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Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Wolves striker Steve Bull has heaped praise on Rui Patricio, hailing the Portugal international as a great goalkeeper.

Patricio, who joined Wolves from Sporting Lisbon back in 2018, has made himself the team’s No.1, rarely disappointing manager Nuno Espirito Santo.

Last season, the 33-year-old kept 13 clean sheets in the Premier League, helping the Midlands club to build a solid foundation from the back.

Bearing that in mind, Wolves will be desperate to have Patricio available after the international break, with the ex-Sporting Lisbon shot-stopper picking up a horrific head injury in the recent 1-0 defeat to Liverpool.

Discussing Patricio in an exclusive interview with FFC, Bull said:

“He’s a great goalkeeper. A Portuguese international goalkeeper coming to Wolves, that’s class and just shows the ambition. And when you see him, he’s like a cat flying left, right and centre.

“He’s a big pillar as well, he’s demanding in the box, he knows what he wants. He was unfortunate [against Liverpool] because he was being brave to try and get the ball, which you want a ‘keeper to do. He’s a world-class goalkeeper and I’m glad Wolves have got him.”

Last season, Wolves recorded one of the best defensive records in the Premier League as they went on to finish seventh in English football’s top division. Across the 38 games played that term, Nuno’s men conceded 40 goals, with the Portugal No.1 playing his part.

Should he recover in time, next up for Patricio is a tough game against in-form West Ham. David Moyes has the Hammers flying high this term, guiding them to fifth place and just two points behind Chelsea and that final Champions League spot.

Liverpool could make a major transfer error in the summer, with right-back Neco Williams being linked with a departure to Southampton.

According to The Athletic, the Saints hold a long-standing interest in the 19-year-old and could make a swoop on a loan-to-buy deal.

Whilst Liverpool could rake in a fair amount for the youngster with him being rated at £9m, it would be a mistake for Michael Edwards to let him go so soon.

Williams, a nine-time Welsh international, has certainly displayed his promise after progressing through the Reds’ youth system.

He has now made 24 appearances for Liverpool in all competitions, turning in some extremely competent displays on the right side of defence.

It would certainly seem bizarre for the Reds to cut him adrift so soon considering that he is finally finding a route into the first-team under Jurgen Klopp.

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Any potential deal would look even more of a mistake considering the faith put into the defender by the Anfield hierarchy and of course the German. As recently as August 2020, he put pen to paper on a brand-new five-year deal at the club, with the player himself going on to suggest that there was “no better place” for him to play football.

To then sell the youngster having committed him to a new contract would be a huge error from the Reds.

It would also be baffling to see Williams sold considering the current right-back options available to the Klopp at Anfield.

Fellow academy graduate Trent Alexander-Arnold is the undisputed first-choice in that position, with Williams providing back-up as the only other natural right-sided defender in the squad.

Should the former suffer with injuries or poor form at some point in the future then that would see Williams promoted to first-choice so it would be remarkable to see the youngster jettisoned.

Despite Southampton’s interest, Liverpool then should not put any deal under any real consideration. It would be an unforgivable howler from Edwards to once again leave the Reds short of genuine cover in a key position, and it would have Klopp absolutely fuming.

AND in more news, the Reds might have found their perfect Georginio Wijnaldum replacement…

Leicester City have been indebted to goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel in recent weeks.

The Danish stopper produced a string of impressive saves in the Foxes’ 2-1 success against Brighton and Hove Albion at the weekend. However, despite his great form between the sticks, at 34 years of age, the former Manchester City and Leeds United stopper is not going to last forever.

Luckily, Brendan Rodgers has a ready-made replacement at his disposal; on-loan Preston North End man Daniel Iversen.

Rated at just £540k, the 23-year-old stopper has continued to defy his paltry valuation with a number of impressive performances.

He has been the undisputed No.1 at Deepdale since his arrival in January, playing 12 Championship matches and keeping four clean sheets. This form with the Lilywhites has come on the back of impressive temporary spells at Rotherham United and Oldham Athletic.

Even his current manager, Alex Neil, has suggested that there would be a “struggle to find better” shot-stoppers than Iversen in the Championship this season.

It is only natural then that comparisons with his compatriot Schmeichel occur, especially with the two potentially vying for the No.1 shirt at the King Power Stadium in the near future.

Ironically, the duos’ similarities do not just end at their nationality; their numbers are extremely similar throughout the 2020/21 season.

According to SofaScore, Iversen makes 2.8 saves per game, with Schmeichel surprisingly lower at 2.6, albeit in the Premier League.

The latter has a clean sheet rate of 32%, whilst the 23-year-old’s sits just slightly higher at 33% – extremely similar numbers.

Despite that, the youngster has already committed two errors leading to goals with Preston this season, however, that erratic nature should be snuffed out as he continues to develop.

Iversen’s distribution redeems him somewhat. Schmeichel’s accuracy when passing into the opposition half sits at just 2.4%, whilst Iversen’s is far better at 5.7%.

Despite the former Esbjerg fB stopper suggesting that he desires another temporary loan move away from the King Power Stadium next season, now might be the right time for him to challenge Schmeichel.

If he does that, he should be ready to step into the vacancy when the Foxes’ stalwart eventually hangs up his gloves.

AND in more news, Dean Windass has said that Leicester can secure second in the Premier League this season despite their injury woes…

For those in the Celtic reserve side, their chances of securing regular first-team action seems difficult to envisage.

That was certainly the case under a stubborn Neil Lennon. Very rarely did the northern Irishman change his methods and it eventually led to his downfall.

An underlying problem at Parkhead has been the lack of opportunities for their young players. Cameron Harper has headed back to America as a result, while the likes of Armstrong Oko-Flex and Karamoko Dembele look set to depart when their contracts expire in the summer.

With that in mind, they have to start handing more minutes out. Adam Montgomery has been on the bench since John Kennedy was put in interim charge but someone who must join him is Luca Connell.

The 19-year-old joined in 2019 from Bolton Wanderers but has, rather bizarrely, never been given a chance in the senior side.

The teenager arrived with 12 appearances for Bolton in the EFL to his name, something which makes his lack of football in Glasgow even stranger.

When he put pen to paper two years ago, he surely wasn’t expecting to sit in the reserves. With the Bhoys signing Liam Shaw in a few months time, another with a similar level of experience under his belt as Connell, he will be hoping his career doesn’t follow in a similar path.

The Hoops have little to play for between now and the end of the season so throwing in players like Connell wouldn’t be a bad idea. By giving him minutes, it could help Kennedy and co. prepare for Scott Brown’s potential exit.

The veteran is out of contract in the summer and thus, there will be a vacancy in the middle of the park to fill. Ismaila Soro will be at the front of the queue but following behind should be Connell.

He is strong in the tackle and assured with his passing, earning numerous positive reviews in his short career to date.

Connell was given a chance to train with Ireland a few years ago and earned the following appraisal from Mick McCarthy, someone linked with the Celtic manager’s seat: “He’s a breath of fresh air around the place,” he began.

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“He’s left-footed and he can certainly find a pass. He hits it with a bit of authority and lets people have the ball. He doesn’t mind putting his foot in either so he’s fitted in pretty well,” McCarthy concluded.

That final passage is what should excite Celtic supporters. As Brown and Soro have shown, you can’t play in this Hoops midfield without having a bit of bite about you. Despite his tender age, Connell possesses plenty of that.

With the Hoops skipper potentially on his way out, it is surely now or never in terms of the teenager’s Celtic career. Kennedy needs to give him a chance.

AND in other news, 109 dribbles: Celtic could seal huge Ryan Christie upgrade by signing 18-goal wizard…

Many Liverpool fans reacted with joy after The Athletic journalist James Pearce posted quotes made by Jurgen Klopp during his press conference.

The German tactician told reporters that goalkeeper Alisson Becker will be available for the Reds’ crunch clash against Everton at Anfield on Saturday.

This followed on from potential worries that the Brazil international may not be available for the Merseyside derby after missing Thursday’s training session, with backup shot-stopper Caoimhim Kelleher also not featuring.

Alisson has been in and out of the side during the 2020/21 campaign after picking up a number of injuries, having played a key role in Liverpool’s recent success domestically and in Europe as the club’s number one shot-stopper.

Unsurprisingly, supporters were delighted to discover that the 28-year-old would be available for selection and made their feelings clear towards Pearce on Twitter.

Alisson news sent these fans wild

“Panic over”

Credit: @Dabzee

“Super. That’s all I needed to hear.”

Credit: @A_C0624

“And the news we all wanted!”

Credit: @LFCNewsSheet

“Thank goodness for that”

Credit: @hjkerins

“Tears in my eyes we move”

Credit: @sisenor_9

“GET INNNNNNN”

Credit: @NunlAlhabsy

In other news, Liverpool fans delighted over links with ‘Argentinian Jack Grealish.’

Many Liverpool fans reacted in delight regarding news concerning Reds’ youngster Harvey Blair.

The club announced on Wednesday morning that the 17-year-old has put pen to paper on a new contract extension after just one season with the U18s squad.

Blair has scored twice from just four U18 Premier League appearances and is currently working his way through the club’s academy setup at the AXA Training Centre.

The English youngster is a versatile attacker that typically plays as a winger, but can also play through the middle with his pace and technical ability.

With this in mind, supporters were overjoyed with the announcement and are looking forward to seeing what he can do in the future with this abundance of potential, as one fan hailed the starlet as a ‘baller’ and others joked his deal means they will win the league.

Fans celebrate Blair’s new deal

“Baller”

Credit: @lfcfamz

“WE’RE WINNING THE LEAGUE”

Credit: @Daniel04139099

“What a player”

Credit: @GerrardThings

“YNWA Harvey lad”

Credit: @KLigaf

“Nice what a player”

Credit: @lfcthursto

“Way to go young lad YNWA”

Credit: @kunmisconsult

“Wow What a player”

Credit: @fenday27

In other news, Liverpool fans in their droves to Premier League appointment for Chelsea crunch clash.

Liverpool are reportedly one of the Premier League sides who are interested in signing Derby County 16-year-old this month.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, both Liverpool and Manchester United are ‘circling’ the youngster, with the piece suggesting that he is one of the best young footballers to keep an eye on for 2021.

The teenager recently made his first-team debut with the Rams under player-manager Wayne Rooney and is described as a quick and skilful forward.

Liverpool’s next Harvey Elliott?

Liverpool have shown that they can have great success in bringing in young talent in recent years, with Harvey Elliott perhaps the prime example.

The winger was signed as a 16-year-old in the summer of 2019 and has already made nine appearances for Jurgen Klopp’s first-team during his two years with the club.

Earlier this season, he joined Blackburn Rovers on loan and he has performed incredibly well in his time with Tony Mowbray’s side, having contributed four goals and six assists in 18 Championship appearances for the Ewood Park outfit, so clearly seems destined for a big future with the Reds.

Similarly to Elliott, Gordon is already making an impression in the Championship and was handed his first senior appearance as a late substitute in the Rams’ win against Birmingham City recently.

Following the game, Rooney was full of praise for the youngster, saying:

“I brought Kaide up with the first team initially to train with us for a week to see how he reacted to it, and he was one of the best trainers. I kept him with us and he has been training at the same level, if not better, as the others.”

Although Liverpool fans might not be the biggest fan of Rooney’s, there’s no doubting the success he had in England during his playing career and if he has put his faith in Gordon at just 16, then he must certainly be talented.

Therefore, the Reds must act on their reported interest in the Derby County ace and ensure that they are the ones to sign him ahead of Manchester United.

And, in other news, Forget Trent: “World-class” LFC star who made just 11 passes really let Klopp down vs Southampton…

Leeds United managed to bank an important win on the road last night thanks to goals from Raphinha and Jack Harrison. The Whites narrowly scraped through and kept the spoils for themselves against Newcastle at St James’ Park.

The win will have undoubtedly lifted morale around the Leeds camp after breaking their three-game streak of defeat. However, not everything that came out of that match was a positive.

Elusive summer signing Diego Llorente started just his second match for his new club but was forced off the pitch after ten minutes with an injury. This will be massively frustrating for everyone involved with the club and Marcelo Bielsa, but the Argentinian must take some responsibility upon reflection.

Huge Llorente blow for Leeds

With the Whites currently without Robin Koch, they are struggling for options in defence. Liam Cooper has recently been paired up with Luke Ayling due to their lack of fit centre-backs.

Having Llorente back in action was a huge boost for Leeds, who are still a way away from having Koch back in the squad. However, it seems Bielsa got too eager to bring the former back into the squad and as such, he has now suffered yet another injury setback.

According to Phil Hay, Leeds doubled up on their doses of Bielsa’s trademark Murderball last week and Llorente was involved in these sessions. This in itself is hugely risky given the demanding nature of the training game, never mind when it involves a recently injured player.

The £22,000 per week new signing will have Leeds fans hugely frustrated right now. Llorente has missed a total of eight matches so far this season due to muscle injuries and could now be set to spend even longer on the sidelines, as per Transfermarkt. For an exciting £23million summer signing, not a lot of positives are surrounding him right now.

Starting Llorente was a huge risk from Bielsa given the issues they’ve had in that position, and one that did not need to be taken given they are comfortably sitting in mid-table in the Premier League standings.

Considering the Spaniard played just ten minutes against Newcastle before being forced off, it can’t be said that he played any part in the win either. The manager did not have to risk his fitness at all.

In other news, Signing Julian Draxler could be the end of Hernandez at Leeds…

With the new year fast approaching, Manchester United were brought crashing back down to earth as they drew with Leicester City at the King Power Stadium in the Premier League on Saturday afternoon.

Marcus Rashford opened the scoring following a sublime pass from Bruno Fernandes, before Brendan Rodgers’ side hit back shortly before the break after a sensational strike from Harvey Barnes, until Fernandes followed up his early assist with a fine finish to set the Red Devils on course for what seemed like certain victory.

But Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side shared the spoils with the Foxes after they were left frustrated by a late goal from Leicester striker Jamie Vardy.

But while Fernandes may receive most of the plaudits after he accumulated his 44th goal contribution in 44 games across all competitions for the club, Solskjaer will have surely been delighted with Fred’s performance in the middle of the park.

He was at the centre of nearly everything in the midfield, breaking up attacks on a whim and

As per SofaScore, the 27-year-old, who earns around £120,000-per-week at Old Trafford, won nine out of his 14 duels overall (64%), which was the most out of any other player on the pitch, and made five tackles and four interceptions.

Fred also took 89 touches of the ball, made one key pass and created one big chance, which shows that he contributed going forwards as well.

The Brazilian has recently been accused of being “lazy” by club legend and Sky Sports pundit Roy Keane but it’s fair to say that he looked like anything but lazy with his latest showing against Leicester.

If Solskjaer wanted Fred to defy his critics, then there’s no doubt he precisely did just that. 52 out of 68 passes (76%) is certainly nothing to sniff at.

We’re only halfway through the season, but if Fred can maintain his current run of form, then he could help to propel United towards their first piece of silverware since they won the Europa League under Jose Mourinho in 2017.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Former Hull City striker Dean Windass says Jadon Sancho shouldn’t join Manchester United…

Steve Bruce must agree to sell Dwight Gayle in the January transfer window amid reports Fulham are keen to sign the Newcastle United striker to save their season.

What’s the word?

According to the Daily Mail, the Craven Cottage natives are looking into the possibility of luring Gayle to south west London this month rather than waiting until his contract expires in the summer.

Fulham have been long-term admirers of Gayle and believe the 31-year-old can help keep the club in the Premier League, with Scott Parker short on alternatives to Aleksandar Mitrovic.

The Cottagers have discussed a potential offer which will see Newcastle net a small fee in the January market that will increase should the attacker help Parker retain his side’s top-flight status.

Clubs from the Middle East including Qatari outfits Al-Gharafa and Al-Duhail are also monitoring Gayle’s situation with his £40,000-per-week deal set to expire at the end of the season, while West Bromwich Albion would rather wait until his contract concludes.

Fulham currently sit three points from safety after four-straight draws but hold two games in hand over 17th-placed Brighton and Hove Albion, yet have struggled in front of the goal with only relegation-rivals Sheffield United, Burnley and West Brom scoring less thus far.

Should Newcastle sell Gayle?

Newcastle must listen to Fulham’s offer should the Craven Cottage natives step forward with a formal bid this month as Gayle has ransacked Mike Ashley’s pockets since being signed for £10m in 2016, whilst showing throughout his time at St. James’ Park that he cannot be trusted to help take the Magpies higher up the Premier League table.

Bruce will likely need convincing having frequently lauded Gayle and stating recently that he hopes the striker will put pen to paper a new contract, while believing the former Crystal Palace frontman – who has earned £9.5m since joining the Toon – has been unlucky with injuries.

“Dwight’s been unfortunate with his injuries, but he knows what I think about him as a player – he’s a goalscorer,” Bruce said, via quotes by BT. “How good it was to see him work tirelessly to get here. At the back end of last season, he was really on fire and he’s had an awful knee injury, but he’s got back.”

Gayle made his first appearance of the season in any competition during December’s 2-1 win over West Brom, in which he scored the winning effort, but has failed to find the back of the net in his following three outings and was an unused substitute in Newcastle’s last two games.

The 31-year-old had missed the first few months of the campaign with a knee injury, adding to calf and hamstring issues sustained during the 2019/20 season that restricted Gayle to 20 Premier League games in which he contributed four goals.

Bruce is unlikely to see much more from Gayle over the remainder of the term so must bin the striker while options are on the table, or be held accountable for the £7m-rated dud walking away for free.

AND in other news, Steve Bruce could discover Newcastle’s next Steven Taylor in a Magpies target tipped for “a tremendous career”…