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Oliver Burke has largely been known as a winger or a central attacking midfielder throughout his career, and while he has played as a striker on occasion he has never really done it – and succeeded – on a consistent basis.

Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers has clearly seen something in the 21-year-old to suggest that he can do a job there, seeing as that is where he has largely been deployed since arriving from West Bromwich Albion on loan until the end of the season during the January transfer window.

Injury issues for Odsonne Edouard have left the Scottish Premiership holders short up top recently, and the Northern Irish manager has chosen to use the Nottingham Forest youth graduate to fill the void – as he did for the visit of Valencia to Parkhead in the last 32 of the Europa League on Thursday night.

Burke was showing some good signs that his boss had made a genius move after scoring three goals and providing a further two assists in seven outings, and that was enough for him to get the nod ahead of Edouard and fellow new arrival Timothy Weah against the La Liga outfit.

It wasn’t a great night for him personally or the club though as they were easily beaten 2-0 by the Spanish side, and the Scotland U21 international’s stats didn’t make for great reading.

The forward failed to produce a single shot or key pass in his 90 minutes on the pitch, while he only had an accuracy of just over 74% when he attempted to move the ball on to a teammate.

As well as failing to win a single aerial duel, he also suffered from bad control on three occasions, and his night was rounded off when he was booked for catching a Valencia player with an alleged high boot.

While Burke has done more than a good job in the centre-forward role in recent fixtures, now looks to be the time for Rodgers to abandon his experiment and put the 21-year-old back out wide in the role he knows best, and restore Edouard to the starting line-up through the centre.

[ad_pod ]Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s Manchester United tenure has sprung from high-point to high-point, the latest of which being the sensational comeback against PSG on Wednesday to see the Red Devils through to the last eight of the Champions League.It would seem that Solskjaer and his team have surpassed every obstacle that presents itself to them and the former striker looks almost certain to land the job on a permanent basis considering the remarkable work he has done at Old Trafford.There are three distinct unsustainable trends, though, that simply won’t continue if Solskjaer is to remain at the wheel next season and while we’ve seen the interim boss at his best, we’re yet to witness the worst.These three factors give an insight into what life could be like when everything isn’t going Solskjaer’s way…

Constant positivity

Having adopted a group of players whose souls had seemingly been sucked out by his predecessor, the ‘baby-faced assassin’ has instilled a huge amount of belief and positivity into the camp since his arrival and that has been evident on and off the pitch.

United have gone from one absolute extreme in Mourinho to another in Solskjaer, who has grinned his way through every interview, while the Portuguese was rarely found anywhere other than the centre of controversy and negativity.

The impact on the mood at Old Trafford is as much a reason for Solskjaer to remain in the job as the improvement in results is, but how long can the Norwegian keep it up when the Red Devils inevitably go through a rough patch?

If the smiley demeanour remains when the team isn’t performing, people may very quickly turn on Solskjaer. Equally, the constant positivity will eventually lose effect if it continues – it will lose all meaning.

Solskjaer’s approach is a breath of fresh air but could eventually become toxic.

Soaring through injury crisis

Regardless of the aforementioned fortunate moments that, in the end, proved decisive, United should be commended for finding a way past their Parisian opposition earlier in the week considering their hefty injured list.

Alexis Sanchez, Juan Mata, Ander Herrera, Matteo Darmian, Jesse Lingard, Nemanja Matic, Phil Jones and Anthony Martial were all sidelined, while Paul Pogba was also absent through suspension.

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Incredibly, the Red Devils finished the game with four teenagers on the pitch against the Ligue 1 champions and nothing should be taken away from that achievement. But youth alone can’t be relied upon for integral knockout ties if United expect to consistently challenge for top honours under Solskjaer.

And while it may seem like a paradox considering its scale and depth, not every injury crisis will prove to be this easy for Solskjaer.

Expected goals for and against

Solskjaer completely threw out the defensive style imposed by Mourinho and has got the Red Devils playing attractive, attacking football, while also shoring up at the back.

The Old Trafford outfit look able to put five or six past most opponents on a good day and they have shown that they can do that – however their incredible form cannot be sustained if their expected goals for and against are anything to go by.

Opta’s head of analytics offered some interesting statistics on Wednesday night that perhaps show that United have been even more lucky than perceived. Perhaps had their opposition been more clinical or United less so on a particular day, then Solskjaer might not be within touching distance of the job on a permanent basis.

In any case, it’s pretty clear United won’t stay so far ahead their expected goals on both fronts indefinitely, and eventually it will catch up with Solskjaer.

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According to The Telegraph, Aston Villa’s Jack Grealish is edging ever closer to a long-awaited return to action, with the club hoping he will be fit for the clash with Stoke on February 23.

The midfielder has not featured for Dean Smith’s side since December after sustaining an injury in the 2-2 with West Bromwich Albion, and Villa have severely missed his creative presence.

The Midlands club have been without one of their star men for 10 games, a period in which time they have won just twice, showing his importance to their success.

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Smith will be anxious to get his star back in the starting XI as soon as possible but knows that easing him back in slowly is the best way forward if they want to avoid recurrence.

The Midlands outfit are currently just four points off the coveted play-off spots and will need to up their game if they want to earn promotion back to the Premier League – the return of Grealish cannot come soon enough, then.

Villa host Sheffield United, who sit third in the standings, on Friday and will be hoping that a stellar performance can help them narrow the gap between them and the top six, although they will have to do it without Grealish.

Here’s how Villa fans reacted to the update on Twitter…

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Liverpool got back to winning ways with their 5-0 annihilation of Watford on Wednesday night, with Sadio Mane (2), Virgil van Dijk (2) and Divock Origi getting on the scoresheet in an exhilarating Reds display.

The clash saw the return of Trent Alexander-Arnold to the starting XI – the 20-year-old was benched for the Manchester United game at the weekend, with James Milner deputising on the right of the back four – and his stellar performance means Jurgen Klopp will surely think twice about leaving the local boy out again in the future.

Curling a delicious cross onto Mane’s head for the opener just nine minutes in and also teeing up the Senegalese for his special second, Alexander-Arnold was essential to his side’s creation in the opening stages. The 5-cap international later made it a hat-trick of assists with yet another pin-point delivery into the box, met by van Dijk, late on.

Is the emergance of a ‘big 6’ good news for English clubs in Europe? Pl>ymaker FC’s Ed Tarlton certainly thinks to in the video below…

The feat ensured the Liverpool number 66 went down in history books – the treble of assists made him the youngest player in Premier League history to do so.

Here’s how the Anfield faithful reacted on Twitter…

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For a while now, Newcastle have struggled to pose a huge threat to the opposition in the Premier League. Of course, there was the season that they won the Championship back in the 2016/17 campaign, in which Dwight Gayle netted 23 times – apart from that, however, the Magpies have definitely been more of a defence-minded outfit in recent years.

What’s changed?

Having said that, following on from the January arrival of Miguel Almiron in what was a club-record deal, Rafa Benitez may have stumbled across something resembling a dangerous attack as Newcastle beat Everton by three goals to two, having been 2-0 down at one point.

Against the Toffees, Benitez set his side up in a 3-4-3 formation, with the aforementioned trio all starting together up top – Paraguayan international Almiron was sat in an attacking midfield role behind Rondon and Perez.

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Perez and Rondon alone were a fairly effective big-man-little-man strike partnership originally, but Almiron’s arrival has given the Magpies’ goal threat a different dimension.

How do they work well together?

Venezuelan international Rondon remains a dominant presence aerially, who wins the knock downs for Perez and Almiron, whilst the Spanish forward excels with his clever attacking movement and his ability to always know where he needs to be.

Nowadays, where some of Rondon’s headers used to miss Perez, and then the gap between the two frontmen and Newcastle’s low-lying midfield saw the Magpies invite pressure onto themselves, Almiron occupies the space in that gap to gather the ball and cause problems  –  their second goal against the Toffees is a good example of how the trio are gelling together.

Benitez has always sets his Newcastle team up to be solid defensively, in the hope of them nicking a goal and then defending that lead during his time managing them in the top-flight, but Mike Ashley’s rare decision to back him in the market has given the Spanish boss’ side a new dimension.

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Tottenham have opened talks with Sampdoria over a bid for defender Joachim Andersen, per Calciomercato.

Spurs are interested in reinforcing their defence this summer and have targeted a move for the centre-back.

What’s the word?

The aforementioned report claims that Spurs have spoken with Sampdoria about the prospect of securing a deal to sign Andersen this summer.

The 22-year-old has a contract that runs until 2022 but Calciomercato state that he could be sold in the next transfer window.

Spurs are reported to be ready to pay €25million (£21.9m) to sign Andersen, who has been capped at numerous youth levels by Denmark. He has won 16 caps for the Under-21s but is yet to make his senior debut.

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Nevertheless, Andersen has played 90 minutes in every Serie A game this season bar one, a 2-1 loss to Juventus for which he was suspended.

The report claims that there is also interest from Juve and Inter Milan and that Sampdoria will hope to secure a higher bid from Spurs than they would from their compatriots.

Youth is king

Spurs only enter the transfer market for the right player and it appears that youth is central to Mauricio Pochettino’s thinking.

The last centre-back the club signed, Davinson Sanchez, was 21 when he moved to Spurs in 2017 and the club forked out a record fee to secure his signature, paying Ajax £42m.

A similar scenario has emerged with Andersen, as Spurs again look to pick up a youthful centre-back with the potential to become a key player under Pochettino.

Toby Alderweireld has a clause in his contract that will allow him to leave this summer if the club receive a bid worth £25m and that money could well fund their pursuit of Andersen.

It would also allow for a reduction in playing time for Jan Vertonghen, who will turn 32 in April.

Chairman Daniel Levy is likely to see the resale potential in Andersen, too, who could later fetch double what Spurs may pay for him if he takes to the Premier League in the same vein as Sanchez.

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According to The Sun, West Ham United will make a move to sign Manchester United veteran Antonio Valencia in the summer if Pablo Zabaleta quits the London Stadium, and Irons fans have been quick to react.

As per the aforementioned report, Zabaleta is apparently undecided as to whether or not he will retire at the end of this season. The Hammers apparently want the 34-year-old Argentine to stay, but Manuel Pellegrini has seemingly already identified Valencia as an ideal replacement should the right-back decide to call it a day.

The South American has fallen down the pecking order at Old Trafford in recent seasons. The Red Devils’ club captain has only made five league appearances so far this season, as per Transfermarkt’s stats. 

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The 33-year-old is certainly coming towards the end of his career, and is no longer at the height of his powers. He would bring some experience and leadership to the London Stadium though.

This transfer link with the 93-cap Ecuador international certainly has got plenty of Irons fans talking. Here’s a look at some of the reaction to the story…

كشف مهاجم نادي مانشستر يونايتد السابق، ديميتار برباتوف، عن توقعه بشأن الفريق المرشح للفوز في مباراة الغد، بين ليفربول وآرسنال.

ويلتقي الناديان على ملعب “أنفيلد” في الجولة الثالثة من بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز في تمام الساعة التاسعة مساءً بتوقيت “القاهرة”.

وفاز ليفربول وآرسنال في أول جولتين في البطولة، حيث تغلب الأول على ليدز يونايتد وتشيلسي والثاني على فولهام ووست هام.

اقرأ أيضًا.. شكوك حول مشاركة ألكانتارا وأليسون مع ليفربول أمام آرسنال

ووضح برباتوف رأيه في المباراة في تصريحات لصحيفة “مترو” البريطانية، وقال: “أتطلع حقًا لمشاهدة هذه المواجهة، ستكون رائعة بكل تأكيد”.

وتابع: “سنرى ما سيقدمه آرسنال، ليفربول كان مميزًا في أول جولتين وانضمام تياجو بالنسبة لهم أمر رائع فهو لاعب من الطراز الرفيع”.

وواصل: “بالنسبة لي، ليفربول المرشح الأقرب للفوز لامتلاكه ثلاثي هجومي قوي للغاية (محمد صلاح، ساديو ماني وروبرتو فيرمينو) مقارنة بالفرق المنافسة”.

وأتم: “اعتقد أن على آرسنال تدعيم دفاعه وتطوير أسلوبه للدفاع عن مرماه بالمباريات المقبلة”.

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Rangers bounced back from a run of disappointing results in style as they hammered Kilmarnock 5-0 in the Scottish Cup, with Alfredo Morelos hitting four – yes, four – on his return from suspension.

The Gers were forced into a replay having drawn 0-0 with Killie earlier this month but made no mistake in dispatching their opponents at the second time of asking, with Morelos channeling his aggression and desire in the right way to fire his side to victory.

While the Colombian deservedly stole the match ball and headlines, the stellar performance of one of his teammates slipped under the radar in comparison – Daniel Candeias assisted three of Morelos’ four strikes and was Rangers’ conduit of play throughout.

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The 15-cap Portuguese had chalked up five goals and six assists prior to the Wednesday night demolition and surely put in his best performance to date this season, albeit in the shadow of Morelos.

The 5-foot-10 ace has often divided opinion around Ibrox as he tends to struggle for consistency, and he has taken plenty of flak even recently, but the Twitter reactions down below are full of praise…

Liverpool missed out on the chance to go top of the Premier League after a goalless draw with Merseyside neighbours Everton on Sunday.

The Reds would have been sitting top of the pile if they had beaten the Toffees at Goodison Park, but the draw sees Manchester City still top, one point clear of Jurgen Klopp’s outfit.

However, the Merseyside derby, which was far from a classic on the pitch, did throw up one moment of comedy gold after its conclusion.

Jurgen Klopp was not happy with just a point in a game they should have breezed through and not only did he blame it on Mohamed Salah’s poor finishing in his post match interview, but also the wind.

Speaking to Sky Sports after Sunday’s clash, Klopp said: “I know people don’t like when I say that but, the wind was coming from all directions and did not help any football.”

You’d expect this kind of excuse to be used by a Sunday League manager, but not one of England’s most decorated clubs.

Quite the character, this is not the first time Klopp has blamed the wind as the reason for a poor result. In fact, used the same excuse following Liverpool’s FA Cup exit against Wolves earlier this season.

The German is clearly not a stranger to unusual excuses, as he also accused Manchester City of growing their grass out deliberately in order to stop Liverpool’s fast flowing football in their 2-1 defeat at the Etihad earlier in the campaign.

Dry grass has also been a victim to Jurgen’s wrath when, in 2017, Liverpool failed to beat Southampton at Anfield. Klopp said after that result: “I know nobody wants to hear it, but I’m brave enough to say the grass was to dry.”

The worst of Klopp’s excuses came when he accused BT Sport of dictating the maximum amount of added time that the referee could issue at the end of their FA Cup defeat to West Brom in January 2018.

It could be argued that the Liverpool boss has a point when it comes to the wind and other factors that could cause results to go against the club but at the same, he should not be using them as excuses as often and as publicly as he has been.

However, with players being paid thousands of pounds a week to perform at the very pinnacle of the beautiful game, surely a bit of a wind should not affect their performances. After all, the opposition are playing in the same conditions.

All the silly excuses a side, could Liverpool be throwing away yet another chance of winning England’s most glamorous trophy.

The last time Liverpool come close to winning their first ever Premier League crown was in the 2013/14, when Steven Gerrard’s infamous slip at Anfield led to a 2-0 to Chelsea before they threw away a five point lead at the top of the league with just three games remaining, gifting the title to Manchester City instead.

With Klopp’s side showing early signs of a repeat of that monumental collapse five years ago, can Liverpool recover to finally secure their name on England’s top trophy? Will Klopp be sacked if they don’t? And what will his excuse be if that happens?

Excuses, slips and long grass aside, Liverpool and Manchester City are perfectly in place to ensure there is an exciting title race to come, which should go down to the wire.