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Leeds United remain top of the pile in the Sky Bet Championship after another win this weekend saw them keep up the pressure at the top of the table.

Things have been going very well under Marcelo Bielsa since he arrived in the summer, and the Whites are in a fine position when it comes to finally reclaiming their spot in the Premier League after 15 years away.

However, there’s always room for improvement in any squad, and with Leeds chasing that elusive promotion, ensuring they keep banging in the goals is going to be key to getting the big results needed to get out of the division.

And one man we here in the Tavern feel could be a good signing is Sunderland striker Josh Maja, who is looking increasingly likely to leave the Black Cats after rejecting a new deal with the club.

Maja is going to have plenty of interest in his signature, including from teams in the Premier League no doubt, but Leeds could well offer him an option that Maja cannot turn down.

While they have the likes of Roofe and Bamford up top, squad depth is vital in a title chase, and Maja would bring them this, as well offering a presence with pace through the middle attacking third.

Leeds would be getting quite the coup if they could land Maja, and it would be a superb long term signing for the club.

Leeds fans, what do you think? Good signing? Let us know in the comments!

According to a recent report from The Daily Mail, West Ham have failed with two bids for striker Krzysztof Piatek. The 23-year-old currently plays his football in Italy with top-flight outfit Genoa and has done so since leaving Cracovia back in 2018, with his impressive goal-scoring exploits in Serie A this term seemingly attracting the interest of Hammers manager Manuel Pellegrini.

Yet the Premier League club have been dealt a blow as they have reportedly failed with two bids for Piatek, but they shouldn’t be deterred in their pursuit of the striker, as he could prove to be the man to finally rid West Ham of injury-prone Andy Carroll.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, the interest in Poland international Piatek appears to stem from the recent interest from China in West Ham ace Marko Arnautovic, with Pellegrini seemingly preparing for the latter’s departure this month by launching a move for the former.

And no wonder given Piatek has shone in Italy following his move to Genoa last summer, with the 23-year-old sensation scoring a staggering 19 goals in just 21 appearances for the Italian club this term, 13 of which have come in their run to 14th place in Serie A.

And with 21 goals in his final season at Cracovia in 2017/18, as well as 11 the season before for the Polish outfit, there aren’t many strikers in Europe that have netted more goals than Piatek in the last few years – he also netted on just his second appearance for Poland last year as well to further underline his goal-scoring prowess.

And in a West Ham side that have somewhat relied on Arnautovic to produce the goods in the last 12 months, the 23-year-old would certainly go some way to compensating for the likely departure of the Austrian, yet his arrival would also go some way to ridding the Hammers of fellow forward Carroll.

The Englishman may have shown glimpses of brilliance during his time at West Ham, which began on loan from Liverpool back in 2012, although he has on the whole struggled with injury to leave his Hammers career as something of a disappointment.

In fact, since joining the club in the summer of 2012, and then making that move permanent at the end of the 2012/13 season, the former Newcastle United frontman has appeared just 137 times for the East London outfit, equating to less than 20 appearances a season.

And while he has managed to bag 37 goals in that time, he simply cannot be relied upon to lead the line over the course of a campaign – yes, when he does feature, West Ham often carry a greater attacking threat, but it is more a question of if he plays rather than when.

And with his contract up at the end of the season, the Hammers simply cannot be convinced into giving him a new deal, and surely wouldn’t be convinced to do so were they to land the supremely talented and lethal Piatek.

So while the 23-year-old’s arrival would go some way to minimising the impact of Arnautovic’s likely exit this month, it would also go some way to ridding the Hammers of Carroll, which is why the recent setbacks simply shouldn’t deter Pellegrini in pursuit of the striker.

West Ham fans… what do you think? Let us know!

According to The Sunderland Echo, Jack Ross has said that he is planning on keeping 18-year-old Benjamin Kimpioka at the Stadium of Light for the rest of the season. 

The striker could have gone out on loan for the rest of the season, but the manager has decided to keep hold of him, believing he could be an asset in The Black Cats’ promotion push.

With the departures of both Josh Maja and Jerome Sinclair this month, Sunderland currently look slightly thin on the ground when it comes to strikers.

Ross’ team have been linked with Championship striker Will Grigg, as well as League One duo Tom Eaves and John Marquis, but nothing has come to fruition so far. At this moment in time Kimpioka is a fail-safe, in case Sunderland cannot land anyone else.

However, while it will be beneficial for Sunderland to give the Sweden under-19 international some game time as the season goes on, particularly in a promotion run-in, Ross will certainly not want to depend on him too much. But by keeping hold of Kimpioka, Ross may be revealing more than he wishes to about the likelihood of their other targets arriving.

This would be calamitous if The Black Cats cannot land at least two of their three targets, and it could seriously dent their promotion chances. They will not want to be reliant on a player like Kimpioka, who, so far, has only made two league appearances. This is not the sort of figure a team wants in a title race.

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Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl confirmed in his Cardiff City pre-match press conference on Thursday, via southamptonfc.com, that striker Danny Ings will be out for 2-3 weeks following the hamstring issue he suffered against Burnley last weekend, and it is a setback that could have big repercussions for the south coast outfit.

What’s the word, then?

Well, there would have been some big fears from Saints fans when they saw the 26-year-old limp off before the half-hour mark against the Clarets at Turf Moor on Saturday, and Hasenhuttl has confirmed those fears by revealing that the centre-forward could be absent for up to three weeks.

The 51-year-old said: “He had problems with his hamstring, and that cost him another two or three weeks to come back. We will miss him for sure.”

While the player who will join Southampton on a permanent £20m deal in the summer will certainly miss out against Cardiff at St Mary’s this weekend, he is surely also a big doubt for the trip to Arsenal and the match at home to Fulham before the end of the month as well.

What are the consequences?

Southampton lie just two points above the relegation zone ahead of their clash against the Bluebirds, and Hasenhuttl would surely have identified both that fixture and the one against another team in the relegation zone in Fulham as ones that they need to take six points from.

With trips to Arsenal and Manchester United either side of hosting the Cottagers, there is no doubt their home matches are key and it will be a major blow if they don’t have their best striker available for the next fixture and thatone.

In his absence, the Austrian manager will be looking towards the likes of Shane Long, Charlie Austin and Sam Gallagher to step up to the plate, and for Nathan Redmond to continue his rich vein of form in front of goal.

Watch the best fails from the world of indoor football in the video below…

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

It seems that the rumours of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang being on Real Madrid’s radar are here to stay.

Just recently, Los Blancos were linked with a swap deal for Freddie Ljungberg’s hitman in a transfer that would see James Rodriguez and some cash go the other way.

Needless to say, even that offer seemed like a foolish move for the Spanish giants, and now, Duncan Castles has reported that Zinedine Zidane is looking to sacrifice Luka Jovic in order to land his target.

He said so on The Transfer Window podcast, starting at 23:30, claiming that Aubameyang is still stalling on a new contract and the Galacticos would be ready to pounce on him with another offer for the Gunners.

Aubameyang’s contract is due to run out in the summer of 2021 so that leaves Ljungberg with some room to manoeuvre out of this position, but they are running out of time to make some real money from the player if separation truly is inevitable.

Of course, losing a leadership figure who’s managed to bag 12 goals in 19 games in 2019/20 is never easy but getting someone as young and as talented as Jovic in return is something that could potentially sweeten the deal just enough.

But for Real Madrid and Zidane, this would be a rather foolish move.

Quicfire Quiz: Premier League experts will get 100%…

Karim Benzema is also on the wrong side of his 30s and Jovic was brought in for a reported fee of about £58m to one day replace the Frenchman.

But so far, he has only tallied 11 games under his name for the Galacticos, bagging one goal in the process. Even though that is definitely not a brilliant return, Jovic hardly ever plays and the 319 minutes he’s managed to accumulate so far can attest to that.

Adding Aubameyang, who’s 30 already, into the squad makes little sense given that would leave Real Madrid with two ageing forwards.

Add in the fact they’d be sacrificing a young player with the potential to be a long-term option at centre-forward and it’s fair to say the deal looks catastrophic.

Jovic has quality, that much we’ve seen during his Eintracht Frankfurt days when he scored 36 goals and assisted further nine in 75 games.

Zidane should just be a bit more patient with his talent.

He’s bound to grow with time.

In other news, with their transfer ban cut short, Chelsea should reignite their interest in one of Real Madrid’s out-of-favour stars…

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Liverpool are lacking options at centre-forward beyond Roberto Firmino but it appears that Jurgen Klopp is likely to lose one of his alternative options in the summer.

What’s the word?

Daniel Sturridge has struggled to make an impact this season despite an early flourish which saw him notch vital goals against Paris Saint-Germain and Chelsea.

The stunning strike which salvaged the Reds a point at Stamford Bridge hinted that the once electric attacker had turned a corner, but he has since slipped back into obscurity.

His contract is due to expire in June and Liverpool Echo journalist James Pearce believes that neither club nor player are hoping to extend his current deal.

‘I’d be amazed if he stayed beyond this season. I just don’t think a new contract makes sense for either the club or the player. He could earn a lot more by leaving as a free agent.’

Time for a fresh start

The manner in which the England international’s career has faded is incredibly disappointing both for Sturridge and the Liverpool supporters.

But after suffering from a succession of injury problems it’s about time Sturridge embarked on a fresh challenge. What he needs right now is minutes on the field to rebuild his match fitness and Klopp seems unwilling to provide that – which is understandable given his future is likely to be played elsewhere.

Memories of the 29-year-old attacker’s clinical past alongside Luis Suarez and Raheem Sterling in the famous S.S.S trio will live long in the memory, but the time has come for the club to cut ties with Sturridge.

The Athletic (subscription required) have dropped something of a bombshell in the aftermath of the Moise Kean incident on Sunday, stating that the Italian wasn’t wanted and didn’t feature on the original Everton transfer wish-list compiled by Marco Silva and Marcel Brands back in the summer.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Kean was of course brought on and then taken off just 18 minutes later by caretaker manager Duncan Ferguson in the 1-1 draw with Manchester United at Old Trafford on Sunday, which has certainly sparked a lot of debate – many supporters on Twitter backed the Scot over the player.

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Now The Athletic has revealed that the 19-year-old didn’t even feature in the original recruitment plan – which presumably included more than one option – put together by Silva and Brands, who were knocked back in their efforts to sign a number of centre-forwards, including Kean’s former teammate Mario Mandzukic.

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The report says: “There were five names on that list,” a source said. “Kean wasn’t even on it. Nobody had discussed, or wanted, Kean up to that point.”

The deal was helped by Brands’ relationship with super-agent Mino Raiola according to the report, although he was hardly the ‘proven striker who could hit the ground running’ the Merseyside outfit were said to be looking for despite his impressive record of seven goals in 17 matches last term for Juventus.

Was he ever wanted?

Brands may have promised the teenager’s mother that he would take care of him when he signed, but the fact he has played just 467 minutes of football so far this term despite costing £25.1m suggests otherwise.

This isn’t even an Everton team that has been performing well while the youngster has been watching on from the substitutes’ bench either – they have been poor for much of the campaign.

Did he play for Everton? Simple question but a lot tougher than you think…

The facts are that Silva rarely trusted him in the XI with two top flight starts to his name, and Ferguson hasn’t either in his first two matches at the helm either with his weekend action showing he was far from impressed from Kean’s cameo at Old Trafford.

The signs all point to him being a player that wasn’t really wanted by management at Goodison Park, but now they have the choice of sticking with him and hoping he adapts and comes good, or putting the feelers out over a potential sale or loan exit.

In other Everton news, Richard Keys has given his view on Duncan Ferguson’s future following the Moise Kean incident…

Steve Bruce named Florian Lejeune in the starting line-up for the match against Crystal Palace, marking the defender’s first start of the season.

The Frenchman has been out with a long-term injury he picked up back in April, and supporters are delighted to see him back in black and white.

When fit, he had made himself a regular starter under Rafael Benitez in the last campaign, and a string of impressive performances made him a very popular figure for the Newcastle fan base.

The Magpies have experienced numerous injuries to their backline this year, with Jetro Willems missing out against the Eagles to join Ciaran Clark and Jamaal Lascelles on the treatment table, but fans weren’t too concerned because of Lejeune’s inclusion.

For many he is a very welcome return and by slotting alongside Federico Fernandez and Fabian Schar some believe Bruce has finally been able to pick his best three centre-backs, though Lascelles may change that when he returns.

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Lejeune is popular not just for his defending but his ability on the ball, like Schar, and if he stays fit he could help the team improve upon their poor possession stats – averaging just 39% of the ball this term, as he averaged 47 passes per game in 2018/19.

It will be interesting to see how he fits in under Bruce’s system over the next few games, as Newcastle’s defence has been their strong point this season, despite their injury issues.

Meanwhile, Newcastle fans have also been reacting to Elias Sorensen being recalled from his loan spell, with some wanting him to feature for the first-team.

When Roberto’s name appeared on the teamsheet for West Ham United’s game against Crystal Palace, there was an inevitable sense of dread.

That sense will not have been helped by the compilation of calamitous errors and weak attempts that Amazon Prime put together, ahead of their coverage of the game.

He has been slated in the past and it seemed certain that he was going to make an error that would cost Manuel Pellegrini’s side, but even though the team eventually did go on to lose 2-1, it would be very harsh to put the blame on the Spaniard.

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The 33-year-old didn’t look overly confident in the early stages of the match, flapping at crosses and looking indecisive at points, but he was getting the job done.

He was initially beaten by Cheikhou Kouyate’s effort and while the ball did go under him, it definitely shouldn’t be seen as a goal that was entirely his fault.

Then there was Jordan Ayew’s dink that ended up floating over the Spaniard and into the goal, but if anything is to be questioned regarding that goal, it should be the fact that he was allowed to breeze past so may defenders with such ease, rather than the goalkeeping.

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Aside from those moments, there were actually some solid pieces of goalkeeping, such as the moment in which he smothered Connor Wickham when the 26-year-old had run through on goal.

This game did continue what is a very poor record in the Premier League, as in Roberto’s eight matches, he still doesn’t have a clean sheet and has conceded 17 goals.

However, this time around he should not be seen as the man to blame for West Ham going on to lose points, as they continue to hover just above the relegation zone.

In other news, West Ham fans were unhappy about Manuel Pellegrini’s substitution.

According to 90min.com, Liverpool are interested in signing Adama Traore.

What’s the story?

Former Barcelona youth product Traore has been in stellar form so far this campaign, scoring five goals and providing seven assists in all competitions for Wolves.

As such, he has attracted interest from a number of top clubs, including the Reds. Manchester City are also looking at the 23-year-old, whilst the Blaugrana have also been linked with re-signing the blistering winger. The report does mention that his employers will not accept bids of less than £70m, though – the same initial fee they paid for Virgil van Dijk from Southampton in 2018, as per The Telegraph.

Waste of money

There is no doubting that Traore has really started to come of age this term under Nuno Espirito Santo. His two performances against the Citizens, in particular, have caught the eye, with him scoring three and providing one assist as the Midlands outfit triumphed both home and away versus the Premier League champions.

Can you name the result these iconic Liverpool images belong to? Give it a go now…

However, there have been plenty of fears in the past that he lacks end product – and that has come from the player himself as well. Last term, he managed just one goal and three assists in all competitions for Wolves, whilst he created just three goals in 37 top-tier matches before that.

This improvement in form has come over just six months – is that really enough to warrant paying such a huge fee? Traore is no doubt exciting, and you rarely know what will come next with him. His better performances have come as he has received increased playing time – last term, he started just eight matches in the league, compared to 17 already this time around with 17 games left.

At Anfield, needing to compete with Mohamed Salah on the right wing, he would likely come out second best, and would need to once again play a bit-part role as he has done in the past. There would be a real possibility that he would drop off in terms of his final ball, whether that be scoring himself or providing. As his 5.6 dribbles per match indicate, he is rarely on the periphery, but that could very much be the case under Jurgen Klopp.

As exciting as Traore is, this is a transfer that the 52-year-old should avoid.

In other news, Liverpool fans think this man could provide cover for one of their stars.