If their battling display against Liverpool showed anything, Newcastle United’s attacking style under Rafa Benitez is definitely effective.

Indeed, they’ve shown their capability in putting the opposition under pressure with their high-voltage counter-attacks and physical dominance but are certainly often lacking that creative spark to open the floodgates. That touch of class could be all the difference on Tyneside.

Clearly, they’re missing the cutting edge in attack, often reliant on their strikers to bail them out. However, according to reports from Portuguese radio station Radio Renascenca’s Bola Branca show, via Sport Witness, they’re aiming to fill that void by signing Benfica’s £51.3 million-rated Rafa Silva. The namesake for Benitez, he’s created magic in the Liga NOS with some terrific performances.

Having the ability to threaten from anywhere in the attacking line, Silva can be the perfect fix for their left-wing problems. The Portuguese had his breakthrough season with Benfica, scoring 15 goals, assisting 2 in the league. A tricky player to defend against, Silva’s excellent dribbling ability, electric pace and wherewithal to get into promising space make him a dangerous winger.

He’s a man of many talents, with his excellent wing-play guaranteed to add another dimension to Newcastle’s attack. The 25-year-old’s a dangerous figure, having averaged 1.6 key passes, 2.3 shots, 2.3 dribbles complete per game (stats via WhoScored) as well.

Think a total upgrade on Chrisitan Atsu and someone to join the likes of Ayoze Perez and Miguel Almiron in creating an attack with so many points of reference. Too often, the Toon look all too predictable, so adding a new point of attack would take the black and white cause up a whole new level.

The idea of him lining up alongside the attack already in play for Newcastle should have mouths watering in the terraces, if the club can push a deal over the line. Yes, it’s hard to back the current regime at St. James’ Park to sort anything out but, if this is the ilk of signing they’re after, these could be exciting times for the club.

Rafa can bring that missing spark to help the Magpies achieve their maximum potential attacking-wise. His technical technique can be a hit in the Premier League, allowing him to dazzle the fans while also create chances for Perez and co.

He might be an expensive buy but can instal a ruthlessness which makes Newcastle’s attack more effective next season.

Newcastle fans, would you be happy with Rafa’s potential arrival? Join the discussion by commenting below…

أشاد دين سميث المدير الفني لفريق أستون فيلا بأدائهم في مباراة الأمس أمام آرسنال في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

واستضاف ملعب الإمارات مباراة الفريقين في الجولة الثامنة، حيث فاز أستون فيلا بثلاثة أهداف دون رد. أهداف مباراة آرسنال وأستون فيلا

وقال دين سميث، في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “بي بي سي” العالمية: “إنه أداء ممتع حقًا في العديد من الأمور، لقد حققنا تحولًا دفاعيًا جيدًا من الفريق بأكمله، وتسببنا لهم في مشاكل مع بعض هجماتنا المرتدة”.

وأضاف: “لم نكن نريدهم أن يلعبوا مباراة سهلة لطيفة، حيث يمكنهم تمرير الكرة حيث يريدون، إنهم فريق جيد”.

وواصل: “كنا الليلة أفضل بكثير من مباراتنا الموسم الماضي في ذلك الملعب، لم نتمكن من الحفاظ على نظافة شباكنا الموسم الماضي، وهذه المرة حققنا ذلك”.

وتابع: “مهاجمو الفريق يمثلون تهديدًا سويًا، نحن سعداء حقًا، كل اللاعبين هنا يزدهرون بشكل جيد للغاية، ولكن هناك المزيد منهم”.

Look away now City fans: Bayern Munch have apparently started talks with Manchester City over summer transfer of Leroy Sane.

Genuinely, this transfer story is testament to just how good Manchester City have it at the moment, if they’re willing to part way with one of the brightest talents in world football.

The Daily Record understands the Bundesliga champions have been given the green light to liaise with the German international’s representatives with a view to agreeing contractual terms.

Bayern’s move for Sane isn’t anything new – they were after the player in 2016 but were pipped to his signature by the mega money of City. But now with the star spending increasingly more time on the bench and the periphery of the squad, Bayern seem likely to wind up the deal with little to no complications.

As much as City fans may want to keep their star, the situation between the club and player has deemed it incredibly unlikely. The 23-year-old has rejected a series of offers to upgrade and extend a contract that expires in the summer of 2021, and City’s director of football Txiki Begiristian apparently does not want to risk a stalemate scenario in which the forward simply runs down his contract and transfer value, so he may be forced to sell in the coming window.

Manchester City have one of the brightest talents in world football in Leroy Sane, only a fool would deny that. To lose him at this stage in his career when he has already demonstrated how devastating he can be – passing the remarkable 10 goals and 10 assists mark – would truly be a travesty of the highest order.

City fans, how sad would you be to see Sane go? Knowing how good your club have been in the market, are you at all worried? Let us know in the comments below!

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Sheffield Wednesday fans on Twitter have been calling for Marco Matias to be released from the club at the end of the season.

The Portuguese forward’s contract is up this summer and supporters have been urging the Owls not to renew his deal.

This comes after an article written by Dom Howson in the Sheffield Star recommended that Matias was kept on at the club beyond his current deal.

Owls fans on Twitter were quick to disagree with Howson saying that Matias should be let go sooner rather than later.

The 29-year-old has scored six goals in 29 Championship appearances so far this season, but Wednesday fans seemingly no longer want him.

Steve Bruce’s side have been in fantastic form since the former Villa boss took charge at Hillsborough, but fans want to see the team changed up next season and Matias isn’t a part of their plans.

Here’s what Wednesday fans have been saying on Twitter…

Check out the video below to see how Brazil fans reacted to being asked how Cristiano Ronaldo would perform for them in a hilarious prank by Pl>ymaker FC…

It is Europa League football for Manchester United next season and, after their 1-1 draw with bottom-of-the-table Huddersfield Town, it is what they deserve.

Those were, in essence, the words of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, with the Red Devils boss not holding any punches at the end of that game at the John Smith’s Stadium.

“The Europa League next year is the right place to be for us,” the 46-year-old was quoted as saying by The Telegraph.

Solskjaer was not the only one who did not hold back with his assessment of things, though, with Gary Neville having also been left far from impressed with how his former side’s season has gone.

“This is Huddersfield Town who have struggled all season. You watch them, they haven’t got the quality, but I like watching them a lot more than the ones in the red shirts, to be honest,” Neville told Sky Sports.

“At least you can identify with them. There’s nothing I like about this United team at all. It’s just awful. Look at them. They’re the most despondent group of people.”

And it is not hard to see where the former England defender is coming from. Since falling away after their impressive start under Solskjaer, this Manchester United side have shown no likeable qualities as a team.

They do not defend well, they screw up too many attacks and cannot control games in the way you would expect an outfit of their calibre to.

It is strange, because for all of the deadwood the club do have, they also have some very good footballers at disposal such as Paul Pogba and Anthony Martial, though the latter has been struggling for fitness of late.

Whatever the case, next season, something has to change at Old Trafford. And with the summer transfer window they could possibly be about to have, you would expect things to.

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Paul Tierney was announced on Tuesday as the referee who will take charge of Everton against Manchester United at the weekend, and his remarkable record suggests one match outcome can already be ruled out.

Both clubs will be looking to bounce back from disappointing performances and results when they meet at Goodison Park on Sunday.

The Toffees suffered a dreadful 2-0 defeat against already-relegated Fulham in the Premier League, while the Red Devils crashed out of the Champions League with a whimper after losing 4-0 on aggregate to Barcelona.

That was United’s fourth successive reverse on their travels – the first time that has happened since manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer was playing for the club back in 1999.

The Merseyside outfit and the Old Trafford side both still have aspirations of finishing seventh and in the top four respectively this term, so it is very much all to play for at the weekend.

Tierney’s astonishing record certainly makes for interesting reading ahead of the clash however.

According to WhoScored, the 38-year-old is yet to officiate in a single draw from the 21 top flight encounters he has been the man in the middle of the pitch for during the current campaign.

Along with the fact that it is a more than a month since a draw has been recorded in the Premier League – there have been none in the previous 34 attempts – and you would have to assume that the game on Merseyside is destined for either a home or away win.

Solskjaer will certainly be hoping it is the latter with some United fans on Twitter already beginning to change their tune on him following some poor decisions.

Meanwhile, Marco Silva needs to build some momentum again ahead of next season if Everton are going to fulfil their ambitions following yet another inconsistent campaign.

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Everton 0-0 Liverpool. Everton 2-0 Chelsea. Everton 1-0 Arsenal. Everton 4-0 Manchester United.

These are just some of the results that Marco Silva has overseen with the Toffees in recent weeks, where it is finally starting to look as if the Portuguese boss has got his team playing the way he envisaged back in the summer.

The Merseysiders are solid at the back, have arguably one of the best midfielders in the league in Idrissa Gueye setting the tempo, and an attack filled with flair and creativity – it is all starting to click for the Blues, and it is very easy on the eye for those of us watching on.

In this era of ‘big 6’ dominance, has finishing 7th become as good as winning a trophy? The Pl>ymaker FC squad have their say in the video below…

However, the change from where Everton were at during this stage of the season last year is almost seismic. Back then, the Toffees had Sam Allardyce in charge, where the football played under the former England boss was the polar opposite to what it is now.

However, whilst the performances back then were tough to watch, Rio Ferdinand’s comments on the Everton fans’ expectations have aged terribly.

What did he say?

The former Manchester United defender said: “I don’t know what these fans here are expecting. What do you want?

“You had Ronald Koeman who came up the Ajax way, played great football with his teams. You had (Roberto) Martinez who played good football but disgruntled fans, not happy, they wanted them out.

“So where do you sit? What do you want? This guy’s getting you results, you’re in the top half of the league.

“What more do you want? I’m baffled, they baffle me if I’m honest.”

They wanted to win in the right way

You can see where Ferdinand is coming from if you add a bit of context to his comments from 13 months ago. Everton were seriously struggling last season, and even spent time in the relegation zone, a position that was way off where the fans wanted to be.

Allardyce was getting results as he is an excellent firefighter for teams associated with relegation battles. But Everton are a top seven side, and one who wants to be in and around the Europa League spots consistently.

That, and the fact that the wins were coming as a result of scrappy defending, fortuitous goals from set-pieces and on the counter-attack after being dominated in possession made Allardyce’s tenure tough for the Goodison Park faithful.

The win over United, in which the Toffees completely run riot over the Red Devils, scoring four goals and limiting their opponents to just one shot on target, is what the fans wanted to see.

What more do they want? That kind of performance is what they wanted, Rio. A philosophy. An easy on the eye style. And success to boot.

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In his career, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has managed Manchester United Under-23s, Molde, Cardiff, Molde again and now Manchester United’s first team – a truly strange career path. He has also never won anything of note, picking up a few Norwegian titles to show for his efforts.

Jurgen Klopp has managed Mainz, Borussia Dortmund and Liverpool, and has won the Bundesliga title twice, as well as the DFB-Pokal – he has proven himself as a top-class boss, and has turned the Reds into a genuine force.

Maurizio Sarri has had a lengthy managerial career spanning 28 years, in which he was able to take Empoli and Napoli to new heights whilst playing an eye-catching style; he also led Chelsea to the Carabao Cup final, earned a third-place finish, and could still win the Europa League with the Blues.

Will OGS still be in charge of Man Utd come next May? The Flying Pig discusses in the video below…

Unai Emery. A man who has won three Europa League titles, one Ligue 1 success, and the Coupe de France on two occasions.

The point of all this? Solskjaer earns more than all of them.

Solskjaer, a man woefully under-qualified for the Old Trafford hotseat, a job of such magnitude, earns more than some of Europe’s top coaches and managers of real pedigree.

But why?

The former United No.20 had declared his current role as his ‘dream job’ upon his permanent appointment; he was clearly keen to be hired, and nobody else was interested in his services at the time.

United didn’t need to lure him into signing on a permanent basis with more money at all. Why would he demand more in order to get his dream job? More to the point, why would United offer him that much given his lack of experience?

God knows what went on during contract negotiations between Solskjaer and Woodward, but the decision to place him on a better salary than the likes of Klopp, Emery and Sarri seems absurd and completely needless.

Throwing money at people who clearly aren’t worth what they’re being paid is what landed United in the mess they currently find themselves in; this one incident, in isolation, is extremely baffling.

أعلن الاتحاد السوداني لكرة القدم، تقدمه بشكوى رسمية للاتحاد الإفريقي لكرة القدم “كاف”، ضد الحكم المساعد الأول لمباراة المنتخب السوداني ضد غانا.

فاز منتخب غانا على السودان، بهدفين دون رد، في المباراة التي جمعت بينهما مساء أمس الخميس، ضمن منافسات الجولة الثالثة من التصفيات المؤهلة لكأس أمم إفريقيا 2021، والتي ستقام في الكاميرون.

وذكر الحساب الرسمي لـ “بي إن سبورت”، عبر موقع التواصل الاجتماعي “تويتر”: “الاتحاد السوداني لكرة القدم يقدم رسميًا شكوى للاتحاد الإفريقي ضد الحكم المساعد الأول لمباراة المنتخب الأول ضد غانا”.

وتابع: “والتي قام من خلالها الحكم بدفع مدرب صقور الجديان أوبير فيلود وسقوطه على الأرض بسبب هذا الدفع”.

🚨 الاتحاد السوداني لكرة القدم 🇸🇩 يقدم رسمياً شكوى للاتحاد الإفريقي ضد الحكم المساعد الأول لمباراة المنتخب الأول ضد غانا، والتي قام من خلالها الحكم بدفع مدرب صقور الجديان “أوبير فيلود” وسقوطه على الأرض بسبب هذا الدفع. pic.twitter.com/caIWvorcQq — beIN SPORTS الإخبارية (@beINSPORTS_news) November 13, 2020

شاهد تعدي الحكم المساعد على مدرب منتخب السودان

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Everton fans on Twitter have been reacting to a tunnel access video from after Sunday’s Premier League thrashing of Manchester United at Goodison Park.

The clip was posted by the Toffees’ official account on the social media platform and followed some of Marco Silva’s men as they made their way back to the changing rooms post-match.

And eagle-eyed supporters have noticed a few of the odd and bizarre things that were going on in the tunnel on Merseyside following the stunning victory.

Three of them noted that attacker Bernard had United’s Fred waiting for his top in the players’ area, with one of them musing about how he was giving it to a fan whilst another lauded Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s comical entrance and two more commented on Idrissa Gueye’s singing skills.

On the day, goals from Richarlison, Gylfi Sigurdsson, Lucas Digne and Theo Walcott were enough for a 4-0 drubbing for the Merseysiders, giving them a huge boost in their bid to finish seventh.

Check out the pick of the Everton reactive Tweets to the video, below…