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Phil Parkinson will be expected to name a vastly different line-up to face Mansfield Town in Saturday’s FA Cup First Round tie, with Sunderland afforded the chance to rest several key first-team regulars for their League One promotion push.

Goalkeeper Lee Burge and defender Bailey Wright have started each of the Black Cats’ 10 third-tier fixtures thus far, while Denver Hume and Luke O’Nien have opened nine matches and Lynden Gooch, Grant Leadbitter and Chris Maguire have fielded eight kick-offs each.

Burge is further the only first-team regular to have enjoyed all 900 minutes of available game time in League One this season, and is in line for a well-deserved rest when Sunderland host John Dempster’s Stags at the Stadium of Light.

Parkinson will favour drastic changes to the XI which beat Ipswich Town last time out, with the North East outfit likely to favour fielding young hopefuls and those frozen out that are eager to impress. So, with that in mind, here’s a line-up Sunderland could name at home to Mansfield…

Back-up shot-stopper Remi Matthews will be confident of earning his latest first-team appearance for Sunderland in their FA Cup clash with Mansfield, having previously featured in just two fixtures since joining from Bolton this summer – each coming in the EFL Trophy.

Matthews was unable to enjoy a clean sheet against either Aston Villa’s U23s or Carlisle United, though Parkinson will feel Mansfield present a great chance to see how the 26-year-old responds to watching each League One fixture from the bench this term.

Parkinson will also be keen to see how Dion Sanderson fares in defence following his debut against Rochdale last month, and could partner the Wolverhampton Wanderers loanee with Callum McFadzean and 20-year-old Ollie Younger to offer Hume and Bailey Wright a break.

McFadzean was brought to the Stadium of Light on a free transfer this summer following his release by Plymouth Argyle to offer competition for places, but is yet to make his first-team debut whilst building fitness in the U23s.

With Parkinson ringing the changes at home to Mansfield, midfielders George Dobson, Elliot Embleton and Daniel Neil may feel confident of featuring.

The Black Cats faced a fight to retain Neil’s services this summer with Premier League duo Newcastle United and Wolves both interested in the talented 18-year-old, per the Chronicle, but have only awarded the youngster minutes in the EFL Trophy having overlooked his services in each League One and EFL Cup tie this term.

Dobson, meanwhile, will be eager to utilise the FA Cup as his chance to regain a spot in the first-team having featured 24 times under Parkinson last season, only to lose his place following an opening-day red card and be left waiting for a second chance.

Parkinson has previously stated an intent to offer Sunderland’s young talents minutes in the cup competitions, much to Embleton’s glee after the rising star’s struggles with injuries, noting via the Chronicle: “They are going to be needed and they are going to get chances.

“The games come thick and fast with a lot of midweek matches, and I am confident that if they get their chance, they will take it.”

Parkinson’s rotation could come at the expense of forward Lynden Gooch, who the Black Cats boss has previously stated was left disappointed when omitted from the side after going four months without a League One start.

“Goochy has trained really well this week,” Parkinson said in September, via quotes by The Northern Echo. It was very hard for me not to put him in the team, but I just wanted to get the balance of the side right.

“He was disappointed, but he took it the right way. There’s going to be other players who will get left out in this long season, but you’ve got to accept the decision and you’ve got to come on the pitch and let your football do the talking.”

In place of Gooch, who has contributed five goals (two scored, three assisted) in League One this term, could enter a young up-and-comer who Parkinson has praised as a real “bonus” in 20-year-old Jack Diamond, who has offered one goal in his six senior outings to date.

“Another bonus for us as staff is that Jack Diamond has come back in this week and looked really good,” Parkinson told the official Sunderland website earlier this summer upon the winger’s return to Wearside after a successful loan spell with Harrogate Town.

Diamond’s first and only senior Sunderland goal to date came in October’s 5-3 EFL Trophy victory over Carlisle and is yet to taste defeat when fielded, and could be viewed by Parkinson as someone who can aid strikers Danny Graham and Will Grigg on Saturday.

Grigg is yet to find the back of the net in any of his four outings this term, with Sunderland’s £4million striker often left an unused substitute in League One under Parkinson.

The Black Cats would undoubtedly like to see more from the 29-year-old, while Graham’s search for further successful efforts likewise continues with blanks on the record in all bar one of the former U20 international’s nine appearances since re-joining as a free agent this summer.

Graham and Grigg must realise that Saturday’s FA Cup tie with Mansfield will be their best opportunity to impress Parkinson to warrant inclusion in the Sunderland manager’s league plans, or risk a continuing role on the bench.

AND in other news, Sunderland have the ideal chance to sign a modern-day gem for free.

West Ham United are on a mission to somehow offload the deadwood in the ongoing summer transfer window, raise the necessary funds and then re-invest that money back into the squad. David Moyes knows keeping the team competitive going into the next season won’t be an easy task, not least because of the lack of resources.

And not to mention that the transfer market is a tough place and the Hammers may struggle to find bidders for players they want to get rid of. But, someone just might throw them a lifeline after all.

According to the latest update from the Daily Star, Lazio are interested in re-signing Felipe Anderson, a man Moyes is desperate to offload in the ongoing window. The really interesting part is that Anderson is a former Lazio player, having signed from the Italians and joining the Premier League outfit for £36m back in 2018.

Needless to say, his stay in London hasn’t exactly gone as planned and West Ham’s record arrival has more or less flopped in the English top-flight.

The same source claims there is, however, another problem. Yes, Lazio seem interested and may return for their man but as of right now, they have received no official bids. Not to mention that Anderson still has two years left on his current contract and is presumably on more than £80,000 a week.

This could indeed make him quite an expensive target for most clubs from abroad. But West Ham are desperate and they just might sell him for cheap in the end.

Verdict

At this point, it does feel like Moyes would accept almost any kind of deal just to ensure some of the players do indeed leave the club. Anderson is one of those players and Lazio are the Hammers’ best chance of recouping at least a bit of that initial sum they had to pay a couple of years ago.

According to Talking Football host Bill Young, Glasgow Rangers will target Lawrence Shankland if Alfredo Morelos leaves the club.

Morelos has been continually linked with a move away from Ibrox, with Lille said to be leading the race – the Colombia international has agreed personal terms with Les Dogues, whilst the Ligue 1 side have already had a bid turned down for the striker.

Should he depart, the Gers will target Shankland, who currently plays for Dundee United.

For all of his disciplinary problems – he has picked up seven red cards during his time north of the border – Morelos is prolific in front of goal. He has managed 79 goals in 142 matches for the 54-time Scottish champions, whilst he managed 29 last year alone.

Shankland, though, may just be able to replace that huge number of goals. In each of the last three league campaigns, albeit in Scotland’s lower divisions, he has scored at least 24 goals – combined, he has managed 74 strikes in 87 games, and 89 in his last 107 in all competitions. It doesn’t come much better than that.

Currently valued at £585,000 by Transfermarkt, he is also a Scotland international, having scored once in two caps – his current employers would likely do all they can to keep him. If the Gers were to be successful in their pursuit, though, Shankland could easily soften the blow of Morelos’ departure.

Let us know what you think below!

Hatice Cengiz, the fiancee of the murdered journalist Jamal Khashoggi, has claimed that the Kingdom of Saudi Arabian (KSA) crown prince Mohammed bin Salman (MbS) is ‘worse’ than Mike Ashley as she spoke to Piers Morgan and Susanna Reid on Good Morning Britain (via The Chronicle) about the proposed takeover of Newcastle United.

As per the outlet, Cengiz appeared on the ITV show as a guest to speak about the new UK government sanctions on those accused of abusing human rights, which includes the case of Khashoggi’s murder.

“To Newcastle fans, if you are unhappy with the current owner, the Crown Prince will be much worse,” said Cengiz. “For fans, I want to say, if Mike Ashley’s tenure has been like a bad dream, for them the Crown Prince will be like a nightmare.”

She has previously accused MbS of being involved in the killing, writing several letters to the Premier League and members of the Toon faithful urging the blocking of the prospective £300 million deal, and took to the British outlet to stress her point again.

MbS or the Saudi Arabian government have not been found to have been tied down to the murder, but if this was found to be true, then it would arguably raise serious questions as to whether the top flight should actually approve of the bid.

Cengiz has argued that the Saudi crown prince should not be deemed a fit and proper person because of what he has been accused of, as per the Owners’ and Directors’ Test (ODT) set out by England’s highest division.

Whether this will alter the thinking of the league with regards to approving of the takeover or not is another question, but it may well put some doubt into their mind, which may be a worry for NUFC fans.

Geordies, should the Prem consider the accusations against MbS? Comment below!

Loads of Everton fans have hailed the latest transfer link to Wilfried Zaha as the Daily Mirror have reported that Crystal Palace are willing to listen to offers for him in the summer transfer window.

As per the outlet, the former Manchester United ace, who has three years left on his current deal, would be available at the right price, as Carlo Ancelotti is apparently an admirer of his.

However, the Merseyside club may have to rival a number of teams as Roy Hodgson seems resigned to losing him.

Zaha enjoyed a relatively impressive 2019/20 season in the Premier League, playing in every single game and managing to score four goals and make five assists, according to Transfermarkt.

One member of the Goodison Park faithful even urged the Toffees to ‘give them Iwobi’ to try and sweeten the deal, and based off of the stats of the two players, it may be a wise move if they can pull it off.

Zaha averaged more shots, dribbles and passes per match in the top flight last campaign (via Whoscored).

These EFC supporters also hailed the link, with one Blue even labelling the 27-year old as a ‘game changer’:

Evertonians, would Zaha be a good signing? Comment below!

Leeds won 2-0 against Hull City on Tuesday evening, but there was another incident during the game that slightly overshadowed proceedings.

Indeed, there has been plenty of publicity in the 24 hours after the match around one incident that saw Eric Lichaj accuse Patrick Bamford of intentionally kneeing Hull’s goalkeeper in the head just moments before Ezgjan Alioski netted the Whites’ second goal.

Now, that is a huge accusation in football, but a review of the footage from a different angle shows that Bamford isn’t guilty on this occasion.

The Yorkshire Evening Post’s chief football writer Graham Smyth shared an alternate angle of the incident, and it’s clear to see that Bamford wasn’t even looking at George Long at the time, and to be honest, the contact is incredibly minimal.

Understandably, the Elland Road faithful were left fuming with the American after he accused their striker of foul play.

While some were fuming with Lichaj, others were waiting on him to apologise to the striker for damaging his reputation.

It would seem as if Bamford is owed an apology from the full-back as he didn’t hold back in his comments as he placed the blame squarely on the Leeds man’s shoulders.

Rather than pointing the finger at the full-back, others blamed the goalkeeper for making a meal out of the situation.

To be fair, it looked as if Long was barely touched, and he went down as if Bamford had just taken him out intentionally, so you can understand why supporters were annoyed with the goalie’s reaction.

Meanwhile, some Leeds fans have remained nervous despite an 11 point gap opening up between them and third place.

Name: Ethan Laird

Club: Manchester United

Date of Birth: 5 August 2001

Position: Full-back (Right, left)

Ethan Laird – his career so far

Ethan Benjamin Laird has been a part of Manchester United’s family ever since a young age and has progressed through the academy ranks and into the development squads, impressing the right people and turning some heads along the way.

The academy graduate became a regular presence as he broke into the squad in the season 2017/18 as a first-year scholar. That marked the beginning of a great journey full of success and impressive feats in the process as well.

Interestingly enough, despite being the youngest player in Man United’s academy intake for the year 2017, he ended up with 19 appearances under his belt and also featured for their U23 squad and in the UEFA Youth League as well.

Still, he continued his stay with the U18s throughout 2018/19, which was unfortunately marked with an unlucky injury that prevented him from registering meaningful minutes across some parts of the campaign, and would then explode in the following season, staking his claim once again.

Apart from scoring his first EFL Cup goal in a win at Rotherham United, he would also bounce back from another injury setback to finally make his full senior debut in the Europa League match against Astana in Kazakhstan at the end of November. That one would be followed up by his second first-team appearance in a 4-0 victory over AZ Alkmaar not even a month later.

As a whole, Laird registered 28 appearances for the U18s, scoring three goals and assisting further seven as well. Across 14 games he played for the U23 squad, however, he mustered one goal and three assists.

Of course, he would also feature in the UEFA Youth Cup, tallying 11 appearances and three assists once again. Unfortunately, he is yet to register another senior team game after the initial two in November and December of 2019.

But given his talent and ceiling, that could still very well be on the agenda in the not so distant future for the youngster.

Transfer latest

Laird’s current contract is still viable until 2023 and the youngster seems to be in the Red Devils’ plans for the future at the very moment. At least that’s what some of the recent transfer rumours surrounding his teammate Diogo Dalot could suggest if we try to read between the lines.

Reportedly, Dalot is linked with a move to Paris Saint-Germain and just the fact that the transfer is a possibility could be a big sign for the young 19-year-old full-back. If Man United were to be deprived of another wide defender, that could possibly suggest they do have faith in their academy graduate as well, otherwise there’d be no chance of that going through.

Of course, no Manchester United news can actually confirm Laird is in Solskjaer’s plans for the future but there’s also nothing out there among the transfer news that would suggest otherwise.

One way or the other, the following season could be a huge one for the young full-back.

Player profile

Laird is a pacey full-back who has always excelled defensively but has managed to add more attacking flair to his profile over the years of his development at Man United’s academy. When he does enter the final third, either with or without the ball, he has the ability to link up with his teammates well and even threaten the goal himself.

But it’s his ability to keep the defence organised and ticking that makes him a huge asset in the backline. Apart from being quite solid in duels as well as a commanding presence on the pitch, his work rate and determination could be what makes the difference further down the line of his career.

And Laird can also boast with good technical abilities which make him cool in possession and secure on the ball. Overall, he has the makings of a great modern defender who can excel in both the attacking and the defensive phases of play.

So Unai Emery’s misery at Arsenal is finally over.

The Spaniard has overseen a hugely disappointing campaign at the Emirates this year, with the Gunners in eighth place in the Premier League and on a current win-less streak lasting seven games.

Reports in recent weeks had suggested Emery had just a month to save his job, but it appears their defeat to Eintracht Frankfurt in the Europa League on Thursday night was the final nail in the coffin.

In sacking the former PSG boss, Arsenal announced they had named Invincibles legend Freddie Ljungberg as the club’s interim head coach.

And after hearing the news, Arsenal fans flooded to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the Swede taking over the key role for the time being.

Many supporters of the north London side expressed their excitement at seeing the Gunners legend take the reins, and insisted his style of play would be a breath of fresh air.

Meanwhile, Arsenal fans have slammed Sokratis after his shocking display against Eintracht Frankfurt.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

According to The Daily Mail, Arsenal are being “hindered” in their chase to appoint a permanent successor to Unai Emery due to their financial constraints.

What’s the word?

The Gunners are on the lookout for a new manager after they sacked Emery following a run of no wins in seven games across all competitions. The north London side have placed Invincibles hero Freddie Ljungberg in charge on an interim basis, but reports have claimed they are keen to make a full-time appointment, with a shortlist of 12 candidates for the role.

But according to The Daily Mail, their limited budget is forcing them to look past leading contenders for the position like Mauricio Pochettino and Massimiliano Allegri. The report claims the Gunners would be unable to match the kind of salary on offer at some of their other top six rivals, and that whilst they are willing to make big offers, it is “nowhere near a figure demanded by Europe’s elite coaches”.

As a result, the north London side could be forced to much cheaper alternatives like Freddie Ljungberg or Mikel Arteta.

Criminal

Having spent in the region of £72m on Lille winger Nicolas Pepe in the summer, the Gunners would be making a complete mockery by not using financial constraints as a reason behind potentially missing out on their top managerial targets. Players can come and go, but having a top-class manager – as Liverpool and Manchester City have shown in recent years – can go a long way to achieving tangible success.

Turning away from Pochettino because they don’t have the ‘money’ would be nigh on criminal. Appointing the Argentine could well be the biggest and best signing the Gunners could make either now or in the near future. His work at Spurs makes him such a no-brainer – a Champions League final and consecutive years of playing in European football’s elite competition. It would be a major blot on the copybook of the Arsenal hierarchy if they skimped out on such a decisive issue. Raul Sanllehi was rightly hailed by the Gunners faithful for a pretty successful transfer window in the summer. But he would have a lot to answer for if the report from The Daily Mail is accurate.

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Manchester City fans are fuming with Sadio Mane after he claimed he will not change his style of play, amidst controversy about diving from Pep Guardiola.

With the two set to clash this Sunday, the war of words has seemingly got into full swing this week and it is only adding to the tension ahead of the game.

Mane has now replied to the Guardiola’s jibe about simulation, but he has stated he will not change his methods.

The Liverpool star told The Guardian: “To be honest I don’t have any problem about it. For sure, it can happen in football and we have seen many people, some diving and get penalties, some got a penalty and the referee didn’t give it. That’s football. You have to deal with it.

“[I will keep doing] like I’m always doing. It’s what I want to keep doing. If I get a penalty, yeah it’s a penalty. If no penalty, no penalty, but [it will never] change the way I’m playing or the way I’m doing my things.”

As you would imagine, City fans are fuming at Mane after his controversial statement. One fan called him a “peerless cheat”, whilst another fan said his words were “embarrassing”.

The Liverpool star has been in sensational form this season, as he and Mohamed Salah lead the way as the club’s top scorers with eight goals. Guardiola may have just been playing his famous mind games with the Senegal international and it will be interesting to see how this one plays out on Sunday.

Here’s what the City fans have had to say about his recent quotes…