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West Brom’s correspondent for The Athletic, Steve Madeley, shared a story on Valerien Ismael’s midfield options on Monday.

And a number of West Brom fans were quick to react to his Twitter post as a result.

The Baggies ran out 3-0 winners against Bristol City on Saturday but were without central midfield regulars Jake Livermore and Alex Mowatt.

Livermore was suspended and Mowatt injured, which meant Ismael used Robert Snodgrass and Jayson Molumby. The pair impressed against The Robins, with Ismael labelling Snodgrass as man of the match.

Madeley looked into the possibility of Snodgrass and Molumby starting alongside each other again when West Brom travel to promotion rivals Fulham this weekend.

He labelled the idea of Albion going into a game without Livermore and Mowatt as ‘unthinkable’ prior to the weekend.

However, it now feels as if that might happen after the positive displays from Snodgrass and Molumby.

Baggies fans react

This is what these West Brom supporters had to say in reply to Madeley, with many hoping Livermore doesn’t return to the side.

“Livermore’s suspension was the best thing that could have happened. He doesn’t offer anything and can’t pass. Mowatt would relish playing with Molumby/Snoddy next to him.”

Credit: @Jackk_Ross

“Was only unthinkable if you hadn’t got eyes. The fact that this pairing only happened by chance and not by choice is somewhat baffling and maybe even scary.”

Credit: @wezzaboing74

“About time Livermore is phased out of the starting XI. All he does is fall to his knees when other players score. How got like 10 games for England is completely beyond me”

Credit: @JoelDMendez

“Only unthinkable to fans who don’t understand football. Its been obvious all season Livermore doesn’t offer anywhere near enough in a 2 man midfield. The fact he is constantly diving in is enough to demonstrate that.”

Credit: @AdKido44

“Always look better without Livermore”

Credit: @Jaywba1982

“I don’t know what Livermore brings to the side and can’t tell you what sort of player he is, about time he was dislodged from the side”

Credit: @RyanPGlasgow

Ashley Preece picked out John McGinn as one of Aston Villa’s worst players in their disappointing 3-1 defeat away to Arsenal.

The Lowdown: Villa humbled at Arsenal

Dean Smith’s men were hoping to bounce back from their shock 3-2 loss at home to Wolves last time around, but things didn’t pan out that way.

Villa were deservedly beaten at the Emirates on Friday evening, being comprehensively outplayed by a more energetic Gunners side.

The Latest: McGinn performance slammed

It was a game that saw many Villa players underperform and McGinn was undoubtedly one of them, losing the midfield battle and not covering himself in glory for two of the goals.

On Twitter after the game, Preece claimed that the Scot was ‘miles off the pace’ against Arsenal, and in his player ratings for The Birmingham Mail, he further outlined his struggles, giving him a measly three-out-of-10 score:

“At fault for two of Arsenal’s three goals here. The first he allowed Partey to get ahead of him from the corner before he passed straight to Smith Rowe under no pressure whatsoever.

“A real off-night for the Scot who, before this one, said he was in the best form of his career. Booked for lashing out at Lokonga as frustrations boiled over.”

The Verdict: Rare off-night

It is hard to feel too angry with McGinn, considering what a consistent performer he has been for Villa for a number of years, scoring 15 goals and registering 20 assists in 119 appearances.

As Preece alludes to, it was rare off-night for the midfielder, completing just 76 per cent of his passes and losing possession 15 times (Sofascore), and the hope is that he returns to his best for the visit of West Ham next Sunday.

The pressure is mounting on Smith after two bitterly disappointing results in a row – they have lost their last three matches – so the clash with the Hammers is a vital one.

In other news, some Villa fans slammed another player’s performance against Arsenal. Find out who it is here.

The new Premier League campaign is already three games old and Leicester City have made a solid, if not spectacular, start.

A tally of six points from a possible nine is a respectable total for Brendan Rodgers’ charges, although their performances at times have left a lot to be desired.

Victories over Manchester City in the Community Shield and Wolves in their top-flight curtain-raiser were followed by a humiliating 4-1 defeat by West Ham United.

Despite the Foxes bouncing back well via a narrow win over newly-promoted Norwich City, several members of Rodgers’ first-team squad need to step their game up following the international break.

One of those who has significantly underperformed for the Midlands outfit is Caglar Soyuncu.

The Turkey international gifted the Hammers possession leading directly to one of their goals before hauling Pierre Lees-Melou down in the 18-yard box to gift Norwich a penalty at Carrow Road.

As per SofaScore, the 25-year-old received an average match rating of just 6.50 out of 10 for his three Premier League appearances, the 14th lowest amongst his teammates.

And when looking at his underlying numbers, it’s easy to understand why. Soyuncu has lost possession a whopping 39 times in just 270 minutes of action, won just 50% of his duels and made one error leading directly to a goal.

The former Freiburg defender was also underwhelming when in possession, producing only 0.7 dribbles per game and pulling off only 32% of his attempted long passes.

With Wesley Fofana and Jonny Evans out injured and Jannik Vestergaard settling into his new surroundings, Soyuncu was the senior centre-back for Rodgers throughout August.

However, his sub-par performances let the Northern Irish tactician down and both will be expected an upturn in form when the league season resumes next weekend.

And, in other news…Dreadful £60k-p/w Leicester man who made just 41 passes endured a torrid August 

West Ham United must sanction a move for Bournemouth defender Lloyd Kelly in the upcoming January transfer window, ending David Moyes’ injury crisis.

The Hammers are currently sitting in fourth place in the Premier League table after a hugely impressive start to the season, but extensive fitness woes across the backline are threatening to unravel their hard work.

First-choice centre-back Angelo Ogbonna has been ruled out for the rest of the campaign with an ACL problem, while Kurt Zouma and Ben Johnson are also set for extensive spells on the sidelines.

That leaves just Craig Dawson and Issa Diop as the capital club’s only fit central defenders, meaning the winter window could prove pivotal in their future success.

According to 90min’s Toby Cudworth, West Ham’s hierarchy are assessing a raft of options as Moyes looks for the right candidate to slot into his impressive starting lineup.

One of those being watched is reportedly 23-year-old Kelly, who has put in a string of eye-catching performances for the Cherries throughout 2021/22.

He’s what West Ham are missing

After arriving on the south coast from boyhood club Bristol City back in 2019, the youngster initially struggled to settle, failing to produce his best form as Bournemouth were relegated from the top-flight.

However, he’s gone from strength to strength over the last 18 months, playing a pivotal part as the Vitality Stadium outfit reached the play-offs last term, earning the praise of former manager Jonathan Woodgate.

“He’s got talent. He’s got a lot of attributes that Premier League teams look at. But he needs to be consistent week in, week out now,” he said before lauding Kelly’s natural pace.

“At the minute he just looks like a bit of a Rolls-Royce doesn’t he? He looked very, very good (against Bristol City). I was impressed to be honest with you, especially when (Antoine) Semenyo tried to run him down the line and Semenyo gave him two yards and Lloydy overtook him.

“It’s eye-catching when things like that happen, especially as a fellow defender. When you see things like that, it’s like ‘you’ve got a bit’,” he concluded.

And the £9m-rated ace has taken his game to new heights this time around. As per WhoScored, Kelly has averaged 3.2 aerial duels won per league game, a whopping 5.2 clearances and 5.5 long balls while averaging 73.8 passes per game.

Those figures place him in the top two for each metric when compared to his teammates, illustrating his top-class potential.

Therefore, it’s clear that Kelly is exactly the sort of player that West Ham are missing in their first-team squad at this moment in time due to their injury woes, and Moyes must push the club’s hierarchy to secure his services in January.

And, in other news…Newman could seal dream West Ham deal with “outstanding” £21m “superstar”

Liverpool midfielder Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain would ‘definitely suit’ West Ham, Kevin Campbell has told Football Insider.

The lowdown

ExWHUEmployee revealed in July that West Ham were considering a possible loan move for Oxlade-Chamberlain.

According to The Athletic, the Hammers have expressed a particularly strong interest in Manchester United’s Jesse Lingard following his 2020/21 loan spell, but the player has told Ole Gunnar Solskjaer that he wants to stay and fight for his place at Old Trafford.

Oxlade-Chamberlain could be an alternative to the 28-year-old. The Liverpool man was limited to just two Premier League starts last season, making a further 11 substitute appearances (via WhoScored).

He has been dogged by injuries since his arrival at Anfield back in 2017, missing a total of 74 matches, while West Ham are already said to be in talks with the Reds over a move for his team-mate Divock Origi.

The latest

Campbell has urged West Ham to pursue the move and thinks that Oxlade-Chamberlain may well be surplus to requirements at Liverpool.

“He’s the type of player that would definitely suit West Ham,” the former Everton striker told Football Insider.

“I’m not saying he’s a goalscorer in the same vein as Jesse Lingard but his game is speed. That’s huge in his game and he’s not playing at Liverpool.

“When you don’t play, there is always that risk you get sold or are forced to move on. He’d be a huge signing for West Ham.”

The verdict

On the face of it, this would be similar to the Lingard deal – a loan move for an out-of-favour English attacker at a Champions League club. The hope would then be that Oxlade-Chamberlain regains his stride in similar fashion to the Manchester United ace.

The 27-year-old is an exceptionally versatile player, capable of playing in central midfield, attacking midfield and on either flank.

However, would Liverpool allow another midfielder to leave given that Georginio Wijnaldum’s departure has already thinned out their squad?

The other news, fans raved over this display in Sunday’s friendly.

Celtic haven’t had much fortune in the early stages of the season.

In fact, it’s been a wretched start to Ange Postecoglou’s reign as Hoops manager at Parkhead. They were beaten in their first league clash and will head to the Czech Republic on Thursday afternoon licking their wounds.

That said, this has been a productive week for Celtic. They have signed James McCarthy who was a free agent while they’ve also welcomed Joe Hart through the door.

The former has been left behind in Glasgow but Postecoglou has received a massive boost with Hart among the travelling party.

It has been hinted that he could make his debut in their Europa League qualifier just days after putting pen to paper.

The boss commented: “He’s been training well with his club and he was also really keen to come in straight away.

“I gave him a little bit of an option that he could stay back in Glasgow. But Joe made it pretty clear he wanted to come across and join in training immediately.

“I’ll assess him in training and we’ll take it from there.”

If Hart does indeed start against Jablonec, then it will be huge for their chances in the match.

After all, the current goalkeeper situation at Paradise is far from fruitful. Vasilis Barkas made a huge error against Midtjylland, failing to save a free-kick that went through his hands and then found the net.

Scott Bain has also been lacking confidence. Despite becoming the club’s number 1 option between the sticks last season, he isn’t a reliable figure.

The Scot proved as much when Celtic took on Hearts last weekend. A late free-kick was hoisted into the penalty area which Bain started to move towards his back post in order to stop.

However, John Souttar rose above Bitton and headed the ball past the goalkeeper who was standing in no man’s land.

With the pair already making costly mistakes this season, Postecoglou must look to Hart from the get-go in order to hand his side the best chance of qualifying for the Europa League group stages.

The former England international is a seasoned pro with plenty of continental experience under his belt. He will know exactly what it means on Thursday evening. The manager will be elated to have him available.

AND in other news, Celtic could sign their new Henrik Larsson in “outstanding” 24-cap “animal”…

Leeds United are reportedly among a number of clubs interested in signing Liverpool youngster Neco Williams in the summer transfer window.

The Lowdown: Williams could leave Liverpool

With Trent Alexander-Arnold the Reds’ undisputed first-choice right-back, the Welshman’s first team chances on Merseyside appear slim moving forward.

For that reason, Liverpool are reportedly willing to sell Williams this summer, with £10m enough for prospective suitors to prise him away from Anfield.

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The Latest: Leeds keen on potential move

According to Goal’s Neil Jones, Leeds are eyeing up a move for the 20-year-old, with Southampton and Wolves also showing an interest.

Williams has won 13 caps for Wales and is currently playing at Euro 2020, starting in his country’s 1-0 defeat against Italy on Sunday.

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The Verdict: Long-term Ayling replacement?

Eventually Leeds will have to start thinking about replacing Luke Ayling, with the Whites hero turning 30 in August.

Williams could be someone who fills that void, possessing top-level experience at Liverpool and looking like a player who should mature over time. One particular performance for Wales in March led to him being described as “majestic” by Wales Online reporter Paul Abbandonato, hinting at the promise the 20-year-old boasts.

His energy levels should suit Marcelo Bielsa’s style down to the ground and he averaged one tackle and interception apiece per game in the Premier League last season, showing that he can defend when required. All things considered, he could be a worthy addition at Elland Road.

In other news, Leeds have suffered a setback in their quest to sign one player this summer. Find out who it is here.

An injury prevention expert has slammed Leeds United’s professionalism after Diego Llorente picked up a fitness issue in the defeat to Liverpool over the weekend.

The Lowdown: Llorente out injured again

Marcelo Bielsa’s side were beaten 3-0 by the Reds on Sunday afternoon as their disappointing start to the Premier League season continues.

To compound the result, Llorente hobbled off with a hamstring problem in the first half after being unable to continue, in what is the latest injury setback for the Spanish defender, who has now gone off injured three times in his last 17 Premier League appearances.

[freshpress-quiz id=“359346″]

The Latest: Expert slams Whites

Speaking to Football Insider, an unnamed source who has worked with Premier League clubs in the past lambasted Leeds, claiming there are issues with the club’s conditioning of players. They said:

“That does not reflect well on Leeds or their staff. The job of the staff – the fitness, conditioning, sports science guys – is to get the players fit to play and keep them out there.

“There are some injuries you can’t legislate for, like the Harvey Elliott one today, but top athletes should not be breaking down with muscle injuries in the first half of matches.

“It means they are being overloaded in training, over-worked or not warming up and preparing properly. Something has gone wrong somewhere and Leeds will be embarrassed it has happened again to Llorente.

“Everyone will look from the outside and think he is ‘injury prone’ but it is more complex than that.

“Ultimately it is the manager’s decision on whether he thinks players are fit to play, and once they’re selected they should not be pulling hamstrings in the first half.”

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The Verdict: Slightly harsh?

It is hard to be critical of Leeds’ professionalism when you look at the incredible fitness levels Bielsa has his players reaching.

Granted, it is a high level of intensity which could potentially increase the risk of injury, but it may simply be the case that Llorente is an injury-prone player. After all, he endured multiple absences during his time in La Liga as well.

The hope is that 28-year-old makes a speedy recovery given his importance to the team, but these injury problems are starting to become a worry and Bielsa may have doubts about the defender’s long-term worth if such fitness woes persist.

In other news, a journalist has named three Leeds players who could move on in January. Read more here.

West Ham United are in for a busy summer transfer window, at least they should be if the club wants to build on their phenomenal progress under David Moyes.

Having saved the Irons from relegation with one game to go, the Scotsman has since guided them into Europe, which means a 50-plus game season is on the horizon in 2021/22.

Right now, you could write off the East London outfit from putting up a competitive fight throughout the entire duration of the campaign because simply put, they do not have enough strength in depth.

A new striker is paramount as is sealing a permanent return for Jesse Lingard, whilst central options at the back and in midfield wouldn’t go amiss, nor would a new full-back either.

This all means that GSB should have to back Moyes substantially in the transfer market but that may not be completely possible due to finances. Therefore, the Hammers boss ought to consider dipping into their talented Chadwell Heath academy set-up to plug a gap or two.

Lingard could set them back in excess of £30m, which is the same sort of fee Eurosport believe West Ham will splash on a forward. That’s a potential £60m outlay from just two additions.

With Fabian Balbuena out the door following the expiry of his contract and doubts over the talents of Issa Diop, Moyes may want to look to talented U23 gem Ajibola Alese for a bargain solution to provide some much-needed depth in defence.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-the-latest-west-ham-news-transfer-rumours-the-latest-gossip-and-much-more” title= “Read the latest West Ham news, transfer rumours, gossip and more!”]

If the highly-rated 20-year-old can prove his salt, then the Hammers boss could well save David Sullivan and co several millions in the window this summer.

In the past two seasons, he has gotten a taste at a senior level, enjoying loan spells at Accrington Stanley and Cambridge United. And back in March, he was handed a new contract extension to tie him to the London Stadium to 2023, at the very least.

First-team coach Kevin Nolan has worked closely with the promising defender and told the club’s official website: “He’s a great lad, with a very good attitude towards his development, and he took a lot on board, in terms of what we expect from him and the targets he needs to set himself.

“I’m looking forward to working more often with Aji in the future. He’s a local boy from east London, which is such a big thing for this Club and our fans, and I can see how much it means to him to be here.”

Alese made his West Ham debut back in September 2020 during their 5-1 whitewash of Hull City in the Carabao Cup, where he received further praise about his abilities.

Moyes’ assistant manager Alan Irvine dubbed him “absolutely brilliant” to reporters, via football.london, whilst Tom Edwards told the ‘We Are West Ham’ podcast:

“Alese [is] a left-footed centre-half, which is gold dust,” claimed the former Love Sport Radio producer, before adding: “[Alese] looked like a seriously good player, as well – comfortable on the ball, good in the air, and it was just a joy to see two young players, who, not like [Declan] Rice or [Reece] Oxford, you heard lots about.”

It’s time for Moyes to promote him to the first-team set-up for next season. He may not feature at all in the Premier League but with three extra cup competitions, both domestically and on the continent, he could be a valuable asset to have amongst the squad.

AND in other news, West Ham could be about to repeat their Declan Rice masterstroke…

This forms part of our Loan Watch series, where The Transfer Tavern analyse how one club’s player is doing on loan based on a recent performance.

The Lowdown: January loan

Ellis Simms was sent out on loan to Hearts by Everton in the January transfer window and has since scored six goals in 16 games across all competitions for the Scottish Premiership outfit (Transfermarkt).

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It has been reported that Farhad Moshiri is now plotting a ‘major’ overhaul of the squad in the summer, including potentially selling both Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison, so the majority owner at Goodison Park will now have to decide what to do with Simms once he comes back from his loan spell in Edinburgh.

The Latest: Simms scores

After coming off of the bench in the 72nd minute, Simms ended up scoring the winner for Hearts just 11 minutes later as they beat Dundee United 3-2 on Sunday afternoon in their first game after the late-season Premiership split.

The striker, who also achieved a 100% pass success rate in his short cameo, made an instant impact, and looks to be blossoming into a fine player at just 21 years of age.

The Verdict: Keep him!

If Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison are sold, and Everton find themselves relegated from the Premier League, Frank Lampard’s team must be looking to keep Simms in the senior squad for next season.

The youngster made his plenty of goals already at youth level, so he has already shown his credentials to play more regularly for the club.

Nonetheless, his performances and goals for Hearts are surely giving Moshiri a headache as he weighs up whether to sell Calvert-Lewin and Richarlison, which in turn would then potentially open up a pathway for Simms.

In other news, find out which Toffees duo were deemed ’embarrassing’ against Liverpool