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As per SofaScore, Tottenham Hotspur trio Ben Davies, Steven Bergwijn and Giovani Lo Celso struggled for Nuno Espirito’s Santo’s side as we analyse the number’s from their 1-0 Carabao Cup victory over Burnley.

Spurs edge into quarter-finals…

Lucas Moura bagged the eventual winner as Spurs edged into the Carabao Cup quarter-finals on Wednesday evening, easing some pressure off the under-fire Nuno following a regrettable week of action.

Defeats to both Vitesse and bitter London rivals West Ham had attracted heavy fire but the Lilywhites’ victory against Burnley ensures they remain fighting on all fronts for now.

Here, we take a take a statistical look at Tottenham’s three worst players from the night with the trio of Davies, Bergwijn and Lo Celso sticking out in particular.

Giving away the ball 50 times, losing 19 duels and spurning one big chance in total, it’s safe to say they didn’t enjoy the best outings.

Steven Bergwijn: 6.4/10

The Dutchman had been one of the Spurs players actually looking revitalised under Nuno at the start of the season, attracting praise from the Portuguese in particular as a ‘very talented’ and ‘unique’ asset.

However, since returning from his injury lay-off, you could make an argument that he hasn’t hit those same heights and it showed against the Clarets last night.

Coming in as Tottenham’s worst player on the night to start and play the majority of the game, being hauled off after 66 minutes, Bergwijn was handed a 6.4/10 match rating having lost possession 17 times whilst losing half of his duels and three in total (SofaScore).

Giovani Lo Celso: 6.7/10

Lo Celso is one player who has attracted criticism over the beginning of 2021/2022 and it’s safe to say his performance was once again in question last night.

The 25-year-old hasn’t evolved into that Christian Eriksen-type creative figure badly needed by Spurs and Nuno with Lo Celso’s numbers, again, hardly worthy of celebration.

He ranked in as Tottenham’s second-worst performer behind Bergwijn, again having started and played the majority against Burnley.

While he did make two key passes in the final third, Lo Celso also spurned a big chance to get on the scoresheet – giving away possession 16 times and losing the vast majority of his duels, seven out of nine to be exact (SofaScore).

 Ben Davies: 6.8/10

The best of the worst, Davies still didn’t particularly enjoy a great evening against Sean Dyche’s men and it would have done little to silence his critics.

The Wales international, being ranked a 6.8/10 and playing the whole game for Tottenham, was dribbled past twice on that flank and lost nine of his duels.

As well as this, Davies gave away the ball 17 times and recorded no accurate long balls or crosses from out wide (SofaScore).

In other news: Talks ongoing…Sky Sports journalist makes exciting Spurs transfer claim involving ‘phenomenal’ star, find out more here.

A club from the Premier League are reportedly now in talks to sign Rory Wilson from Glasgow Rangers.

The Lowdown: Contract rejected

It has been reported that Wilson has rejected a lucrative contract offer at Ibrox, despite meeting with Ross Wilson and Giovanni van Bronckhorst for talks about his future in the first-team at Ibrox.

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He has been linked with a move to Aston Villa to play under former Teddy Bears manager Steven Gerrard, but now another English top-flight team has emerged into the frame for his signature.

The Latest: Brighton talks

As per Football Insider, Brighton and Hove Albion are now ‘in talks’ over signing Wilson, and have made their move ahead of other sides in the Premier League.

The striker has made it clear that he would like to leave the Light Blues, and a source from the Seagulls has revealed that they are ‘pushing hard’ for his signature.

Wilson is out of contract in the summer, and a deal to take him to the Amex Stadium would only cost in the region of £300,000 in development costs.

The news outlet describes the prospect of losing him as a ‘major blow’, given that he is set to suffer the follow a similar path to now fully fledged Scotland international Billy Gilmour.

The Verdict: Shame

It would certainly be a shame if the Gers were to lose Wilson, but it looks like his fate is already sealed.

Unfortunately the call from the English top flight is one that is very hard to turn down, and the 16-year-old now looks destined to sign for Brighton.

Nonetheless, RFC will now be looking to hold on to some of their other promising youngsters, and not let lightning strike twice.

In other news, find out who Rangers are now fighting Manchester City to sign here!

Many Everton fans have been left buzzing as news emerged on Abdoulaye Doucoure.

As per the Merseyside club’s official website, the former Watford ace has won the Davanti Tyres Everton Goal of the Month award for August as the vast majority of supporters voted for his strike in their 3-1 win at home against Southampton.

His effort was a clear winner with 74.6% of the vote, while Demarai Gray’s goals against Brighton and Hove Albion and Leeds United came in second and third respectively.

The award is certainly well deserved, and Doucoure will be hoping to add more goals from midfield to his game, with just four so far in total from 38 matches over all competitions across the past two seasons (Transfermarkt).

Everton fans on Doucoure’s award

These Toffees fans were buzzing as the news was shared by the club on Twitter, with one Everton supporter describing it as ‘fantastic’:

“Great goal, let’s give Andros his for this month now too, although what a time to be a fan if that’s somehow topped before the end of the month”

Credit: @Mikey1981

“What a goal, congrats”

Credit: @_jennifer1878

“Well deserved!”

Credit: @ronnie_watters

“Rightly so”

Credit: @nikkiharg

“Fantastic”

Credit: @annmckenzie67

“Get in Doucs”

Credit: @jonesyp964

In other news, Everton had shown an interest in this Premier League and Champions League winner

The vast majority of the transfer window for Everton has revolved around James Rodriguez.

Will he or won’t he be a part of the Toffees’ plans for the season is a question on everyone’s lips, but we may have just received an answer.

What’s the word?

For so long it looked as though Rodriguez had played his final game for the Merseyside outfit. His agent Jorge Mendes was speaking to other clubs and he could have been on his way to Italy.

A move to Porto nearly materialised too with the attacking midfielder potentially heading back to his former club in exchange for winger Luis Diaz.

However, a major twist has occurred on deadline day, according to the Liverpool Echo.

They now report that, with James unable to agree on personal terms or find a suitable club in the final hours of the window, he is now willing to stay at Everton.

Rafa must be delighted

Rafa Benitez will know James well from his time at Real Madrid, and once he penned terms at Goodison Park, he will have been keen to utilise him.

However, the Colombian hasn’t been seen all season, so the Spaniard hasn’t actually been able to put him on the team sheet yet.

It’s difficult to work out whether he’d have wanted to initially, though. James infamously declared that he didn’t even know who Everton’s next opponents were during a Twitch stream a few weeks ago.

That being said, it’s difficult to ignore his qualities, and with Everton struggling to sign new players, he is still a key part of their squad.

You only need to assess his remarkable CV and his performances during a debut campaign in English football.

The Colombia international had a hand in ten Premier League goals, while he was their most creative player in the top-flight. Rodriguez provided 1.7 key passes per game, which was more than anybody else in the squad.

With that in mind, the manager will surely be delighted to see him wanting to stay at Goodison Park. He could be vital in their chase for European football.

AND in other news, “Talks progressing” – Insider delivers exciting Everton claim, Benitez surely elated…

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Chelsea winger Callum Hudson-Odoi made a rare start and scored a good goal in his side’s 3-0 Europa League victory against Malmo at Stamford Bridge on Thursday night, and fans of Premier League rivals Liverpool were quick to react.

Despite the west London outfit’s struggles in recent weeks and the obvious talent the 18-year-old has, he has only played 74 minutes of Premier League football under Maurizio Sarri this term, compared to 311 minutes in Europe.

While he may not have had the minutes on the pitch he perhaps deserves, he has shown that he can deliver when he has an opportunity – as he did against the Swedish club with some brilliant control on the right, before he fired a low shot past the goalkeeper – scoring three goals and providing a further three assists in 14 first-team outings.

The England U19 international was heavily linked with a move to Bayern Munich in January and should their Champions League last 16 opponents ever make a move, then it would be with a view to him competing with stars such as Sadio Mane, Mo Salah and Xherdan Shaqiri for a spot in Jurgen Klopp’s starting XI at Anfield.

Liverpool supporters took to social media to have their say on the talented teenager, and while one said “Klopp would make Hudson-Odoi a monster”, another said “Klopp could take him to the next level”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

Mixed fortunes for English sides in the Champions League so how far off are they from dominating Europe’s top table? The Pl>ymaker FC squad discuss in the video below…

Sheffield Wednesday had to settle for a 2-2 draw with Cheltenham Town on Saturday after conceding a stoppage-time equaliser.

The Owls seemed to have done enough to take all three points after Cheyenne Dunkley and a Matty Blair own goal turned things around for the visitors, but Blair redeemed himself by grabbing a goal at the right end for a share of the spoils for the Robins.

The result means it is now four draws in a row for Wednesday, with a number of their fans discussing Moore’s change at the interval.

The Owls manager set his team up in a 3-4-1-2 system against Cheltenham and brought off defender Jack Hunt for centre-forward Florian Kamberi at the interval. That saw regular forward Callum Paterson filling in at right wing-back, according to Yorkshire Live’s Dom Howson, with many Wednesday supporters not exactly thrilled over the tactical switch.

Moore admitted after the game that Hunt was fine and that he wanted to make an attacking change for the start of the second half.

Wednesday fans react

Here is what these Wednesday fans had to say in reply to Howson’s tweet regarding the half-time substitution, with a number of supporters unimpressed at Moore moving players out of position as they blasted the already under-fire manager.

“Paterson to what…???!!??? Don’t want to jump on bandwagons but, I’m sorry, Darren’s done.”

Credit: @NeonBrown10

“What a joke of a formation. I don’t understand why we consistently play people out of position, it’s becoming a joke”

Credit: @RichOverett

“Surely not? When in doubt move someone else out of position?”

Credit: @PeterBu1981

“Bizarre”

Credit: @AnOwlTweets

“Wow”

Credit: @gaz_s6

“he’s lost the plot..”

Credit: @chrisday3107

In the early days of the 2022 January transfer window, Wolves have recalled Dion Sanderson and Ryan Giles from their loan deals, as well as securing a deal for midfielder Hayao Kawabe.

However, despite there still being a considerable amount of time left in the window, it appears that Wolves fans shouldn’t be holding their breath for many more incoming signings this month.

What’s the news?

In a recent article by Tim Spiers for The Athletic, comments from the club’s technical director Scott Sellars were shared about what their plans will be for the current transfer window which may not please a lot of fans at Molineux.

Sellars said: “It’s hard to predict what happens in any transfer window, but it’s certain that we won’t bring in a large number of new signings, and firstly we will focus on providing Bruno Lage with immediate back up at a time when all clubs are suffering with injuries and [virus] issues, and at the same time give opportunities to our young players who have been doing so well out on loan.

“We’d rather use the young players out on loan, and wait for our injured players to come back, than spend money on players who aren’t going to improve the squad we already have.

“If there’s someone who is going to enhance the squad and team, then of course we will explore the option and see if we can make it work.”

Fans may be furious

Taking this into account, it seems as though Sellars is trying to cover all aspects of what business Wolves could look to do in terms of transfer deals this month without trying to raise expectations or excitement among the fan base, but supporters may still be left furious over the prospect of a quiet month on the market.

Eighth in the Premier League table with 28 points on the board from 19 games, it has been a solid campaign so far for the Old Gold, especially with just 14 goals conceded in that time – only runaway leaders Manchester City have a better defensive record.

However, on the flip side, Wolves have only managed to score 13 league goals so far this season, fewer than the likes of Burnley, Newcastle United and Watford, who comprise three of the bottom four in the top flight.

With this in mind, if Wolves are to make any other new signings this month, it would be worth bringing in a player who could inject a bit of life to the attack, find the net on a regular basis and, as Sellars put it, “enhance the squad”.

In other news: Shi heading for huge Wolves howler over “talented” £58k-p/w star, Lage would be fuming

West Ham United are in the hunt for Borussia Monchengladbach centre-back Matthias Ginter ahead of the upcoming summer transfer window.

What’s the latest?

That’s according to Sky Sports journalist Lyall Thomas, who claims that the Hammers are watchingÂthe defender – who is also subject to interest from Aston Villa, Tottenham Hotspur and Juventus – ahead of a potential swoop this summer.

The 28-year-old would be available on a free transfer ahead of the expiration of his contract with the Bundesliga club at the end of the current campaign.

The East London outfit currently have just two fit senior centre-backs after first-choice Kurt Zouma sustained an ankle injury last weekend, which could rule the Frenchman out for the remainder of the campaign.

Issa Diop and Craig Dawson were excellent on Thursday night as the Irons remarkably beat Lyon 3-0 in the south of France to advance to the semi-finals of the Europa League, with the latter scoring the Hammers’ first goal.

However, both have been subject to inconsistency in claret and blue, particularly Diop – who has been criticised heavily at times this term, particularly after a poor performance in the FA Cup against National League North side Kidderminster Harriers – with Jack Rosser dubbing the Frenchman “shocking” in this fixture.

By signing Ginter, West Ham would certainly be bolstering their defence whilst it could also provide an opportunity to finally part ways with the £61k-per-week flop.

West Ham must sign Ginter

Although they’ve juggled four competitions excellently this term, particularly managing the new experience of European football, the east London side could certainly do with a bigger squad next season – especially if they are to compete in Europe once again.

However, the Irons’ defence has been a cause for concern at points this term, with Moyes’ side ranking joint 10th in the Premier League for clean sheets with seven in 32 matches, despite being sat in sixth place.

By landing Ginter, the Hammers would be adding quality as well as experience to their backline, something that will be vital if they are to continue progressing into a regular competitor in continental competition.

The Germany international is still a regular fixture in his country’s squads, having been part of the World Cup-winning side in 2014 whilst racking up 46 caps.

In terms of the current campaign, the 28-year-old has also been a regular for Gladbach, missing just three Bundesliga matches all season.

However, in general, it’s been a disappointing campaign for the North-Rhine outfit – who currently sit 11th in the German top flight with European football looking extremely unlikely next term.

The £21.6m-rated centre-back currently averages a whopping 80.2 touches per league game, whilst completing 84% of his passes and making 1.3 interceptions, 1.4 tackles and three clearances per game.

To put that into context, Diop’s league numbers are considerably worse in some areas. The 25-year-oldÂmakes almost half the amount of touches at 40.5, whilst making 0.5 interceptions, 0.8 tackles and 3.1 interceptions per fixture.

In fairness, the Frenchman’s passing is slightly better at 85%, but he also makes just 28.3 accurate passes a match compared to Ginter’s 56.2.

Although, something which could be a cause for concern is that the 28-year-old has, aside from Gladbach, only played for Borussia Dortmund and SC Freiburg – perhaps suggesting it would take him a while to adapt to the Premier League.

However, the centre-back has established himself as a quality defender in the German top-flight, with Germany legend Lothar Mätthaus even comparing Ginter to Sergio Ramos.

“Ginter has become a leader at the back, in a similar way to Ramos at Real,” Matthaus said to Sky Germany. “He doesn’t just give instructions to his teammates, but leads them as well. That’s what Ginter is doing really well at the moment. He reminds me of Ramos.”

There’s clear evidence that the German defender would be a quality addition to West Ham’s backline. Moreover, to secure the 28-year-old on a free transfer would be an excellent bargain with the deal being low risk.

AND in other news: Forget Rice: WHU’s £52k-p/w “set piece savant†with 67% duels won was “superb†vs Lyon

Many Glasgow Rangers fans have been left bemoaning some news that has emerged on Graeme Murty.

As per the official website of the Ibrox faithful, Murty, who is the Head of Elite Academy Development, will now be leaving the club after five years.

He has played a leading role in the development of the Academy players over the years, as the Light Blues noted his success in leading their development squad in the Scottish Premiership Reserve League and managing their first steps into the UEFA Youth League back in 2019.

Murty also stepped up to first-team responsibilities at the request of the Board, as he third-place finish in the SPFL in the 2017/18 season, and got them to the semi-finals of the SFA Cup before losing out 4-0 to Celtic.

Rangers fans on Murty departure

These Gers bemoaned his departure as it was shared on Twitter, with one RFC supporter even going as far as to claim that they were ‘gutted’:

“Gutted to see him go as he stood up when we needed some one to. An absolute gent and wish him all the best. Once a Bear, always a Bear”

Credit: @j4ff41989

“Booooo, farewell Graeme, absolute legend”

Credit: @mrmajestic8

“I must be having a nightmare”

Credit: @Zaleski_

“Nooooo… the man who stepped up when asked, thank you for your service”

Credit: @andyleighton14

“That’s heart-breaking”

Credit: @jonesie_72

“Heartbroken”

Credit: @patersonty1690

In other news, find out what Academy news had Gers buzzing here!

West Ham United remain interested in a deal to bring Layvin Kurzawa to the London Stadium in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by French media outlet Foot Mercato (via Sport Witness), who claim that David Moyes’ side remain in the race for the Paris Saint-Germain left-back this month, although the 29-year-old is not believed to be near the top of the 58-year-old’s list of targets in the current market.

The report goes on to state that the likes of Lazio, Inter Milan and Napoli are all also interested in a move for the France international, while Chelsea are believed to have rejected the chance to sign the former AS Monaco defender.

He’d be a huge upgrade

While Kurzawa may not be high on Moyes’ list of priorities in the January window, with the Irons manager prioritising the signing of a centre-back and centre-forward this month, considering the experience and ability the signing of the 29-year-old would bring to the left of the Hammers’ backline, it would appear highly advisable for the boss to indeed make a move for the PSG defender this month.

While it is true that the £8.1m-rated man has struggled to hold down a starting spot in the PSG side in recent seasons, he has nevertheless demonstrated previously that, when given the opportunity to do so, he can be an extremely useful player for a side challenging at the top of the league table.

Indeed, over his 19 Ligue 1 appearances in his debut campaign following a £22.5m move from AS Monaco back in 2015, the £89k-per-week left-back scored four goals, registered five assists and created six big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.1 shots and making 1.1 key passes per game.

The defender also impressed in metrics more typical of his position that season, helping his side keep seven clean sheets, in addition to making an average of 3.3 interceptions, 2.7 tackles, 2.2 clearances, 43.4 passes and winning 7.2 duels per fixture – with a success rate of 62%.

These returns saw the player who labelled himself as a little “crazy” earn a rather astonishing seasonal SofaScore match rating of 7.49, ranking him as the fourth-best player in the entirety of the French top-flight that year.

As such, should Moyes be able to help Kurzawa refind this form following a potential switch to West Ham this winter, the 29-year-old would not only appear to be a huge upgrade on Arthur Masuaku, but he could well push the Hammers’ first-choice left-back, Aaron Cresswell, for his starting spot at the London Stadium.

In other news: Moyes must now launch WHU bid for £46k-p/w “phenomenon” as key transfer twist emerges