Former Arsenal forward Ian Wright believes that Manchester United boss Jose Mourinho would be prepared to allow Anthony Martial to leave Old Trafford this summer.
Martial has reportedly rejected the chance to sign a new contract with the 20-time English champions amid suggestions that he is frustrated with his lack of playing time.
The France international was a regular in the first half of the campaign, but has struggled for minutes in his favoured position on the left of the attack since Alexis Sanchez made the move from Arsenal during the January transfer window.
Wright has claimed that Martial ‘has almost fallen off a cliff’ at United, and the pundit would not be surprised to see the Monaco youngster leave Old Trafford at the end of the campaign.
Wright told Sky Sports News:
“Martial has almost fallen off a cliff with Mourinho and if he (Mourinho) had to let one of them go it would probably be Martial.”
The United supporters are desperate for Martial to stay, and they have good reason with the 22-year-old still contributing 11 goals and 10 assists this season despite struggling to hold down a regular spot in Mourinho’s starting XI.
Many saw Arsenal’s £16million signing of Danny Welbeck as a shrewd bit of business last summer.
The former Manchester United striker was always seen to be a player who had the potential to do great things in the game if you could get regular game time.
Arsenal offered him that opportunity and, at first, it looked as if Welbeck was about to embark on an exciting future as the Gunners’ goal-getter.
But just four goals in 22 Premier League outings suggest otherwise. Yes, he’s had injuries to deal with and also the resurgence of Olivier Giroud to contend with, but you’d expect a £16million rated striker to find the net more than once every 5.5 games.
He loves a goal for England, that’s for sure. But for Arsenal he continues to be a shadow of the player everyone hoped and expected him to develop in to under Arsene Wenger.
And the Guardian have gone some way in backing up the suggestion that the striker could turn out to be a waste of money for Arsenal in their findings below.
Welbeck has scored with just 9.76% of his shots on goal for Arsenal this term, which is the third worst conversion rate behind Bafetimbi Gomis of Swansea and Sunderland’s Conor Wickham.
To put that in to perspective, teammate Olivier Giroud has a shot conversion rate of 31.71%, which is the fourth highest in the Premier League. Stoke’s Jonathan Walter’s is statistically the Premier League’s most prolific striker with 38.89%.
But perhaps he can take some comfort in knowing he’s joined by the likes of Daniel Sturridge, Edin Dzeko and Romelu Lukaku in the Premier League’s worst 11 strikers based on goal conversion (minimum three goals).
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So there. Danny Welbeck was a complete waste of money…
The term ‘relegation six-pointer’ gets thrown around a lot these days but it really was the case for the game on Saturday, when Plymouth Argyle travelled to Hampshire to face Aldershot Town.
With the Pilgrims placed precariously above the relegation zone and one point worse off than their hosts before kick-off it was all too clear how bad the repercussions of failing to take any points back to Devon would be. Despite going in to the game on the back of successive goalless draws it was perhaps more important to not lose the game, rather than win all three points.
Argyle started the game on the front foot and won a free-kick a couple yards outside the box. The Aldershot defence, too preoccupied with arranging a wall, failed to notice Jason Banton lingering on the edge of the area and were made to pay. Conor Hourihane squared the ball to the loanee from Crystal Palace, who struck the ball home via a fortunate deflection.
The lead, sadly, did not last long as just five minutes later the home side levelled the tie. Another deflection, this time in favour of the home side, sent Danny Hylton through on goal. Argyle keeper Jake Cole did well to keep the shot out but could only divert the ball in to the path of Peter Vincenti, who will never get an easier finish in his career.
With the goal came a shift in momentum in the game as Aldershot looked to take the initiative through a barrage of long throws and corners. Under the previous management regime I have no doubt that the Argyle defence would have cracked under the pressure but during the four games John Sheridan has overseen as Argyle boss so far the defence has looked solid and have not yet conceded from a set piece.
It was actually from an Aldershot corner that Argyle took the lead. The corner was over-hit and fell at the feet of Reuben Reid on the edge of the Argyle box. The striker, now in his second spell with the club, took off with the ball and before the Aldershot defence could react and get back to defend, the Yeovil loanee had run 50 yards of the pitch and was squaring the ball to Banton inside the Shots’ area. What happened next was quite magic. Banton still had plenty to do but made turning his defender and curling the ball low inside the far post look easy. It was a great counter-attack goal and whilst Banton will receive most of the plaudits for his finish, Reid deserves massive credit for his part in the goal.
Argyle headed into half-time 2-1 to the good, much to the delight of the 907-strong travelling contingent.
The second-half saw a very composed performance from Argyle. Aldershot, as you would expect, threw everything at the Greens’ goal but just could not find their way through two defensive rocks in Guy Branston and Anthony Charles. With the hosts going for the equaliser Argyle were able to counter well, and could have put the game to bed on a couple of occassions, especially through Paul Wotton who sent his free header just wide of the post.
Despite immense pressure, Argyle held on for a massive victory, their biggest of their season, as well as their first away from home in 10 attempts.
There is still a lot of football to be played, but to this point John Sheridan is doing a marvelous job of trying to keep Argyle in the football league. An unbeaten return of eight points from four games, whilst only conceding twice, has certainly seen the Pilgrims’ league position look a lot less ominous. All but one of his signings have so far proved to be great bits of business and I cannot even start to describe how impressed I have been with Guy Branston since he arrived.
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To sum-up, it’s been a solid start for Sheridan and we seem to be heading in the right direction. Four cup finals down, 15 to go.
For more Argyle talk you can follow me on Twitter.
Henrikh Mkhitaryan has been on English shores since 2016 when he joined Manchester United from Borussia Dortmund, but his career in the Premier League has not run smoothly.
The Armenian international struggled to hold down a regular spot in Jose Mourinho’s team at Old Trafford.
In fact, the winger started just 26 league matches in a United shirt, so it was no big surprise when he left the club in January.
Mkhitaryan joined Arsenal in a swap deal that resulted in Alexis Sanchez moving in the other direction.
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Since becoming part of Arsene Wenger’s team, the attack-minded player has made 11 appearances in all competitions, five of which were starts in the top flight.
On his home debut, Mkhitaryan nabbed three assists in a 5-1 demolition of Everton, and since then has created a further goal and scored two himself.
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In an interview with the May 2018 issue of FourFourTwo magazine, the 29-year-old admitted that he did not hesitate when the opportunity to join Arsenal arrived.
“When I heard I could swap Man United for Arsenal, I said, ‘Yes, I want to do that’, I didn’t think twice. It’s important for me to play in an offensive team. I couldn’t have imagined a better start. I’d missed playing offensively. I joined Arsenal because Wenger wanted me, not because he wanted to replace Sanchez. We are different players and characters, with different abilities and skills, so I’ll try my best to do everything for the club.”
Arsenal supporters have given their reactions on Reddit.
Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.Comment from discussion Mkhitaryan: I didn’t think twice about joining Arsenal – I’d missed playing offensively.
Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho had insisted that the Blues squad that will face Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League quarter finals on Tuesday are a different team compared to the one that lost 3-1 at the Parc des Princes last season, Express reports.
The Blues face the Ligue-1 champions once again in this year’s round-of-sixteen, with the last meeting a Champions League quarter-finals clash less than a year ago.
Chelsea only managed to qualify for the semis last season because of a late Demba Ba strike, giving the Blues an away goal advantage after the game finished 3-3 on aggregate.
And Mourinho believes that this time around the result won’t be so even, due to the new additions to his squad and because PSG practically have the same team with that of last season.
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Mourinho said: “We beat them but we lost in Paris.
“It was a knockout tie that was decided in the last minute, a small detail making the difference. I’m not saying we won because we were better than Paris.
“We won because, in this case, we scored a goal away and didn’t concede at home.
“Paris are a great team, basically the same team as they were last season, with the addition of David Luiz. The same team basically, the same coach, the same dynamic, the same profile. They have conditions to be better because they have stability.
“We have changed some players and the identity of our game. We have changed our profile. I don’t want to say if Chelsea are better or worse than last season but, tomorrow night the Parc des Princes will see a different Chelsea to last year.”
Chelsea still have the chance to win three trophies this season, with Mourinho’s men in the Capital One Cup final against Tottenham Hotspur and also seven points in front of second-place Manchester City on the Premier League table.
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West Brom manager Steve Clarke has categorically ruled out the possible sale of centre back Jonas Olsson in January.
Olsson has been a rock at the back for Albion so far this season as they sit 7th in the Premier League going into an FA Cup tie with QPR today.
Rumours had been flying around in the media that the Swedish international has a relatively small buy-out clause in his contact at the Hawthorns and that has attracted plenty of clubs to the possibility of a smash and grab deal this month.
Arsenal were set to be leading the way to his signature but many other Premier League clubs and sides from Turkey were also reportedly interested in the 29 year old.
The Albion boss is confident that he will keep hold of all of his main stars in the transfer window and wants to build on the clubs impressive first half of the season.
“We can hang on to every single player,” Clarke told Sky Sports.
“We don’t have to sell anybody.
“Speculation is natural, because people make up stories to generate the interest. I know they make them up.
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“But it’s not unsettling for me in anyway, because I know that, come 1st February, the players that I need to be here will still be here.”
According to Turkish sports website Turkish Football, Newcastle United have joined Premier League rivals Everton in the race to sign Besiktas midfielder Oguzhan Ozyakup, who is rated at £9m by Transfermarkt, this summer.
What’s the word, then?
Well, Turkish Football reports that the Toffees are plotting a move for the 25-year-old, who left for his home country five years ago having failed to make the grade with Arsenal, but the Magpies are ready to hijack their interest.
Turkish Football says that the Tyneside outfit have been scouting the Turkey international throughout the campaign and have sounded out his representatives about a potential move to St James’ Park.
The report adds that Besiktas believe they have in agreement in place for the player to extend his deal which is due to expire at the end of the season, and they will need that to ensure that they receive a transfer fee for the player.
How has Ozyakup done this season?
He started the campaign as a regular in the middle of the park for the Turkish giants, but in more recent times he has found himself on the substitutes’ bench – starting the club’s last five matches in all competitions from there.
The 25-year-old has made 31 appearances in all competitions for Besiktas this term, providing six assists.
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According to WhoScored.com, the main strengths to his game are his passing, his dribbling and his concentration, and he has made 39 key passes in 26 outings in the Super Lig and the Champions League this season, while he has successfully completed 17 of the 24 dribbles he has attempted.
Would he be a good signing for Newcastle?
He certainly could be, yes.
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If the Magpies survive in the Premier League this season and were able to bring a player who knows the English game and has played in the Champions League to St James’ Park – potentially on a free transfer – they would be delighted.
The fact that Ozyakup could bring a goal threat and creativity from the middle of the park – he has 27 goals and 48 assists in 213 appearances for Besiktas – would help the Tyneside outfit from an attacking point of view, but it would surely raise question marks over the futures of Jonjo Shelvey and Mikel Merino, who the fans believe should be playing in a more advanced position than he currently does, with the latter in particular struggling for starts in recent months with Mo Diame preferred ahead of him.
Following the summer arrivals of Radamel Falcao and Angel di Maria, coupled with the fact Wayne Rooney, Robin van Perise and Juan Mata were already at Old Trafford, Louis van Gaal had a tough juggling act to do. In recent weeks, it has been suggested that former Arsenal striker Robin van Persie should be the fall guy. However, after his goal today, no doubt a few will reassess their opinions.
Man United are back
A comfortable 3-0 victory at home to Hull City. No more than you’d expect from any United side under Sir Alex Ferguson.
Wayne Rooney is United’s main man
Pre-match, Angel di Maria likened playing alongside the England captain as similar to playing with Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi and, although that is hard for many of us to believe, Rooney is certainly proving to be as key to United as Messi is to the La Liga outfit.
Tottenham Hotspur manager Andre Villas-Boas seeks signs of improvement from his first team against Swansea this weekend, following a last-minute collapse in their most recent fixture at Everton.
At Goodison Park last weekend Spurs were moments away from gaining three-points and consolidating their fourth position in the Premier League. The win would have set the Lilywhites well on their way to challenging Chelsea for third spot.
Last-minute goals from former Tottenham man Steven Pienaar and Nikica Jelavic made sure the North London club left Merseyside with nothing to show for their efforts.
“The dressing room was extremely disappointed after Everton. To see the result shift and us to take nothing was difficult,” said AVB.
Tottenham’s resolve will be tested at White Hart Lane this weekend against a visiting Swansea team hoping to bounce back from a crushing 4-3 loss against Norwich in their last league encounter.
AVB noted that the players came back to training with a firm desire to “improve.” The Portuguese explained that as a collective “We take the blame for the first half and how we suffered with goals,” but ultimately defeat is merely another lesson for everyone to “evolve as players and as a manager.”
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“When a defeat happens there are always things to analyse. We worked on aspects that didn’t go well last week like keeping possession and our defensive shape,” he continued.
The learning process needs to speed-up rapidly as Spurs enter a busy Christmas period, and with AVB admitting that “Michael Laudrup has taken Swansea to the next level.”
Liverpool’s seven-game unbeaten streak came to a crashing end at Old Trafford on Saturday after Jurgen Klopp’s side lost 2-1 against Manchester United in the English Premier League.
Jose Mourinho’s outfit have now moved five points ahead of the Reds, who still remain comfortable in the top four.
It was a frustrating afternoon for the away side, who fell to a two-goal deficit before the interval after some weak defending allowed Marcus Rashford to net a double.
Supporters were left fuming with the likes of Dejan Lovren, who struggled to meet the physical presence of Romelu Lukaku in the build-up to both goals. It was another afternoon to forget for the Croatian international.
Fans now want Klopp to strengthen significantly in the defensive area this summer, believing their attack is good enough to take on anyone and their defence constantly lets them down.
Is it time for Lovren to be moved on?
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Supporters took to Twitter to share their thoughts…