Sheffield United continue to find themselves at the top of the Championship, and once again were in fine form this weekend as they dispatched Wigan with ease.

The Blades, under manager Chris Wilder, have become the standout team in the second tier on their day, and there’s a very realistic chance that the Blades could well see promotion to the Premier League become a reality after only their second season back in the Championship.

However, to ensure they keep going, they are going to have to add new players in January, and we think signing a couple of Premier League quality players might well be the difference for Wilder’s men.

With that in mind, we’ve taken a look at TWO Premier League strikers who could help fire the Blades to promotion in January…

Dominic Calvert-Lewin

The Everton forward has played his part this season for the Toffees but he remains far from first  choice under Marco Silva.

Often used as a sub and as a replacement when others are injured, Calvert-Lewin will be keen to get minutes and goals, and might well fancy the shift back to his old club.

The Blades often rely on Billy Sharp to add goals, so signing someone familiar with the club like DCL would be a superb piece of business.

Sam Gallagher

Another striking option the Blades could look to add to their ranks is Southampton youngster Gallagher.

Gallagher has so far flattered to deceive in much of his career, but the talent is there, and moving to a club with a manager like Wilder might well be a big boost for the youngster.

A January move would appear inevitable, and with United needing forwards, it makes sense that Gallagher be considered.

According to Nigerian website All Nigeria Soccer, 20-year-old QPR sensation Eberechi Eze was snubbed by Nigeria football coach Gernot Rohr last year. 

The German manager overlooked the midfielder when with Nigeria in London last year, and the player has subsequently gone on to represent England under-20s.

This error by the manager can only benefit England. Eze has now committed himself to The Three Lions at age group level, and while he may still be legible to play for Nigeria, England should try and keep hold of him.

The 20-year-old has featured in every game this season for The Hoops, scoring three goals and registering one assist. He has flourished under former England manager Steve McClaren in a resurgent QPR team, and has therefore turned many heads from Premier League clubs.

Should the player be in the Premier League next season with a new club, or indeed with QPR, it will not be long before he starts attracting the attention of national manager Gareth Southgate. The progress of players such as James Maddison and even Mason Mount is an indication that the England manager is not shy of turning to young players that impress. That could easily be Eze in a matter of seasons.

Ultimately, this looks like a huge error by the Nigeria manager, but one that England can benefit from nonetheless. As QPR continue to climb up the Championship table, Eze will only attract more and more attention, leading Nigeria to regret this mistake of theirs all the more.

Newcastle were dealt some hugely encouraging news recently with captain Jamaal Lascelles signing a contract until 2024. 

The 24-year-old is The Magpies’ talisman and continues to be one of their star performers, despite their poor start to the season.

As expected when a team make such a bad start to a season, players are rumoured to be departing the club, and Lascelles was no exception. There is a host of Premier League clubs that would be after the 6ft 2 defender, particularly if Newcastle were to get relegated at the end of the season.

While many players are linked with leaving St James’ Park during their troubled start to the season, manager Rafa Benítez has as well. The Spaniard has been under a tenebrous cloud regarding his future at Newcastle, particularly in light with his feud with owner Mike Ashley, who has been notoriously frugal with the club’s expenditures. The horrendous start to the season, -whereby The Magpies are yet to win a game and sit second from bottom in the Premier League- has not helped in keeping the Spaniard at the club.

However, securing the deal of one of the manager’s favourite players will go a long way in enticing the former Champions League winning manager to stay in the northeast. It is a deal like this that will allow him to build his squad around Lascelles, knowing that he has a lot of security regarding his future.

This may be one desperate attempt for Ashley to keep Benítez at Newcastle, and it may just work.

[ad_pod ]

According to Sky Sports, Burnley are targeting a January move for West Bromwich Albion attacker Jay Rodriguez, and Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers should line up a deal for a player he wanted to sign for Liverpool back in 2015.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Sky Sports report that the Clarets are ready to target the versatile attacker in the New Year having failed with a move for him in the summer, with Sean Dyche looking for a player that can feature out wide or through the middle.

The 29-year-old has been in brilliant form in the Championship for the Baggies this term, scoring eight goals and providing one assist in 15 league appearances.

Meanwhile, The Mirror reported in January 2015 that Rodgers was keen to bring the then Southampton forward to Anfield as he continued his rehabilitation following a serious injury, but instead Rodriguez ended up committing his future to the south coast outfit.

Why should Celtic sign him?

While the Bhoys’ form in recent weeks has improved and they have recorded two successive 5-0 wins in the Scottish Premiership, you still get the feeling they would benefit if Odsonne Edouard had more support and/or competition for his spot up top.

Rodriguez would certainly provide that, and while he perhaps doesn’t have the speed he once did before his big setback during the 2013/14 campaign, he has proven that he knows where the net is and is effective in the final third.

While he would likely cost a fee that would smash the club-record fee Celtic paid to sign Edouard back in the summer, it would be worth it and Rodgers would finally get the player he obviously admires a lot.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”327140″ player=”12034″ title=”Rafa’s Pub Facts Leicester Trump Man City Chelsea & Liverpool”]

Manchester City moved 12 points clear of Manchester United in the Premier League table following a dominant 3-1 win at the Etihad.

City were cruising thanks to goals from David Silva and Sergio Aguero before the Red Devils hit back from the penalty spot through Anthony Martial. The Citizens continued to dominate and ensured all three points after Ilkay Gundogan beat David de Gea in a goal of the season contender. The result leaves United in eighth, a massive 12 points behind the league leaders, ending any hopes of a challenge for the Premier League title.

The Red Devils never threatened the City defence and looked void of attacking threat throughout. With Marcus Rashford struggling to find his best role and Romelu Lukaku out of form, Jose Mourinho is desperate to bolster his attacking options in January. Reports suggest the United board will back him significantly if the right deal presents itself.

One man he should be targeting is Napoli maestro – Dries Mertens. Valued at £27m by Transfermarkt, the Belgian has been a mainstay in the Napoli team for a number of years and has been one of the most consistent performers in the Serie A. Mertens netted an incredible 18 league goals last year during Napoli’s title challenge as well as picking up six assists for his team-mates.

The 31-year-old has started the new season in the same vein with eight goals and four assists to his name already. With blistering pace and expert dribbling ability, the Belgium international is perfectly suited for life in England. Mertens would inject some much-needed life into the United attack, and his creative talent could help bring the best out of his countryman Lukaku.

United have a negative goal difference after 12 games for the first time since 1978 – Mertens can be the man to help the goals flowing freely again.

Manchester United fans, thoughts?

[ad_pod ]

Tottenham Hotspur will be looking for their fifth straight win in all competitions when they welcome Chelsea to Wembley in the Premier League on Saturday.

Since losing at home to Manchester City at the end of last month, Spurs have beaten West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers, PSV Eindhoven and Crystal Palace across three separate competitions.

The Chelsea match is the start of three huge fixtures for Tottenham, with games against Inter Milan and Arsenal to follow in the Champions League and league respectively.

Fourth-placed Tottenham are currently one point off third-placed Chelsea in the Premier League table, and a win over the Blues this weekend would send out a huge message.

Check out the video below to see how Brazil fans reacted to being asked how Cristiano Ronaldo would peform for them in a hilarious prank by Playmaker FC…

Head coach Mauricio Pochettino has a number of decisions to make when it comes to team selection against the Blues, and the Tottenham fans have been on social media discussing which players should start.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

[ad_pod ]

According to Corriere dello Sport, Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba wants to return to former club Juventus.

The Red Devils re-signed the French World Cup winner for a then-world record transfer fee of around £89 million, as reported by Football Italia. The 25-year-old has since been a part of the League Cup and Europa League triumphs in his time at Old Trafford.

Watch Playmaker FC’s Thogden react to England’s dramatic second-half comeback against Croatia in the video below…

However, on a personal level, he has failed to consistently hit the heights expected of him, nor has he been able to light up the Premier League with the regularity he achieved in Serie A. Speculation of a rift with United boss Jose Mourinho has also been rife (Express).

A return to Turin would likely be a smart career move for Pogba, as the Italian giants are certainly a more competitive outfit on the European stage than United at this time. However, his exit would be a major and humiliating blow to the Red Devils’ transfer policy, and the blame for his failure to produce at the club would have to be levelled at Mourinho as much as the player.

That being said, starting afresh without Pogba, around whom there is always a carnival of press hyperbole and speculation, would probably be good for the club too. United would also be able to demand a huge transfer fee from Juventus which would likely turn them a small profit on their original investment in the player.

What do you think, United fans – should Pogba be allowed to return to Turin in the near future?

Stoke City will need to seek major improvements if they are to stand any chance of securing a play-off place in the current campaign. 

The Potters have struggled to ensure consistency under Gary Rowett this season as they often follow up a positive result with a negative one, which certainly hasn’t helped their promotion push. And, to make things even worse, it appears as if one of the club’s stars is leaning towards an exit, as according to The Chronicle Live, Erik Pieters is open to a move to Newcastle United.

Erik Pieters is thought to be open to a move to Tyneside.

The Dutchman has been one of the standout performers for Stoke City in the current campaign, with a number of goals to his name already this season.

Newcastle United are in desperate need of a left-back having lost Paul Dummett to injury recently, but Rafa Benitez may face a fight to convince his board to part with a big fee for Pieters’ services.

THE VERDICT:

Stoke City will be desperate to hold onto Erik Pieters in January as he’s been influential down the left-hand side for them this season. He has managed to contribute in the final third on a number of occasions and will play a huge part in their campaign if they can keep him.

The Dutchman arguably deserves a move to the Premier League and is leaning towards an exit, so the Potters will find it hard to keep him.

[ad_pod ]

Loads of Everton fans have been giving their verdict on the starting eleven ahead of the trip to Anfield, and a whopping 95 per cent want Ademola Lookman to start.

Everton will arrive at Anfield on Sunday looking for their first win there in nearly two decades, but the Toffees might just have a secret weapon ready to be unleashed.

Lookman caused a lot of controversy in the summer, as many fans suspected he was trying to force a move away from the club, but after a spell on the sidelines he has forced his way back into Marco Silva’s plans.

Playmaker FC Exclusive: Jermaine Jenas reveals he would have snubbed Tottenham for Arsenal if they’d come knocking in 2005…

The 21 year-old has put in some electric performance off the bench, and he did more in 30 minutes against Cardiff than Bernard and Theo Walcott did all game.

A whopping 95 per cent of fans want to start the youngster at Anfield, as his pace and directness could cause problems for Liverpool’s constantly overlapping full backs.

The Reds were beaten in Paris this week, and the poll results below suggest Toffees’ fans know how they can beat them as well…

[ad_pod ]

Everton’s resurgence under Marco Silva has seen them rise to sixth in the standings and the performance against Merseyside rivals Liverpool – albeit ill-fated in the end – showed that, despite the Reds making huge strides of their own in recent years, the gap between the two might be starting to close little by little.

They were, in fact, unlucky to not take the lead on many occasions and surely felt hard done by considering the manner in which they conceded in the dying minutes of the game.

The Toffees were able to attract some pretty big names over the summer as they brought in Yerry Mina and Andre Gomes from Barcelona and, in Richarlison and Jordan Pickford, they have exciting young stars that will be essential in pushing for the top six – or even the top four – in years to come.

The old guard of Phil Jagielka, Leighton Baines and Seamus Coleman have been loyal servants but look to have been outgrown by the club’s ambition in their twilight years. Finding a player who can fill the boots of the latter must be a priority – Jonjoe Kenny is not quite at that level just yet, but Silva can find a cut-price solution in Wolves’ Matt Doherty.

While the Midlands side’s Portuguese power pairing of Ruben Neves and Joao Moutinho often steal the headlines, the Irishman has arguably been their most dependable performer this season and showed no signs of letting his form slip as his side edged out Chelsea on Wednesday night.

Completing two tackles and four interceptions, the versatile defender was instrumental in keeping Eden Hazard quiet but was far from a spectator when the Molineux outfit got the ball forward as he also completed two dribbles to match that of the magical Belgian.

The 26-year-old’s well-rounded showings haven’t completely gone unnoticed, though, as he was voted the PFA Fans’ Player of the Month for September; beating out the likes of Sergio Aguero and Alexander Lacazette to scoop the gong as his side climbed well into the top half, the number 2’s performance standards have not faltered in the slightest since – he has averaged a match rating of 7.32 in the league.

Some wing-backs in the league are all pace, but the five-capped international offers a physical presence that makes him a handful for wingers and full-backs alike, shown by the fact he won three aerial duels against the Blues.

When allowed to pick his head up and find a pass, the right-footer has the quality to pick out a killer through-ball or cross, as shown by his inch-perfect low whip to find Diogo Jota at the back stick, who doubled Nuno’s men’s lead and credited Doherty with an assist that took his tally for the season to three.

Valued at just £4.05m by Transfermarkt, the former Bohemians man would likely cost Everton a lot more than that – it would however represent fantastic value and he could perhaps be one of Silva’s most shrewd signings to date.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”338209″ player=”12034″ title=”Rafa’s Pub Facts Aubameyang Emulates West Ham Flop”]