This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

According to German publication Bild, Manchester United are interested in signing Denis Zakaria, but face stiff competition from rivals from the Premier League and abroad.

What’s the word?

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side look short on depth and quality in central midfield, following a lack of replacements for the likes of Ander Herrera and Marouane Fellaini this calendar year. Paul Pogba’s recent injury troubles have simply exacerbated the problem, and Bild’s report is certainly welcome news for the United faithful.

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

It claims the Red Devils are set to battle Tottenham for Zakaria’s signature, but are also likely to face competition from European giants Inter, Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund. The report adds the midfielder is in high demand following some impressive displays for Monchengladbach and Switzerland respectively.

Powerhouse

Make no mistake about it, Zakaria’s physical profile makes him the kind of player that would fit well into the pace and physicality of the Premier League. The Switzerland international stands at an imposing 6 foot 2, and has built his game around being an all-action type of player.

Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

In seven games in the Bundesliga, the 22-year-old averages 0.9 shots, 2.9 dribbles and 2.3 tackles per game – evidence of a dynamic central midfielder who contributes immensely at both ends of the pitch. His performances are a key reason behind why Monchengladbach are the surprise leaders of the German top-flight, after picking up 16 points from their opening seven matches.

His promise has seen him earn remarkable plaudits from a host of people, not least Germany legend Lothar Matthaus.

“I’m glad that Gladbach have found another pearl. At his age I was earning my first stripes for Borussia. He reminds me of Toni Kroos at that age.”

Having been linked with a move for Kroos a few seasons before, swooping for Zakaria would ease some of the regrets of missing out on the now Real Madrid star. If the Red Devils can fend off the reportedly intense competition for his services, they would be pulling off a major coup.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

There comes a time when every footballer gets past his very peak and has to call it a day.

Sometimes, they willingly decide to step down and leave their spot to the younger crop while there are other times when they simply overstay their welcome, so to speak.

The latter, unfortunately, seems to be happening to Barcelona’s star duo, Ivan Rakitic and Luis Suarez.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

When they were at their very best, both of these players were irreplaceable for the Blaugrana.

Just recently, the Uruguayan celebrated his fifth anniversary at the club and during that time, he managed to win multiple trophies for his and the club’s cabinet, cementing himself as one of the most important players in their recent history.

A similar thing can be said about Rakitic as well – after all, we’re talking about Ernesto Valverde’s most used player of the 2018/19 campaign and a player who managed to bag a goal in the Champions League final against Juventus back in 2014/15.

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

Needless to say, both of these players have been huge servants for the Catalan giants but they might very well be coming to the end of the road.

Or rather, they should be.

At this point in time, their collective influence has already started to diminish and many of the fans have recognised that, bashing both the midfielder and the forward on social media and Twitter.

Quite clearly, they are slowly turning from heroes into villains and for that reason, maybe they should consider either accepting a smaller role in the club or departing altogether.

Barcelona have been on a lookout for a new no.9 for quite a while now, and Rakitic has been linked with a move away from the club as well.

Seeing how they’re unlikely to sway the fans any time soon, this could be a good thing for both of them.

Not to mention that the club would also profit from it in the long run, considering they are both players already in their 30s and not getting any younger.

Let’s see what happens in the future.

أدى لاعبو الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي الزمالك تدريبات بدنية وإطالات في مجمع صالات الدكتور أشرف صبحي بمقر النادي قبل بدء تدريب اليوم بملعب النادي.

ويستعد الزمالك للقاء البنك الأهلي الإثنين المقبل في الجولة السابعة عشر لمسابقة الدوري المصري، والتي ستقام باستاد القاهرة الدولي.

وباشر باتريس كارتيرون المدير الفني للفريق وأسامة نبيه المدرب العام والبرتغالي فيرناندو مدرب الأحمال الإشراف على التدريبات البدنية والإطالات.

وتطرق كارتيرون للحديث مع معاونيه عن البرنامج التدريبي الذي سيتم تنفيذه في مران اليوم استعدادًا للقاء المقبل.

كما تأكدت جاهزية محمود عبد الرازق شيكابالا لمباراة الزمالك والبنك الأهلي بعد تعافيه من الإصابة العضلية التي تعرض لها في مباراة الأهلي.

طالع | كارتيرون يمنع التصريحات الإعلامية للاعبي وجهاز الزمالك

وكان شيكابالا قد تغيب عن المباراة الأخيرة أمام الإنتاج الحربي حيث انتظم اللاعب في تدريبات الزمالك اليوم بشكل طبيعي بعد التأكد من جاهزيته من الناحية الطبية.

وانتظم إمام عاشور لاعب وسط الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي الزمالك في تدريبات الفريق اليوم.

وكان عاشور قد حصل على راحة من تدريب أمس الجمعة بإذن من الجهاز الفني للفريق بقيادة الفرنسي باتريس كارتيرون، قبل أن يعود للمشاركة في تدريب اليوم.

وواصل حازم إمام الظهير الأيمن للفريق للفريق خوض البرنامج التأهيلي الخاص به في ظل معاناته من الإصابة.

وكان حازم إمام قد تعرض للإصابة في مباراة الأهلي الماضية، ووضع الجهاز الطبي برنامجا تأهيليا له كي يتمكن من العودة للمشاركة في التدريبات بأقرب وقت.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

According to Football Insider, Wolves have been beaten to the signature of promising youngster Edson Silva by Sporting Lisbon.

What’s the word?

Earlier in the year, the same website had reported that the west Midlands club were pursuing the Portuguese talent after his standout performances for amateur side GC Alcochetense.

They also compared the young midfielder to Manchester United’s Paul Pogba, claiming his playing style is of a similar nature.

Watch Wolverhampton Wanderers Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

These latest reports suggest that the Primeira Liga outfit have signed Silva on a three-year deal, also inserting a hefty £39m release clause should anyone such as Wolves come knocking on the door again in the future.

Alcochetense is located less than 20 miles from the capital city, so the move may be down to locality if it wasn’t for the club producing the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Luis Figo, and Nani.

Big blow for Fosun

This news comes as a devastating blow to Wolves and their long-term ambitions to develop from within.

The 18-year-old is clearly very highly rated, and if he turns out to have half the career of Pogba, it would have been better than most in the footballing world.

Fosun have had so much success in recent times in recruiting young stars like Diogo Jota and Ruben Neves, mainly from Portugal, so this will be a slight notch on their record.

Are Gareth Southgate’s Aston Villa roots the reason behind the Wolves player in the video below being overlooked?…

Given the comparisons to Pogba, someone of this ilk may have been able to make the academy better and take it onto the next stage, especially as they are now faced with injuries to summer arrivals Meritan Shabani and Bruno Jordao, which may set them back a little further.

The youth setup is evidently moving in the right direction as even now, before a senior appearance has been made, Chem Campbell is attracting significant interest from some of the Bundesliga’s biggest clubs.

But these latest reports surrounding Silva will likely come as a major disappointment.

يلتقي فريق جالطة سراي مساء اليوم الأربعاء مع خصمه طرابزون سبور، في بطولة الدوري التركي.

وتُقام المباراة في ملعب تورك تيليكوم آرينا، في الجولة السادسة والثلاثين.

ويحتل جالطة سراي حاليًا المركز الثالث برصيد 65 نقطة، بينما يتواجد طرابزون سبور في المركز الرابع برصيد 59 نقطة.

ومن المتوقع غياب المهاجم المصري مصطفى محمد عن جالطة سراي، حيث لم يعلن تعافيه من إصابته بفيروس كورونا حتى الآن. موعد مباراة جالطة سراي وطرابزون سبور

تنطلق المباراة في تمام الساعة السادسة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، السابعة بتوقيت السعودية. القنوات الناقلة لمباراة جالطة سراي وطرابزون سبور

BEIN SPORTS HD 1 TR، اللغة التركية، Turksat 1C، تردد 11676، رأسي، معدل الترميز 24444، Eutelsat W1، تردد 10886، رأسي، معدل الترميز 30000.

BEIN SPORTS HD 4 MAX FR، اللغة الفرنسية، Hot Bird 1-6، تردد 12577، أفقي، معدل الترميز 27500، Astra 1B-1H + 2C، تردد 11856، رأسي، معدل الترميز 19700.

يمكنكم مطالعة مواعيد ونتائج جميع المباريات لحظة بلحظة من مركز المباريات من هنا.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain’s scored an absolute beauty last night, and it’s safe to say that Robin van Persie absolutely loved it.

It takes a degree of ability and arrogance to chance an outside footed effort like Oxlade-Chamberlain’s opener last night. Indeed, if you’ve ever tried the skill yourself, in an overly ambitious attempt to impress, you’ll know full well the risks you face – a wayward toe-poke into the neighbouring garden, window, or cat, and crippling embarrassment. Not for the faint of heart.

Watch Liverpool Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

“The Ox,” as he’s informally known, made it look so utterly easy, though. Following his first on the night, which was a tidy little finish in itself, the Englishman, joined Liverpool for £35m in 2017, completed Genk’s misery with a sumptuous finish that found its way into the back of the net off the underside of the bar.

Van Persie, who’s no stranger to wonder goals himself – a particular title-winning volley springs to mind – couldn’t get enough…

Southampton’s upcoming fixture against Everton is arguably a huge game considering the form and league positions of both sides.

The Saints have not won on home soil all season and are without a victory since mid-September, where they narrowly edged past Sheffield United 1-0 at Bramall Lane.

Just three points currently separate the two teams heading into the match, meaning a win for the hosts would see them draw level with the Toffees and put them in a much healthier situation. A loss, however, will increase the gap to six points and make the Hampshire club’s quest for survival a lot trickier.

One big boost for the Saints is that both defender Cedric and winger Moussa Djenepo are both fit enough to feature. The pair had faced spells on the sidelines with respective injuries last month, though Djenepo did feature off the bench during the 2-1 defeat to Manchester City last weekend.

Saints fans have been discussing who they would start against Everton on Twitter, and here’s what some had to say:

Manchester City fans have taken to Twitter to express their love for Phil Foden after his excellent performance against Atalanta in the Champions League.The 19-year-old registered an assist for Raheem Sterling and created four big chances in the game and supporters are now begging to see him more often.It was also the first time Foden had started for City since the 3-0 win over Preston North End in the Carabao Cup.

Pep Guardiola has been incredibly hesitant to play him this season, despite the constant praise he gives the teenager. Guardiola stated two weeks ago that even a bid of €500m (£450m) would still not tempt him to sell the City youngster, although Foden has played just 11 minutes of Premier League action so far.

Fans are already starting to see the playmaker as the natural heir to David Silva, with one supporter stating they “prefer him” to the Spaniard right now.

Silva will be leaving the Etihad at the end of the season, and fans will be hoping that one of their own starts to fill his boots as the season continues.

Regardless, if performances like this continue, Guardiola may not have a choice but to put Foden in the team more often.

Here’s what some fans have had to say on his recent outing…

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…

Sky Sports pundit Paul Merson has revealed that he thinks Southampton could lose by more than nine goals when they take on Manchester City this Saturday.

As you’ll presumably have heard, the Saints suffered the joint-heaviest Premier League defeat of all time last Friday after enduring a crushing 9-0 loss to Leicester at St Mary’s, a result that equalled Manchester United’s 9-0 win over Ipswich from 1995.

Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men had to travel to the Etihad Stadium just four days after that defeat to take on Manchester City in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday, where they suffered a 3-1 loss – on Saturday, they will be back in that part of Manchester for the second time in five days.

What did Merson say?

Merson wrote in his Sky Sports column: “For Southampton, they have to pray that it rains that much that the game get called off in the next couple of days against Man City.

“Southampton were that bad against Leicester, and I’m not being horrible, but if Man City get going, that record is in danger. How many times have you seen Man City play and after the game gone ‘they could have won that 10-0’. They only have to have a game where they start finishing all their chances and Southampton are in trouble.”

Disrespectful to the Saints’ professionalism 

Southampton responded in fairly admirable fashion by suffering just a 3-1 defeat to Manchester City on Tuesday, and while the Citizens did play a few youngsters, players of real pedigree in Sergio Aguero, Gabriel Jesus, Bernardo Silva and Riyad Mahrez still featured.

It usually takes a rocket up the backside such as a 9-0 defeat to truly get a faltering side to realise the rut that they are in and begin to make amendments, and it is slightly disrespectful of Merson to say that they should be praying that the game is called off – these players are professionals – many of whom, such as Oriol Romeu, Danny Ings and Nathan Redmond, are well established at Premier League level – and will want to put things right.

The Southampton players are quite obviously aware of just how horrendous they were against Leicester having donated their wages from that day to the Saints Foundation, and Merson shouldn’t be so quick to brandish them as a side hoping for the game to be called off.

كشف عبد الناصر محمد، مدير الكرة بنادي إنبي، عن حقيقة اهتمام الزمالك بضم موهبة الفريق البترولي الشاب مهاب ياسر، تمهيدا لضمه خلال فترة الانتقالات الشتوية الجارية.

وانضم مهاب ياسر من فريق نجوم المستقبل إلى إنبي في الميركاتو الصيفي الماضي، وظهر اللاعب بأداء لافت للنظر، ونال إشادة كبيرة بعد أدائه الجيد أمام الأهلي في الجولة الماضية رغم خسارة فريقه بثلاثية مقابل هدف.

وقال عبد الناصر محمد خلال مداخلة ببرنامج “بي أون تايم” عبر شاشة “أون تايم سبورت”: “مهاب ياسر أدى مباراة جيدة أمام الأهلي، نحن قمنا بضمه من فريق نجوم المستقبل وزميله جرجس مجدي”.

وتابع: “الثنائي بدأ بشكل متأخر معنا، ولكن حلمي طولان أدخلهما وسط الفريق وظهرا بشكل جيد”.

إقرأ أيضا.. اتحاد الكرة يُعلن في بيان رسمي رفضه تأجيل أي مباراة بـ الدوري المصري

وواصل: “ولكن نحن لدينا مشكلة في مصر وهي عندما يمرر لاعب كرة جيدة الإعلام يخرج فورا ويقول إنه على رادار الأهلي أو الزمالك، ولكن هذا غير صحيح لا يوجد عروض قدمت من الزمالك بشأن ضم مهاب ياسر”.

واختتم: “بالتأكيد نادي إنبي لا يغلق باب المفاوضات أو بيع اللاعبين في أي وقت، لأن هذا من موارد الفريق الأساسية، ولكن لم يصلنا أي شئ ولم يتواصل معنا أي مسؤول من الزمالك بشأن مهاب ياسر”.