All posts by z3u9t.icu

Many West Bromwich Albion supporters have flocked to Twitter to discuss an issue at the Hawthorns.

The Athletic’s West Brom correspondent, Steve Madeley, produced a story about the current traffic problem which has occurred at the home of the Baggies this season.

In the report, Madeley states how some fans have missed games due to being stuck in traffic or are even turning around and heading home after being delayed.

According to West Midlands Police, traffic management around the stadium is not within their jurisdiction and the club also have no authority over the road network.

It is said that the issue is Junction 1 of the M5, which is close to the ground, with both sets of fans using the roundabout when travelling to games.

West Brom fans flock to Madeley tweet

These West Brom fans have taken to Twitter to react to Madeley’s tweet and have told their own stories and frustrations about the current problem at the ground.

“I am close to giving up after 4 decades of going and it is all to do with the parking and a bit of Sky fixture lottery”

Credit: @shrew69

“Junction 1 island is horrific. Said it before, and ill say it again, nobody will do NOTHING til someone is killed on that island. Easiest football stadium to get to (from a motorway)… The most unorganised, chaotic nightmare of a stadium to get to!”

Credit: @WBAFC_TOM

“It’s not just about the ‘routes’, there needs to be affordable and accessible parking. The club need to step in. I had a ticket for the Derby game but couldn’t face the challenge of getting there after the Millwall game so I didn’t go.”Credit: @blueandwhite78″Never known it as bad as this season, leaving Sutton 2 hours before kick off just to guarantee making kick off now”Credit: @b_smith82″The problem on the motorway island is everyone’s so selfish and just want to get on to the island that they block the exits. So the other cars can’t leave the island and it all just sits there not moving.”Credit: @JonW1995″Takes me 2 hours, I live 10 mile from ground.”Credit: @8en1990In other news, some West Brom fans have expressed their unhappiness with this player. Find out more here.

Sheffield United are reportedly interested in a deal to sign QPR goalkeeper Seny Dieng, according to The Sun (8th August, page 67). 

What’s the story?

Sheffield United have already been faced with considerable interest from Arsenal for goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale, who has recently returned to the first-team squad having been away from England on international duty over the summer.

Ramsdale has been with the club since 2020, although it’s claimed that he could be heading for the Bramall Lane exit door in the near future, with the transfer window set to close on August 31st.

Therefore, the Blades are seemingly preparing for his departure by targeting a move for Dieng, who has two years remaining on his current contract with Mark Warburton’s QPR side.

He has made 44 appearances in total for the Rs in total, which includes 43 from the 2020/21 season, as QPR finished ninth in the Championship table.

The Sun report that Dieng could be on the move this summer for a fee in the region of £6million, with the Blades eyeing a move for the 26-year-old.

Dieng has been with QPR since 2016, and kept 11 clean sheets with them last season, as they finished last year’s campaign strongly under the watchful eye of Warburton.

The shot-stopper has previously been attracting interest from West Ham United, and you don’t do that by chance, so that speaks volumes about his ability at this moment in time and the exciting potential he has.

Dieng has shown that he’s more than capable of performing to high standard in the Championship, with the shot-stopper adjusting well to the demands of life in the second-tier, which can sometimes be an unforgiving league.

He had an average Whoscored rating of 6.71 from the 2020/21 season for QPR and he could turn out to be a smart signing by Sheffield United this summer.

Slavisa Jokanovic’s side will be looking to win promotion back into the Premier League at the first time of asking, having been relegated from the top-flight last term, in what was a disappointing campaign for the Bramall Lane faithful to witness.

The Blades haven’t been very active in the summer transfer window, but Ramsdale’s potential departure late into this summer could prompt some late movement, which is certainly needed.

Sheffield United were beaten by Birmingham City in their opener this term, and Jokanovic will be keen to see a positive response from his side in midweek when they return to action against Carlisle United in the EFL Cup.

Dieng made an error against Norwich City last term, but Warburton labelled the shot-stopper as ‘outstanding’ for his performances during last year’s campaign.

“He’s human. There’s no-one in the world [who doesn’t make mistakes]. [Lionel] Messi makes mistakes, [Cristiano] Ronaldo makes mistakes, the very, very best people in the world make mistakes.

“Seny’s had an outstanding season, he’s just human. It’s as simple as that.”

Dieng would be a smart signing by the Blades if they can get a deal over the line to secure his signature, as he’s shown that he’s capable of performing to a more than good enough standard at this level, and it’s a deal that the Bramall Lane faithful should be buzzing about.

AND in other news; Sheffield United also want to sign this in-demand star before the window closes…

According to a report by TUTTOmercatoWEB, there has been a crucial update on the future of Marcelo Brozovic at Inter Milan – and it involves Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte.

The Lowdown: Brozovic wanted…

According to a variety of reports over this last week, the Croatian is one of many big Serie A names linked with a move to Spurs since Conte’s arrival in north London.

Calciomercato explained that he is one of a flurry of Italian top-flight stars attracting the 52-year-old’s interest as the Spurs boss demands a €280m (£239m) transfer war chest to overhaul the squad.

Meanwhile, TUTTOmercatoWEB also claimed last week that Conte is personally eyeing a move for him after remoulding Brozovic into a playmaker during his time at Inter.

That same outlet has now brought more news on the Croatia international’s future and his contractual uncertainty, namedropping Tottenham again.

The Latest: Conte ready to welcome Brozovic…

According to their sources, Brozovic’s future at the San Siro is set to be decided over crunch talks as both the player’s entourage and Inter arrange to meet at a ‘decisive summit’.

His current deal expires in 2022, which means that he could leave as a free agent at the end of this season, and his renewal is now ‘concretely in the balance’.

While Brozovic’s priority is to renew, despite the disagreements over salary at things stand, TMW also explained that there is ‘no shortage’ of suitors for the 28-year-old, and Conte is ready to ‘welcome him with open arms’.

The Verdict: Get it done?

If Conte can finally strike a long-awaited replacement for Christian Eriksen in Brozovic, especially considering how he was ‘reborn’ as a playmaker at Inter last year, we believe this could be an astute purchase for Tottenham on a free transfer.

Highlighting his creativity at some points, he averaged the same amount of key passes per 90 as Spurs superstar Harry Kane last season (1.4) – more than any Lilywhites player bar the Englishman and Son Heung-min (WhoScored).

The 68-cap ace also managed more league assists over that period (six) than any Tottenham squad member apart from Son and Kane, who both made the PFA Team of the Year.

Brozovic’s 89.6% pass accuracy in midfield over that time also eclipses that of every Spurs player (WhoScored), perhaps indicating that he would instil some class and composure in a more advanced role under Conte.

Lauded as a ‘very precious’ player by former Inter Milan and Udinese boss Andrea Stramaccioni, the Croatian could come as the Eriksen heir nobody predicted.

In other news: Conte also tells Spurs to sign 183-goal star as journalist drops big live TV transfer claim, find out more here.

Newcastle find themselves in a precarious position in the Premier League as they head into the last international break of 2021.

The Magpies are 19th in the table and are the only side in the division yet to win a single match, with 20th-placed Norwich on one win below them.

Eddie Howe has been officially unveiled as the new manager of the club following Steve Bruce’s exit last month and faces the unenviable task of attempting to rescue the situation over the coming months.

Dreadful

One player who has contributed to the club’s poor form this season has been Brazilian attacker Joelinton, who has been dreadful in the Premier League when called upon.

Out of all the outfield players who have started a league match this term, only Ryan Fraser and Jonjo Shelvey have averaged lower SofaScore ratings than Joelinton – 6.55. He has played ten games, starting just five, in the top-flight and has averaged 52 minutes per match.

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In that time, per SofaScore, he has lost possession of the ball a whopping 110 times. This means that he has lost the ball once every 4.7 minutes for the Magpies, which works out at roughly 19 concessions per 90.

Couple this with his lack of quality in the final third and you have a player who struggles at both sides of the game for Newcastle. He has zero goals and one assist this season, with 0.6 key passes and 0.4 shots on target per game, via SofaScore. This shows that he is not providing the goods at the top end of the pitch to make up for his lapse play in possession.

Magpies legend Alan Shearer once stated that he finds the forward ‘frustrating’ and lamented the Brazilian’s poor first touch. He said: “A lot of money he cost and he finds it really difficult. His touch is really poor and he hasn’t posed a threat.

“It’s been really frustrating watching him. I actually feel sorry for him because when the ball goes to him, it’s bouncing off him and he’s offering nothing going the other way, also.”

These comments may have come midway through last season, but they are still applicable today as his statistics show that he has not come good at St. James’ Park.

Shearer’s reference to his poor touch could be why he loses possession of the ball far too often, whilst his creative and shooting statistics align with his claim that he does not pose a threat to the opposition.

Therefore, Joelinton has been dreadful for the Magpies in the top-flight and replacing him could be one of Howe’s first tasks in the January transfer window, unless there is a sudden upturn in form over the next couple of months.

AND in other news, PIF plotting swoop for “outstanding” £67k-p/w gem, he’d solve Howe’s major NUFC issue…

Sunderland are reportedly interested in signing Celtic forward Leigh Griffiths on loan for the 2021/22 campaign, according to The Scottish Sun.

What’s the story?

Griffiths has been with Celtic since 2014, and has gone on to feature heavily for the Bhoys in recent seasons, with the 30-year-old scoring 123 goals in 262 appearances in total for the club.

But he has found regular minutes hard to come by in recent seasons, with Griffiths making 26 appearances in last year’s campaign, as they lost out to Rangers in the Scottish Premiership.

He did sign a one-year deal with Celtic, but that doesn’t seem to have stopped Sunderland from offering him a temporary route out of Celtic Park this summer.

The Black Cats are in the market for a suitable replacement for Charlie Wyke, who left the club when his contract expired, before going on to sign for League One rivals Wigan Athletic soon after.

Could be the missing piece

Sunderland have been somewhat of a ‘sleeping giant’ for far too long now, with this year’s campaign set to be their fourth consecutive season in the third tier of English football.

The Black Cats narrowly missed out on promotion into the Championship last term, as they were beaten by Lincoln City in their play-off semi-final, which condemned them to another season in League One.

Charlie Wyke will leave a sizeable void in their team next season though, with the forward netting 30 goals in 53 appearances for Lee Johnson’s side, so you can understand why the Sunderland boss is keen to find a replacement for the 28-year-old at the earliest of opportunities.

Griffiths could be the answer to that problem position for Johnson, with the forward already showing that he can score goals on a consistent basis, when presented with the opportunity.

The Scotsman netted 40 goals in the 2015/16 season, as Celtic won the Scottish Premiership, and Griffiths can feel slightly aggrieved not to have featured as much in recent years for the Bhoys.

In an interview with Football Insider, former Celtic forward Frank McAvennie hoped that Celtic wouldn’t let Griffiths depart back in April, whilst also labelling him as ‘terrific’.

“When he gets those chances, nine out of ten he’ll put away but he’s not been playing that much so I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt.

“It just shows you what a terrific player he is because he’s created chances and got in the danger area but he couldn’t take them.”

Griffiths’ potential wage demands might be a slight concern for Sunderland though, with Salary Sport revealing that the forward is on weekly wages of £15k-per-week, which could be hefty for a club in the third tier of English football.

Sunderland need a player that knows where the back of the net is, and Griffiths certainly fits that description at this moment in time, and it would be somewhat of a coup for the Black Cats to secure a player of his quality, especially given his goalscoring record during his professional career.

Sheffield Wednesday manager Darren Moore is reportedly keen for Owls youngster Josh Dawodu to sign a new deal at the club this summer.

The Lowdown: Promising Sheff Wed youngster

The 20-year-old has been a key member of Wednesday’s Under-23 side this season, but he was also part of the senior squad on occasions, despite not making an appearance.

Moore is now planning for life in League One next season, with a host of established players out of contract and younger individuals potentially being trusted, and it seems Dawodu could be one of those.

The Latest: Dawodu set for new deal?

The Sheffield Star are claiming that the defender could extend his stay at Hillsborough this summer, with his current contract expiring this month.

Taking to Twitter, journalist Joe Crann revealed that ‘Josh Dawodu is keen to sign a new deal’ at the club, nine very encouraging words.

He confirmed the starlet has held ‘positive talks with Moore’ about remaining with the Owls for at least the whole of next season.

“This is positive… I’m told Josh Dawodu is keen to sign a new deal at SWFC, and is in a training camp currently to make sure he’s fit and firing for preseason. Dawodu, 20, is highly-regarded, and has had positive talks with Moore about his future,” Crann said in full.

The Verdict: Planning for the future

It is time for Moore to build his own team and stop depending on older players, signing his own choices and giving young individuals an opportunity to shine.

Of course, an element of experience will be required, in order for Wednesday earn a return to the Championship immediately, but it is refreshing to see that Dawodu looks to be part of the manager’s plans.

Julian Borner has been linked with a return to Germany, possibly joining Bundesliga 2 side Hannover 96, meaning Dawodu’s first-team hopes could be further enhanced.

In other news, one Sheff Wed stalwart has been linked with a summer move back to the Championship. Find out who it is here.

Many Everton fans have been reacting to reports that the club are looking to sign Salomon Rondon before the end of the transfer window.

The Toffees have so far brought in four fresh faces to Goodison Park this summer in Demarai Gray, Andros Townsend, Asmir Begovic and Andy Lonergan (Transfermarkt), and the former two in particular have played a role in Everton’s impressive start to the season. The Merseyside outfit have won two and drawn one of their opening three Premier League games (Sky Sports), with Gray scoring two goals and Townsend providing one assist (WhoScored).

In terms of centre-forwards, Dominic Calvert-Lewin is the only real viable option for Rafael Benitez, but it seems that the Toffees are looking to bring in a new striker to provide competition for the 24-year-old. According to journalist Alan Myers on Twitter, Everton are in talks to sign 83-cap Venezuela international Rondon from Dalian Professional.

The news has been doing the rounds on social media and it attracted plenty of attention from Everton supporters. These fans took to the social media platform to share their thoughts on the matter.

Let’s see what these fans had to say about the Rondon links

“We could do with a good back up for DCL”

Credit: @thetomgibbons

“Inevitable really, but also makes a lot of sense.”

Credit: @sunscreemer

“Great like for like back up for Dom, and endeared himself to me after McCarthy’s leg break too be fair, was inconsolable”

Credit: @Sean84628518

“We were signing Isco a few months ago, the life of an Evertonian”

Credit: @jeffwintersok

“Sound. We don’t have any backup for Dom and we can’t afford to spend tens of millions getting one. He’s not exactly top drawer, but as a cheap short term fix, he’ll do.”

Credit: @Geof17773624

“I really don’t get this rant. Rather than focus on how well we’ve been playing, the focus is turned on to how bad we’re going to be. I’m sorry, but that makes no sense to me. What happened to just enjoy the moment?”

Credit: @NTylerVI

In other news, Everton want to sign this Premier League ace.

Nottingham Forest’s disastrous start to their 2021/22 Championship campaign continued on Saturday, as Chris Hughton’s side suffered their fourth league defeat in as many matches.

Starting the season slowly has become something of a trait for Forest in recent seasons, with a Sabri Lamouchi led side also falling to defeat in their opening four games last time out.

However, with Dane Murphy being appointed as the club’s new CEO earlier this summer, and subsequently the club being linked with a number of exciting young talents, things had appeared to be on the up at the City Ground ahead of the new Championship campaign.

Despite this, results on the pitch have been extremely disappointing – to put it lightly – with the latest result, a 1-0 defeat to Stoke City, leaving the Garibaldi rooted to the bottom of the second tier table.

As it to be expected following a loss, there were a number of below-par performances from Hughton’s side on Saturday, although it was Lyle Taylor’s efforts – or lack thereof – that most caught the eye against the Potters.

Indeed, over the 31-year-old’s 71 minutes on the pitch, he managed no shots either on or off target, completed five of his 10 attempted passes, failed with his one attempted cross and touched the ball a grand total of 18 times.

The £720k-rated man also gave away possession of the ball on 11 occasions, lost all of his eight duels and was flagged offside once.

These returns saw the Montserrat international earn a SofaScore match rating of just 6.3, the third-worst rating of any player to feature in the game.

As such, with his side struggling at the wrong end of the table, it is undeniable that Taylor simply must start contributing more for his team in order to help them get back to winning ways, or else Forest could well find themselves in a relegation scrap come the end of the season.

In other news: Forest dealt transfer blow over “outstanding” £19k-p/w gem, Murphy will be gutted

Plenty of Crystal Palace fans have been having their say on social media after former Newcastle manager Rafael Benitez was linked with the Selhurst Park job.

According to the Daily Record, Eddie Howe is not interested in a move to Palace and looks set to take over at Celtic.

The Hoops may well be getting Howe, but the report goes on to add that Palace looking towards the likes of Frank Lampard, Sean Dyche and Benitez.

We’re aware of the links to Lampard and Dyche in recent months, but Benitez’s name is a new one.

The 61-year-old has been out of work since January after leaving Chinese Super League club Dalian Professional.

The Spaniard is targeting a Premier League return, and it seems as if the Eagles hold an interest in his services ahead of possibly filling the void set to be left by Roy Hodgson.

Palace fans react

@cpfc_xtra shared the news regarding Benitez on Wednesday morning. This is what these Palace supporters had to say, with many seemingly keen on a deal.

“Finally a decent link”Credit: @JA9baller”Great move, hoping we pull this off”Credit: @jackg1984″Yes please”Credit: @freshkes2″Benitez yes yes yes”Credit: @comfichair”Why are we not all over Rafa if he’s available. Get him in”Credit: @androsisnotbald”Rafa would by far be the best option for us, I doubt we could ever pull it off but if we did, I think we would be in good hands”Credit: @nikolimorgan

In other news: Many Palace fans buzz at club’s advanced talks with teenage attacker, find out more here. 

Kalvin Phillips will return to Leeds United’s starting XI for Monday night’s trip to Crystal Palace. 

The lowdown

Leeds travel to Selhurst Park for the 20.00 kick-off looking to make it four wins in five matches.

They weren’t in action last weekend, with their game against Chelsea postponed due to the Blues’ FA Cup semi-final commitments.

The Whites are still in need of points to ensure survival after 18th-place Burnley beat Southampton on Thursday night to close the gap to five.

£38,000-per-week midfielder Phillips hasn’t started a Premier League match since the 2-2 draw with Brentford way back at the start of December.

After a four-month spell on the sidelines with a hamstring injury, he returned for the final 24 minutes of the 1-1 draw with Southampton on 2 April and got another 31 minutes under his belt as Leeds beat Watford 3-0 last time out.

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The latest

Leeds Live writer Beren Cross reported on Saturday morning from Jesse Marsch’s press conference at Thorp Arch that Phillips is ‘confirmed to start’ already.

The verdict

Phillips has demonstrated in his two recent substitute cameos that he’s ready to return.

At Vicarage Road, he won two of the three ground duels he contested after coming on, regaining possession three times, and completed nine out of 12 passes (via SofaScore).

You wonder if Leeds would have been able to avoid relegation trouble entirely had Phillips, England’s 2021 Player of the Year, been fit for the whole campaign.

In even better news for Marsch, two of his forward options are now on the comeback trail. Patrick Bamford is due to be back on the grass next week, while Tyler Roberts is ‘getting close’ to a return.

In other news, Leeds are targeting this Spurs ace.