All posts by h716a5.icu

Felipe Anderson has proven to be a ‘true disappointment’ for FC Porto since sealing a season-long loan from West Ham United.

That’s the view of Portuguese newspaper Record, via Sport Witness, who claim that the Brazilian will soon be heading back to the London Stadium.

Anderson’s efforts under Sergio Conceicao have failed to convince the Dragoes leadership to launch a bid to retain the winger beyond his temporary terms.

West Ham are expected to work on cashing-in on Anderson in the off-season, with the 27-year-old entering the final 12-months of his £85,000-per-week contract in June.

Anderson has been an outcast at the Estadio do Dragao ever since his arrival, with Conceicao only fielding the two-cap international on nine occasions across all competitions and starting five of his appearances.

Record note that Anderson was in line for more minutes earlier in the season after a brief improvement to his performances, but the spotlight quickly faded and he was sent back to the wilderness.

Conceicao omitted the Hammers forward from his last four Liga NOS squads prior to the international break, while last fielding Anderson eight games ago.

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The former SS Lazio attacker is now set to cause David Moyes a huge problem in the summer transfer market when West Ham look to sell their £36m former club-record signing.

Anderson’s inability to establish himself at Porto has seen his market value plummet, to now boast a TransferMarkt valuation of only £13.5m – a whopping £27m down on where it stood just 15-months ago.

Anderson bragged a career-high valuation of £40.5m in December 2019 after a strong debut season in England, having struck 10 goals and penned five assists in all competitions under Manuel Pellegrini.

The following campaign started promisingly with three assists in his first six Premier League appearances, but things took a downward turn before Moyes’ arrival and failed to pick up with one goal following in a mere eight games as injuries limited Anderson’s action.

By the end of the 2019/20 term, Anderson’s market value had fallen by almost 50% in seven months to sit at £22.5m and it has continued to drop in line with his Porto plight with TransferMarkt’s latest valuation coming in at £13.5m.

West Ham will face a great challenge to recoup as much of the £36m paid to Lazio when they look to sell Anderson in the summer and may rue opting to allow the winger to stay at Porto despite interest from Fiorentina in January.

Reports have already surfaced suggesting that the Irons will set a £17m asking price for the off-season, although it remains to be seen how close to that figure any potential suitor is willing to go.

What is sure is that Anderson’s career has been spiralling in the wrong direction for too long, and his market value is only an indication of how poorly his nightmare has gone.

AND in other news, West Ham eye 10-goal livewire who destroyed David Moyes’ side last year…

Darren Moore is still looking for his first victory as Sheffield Wednesday boss as top meets bottom in the Championship this lunchtime.

Indeed, the Owls are in an appalling run of form, losing each of their last six league outings, and that has seen them drop to 23rd place – some seven points adrift of safety with time quickly running out on the season.

Last time out, ten-man Wednesday were thrashed at the hands of Reading and now they face the division’s front-runners, Norwich City, at Hillsborough Stadium.

So, what sort of side could we see from the 46-year-old, will he freshen things up? Here’s the line-up we’re predicting along with the latest team and injury news from the Owls camp…

Moore has plenty to ponder after Julian Borner received his marching orders last week, while this game should come too soon for returning duo Keiren Westwood and Andre Green. Nor will there be an appearance from Massimo Luongo, who remains absent through injury.

In total, there could be as many as five changes as the Owls boss looks to spark a reaction against the top dogs.

Joe Wildsmith is set to remain between the sticks, though he’ll be shielded by a different back four as Chey Dunkley is the natural replacement for the suspended German. The 29-year-old centre-back comes in alongside Matt Penney, who returns to that left-back spot over Liam Palmer as the only out-and-out man for the role.

Both Tom Lees and Osaze Urhoghide keep their places.

In midfield, we could see Celtic-bound Liam Shaw axed in favour of Izzy Brown in the no.10 role, he’ll partner up with skipper Barry Bannan and Sam Hutchinson.

Whilst on the flanks, we’re expecting to see a return for Adam Reach on the left, with Kadeem Harris continuing on the right.

Callum Paterson led the line against the Royals but failed to get on the scoresheet, so we may well see Jordan Rhodes start up top with Josh Windass also having to settle for a place on the bench.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Carlton Palmer puts Sheffield Wednesday’s woes down to one reason…

Journalist Liam Kennedy has discussed the chances of Newcastle being bought out if the club is relegated this season.

In the Shields Gazette, he wrote about multiple issues involving the Tyneside club, giving some updates about a potential takeover at St James’ Park in the event of a possible relegation.

Takeover becomes ‘obsolete’ in case of relegation

Kennedy stated that he asked the Premier League on Friday whether the takeover would happen and whether the arbitration process would hinder anything if the Magpies go down. The Premier League responded by saying ‘we don’t know’.

Kennedy added that, in case of relegation, a takeover would become ‘obsolete’ even though PCP are still interested in buying Newcastle. However, a Championship club may not be an attractive purchase for them, as the Premier League would be a better way to announce themselves.

The journalist said: “Interestingly, I asked the Premier League this question on Friday – what would happen to arbitration and the ODT tests, if Newcastle dropped and issues were unresolved? Their answer? ‘We don’t know’.

“For me, the PCP Consortium deal becomes obsolete in the event of relegation. Yes, PCP still want to buy Newcastle, of that there is no doubt, but there would definitely be question marks about whether PIF would want in. A second division club is not the kind of sporting crown jewel to announce yourself on the world stage a Premier League one is. Remember the sportswashing arguments from last year? Yes, they still apply.”

Last year, the club’s takeover had failed as the Saudi-backed consortium had backed away from a deal. It was reported that they pulled out because fears of the fact that they would not be given the green light to complete the deal.

Relegation would be a huge blow

Steve Bruce’s men are currently 16th in the Premier League and only a single point ahead of Brighton and Fulham (BBC). The Magpies have won only twice in 2021 and a litany of poor results has seen them skirt dangerously close to the relegation zone.

Going down would lead to financial losses and, considering the fiscal impacts of the pandemic, that could be incredibly arduous for the club – a blow which would be compounded if the chances of the takeover fall away because of relegation.

In other news, find out why Newcastle were determined to keep one player at the club in January.

The transfer window may have only just slammed shut, but it seems as if Tottenham Hotspur are already planning ahead.

According to BILD, Spurs are in the race to sign Frankfurt sensation Evan N’Dicka this summer, though they are likely to face competition from arch-rivals Arsenal as well as Southampton.

It’s claimed that teams were pursuing his signature a year ago, but a serious injury curtailed his chances of making the switch to the Premier League, though he has since bounced back with impressive form.

The 21-year-old is a left-footed central defender, who can also play at left-back, very much in a similar vein to former Spurs star Jan Vertonghen, so perhaps it is no surprise to see the north Londoners mooted with interest.

Finding a new centre-back should be Daniel Levy, Steve Hitchen and Jose Mourinho’s top priority in the summer as we saw on Wednesday night, Spurs’ defensive frailties were laid bare as they leaked a whopping five goals to Everton.

“Don’t make me speak too much please about the defensive mistakes we made. I think that’s obvious. I don’t feel comfortable speaking about that,” said the Special One post-game, via football.london’s Alasdair Gold.

Mourinho has frequently rotated between Eric Dier, Davinson Sanchez, Joe Rodon and Toby Alderweireld, and is yet to settle on a proper partnership, only adding to the need for a new addition.

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It’s also no surprise to learn that the Spurs boss is chasing a major coup in the role, similar to that of Virgil van Dijk at Liverpool and more recently, ex-target Ruben Dias at Man City.

That’s according to the Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick, who wrote: ‘Mourinho wants his own transformative signing, a defender who could have the same impact on Spurs as Van Dijk at Liverpool or Ruben Dias at Man City.’

This is where N’Dicka certainly fits the bill, he could be perfect for Mourinho.

In bouncing back from his injury, the young French colossus has found himself amongst Frankfurt’s best performers, ranking fourth for average rating (6.89) as per WhoScored figures.

His versatility is one massive bonus, but it is his reliability at the back that makes him seem well suited to the English top-flight – Die Adler’s ‘Mr Reliable’ has a knack of being able to bring the ball out from defence, managing a 71.5% completion rate with 0.5 dribbles per 90, which is a benefit in trying to get on the front foot in any game.

The 6 foot 4 titan, who is valued at £20.25m by Transfermarkt, is also prepared to put in the graft off the ball, attempting 2.3 tackles per 90 at a success rate of 65%, which shows he’s a hard man to bypass, more often than not.

He also averages 2.9 clearances, 2.1 interceptions and 1.7 aerial duels won per 90, via WhoScored, thus proving to be quite the all-round monster defensively. He’s often in the right position or area to help out his side – whether that be in the air or on the ground.

And N’Dicka has drawn glowing praise in Germany over the years, Frankfurt legend Alexander Schur claimed: “He shows no nerves and plays with great authority,”  while his boss, Adi Hutter, added: “Evan has developed phenomenally. He’s very attentive in the analysis of his own game. He’s very modest and always takes a lot on board.”

The France U21 international is understandably still very raw at 21 although under the tactical nous of Mourinho, he could well transform into the sort of beast Spurs need at the back.

After all, Dias is only 23 and has arguably been the signing of the season so far, helping City to 15 straight victories atop the Premier League table.

It remains to be seen what sort of fee the Bundesliga outfit would command, but on the evidence above, Mourinho would surely love Levy to strike on N’Dicka this summer.

AND in other news, Forget Parrott: Spurs could unearth their next Kane in prodigy who has “a big future”…

February may be the shortest month of the calendar year but it was absolutely brimming with Premier League encounters. Including Everton’s clash with Southampton on Monday night to round off last month’s final gameweek, a staggering 53 fixtures were played out in February – an average of nearly two per day.

Accordingly, there were some pretty interesting fluctuations as Chelsea and Wolves restored their more traditional form and Fuham conceded just three goals, while Southampton picked up just a single point and Liverpool managed to lose four out of five games.

But away from clubs and onto the individuals. Here’s a look at the six players who impressed us so much last month that they’ve earned nominations for February’s GIVEMESPORT Fans’ Player of the Month award, with all statistics courtesy of Whoscored…

The Goalkeepers

An interesting month for goalkeepers with not a great deal splitting the five who kept at least one clean sheet and made at least 18 saves. Technically, Aston Villa’s Emiliano Martinez came top of the class with three clean sheets and 26 saves, however his otherwise impressive February was disrupted by costly mistakes against West Ham and Leicester.

Fulham loanee Alphonso Areola registered the most clean sheets overall – four – but having averaged less than two saves per game, ultimately the Frenchman didn’t have a great deal of work to do in comparison to some of his Premier League counterparts.

Accordingly, we’ve settled on West Brom’s Sam Johnstone. He made at least four saves in four different February outings – including five in a 1-1 draw against Manchester United – while keeping back-to-back clean sheets versus Burnley and Brighton, all of which has helped the Baggies give themselves half a chance of staying up this season.

The Defenders

Perhaps Fulham deserve some representation in this category too considering they recorded four shutouts in February, with centre-back Joachim Andersen probably being the pick of the bunch. Chelsea’s Cesar Azpilicueta was another worthy candidate – having been pushed down the pecking order under Frank Lampard, the appointment of Thomas Tuchel has quickly reinstated him as probably the best wide centre-back in the Premier League.

Nonetheless, even defenders these days are very much judged on their attacking output and with that in mind, we simply couldn’t look past Manchester United’s Luke Shaw. Four assists in February speaks for itself, even more so for the fact they came across three different games, and the England international’s blossoming partnership with Marcus Rashford down the Red Devils’ left flank has certainly given Gareth Southgate something to think about.

Not that Shaw hasn’t been helping out at the back. United recorded two clean sheets in February and not conceding away at Stamford Bridge certainly isn’t to be sniffed at.

The Midfielders

It was another high-octane month for midfielders in the Premier League and in truth, a few were very unlucky to miss out on a place on our shortlist. Wolves star Ruben Neves, for example, found the net three times and topped the midfielder charts for interceptions. Likewise, Manchester City midfielder Ilkay Gundogan once again just couldn’t stop scoring after earning a nomination for January’s award, finishing the month with four strikes to his name.

Nonetheless, the numbers speak for themselves and not for the first time this season, one midfielder’s return stands a clear distance above the rest. Manchester United maestro Bruno Fernandes may have got some stick for a quiet game against Chelsea, but his other four February outings produced a stunning return of seven goal involvements – in fact, the Stamford Bridge clash was the only game last month where he didn’t score or assist.

Meanwhile, our final midfield candidates have simply been a joy to watch. The first is West Ham’s January signing Jesse Lingard, who shook off the cobwebs of not even making a Premier League appearance for Manchester United in the first half of the season to grab three goals and one assist in his first five top-flight outings for the Irons.

And then there’s Leeds winger Raphinha. He grabbed two goals and one assist in February while producing the most key passes of any Premier League player, and that return is symptomatic of how the summer signing has steadily got better and better throughout his debut term at Elland Road.

The Strikers

For the second month in a row, the Premier League’s striker clan haven’t given us too much to write home about with the division’s top scoring players in February both being midfielders – Fernandes and Gundogan.

Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang finished the month with three strikes but all of those came in a single game against Leeds, while Richarlison netted in three consecutive games to finish off February but had started the month pretty anonymously.

Therefore, we’re giving Raheem Sterling our seal of approval. He provided one goal involvement in four different games, including a goal in the 4-1 demolition of Liverpool and the winner against Arsenal.

But more than his own input, this nomination is very much a nod to how imperious Manchester City were in February, winning all of their games by an aggregate scoreline of 15-2. Now that’s domination.

Cast your vote for February’s Player of the Month now by visiting: https://fan-awards.com/

Tottenham Hotspur return to FA Cup action this evening with a trip to Wycombe Wanderers in the fourth round.

Jose Mourinho’s side head into the encounter on the back of a seven-game unbeaten run which also saw them thrash non-league Marine 5-0 in the last round of this very competition.

The Chairboys, however, have endured a tough season at the foot of the Championship table, though they can take solace from the fact that they ran Spurs close in the previous meeting between the two sides.

Late goals from Dele Alli and Heung-min Son pulled the north London giants over the line in a 4-3 victory back in 2017.

Spurs have a massive clash against defending champions Liverpool on Thursday night, so Mourinho is left with an interesting dilemma over who to start here at Adams Park tonight.

With that in mind, here’s the XI we’re predicting as well as the latest team and injury news…

Spurs could be without a quartet of key players, though it is only Giovani Lo Celso is definitely going to be absent.

There are doubts over Alli, who hasn’t trained all week as well as right-back duo Serge Aurier and Matt Doherty after Mourinho revealed a fresh update in his pre-game press conference, as per the official website.

Therefore, we could see an interesting back four in front of back-up goalkeeper Joe Hart.

Joe Rodon may partner £26m-rated beast Toby Alderweireld in the middle as the latter didn’t feature against Fulham or Sheffield United, meaning Eric Dier gets a rest and Davinson Sanchez is snubbed once again.

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With Aurier and Doherty potentially out, we’re expecting Japhet Tanganga to be handed an opportunity at right-back, whilst Sergio Reguilon is preferred to Ben Davies on the other flank.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg will likely be rested with the Reds in mind in midweek, so Mourinho could partner Moussa Sissoko with Harry Winks. Similarly, there may be no start for Tanguy Ndombele, who scored a sublime goal against the Blades.

Instead, Erik Lamela may be deployed in the no.10 role, a position he featured in during the Europa League group stages when fit with Gareth Bale and Lucas Moura taking up spots on either flank.

Whilst through the middle, we will surely see Carlos Vinicius be given another run out after a 13-minute hat-trick in the last round.

It means both Son and Harry Kane are rested along with Steven Bergwijn in a total of nine changes.

There’s no place for Gedson Fernandes, who appears to be edging closer towards an exit, though the likes of Dennis Cirkin, Alfie Devine and Dane Scarlett could be involved in some form.

AND in other news, How Levy struck gold with dream Spurs deal for £45m-rated “steal”…

Steve Bruce may rue Newcastle United’s failed January transfer swoop for Sporting CP midfielder Matheus Nunes.

What’s the word?

According to Record, the Magpies lodged a €13m (£11.5m) bid for Nunes in the winter market but they saw the approach immediately turned down.

The Leoes were reluctant to weaken head coach Ruben Amorim’s squad during a Liga NOS title challenge, with the Jose Alvalade Stadium natives presently top of the table and four points clear of rivals FC Porto and a further five clear of SC Braga.

Sporting also believe Nunes, who they signed from Portuguese second-tier outfit GD Estoril Praia in January 2019, will only continue to increase his market value and edge closer to the €60m (£53m) release clause inserted in his new contract penned in October.

Sporting President, Frederico Varandas, additionally believes Nunes’ performances will soon justify the Lisbon outfit’s €10m (£9m) investment in Amorim, after the Leoes head coach successfully promoted the 22-year-old into the first-team fold during the second half of last season.

Nunes has now made 33 senior outings for the Leoes across all competitions, and scored his second goal for the club by heading home a stoppage-time winner over rivals Benfica on Monday night.

Record’s report is the latest to emerge from Portugal citing Newcastle’s interest in the 6ft Brazilian, after claims emerged in the January transfer window of a loan approach that carried a £10m obligation to turn the deal permanent at the end of the season.

Will Newcastle rue missing out on Nunes?

Reports of an improved bid from Newcastle would suggest United carry significant interest in Nunes’ potential, but failing to submit a tempting enough offer to Sporting in the mid-season market may leave Bruce ruing the Toon’s inability to get a deal done.

Sporting appear to have a lot of confidence in the midfielders’ talents and seemingly firmly believe he is worth more than close to a sixth of his release clause, so will be expected to demand even more in the summer should the Magpies revive their pursuit.

Nunes is consistently improving the more he features under Amorim, having gone from a player drifting between being one of the first names on a teamsheet and a substitute for much of the campaign, to scoring his first goal in senior football against Braga last month and regaining a starting role.

He is also recording a higher volume of total passes per 90 (37.2) in the Liga NOS this term than Bruce is seeing from Almiron (36.5) in the Premier League, along with more key passes (0.7) than Sean Longstaff (0.6), Matty Longstaff (0.5) and Jeff Hendrick (0.4), per WhoScored.

Nunes further matches his creative eye with an energetic presence to dart from box-to-box with three successful dribbles per 90, more than any central midfielder to have featured for the Toon in the top-flight this term. But also with close to as many successful tackles (1.2) as Jonjo Shelvey (1.3).

Newcastle returning in the summer with an even bigger offer for Nunes will be a clear admission that the club made a blunder in January by not pursuing a deal any further, and their inactivity could likely lead to a heavy hit to the pocket as well.

AND in other news, Newcastle United faced late enquiries over a £15m deal to sell a Steve Bruce outcast…

Manchester United suffered a humiliating defeat at RB Leipzig as the Red Devils were dumped out of the Champions League and will want to make amends when they take on Manchester City at Old Trafford.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side will be looking to get their campaign back on track, as they have failed to keep a clean sheet since the 1-0 win over Premier League strugglers West Bromwich Albion, having lost two out of their past three games in all competitions.

Speaking in the pre-match press conference, Solskjaer confirmed Anthony Martial is set for a return to action after recovering from injury, with Edinson Cavani facing a race against time to prove his match fitness.

He said: “Anthony will definitely be involved. Edinson has been on the grass but I’ll make a decision later.”

Here’s our starting line-up for this afternoon, which sees the club legend make three changes from the defeat to RB Leipzig.

Despite being criticised for his performance against RB Leipzig, David de Gea will most likely be given the gloves to face Pep Guardiola’s side, which means Dean Henderson will have to settle for a place on the bench.

Maybe Luke Shaw could keep his place, but it’s hard to imagine any changes to the back four that have served Solskjaer so well in the league, with Harry Maguire, Victor Lindelof, Alex Telles and Aaron Wan-Bissaka likely to start.

In midfield, Solskjaer has an abundance of options at his disposal, with Donny van de Beek, Fred, Nemanja Matic, Scott McTominay and Paul Pogba all vying for a place in the starting line-up.

Asking Matic to play again may be a step too far, so recalling Fred and bringing Pogba back into the midfield is surely a no-brainer at this stage, whilst Bruno Fernandes will be deployed in the advanced playmaker position.

We said earlier this week that Pogba has to be given the time to shine and the stage is set for the Frenchman to prove his worth at Old Trafford.

Saturday’s game may come too soon for Cavani, so Martial will likely lead the line, with Marcus Rashford and Mason Greenwood forming the rest of the front three.

AND in other news, Man Utd manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer must unleash this under-fire star vs City…

With the January transfer window just around the corner, it’ll be interesting to see if Glasgow Rangers dip a toe in the water.

Steven Gerrard has previously said it will be a quiet period for the club, given the economic uncertainty caused by the coronavirus pandemic.

But that stance could be about to change should the right player become available and the Ibrox boss could be forced to dip into the market to strengthen his squad in the wake of their latest injury setbacks.

Despite Ross Wilson embarking on a spending spree in the summer, Gerrard find himself short of options at the back with just three options for two positions in the heart of the defence. There’s no doubt he needs to find a centre-back who can provide injury cover for Leon Balogun, Connor Goldson and Filip Helander, but perhaps he needs to pay attention to his midfield, too.

As it stands, Steven Davis is his preferred option at the base of the midfield in light of Bongani Zungu’s struggles since he first arrived at Ibrox on an initial loan deal from French Ligue 2 side Amiens in the summer.

In six appearances in the Premiership, the 28-year-old defensive-minded midfielder is averaging just 0.2 tackles, 0.7 interceptions and 0.2 clearances per game, via WhoScored. This just simply isn’t good enough for a side who are desperate to stop Celtic from winning ten in a row.

However, Ross Wilson must prioritise a move for one player in particular who could be the solution to Rangers’ midfield problems this season.

Former England and Sunderland striker Kevin Phillips has told Football Insider that Rangers long-term target John Lundstram may have played his final game for Sheffield United.

It’s claimed that Lundstram is still of interest to Rangers with his contract set to run out at the end of the season.

Premier League clubs Burnley and Crystal Palace are also keen on landing the 5 ft 9 colossus.

Lundstram has been one of the Blades’ best players over the past couple of years, providing five goals and four assists in the Premier League, via Transfermarkt. Billy Sharp recently heaped praise on his teammate, hailing the £7m-rated midfield dynamo as a “real menace.”

If Chris Wilder intends to cut his losses once and for all, he would be most welcome at the Govan-based Glaswegian giants and Wilson simply must make him a top priority in the transfer window. His strong levels of concentration and ability to split defences with through balls would make him a great addition to the Gers’ engine room.

AND in other news, Rangers winger Ianis Hagi gives Steven Gerrard a huge headache with dominant display in Hibernian win…

Ferran Torres may have stolen the show with his hat-trick during Spain’s 6-0 win against Germany on Tuesday night but the performance of Rodri should not go unnoticed.

The Manchester City man will surely have delighted Pep Guardiola with his superb performance in the thrashing of Joachim Low’s side, as SofaScore awarded him with an excellent 8.3 rating, with just Torres rated higher than the defensive midfielder.

During the game, the former Atletico Madrid man showcased his superb ability on the ball, as he completed 103/107 of his passes, resulting in a superb 96% pass accuracy.

The Spaniard was able to keep the ball superbly, losing possession on just five occasions during the game, whilst seven of his eight long balls found their mark.

He showed his defensive capability as well, making three interceptions, whilst no German player was able to dribble past him in 90 minutes, although considering Spain’s dominance, this is not all that surprising.

Despite being a defensive-minded midfielder, the 24-year-old chipped in with two key passes and was also able to cap his display with a goal, as Spain well and truly routed Die Mannschaft.

The £57.6m-rated midfielder has gone on to make 64 appearances for the Citizens, contributing four goals and two assists during that time (per Transfermarkt).

After he produced something of a creative masterclass against Germany on Tuesday night, however, you wonder whether those attacking returns would be higher if he played further forward in this Manchester City side?

Guardiola was full of praise for the Spaniard last season after a 4-0 at Watford, saying:

“Rodri came from an important club in Spain in Atletico Madrid and it is not easy to be involved so quickly like he has done in the Premier League.”

“He is a guy that is going to help us a lot, especially his mentality. He is open-minded to learn and I’m happy for him.” (per Manchester Evening News).

Rodri has a lot of expectation on his shoulders at City, as he is arguably the man expected to be the long-term replacement for Fernandinho, but if he can produce displays similar to the one on Tuesday night regularly in the Premier League, then he will surely prove to have been a brilliant buy from the Citizens.

The defensive midfielder may perhaps have to produce a similarly effective display if City are to come away with a victory in their next game, where they face Tottenham Hotspur away from home in the Premier League.