Dortmund star Axel Witsel is holding nothing back ahead of their Champions League clash with Tottenham, suggesting the Premier League is overrated due to “media hype”.

Tottenham welcome Dortmund to Wembley on Wednesday evening in what is sure to be an absolutely enthralling encounter.

The Lilywhites have grinded out results in the absence of Harry Kane and Dele Alli, but the visit of a Dortmund side who drew 3-3 with Hoffenheim at the weekend will surely bring goals.

While many would consider the Bundesliga to be a weaker league outside of the big two teams though, Witsel has claimed it is just as good as England’s top flight.

“I do not think the Premier League is better than the Bundesliga on the whole,” he told Sport Buzzer, as reported by The Evening Standard.

“It’s all about the media hype. Far more people in the world see the Premier League on TV, because it’s broadcast almost everywhere.

“For historical reasons, the international media are more geared to England than to Germany, Italy or France. But I do not see any serious difference in the quality of football.”

The Belgian international is right to feel confident, as his side are flying at the top of the Bundesliga, five points ahead of Liverpool’s Champions League opponents Bayern Munich.

However, he wouldn’t be the first player to talk big before an important knock-out match and go on to regret it, and Spurs fans will be hoping that is the case here.

[ad_pod ]Hugo Lloris turned in a performance of the highest calibre against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday.Holding a 3-0 lead from the first leg, Spurs travelled to Germany knowing that anything other than a heavy defeat would see them safely through to the quarter-finals.Dortmund burst out of the blocks against Mauricio Pochettino’s side as they attempted to pull off a truly dramatic comeback.But they were met with great resistance by the France international, who made a number of excellent saves.Per WhoScored, Lloris made seven, including a superb reaction block from Julian Weigl in the first half and an athletic stop from Mario Gotze.Spurs only needed to keep a clean sheet to ensure their progress but Harry Kane, of course, had his say, sending an excellent, curled finish past Roman Burki at the beginning of the second half.

And fans were delighted with the performance of their goalkeeper, who also enjoyed an excellent performance against Arsenal at the weekend, saving a last-minute penalty from Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

Transfers: They have been a bit of a mixed bag in recent years, haven’t they? There have been numerous deals that looked good on paper, yet their ability failed to materialise. There have been other moves that may have gone under the radar, but some players of that calibre have gone on to establish themselves in the capital and make a significant impact at West Ham United.

Manuel Pellegrini’s first transfer window at the club was a positive one. The most notable incoming, in Felipe Anderson, has proved his worth so far, representing some fine business by the Hammers. Other renown signings in Jack Wilshere and Andriy Yarmelenko have been hampered with injuries as of yet, but the West Ham faithful will be hoping they can make a sustained, positive impact when they return.

Having heard some rather impressive signings of late, to balance the books, here are possibly the two worst West Ham signings in recent years…

Havard Nordtveit

Nordtveit joined West Ham in 2016 on a free after playing a pivotal role in an impressive Borussia Monchengladbach side during his time at the German outfit.

In England, the Norweigan international was used frequently at centre-back, despite holding midfield suiting him better and during that time, he really struggled to establish himself in the Premier League.

Part of that struggle will have been down to the side he was playing in and the role he had to fulfil, but he did not really help himself with some of his displays. Nordtveit was then moved on at the end of that season as he signed for Hoffenheim and finds himself back in English football, on loan at Fulham.

Simone Zaza

Zaza was brought in on a season-long loan from Juventus in the same summer as Nordtveit and in eight appearances for West Ham, he failed to score once before a knee injury sidelined the Italian and he was moved on to Valencia.

His arrival came soon after his infamous penalty miss at Euro 2016 and the player himself told Italian media that the very poor spell at West Ham was down to that moment. Zaza is now back in Italy, on loan at Torino.

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Arsenal had a nightmare Thursday evening in Belarus, and fans are absolutely fuming at Granit Xhaka’s performance in the 1-0 defeat to BATE Borisov.

Unai Emery suffered yet another setback this week, as the Gunners were beaten 1-0 in Belarus.

BATE, which was originally an acronym for Borisov Automobile and Tractor Electronics, needed just one goal to earn a famous victory, as Stanislav Dragun headed home the winner just before half-time.

Arsenal’s evening then went from bad to worse, as Alexandre Lacazette was sent off late in the second half, the Frenchman swinging his elbow at an opponent in retaliation after a foul. The 27 year-old also had a goal chalked off before his dismissal.

While none of the players covered themselves in glory, fans are crucifying Xhaka, who if truth be told looked out of his depth against the side that are currently nine points clear at the top of the Belarusian Premier League.

The Swiss international made just one key pass, zero tackles or interceptions and also picked up a yellow card.

You can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below, look away now Granit…

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According to The Sun, West Ham United midfielder Declan Rice would cost around £70m if Manchester City wanted to sign him this summer, but the Irons are running a big risk if those demands are true.

What’s the word, then?

Well, The Sun report that the 20-year-old is one of three young English players that Pep Guardiola is keen to bring to the Etihad Stadium during the next transfer window, with the man who has now pledged his allegiance to England internationally valued at around £70m.

The Sun report that the Premier League champions see the London-born starlet as their long-term replacement for Fernandinho, and that is no surprise given some of the strong performances he has produced for Manuel Pellegrini’s men in a defensive midfield role this term.

While receiving that amount for a player that can’t make a difference in terms of goals and assists would obviously be something not to be sniffed at, there is proof that the grass isn’t always greener.

Why’s that?

You only have to look at Southampton to see how business that can look great on paper can quickly go horribly wrong.

Saints agreed to sell Virgil van Dijk to Liverpool for a world-record fee (£75m) for a defender in December 2017, and while they would have been gutted to lose the Dutchman they also would have been confident of significantly strengthening their squad as a whole with the money.

Instead, they appear to have thrown more money down the drain bringing in the likes of Guido Carrillo and Mohamed Elyounoussi for large fees, with both so far failing to make the grade at St Mary’s.

The south coast outfit now find themselves in another relegation battle and there is always a risk that West Ham’s business could go wrong too should they cash in on their prized asset.

Lessons need to be learned and selling Rice even for that price would be a risk, and one they shouldn’t take no matter what money is on the table.