Louis van Gaal has been at Manchester United long enough for us to judge his progress so far and compare his qualities against the man he replaced.

After seven games last season, the Scotsman had the Red Devils sitting in 9th place in the league with 10 points, scoring 10 goals and conceding nine. The Dutchman on the other hand has achieved fourth place in the league with 11 points, scoring 13 goals and conceding 10. Fourteen points was the benchmark at this point last season. What this shows is the league isn’t as competitive this season as it was at this stage last season, meaning van Gaal is having a slightly easier time. But this is the Premier League, one of the toughest leagues in the world, and every point has to be earned so this still puts van Gaal ahead, 1-0.

Before the signing of Spaniard Juan Mata from Chelsea for £39m in January 2014, Moyes had only had one recognisable signing in Belgian Marouane Fellaini from Everton for £27.5m. Mata did make an impact when he arrived but Fellaini did not, and was told by van Gaal in the summer that he was no longer needed.

Van Gaal on the other hand has notably signed Argentine duo Angel Di Maria and Marcos Rojo, Englishman Luke Shaw, Dutchman Daley Blind, Spaniard Ander Herrera, and Colombian Radamel Falcao on loan. All of them except Shaw have already had some sort of impact on the squad and results. Bringing these players to United cost van Gaal over £150m, and if you want to include the inevitable permanent deal of Falcao, even more than that. The squad van Gaal is trying to create is guaranteed to improve upon last season’s finish.

A huge advantage you could have going into a job like managing United is experience. Moyes was hand-picked by United’s greatest ever manager Sir Alex Ferguson. Just one Champions League play-off and one fourth-placed finish was the highlight of his C.V. Van Gaal, though, is a completely different story, filled with many impressive achievements. He has won eight league titles in four different countries and a Champions League with Ajax back in 1995. The Dutchman knows what it takes to finish on the top of the pile and how to motivate a side.

A stat that Moyes does succeed in compared to van Gaal at this point of the season is defence. So far during his time at United, van Gaal’s side has been switching between three at the back and four at the back for different games. They have conceded 14 goals across all competitions, including an embarrassing 4-0 loss to League One side MK Dons. His side takes on Chelsea and Manchester City during their next three games, so his defence definitely needs to improve. Moyes however, his United side had only conceded 12 goals at this point of the season in all competitions including the Champions League. His side was also still in all competitions at this point as well, but we all know how that turned out.

It therefore seems van Gaal clearly has had the better start and is the better manager thanks to his past experience and the players which he has brought to United. He just needs time for his ideology to set into the team as he clearly has a proven track record which is better than what Moyes has.

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The hope would be that it has set in enough already, especially the defence part, so that his side can limit the damage they take from Chelsea and Manchester City during their next three games.

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England U-21 manager Gareth Southgate has revealed that plans are in place to persuade Aston Villa youngster Jack Grealish to commit his senior international career to England.

The 19-year-old has been earning rave reviews for his performances in the Villains’ first-team over the course of the past few months, with his displays having pushed speculation forward surrounding his playing future away from domestic football.

Grealish was born in Birmingham, but has represented the Republic or Ireland at U-17, U-18 and U-21 level, which has led to calls for him to be fast-tracked into The Green Army set-up, despite his young age.

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The winger is set to represent Ireland at his current level again later this week against Norway, but Southgate says that hopes of making him a Three Lions player remain strong:

“Jack is somebody we have spoken to over the years, him and his family,” he is quoted by the Daily Mail.

“He has been in our younger development teams. The family and Jack are aware of our interest. Up to this point they have preferred to remain with Ireland.

“I haven’t spoken to him personally but certainly people from our organisation have kept in contract. We have been monitoring him but in the end it’s up to the player.

“He’s going to make his decision on where he wants to go. These things are quite fluid at younger ages, it happened with Michael Keane and his brother Will, and Jonathan Bond came from Wales.

“More and more, because of the nature of society, there are players in our system who are duel nationality and have that choice to make.

“Lots of other home nations are running development camps at a young age so players develop an allegiance quite young.

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“You are allowed to switch once when you are a young player and Jack is someone we are monitoring and we’ll keep our eye on that situation.”

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Every Premier League season there always seems to be one side that initially takes everyone by surprise with a series of impressive performances to lift them to unprecedented heights in the league, before inevitably fading into mid-table mediocrity – or worse – once the top flight settles into its regular rhythm.

In the 2011/12 campaign Wolverhampton Wanderers were third and unbeaten at the start of September, but were bottom and relegated by the time the last whistle was blown in May, while three seasons previously Hull City managed to survive by the skin of their teeth in 17th place on the final day despite being joint-top of the league as late as October.

Before last weekend’s fixtures, West Ham United were considered to be prime candidates for the role of ‘early-season surprise package who eventually hit a terrible run of form and end up forgotten in mid-table’. After their victory against Manchester City at Upton Park took them to fourth place at the end of October – just one point off the league champions in third – the Hammers went on a three-match winless run. Their defeat to Everton on November 22nd saw them slip to sixth place, and many observers could have been forgiven for thinking that the London side’s heady days were over, with a gradual slide further down the table to be expected.

With this in mind, Sam Allardyce’s side’s 1-0 triumph over Newcastle United on Saturday could be the most important win of their season. Not only was it a hard-fought victory over a side who had themselves been enjoying something of a resurgence of late, it also crucially ensured that their winless streak was nothing but a mini-slump. A defeat would have seen the Hammers drop to ninth; by securing a deserved three points instead, they remain in fifth – above Arsenal, Tottenham, Everton and Liverpool – and just one point behind Manchester United in the final Champions League spot.

A boost to the team’s morale is exactly what was needed before what on paper looks like a kind run of fixtures before the Boxing Day visit to Chelsea. More than a third of the season has now gone, and it is perhaps time for West Ham to be considered as a genuine threat who have what it takes to last the distance. Deeply unpopular and perilously close to the sack last season, Sam Allardyce’s transformation into the hero of Upton Park this campaign has been remarkable, and has largely been attributed to a subtle yet significant tweak in his tactical approach to the game and a number of astute signings.

While the conventional narrative regarding over-achieving underdogs in the Premier League is that their seasons are bound to fall apart at some point, West Ham’s resilience to grind out a crucial victory against Newcastle at a point when things were looking like they were about to turn sour suggests that they might be the team to tear up the script.

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What do you think? Follow me on Twitter @GruffuddOwen

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David de Gea has been the only mainstay in Louis van Gaal’s Manchester United side so far this season, with the Dutchman tinkering with various personnel and formations due to the Red Devils’ ridiculous amount of injuries and attacking options.

The Spaniard, who is reportedly a target for La Liga giants Real Madrid, was up to his usual tricks and showing exactly why Carlo Ancelotti views him as the heir to Iker Casillas’ throne during the first-half of the Red Devils clash with the Hammers.

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At the break, the Hammers were unlucky not to be leading and they knew exactly who to blame, with de Gea thwarting the likes of Enner Valencia and Diafra Sakho time and time again.

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Big Sam’s side did find a way past the former Atletico Madrid man not long after half-time with some fine feet from Cheikhou Kouyate, however, it wasn’t through any fault of United’s man between the sticks. And, after all, there is only so much you can do on your own…

Roberto Soldado should never have been made a Tottenham player.

Hindsight is a wonderful thing, but from the moment of his official £27million signing for the north Londoners in summer 2013, he immediately struck as a striker who would struggle with the pace, power and intensity of the Premier League, and resultantly require some sensational talent to overcome it.

Although few doubt the pedigree of a Spain international with seven goals in just twelve appearances for his country and 100 La Liga strikes under his belt, throughout spells with Real Madrid, Osasuna, Getafe and Valencia, it’s continually proved insufficient to conquer those barriers of physicality. And for Tottenham particularly, the 29 year-old always felt like a poor fit; after all, this is a striker who could count all of his goals from outside the box for Valencia on just a single hand from a total of 81, joining a club that averaged the second-most long-shots per match in the Premier League throughout the two campaigns prior to his arrival.

Tottenham are now left with their very own version of Fernando Torres; a centre-forward once on the cusp of greatness, reduced to attempting square passes around goalkeepers instead of blasting the ball into the back of the net, as his confidence reaches a lower low than his meager Premier League tally of just seven in 45 appearances. Soldado’s strike-rate for Spurs, one per 4.6-games, and Torres’ for Chelsea, one per 3.9 games, are frighteningly similar, whilst their nationality and slight uplift of form in European competitions provide further similarities.

Now just three months away from the summer transfer window, Soldado’s howler against Fiorentina yesterday evening was probably the final nail in the coffin of his Tottenham career. Spurs visited Stadio Artemio Franchi in need of an away goal after a 1-1 draw at White Hart Lane, and when the opportunity to open the scoring fell to the Spaniard, he choked in quite spectacular fashion, passing the ball to Nacer Chadli across the Fiorentina box rather than taking a dig, only for it to be swept up rather comfortably by the Italian side’s No.1, Neto. The Lilywhites went on to lose the Europa League tie 2-0.

But what becomes of Soldado between now and then? How should Mauricio Pochettino respond to the striker’s latest act of ill-confidence? Is he now doomed to the reserves until the summer, or does the Spaniard deserve yet another chance to silence his critics?

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Well, Soldado’s surprise start on Thursday was undoubtedly interlinked with the recent heroics of Harry Kane, a 21-year-old with 24 goals this season, including seven in the Europa League, that’s made a potentially dangerous amount of consecutive Premier League starts in recent months for a player so young. With the Capital One Cup final on Sunday, sparing the England U21 was a smart strategy, and there will likely be further occasions this season when the sheer intensity of Tottenham’s campaign catches up with him again, resulting in a well-deserved, much-needed rest.

A few weeks ago, the vast majority of fans would have selected Soldado over Emmanuel Adebayor – who was booed off by the White Hart Lane faithful against Sheffield United in January – as Kane’s stand-in, but the former Valencia star’s clanger against Fiorentina might just have convinced them and Pochettino otherwise.

Although the Togo international is a notoriously mercurial figure, a return of 96 goals throughout his English top flight career, including eleven league goals last season, speaks for itself in regards to Adebayor’s compatibility with the Premier League. Likewise, in comparison to Soldado, bouts of low confidence have never been Adebayor’s problem; rather, his temperamental arrogance and subsequent work-shy attitude. The 31-year-old can be monumentally frustrating when refusing to apply himself fully, but he’s got Tottenham out of some tight spots before and has more than enough quality to do so again.

Meanwhile, even if Soldado is to return at some point this season, he needs time away from the limelight, to distance himself from the Fiorentina affair and regain some much-needed confidence. Thursday night felt like rock-bottom for the striker, so in theory, and with the Capital One Cup final representing Spurs’ last pressurised knock-out fixture of the season, it can only go upwards from here.

But it’s certainly a case of the lesser of two evils; one striker clearly with his heart in the right place but devoid of all self belief, and another supremely talented but lacking the attitude to match. What’s imperative for Tottenham however, and specifically their Pochettino-inspired style of play, is a forward willing to press from the front. Otherwise, Spurs’ high defensive line becomes quickly exposed.

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Purely for his appetite and desire, despite the woes of yesterday evening, Soldado edges just in front of Adebayor for me. But a few weeks away from the first team certainly wouldn’t be a bad thing.

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The Premier League’s bank holiday Monday action sees Crystal Palace take on reigning champions Manchester City in what’s expected to be a feisty clash at Selhurst Park.The 8pm kick-off will be an important occasion for the Citizens; not only are they now in fourth place, nine points behind table-toppers Chelsea, but this evening’s opponents bear many similarities with the hardworking, well-organised Burnley outfit that recorded a shock 1-0 scalp against them last month.Now ten points above the relegation zone and only four from that all-important 40-point theoretical barometer of safety, the Eagles find themselves with little to play for this evening – but that’s never stopped them rising to a giant-killing challenge before, especially in front of a presumably packed Selhurst Park.That being said, City have won six in their last six Premier League outings against the South London outfit, during which they’ve conceded only twice. The result of the reverse fixture at the Etihad in December was a rather comfortable 3-0.So do the visitors enter the match as the undoubted favourites? Perhaps the starting Xis, just officially confirmed on Twitter, can shed some light on the issue:

There aren’t too many Premier League sides who can match Arsenal’s technically-demanding tiki-taka-inspired style, but Swansea City are definitely one of them.

That set up tonight’s clash at The Emirates as a potential classic in the making; one side doing a pretty decent Barcelona impression, the other doing a slightly less decent Barcelona impression. But hey, we all like Lionel Messi right?

Unfortunately, however, Swansea’s visit to Arsenal hasn’t exactly panned out like that – in fact, quite the opposite. Swansea City have been more like Stoke City in the first half, and the Gunners are yet to find a way through, managing just five attempts at goal and none on target despite claiming 70% possession.

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To call it one for the purists would be an overstatement. This is one for the insomniacs, trying to find a way to bore themselves to sleep. Needless to say, Arsenal and Swansea fans on Twitter aren’t too impressed. Here’s some of the best responses:

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Love or hate, possess and interest or cannot be bothered, politics is really on the agenda right now. The United Kingdom’s General Election is looming large, with the future of our nation set to be decided for the immediate future. Conservative ‘rule’ – albeit with a Lib Dem coalition – has been the way for some time now, but Labour are battling, while other parties such as UKIP and the SNP have emerged.

Football in itself bears many similarities with politics, so it comes as little surprise that many players, both past and present, have taken an interest in what’s going on in parliament… and here are SIX examples.

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[interaction ]

Paolo Di Canio

Where better – perhaps ‘better’ is the wrong word – to start than West Ham hero Di Canio. The Italian is known for his right wing views, and is a self-declared admirer of former dictator Benito Mussolini and landed himself in hot water with a fascist salute to Lazio fans.

“I am a fascist, not a racist. I made the Roman salute because it’s a salute from a comrade to his comrades and was meant for my people.”

Okay then, Paolo.

Karl Henry

QPR’s midfield… erm… just midfielder Henry barely made headlines or attracted attention at all. However, some recent frank views displayed on Twitter have revealed his Tory leanings on the political spectrum:

His views are strong, but are they perhaps born from a desire to keep his hard earned cash? Maybe, which certainly riled many fans on Twitter. Last week he also confirmed where the cross on his piece of paper will be going…

Sol Campbell

Controversial in his playing days, and even more so now he’s out of the game, Campbell is a staunch Conservative supporter. Politically active and forthright in his views, there is plenty to respect about the former England international’s eagerness to make a difference, and he has even hinted that he could run for the seat in Kensington.

Frank Lampard

“Frank has got some very strong opinions on the way the country should be run. People tend to think of footballers as being a bit one-dimensional but Frank takes pleasure in talking about big social issues when he has guests round to dinner. “

Well, these are the words of a friend of ‘Lamps’ who appears to be as blue as the famous shirt he once donned for Chelsea on a regular basis. He’s also met David Cameron and, whom he had a “good chat” with back in 2007.

Cristiano Lucarelli

While Paolo Di Canio may give the impression that Italian footballers are right leaning, Lucarelli couldn’t be much further left in terms of his views. The big forward once declared his team, at the time, Livorno to be “Communists”, while he spent a large chunk of a big signing on fee at Shakhtar Donetsk in 2007 on funding a left-wing newspaper and helping with causes back in his home nation.

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Roman Pavlyuchenko

From the bench at Spurs to the bench in Russia (of a different kind), ‘Pav’ won a seat on the Russian regional council in 2008, running as a part of Vladamir Putin’s United Russia party.

“Roman Pavlyuchenko is a source of pride to Stavropol [the region he represented],” said Dmitriy Edelev, Stavropol parliament’s United Russia leader. “He leads a specialist Olympic Reserve School project in the region which is headed up by Duma speaker Boris Gryzlov, so the party representatives in the city decided to include him on the candidate list.”

Sir Alex Ferguson

As red as his nose, ‘Fergie’ is a Labour enthusiast. Prior to his days of footballing fame, Sir Alex became a shop steward in the union when working in the shipyards of Clydeside and also led an unofficial walkout over pay.

With Petr Cech recently completing his much anticipated switch to the Emirates Stadium, Jose Mourinho and his formidable Chelsea outfit are currently in the market for a back-up goalkeeper for the upcoming season worthy of challenging Thibaut Courtois for the No.1 spot at Stamford Bridge throughout 2015/16.

In a subsequent turn of events for the Potters this summer, Stoke City’s reliable shot-stopper, Asmir Begovic, has seemingly become a strong candidate to replace the departed Cech at Chelsea, with Mourinho’s side reportedly willing to spend as much as £8 million on acquiring the 28-year-old’s services.

Victor Moses will supposedly be used to sweeten the deal for Stoke, yet for those among the Britannia Stadium faithful who still want Begovic to remain a Potters player ahead of the 2015/16 campaign, it seems the writing may already be on the wall for the Bosnia & Herzegovina international.

However, as Manchester United will also likely be in the hunt for a new ‘keeper with the ever coveted David de Gea expected to make his switch to Real Madrid this summer, should Asmir Begovic continue on his probable route to Stamford Bridge in the not too distant future, or would the Stoke City favourite be better served by waiting for Louis van Gaal to come a-callin’? After all, there are tentative links…

Well, if Chelsea were to land the highly respected ‘keeper in the run up to the new season, it would admittedly have to go down as a brilliant bit of business on the club’s part.

At 28-years-old, Begovic still has enough years in him to do the business at the highest level, his know-how of the Premier League remains a truly important asset and, with the former Portsmouth man having represented his nation at the 2014 World Cup last summer, experience and reliability are two traits that seemingly come naturally to the shot-stopper’s overall game.

Asmir Begovic would also represent a truly marvellous deal for the Blues from a financial perspective – £8 million seems like a good deal for a player clearly good enough to make it at Chelsea in the modern era.

The likes of Liverpool and Arsenal could have both really done with someone of Begovic’s standard operating at their respective goalmouths in the past few seasons. With all due respect to Stoke City and their loyal following, the Bosnian star certainly could have been playing for a club more prestigious and respected than the Potters if his current employers had decided to part ways with his services earlier on in his Premier League career.

With Jack Butland currently providing the Britannia Stadium faithful with a promising future in the goalkeeping department, now would seemingly be an opportune moment to sell the Chelsea target from Mark Hughes’ point of view.

Yet because the Blues can only realistically offer the 28-year-old a bit-part role on the bench throughout the next few seasons, Begovic himself would arguably find a better future at Old Trafford should Louis van Gaal genuinely be interested in landing the Bosnian this summer.

Manchester United have reportedly singled out Tottenham’s Hugo Lloris as a suitable candidate to replace the potentially outgoing David de Gea in the run up to the new season, but if Spurs manage to hold onto their highly coveted French shot-stopper, Begovic would represent the next best option for United with all things considered.

Operating on a stage as grand and significant as Old Trafford could certainly go down as a potentially defining chapter in the career of the current Stoke City ‘keeper, especially as Manchester United could offer Begovic a first-team role next season if all else fails.

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The World Cup star would most definitely be able to help fill the likely void left by David de Gea this summer – and although the Bosnian obviously doesn’t offer quite the same level of potential as his Spanish counter-part in the Old Trafford net, his overall prowess in the air, organisation of his back-line and ability to stop opponents in one-on-one situations could prove more than successful with the Red Devils should this particular transfer rumour really take off in the coming weeks.

Whilst a move to Chelsea would nevertheless represent a genuinely good opportunity for the Stoke shot-stopper ahead of the 2015/16 campaign, Manchester United would ultimately offer Asmir Begovic a much better chance to further develop his career in the Premier League, rather than just watch it fall by the wayside on the bench at Stamford Bridge.

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Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has ruled out making a move for Chelsea defender David Luiz, reports the London Evening Standard.

What’s the word?

Ever since the Brazilian dropped down the pecking order at Stamford Bridge, he has been linked with a move away from the Blues.

A recent report in The Express claimed that Arsenal are favourites to sign Luiz, but Wenger has quashed the speculation.

According to the London Evening Standard, the Frenchman told reporters:

“I do not want to speak about any special name but these reports are wrong. We are open in any position for the exceptional player who can give us a plus, therefore of course it depends a little bit on the injuries as well and on the other hand, I must say it depends on extending the contracts of the players who are at the end of their contracts in June. We will have to take the consequences of these decisions and respond to it.”

Luiz was a crucial member of Chelsea’s Premier League title-winning team last season as he formed a back three with Cesar Azpilicueta and Gary Cahill.

At the end of October in the current campaign, manager Antonio Conte dropped the defender, who later suffered a knee injury that he has since recovered from.

Do Arsenal need him?

The Gunners have experienced problems at the back, and at the moment, injuries have affected the defensive line.

Sead Kolasinac is expected to be on the sidelines for two weeks, while Laurent Koscielny is an injury doubt for Wednesday’s league match against Chelsea.

After returning to the Blues from Paris Saint-Germain in 2016, the defender seemed to have cut out the reckless decision-making from his game.

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However, Luiz can still be hit and miss, particularly given the fact that he has fallen out of Conte’s good books.

If Wenger wants to improve his defence, he needs a reliable character, and the Brazilian may be too much of a risk.