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Swansea City’s hopes of securing an automatic promotion spot in the Championship this season took a huge blow on Tuesday night as they were thrashed 3-0 by Bournemouth.

A spectacular goal from Philip Billing opened the scoring before an unfortunate own goal from Joel Latibeaudiere doubled the hosts’ lead just before half time. 

Arnaut Danjuma then sealed a comfortable win for the Cherries by smashing a shot past Freddie Woodman to make it 3-0 late on, with Steve Cooper’s side rarely threatening.

To make matters worse, Watford were comfortable winners at Rotherham, meaning the Swans are now three points behind the Hornets, although they do still have a game in hand on them.

One man who particularly disappointed with his performance at the Cherry Red Records Stadium was right wing-back, Connor Roberts.

The Welsh international has been one of Swansea’s best performers so far this season but he was well below-par on Tuesday night, which will surely frustrate Cooper given the importance of the match.

As per SofaScore, the 25-year-old would pick up a poor 6.3 rating for his performance, with only Ryan Bennett (6.2) Latibeaudiere (6.1), Woodman (6.0) and Jamal Lowe (6.0) rated lower.

Danjuma, who was playing on the left-wing, caused Roberts plenty of problems throughout the game, as he played five key passes and got a goal and an assist, resulting in an impressive 8.6 rating.

The Swansea right-back has been excellent going forward this season, with four goals and five assists to his name in the Championship but he struggled to produce any real quality in good positions as only one of his five crosses was accurate, whilst only one of his five long balls would find a Swansea shirt.

He was also very wasteful with the ball, as only 39/52 of his passes found a teammate, resulting in a less than impressive 75% pass accuracy and he also lost possession a remarkable 26 times during his time on the pitch – more than any other player.

Roberts also struggled from a defensive perspective, as he made no tackles and just one interception in the 90 minutes, whilst he would win just two of the five duels he was involved in during the game, suggesting that Danjuma well and truly had the better of him.

Therefore, considering Cooper has relied upon Roberts to be a consistent performer in his side so far this season, it is very disappointing that he was so poor in such an important game for the Swans.

Manchester United’s slump in form continued after Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side were held to a 1-1 draw by struggling West Brom as they lost ground to Manchester City in the Premier League title race.

And surprise, surprise, Victor Lindelof was way off the mark at the Hawthorns.

As regular readers of this column will no doubt be aware, we think that the Swede defender has been disappointing for large parts of this season.

Last night, the 26-year-old defender was graded as one of the worst players on the pitch during the draw with West Brom by SofaScore, receiving a low match rating of 6.5 for his efforts, that being the lowest of any defender and fourth overall, and it’s easy to see why.

Solskjaer has previously sung praises of Lindelof as a possible solution to United’s leaky defence, but the centre-back was a liability here. His errors in the build-up to West Brom’s opener set the tone for the rest of his afternoon.

He had an extremely difficult afternoon against the rampaging Mbaye Diagne and was found wanting for the opening goal.

Not only that, he was also dribbled past once and lost eight out of a possible 12 duels overall (60%), the latter of which was more than Harry Maguire, who was also positionally all over the place throughout the game.

Lindelof also failed to register a single tackle or record a single interception, which just goes to show how little control he was able to exercise on the game, as the likes of Conor Gallagher and Robert Snodgrass ran rings around him all afternoon, both of whom graded 6.9 or higher as per SofaScore ratings.

It’s no surprise to see The Manchester Evening News’ Samuel Luckhurst give his performance a low grade of 5/10 in his post-match review, commenting ‘Lindelof was so weak in failing to outmuscle Diagne he made it look more like a foul.’

As evident above, Lindelof was nothing short of a liability for the Red Devils on Sunday, and Solskjaer should seriously consider dropping him for Thursday’s trip to Real Sociedad in the Europa League.

AND in other Man Utd news, Manchester United could sign their next Ruud van Nistelrooy in Erling Braut Haaland…

Dean Windass has spoken exclusively to Football FanCast and given a scathing verdict on Newcastle United’s survival chances.

Steve Bruce’s side have taken just nine points from a possible 45 and recorded just two wins in their previous 17 matches. A worrying statistic that has seen the Magpies plummet into a relegation battle.

Newcastle’s Achilles’ heel has been finding the net consistently this season and with Callum Wilson, Miguel Almiron and Allan Saint-Maximin now out until April the picture is looking extremely bleak.

The Magpies have improved their performances recently, however, it is all about results now with Bruce firmly in the hot seat with the club’s future firmly in the balance. With a potential takeover still in the pipeline, a relegation could scupper those plans.

A point against Wolverhampton Wanderers would usually have been seen as a positive result but Newcastle need wins with Fulham looking solid and difficult to beat. Newcastle have an eye on the Cottagers but must find a way to grind out results, even if that means performances become less attractive.

Many pundits fear the worst for Newcastle who could be set for a third relegation under the ownership of Mike Ashley.

Football Fancast spoke exclusively to Dean Windass with the former Darlington striker, not sugar-coating it for Newcastle fans.

A straight forward “yes” by Windass when asked if the Magpies could go down says everything you need to know about Newcastle as a club at the minute, people seem resigned to the fact they are going to be overtaken in 17th by Fulham.

Windass added: “It’s going to be a long [rest of the] season. 

“The one thing about Newcastle is that, no disrespect to Callum Wilson, how do you replace Alan Shearer?

“Newcastle never won anything really and Shearer was getting you 30 goals a season.

“Now, you need somebody to get you double figures a season to keep you in the Premier League.”

Newcastle’s future could be determined in the coming days if scans on both Almiron and Saint-Maximin’s injuries are to be as bad as first feared then the Magpies place all their creativity on Ryan Fraser who has had his fair share of injuries this campaign.

There are 12 games remaining and Newcastle fans will be buckling in for a long slog for some precious points which could set them up for a bright future in the Premier League under new ownership.

According to Sky Sports, Timothy Fosu-Mensah has rejected a new contract offer from Manchester United.

What’s the word?

Fosu-Mensah is approaching the last six months of his contract with the club whilst he has attracted interest from abroad.

It’s claimed French Ligue 1 side Marseille and Bundesliga underdogs Hertha Berlin are keen to land the 22-year-old defender who will be available for little more than a compensation fee in a few months time.

However, it appears both clubs are prepared to part ways with a small fee in January to fend off competitions for Fosu-Mensah, who made just four starts in 2020.

Get rid of him, Ed

Every club has them. The prospects who become professional footballers, the academy players who had no hopes of making the first-team in the first place, the ones who never even got the opportunity to prove themselves. And it’s fair to say that the Dutch defender is one of an unlucky number who it seems were just never quite cut out for the big stage.

Former Red Devils defender Clayton Blackmore told MUTV, as quoted by United in Focus: “He’s got great pace, great strength. He can’t be overlooked.

“He might be someone the manager has a headache about in the not so distant future.”

If anything, it’s in actual fact the total opposite, as he has arguably done very little to justify such a billing. In three appearances across all competitions this season, Fosu-Mensah, who earns around £15,000-per-week at Old Trafford, is averaging 1.3 tackles, 1.7 interceptions and a paltry 0.3 clearances on average per game, via WhoScored.

To be brutally honest, there are simply better options out there, as Harry Maguire, Eric Bailly, Victor Lindelof and to some extent Axel Tuanzebe have delivered for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer this season.

But this latest rejection should be the final straw, as it’s becoming clearer and clearer that his future lies elsewhere, and it may be in the best interests of all parties involved if the club were to sever their ties to the academy graduate.

AND in other news, Man Utd chief Ed Woodward can upgrade Daniel James in Inter Milan winger Ivan Perisic…

Manchester United prevented Liverpool from recapturing first place in the Premier League with a goalless draw at Anfield on Sunday.

The result extended the Red Devils’ unbeaten league run to 12 games stretching all the way back to the 1-0 defeat to Arsenal, but after winning three of their previous four, their momentum has somewhat stalled.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side remain three points clear of the Reds at the top of the table but it was a game that utterly failed to live up to the pre-match hype and build-up.

However, their remarkable turnaround in form after a difficult start to the season has since led to some, including club legend Paul Scholes, proclaiming them as worthy title challengers and, in that regard, this was a significant milestone, as they kept a clean sheet against a side that have scored the highest amount of goals this season so far.

It was a game dominated by the defences that ultimately came down to one kick. Paul Pogba came closest to securing a vital three points from close range, only to be denied by the outstretched arms of Liverpool goalkeeper Alisson in the dying stages of the game. Perhaps his late miss could prove costly in the title race as the two teams find themselves separated by a mere three points.

Apart from that, the Frenchman will have done himself no harm whatsoever with his latest display, earning the following review from The Manchester Evening News: ‘an unusual choice on the right-hand side but performed respectably. Was never going to boss the game in that role but almost won it.’

Everything Pogba does either on the pitch or off it brings attention; attention which brings scrutiny when the focus should be on Harry Maguire instead – for all the right reasons.

The club captain was a colossal at the back for Solskjaer’s side in his 17th top-flight appearance of the season.

Having arrived at Old Trafford from Leicester City for a world record fee for a defender in 2019, the England international hasn’t had the easiest of starts at the Theatre of Dreams but he’s finally starting to look the part at United, and slowly but surely, he’s living up to his colossal price tag.

Solskjaer has struggled to find a defensive partner for Maguire, who earns around £189,000-per-week at Old Trafford, with Victor Lindelof and Eric Bailly battling to bag the spot and there are still question marks over both. However, the club legend’s decision to start Lindelof alongside the captain paid off almost immediately.

Maguire blocked more shots (5) and made more clearances (6) than any other player on the pitch, showing he put up a strong fight in the defence as he largely neutralised Liverpool’s attack, as per SofaScore.

The 27-year-old won every battle there was to win at the back, winning five from five duels overall (100%), and it was a dominant performance from the skipper. His control at the back and on the ball set the tone for the rest of the match as he took 53 touches of the ball and tried to spray long balls (4) over the top, the second-highest amount out of any United player, which shows he was a useful asset in attack as well.

Such was his level of dominance that Jurgen Klopp’s side only managed three shots on target from a whopping 17 attempts as they resorted to several hopeful potshots.

It’s the kind of performance that United fans have recently come to expect from the club captain, and there’s no doubting the fact that Solskjaer will be delighted with his defensive shift.

AND in other news, Woodward must sanction Man Utd swoop for West Ham’s Declan Rice…

West Ham’s Jarrod Bowen repeating his 2018 masterclass will be key to David Moyes beating Leeds United in the Friday night Premier League kick-off.

The Irons visit Elland Road looking to move fifth in the standings with a win, while the hosts strive to put another three points on the board having tasted victory just once in their last five top-flight fixtures.

Bowen has faced Leeds on four occasions throughout his career but only deprived Marcelo Bielsa’s side of the win once, when his brace in December 2018 tormented the Argentine in a complete performance Moyes will need to see the 23-year-old replicate.

Bielsa has been a huge advocate of Bowen’s talents from facing the Leominster-born forward in the Championship, and will hope he will not be on the receiving end this week with the forward presently West Ham’s top scorer in the Premier League with four goals.

“You know how he plays. This season we can see a lot of good attackers in every team and in most of the teams, not just those at the top. This is a very good player who unbalances the team. And he scores because he has a good shot,” Bielsa said, via quotes by Leeds Live.

“We don’t underestimate inferior opponents, so we prepare ourselves for the worst situation. In this case, he’s a great attacker but we keep working in the same strategy and keep trying to improve this.”

Leeds kept Bowen quiet the last time the West Yorkshire outfit faced the former Hull City winger, who Tigers boss Grant McCann lauds as an “exceptional” talent, but are well aware of his threat from his dazzling display in December 2018.

Bowen was the standout player as Hull shocked Elland Road to record a 2-0 win, with the 23-year-old touching almost every blade of grass as he drifted from touchline to touchline imposing himself on players Bielsa will name to face West Ham on Friday night.

Bielsa has already confirmed that from the side which lost to Hull two years ago, Luke Ayling, Ezgjan Alioski, Kalvin Phillips, Mateusz Klich and Jack Harrison will feature while Illan Meslier, Stuart Dallas, Liam Cooper, Rodrigo Moreno, Patrick Bamford and Raphinha come in.

Bowen had his way with Leeds up against Harrison and Barry Douglas, forcing Bielsa to bench the pair in the second-half, having won six of eleven ground duels and one of two aerial contests whilst netting a brace from just two shots on target, per SofaScore.

The £96,154-per-week attacker turned creator to register a key ball and delivered one cross, too, while winning one of his two dribbles, took 39 touches and forced Leeds into three fouls.

He consistently thwarted the Whites’ attacks with three clearances, blocked one shot, made four interceptions and two successful tackles, and Moyes will need to see the man he signed for £22million deliver at a similar level if West Ham are to emerge victorious on Friday night.

AND in other news, David Moyes would throw an “outstanding” £30m West Ham star under the boss with his brave plan to beat Leeds United.

Liverpool are still looking to make a move to sign Arsenal youngster Folarin Balogun, according to reports.

Balogun on Anfield radar

The 19-year-old is a regular for the Gunners’ U23s side and has scored four goals and provided two assists from 10 appearances in the Premier League 2 (TransferMarkt).

But manager Mikel Arteta has been giving the American-born forward opportunities in the Europa League and he has scored twice from four outings.

According to Nik Postinger, a freelance journalist previously of The Guardian and The Telegraph, Liverpool are still in the frame to secure Balogun. Jurgen Klopp’s side were in the mix for the young centre-forward in the summer, who can also play on the left-wing.

Sky Sports reported at the time that Brentford were leading the race ahead of the Reds, and the North London outfit would be willing to listen to offers in the region of £8m.

The England U20 international has a famous fan club in the form of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, who described him as “fire” having watched him play at the club’s academy.

Transfer Tavern Verdict

This is another example of Liverpool, Michael Edwards and Jurgen Klopp planning for the club’s future.

The duo have worked harmoniously well in terms of bringing in talent. Bringing through the likes of Curtis Jones and Rhys Williams under the watchful eye of Alex Inglethorpe has been the cherry on their red cake.

A versatile attacker such as Balogun is a player that could become useful in the future. With European experience under his belt, he could be well ahead of other players around his age in terms of development.

At around £8m, Balogun might be worth a look. Time will tell as the January transfer window edges closer.

In other news, Liverpool fans stunned by club stance amid Georginio Wijnaldum contract whispers.

The whole Liverpool camp and its fanbase has been rocked by the news of Virgil van Dijk’s injury. Jurgen Klopp will likely be without his leading centre-back for the rest of the season whilst he recovers from anterior cruciate ligament damage picked up against Everton.

The Reds have been forced to deploy makeshift defender Fabinho alongside Joe Gomez, with Joel Matip also ruled out of action temporarily. It’s perhaps dawning on Klopp that he should have prioritised a move for a backup centre-half during the transfer window. Liverpool cashed in on veteran Dejan Lovren and opted not to replace him, which could prove to be a detrimental decision.

Jamie Carragher hit out at Klopp for this exact decision. The Anfield legend stated that a centre-back should have been high up the club’s priority list, to avoid situations such as this one. Should the Reds scramble to find a replacement for van Dijk, they will have to wait until January to get a deal over the line.

Speaking to Football FanCast, former Newcastle defender Steve Howey has tipped a surprise swoop for Wolves captain Conor Coady.

Should Liverpool re-sign Conor Coady?

“Look how well Wolves have done,” Howey commented. “And absolutely he is a catalyst with that. He’s marshalled that defence, he’s a footballing centre-half as well as a defender.”

Indeed, Coady has helped spearhead his side to a strong Premier League run since their promotion. They fell just short of a top six finish last season, losing out to Spurs on goal difference. This time round, top six or maybe even higher will be locked in Nuno Espirito Santo’s sight.

Wolves are currently in sixth place, level on points with Arsenal and Leicester City after enjoying three wins out of their five games played. Despite losing Diogo Jota to Liverpool, the Wanderers haven’t had trouble finding the back of the net with the likes of Raul Jimenez and Daniel Podence pulling the strings. However, letting captain and stalwart defender Coady leave to the same club is another story.

“No doubt,” Howey said on whether the Merseyside native would join the Reds. “Because he started there, if Liverpool came around, I think he would definitely think about it. Absolutely without a doubt. You’re an idiot if you turn Liverpool down.”

The 27-year-old started his footballing journey in Liverpool’s academy, before a move to Huddersfield took him away from his boyhood club. Should they come calling, Coady may be unable to resist the pull of the Premier League champions.

Howey wondered: “I think it’s definitely a good possibility, but how much would Wolves want for him?” Certainly, he will not come cheap and Michael Edwards may need to accept he will cost an eye-watering amount, should the Reds opt to pursue a move.

With van Dijk out and doubts cast over Gomez, the mother ship may decide to call Coady home in what would be a whole new era of his career.

In other news, Kostas Tsimikas shares positive message that will please Liverpool fans…

Tottenham Hotspur duo Heung-min Son and Harry Kane will take most of the plaudits when it comes to their impressive start to the season, but one of their unsung teammates must get his fair share of the acclaim too.

French midfielder Moussa Sissoko has been totally transformed this season, all thanks to the astute coaching of Jose Mourinho and his staff.

The 31-year-old was signed by Mauricio Pochettino in 2016, joining in a £30m deal from Newcastle United but never truly hit the heights that such a high fee should command.

Within a year, some fan sites were criticising Daniel Levy for splashing that much money on a player that wasn’t really cutting the mustard in north London.

During his first two seasons at the club, Sissoko failed to start more than 15 league matches before finally breaking through as a key part of Pochettino’s side.

In the Argentine’s final full season in charge of Tottenham, the 6 foot 2 midfielder averaged just 1.2 tackles, 0.6 interceptions and an 86.7% passing success rate, via WhoScored.

That summer, he made a club-record £55m swoop for Tanguy Ndombele, who was undoubtedly brought in to succeed the ageing Frenchman long-term. Even more so after Pochettino distanced himself from his contract extension in 2019.

However, under the Special One, those three facets have all drastically increased this term with Sissoko managing 1.8 tackles, 1.8 interceptions and 90.8% passing accuracy.

In addition, Sissoko has seen improvements in terms of ball recoveries, loose balls won and defensive duels won per 90 minutes, via Twenty3, having ranked outside the Premier League’s top 150 for all statistics in that 18/19 campaign.

Every club that Mourinho has been at, he’s been blessed with solid enforcers in the engine room – at Real Madrid, it was Sami Khedira while that famous Inter Milan squad enjoyed Thiago Mottai in his prime.

But at arch-rivals Chelsea, it was Michael Essien and John Obi Mikel. None of these were flashy-types or players you’d consider to be a superstar. They are there to do the simple jobs and to make others around them thrive.

Which is why Sissoko often goes unnoticed in north London. Mourinho has effectively transformed the midfield powerhouse into his new Essien.

Football Insider pundit Kevin Phillips compared the Spurs ace to Steven Gerrard, he said: “He is a superb player – power, pace and travels with the ball really well. He can take the ball in tight situations with his strength. Sissoko is a huge player for Tottenham. He reminds me of Gerrard, a little bit.”

Even Arsene Wenger’s been a fan, once calling the £80k-per-week high-earner a “remarkable” option for France.

Without him, that midfield would be a whole lot weaker than it is.

AND in other news, Spurs could’ve finally replaced Eriksen in £45m “goal threat” who bullied Winks…

It’s no secret that West Ham United boss David Moyes is after defensive reinforcements before the transfer deadline in a little over two weeks time and now fresh reports have linked them to a new right-back addition.

90min claim that the Irons are leading the race to sign Monaco outcast Djibril Sidibe with the likes of Wolves and Newcastle United also keen to sign him on loan this summer.

However, the Ligue 1 outfit will only let the 28-year-old depart if there’s an obligation to buy at the end of the temporary switch, so clearly he’s a player that’s no longer wanted in France.

Some at the London Stadium may recognise the defender quite well as he enjoyed a loan spell at Everton last season where he made a total of 28 appearances in all competitions, though his performances were not enough for the Toffees to sanction a €14m (£12.8m) permanent move.

Sidibe was part of the side that defeated the Hammers 2-0 back in October and he put in quite the defensive masterclass up against Felipe Anderson and Arthur Masuaku.

Per SofaScore, the Frenchman recorded four tackles, won four ground duels, created one big chance and delivered two accurate crosses – all resulting in a 7.4 rating.

Anderson’s afternoon was so poor that he was subbed off at half-time.

Whether he’d be a good addition for Moyes very much remains to be seen – Toffees caretaker Duncan Ferguson called him “unbelievable” after playing through illness against Chelsea whilst Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville slammed him for his display against Arsenal, labelling his defending a “madness.”

AND in other news,  many Hammers fans rave about one man’s HUGE display against Arsenal…