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This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets…

Real Madrid absolutely had to win against Galatasaray if they were to have any sensible chance of advancing to the knockout stages of the ongoing Champions League campaign.

And win they did. It wasn’t really impressive, it wasn’t really pretty but a 1-0 victory away from home against a tricky opponent is definitely something to be happy about.

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Zinedine Zidane got the three points and this should keep him in the hot seat for a bit longer, provided he can continue riding this wave and get back to winning ways.

Still, the day is theirs and despite some veterans carrying the team with their performances, it was actually their 18-year-old prodigy who was given an unexpected start, his first one for Los Blancos this season, and he did not disappoint.

Watch Lionel Messi and Gareth Bale answer the internet’s weirdest questions in the video below…

Rodrygo Goes was deployed on the right side of the front trident, manning that flank next to Karim Benzema, with Eden Hazard opposite of him, and his display in the 79 minutes he stayed on the pitch was impressive.

The youngster was one of the only proactive players in the whole Real squad and he was a constant danger for the opposition. Rodrygo recorded two shots along with four completed dribbles and 58 touches on the night, clearly participating in the proceedings as much as he could.

But the great thing that Zidane should definitely notice was his tendency to drop back and help out in defence as well.

As a result, he also tallied two tackles and three interceptions in the process as well, committing only one foul throughout the night.

His overall passing was also decent as he deployed 32 passes with 71.9% accuracy. It’s definitely not out of this world but still pretty good with all things considered.

Rodrygo was actually given a nod in front of his countryman, Vinicius Junior, and it seems that Zidane’s gamble and trust in the youngster paid off.

And sure, he might not have bagged a goal or an assist but his overall contribution was notable throughout the evening.

This could give Zidane a selection headache or two moving forward.

But those kind of headaches are the best ones, aren’t they?

Things aren’t going too well for Manchester United and Ole Gunnar Solskjaer right now.

After a 2-0 defeat against West Ham in the Premier League towards the back end of September, the Red Devils only just managed to edge past League One outfit Rochdale in the EFL Cup, and on Monday threw away a lead against Arsenal in the Premier League, drawing 1-1 with the Gunners on home soil.

Last night, United were held 0-0 away at AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League and failed to register a single shot on target throughout the whole encounter.

It may have been a youthful-looking, experimental line-up from manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, but lacking such creativity and attacking prowess simply isn’t good enough for a club as big as Manchester United, a club who are among the favourites to win the Europa League this term.

The club’s official Twitter account has this afternoon released their team news ahead of the trip to Newcastle United on Sunday, but many of the replies from supporters are following an extremely familiar trend…

United fans, what are your views on Solskjaer – do you want him gone? Let us know below!

Who said that the international break was boring?

For those of you who may have missed it last night, there was a great game being played between the Netherlands and Northern Ireland as the former left it late to win 3-1.

One of the main players being talked about both during and after the match, amongst Leeds fans anyway, was Stuart Dallas.

While he may not have been on the winning side, that didn’t stop him from putting in a rather impressive performance, earning a 6.9 rating for the game on WhoScored, the second-highest amongst the Northern Ireland players.

A large part of that was down to the 28-year-old claiming an assist for their goal as he stood a cross up which looped over imperious defender Matthijs de Ligt and found the head of Josh Magennis.

Whilst a lot of attention was drawn to the assist, particularly because he managed to fight off the attention of former Manchester United player Daley Blind, always a delight for Leeds fans whenever an ex-Red does something bad, his overall performance as well went down extremely well.

It might be a little bit too much to be saying it was all down to the teachings of Marcelo Bielsa. He may have revolutionised the team with his ‘Bielsaball’ style, but that doesn’t mean that everything he does is because of it.

Due to the quality of the footage, it’s quite hard to make out anyone other than Hamza Choudhury due to his iconic afro.

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Therefore, it remains something of a mystery as to which players had the unfortunate honour of getting mugged off by the Austrian, but they’re certainly going to be blushing when they see the video has been posted on Instagram.

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In today’s West Ham United roundup, we take a look at what news has made the headlines for the Hammers. Kevin Nolan has heaped praise on Declan Rice, Paul Merson doesn’t believe West Ham can crack the top-six, and Pablo Fornals has hailed the London Stadium atmosphere as ‘amazing’.

‘The atmosphere was amazing’, says Fornals

Report: Summer signing Fornals was making his second start for the club in the win against Manchester United, but has hailed the London Stadium atmosphere as amazing, despite its criticism from the fans over the years.

Fornals told WHUFC.com: “The atmosphere in the stadium was amazing. I had four friends and my girlfriend here too. Now I’ll ask them if they enjoyed the game, but [from the pitch] I think that the atmosphere was unbelievable!”

Verdict: Since West Ham’s move to the London Stadium in 2016, the club has come under much scrutiny because of the stadium’s lack of atmosphere, which has partly been explained by the Olympic track that naturally takes the fans further away from the action. Towards the end of the 2017/18 season, a riot almost descended as crowds gathered around the directors’ box to express their anger, with some even invading the pitch.

Of course, it is no secret that the key to a good atmosphere is winning. However, if West Ham can continue to break the barrier of the top-six and beat teams like Man United more often, surely more memorable, atmospheric nights will come at the London Stadium.

As a result of this magnificent win, the Hammers are up to fifth and on the same points as third-placed Leicester City.

‘I don’t know if they’re going to score enough goals’, says Merson

Report: Paul Merson has his doubts about whether or not West Ham can break into the top-six this season. Merson spoke on The Debate (Via The Boot Room) and said: “Will West Ham finish in the top six? You’ve got to look at it two weeks ago against Villa. They drew 0-0 against Villa. No disrespect but Arsenal scored three goals against them with 10 men.

“I like West Ham. Don’t get me wrong. I don’t know if they’re going to score enough goals. A lot of people asked me about this game at the weekend. I said it could be anything. If Manchester United win, you wouldn’t be shocked. If West Ham won, you wouldn’t be shocked. It was one of those games.”

Verdict: Understandably so, Merson his has doubts, as it wasn’t too long ago that West Ham were losing 5-0 at home to Manchester City, and just last week they played out a poor goalless draw against Aston Villa.

However, there is no question that West Ham have quality around the pitch, especially going forward. Sebastian Haller has proved to be a great signing, scoring three times so far, whilst Andriy Yarmolenko has two this season. Elsewhere, Declan Rice continues to become one of the league’s most promising midfielders, averaging a rating of 7.05, alongside Mark Noble who won the Man of the Match for his display against United.Based on West Ham’s start and the poor beginnings of the usual top-six contenders, there is little doubt that Manuel Pellegrini’s man can battle with the top-six. Although, it is early days, and keeping the entire team ticking and fresh from injuries throughout the season is a task within itself and may require some luck along the way.Rice ‘top-notch’, says Kevin NolanReport: Former West Ham man Kevin Nolan has heaped the praise on Declan Rice after another great performance against United at the weekend. Nolan told the Sky Sports News Football Centre (as cited by Forever West Ham): “I knew it when when I trained with him when he was 17, maybe 16, coming up, you could see he had the confidence, the ability, the self-assurance and arrogance which you need to be a top player so yeah I’m excited to see how far he goes.“He is another major reason why West Ham have started so well and is another major reason why I feel West Ham have a great chance of breaking into the top-six.”Verdict: The 20-year-old has played five times for the Hammers so far and continues to provide defensive stability to the side, averaging 3.5 tackles per game, 1.8 interceptions per game (as per WhoScored). As a result of Rice’s magnificent displays, the Englishman has caught the attention of super clubs like United, who were reportedly set to bid £90m for the midfielder in the summer.If West Ham are to make the dream of a top-six finish come true, it’s not only the forwards who will need to keep performing.You can’t help but feel that Rice’s importance for West Ham is just as crucial.

Crystal Palace supporters have been in high spirits in recent times after seeing their side get back to winning ways in the Premier League on Saturday.

Roy Hodgson’s men went into their encounter with struggling Fulham at Selhurst Park having drawn one and lost two of their last three league games, a run which saw them fall towards the division’s bottom three. But the Eagles now sit 14th in the table after a routine 2-0 success over Claudio Ranieri’s Cottagers, with goals from Luka Milivojevic and Jeffrey Schlupp inspiring the hosts to a seventh Premier League win of the season, which in turn moved them four points clear of the relegation zone.

As such, there have been many delighted Palace fans up and down the country in recent times, with supporters likely lauding a fine team effort from their side on Saturday to finally get back to winning ways in the league for the first time since January 2.

And while it was Milivojevic and Schlupp that came up with the vital contributions, it was the performance of Mamadou Sakho in the heart of the Eagles backline that epitomised everything brilliant about Palace at the weekend.

Ultimately, the 28-year-old has proven to be an inspired addition to the Palace backline following his arrival from Liverpool on a permanent deal back in the summer of 2017, what with the centre back excelling in a loan spell earlier that year to underline his importance to this Eagles side.

And the defender, but for the odd lapse in concentration, continues to prove his worth to Hodgson, and that was none-more-so evident than on Saturday as the France international produced another authoritative display to help Palace to a ninth clean sheet of the season.

The centre back may have only touched the ball on 58 occasions over the course of the 90 minutes, what with Fulham dominating possession for much of the encounter, but Sakho finished the contest with a staggering 98% pass success rate, misplacing only one of the 41 passes he attempted – for what it’s worth, no other Palace starter hit 90% on Saturday (as per WhoScored).

And having someone like that on the ball who is comfortable in possession but invariably picks a pass can only be good news in bringing calmness and a measure of control to the backline – Sakho certainly helped do that at the weekend.

Yet the former Liverpool centre back also did his bit off the ball as well to stop Fulham in their tracks, winning three of the five aerial duels he contested over the course of the 90 minutes, as well as making a joint team-high eight clearances and two interceptions to relieve pressure on the Palace defence.

Clearly then, Sakho helped deliver a performance of note both on and off the ball to help Hodgson’s side to a crucial three points on Saturday, with the £13.5 million-rated ace (as per Transfermarkt) the star in a great team display to underline just how much he epitomised everything brilliant about the Eagles at the weekend.

Palace and Fulham fans… what do you think? Let us know!

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

Everton’s clash with Bournemouth this weekend will be heavily influenced by a key battle between two players.

On the chalkboard

The Toffees have mostly enjoyed their encounters with Bournemouth since the latter’s promotion to the Premier League, having lost only twice in eight games, but will look to improve on the draw they claimed in their last visit.

A lot has changed since their last game at the Vitality Stadium more than a year ago, when they took a 2-0 lead despite Richarlison being sent off, only to be pegged back in the closing stages.

They are now more defensively resolute, and they ended last season with three clean sheets in four matches while they have kept two already this season, and Lucas Digne has been a part of the backline throughout.

If he is able to keep Harry Wilson quiet on Sunday then Marco Silva could claim his first away win of the Premier League season, but it is easier said than done.

The Frenchman helped his side to an eighth-placed finish last term – they conceded 46 goals, fewer than both Manchester United and Arsenal – but it is his threat going forward which makes him so useful, and such a fan favourite.

In 2018/19 he scored five and assisted nine and his attacking attributes should help to nullify Wilson’s danger since the on-loan Liverpool man could end up as preoccupied with defending as attacking himself.

That could be vital to Everton’s chances of getting a result, as the 22-year-old has two goals from his three league starts so far, and often looks to get involved in the final third, as evidenced by his 2.7 shots per game, according to Whoscored.

Added to that, he has averaged 1 key pass per game and as a result, Digne will need to get tighter to him than he did to Jota, who provided an assist from the right flank as Aston Villa beat the Toffees 2-0.

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According to Whoscored, this season Digne has averaged 0.3 interceptions per match, which suggests that anticipating danger and marking his opponent is an area of weakness for the left-back, but he may find life easier against Wilson.

The winger is not blessed with blistering pace and therefore the former Barcelona man should be able to track him efficiently.

Going forward, Silva will also be relying on the 26-year-old to produce the goods, and his link-up with Richarlison could once again prove decisive.

A Digne cross allowed Richarlison to head home against both Lincoln and Wolves so if he can maintain or improve on his average of 2 successful crosses per game, then Everton may be able to take all three points away from the south coast this weekend.

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Crystal Palace still want to sign Arsenal striker Eddie Nketiah this month, according to journalist Tom Barclay, who was talking to GiveMeSport.

The Lowdown: Ramsey links

Palace are yet to bolster their squad this month but could be set for a busy final few days of the January window going off recent reports. According to Italian news outlet TuttoJuve, the Eagles are getting ‘closer and closer’ to signing Juventus midfielder Aaron Ramsey.

Patrick Vieira is attempting to ‘convince’ the Welshman over a move to Selhurst Park, with the 31-year-old set to leave Turin before the end of the month. However, it’s not only Ramsey who Vieira wants at Selhurst Park before Monday’s deadline, with Nketiah also on the radar.

The Latest: Barclay’s claim

Barclay was talking to GiveMeSport regarding Palace and the 22-year-old Gunners forward. He revealed that the Eagles are still interested in the £45,000-a-week striker and would like to bring him to the club ‘now’.

Barclay stated: “They are interested. They tried to sign him in the summer and they would like to have him and they’d like to sign him now if possible.

“He’s obviously out of contract at the end of the season. I was told it was a difficult deal to do, Arteta’s gone on record saying he wants him to stay, he’d like him to sign a new contract apparently.”

The Verdict: Unlikely?

Reports prior to the New Year suggested that Palace would cut short Jean-Philippe Mateta’s loan spell to make way for a new striker As we know, that hasn’t happened, and with just days remaining in the transfer window, it seems as if a move for Nketiah won’t materialise.

That’s because Mikel Arteta has previously ruled out a January exit for the striker, so perhaps Palace should be looking at a summer swoop, when Nketiah could be a free agent.

A cut-price move could still be a shrewd one, though, as the forward is only 22 years of age and has 75 appearances for the Gunners under his belt, scoring once every 102 minutes in the current campaign.

In other news: ‘We’re big time’ – Many Palace fans erupt as ‘class’ transfer news emerges

An update has emerged on Newcastle United and their interest in central defender Josko Gvardiol… 

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, the Magpies are set to consider a swoop for the Croatia international at the end of the season, although they are set to face stiff competition for him as a number of sides are keeping an eye on the defender.

RB Leipzig reportedly signed him for £13.5m (€16m) but it remains to be seen how much they would demand for his services this summer.

Van Dijk 2.0

Eddie Howe can find his own Virgil van Dijk by securing a deal to sign Gvardiol this summer as the young defender has the potential to become as good as the Premier League giant, according to someone who has watched him in his home country.

Germania Sport journalist Izak Ante Sucic recently told BBC Sport that he is “built like a tank” and went on to liken him to the Dutch Liverpool star.

He said: “In Croatia we like to compare him to Virgil van Dijk, because he’s built that way (6 foot 1). He’s one of his role models in football and he’s also mentioned Thiago Silva and Sergio Ramos – Ramos because he’s also one of those players who likes to score as many goals as he can.

“In my opinion, I think he can be as good as Virgil one day. When you see how he behaves on the field and off the field, he’s one of those guys where you’d say ‘he’s going to succeed’.”

His statistics in the Bundesliga back up these claims. He has averaged an excellent SofaScore rating of 7.12 across 25 appearances, making 3.3 tackles and interceptions per game whilst also completing 84% of his attempted passes for Leipzig – as per SofaScore.

Couple this with the fact that he only turned 20 in January and it shows that he has the potential to make his way right to the top. He is already performing to a high standard on a consistent basis in the German top-flight at such a young age and Sucic believes that he can get to van Dijk’s level.

This is why PIF must do everything in their power to ensure they can strike an agreement with Leipzig for Gvardiol this summer. Howe would then have the opportunity to work with the Croatian to help him fulfil his potential and compete amongst the best centre-backs in Europe.

AND in other news, Howe can unearth a new “outstanding” £20m gem in NUFC’s rarely-seen Darsley Park star…

Celtic have been linked with a January swoop for Motherwell defender Bevis Mugabi, according to The Scotsman’s Andrew Smith.

The Lowdown: Mugabi profiled

The Uganda defender, who once claimed he had Liverpool winger Sadio Mane in his ‘pocket’ during an international clash, has been at Fir Park since 2019. The 26-year-old has made 57 appearances for the club, 19 of which have come during the current campaign.

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A 12-cap Uganda international, the 6 foot 1 beast is primarily a centre-back who can also play as a right-back and was previously on the books at Southampton.

The Latest: Parkhead links

Smith shared a story for The Scotsman on Saturday morning, assessing what the Hoops may now do in the January window following their triple Japanese swoop.

He claimed that Ange Postecoglou could look to add to his defensive options, with interest in Mugabi emerging.

The Verdict: Is he needed?

With Christopher Jullien set to make a long-awaited return following the international break, a move for Mugabi doesn’t seem to be pivotal at this moment in time.

When the Frenchman returns, Postecoglou will have six centre-backs to call upon, all of whom could be permanent players should Cameron Carter-Vickers’ loan spell turn into a full-time switch over the coming weeks.

That should be plenty for Postecoglou, so perhaps he and new CEO Michael Nicholson should look elsewhere when it comes to any further winter additions.

In other news: Dressing room source shares big update on Postecoglou’s plan for Celtic ace with ‘tremendous composure’