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Newcastle United will attempt to sign Benfica midfielder Andreas Samaris again in the summer after they failed with a move in the January transfer window, per Record via Sport Witness.

Samaris’ contract expires at the end of the season and Rafael Benitez’s side could well get themselves a bargain in the summer transfer window.

What’s the word?

Samaris was a target of the Magpies in January but a proposed deal, that would have seen him sign an initial short-term contract before committing to longer terms in the summer, fell through.

The report claims that the 29-year-old was unsure if he would actually have a club beyond the end of the season so decided to reject the proposal.

Newcastle signed Miguel Almiron from Atlanta United and Antonio Barreca on loan from AS Monaco last month.

And Samaris – who has played just six games in the Portuguese top-flight all season – can now begin negotiations with foreign clubs, with his deal soon due to end.

Newcastle, then, have the opportunity to finally get the signing over the line, with Record claiming that he will almost certainly be allowed to leave Benfica.

Patience pays off

Benitez and owner Mike Ashley may have played something of a blinder here.

Fresh from bolstering their squad at the turn of the year, the opportunity arises to do a deal for a long-term target that will ultimately cost them nothing at all.

Of course, it cannot be known if this was the plan all along – hence the convoluted offer presented to Samaris – but bringing him in when the summer window opens makes all the sense in the world.

Newcastle may well have to secure their Premier League survival first – they are currently 16th, just one point above the relegation zone.

But if they do just that, it would be a surprise if Samaris did not end up wearing black and white from the 2019-20 season.

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According to The Liverpool Echo, Everton are reportedly growing increasingly confident that Henry Onyekuru will be lining up for them next season after what will be two years out on loan.

What’s the word, then?

Well, The Liverpool Echo report that the Merseyside club have been unable to utilise their 2017 summer signing because of ineligibility issues, which means the 21-year-old has spent time out on loan at Anderlecht, and now Galatasaray this term.

However, The Liverpool Echo report that the Toffees are hopeful the Nigeria international will finally be able to obtain a work permit at the end of the season, and they believe they have a robust case to present to the Football Association.

As per the same report, Marco Silva has also confirmed that the club is keeping tabs on the exciting attacker’s performances in Turkey.

He said: “Yes, we are doing our work and are aware of everything he is doing.

“It is the same with all of our loan players and at the end of the season we will take a decision.”

Could he start for Everton next season?

Should he get his work permit, then there is certainly no reason why he wouldn’t be competing for a spot in Silva’s XI.

Onyekuru showed just how good and dangerous he can be with 30 goals and 11 assists in 60 appearances for Eupen – despite playing out wide – prior to his move to Goodison Park, while he has also netted an impressive nine times in 19 Super Lig matches for Galatasaray this term.

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With the likes of Bernard, Ademola Lookman and Theo Walcott not putting in consistently good performances on the wing for Everton there certainly looks to be a chance for the 21-year-old African to make his mark, and he may well get it if the Merseyside outfit are proved right with their confidence about him soon being eligible.

أشاد مدرب أستون فيلا دين سميث بالأداء الذي قدموه في مباراة اليوم أمام فولهام، في بطولة الدوري الإنجليزي الممتاز.

وتواجه الفريقان في الجولة الثالثة، حيث فاز أستون فيلا بثلاثة أهداف دون رد في معقل فولهام. أهداف أستون فيلا وفولهام

وقال دين سميث، في تصريحات نشرتها شبكة “بي بي سي” العالمية: “لقد قدم اللاعبون لي كل شيء، واستمروا في فعل ذلك منذ نهاية الموسم الماضي، أشعر أننا نجحنا في تحسين الفريق”.

وأضاف: “هذا إلى جانب اللاعبين الذين كانوا هناك في النهاية في الموسم الماضي أيضًا، وهناك الكثير من الإيجابيات”.

وواصل: “جريليش؟ لقد عملنا على تحقيق تقدم كبير مع جاك وكان ذلك بمثابة أداء رائع منه وإنهاء رائع للهجمة، هو لاعب مميز وموهبة خاصة، أعتقد أنه سيكون أول من يقول إننا تحسننا كفريق”.

وتابع: “لقد تحسننا وهذا يساعد في تخفيف الضغط عنه قليلًا، لقد كان الأداء رائعًا في مباراة الليلة”.

وأكد دين سميث صعوبة مباراتهم المقبلة أمام ليفربول يوم الأحد القادم، قائلا: “نريد فقط الفوز بالمباراة القادمة، مواجهة صعبة، ليفربول على أرضنا، لكننا نريد مواصلة التحسين في كل مباراة، الأداء والنتائج مثل الليلة يمكن أن يساعدا في ذلك”.

[ad_pod ]Former West Bromwich Albion star and ex-teammate of Darren Moore, Jonathan Greening, has reacted on Twitter following the sacking of the 44-year-old on Saturday, and it’s fair to say he isn’t happy.

The west Midlands outfit decided to wield the axe on the former centre-back following the 1-1 draw against a lowly Ipswich Town at The Hawthorns at the weekend, which left them nine points adrift of the automatic promotion spots with 10 fixtures remaining.

While the Baggies still lie in fourth position in the Championship, one point from the previous nine – and successive defeats against fellow top-two contenders Sheffield United and Leeds United – meant that Moore paid the price.

Albion owner Lai Guochuan will now be looking to make an appointment that results in the club returning to the Premier League at the first time of asking, but it is looking more and more likely that they will have to do it via the play-offs unless there is a massive slip from either leaders Norwich City or Marcelo Bielsa’s Yorkshire outfit.

Greening took to Twitter to have his say on the decision, and he wrote: “Absolutely embarrassing decision from an owner who hasn’t a clue about football.”

The 40-year-old clearly thinks the wrong call has been made, and it was a very surprising one when you see how West Brom are doing compared to the other two teams that joined them dropping down to England’s second tier – Stoke City and Swansea City.

That said, Guochuan clearly wants promotion this term, and if he didn’t feel that Moore could deliver then you can’t blame him for making a change – even if it is a controversial one.

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Liam Palmer’s Sheffield Wednesday contract is due to run out at the end of the season, and just a few months ago not many Owls fans would have lost too much sleep if the 27-year-old left Hillsborough for nothing later this year given his below-par displays for a team treading water in the Championship.

However, their opinions may have changed in recent months – and in especially in recent weeks when he has shone out of position at left-back for the late play-off challengers – since Steve Bruce was appointed as manager.

The man who received a Scotland call-up last week has been completely transformed since the former Aston Villa boss was appointed as Jos Luhukay’s successor earlier in 2019, and has shown how powerful a mutual respect between player and manager can be.

The former Manchester United defender clearly believes in Palmer by trusting him in the left-back position, and the Worksop-born full-back hasn’t let either him or the Yorkshire outfit down.

His latest task at the weekend was to stop Blackburn Rovers star Bradley Dack – an extremely talented player at this level – and he did an admirable job.

While right-back Dominic Iorfa will get all of the plaudits after scoring and providing an assist, Palmer was just as important on the opposite flank – mainly from a defensive point of view.

The 27-year-old made three tackles, two interceptions and four clearances against Tony Mowbray’s men, while he also showed his strength in the air by winning three aerial duels.

He also attempted 14 long balls and was successful with seven of those, a tally higher than all of his outfield teammates put together managed.

The defender may not be the most talented player on the pitch, but he is willing to fight for the club and if he continues to put in displays like this one and the ones from previous weeks, it will be a no-brainer to extend his stay at Hillsborough in the summer.

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Leeds United’s mini-break from Championship action could serve them well in the promotion race, Quest pundit Dean Ashton has told Football League World.

Leeds were not involved in the fixtures over the weekend and will have had a rest of 1o days by the time they take on Bolton Wanderers on Saturday.

What’s he said?

Leeds are currently third in the Championship but they are level on points with Sheffield United, on whom they have a game in hand, and only two behind leaders Norwich City.

And Ashton, speaking to Football League World, has backed Leeds to take advantage of an impromptu rest.

He said: “I think if you were to give all the teams at the top the chance to have 10 days break they would all snap your hand off.

“At this time of the season where you’ve come through Christmas, it’s a difficult period I think it could make a huge difference.

“You’re still going to have to play that game later on down the line but at this moment in time it could give the boost you need and the recovery they need to push on until the end of the season.

“There’s time for any niggling injuries that you carry to settle down. I can see both sides but it could be quite important for them to have a break to try and settle those injuries down.”

Leeds have the advantage

Sheffield United played Reading over the weekend, while Norwich met Bolton. Leeds, meanwhile, sat pretty at home.

Promotion is so often a game of fine margins and Ashton is right to call attention to the break Marcelo Bielsa’s men have had.

They have the opportunity to get back on the field against Bolton this week – Norwich beat the Trotters 4-0 on Saturday – and start to make up that gap to the leaders.

Both of the clubs ahead of them will be watching on with interest, and they will likely see a completely fresh XI gunning for goals and three vital points.

If Leeds are promoted, they may well pinpoint this rest period as a key moment.

Manuel Pellegrini’s decision to substitute Pablo Zabaleta for Ryan Fredericks at half-time on Friday evening could finally be the sign that the manager has more faith in Fredericks than the 34-year-old.

Zabaleta was poor in closing down Fulham starlet Ryan Sessegnon last time out at the London Stadium and the right-back was largely at fault for the Whites opening the scoring as early as the third minute.

The Hammers recovered well to win the match 3-1 in the end but Sessegnon was quite easily able to put a low pass behind Zabaleta, which Ryan Babel calmly pounced on and put away to give Fulham an early lead.

Fredericks, who started West Ham’s previous two league games against Liverpool and Crystal Palace looked much more composed and organised at the back in the second-half, making it difficult for the likes of Sessegnon to find space on the wing.

The 26-year-old showed in the matches against the Reds and the Eagles that he is well and truly capable of handling the pressures of the Premier League and looked very comfortable at right-back.

The victory over Fulham was West Ham’s first in five league matches and it certainly boosted their chances of making a strong finish to the league.

Pellegrini should continue with Fredericks as a regular starter for the remainder of the season and use Zabaleta as a substitute when needed.

The former Manchester City man’s experience can undoubtedly not be questioned but given Frederick’s good showings of late, he might be of higher value when used from the bench in critical times.

Fredericks showed against Crystal Palace that he is a modern day right-back, who is capable of attacking down the flank with pace, while making quick recoveries in defence when needed.

Fredericks, who is valued at £3.6 million (by Transfermarkt), will definitely add to the East London club’s lethal attacking threat.

أعلن مجلس إدارة النادي الأهلي برئاسة محمود الخطيب عن التعاقد مع الجنوب إفريقي بيتسو موسيماني ليصبح مديرًا فنيًا للفريق الأول لكرة القدم.

ووجه الحساب الرسمي للنادي الأهلي عبر موقع التواصل الاجتماعي “فيس بوك” رسالة ترحيب بموسيماني، وكتب: “رحبوا معنا بمدربنا الجديد موسيماني.. ننتظر معك مزيداً من البطولات”.

خاص.. الأهلي يعدل راتب ميشيل يانكون بعد استمراره مع موسيماني

وكان موسيماني يتولى قيادة صن داونز الجنوب إفريقي لكنه فسخ عقده لتولي قيادة الأهلي.

وكان الأهلي قد أعلن اليوم إقالة رينيه فايلر المدير الفني السويسري من تدريب الفريق بسبب عدم التوصل لاتفاق بينهما على تجديد التعاقد ورغبة المدرب في العودة إلى بلده.

ويستعد الأهلي لخوض مواجهة مرتقبة أمام الوداد البيضاوي المغربي في نصف نهائي بطولة دوري أبطال إفريقيا في السابعة عشر من أكتوبر الجاري، ذهابًا والثالث والعشرين من الشهر ذاته إيابًا.

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Chelsea have been given a transfer ban by FIFA and will subsequently be banned from signing new players in the next two transfer windows, per Sky Sports.

The Blues have been handed a £460,000 fine, in addition to the transfer ban, after being found guilty of 29 breaches of article 19.

Sky Sports state that in a Chelsea statement have confirmed that they will appeal the decision, saying that they “categorically refute the findings of the FIFA Disciplinary Committee and will, therefore, be appealing the decision”.

Chelsea will be able to sell players in the next two transfer windows but will not be able to acquire any new stars.

An 18-month deal was sealed for Gonzalo Higuain in January, as was a transfer for Borussia Dortmund’s Christian Pulisic. The USA international was loaned back to the German club and will link up with the Premier League giants in the summer.

The news is a blow to Maurizio Sarri’s side, who are having a number of issues on the pitch too. They are currently sixth in the Premier League, a point behind fourth-placed Manchester United.

Tottenham Hotspur fans, however, have taken great pleasure in the news. Indeed, Spurs have not signed a single player in the last two transfer windows, though they have not been under any sanction.

Their supporters on Twitter have had a field day with the latest news. Take a look at some of the best reaction below.

[ad_pod ]The Second City derby may have been all about a supporter punching Jack Grealish, but Birmingham’s Craig Gardner did his best to take the attention away from the earlier incident by missing two wonderful chances.Gardner failed to score two simple opportunities late in the game which would have cancelled out Grealish’s goal earlier in the match. The 32-year-old first smashed an effort over the bar and then put a header just wide of the post.It was two moments that brought great joy to Villa supporters, who took delight in seeing one of their ex-players miss the chance to rescue the game for his current side.Villa fans were able to laugh off the fact he’s now at Birmingham to acknowledge the player’s roots after he came through the youth setup at Villa Park, sarcastically applauding his display.Gardner spent the earliest parts of his career with the Villans, signing professional terms in 2005 before eventually leaving five years later to join Birmingham. He is now in his third spell with Blues.But his performance, which was as a substitute on Sunday, will likely not do anything for his chances in the first team going forward. Villa fans, however, will be hoping he puts in similar displays as their rivals bid for a play-off place.Here’s how Villa supporters reacted to his pair of big misses…