This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…

There was plenty of excitement when Pablo Fornals joined West Ham United in the summer, especially following his performances at the U21 Euros.

During the tournament, he amassed 2 goals and 1 assist from 3 starts and 2 substitute appearances, including an eye-catching hit against Belgium, as the Spaniards went on to lift the trophy.

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However, that form has not been translated at London Stadium at all, as indicated by the statistics below:

The 23-year-old has shown an ability to keep the ball, maintaining a pass success rate of 82.8%, though he is struggling to do anything of note with it as has been shown across his 5 starts and 6 substitute appearances.

This is a big problem, as West Ham described him as a “creative, technically-gifted playmaker” following the announcement of his arrival.

A positive from his performances is that he has shown a willingness to work for the team, averaging 0.9 tackles per game, despite being dribbled past 0.5 times on average.

It says a lot about the 23-year-old’s time at the Hammers so far that his only goal contribution came against Newport County in the Carabao Cup, when he bundled the ball in from inside the six-yard box.

The Spain international now has a chance to get more game time and turn things around, with Manuel Lanzini’s injury meaning he has less competition for places in the team in the coming months.

To start that against Tottenham Hotspur would be a brilliant way to get Hammers fans excited about him again.

TalkSPORT pundit Darren Lewis says he disagrees with Everton’s decision to appoint Carlo Ancelotti as the club’s new manager.

What did he say?

Well, it appears as though the 60-year-old is on the verge of taking charge at Goodison Park with The Telegraph reporting that a deal is expected to be done by the end of this week, with caretaker boss Duncan Ferguson’s last game at the helm due to be against Arsenal on Saturday before he hands over the reins on Monday.

So far, the Scot has overseen four points from a possible six against Chelsea and Manchester United to lift the Merseyside outfit out of the relegation zone and three points clear of it, while he helped inspire a fight back from 2-0 down against Leicester City in midweek to draw 2-2 in the Carabao Cup.

Everton’s players have generally looked far more organised as a unit and committed under Ferguson, and Lewis believes he would have been a better choice than Ancelotti in the club’s current situation.

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He told talkSPORT: “I think the wrong man is in position at that club.

“Everton are under construction and they need somebody who’s going to get the kind of performances that Duncan Ferguson is getting from them at the moment.

“For me, the right man for the job would’ve been Duncan Ferguson.

“Ancelotti is used to working with top players & getting them to the top level. Everton are not there yet.”

Is he right?

Ancelotti’s previous four clubs probably tells you all you need to know.

None of Napoli, Bayern Munich, Real Madrid or Paris Saint-Germain were in the same position that Everton find themselves in right now as they instead competed for titles, and there is no getting away from the fact the Toffees are in a relegation battle seeing as they lie just three points above the drop zone.

Ferguson has clearly got the players working for him and has had that new manager effect, but realistically how long is that going to last?

Ancelotti may not have the know-how of working down the wrong end of the Premier League, but his experience and the respect he should garner from the squad should be enough for him to turn things around sufficiently at Goodison Park.

How much do you really know about the Farhad Moshiri era? Answer 25 simple questions below…

Majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri was right to be ambitious rather than trusting in the inexperienced Scot, who still has a lot to learn.

Ancelotti could be just the right man to teach him, too.

In other Everton news, a report has outlined the 2 Toffees players Carlo Ancelotti plans to build his team around at Goodison Park…

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Tottenham Hotspur fans mocked West Ham United goalkeeper Roberto as they won their first away game since January on Saturday.

Spurs won 3-2 at the London Stadium in Jose Mourinho’s first game as manager, with Son Heung-Min, Lucas Moura and Harry Kane all on the scoresheet.

Goals from Michail Antonio and Angelo Ogbonna gave Hammers fans hope that a comeback could be on but, ultimately, Spurs took all three points.

And a number of fans took to Twitter to troll Roberto throughout the game, as he endured a day to forget.

The Spanish goalkeeper was arguably at fault for Son’s first goal, which may have zipped past him but appeared relatively stoppable, while he also appeared to dive past Kane’s header for the third goal.

And fans took great joy in seeing the stopper struggle for the seventh consecutive top-flight game; he is yet to be on the winning side in the league for the Irons.

Take a look at the best of the reaction on Twitter below!

Aston Villa star Jack Grealish underlined his England credentials on Monday evening with an outstanding display against Newcastle United.

The coveted playmaker was in inspired form after returning to the side, providing a level of creativity that has been distinctly absent from Villa’s play during his absence.

It was the type of performance that prompted plenty of discussion regarding his England credentials, with Euro 2020 firmly on the horizon and Gareth Southgate set to confront some healthy dilemmas in the coming months.

Perhaps the main issue for Grealish is the fact Southgate’s preferred system doesn’t incorporate a number ten – even if the 24-year-old confessed last night that he prefers to play as a No.8 – and that is a problem James Maddison is also facing.

The two players have been depicted as rivals for a place in Southgate’s England squad along with Chelsea’s Mason Mount, but Maddison’s reaction to Grealish’s Monday night display suggests there is no love lost between the pair.

Indeed, the Leicester City star posted a message of admiration for his compatriot on his Instagram story, labelling him as “outstanding”.

Maddison’s attitude is indicative of the rising feel-good factor amongst the pool of English players both within and on the periphery of the squad, and his message of support is a positive sign of the atmosphere Southgate has manufactured.

From one outstanding playmaker to another, a friendly rivalry could be emerging.

أصبح سيموني إنزاجي الآن في مركز الصدارة لخلافة أنطونيو كونتي وتدريب فريق إنتر ميلان الإيطالي.

وكان إنتر ميلان أصدر بيانًا رسميًا أكد فيه توصله لاتفاق لإنهاء عقد كونتي بالتراضِي ورحيله عن الفريق (طالع البيان كاملاً).

ويفيد موقع “جول” العالمي، أن إنتر ميلان يرغب في التعاقد مع ماسيمليانو أليجري، المدير الفني الأسبق ليوفنتوس.

وفي ظل الحديث عن إمكانية تولي أليجري منصب المدير الفني لـ يوفنتوس من جديد، بدلاً من أندريا بيرلو، أجرى إنتر ميلان بالفعل اتصالات مع سيموني إنزاجي مدرب لاتسيو.

إنزاجي سيلتقي مع لوتيتو اليوم لمعرفة المزيد عن مستقبله في لاتسيو، ويبدو أنه بات الأقرب لخلافة كونتي في إنتر ميلان.

من ناحية أخرى، الأسماء التي تم تداولها في الأسابيع الأخيرة مثل سيميوني وساري وسباليتي ومازاري حتى الآن ليست على اتصال مع إنتر ميلان.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Off the Bench series, which places in-game managerial decisions and squad selections under FFC’s microscope.

After going 2-0 down at Sheffield United on Sunday afternoon, Manchester United thought they had clinched a dramatic victory with a second-half turnaround, only for the Blades to snatch a late equaliser to make it 3-3.

Snapshot

The Red Devils came into the game on the back of a run of five wins in their last six games across all competitions, but that form appeared to completely go out the window. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side fell behind to a goal from John Fleck, before Lys Mousset doubled the home side’s advantage at Bramall Lane.

However, in a dramatic sequence of events, United turned the game on its head with three goals in the space of seven second-half minutes. Brandon Williams kick-started the comeback, before fellow academy product Mason Greenwood netted the equaliser. Marcus Rashford thought he had given the Red Devils all three points with just over ten minutes to go, but Oliver McBurnie salvaged a draw for Chris Wilder’s men deep into stoppage time.

Whilst Solskjaer can take a huge amount of credit for bringing on Jesse Lingard and Mason Greenwood to initiate their response, the Norwegian must also share the blame for bringing on Axel Tuanzebe into central midfield with a few minutes remaining.

Hero to zero

After his mistake in handing Phil Jones a rare start – the England international was at fault for the opening goal of the game when he was bullied off the ball by Mousset – Solskjaer promptly hooked the centre-back at half-time, and brought on Jesse Lingard. It meant a much-needed change in formation, as United reverted to a back-four.

And following Williams pulling a goal back, the United boss once again saw his stock go higher, by bringing on teenage sensation Greenwood for Pereira. Within minutes of the forward’s introduction into the game, he had poked home the leveller, with Rashford then netting the goal to put United in front for the first time.

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However, in a substitution that Solskjaer will surely be regretting, his decision to take off Anthony Martial and bring on Axel Tuanzebe into midfield to offer up some more defensive protection back-fired. Former United ace Owen Hargreaves criticised the Red Devils boss for opting against going for the fourth goal.

“Get the fourth and kill it off. But because he didn’t have that experience in there he put on Tuanzebe to protect and it went the other way. I really like him, but that last sub maybe didn’t go the way Ole wanted.”

So after earning a lot of deserved plaudits for making substitutions that worked in United’s favour, the Norwegian cost his side a chance of an unlikely victory with his Tuanzebe decision.

Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford has given his complete backing to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

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…

Lee Bowyer has been speaking about how much of a loss Josh Cullen is for Charlton Athletic, as reported by News Shopper.

What did he say?

Cullen has missed the Addicks’ last four games, having been forced off after 56 minutes in the 2-2 draw against Cardiff City.

Bowyer’s side has seriously struggled during that period, failing to pick up a single point from the 12 that were available.

Bowyer has spoken about how integral the Republic of Ireland international can be for the team and how much he is missed: “Josh Cullen, unreal, a massive loss, I was watching us against Derby last night, you don’t appreciate what he does until you watch it back and now he’s not there.

“He’ll be another month out, but I’m sure when we start getting players back we’ll turn the corner.”

Best of the decade: Quickfire Quiz on the last 10 years of Premier League football

A key player

Bowyer mentioned the 3-0 win against Derby and it is clear to see why he saw Cullen as a key part of that victory.

The 23-year-old was made Man of the Match by WhoScored with a rating of 8.4, completing all five of his tackles, making three key passes, an assist, two interceptions and a clearance.

That effectiveness has been replicated across the campaign, as in his 16 Championship games, making 1.9 tackles, 1.1 interceptions, 1.4 key passes and 0.6 dribbles per game.

It is understandable that missing someone who has this type of impact with and without the ball has taken its toll on the team.

Bowyer will be looking forward to having the midfielder back, but must find a way for the midfield to function without him in the meantime.

In other news, Charlton should be concerned by the performance of their key man against Huddersfield Town.

MatériaMais Notícias

Um lance entre Raphael Veiga e o técnico Artur Jorge repercutiu nas redes sociais, durante o jogo entre Palmeiras e Botafogo. O meia foi afastar uma bola na linha lateral e acertou o rosto do treinador.

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Logo após a jogada, Veiga foi até Artur Jorge e pediu desculpas ao técnico. O lance viralizou, e torcedores repercutiram nas mídias.

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