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West Brom are still without their first win of the season but they can be encouraged by their outstanding display on Sunday afternoon.

Slaven Bilic’s side were beaten 1-0 by Spurs at the Hawthorns with Harry Kane popping up with the winner just two minutes from time, but the result was not only harsh but also cruel on the Midlands outfit.

They dominated large spells of the match and were arguably the better of the two sides having won more duels and looked far better on the ball.

Filip Krovinovic and Conor Gallagher were particularly impressive in the energetic Baggies engine room, but not everyone was at the races – especially £15m summer signing Karlan Grant.

The 23-year-old has struggled since swapping Huddersfield Town for the Premier League last month, scoring just one goal in four starts whilst it is now back-to-back blanks for Bilic’s leading man.

Grant was largely anonymous before being withdrawn in the 84th minute – per SofaScore, the young forward fired both of his shots off target, made just 13 passes, lost possession 12 times and was found offside on one occasion.

BirminghamLive weren’t positive on his display either, grading him a bog-standard 6/10 and claimed: “[It] didn’t fall for him in the first period. Grant fluffed his lines when the ball fell to him in the box.”

Whilst The Athletic’s Steve Madeley tweeted that Grant was “not really in the game” during the second half. He also lost 54% of his duels against PL veterans Eric Dier and Toby Alderweireld.

You could forgive Bilic if he felt slightly let down by his performance.

Albion have only scored six goals all season, the third-lowest of any other Premier League side this season. Only the two teams below, Burnley and Sheffield United, have scored fewer.

The €10m-rated (£9m) striker cannot afford many more games where he goes missing throughout, it will only raise question marks over why he was brought in over some of their other more experienced mooted targets, like Troy Deeney of Watford.

Bilic now has an international break to figure out how to exactly get the best out of a man who scored 19 times last season.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Pundit tips 66 y/o to replace Slaven Bilic…

These have been some rough months for former England no1, Joe Hart. But even though it seemed he wouldn’t get a proper chance at the top anymore, the latest report from TalkSPORT states the goalkeeper is set for a surprise move to Tottenham Hotspur in the ongoing summer transfer window.

The same source claims Jose Mourinho is looking to boost his club’s homegrown quota of British players by adding Hart to the squad. The 33-year-old is, of course, a free agent following his departure from Burnley and is very keen to complete the transfer.

Premier League clubs are only allowed 17 foreign players in their 25-man squads so this is a way for the Special One to ‘balance the books’ and add some quality reinforcements at the same time.

Even though he hasn’t played at the top level for a while, the former Manchester City goalkeeper can still offer a lot and will most likely be back-up to both club captain Hugo Lloris and Argentine Paulo Gazzaniga. But it seems he won’t mind that in the slightest.

SkySports’ Simon Stone was quick to offer another update on the transfer, saying the medical is imminent and this is essentially a done deal for Spurs.

All that remains is for us to wait for the official announcement and the grand return of a man who thought he had lost everything.

Verdict

Hart may not be a superstar signing nor will he necessarily slot right into the team that often but he may be just what Mourinho needs in terms of leadership, experience and just pure bench depth.

Of course both Lloris and Gazzaniga might be ahead of him in the pecking order but the Special One can count on Hart to perform whenever he gives him a chance.

Only time will tell what kind of an effect he’ll have on the London outfit.

According to French journalist Manu Lonjon, Aston Villa are in talks to sign Clement Grenier in this summer transfer window.

What’s the word?

Dean Smith’s side fought off relegation from the Premier League on the final day of last season, and have been boosted in recent days by the big-money signing of Brentford marksman Ollie Watkins.

Now, Lonjon claims that Villa’s attentions have now turned towards bringing in Stade Rennes midfielder Grenier, with there being an “ongoing discussion” with both the top-flight side and Porto.

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The journalist claims that Turkish giants Galatasaray are also in the running to sign the £55k-a-week ace.

Imagine him and Grealish

The key for Villa in this new upcoming season is whether they can find someone who can share the creative burden with talisman, Jack Grealish.

The club captain carried a heavy weight on his shoulders, being seen as the one to both score and create for the side – he finished the campaign with ten goals and eight assists across all competitions.

But in Grenier, Villa can find someone who has the ability to unlock defences from central midfield, and take up the role of being the side’s chief orchestrator from the middle of the park – he averaged an impressive 1.2 key passes and 51.5 touches per game for Rennes in Ligue 1 last season.

Back in his Lyon days, then manager Remi Garde – who Villa fans will of course be all too familiar with – expressed his admiration and love for the France international. He said: “He’s won over everyone. He’s done what was necessary to be at the heart of our project for years to come.What I said to him will stay between us, but when I highlight certain players who are no longer part of the project, that in no way applies to Clement. We’re going to do everything to keep him.”

It was no surprise that clubs like Arsenal and Newcastle were interested in luring him to English football several years ago, with then Magpies boss Alan Pardew even hailing him as someone with “tremendous creative technical ability”.

If Villa can finally bring him to the Premier League, they could have someone who can help Grealish flourish that little bit more.

Liverpool may be one of the most successful teams in the world over the past two seasons, but they haven’t spent all that much as of late.Indeed, the only players the Reds have shelled out a fee for over the past 12 months have been Takumi Minamino and Sepp van der Berg, but that may change this summer.The Premier League champions have been linked with a sensational move for Napoli’s 6 ft 5 centre half Kalidou Koulibaly, as reports in Italy have stated that his asking priced has dropped from €100m to between €70-80m.The idea of the Senegal international partnering Virgil van Dijk at the back is a mouth-watering prospect, after all, Koulibaly was named Serie A’s best defender last term, and he received the third-most Ballon d’Or votes amongst any centre-backs in 2019, sitting only behind van Dijk and Mathijs de Ligt.However, despite the Napoli star possessing such pedigree, a number of fans were against the idea of signing him this summer, and you can understand why.Koulibaly may be fantastic, but he turns 30 next year, and such a hefty outlay for a side with the best defensive record in the division seems a little unnecessary.Van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip have proven to be a brilliant options at the back this season for Jurgen Klopp’s side, conceding just 26 league goals in 34 games, and due to this fact, some supporters believe that Koulibaly would be an unnecessary signing.

Other supporters weren’t happy with the fact the club are reportedly looking to spend such a hefty fee on the defender after reportedly being hesitant to make a move for Thiago who would apparently only cost them €33.5m (£30m).

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These supporters certainly have a point, the Reds’ defence is the best in the division, and it doesn’t really need bolstering, especially when Koulibaly will cost them at least double what Thiago is reportedly available for.

According to The Daily Mail, Leeds United have enquired about signing Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher.

What’s the word?

The England U21 international spent last season on loan at Swansea, making 47 appearances across all competitions. But with parent club Chelsea already well stocked in the midfield department, his long-term future at Stamford Bridge remains unclear.

Is it Haaland Snr or David Hopkins? Your Leeds knowledge will be put to the test with this quiz…

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Now, The Daily Mail claim that Marcelo Bielsa’s side are one of a number of clubs to have enquired about signing him this summer, and is “expected” to discuss his next step with Chelsea this week.

The report adds that the Blues are leaning towards potentially sending him out on loan again, rather than selling him on a permanent basis.

Shades of Frank Lampard

It may be the easy comparison to make, but there’s a lot of similarities between Gallagher and Blues legend Frank Lampard. Both central midfielders with an eye for goal, the former proved at Swansea that he has that real goal-scoring knack.

He scored six times in the Championship alone, whilst also coming up with a very impressive 11 assists too. It was no surprise that former Premier League midfielder Keith Andrews insisted that Gallagher appears to be following in Lampard’s footsteps.

He said: “I would imagine he would have had a lot of one-to-ones and spoke to him about what he used to do as a player: box-to-box, arriving on the edge of the box, getting shots off, crosses, cut-backs, things like that. And of course, Frank Lampard who Gallagher grew up worshipping, so I am led to believe. Those are the components to his game: box-to-box, real energy, likes to get stuck in, wins the ball back but then he breaks so quickly.”

When Leeds faced Swansea at the Liberty last season – a game in which Pablo Hernandez struck a late winner – Gallagher completely dominated Kalvin Phillips in the midfield battle. Lining up in the number ten role, he ran the Whites’ general ragged.

As per Sofascore, he won 11 duels, had a 100% dribble success rate, made three tackles and two interceptions, and also provided two key passes too – Phillips meanwhile lost possession 17 times and made no tackles whatsoever.

Hailed as a “jewel” by his former boss at Charlton, Lee Bowyer, Victor Orta can strike gold for Leeds by signing Gallagher this summer.

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…

Leeds beat Huddersfield 2-0 on Saturday, but it was by no means a straightforward victory for the Whites.

The Terriers threatened the Whites a few times in the first-half as Phil Hay described the Whites’ defence as ropey, while he also stated that Ben White looked under pressure.

Fortunately, the Yorkshire outfit didn’t have to rely on White too much in this fixture as Luke Ayling stepped up to the plate with an admirable defensive performance.

While White may have been under pressure on Saturday, the stats show that Ayling’s brilliance more than made up for it.

The Brighton loanee has made more interceptions than anyone else in the Championship, but it was Ayling doing most of that work at the John Smith’s Stadium as he made three vital interceptions against the Terriers.

It was a rather strange role that Ayling was playing this weekend as he wasn’t pressing as much as you’d expect a centre-back in Bielsa’s system to as he didn’t make a single tackle throughout the game, but that doesn’t mean that he wasn’t effective in stopping Danny Cowley’s side.

Last week we stated that Gaetano Berardi may have to be vigilant when it came to blocking shots, but instead it was Ayling picking up a lot of that weight as he blocked two efforts on Saturday.

He was also key in other defensive areas as he made four clearances while also winning four aerial duels.

All in all, it was an incredibly assured performance from Ayling as Leeds kept up their incredible defensive record while keeping their 11th clean sheet of the season.

Meanwhile, Phil Hay has claimed that one youngster could get his chance in the coming weeks.

Newcastle United’s prospective £300m takeover continues to rumble on into June, leaving some supporters frustrated by the whole situation.But they aren’t the only ones as journalist Paul Smith has revealed this week.He claims that the Saudi Arabian consortium, involving the likes of crown prince Mohammed bin Salman, PIF governor Yasir Al-Rumayyan, PCP Partners’ Amanda Staveley and the Reuben brothers, are also becoming increasingly annoyed at how long it has taken so far.Smith tweeted:

The reporter hints that the group have been subject to “outrageous accusations” in an attempt to derail the takeover bid.

Such accusations include the Saudi state’s involvement in illegal pirate streaming service beoutQ, opposition from other Premier League clubs as well as the controversy surrounding the assassination of Jamal Khashoggi.

All of these issues have been brought to the public eye in recent weeks.

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The Premier League have also had to deal with ‘Project Restart’ with teams now set to return to action on June 17th. Maybe the bulk of their attention can now be turned to completing this owners and directors test that has been at their feet for nearly two months.

AND in other news,ÂNewcastle fans react to Shields Gazette takeover latest…

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…

Until last year there had been a real reluctance from Mike Ashley to hand Newcastle funds to spend in the transfer market.

The £20m signing of Miguel Almiron and the £40m addition of Joelinton helped change that, however. They were both transfers that eradicated their previous transfer records but they’ve scored just one goal between them since arriving in English football.

It’s indicative of a Newcastle side that have been rather laboured in 2019, faltering countless times under Steve Bruce.

The most recent of those occasions was against a team in and around them. A 2-0 defeat at the hands of Aston Villa is unlikely to have done Bruce many favours, particularly upon return to his old hunting ground.

It is clear more goals are needed in January. Joelinton, Dwight Gayle and Andy Carroll just have one strike between them in 2019/20 so the potential addition of Jarrod Bowen could help ease those worries significantly.

The Hull man has been the subject of £20m interest from Newcastle in recent times and had scored 11 Championship goals from the flanks this term before netting twice against Preston on Tuesday.

A player blessed with pace and mazy dribbling ability, he’d undoubtedly add a greater attacking threat to Newcastle. However, it appears that the Magpies are now backing away from a potential deal in January.

Instead, they’ll initially target the loan market if The Chronicle is to be believed.

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The northeast side may have spent large sums in the summer but the lack of ambition here should be alarming. Ashley was more willing just a matter of months ago, but the failure to back the club’s head coach and inject more funds in January would sum up his tenure.

Rafa Benitez wasn’t sufficiently backed and they eventually lost him to China. Bruce’s stock isn’t as high as the former Liverpool and Real Madrid manager’s, but that doesn’t mean he shouldn’t be given funds to strengthen.

After all, this Newcastle side isn’t exactly sitting pretty in 14th and their lack of threat in forward areas is a big concern. Almiron has struggled again, failing to score, and someone to provide competition for him on the right would be valuable.

At £20m, Bowen would be a snip, especially after seeing similar players take the step up from the Championship. Former Norwich man James Maddison racked up 100 key passes last term while Dan James has bagged three times since his move from Swansea.

If Ashley thinks loan moves are the way forward there is something very wrong at Newcastle.

Meanwhile, check out what Newcastle fans have been saying about Joelinton…

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…

Jamie O’Hara has warned Mauricio Pochettino that Spurs fans will “turn against him” if he joins Arsenal as manager, per talkSPORT.

What’s he said?

Spurs sacked Pochettino a fortnight ago, prior to the Gunners axing Unai Emery as their manager.

Reports claim that the Gunners view the Argentine as a viable contender to succeed the former PSG boss at The Emirates.

And while O’Hara believes it would sour his legacy at Tottenham, he does believe that there is less animosity between the clubs than existed when Sol Campbell moved across the divide.

He said: “If he’s going to go to Arsenal, he’s going to spoil everything he’s done at Tottenham. The Spurs fans will turn against him.

“They (the fans) loved him, they were gutted that he left and I think they blamed the players and the board in terms of Poch getting the sack so I think he’s still very much loved there.

“That whole situation there now, the whole Sol Campbell stuff, I think is different now, I think you can potentially go there, especially as a manager and be like ‘look, at the end of the day he got sacked and Arsenal’s a huge football club’.”

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Not an attractive job

Why would Pochettino want to go to Arsenal?

This is a question that has not really been asked and yet it is pertinent.

They have a decent squad with some very good players – particularly the likes of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Alexandre Lacazette – but there are also some questionable members of the playing staff who could do with moving on.

Mesut Ozil continues to earn a fortune for doing very little – he has just one assist to his name in all competitions this season – while the defence is shambolic and continues to rely on Shkodran Mustafi and David Luiz.

If this was the Arsenal of 10 years ago, forward-thinking and looking to mount title challenges, perhaps it would be understandable.

But in their current state, Pochettino should swerve them, whether Arsenal want him or not.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans have reacted to the first sighting of Poch since his sacking.

Southampton fans have reacted badly to Stuart Armstrong’s post-match comments, following the 2-1 defeat to Everton on Saturday.

The 17-cap Scotland international didn’t really go into much detail about the loss, simply stating how the game played out, which has prompted a furious reaction from some Saints fans on Twitter who seem tired of empty soundbites coming from the team.

Ralph Hasenhuttl’s men suffered their eighth defeat of the Premier League campaign with defeat against the Toffees, a result that leaves them in 19th place – just one point off the bottom of the table.

No team has conceded more goals than Southampton’s 29 concessions, while the south coast side have scored just 11 themselves – the third-lowest total in the top-flight.

Armstrong’s comments didn’t really contain anything that should’ve triggered supporters, but his words have sparked an angry reaction from some fans who seem tired of the right things being said, but no positive changes actually happening.

Let’s take a look at some of the tweets…