Opinion: Crystal Palace would bag perfect Wilfried Zaha replacement with swoop for Said Benrahma

As well as up front, Crystal Palace could also probably do with strengthening their squad out wide. 

Away from Wilfried Zaha, who continues to be linked with a move away from Selhurst Park (Sky Sports), and Andros Townsend, the south London club do not have too many other options.

And according to TEAMtalk, they could look to do just that after watching Brentford’s Said Benrahma closely in recent weeks.

The 23-year-old has impressed for Thomas Frank’s side this season, scoring 10 goals in the Championship while setting up another 14 along the way (WhoScored).

Looking at Roy Hodgson’s current options, that sort of goal threat is exactly what the Crystal Palace boss needs heading into the next campaign, especially if he ends up losing Zaha.

With Tottenham, Arsenal and West Ham also said to be interested in Benrahma’s services (also per TEAMtalk), it will not be an easy transfer to pull off.

But when looking at what the Algeria international can do on the flank with his pace and trickery, Crystal Palace would be crazy not to go all out for him or a player of a similar profile in the summer.

Whether Zaha remains at Selhurst Park or not, the Eagles need attacking reinforcements. And Benrahma could be the man to get the ball rolling.

Crystal Palace fans, would you like to see your club sign Benrahma? Join the discussion by commenting below.

بطولات يكشف حقيقة تعيين أروابارينا مديرًا فنيًا لـ بيراميدز

اقترب نادي بيراميدز المنافس في بطولة الدوري المصري من الإعلان عن اسم المدير الفني الجديد للفريق الأول لكرة القدم خلال الساعات القليلة المقبلة.

وكان مدرب بيراميدز السابق، أنتي تشاتشيتش، قد رحل عن الفريق بعد فشله في قيادته للتتويج ببطولة كأس الكونفدرالية الإفريقية عقب الخسارة من البطل نهضة بركان 1-0.

وسيعلن بيراميدز في مؤتمر صحفي غدًا، الخميس، عن المدير الفني الجديد والذي سيقود الفريق في الموسم القادم بقاعة المؤتمرات في ملعب “الدفاع الجوي”. (طالع التفاصيل)

وارتبط بيراميدز يوم أمس، الثلاثاء، باسم مدرب بوكا جونيورز الأسبق، رودولفو أروابارينا، خاصة وأنه لا يرتبط بأي نادٍ في الوقت الحالي بعد رحيله عن شباب الأهلي دبي منذ أشهر. (طالع التفاصيل)

ولكن بتواصل “بطولات” مع وكيل المدرب الأرجنتيني نفى أن يكون موكله هو المدير الفني الجديد لنادي بيراميدز على الرغم من وجود مفاوضات في الأيام الماضية.

الجدير بالذكر أن بيراميدز يستعد للمنافسة في الموسم الجديد على بطولة الدوري المصري وسيكون مشاركًا مرة أخرى في كأس الكونفدرالية الإفريقية.

بارنز: لولا وجود كلوب في ليفربول لاختلف أداء محمد صلاح وماني وجوتا

يرى أسطورة نادي ليفربول، جون بارنز، أن بعض لاعبي الفريق الأول لكرة القدم الحالي قد يختلف أداءه كثيرًا عما هو عليه الآن لو كان هناك مدرب غير، يورجن كلوب.

وأشاد الكثير من الخبراء بمستوى دييجو جوتا مع ليفربول بعد التعاقد معه من ولفرهامبتون في الميركاتو الصيفي الماضي، وشكل ثلاثي هجومي قوي مع محمد صلاح وساديو ماني.

اقرأ أيضًا.. تروي ديني يدافع عن محمد صلاح وهاري كين بعد انتقادات الغطس في منطقة الجزاء

ووضح بارنز وجهة نظره في تصريحات نقلتها شبكة “ليفربول إيكو” البريطانية، وقال: “يشتري كلوب لاعبين يتناسبون مع أسلوبه مع الفريق، إذا ذهب جوتا إلى نادٍ آخر فلن يكون قادرًا على فعل ما يفعله الآن ولا ساديو ماني ولا محمد صلاح”.

وتابع: “كلوب لا يحولهم إلى لاعبين جيدين، فهم بالفعل كذلك، نظام ليفربول وأسلوبه يناسبهم أكثر، إذا ذهب جوتا إلى برشلونة على سبيل المثال فلن يتألق ولن يسجل الكثير من الأهداف ومن الممكن ألا يشارك”.

وأضاف: “لا اعتقد أن أيًا من لاعبي ليفربول سيحققون هذا النجاح خارج النادي، انظر إلى فابينيو ربما كان مطلوبًا من قبل في مانشستر سيتي أو برشلونة لكنه يظهر بمستوى رائع مع ليفربول، لأن كلوب يعرف كيفية استخدامه من خلال خططه”.

وأتم تصريحاته: “جوتا لاعب رائع، لكن لا يوجد ضمان لنجاحه وتألقه إذا ما انتقل مثلًا إلى ريال مدريد، كل ذلك يعود إلى كلوب واختياره المناسب للاعبيه”.

Man United fans starting to change their tune on Solskjaer after Barcelona loss

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When Manchester United announced on March 28 that they had appointed Ole Gunnar Solskjaer on a permanent basis following a successful period in caretaker charge, the following Red Devils fans were clearly delighted.

It would be fair to say things haven’t really gone to plan for the Norwegian in just under three weeks since then though, with their 3-0 Champions League quarter-final second leg defeat against Barcelona on Tuesday night their third loss in their previous four matches in all competitions.

It was also their fourth successive defeat away from home – the first time that has happened since Solskjaer was playing for them in 1999 – as the cracks begin to appear.

Selecting a clearly out-of-sorts Ashley Young backfired as his mistake led to Lionel Messi’s opener for the La Liga leaders, while previously in-form players such as Paul Pogba and Marcus Rashford are now struggling.

Things need to turn around quickly if they are to secure qualification for Europe’s elite club competition next season, as they currently lie two points outside of the top four in the Premier League standings.

Man United supporters on Twitter were certainly beginning to question their manager via social media during their most recent defeat, to suggest some are already changing their tune and doubting the decision to keep the 46-year-old on.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

West Ham fans react to Benayoun retirement with glowing tributes

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West Ham United fans have lavished praise on Yossi Benayoun after the former Hammers midfielder announced his retirement from football.

Benayoun spent two years at Upton Park after arriving in 2005, playing for the club in the FA Cup final defeat to Liverpool.

A move to the Reds followed in 2007 after he helped the Irons, along with Carlos Tevez, avoid relegation to the Championship prior to a 2010 switch to Chelsea.

A loan move to Arsenal followed prior to a return to West Ham in 2012, though he sustained an injury during that spell and made just six appearances for the club.

In total, the Israel international played 78 times for the Hammers, scoring eight goals and laying on a total of five assists.

And he is still fondly remembered by Irons supporters, who are taking to Twitter to praise the 38-year-old. Take a look at the best of the reaction down below…

Leyton Orient: Win against Harrogate will set O’s up for end of season swan-song

Three games left to play, two in the span of four days, Leyton Orient have it all to play for.

The O’s stand on the brink of promotion back to the Football League after two seasons away from the professional tiers of English football, and with form dipping in recent weeks, Justin Edinburgh knows that now really isn’t the time to be dropping more points and letting performances bring the team down.

The final three games begin on Friday when Harrogate come to town, and Orient can set up an emphatic end to the season with a good display and result against the Yorkshire side, but a result will be harder than most fans will expect.

As we have seen in the past few games, Orient have been lucky to get wins in games were the O’s have come back from behind and had players sent off, and heading into the last matches of the season, this mentality has to be quickly erased if the club are to be promoted to League Two.

Edinburgh has the power to motivate his side back to the glory days of earlier in the season when wins came naturally to the team, and it’s these earlier season performances the squad need to tap into if they want an easy ride for the remainder of the campaign, and it starts against Harrogate.

Orient have long been the favourites to be promoted to the Football League, and now they have the make good on that claim with a comfortable performance and win against Harrogate to set the O’s on their way to glory.

Leyton Orient, can the O’s win their remaining three games? Let us know!

Leeds United: Bielsa must consider reigniting interest in Emiliano Martinez

Leeds United have had their fair share of troubles with the goalkeeping position this season, haven’t they Whites fans?

Having began the year with Jamal Blackman and Bailey Peacock-Farrell as his two main shot-stoppers, Marcelo Bielsa must have been fairly confident that they could provide the necessary levels of performance required to help the club sustain a push for promotion.

However, whereas the former was forced to return to his parent club Chelsea after breaking his leg in November, the latter’s tendency to make mistakes eventually culminated in his Argentine manager taking decisive action in the January transfer window by signing Kiko Casilla from Real Madrid.

Since making his debut for Leeds in a 2-1 victory over Rotherham United, the 32-year-old has been fairly impressive for his new side, keeping five clean sheets in 16 games.

Yet it could be argued that a lack of competition from Peackock-Farrell may be holding back Casilla somewhat as he knows that unless he makes a catastrophic blunder, he will almost certainly be the first name on Bielsa’s team sheet.

Therefore, in order to keep the Spaniard honest next season, the Whites must consider re-igniting their interest in Emiliano Martinez in the summer, a player who they were linked with earlier this year (via the Daily Mail).

With the Argentine keeper’s loan deal with Reading set to expire at the end of the month, reports in the Sun suggest that he is ready to leave Arsenal due to a lack of first-team opportunities at the Emirates.

A commanding presence in goal, Martinez has been one of the main reasons for why the Royals have managed to avoid relegation to the third tier this season.

If the Gunners do indeed put him up for sale when the transfer window reopens in July, Bielsa must do all he can to convince the 26-year-old to relocate to West Yorkshire as he has all the qualities needed to succeed at a higher level.

What do you think Leeds fans? Should Bielsa consider swooping for Martinez in the summer? Or are there other areas that the Argentine needs to prioritise? Let us know below.

Crystal Palace fans react as Andros Townsend rocket-volley is overlooked

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When Andros Townsend volleyed home from 30 yards at the Etihad Stadium in December, most surely thought they’d seen the goal of the season before we even entered 2019 and the wonder-strike has proved very difficult to beat since.

Fabian Schar, Jefferson Lerma and Mohamed Salah have all scored absolute screamers this season but Townsend’s first-time effort surely tops all competitors – except for Vincent Kompany’s goal against Leicester just two weeks ago.

The Manchester City captain scored a crucial winner to maintain his side’s advantage at the top of the league and the effort was named as goal of the season by Match of the Day on Sunday, much to the disgust of the Selhurst Park faithful on Twitter.

Should Crystal Palace keep hold of Max Meyer this summer? Harvey Jones discusses in the video below…

Of course, Kompany’s thunder-slice proved vital in the Cityzens’ second consecutive title win but the Palace number 10’s worldie meant that the Eagles are the only side to beat the champions at home all season – how’s that for a big goal.

These Palace fans had a lot to say about the controversial decision on Twitter but it’s unlikely there will be a recount…

Useless: West Ham fans slam struggling Marko Arnautovic

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Marko Arnautovic has not scored for West Ham United since netting a brace against Brighton & Hove Albion at the start of 2019.

The forward has played 10 Premier League games since then, drawing another blank against Leicester City on Saturday afternoon.

And the West Ham fans have been on social media heavily criticising the Austria international, who has not been the same since the January transfer window.

It was actually Arnautovic’s replacement who scored West Ham’s second against Leicester, with Lucas Perez coming off the bench to register in what proved to be a 2-2 draw at the London Stadium.

It has been some fall from grace for Arnautovic, who could well depart in this summer’s transfer window.

A number of the West Ham fans were frustrated with his performance against Leicester, whilst others were just simply upset at the 30-year-old in general.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Performance in Numbers: Rodriguez fails to deliver when it matters most

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Jay Rodriguez had a terrific season, there’s no doubting that. Alongside the mercurial Dwight Gayle, he scored 22 goals as West Brom came within five penalty kicks of a place at Wembley.

For Albion’s campaign to end on that note was extremely unfortunate, but when it mattered most, one of their clutch players failed to show up.

Rodriguez’s work rate was exemplary against Aston Villa last Tuesday night. However, barring that, he was incredibly poor.

Tasked with leading the line with both Gayle and Hal Robson-Kanu suspended, the club have arguably never needed him more.

On this occasion, the prolific frontman was anything but assured, failing to find the net from the two shots he had.

It may seem harsh to criticise the 29-year-old but it was a display far from his best and it proved costly. West Brom knew they needed goals but devoid of creativity, they couldn’t get over the line.

Rodriguez was arguably a victim of Albion’s lack of quality and absentees elsewhere.

Matt Phillips and Jacob Murphy struggled once more and they failed to find a spark capable of providing their striker with the chances he needed.

The former Southampton man was essentially a passenger throughout the match, boasting a quite frankly awful pass percentage and only touching the ball on 17 occasions throughout the 93 minutes he was on the pitch.

His inability to win aerial duels also laid a poor platform for his team. Against Tyrone Mings and Axel Tuanzebe he never really had a chance, such was their physicality.

Without Gayle next to him, Rodriguez looked lost, appearing isolated as he cut a frustrated figure.

For someone who has been so good all season, it was a bitterly disappointing display. On Tuesday, West Brom needed someone to stand up and grab the game by the scruff of the neck.

Technically, Rodriguez was their best hope. Instead, he failed to provide and as a result, another season in the Championship looms for the Baggies.

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