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It wasn’t quite the embarrassing night of the 1986/87 season but Wolves tried their best to fluff their lines against Chorley on Friday evening.

Nuno Santo’s team have been desperately poor in recent weeks, and after their win over the National League North side have now only won three of their last 11 outings.

If anything summed up their abject performances of late it was the display they put in as they made it through to the fifth round of the FA Cup.

On paper, this was a mismatch. Wolves should have been easily out of sight given the opposition, but although they didn’t lose as they did to Chorley over 30 years ago, they were incredibly poor.

Going forward, Nuno’s side were devoid of confidence and authority. For large spells of the game, their non-league hosts looked comfortable and dare we say it, they even looked the better team.

Wolves’ only shot on target in the entire game produced the goal. It was a special one too from Vitinha who let fly from range, but beyond that, there was nothing to write home about.

The Old Gold completed just 25% of their crosses and carved out fewer goal-scoring opportunities than Chorley. A large reason behind that was the performance of Patrick Cutrone.

This was the Italian’s first start since returning from a loan spell with Fiorentina and on his big audition to Nuno, he completely failed. This was a week where Cutrone simply had to prove himself to the manager too.

Willian Jose has arrived from Real Sociedad on loan and thus, the Italy international could be heading for the exit door. After this performance, it proved why.

The striker isn’t good enough and cut an isolated figure against non-league opposition. Truth be told, Cutrone was anonymous.

He completed just 11 passes from 18 attempted, finishing with a success rate of only 61%. For context, only goalkeeper John Ruddy and substitute Adama Traore completed fewer passes in the Wolves side.

The 23-year-old’s tally of 24 touches, meanwhile, was the same as Ruddy’s and only more than Traore and another of Nuno’s substitutes in Pedro Neto.

Against opposition like Chorley, Cutrone should have run riot. Instead, his effort was minimal, registering just two attempts at goal.

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-this-weeks-latest-wolves-news” title=”Read this week’s latest Wolves news”]

It would be extreme to call this a horror show but Nuno must be incredibly fed up of the Italian now. He has scored three goals in 27 outings for the Molineux outfit. Time and time again he has not been at the races.

Wolves need to get rid of him as soon as possible.

AND in other news, Wolves could find their dream Traore successor by landing “extremely quick” 31-cap ace…

Mike Ashley could land Newcastle United their next Allan Saint-Maximin by signing Independiente sensation Alan Velasco in the January transfer window.

What’s the word?

According to El Intransigente, the Magpies are one of a number of potential suitors monitoring Velasco’s situation in the mid-season market, with Parma and Club America providing worldwide competition for the 18-year-old.

Parma are intent on striking a winter deal for the left-winger, as they consider the Argentina U17 international as a weapon who can aid their efforts in securing European qualification after re-establishing themselves as a Serie A side.

Velasco is seen to be one of Argentina’s great jewels after proving his enormous potential at a tender age, having become a staple of Lucas Pusineri’s side in 2020, though Independiente accept it is only a matter of time before he leaves the Estadio Libertadores de America.

Independiente would prefer to retain the diminutive 5 ft 5 forward, who is protected by a $23.5m (£17.5m) release clause, but accept that his sale would help solve several issues with the club facing Fifa-imposed lawsuits for non-compliance with transfer payments.

Velasco provided each of his career three goals and three assists in senior football last year, while Independiente never lost when the Quilmes-born attacker influenced the scoreline.

Bruce’s next Saint-Maximin

Mike Ashley providing the funds needed for Independiente to consider selling Velasco in the January market could see the Newcastle owner hand Steve Bruce the Toon’s next Saint-Maximin, having seen the St. James’ Park natives struggle without the Frenchman.

Saint-Maximin has not featured for United since November after testing positive for coronavirus and remains some weeks away from a return, much to Bruce’s frustration.

“We’re missing him at the moment. He’s had an up and down time, he needs to find that consistency like we all do, if he really wants to hit the heights. When he is on song there is no better sight is there? He gets you on the edge of your seat,” Bruce told the Chronicle.

Velasco could be the one to bring the same level of excitement to St. James’ Park if signed, having proved a creative wonder in South America to warrant vivid transfer interest from Europe.

The youth international made seven of his appearances in the 2020 Copa Sudamericana, in which he also contributed one of his three goals and two of his assists thanks to creating an average 2.9 chances a game with 1.5 shots and 1.4 key passes, per SofaScore.

He additionally offered 15.8 of his 19.9 total passes a game in the opponent’s half, plus 1.1 successful tackles, 1.0 interceptions, 3.0 successful dribbles and wining 5.3 ground duels, with opponents forced into committing 1.1 fouls a game.

Velasco may be small and relatively unknown in England, but may prove the old cliché of the best things coming in small packages true with a successful move to St. James’ Park this winter.

AND in other news, Steve Bruce is keen to sign a “fantastic” £15.5m-rated brute for Newcastle United.

Everton’s Premier League match with Aston Villa being postponed will come as an unlucky break for Abdoulaye Doucoure.

According to The Guardian, the Birmingham-based outfit were hopeful of seeing the game, originally scheduled for Sunday, delayed as Dean Smith’s entire squad is currently in self-isolation after nine players and backroom staff tested positive for Covid-19.

The outbreak forced Villa to name a team consisting of Under 23 and Under 18 players for their FA Cup clash with Liverpool at the weekend, and are not due to have their senior figures available again until Sunday at the earliest.

Villa were said to be concerned about the prospect of heading straight into a top-flight clash with Everton having not trained for almost two weeks, though delaying the match will mean the claret and blue side will have played three fewer fixtures than some clubs.

The Premier League opting to delay Everton’s trip to Villa Park will be a frustrating late decision for Carlo Ancelotti and his side, who were looking to move back inside the top-four places with a win after Manchester City’s 1-0 win over Brighton and Hove Albion on Wednesday night demoted them to fifth.

Everton are also enjoying a strong run of form in the top-flight, with the Blues’ 1-0 defeat at home to West Ham United on New Year’s Day their sole loss in seven league fixtures.

Doucoure, who earns £75,000-a-week according to Spotrac, will be dealt a personal blow by the postponement, too, having been set to miss the West Midlands affair through suspension after being shown a fifth yellow card of the campaign during his side’s 2-1 win at Wolverhampton Wanderers earlier this month.

Being given an additional week’s rest would have come as a lucky break for Doucoure had he not been suspended, as Ancelotti has begun to worry that the 28-year-old is being overused having playing the full 90 minutes in 10 of the Toffees’ last 11 Premier League fixtures.

“He is a key player, it was a fantastic signing in the summer,” said Ancelotti. “He is a fantastic guy and fantastic professional. I think he deserves to rest.”

The Villa fixture being postponed will instead see Doucoure sit out Everton’s home game with Leicester City on January 27, in a crunch fixture for the Toffees as they are currently competing with the Foxes for a Champions League spot.

Brendan Rodgers’ King Power Stadium natives currently sit above Ancelotti’s side on goal difference alone, having scored just three times more than Everton after the opening 17 games.

Ancelotti will likely have preferred to see Doucoure miss the Villa game with Smith’s men not match sharp and being without a league win since Boxing Day, while Leicester are unbeaten in four games and have lost just once on the road all season.

Doucoure has also been an instrumental figure on the pitch for Ancelotti, with the midfielder offering the third-most passes (862) by any Everton player in Premier League fixtures – only defenders Michael Keane (1064) and Yerry Mina (960) see more of the ball, per WhoScored.

The former Watford ace has also offered the fourth-most key passes (12) and fifth-most shots (13), showing the offensive threat Ancelotti will now lack against a Leicester side who give up the fourth-least efforts on goal when away from home with 10.4 allowed a game.

AND in other news, Everton must refrain from making a knee-jerk decision to sign a £9m-rated target…

Tottenham Hotspur advanced into the Carabao Cup semi-finals as they managed to escape an upset on Wednesday evening.

Jose Mourinho’s men made the trip to Staffordshire to face Championship outfit Stoke City and returned to north London with the prospect of being just two more victories from clinching their first piece of silverware since 2008.

Spurs superstar and fan-favourite Gareth Bale headed home an opener before Ben Davies and Harry Kane goals were needed to put them back on course following the Potters’ early second-half equaliser.

With the encounter broadcast live on Sky Sports, the commentary team handed the ‘Man of the Match’ award to Harry Winks in what was a rare start for the England international.

And whilst he quite rightly deserves some plaudits, we believe that Matt Doherty shone the most with an underrated display at right-back. He just like Winks made the most of his return to the starting XI.

Per SofaScore, the 28-year-old was heavily involved, recording a whopping 109 touches, which was only bettered by central midfielder and engine room orchestrator Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

He also accurately made 73 of 87 passing attempts, recorded two interceptions and provided one clearance.

In addition to that, the Irishman, who is valued at €50m (£45m), was strong in his battles, winning a total of eight duels, which included a win rate of 77% on aerials, and Doherty even successfully pulled off 75% of his longballs, so he was much safer than his full-back counterpart, Davies, in that sense.

The £15m addition from Wolves has been usurped by Serge Aurier in the pecking order under Mourinho in the Premier League so far this season, but with a performance like that, he is surely back on Mourinho’s radar.

He has now given the Portuguese boss an interesting conundrum ahead of Doherty’s return to Molineux on Sunday night.

Aurier has started each of their last six top-flight outings but was hooked for his horror-show against Leicester at the weekend, which is further reason to why Doherty may have raised his game tonight.

If you’re Mourinho, you’re surely not going to ignore the 6 foot 1 monster after that display, regardless of how big a headache he’s been dealt.

AND in other news, Levy can land Spurs their next Eriksen in £45m swoop for massive “goal threat”…

Lots of Manchester United fans have been slamming the news that Amad Diallo still needs a work permit in order to play for the club.

According to Manchester Evening News, Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s team are still very much in the process of securing a work permit for the 18 year-old ahead of his scheduled move to the Old Trafford faithful in the January transfer window.

Diallo has shown the Man United fans what he is all about in training footage while on loan at Atalanta, and it seems as if he could be an exciting addition to the side for the rest of the 2020/21 term.

However, if a work permit is not sorted for him in time, then the winger will likely not be able to play for his new club this season.

Manchester United fan reaction to Diallo news

These Red Devils slammed the news about Diallo after reading about it on Twitter, with one Man Utd supporter even claiming that it is a ‘joke’:

In other news, find out which global star MUFC are interested in signing here!

Whilst Ademola Lookman may the focal point of a lot of Fulham fans’ anger following his failed panenka penalty attempt in Saturday’s defeat against West Ham, Antonee Robinson should not escape criticism for his disappointing display.

The left-back, who was signed from Wigan Athletic during the recent summer transfer window, made just his fifth appearance in the Premier League at the London Stadium but struggled throughout the game.

As per SofaScore, the USA international picked up a disappointing 6.6 rating for his display, managing to lose possession an extraordinary 26 times, which was the most of any Fulham player on the night.

Although the 23-year-old won five out of nine of his ground duels, and both of his aerial duels in the match, it was his attacking play that seemingly let him down as he completed just 31 out of 45 of his passes.

Scott Parker was clearly angry with Lookman after his penalty miss cost the Cottagers a point on Saturday but looking at Robinson’s stats, he will surely be frustrated that his left-back was so profligate with the ball.

The young defender has been one of Parker’s better players in the Premier League thus far, having averaged a 6.94 rating across his five appearances, which rates him as their fourth-best player in the top-flight so far this season (per WhoScored).

Therefore, it would perhaps be unfair to criticise the summer signing too much for his performance against the Hammers, as his overall performances since joining have been fairly impressive.

However, he will surely need to work on his passing in particular and ensure that he doesn’t lose possession as much if he is going to keep his place in Parker’s side going forward.

It will be interesting to see if the USA international keeps his place for Fulham’s next game against Everton following the international break.

Harry Kane has won the first GIVEMESPORT Fans’ Player of the Month award of the season, picking up the Premier League gong for his performances throughout September and October.

The Tottenham star featured on a shortlist of six candidates that also included Chelsea’s Ben Chilwell, Liverpool star Mohamed Salah, Aston Villa talisman Jack Grealish, Everton striker Dominic Calvert-Lewin and Newcastle goalkeeper Karl Darlow.

In a poll that registered over 25,000 votes, held across Snack Media’s range of websites and social media platforms, there was incredibly little to choose between the candidates as all six nominees picked up more than 4,000 votes each.

In fact, the final result was a tie between Kane, Calvert-Lewin and Salah, who all received exactly 4,370 votes. But there can only be one winner, and the Spurs assassin has been handed the award based on his superior returns across key performance metrics throughout the first seven matchdays of the 2020/21 Premier League season.

During this period, Kane amassed six goals and an incredible eight assists in the Premier League, making him responsible for two goal involvements per top-flight outing.

The final results of the GIVEMESPORT Fans’ Player of the Month vote were as follows…

= 1st. Harry Kane (17%)*

= 1st. Mohamed Salah (17%)

= 1st. Ben Chilwell (17%)

4th.  Jack Grealish (16.6%)

5th. Dominic Calvert-Lewin (16.5%)

6th. Karl Darlow (15.9%)

*Winner on performance metrics

Celtic will be looking to make amends for their home defeat against Rangers in the Old Firm on Saturday as they prepare to host AC Milan in the Europa League. The Hoops are currently operating with a thin squad after injuries and positive tests of Covid-19 have seen key players like Odsonne Edouard and Hatem Abd Elhamed out of action.

Neil Lennon may also be looking to switch up his starting eleven after their recent display against Gers left a lot to be desired. But one man he will be wishing he had at his disposal is Fraser Forster, who has returned to parent club Southampton after a season-long loan spell.

Could Celtic benefit from Forster?

The Hoops coasted to an easy title win last season after finishing a whopping 13 points ahead of rivals Rangers. Whilst Lennon’s men were unstoppable in front of goal, they were also strong in defending their own too.

In 28 Premiership appearances, Forster kept 14 clean sheets and conceded just 17 goals, seeing Celtic finish with an improved ‘goals against’ tally from last season. So far, new loan goalkeeper Vasilis Barkas has shipped six goals in nine league appearances, with the Hoops now behind Rangers in the table.

The Greece international has failed to tally a Sofascore rating of higher than 6.9 in his last five appearances. Meanwhile, the 6 ft 7 colossus from Southampton boasted a penalty save and 100% successful duels won in his Europa League campaign last season (as per Sofascore).

It will be paramount for Lennon to kick on from the Old Firm loss and focus on making headway in the Europa League. However, his side’s recent defensive performances will undoubtedly be on his mind, especially with two senior defensive players being out with injuries.

The Northern Irishman will be missing Forster, particularly after he waxed lyrical over his “world-class” performance in the Betfred Cup in December (via Daily Echo).

AC Milan haven’t lost a match since March, going on an astonishing 23-game unbeaten streak. It will take a lot to stop the Italians, who will unleash an extremely in-form Zlatan Ibrahimovic. The Swede has 12 goal involvements in his last eight appearances for Milan, and will be hungry to bag a goal or two at Celtic Park tonight.

In other news, Football FanCast’s predicted Celtic XI to face AC Milan after Old Firm defeat…

Arsenal appear to only be eyeing one move before tonight’s deadline and that is a swoop for long-time target, Atletico Madrid midfielder Thomas Partey.

According to Goal.com’s Charles Watts, the Gunners are making a late bid for the 27-year-old and are now willing to meet his £45m release clause.

He claims that representatives from the north London outfit have been at London Colney today to try and thrash out the last-gasp deal with La Liga possessing the player’s rights.

However, even if Edu Gaspar lands the midfield enforcer, he’s making a simply unforgivable error by not also pushing for Lyon sensation Houssem Aouar.

Arsenal have had several bids for the French playmaker rejected with the club falling short of Jean-Michel Aulas’ £55m valuation each time, per Football.London.

Now the 22-year-old is set to remain at the Ligue 1 outfit and should he have another outstanding campaign in France, then his worth will not only increase but other suitors will be attracted by his signature.

Across the Champions League and the French top-flight, Aouar delivered four goals and eight assists whilst averaging 1.2 key passes, 1.5 shots and 3.5 dribbles per game, via WhoScored.

Barcelona superstar Lionel Messi is a huge fan of the Lyon ace, he once said: “He is always calm with the ball at his feet with an excellent technical quality” whilst Football Whispers claim he’s a got a “touch of David Silva about his play.”

This is merely backed up by Smarter Scout, who label Aouar a “prolific dribbler,” “skilful,” and a “very good finisher.” He’s an all-round dream to fill that Mesut Ozil void in Mikel Arteta’s system.

Former Spurs legend David Ginola can even see it, dubbing the young sensation as the “best replacement” for the costly German and even claimed that he’s the “type of player Arsenal fans would love” when speaking to Sky Sports this morning.

Edu should be put under pressure if he fails to see a move for the impressive wizard one over the line this window.

AND in other news, 20 Bargains For Your Fantasy Premier League Team…

Everton’s transfer window has hit a rapid incline after signing both Allan and James Rodriguez in quick succession.

Whilst Carlo Ancelotti showcases his pedigree in the transfer market, the Toffees’ business has dealt a blow to Chelsea.

According to The Telegraph, Everton were on course to sign Blues castaway Tiemoue Bakayoko before the long-awaited deal for Allan was announced.

The Brazilian midfielder became Everton’s first signing of the summer window after joining from Napoli for £21.7m (via BBC Sport).

Allan had been linked to the Merseyside outfit for months and some fans were losing hope in him making the switch from Italy. As a back-up option, Ancelotti was keen on fellow midfielder Bakayoko, who has been left on the shelf under Frank Lampard.

The Frenchman has a Transfermarkt value of £22.9m and could have yielded a decent fee to fund Frank Lampard’s lavish summer spending. Having not made an appearance for Chelsea since 2018, Bakayoko is a player that the west Londoners would have benefitted from offloading in this window.

Whilst money hasn’t been a problem for the Blues, Roman Abramovich still wants to see Lampard balance the books amid an impressive haul of new recruits.

The likes of N’Golo Kante and Michy Batshuayi could be leaving the club ahead of the new season, despite both still arguably being beneficial to the team. However, for a surplus player like Bakayoko, Chelsea will be frustrated that the opportunity to cash in has wriggled away from them.

They must now shift into a higher gear in order to offload some of their castaway players to make back some of their outgoing transfer fees.

Do you think Chelsea should push to sell Tiemoue Bakayoko? Join the conversation in the comments below…