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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… 

Georginio Wijnaldum has been in stunning form for the Netherlands recently, but there are two reasons he will never replicate that form for Liverpool.

The names of those two reasons? Trent Alexander-Arnold and Andy Robertson.

Wijnaldum left Reds fans baffled as to how he can look like two completely different players again during this latest international break, as he scored twice in a Dutch victory over Belarus.

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His first strike was a deft header after some clever movement, and his second was an absolutely thunderous effort from outside the box.

He now has six goals and three assists in his last 11 international appearances after only scoring 14 in 151 Liverpool games, leaving some fans to wonder why on Earth he doesn’t replicate that form at Anfield.

Quite simply though, the £25m man will never produce those sorts of numbers for Liverpool because Jurgen Klopp’s system does not allow him to.

As has been pointed out in the past by Sky Sports, Liverpool’s style under Klopp relies heavily on the creativity of Robertson and Alexander-Arnold, leaving the midfield trio to string things together, switch the play, trigger counter attacks and stop opposition counters.

While it would be harsh to say Robertson and Alexander-Arnold racked up a combined 28 assists last season due solely to their advanced positions in Klopp’s formation, they certainly could not have produced those sorts of numbers if they were forever having to stay back because Wijnaldum or the other midfielders had ventured too far forward in search of goals.

The heat-maps below show Liverpool’s full-back duo’s average touch position across their last three wins, against Leicester, RB Salzburg and Sheffield United (WhoScored).

Not only do the pair rack up over 200 combined touches in all three games, they get on the ball in very advanced positions, almost playing as if they are wing-backs in front of a back three. They are only able to do this because the likes of Fabinho and Wijnaldum shield the centre-backs and prevent counter attacks.

In Wijnaldum’s two-goal display against Belarus, his full-backs were Daley Blind and Joel Veltman, hardly the type to bomb forward and rack up assists, playing much further back than the Liverpool pair and allowing their midfield trio to be more adventurous.

Of course, Winaldum did score at Bramall Lane due to a goalkeeping error, but if any Liverpool fans are hoping that is going to become a regular occurrence because of his international form, they are sadly mistaken.

Klopp’s system forces the former Newcastle ace to be more conservative, and with the Reds sitting top of the league with 24 points from 24, a certain saying about not fixing things that aren’t broken comes to mind.

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In today’s Liverpool roundup, we take a look at what news has been doing the rounds for the Reds. Jurgen Klopp has hailed Harvey Elliot ‘a special player’ after his senior debut, Liverpool chief executive Peter Moore claims they are back on their perch, and the club are set to battle with European giants for the signature of Fabian Ruiz.

Elliot ‘a special player’, says Klopp

Report: As told by the Evening Standard, Klopp has hailed academy graduate Elliot ‘a special talent’ after making his first senior appearance and subsequently becoming the clubs second-youngest player to make their debut, aged 16 years and 174 days old.

The German said: “He will always be a special player for moments, but you see overall with his defending and movements, it is not easy so that is really good.

“His left foot is not too bad. He was a bit unlucky otherwise he would have scored. They are all good, they are all really skilled but that’s why it is important to give them games like this. We will try to continue like this, so we will see.”

Verdict: In his debut against MK Dons, the Surrey-born man obtained an incredible 9/10 performance rating (as per the Liverpool Echo). And although Elliot was guilty of missing a glaring chance early on, his performance was filled with creativity, tenacity, and freedom as he smashed the bar in both halves and put in a magnificent display at Stadium MK.

In truth, the teenager will still have to wait for a regular spot within the Liverpool side, as the usual front three and Divock Origi remain Klopp’s main men. However, Elliot has already impressed this season scoring once and providing three assists in eight games for the youth sides.

The academy star has also put in an admirable return for his country, having scored six goals in nine games for England’s youth teams. He will, however, have to wait a while to break into the first team regularly, but considering he is still many months away from his 17th birthday, the youngster is certainly one for the future.

‘Back on our perch’, says CEO

Report: Liverpool CEO Peter Moore, has told the listeners at the World Football Summit in Madrid that the club are ‘back on our perch’, almost four months after lifting their sixth major European title.

Moore said, as quoted by BBC Sport: “We are back on our perch, as we famously say. What the Fenway Sports Group have done at Liverpool over the past nine years is nothing short of miraculous.

“They have gone through ups and downs but have stayed the course and never taken a penny out of the club.

“Football is a virtuous cycle,” he said. “You drive revenues so you can afford to buy a goalkeeper or a centre-half that will win you games. When you win games, sponsors want to be part of your story, so they write you a cheque. You take that money and buy better players. They win you more games.”

Verdict: The quote was famously branded by former Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson, who after arriving at Old Trafford in 1986 said his aim was to “knock Liverpool right off their perch”.

The legendary manager went onto win 13 Premier League titles and indeed knock Liverpool off the perch as the first division’s most successful club, by taking United’s tally to 20 league titles compared to the Reds’ 18.

In the time the Scot was the manager he also won two Champions League titles, which put the club on three major European trophies, although, since Liverpool’s triumph last year, they now have six to United’s three.

If the Merseysiders are to truly get back on their perch, they must win a Premier League title, as it has now been 30 years this season since they last won the first division. Of course, Liverpool are miles ahead of the Red Devils both domestically and continentally right now, but unless Klopp’s men can match their European glory with a Premier League trophy, perhaps United will remain top of the tree.

Liverpool in a battle for Fabian Ruiz’s signature

Report: According to Calcio Mercato, the Reds are facing a battle for the services of Ruiz, with Barcelona, Manchester City and Real Madrid all set to go in for the Napoli man.

Verdict: It seems that the hype surrounding Ruiz is going to continue to rise and rise, with the midfielder initially linked with Liverpool a few weeks back, and now it looks like fellow super clubs have joined the battle for the centre-midfielder.

Ruiz has played an integral part in Napoli’s season so far, playing four times, scoring once and registering an average rating of 7.34. The Italian even earned himself a 7/10 in his side’s victory over the Reds in the opening week of the Champions League.

Currently, the midfield department is not necessarily a position in which Liverpool are low in numbers. Over the last year, Jordan Henderson, Fabinho, Georginio Wijnaldum, Naby Keita and James Milner have established themselves as arguably the best group of central midfielders across the globe.

However, it is important to remember that Milner is 33 and Henderson will be 30 by the time the season is over. Therefore, bringing in a 23-year-old like Ruiz could only be good news for the Reds.

On Saturday evening, Tottenham Hotspur released a statement confirming that Hugo Lloris had suffered a dislocated elbow during Saturday afternoon’s Premier League clash with Brighton & Hove Albion.Lloris was stretchered off in the early stages of his team’s 3-0 defeat, and it would be fair to say that the initial signs did not look great.Spurs have not given a timeframe for the goalkeeper’s recovery, although they did confirm the extent of the injury following an examination at a local hospital.The 2018 World Cup winner is surely set for an extended period on the sidelines, which is far from ideal due to Tottenham’s current problems.Indeed, the capital outfit have lost four of their last five matches in all competitions – including a 7-2 defeat to Bayern Munich last week.As expected, a number of the club’s fans took to social media in the aftermath of the Lloris announcement, and a selection of their reaction can be seen below:

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

On the face of it, Sheffield Wednesday’s appointment of Garry Monk is a rather smart move.

Despite being only 40 years of age, he comes with masses of experience managing at this level of football having managed Leeds, Middlesborough and Birmingham City over the past four years.

His last spell at St Andrew’s came to an abrupt end in June after the relationship he had with chief executive Xuandong Ren broke down following the sale of Jota to arch-rivals Aston Villa.

Monk had the Blues battling on the outskirts of the playoffs until a nine-point deduction and a string of losses had them soon fighting it out at the wrong end of the table to finish 17th, which was without a doubt no mark on his accomplishments.

The local paper described it perfectly by saying he turned Birmingham into “a side vastly superior than the sum of its parts.”

One member of his backroom staff is still in the Midlands, as former assistant Pep Clotet is actually in caretaker charge of the club and with him more than unlikely to return to partner his old sidekick, Monk has kept on caretaker Lee Bullen as part of his backroom staff.

This has the potential to be a big mistake.

It can be argued that the former utility man, who once captained the club, deserves to stay based on loyalty – he made 144 appearances between 2004 and 2008 and has been in caretaker charge of the club three times now.

But it opens up the risk of sticking to old habits, the ones that have seen them lose three games from four in the league which ultimately has led to the 48-year-old not receiving the job on a permanent basis.

The fact is, Wednesday need fresh faces to take them forward and Bullen is the opposite of that.

Monk’s job will be under scrutiny from day one, whether that is just or not is a different story, but there are expectations at Hillsborough. In 2020, it will be 20 years since their last foray into the top-flight of English football.

He simply cannot afford to risk his squad falling into previous practices.

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With the advent of social media, we feel closer to the lives of professional football players than ever before.

With Twitter and Instagram being used by almost every young footballer, we get round the clock coverage of what they’re doing and who they’re doing it with.

However, we rarely get to hear what the players truly think of one another. Fortunately, Leeds United’s YouTube channel have begun to upload interviews with players talking about their teammates, and of course, there were some hilarious results.

Stuart Dallas was the unfortunate interviewee, and he provided some incredible insight into the Leeds United squad.

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Some of the answers were more surprising than others. Pablo Hernandez being the most skilful player and Kalvin Phillips being the hard man of the group will surprise nobody, but learning that Leif Davis is the best singer in the squad is a bit of an eye-opener.

We can imagine Ezgjan Alioski won’t be too pleased about being called the worst trainer, and you can check out the rest of the revelations here.

According to The Telegraph, Tottenham are ready to hijack Leicester’s loan deal for Monaco midfielder Youri Tielemans. 

The 21-year-old was poised to be joining The Foxes this January, but Spurs chairman Daniel Levy has given the green light for his club to intercept this deal. However, the article does not state whether this is a loan or permanent deal.

The French club are willing to loan the Belgian, or sell him for £20m as well. However, it is imperative that Tottenham sign him permanently.

The Lilywhites have a long and rather embarrassing history of signing substandard players; there are currently some in the squad now, and there have been many in the past. Particularly though, the club have signed a raft of slow starters. There is absolutely no guarantee that Tielemans will acclimatise quickly, in which time, this would be a waste of a loan deal from Spurs.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”367086″ player=”13308″ title=”Tottenham Hotspur”]

On the other hand, a permanent deal means the 21-year-old has time to settle into Tottenham and truly become the successor to Mousa Dembélé. Stylistically, Tielemans has many similarities to his compatriot, while also showing a greater attacking instinct. His powerful shot and ability to chip in with a goal could even make him a greater asset to Tottenham, particularly as central midfielders like Eric Dier, Harry Winks and Victor Wanyama are not famed for their goal-scoring prowess.

Now that Tottenham are out of the FA Cup and League Cup, they do not need quick fixes, particularly in the heart of midfield, they need long-term figures and Tielemans is that man.

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

As quoted by Sky Sports, LA Galaxy striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has opened the door for a potential return to Manchester United.

What’s the word?

The 37-year-old made his mark at Old Trafford after arriving at the club in 2016. The centre-forward spearheaded the United attack and finished the campaign with 28 goals and ten assists, but saw his time in Manchester cut short due to a cruciate ligament injury.

Now plying his trade in the MLS, Ibrahimovic has admitted that he would be open to a potential United return.

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He said: “I could play easy in the Premier League, so if United need me, I’m here. But (LA) Galaxy has me, so I’m sorry. Nah, I did my job in Europe. I enjoyed it, I have 33 trophies that I brought with me here and hopefully I can get something here. And then we will see where that adventure finishes.”

The King

Whilst the Swedish star appeared to indicate his time in Europe was over, United simply have to test the waters with an offer no matter what. The 37-year-old continues to defy age and logic with his performances for LA Galaxy, and has shown no sign of regression since his injury.

As Ibrahimovic himself suggested, if United need him, then’s he’s available for action. And boy do the Red Devils need someone like Zlatan in their team. For all of Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s intent on trying to implement a pressing approach, the Swede’s ability to conjure something out of nothing is a trait not readily seen in the side.

Against both Wolves and Crystal Palace, the perils of simply hitting teams on the counter-attack were painfully evident. But indeed, even more than being just a ‘Plan B’, Ibrahimovic’s profile and personality would raise the atmosphere at Old Trafford. His very public attitude of wanting to be the best would rub off on United’s young players, and enforce an idea that finishing in the top six is nowhere near good enough.

He may be 37, but if there is even a glimmer of hope a deal can be done in January, United must reunite Zlatan with his Old Trafford throne.

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A number of West Ham supporters are excited after a new report claimed the Hammers are the front-runners to sign Marseille midfielder Boubacar Kamara.

David Moyes is sure to be eyeing up new signings in the January transfer window, as he looks to take his squad to another level and deal with the injury issues running through the spine of his team.

West Ham look well-placed to mount a genuine top-four challenge in the Premier League this season, as well as hopefully going far in the Europa League, but they have lost both first-choice centre-backs in Kurt Zouma and Angelo Ogbonna.

One player who the Hammers are thought to be keen on signing is Kamara, with the 22-year-old impressing for Marseille this season, making 17 Ligue 1 appearances and enjoying an 89.4% pass completion rate.

According to Corriere dello Sport [via West Ham News & Views on Twitter], Moyes’ side are in pole position to sign the Frenchman on a free transfer this summer, when his current contract will expire.

West Ham fans love Kamara latest

Kamara can play as a defensive midfielder or in the heart of defence, and these West Ham fans reacted positively to the news on Twitter.

“Let’s hope this is genuinely true! Would be a superb signing and if we can agree a pre-contract before the window closes could then push for a marked down move this window. Marseille have two options: accept whatever we offer or get nothing”

Credit: @mhare641

“Very very decent”

Credit: @_ghzst

“Great signing if we pull it off”

Credit: @Kelly77722

“Please!!!!”

Credit: @stevensheppar12

“He’s class, would be a great signing especially for free”

Credit: @YarmoSZN

“Good but we need signings this month”

Credit: @Mxttftbl

In other news, a reporter has made a key claim regarding a possible West Ham transfer. Read more here.

Glasgow Rangers have been handed a huge boost in their bid to secure a deal to bring Andreas Skov Olsen to Ibrox in the January transfer window.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by Italian publication Corriere dello Sport (via Daily Record), who claimed that the 22-year-old winger has informed Bologna that he wants to leave the club this winter amid interest from both Rangers and Club Brugge.

The report added that Giovanni van Bronckhorst is keen to sign a right-sided forward this month, with the Denmark international believed to be high on the 46-year-old’s list of targets.

Van Bronckhorst will be buzzing

Since joining Bologna in a £5.4m deal back in 2019, Skov Olsen has not enjoyed the best form of his career, but the 22-year-old nevertheless proved during his time with Nordsjaelland that he would make a fantastic addition to Gers’ current options out wide.

Indeed, over his £5.85m-rated forward scored a whopping 22 goals and provided his teammates with five assists, contributing to a goal with every 114 minutes of league football played.

The £28k-per-week wizard also scored one goal over two appearances in the Sydbank Pokalen during that campaign, along with bagging three goals one assist in his six Europa League qualifying fixtures, taking his season’s haul to 26 goals and six assists in 44 appearances.

As such, should Van Bronckhorst be able to help Skov Olsen rediscover such form following his potential switch to Rangers, the 22-year-old could well prove to be something of a “groundbreaking” transfer for the Light Blues, as claimed by journalist Josh Bunting.

It’s a prospective move which would undoubtedly leave the 46-year-old Gers boss buzzing, particularly if the club can seal the Danish winger’s signing for as little as £5m, as has been widely reported. Their cause may well be helped considerably by the player’s reported desire to leave Serie A.

In other news: Van Bronckhorst drops worrying injury update which will have Rangers fans fuming

Aston Villa may make a move for Southampton midfielder Oriol Romeu in January, according to The Athletic’s Gregg Evans.

And a number of Villa fans have been reacting to the news on social media.

Villa are looking at bolstering their centre-back and central midfield ranks over the next two windows, according to Evans. He revealed in his transfer mailbag last week that Johan Lange will present a number of midfield options to Steven Gerrard, with a move for Romeu possibly being looked at after Villa tracked him in the summer.

The defensive midfielder has been with The Saints since 2015 and is under contract for a further 18 months. He’s made 17 Premier League appearances this season, however, Villa midfielders John McGinn and Douglas Luiz have outperformed Romeu, as per WhoScored.

Romeu, who has racked up 59 Premier League yellow cards throughout his career, also turned 30 in September, and it seems as if a number of Villa fans don’t want to see the Southampton man make the move to the Midlands.

Villa fans react

Total Villa shared Evans’ claim regarding Romeu on Twitter on Wednesday lunchtime. This is what these supporters had to say in reply, with many not exactly thrilled at the links and one describing the Spaniard as a ‘liability’.

“Too old, there’s younger alternatives. We picked up a 29 year old in the summer from there on 100k per week. The epitome of stupidity is to repeat the same mistake twice.”

Credit: @WanyeAVFC

“We can do so much better”

Credit: @KishinJay

“He’s a liability. Gets too many cards and gives away too many fouls.”

Credit: @LoseLbsMakePar

“Not for me”

Credit: @NathanCotterill

“Doesn’t fit what the club want, doesn’t fit the age profile and isn’t an improvement on what we have. Nonsense rumour”

Credit: @AVFCLancelot

“Overrated”

Credit: @vizzy9

In other news: ‘Even worse’ – Many AVFC fans flock to Preece’s January transfer update.