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Aston Villa return to the Hawthorns for the first time since that exhilarating night in which they secured a place in the Championship play-off final, but a lot has changed in that time.

Dean Smith’s side will be facing arch-rivals West Brom in what is Sam Allardyce’s first game in charge of the Baggies after he took over from the axed Slaven Bilic this week.

The Villans were held to a 0-0 stalemate by Burnley in midweek despite all of their dominance in front of goal, but the 49-year-old will be buoyed by the fact that he has several of his key players returning from suspensions and injuries.

Here’s the XI we could see in tonight’s Midlands derby…

There could be as many as four changes to the side that drew to the Clarets on Thursday night.

Smith is able to welcome back Matty Cash from suspension and he comes straight back in for Ahmed Elmohamady, even despite the veteran deputising expertly, whilst we could also see Ezri Konsa return from illness.

He’ll replace Kortney Hause as the only other alteration to the back four.

Douglas Luiz is another Villa star who is in line for an instant return following suspension, and he is set to take the place of Marvelous Nakamba to partner John McGinn in central midfield.

The stalemate at Villa Park in midweek was too soon for Ross Barkley after injury, but we could see his presence back in the lineup here tonight to complete the engine room.

It means Jack Grealish goes back to his left-wing spot with Anwar El Ghazi also remaining in the line-up, only this time he swaps flank. As a result, Smith could wield his axe on Bertrand Traore, who has struggled to make an impact since his £19m move from Lyon.

The £60k-per-week winger will have to settle for the bench.

In attack, Ollie Watkins will surely lead the line once again.

AND in other news, Aston Villa must offload out-of-favour Bjorn Engels in January transfer window

Steve Bruce’s Newcastle United visit Manchester City on Boxing Day looking to bounce back from their Carabao Cup heartache after producing a woeful display in defeat to Brentford.

The Magpies bowed out of the competition after failing to produce anywhere near the levels needed, despite facing a heavily altered Bees line-up with Thomas Frank prioritising his side’s Championship campaign.

Defeat made it three winless games in a row for Newcastle across all competitions, who will now be desperate to get their Premier League season back on course at the Etihad Stadium after losing to Leeds United and a 1-1 draw with Fulham in recent weeks.

Bruce is unlikely to make wholesale changes against Pep Guardiola’s Sky Blues, but changes are a must from the XI which lost to Brentford. So, with that in mind, here’s a line-up the Toon boss could favour…

Goalkeeper Karl Darlow is the sole Newcastle player to start all 13 of the St. James’ Park natives’ opening Premier League fixtures, and will expect to see his run in the side continue on Saturday with Martin Dubravka yet to fully overcome a pre-season heel injury.

Bruce is likely to alter the back-four which lost to Brentford with Federico Fernandez expected to be passed fit, having missed the Carabao Cup quarter-final after being withdrawn at half-time against Fulham after showing signs of serious fatigue.

Fernandez’s return will allow Bruce to name Isaac Hayden alongside Jonjo Shelvey in the engine room once again, while Jamal Lewis, Ciaran Clark and DeAndre Yedlin will start with Newcastle still without Jamaal Lascelles and Fabian Schar, plus the recent struggles of Emil Krafth and Paul Dummett at full-back.

Bruce has been full of praise for Hayden’s recent efforts whilst slotting in at centre-half, hailing the Arsenal product, who reportedly earns £22,000-a-week, as being “terrific” against West Bromwich Albion earlier this month with a display that left the Toon chief with “food for thought”.

Ryan Fraser badly betrayed Bruce at Brentford on Tuesday night with an invisible showing that saw the summer arrival record fewer touches than Darlow and must be benched on Saturday, opening the door for Matt Ritchie to return.

Ritchie has started two of Newcastle’s last three Premier League fixtures after making his comeback from a shoulder injury in November, which Bruce noted the 31-year-old was “desperate to play” after having missed seven games across all competitions.

Bruce is likely to name Miguel Almiron centrally at the Etihad Stadium despite an underwhelming showing from the Paraguayan against Brentford, with him offering no key passes or shots whilst taking just 17 touches, per WhoScored.

The 26-year-old will retain his place having seen Jacob Murphy offer a creative touch from the right-wing, with the £3m-rated man taking two shots – only Callum Wilson (4) struck more – plus a team-high two key balls and a game-high five successful dribbles.

AND in other news, a Newcastle gem with his “best years ahead” was Steve Bruce’s sole positive at Brentford…

Liverpool have been linked with a move for Sporting Lisbon left-back Nuno Mendes recently and the Portuguese defender could be the perfect long-term replacement for Andrew Robertson.

What’s the word?

According to journalist Bruno Andrade (via Sport Witness), Liverpool remain strongly interested in the 18-year-old, having seen an offer for the youngster rejected during the summer transfer window.

However, with the likes of Manchester United and Real Madrid also reportedly interested, it seems as if the Reds will face stiff competition for Mendes, who is also currently protected by a €70 million release clause.

Robertson’s heir?

Whilst Konstantinos Tsimikas was signed by Liverpool during the summer transfer window, he has struggled to impress on his few appearances thus far and is already 24-years-old, so was perhaps signed as a back up to Robertson rather than the Scottish international’s long-term replacement.

After all, the former Hull City man is only 26 himself and has been a mainstay in Jurgen Klopp’s side this season despite the arrival of Tsimikas, starting all 17 games in the Premier League and averaging a solid 6.96 rating.

Therefore, whilst Robertson is likely to be a first-team regular at Liverpool for the next five years at least, signing Mendes as his long-term heir could definitely be a sensible move by the club.

The teenager has averaged a superb 7.26 rating across his 12 appearances for Sporting Lisbon in the Liga NOS so far this season and has also appeared twice in the Europa League, meaning he would bring plenty of experience with him to Anfield despite being so young.

Mendes has also featured regularly as a left-midfielder in his career thus far, suggesting that he loves to get forward and can be a threat in the opposition half, which would certainly suit Liverpool’s style of play, with both Robertson and Trent Alexander-Arnold having registered excellent attacking returns in recent seasons.

Therefore, Liverpool sporting director Michael Edwards should certainly consider a move for the £10.8 million-rated youngster in the near future, before the likes of United or Madrid snap him up.

And, in other news… Forget Thiago: £80k-p/w LFC star was Klopp’s game-changer vs Villa

As a Wolves supporter, you currently have plenty to moan about. They have seen their side win just two of their last ten outings and the pressure is now ramping up on Nuno Santo.

Though, Chorley fans will tell them they are merely lucky to be in the Premier League.

The Lancashire side are currently in the National League North, six steps below Wolves in the football pyramid but they will welcome the top-flight side to their home on Friday evening for a historic FA Cup tie.

Wolves travel to the north of England in a bid to avoid a repeat of the 1986/87 season when Chorley’s gang of £25-per-week players knocked them out of the cup.

It would be a spectacular turn of events if the Old Gold lost again, and given their recent run of form it’s certainly possible.

On the chalkboard

As a result, Nuno could look to use a pretty strong XI in a bid to play some of his starters into form. However, if he prefers a few of the young guns, he must look to none other than Theo Corbeanu.

The winger has been on the Wolves bench in recent weeks but is still yet to be handed his first-team debut.

The 18-year-old is a hot prodigy and it would be a richly deserved debut if he was afforded the chance at Chorley. Nuno’s side have had a busy schedule so it seems feasible to suggest that he could dislodge one of Adama Traore or Pedro Neto on the flanks.

Vitally, though, what would Corbeanu offer to the side? Well, we’ll let U23 boss James Collins do the talking. He said last year: “He’s athletic, tall, can head it, can defend, can dribble past people and score, he can shoot, he can pass, he’s both footed, he’s got a bit of everything.”

Collins continued: “Theo can be anything he wants to be. He’s an outstanding prospect.”

With those types of qualities, he simply has to be unleashed against a weak opposition such as Chorley. You only need to look at his statistics in the EFL Trophy this term against League One and League Two opposition to understand how he could take a non-league side to the cleaners.

Corbeanu has managed 1.8 key passes per game, as well as registering 2.3 successful dribbles. For context, only Pedro Neto (1.9) has managed more key passes a match in Wolves’ Premier League side. Meanwhile, only Traore and Nelson Semedo trump the Canadian in terms of take-ons.

He is clearly a talented player and with Wolves needing to rest players, they have to unleash the teenager on Friday evening. He is too good to be continuously ignored by the manager.

AND in other news, Time’s up: Wolves must wield the axe on £62.9k-p/w flop, he’s ransacked Shi’s pockets…

Leeds did a great deal in the summer transfer window but aside from welcoming club-record signing Rodrigo to the club, they did some fascinating business in improving the academy.Sam Greenwood arrived from Arsenal while impressive young talents Crysencio Summerville and Cody Drameh also walked through the door.Yet, their most eye-catching acquisition from an academy point of view was former Wigan youngster Joe Gelhardt.The striker has already played over 20 games at senior level and is a budding prodigy who could well take on the mantle from Patrick Bamford in a few years.You only need to look at one specific goal he scored for Wigan. The teenager turned his man close to the edge of the area with unrelenting confidence before sticking the ball in the back of the net.

Judging by the 18-year-old’s reputation, he is probably one of the first names in the academy who will be given a senior-team opportunity.

Yet, a player two years his junior should also be considered as an option for Bielsa going forward. Just a month shy of his 17th birthday, Max Dean has been a brilliant capture since signing from Everton.

The poacher loves scoring goals and has been more prolific at U23 level than Gelhardt has this term. Dean has scored four goals in just five games, bagging twice against League Two Barrow.

Bizarrely, that’s a higher tally than any Leeds player managed when they played fellow League Two opposition Crawley in the FA Cup.

That speaks volumes about what he can do against senior professionals and considering he’s just 16, it’s incredible that he’s already pulling up so many trees.

Dean epitomises the classic poacher, scoring from a matter of yards out against both Crystal Palace U23s and Reading U23s. He is always in the right area, picking up pockets of space that terrify defenders. For such a young player, his movement inside the box is enthralling.

Gelhardt might be the more senior player at the moment but it’s arguably Dean who has caught the eye the most in Leeds’ development squads this term.

The 16-year-old is prolific and even finished as Everton’s top goal scorer for his age group in the 2018/19 season. He knows where the net is and that quality cannot be underestimated. After all, Leeds have failed to score in 2021.

Throwing in a player of his age at Premier League level would be foolish but it shouldn’t be too long before Marcelo Bielsa considers handing the teenager his first-team debut. He deserves an outing just as much as Greenwood and Gelhardt do.

After all, Dean has already proven what he can do when unleashed against Football League opposition. He could be a real wildcard for the Leeds boss.

AND in other news, Shades of Pablo: Orta can save millions if Leeds unleash rarely-seen “great talent”…

Many Arsenal fans were left slamming the display of Willian as the holders were dumped out of the FA Cup by Southampton following a 1-0 away loss.

Although there were several bad performances on the day, Willian’s stood out to many members of the Emirates Stadium faithful, as they went out with a whimper thanks to a Gabriel own goal in the first half of the game.

Given his chance to impress Mikel Arteta, who decided to rotate his team given that they have a Premier League match against the Saints on Tuesday night, he failed to do himself any favours.

The Brazil international lost out on 80% of his duels, and also failed to make a single accurate cross or long ball, all while losing possession of it no fewer than 10 times, earning him a quite measly 6.5 overall rating on Sofascore.

Arsenal fan reaction to Willian display

These Gooners slammed his performance on Twitter, with one AFC supporter even going as far as to call the 32-year-old ‘useless’:

“I honestly think Willian should never wear an Arsenal shirt again. How many chances are we going to give him?!”

Credit: @jaket1995

“Willian is as useless as Willock”

Credit: @Festo256

“Surely someone will take Willian off us. Just knowing he’s here winds me up.”

Credit: @BenAFC

“I thought Willian would be okay or have good moments but man, I can’t think of a more terrible signing than him, I’m blown away, just blown away.”

Credit: @mariEscobarStan

“Get Willian, Pepe, Nketiah and Elneny out of the squad, the academy is the future”

Credit: @Chapman_XIV

“He is picking players that have constantly been terrible. If he has anything about him, he will drop Willian for good, sell Nketiah whilst we still have a chance integrate Balogun into the first team and find a left footed left back to support Tierney”

Credit: @Nahum_silence

In other news, find out whose first-half display was slammed by Gunners here!

Liverpool will hope to rectify the mistakes made during their shock 1-0 loss to Brighton & Hove Albion earlier this week when they welcome Manchester City to Anfield.

Despite having both Mohamed Salah and Roberto Firmino up front, the Reds struggled to make an impact in the final third in that game.

Ahead of the big game later today, Jurgen Klopp stated that Sadio Mane and Fabinho had returned to “parts of team training”(Liverpool FC). However, the boss won’t want to rush the Senegalese winger back and since signing Ozan Kabak and Ben Davies, he can afford to give Fabinho more time to recover if he wishes.

Alisson, who missed the last match due to illness, is “feeling much better” and looks like he will be back in action to face City this afternoon.

With all of that in mind, here’s how Football FanCast have predicted The Reds to line up at Anfield…

With the Brazilian shot-stopper back in the side, Liverpool will feel more confident that they can keep out City’s blistering attack. Similarly, January loan signing Kabak could make his debut in red and partner Nat Phillips at centre-back. This will give Jordan Henderson the green light to return to his natural position in midfield.

The skipper will likely operate as a No.6 to keep the back-line protected and contribute to the team’s efforts of thwarting in-form Gabriel Jesus.

In midfield, Klopp has several options he could select, with one being the lesser-seen Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain. Whilst the former Gunner has been hit-and-miss with his fitness lately, he has already shown that he is the man for a big occasion. His wonder-strike against City in the Champions League back in 2018 is a prime example of what the Ox has in his locker.

Pep Guardiola’s defence has been watertight this season. City have conceded just the two goals in their last ten matches and are currently on a 20-game unbeaten streak, according to Sofascore.

Chamberlain’s ability to pull the trigger from outside the box may be the only option Liverpool have if they want to get the better of this City defence. As such, he will likely play alongside Thiago, meaning Gini Wijnaldum will drop to the bench.

Despite scoring against West Ham, the £90,000 per week midfield man struggled against Brighton and was replaced by Chamberlain just after the hour mark. The 26-year-old could be a vital asset to Liverpool’s side this evening as they vie to make amends for their second consecutive Anfield loss.

In other news, How Liverpool could lineup if they managed to sign Kylian Mbappe…

David Moyes is hopeful that Michail Antonio can lead the West Ham United attack at home to Sheffield United on Monday night.

The striker sat out the Irons’ FA Cup fifth-round defeat to Manchester United on Tuesday after showing signs of serious fatigue against Fulham, but has progressed well in training over the week.

Andriy Yarmolenko started at striker in place of Antonio though the allegedly transfer-listed winger sustained knee ligament damage at Old Trafford, and will join Fabian Balbuena and Angelo Ogbonna on the sidelines.

Ogbonna has started all 23 of West Ham’s Premier League fixtures so far this season but his absence will now force Moyes into a change at the back. So, with that in mind, here’s a potential XI West Ham could field at home to Sheffield United…

Lukasz Fabianski produced an unbelievable save to deny Victor Lindelof on Tuesday when the Manchester United defender’s deflected header almost wrong-footed the goalkeeper, but he will have been frustrated by Scott McTominay’s eventual winner with the midfielder’s shot fired close to his body.

Yet the Poland international’s place in goal is undisputed, and he will hope to record his eighth clean sheet of the Premier League season against Sheffield United despite lining up behind a slightly changed back four after Ogbonna sustained a high ankle sprain in the FA Cup.

Balbuena will be unable to take over Ogbonna’s position after he developed a calf strain in the warm-up at Old Trafford, and he to is a doubt for the Blades’ visit to the London Stadium, thus leaving Issa Diop as Craig Dawson’s expected partner.

Diop had been taken off against Manchester United after a clash of heads with Anthony Martial but did not suffer a concussion, and is expected to be available alongside Antonio on Monday night.

“He [Antonio] is doing well,” Moyes said on Friday. “He’s done a little bit on the grass and we’re trying to get him back quickly, so hopefully he will be very close for the weekend.

“Issa is fine and he was fine immediately after and he actually came in and did some training the next day [Wednesday], so I have no problem with Issa as far as that concern goes.”

Aaron Cresswell and Vladimir Coufal will be expected to occupy the two full-back slots in Moyes’ back four against Sheffield United, while Tomas Soucek will likely return to his deep-lying midfield role beside Declan Rice in the engine room.

Soucek occupied a more advanced slot against Manchester United with January loan signing Jesse Lingard ineligible to play against his parent side, but the Czech dropping deeper will force Mark Noble back out of the starting line-up with the £9m-rated Red devils playmaker now available for selection again.

Said Benrahma will also be expected to feature in the attacking midfield line after being rested at Old Trafford, likely at the expense of Pablo Fornals who lacked a clinical edge in the final third to match his ever-present tireless workrate.

AND in other news, West Ham are willing to take a £19m hit to offload an £85k-p/w flop…

West Brom have finally started to turn things around, even if it is a little too late, with two draws and one victory.

In the process, the Premier League’s leakiest defence has only conceded one goal and that was to second-placed Manchester United, who the Baggies ended up securing a point against – and even then, it could have been better.

However, with Albion boss Sam Allardyce stopping the rot defensively, it has come at a grave consequence as Brazilian midfielder Matheus Pereira has struggled to make much of an impact further up the pitch.

The 24-year-old playmaker is now suffering big time…

On the Chalkboard

According to WhoScored, the Midlands outfit are averaging 7.7 shots per game this season, and in two of the aforementioned trio of matches, they have failed to surpass a total of seven attempts.

The only time they did, Pereira racked up six shots on his own but still failed to score.

It’s now six appearances since he last scored, and 12 games since he delivered an assist.

The £11.7m-rated dynamo has seen his defending figures increase over the last few matches, seeing five tackles with a season-high three in the game against Burnley but in terms of creativity, it’s decreased.

Pereria has only managed to provide more than two key passes once since November, where he delivered a whopping nine against relegation rivals Sheffield United.

Similarly, the attacking maestro has manged a rating above 7.0 just once in his last five outings, via WhoScored.

Two weeks ago, Allardyce revealed that the Baggies needed eight clean sheets in 13 matches to have a shot at clinching survival in the big time, but in doing so, they have suffered in front of goal.

Pereira has often been shifted out wide as the signing of defensive anchorman Okay Yokuslu has brought about a new system that sees Ainsley Maitland-Niles and Conor Gallagher at the tip of a three-man midfield, leaving the enigma to play out wide.

His poorest returns have come out on the wing, providing only five goals and eight assists, compared to eight goals and 13 assists when deployed in the no.10 role, as per Transfermarkt.

This is a player once lauded as a “genius” by former Nurnburg coach Nate Weiss and considering he’s among the highest-earners on a reported £30k-per-week at the Hawthorns, he must be utilised to great effect.

Yes, Albion needed to stop leaking goals (they have conceded 11 more than any other PL side) but they will not pick up points unless they find the back of the net – only two teams have scored fewer.

Getting Pereira back to his best through the middle is clearly the way, otherwise, Allardyce risks ruining one of their better players.

AND in other news, West Brom’s “dynamic” £15k-p/w gem has been Moore’s finest parting gift…

Liverpool were handed another big blow to their season this week, with it confirmed that Jordan Henderson will be sidelined until April through injury, with the captain requiring surgery on his groin.

The Englishman joins Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez and Joel Matip on the sidelines, with Jurgen Klopp looking desperately low of defensive options, but it could also be argued that without Henderson, they are lacking any natural leaders on the pitch.

Fortunately for the German manager, whilst Henderson is only just beginning his road to recovery, James Milner looks to be back fit, with it confirmed earlier this week that the experienced midfielder is now back in training.

The 35-year-old continues to be a regular in this Reds team due to his superb fitness levels, which led teammate Georginio Wijnaldum to label him a “machine” back in 2018.

When you consider the inexperience in the Reds defence, with 26-year-old Andrew Robertson likely to be the oldest to feature in upcoming fixtures, Klopp will need a leader on the pitch to help organise things, otherwise, you fear that the Reds will struggle to turn their form around.

Milner has made 16 appearances in the Premier League this season, with just one assist to his name, resulting in a disappointing 6.5/10 average rating.

However, he is clearly someone that Klopp feels he can rely upon, and he has produced excellent displays at times this season, including in the 3-1 win against Spurs where WhoScored rated him 7.46/10 for his performance.

The former Manchester City man, who earns £140k per week with the Merseyside club, looks to be the ideal candidate to step up in the absence of Henderson, especially as he has been the club’s vice-captain since joining in 2015.

Hopefully, when he makes his full return from injury, he can fill the leadership void in this Liverpool team and help to turn the recent poor form around.

And, in other news… Edwards should swoop for £63m CB beast who silenced Messi at 19