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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…

Jurgen Klopp has said that Gabriel Martinelli is a “talent of the century”.

What did he say?

Arsenal and Liverpool played out a thriller in the League Cup on Wednesday night. The Reds won on penalties, but that was only after a 5-5 draw in normal time.

Watch the moment Granit Xhaka’s Arsenal career may have come to an ugly end in the video below…

Martinelli, who joined the Gunners for £6m in the summer, scored twice, taking his tally for the season to seven goals. During the post-match reaction, the former Borussia Dortmund boss spoke glowingly of the 18-year-old, saying:

“Sepp van den Berg as well, he played an incredible game.

“That’s really difficult to deal with these guys. Martinelli’s pretty much the same age but he’s a talent of the century, he’s an incredible striker, so it’s really difficult.”

Lacazette out

Arsenal truly put their money where their mouth is during this summer transfer window.

They spent £137.16m, their second-highest spend in one window, on five permanent arrivals, as well as the loan addition of Dani Ceballos.

So far, those new faces have struggled to hit the expected heights at the Emirates Stadium. In all fairness, William Saliba is on loan at Saint-Etienne, but David Luiz has been part of a defence that has conceded 14 goals in the Premier League, whilst Ceballos and Nicolas Pepe have just four goals and five assists between them despite having made a combined 28 appearances.

Kieran Tierney spent the first part of the season injured and is only just coming into the side.

Watch Arsenal Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Martinelli, though, has been the one true revelation in the first few months of the campaign. Those seven strikes have come in just four starts as well, having scored in each one of those.

Despite that, he is yet to be included in the starting line-up in the Premier League. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang is the first-choice striker for Unai Emery, and rightly so, having scored eight goals in his first 12 games of the term.

However, Alexandre Lacazette is ahead of him in the pecking order too.

The 16-time France international has scored 38 goals in 94 appearances for the Gunners but, at 28 years old, his market value – currently at £63m according to Transfermarkt – is probably as high as it is ever going to be.

Such is Aubameyang’s goalscoring record – 49 in 77 matches for the north London outfit says it all – the former Lyon man is unlikely to ever be the undisputed first choice for the Gunners.

The Gabon international, though, has just a few years left at the top considering he is already 30, which is why it now makes sense to let Lacazette go and promote Martinelli to be the first back-up option. After all, talks over his future were already had in the summer.

He will still make his appearances in the cup competitions and, when Aubameyang needs a break, he can play in the league too. By the time the former Saint-Etienne forward does hang up his boots or move on, the teenager will be ready to take over.

“Talent of the century” is a huge appraisal of his ability. To truly develop, he needs a clearer path and more playing time. Lacazette’s departure, therefore, would allow both of those things to occur.

Sunderland are edging closer to appointing their new manager after sacking Jack Ross last week. According to the Northern Echo, the Black Cats have spent the last week undergoing a thorough recruitment process to find their new boss, with Phil Parkinson and Gareth Ainsworth the two leading candidates.

The reports also claim that owner Stewart Donald is confident of recruiting the new manager in time for Saturday’s fixture against Wycombe Wanderers. However, it seems fans completely disagree with the potential appointment of Parkinson.

The former Reading player has had over 700 matches in the Football League as a boss and boasts three promotions with three separate clubs as well. Most recently, the former Bradford City boss led Bolton Wanderers back to the Championship in 2017. Parkinson dealt with financial turmoil at both the aforementioned clubs, which consequently forced his resignation at the latter earlier this year.

Sunderland set to become “the richest club in England”? Get the latest on the Black Cats’ takeover situation in the video below…

Although not the biggest name out there, the 51-year-old does have an impressive CV with proven experience in getting a club further up the divisions. However, his 256 losses against his 262 wins as a manager is slightly alarming going forward, with the Black Cats’ ultimate aim being a return to the top-flight.

Here’s what the fans have had to say…

Video assistant referee hasn’t made any friends after another eventful weekend in the Premier League.Leaving Jurgen Klopp on the verge of self-combustion, after Marcus Rashford’s goal was allowed to stand despite a dubious tackle on Divock Origi in the build-up, VAR was up to no good again during Manchester United’s 1-1 draw against Liverpool.Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Later in the game, Liverpool found themselves on the wrong end a VAR decision after Sadio Mane was deemed to have handled the ball before putting the ball past David de Gea. When the ‘no goal’ decision was announced, the roar from the Old Trafford crowd was as loud as it had been when Rashford bagged the opener.

Unlike a broken clock, which is occasionally right, Piers Morgan typically bounces between ‘wrong’ and ‘very wrong’. In his latest tweet, he might – for once – have had a valid point…

Morgan aiming for nibbles as per but perhaps with some justification.

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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…

Zinedine Zidane faced the press ahead of Real Madrid’s midweek La Liga clash against Osasuna.

The French manager identified team solidity as one of the key aspects of success and urged his players to apply that in the next game.

What did he say?

The ongoing 2019/20 La Liga season has been rather harsh for Real and their squad.

Los Blancos had a pretty underwhelming start to the season, drawing with both Valladolid and Villarreal, while tasting defeat in their opening Champions League game of the campaign, a 3-0 beating at the hands of PSG.

But their latest outing domestically brought them a narrow 1-0 victory over Sevilla, propelling them into second, level on points with league leaders Athletic Bilbao.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

And Zidane made sure to reference that clash in his latest press conference ahead of the Osasuna game.

Here’s what Zidane said in full:

“Solidity and teamwork are the crucial elements because beyond the fact we did a great job in the Sevilla game, I think the key was that we played as a team from start to finish. That’s what we need to win games. There’s no such thing as an easy game, so we need to make sure the players stick together. We must keep going in this way.

“We need to put on a great performance, with the same intensity, desire and attitude. The key thing is to always give it our all on the pitch. My players are the best and they do that.”

Perfect timing

Zidane was absolutely right to emphasise team unity and solidity and the timing of it is perfect.

Maybe the start of the new season was not exactly everything Real Madrid had hoped for but it’s still only that – a start.

If we have learned anything from that Sevilla clash then that’s the fact that there is still a lot of quality in this Real Madrid squad and once they all get on the same page, even bad records – such as failing to pick up a point in Andalusia in the last four years – can be ripped up.

Florentino Perez, their president, talked about the lack of hunger in this team, and he was quite right too. He said: “Our success made us lose our intensity. “We have to recover it. These players and this coach made us champions, so they’ll do it again.”

The game against Sevilla proved, however, that this hungry and relentless team is still somewhere beneath and Zidane has the ability to dig it out.

Nothing is lost just yet and the title race is well and truly on – the next step is for Real Madrid to carry that sense of unity into the Osasuna clash.

West Brom allowed several young loan players to leave this summer, and Jonathan Leko is one who is enjoying his temporary spell away at Charlton.

He has played nine games under Lee Bowyer and fitted in well at The Valley, despite competition for his place from the likes of Jonathan Williams and Erhun Oztumer.

Watch West Bromwich Albion Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Leko is still only 20-years-old and he has seized upon his opportunity to find his feet with the Addicks, with two goals and two assists to show for his efforts so far.

Baggies fans haven’t ignored his success and instead one has asked if the winger can be recalled, while others are hoping he continues his form.

He played only 324 minutes for the West Brom senior side last term but if he continues to perform as he has then he should impress Slaven Bilic and possibly earn a place in the Baggies squad upon his return – something which these fans would probably like to see.

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Tottenham fans have taken to Twitter to react after their former player Nabil Bentaleb hit a double against Manchester City in the Champions League.

The Spurs academy graduate left the club to sign for Bundesliga side Schalke back in 2017 after spending a season on loan with the German team, and has gone from strength to strength at the Veltins Arena.

On Wednesday night, the Algerian international got fans talking after scoring a brace from the penalty spot against Pep Guardiola’s reigning Premier League champions, which looked like it would give them an unlikely win but for Leroy Sane and Raheem Sterling’s late heroics.

The 24-year-old has now scored eight goals this season in what has been an eye-catching campaign for him personally – impressively, he has also scored all 14 of his penalties for the club.

It must’ve been a proud moment for Spurs fans to see their academy graduate make an impact in the Champions League, so let’s see how they reacted on Twitter to Bentaleb’s performance…

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Real Madrid lost 3-0 to PSG on Wednesday evening in a disappointing Champions League display.

Predictably, Los Blancos fans were not happy with their side’s display and they quickly jumped to social media to identify the players most responsible for a horrible result.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

And one of the players that found himself under fire was newcomer Eden Hazard.

The Belgian arrived from Chelsea for a reported fee of £89m but he turned in a below-par performance on his first European outing for his new club.

He had just one shot on goal, per WhoScored, was dispossessed once, and registered a pass success rate of just 81%. A rating of 6.9 was particularly poor for a player seemingly signed to perform in the marquee games.

And supporters were quick to pile on the Belgium international, with some believing that he is destined to fail in Spain and others comparing him to Gareth Bale, who was pushed towards the exit door by Zinedine Zidane in the summer, with his manager actually claiming it would be good for the club if he left.

You can see some of their replies in the tweets down below:

Ange Postecoglou’s Celtic side threw down a huge gauntlet in the Premiership title race with a devastating performance in tonight’s Old Firm clash, with the Bhoys running out comfortable 3-0 winners at Parkhead.

In a whirlwind first half, Reo Hatate continued the breathtaking start to his Celtic career with two stunning long-range strikes that saw Celtic race into a two-goal lead, before the Japan international put Liel Abada on a plate with a pinpoint cross to make it 3-0 shortly before the interval.

The second half was much less dramatic, with the Hoops appearing happy to drop further back and allow the visitors more time on the ball – something that Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s side failed to capitalise on, with the scoreline remaining 3-0 when the final whistle blew.

However, while Hatate will undoubtedly steal tomorrow morning’s headlines, it will perhaps be the performance of Josip Juranovic that will have most pleased Postecoglou on Wednesday night – as the right-back played a crucial role in a victory that Chris Sutton dubbed an “absolute pumping” of the former league leaders.

“Absolutely outstanding”

Over the course of his 90 minutes on the pitch, the Croatia international turned in a performance of the highest quality – both in a defensive and offensive capacity.

At the back, the £3.6m-rated defender made five tackles, one interception, two clearances, blocked two shots and won six of his nine duels – a success rate of 67%.

Going forwards, the 26-year-old completed one cross, three long balls, made one key pass and enjoyed 63 touches of the ball – the seventh-most of any player to feature in the match.

These returns saw the £16k-per-week dynamo earn a highly impressive SofaScore match rating of 7.7, ranking him as the joint third-best player to feature in the derby – with Sutton dubbing his display as “absolutely outstanding.”

Indeed, it is easy to see why the former Celtic centre-forward felt this way, as Juranovic’s calmness in possession of the ball, solidity when defending and ability to set his side off on counter-attacks was clear for all to see on Wednesday, with the defender playing a crucial role in what is arguably the Bhoys’ biggest result of the season.

In other news: Maeda & Kyogo in, “outstanding” 20 G/A beast axed: Celtic’s strongest XI after January

West Ham United have once again been linked with Fiorentina defender Nikola Milenkovic, with the Irons reportedly having the sights set on securing a transfer this summer.

What’s the story?

Italian outlet Corriere Fiorentino reported (via Sport Witness) that the 24-year-old previously had a contract which was set to expire this June, which duly alerted the east London outfit to push for a deal which ultimately didn’t happen.

Instead, the Serbian signed a one-year contract extension with the Serie A club, committing his services for the short-term future but having a gentleman’s agreement regarding the opportunity to leave the following summer.

West Ham are now back in contention to try and finally bring the defender to the London Stadium.

West Ham must sign Milenkovic

Previously dubbed ‘the new Vidic’, there has been plenty of hype surrounding one of Europe’s most exciting defenders over the last 18 months, but Fiorentina have so far been able to hold onto Milenkovic.

The £75k-per-week centre-back has made 25 appearances in the Italian top flight this term, with Fiorentina currently eighth in Serie A.

Having made the move to Florence from Partizan Belgrade in July 2017, the Serbian has made 163 appearances for La Viola but is yet to experience European football with the Italian outfit.

Adding a defender will likely be a priority for West Ham manager David Moyes, particularly if the east Londoners secure European football for another season.

Craig Dawson has established himself as the Scotsman’s first-choice, with the likes of Angelo Ogbonna, Kurt Zouma and Issa Diop battling to partner him in defence, but the former suffered an ACL injury in November.

If the Irons are to once again juggle four competitions next term, adding greater squad depth will be crucial. Moyes’ side still have eight Premier League matches left to play, in addition to a Europa League quarter-final against Lyon as they look to secure European qualification once again.

Regardless of how West Ham end their season, securing the services of Milenkovic this summer after numerous failed attempts would be a huge boost for the Hammers and would certainly make Moyes’ selection in defence a more pleasant headache, with the Serbian likely to line up alongside either Dawson or Zouma as the first-choice centre-back pairing at the London Stadium.

With a better aerial duels record (3.2 per game), more tackles won (1.6 per match) and a superior passing success rate (90.2%) compared to the Irons’ current centre-backs, Milenkovic is a player who Moyes would surely love to have at the London Stadium.

In other news: West Ham handed major injury setback which could cost them Europe

Crystal Palace have been enjoying a promising season so far, and Patrick Vieira is now in a position to lead his side to a top-half finish if they can find a good run of form in the last few months of the season.

The club enjoyed a busy transfer window in the summer and have been linked with a few players this month, but emulating the previous transfer window could be off the cards.

What’s the word?

Sky Sports journalist Michael Bridge has made a fresh claim on the likely scenario for the rest of the winter transfer window in terms of the Eagles adding players to their squad during January.

He told GiveMeSport: “Things are going pretty well under Patrick Vieira at the moment. He would like to add maybe one or two, but from what I’m told, they’re happy. And it would have to take a bit of a crisis injury wise to change that at the moment.”

Palace have been strongly linked with two players over the last few weeks, with both Eddie Nketiah and Bamba Dieng having their names put forward as potential targets for the south London club. However, nothing has materialised as of yet, and no bids have been made for either player.

Fans will be fuming

With nine draws in the Premier League this season, there have been plenty of missed opportunities to rack up a few more wins and push even higher up the table. The loss of two points late on against Brighton on Friday night, and the concession of a last-gasp equaliser in the reverse fixture in September, illustrates as such.

Being linked with attacking players such as Nketiah and Dieng could well have strengthened Vieira’s options when it comes to maximising output in the final third of the pitch.

Some Palace fans have been outlining the positions where they feel the squad need strengthening this month, but Bridge’s update suggests that supporters waiting on new arrivals in January will be left fuming.

Although the Eagles are lodged in a comfortable mid-table position, all it takes is a handful of injuries to key players for their squad to suddenly appear threadbare. Therefore, it could be a source of frustration that the club seem content not to bolster their playing ranks this month while they are getting the opportunity to do so.

In other news: Journalist drops huge update on Eagles target Eddie Nketiah