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Mauricio Pochettino’s time at Tottenham has been characterised by his ability and success in developing the players he has at the disposal, and the recent emergence of 18-year-old midfielder Oliver Skipp is yet another example of this.

The academy star made his first team debut in the 3-1 Carabao Cup win over West Ham earlier this season, before making his first Premier League start against Burnley last week. Here at Football FanCast though we want to know whether he should start ahead of Harry Winks against Everton on Sunday, presuming that Moussa Sissoko will also get the nod.

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Winks was brought back in for the 2-0 win at Arsenal in the Carabao Cup on Wednesday evening, but Pochettino should surely allow Skipp to continue his strong start to life in the Premier League with a start at Goodison Park.

The England U18 international looks like he could develop into a top player and a run in the side could facilitate this.

So, Tottenham fans, would you like to see the Argentine boss back Skipp with a start ahead of Winks? Have your say by voting in the poll below.

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The Chronicle recently reported quotes from Miguel Almiron’s father stating that Newcastle United were leading the charge for the attacking-midfielder’s signature in the January transfer window.

However, until a deal is struck between the Magpies and Almiron’s MLS outfit, Atlanta United, there remains time for other interested parties to launch bids for the 24-year-old’s signature.

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One club who would be wise to try and land Almiron for themselves is Southampton. The Saints are currently desperately lacking creativity and midfield goal threat, making the 13-cap Paraguay international the perfect target for Ralph Hasenhuttl to pursue.

The Paraguayan No. 10 has been in blistering form in MLS, racking up 13 goal and 13 assists in 38 matches over the course of the 2018 campaign.

Plenty of Saints fans would certainly love to see Almiron at St Mary’s Stadium. Of those who took part in our poll, 76% voted in favour of signing the playmaker. See the full results below.

Crystal Palace supporters have been absolutely buzzing in recent times after seeing their side pick up a remarkable victory in the Premier League on Saturday.

Roy Hodgson’s men went into their encounter with league leaders and defending champions Manchester City off the back of a narrow success over Leicester City in their preceding league encounter, yet having failed to win on the road since their 1-0 victory at Huddersfield Town back in September. Yet the Eagles recorded a second away league win of the season on Saturday in brilliantly beating Pep Guardiola’s side 3-2 at the Etihad Stadium, with goals from Jeffrey Schlupp, Andros Townsend, and Luka Milivojevic inspiring the visitors to an unlikely three points.

Thus, there have been many delighted Eagles supporters up and down the country in recent times, with the vast majority of the 13 players used by Hodgson at the weekend likely coming in for praise given the excellent team performance put together by the Londoners.

Yet it was the display of right back Aaron Wan-Bissaka up against the in-form Leroy Sane which epitomised everything majestic about Hodgson’s side on Saturday.

The young defender has been one of the breakout stars of 2018 in nailing down the right back spot at Selhurst Park, with Saturday his 17th Premier League start of the campaign, missing their only other match as a result of suspension back in August.

And he came up against arguably the toughest of tests in City’s Sane on Saturday, who had scored three and assisted six in his last seven Premier League games, only to do an outstanding job on the Germany international to help the Eagles to all three points.

The Englishman won one of his two aerial duels over the course of the 90 minutes and completed five tackles to thwart the advances of Sane down the City left – that tally was the joint-most alongside Townsend of any Palace player on Saturday (as per WhoScored).

Add in three blocks, two clearances, and two interceptions, and it was an excellent all round defensive display by Wan-Bissaka to seriously minimise the impact of one of the division’s best and most in-form forwards – the 21-year-old had an answer to everything.

And, in the end, so did Hodgson’s Palace, who withstood a barrage of City pressure throughout much of the second half, with England Under-21 international Wan-Bissaka, valued at £9 million by Transfermarkt, epitomising everything majestic about the Eagles at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday.

Palace fans… what do you think? Let us know!

Tammy Abraham may have scored twice and bagged the Man of the Match award as Aston Villa drew 2-2 at home to Queens Park Rangers, but John McGinn’s influential effect on proceedings did not go unnoticed.

The 5 foot 10 star recorded the second highest WhoScored rating on Tuesday with an 8.2, narrowly edged by the on-loan striker’s 8.4, and put on a display worthy of the best performer accolade.

Recent weeks have not been kind on the 24-year-old, who struggled in Villa’s latest games against Stoke, Leeds and Preston while playing in one of the more attacking midfield slots of Dean Smith’s 4-1-4-1 system.

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Smith’s move to a 4-3-3 against QPR, as Birkir Bjarnason returned to the starting line-up at the expense of Glenn Whelan, allowed McGinn to slot back into the centre of proceedings and in turn the Scotland international pulled the strings from deep.

McGinn may have assisted Abraham’s fifth-minute opener against Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds on December 23, but the 13-cap international only recorded a pass accuracy of 58% – an appalling return for someone of his calibre, with only Orjan Nyland finding a Villans teammate on fewer occasions.

The £2.7million rated Glaswegian had visibly shaken the monkey off his back against Steve McClaren’s Hoops on Tuesday, however, as he registered a 71% pass accuracy by finding his colleagues on 22 occasions.

His one and only key pass of the game also connected with Abraham to open the scoring, as McGinn lofted a deft left-footed cross into the penalty area for the Chelsea product to head home low to Joe Lumley’s right-hand side.

The cross offset the 24-year-old’s earlier miss, when his left-footed strike hammered against the crossbar. McGinn’s powerful effort was followed by later shots blocked by Rangers defenders and then saved by the 23-year-old goalkeeper.

Defensively, the central option of Smith’s three midfielders contributed heavily, with the most successful tackles of any player in claret and blue. The 5 foot 10 ace also intercepted the ball on one occasion and registered two clearances.

Liverpool centre-back Dejan Lovren left the pitch after just five minutes of his side’s 2-1 FA Cup defeat against Wolverhampton Wanderers at Molineux on Monday night, and it surely heightened the club’s need to sign a new defender like Chelsea’s Gary Cahill this month.

What’s the word, then?

Well, the Reds are already missing Joe Gomez and Joel Matip through injury and as well as Lovren picking up a knock in the Midlands, Jurgen Klopp has also hinted that Virgil van Dijk is suffering from an issue as well.

The news comes on the back of the Merseyside outfit losing their first top-flight match of the season and following it up with a second successive reverse against Wolves, and Klopp will know that he cannot afford to take any risks when it comes to his squad as they look to win their first ever Premier League title.

While Fabinho can cover at centre-back and 16-year-old Ki-Jana Hoever impressed after replacing Lovren on Monday, the German manager should move to bring a new centre-back to the club.

Why Gary Cahill?

It’s simple really.

While the 33-year-old is approaching the twilight years of his career, he still has undoubted quality and the experience of winning two Premier League titles with Chelsea, and he will be desperate to not only prove that he can still be a key man at this level, but also to add another big trophy to his cabinet.

The England international looks set to leave the club he currently skippers on a free this month as a thanks for his services to them six months ahead of his contract expiring, and he could be the player Liverpool need next to Van Dijk during the run-in to ensure they get over the line as Manchester City begin to breathe down their necks.

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According to the BBC, Marko Arnautovic is keen to force an exit from West Ham United in this January transfer window, with the east London club having received a bid for his services from a Chinese club.

What’s the word?

The Austrian striker has been in fine form for the Hammers so far this season, registering seven goals and two assists in fifteen Premier League outings.

If he were to leave, the 29-year-old would undoubtedly be a huge loss to Manuel Pellegrini’s squad. The Chilean coach would also have to identify a replacement who could lead the line for the Irons in Arnautovic’s stead.

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The east London club should pursue a player who could match the 77-cap Austria international’s physicality and hold-up play, as well as someone capable of finding the back of the net on a regular basis.

To take up this berth, Pellegrini ought to have Genoa hitman Krzysztof Piatek at the top of his shopping list.

Not missing Arnie at all

The 23-year-old has been in scintillating form for the Serie A side so far this season. To date, the 2-cap Poland international has racked up nineteen goals and one assist in 21 outings in all competitions. 

This return is made all the more impressive when considering the fact that this is Piatek’s first campaign in Italy, with the No. 9 having only signed for Genoa from Polish outfit Cracovia in the summer.  

In fact, Piatek’s start to life in Serie A has been record-breaking. The Polish forward made the best goal-scoring start of any debutant to an Italian top flight campaign since 1949.

If Pellegrini were to bring Piatek to the Premier League and the striker could reproduce that kind of form then Hammers fans wouldn’t miss Arnautovic at all.

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Southampton should make a move to sign Theo Walcott from Everton this January as they seek attacking reinforcements.

The Saints have reportedly identified Ademola Lookman as a potential target, per the printed version of The Daily Star (January 8, page 47), with manager Ralph Hasenhuttl having worked with the winger at RB Leipzig, but Walcott would be a more realistic, and more fan-friendly target.

What’s the word?

Hasenhuttl knows Lookman well, but the Saints are also incredibly familiar with Walcott, who made his name on the south coast before a move to Arsenal.

Lookman enjoyed an excellent performance at the weekend as Everton beat Bournemouth 2-0, and created Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s goal in injury time to ensure the Toffees took all three points.

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Walcott, meanwhile, has endured a difficult campaign under Marco Silva.

After a fine start to the season, in which he scored twice and laid on an assist in his first three games, he has scored just once, in a 6-2 thrashing at the hands of Tottenham Hotspur.

Lookman, thus, is surely now the de facto first-choice at Goodison Park.

Walcott, then, is likely available…

Brilliant pace 

Southampton lack pace across their forward line.

While Shane Long is relatively quick, and Nathan Redmond has a nice turn of pace, there are very few truly lightning-quick forwards at St Mary’s.

Walcott, though, is famed for his electric speed, and has already established himself as a star at St Mary’s.

He made his debut for Southampton at the age of 16, way back in 2005, and went on to make 22 appearances for the club, scoring five goals.

Arsenal, of course, swooped to sign the teenager in 2006, paying an initial £5million.

A return to St Mary’s would surely appeal to the ex-England international, with his spell at Everton turning sour.

Walcott would offer the pace and directness that the Saints currently lack, and, at the age of 29, he has plenty of gas left in the tank.

He would cost a fraction of the price of Lookman, who, at 21, remains a key part of Everton’s future, and solve a number of problems plaguing Hasenhuttl.

The deal makes sense, and could be secured in January if the Saints boss moves quickly.

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Manchester United overcame bitter rivals Arsenal by a 3-1 scoreline at the Emirates Stadium on Friday night. The win put the Red Devils through to the next round of the FA Cup, whilst the Gunners were dumped out of the competition.

United boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has plenty to thank Romelu Lukaku for after the victory, as the 25-year-old produced a fine performance and provided two assists to put the Old Trafford club in charge of the contest.

One the chalkboard

The most impressive thing about the 79-cap Belgium international’s performance was the fact that he was operating in an unfamiliar position. The 6’3” forward usually plays as a central striker, but he was positioned on the right flank against the Gunners.

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In this berth, he was able to get the better of Sead Kolasinac by exploiting the space left behind the Arsenal left-back when he pushed forward.

Both of United’s opening goals came as a result of counterattacks when Kolasinac was caught out of position and Lukaku was able to maraud up the wing, before delivering the final ball into the box. 

Lukaku impressed in this role, and Solskjaer ought to stick with him in it.

Sticking with the experiment

Arsenal are hardly the only club to play with attack-minded full backs, so Lukaku could likely reproduce his effective performance against a number of opponents this season.

What’s more, playing Lukaku out wide frees up Marcus Rashford to play as a central striker, where he has excelled in recent weeks. 

Upon taking the United job, Solskjaer will have been tasked with getting the best out of the club’s struggling stars. His tactical vision looks to have given Lukaku a new lease of life, which could see him get his Old Trafford career back on track on the right flank. 

[ad_pod ]West Ham are reportedly close to striking a deal for Celta Vigo striker Maxi Gomez.

What’s the story?

Well, according to Sky Sports, West Ham are “closing in†on an agreement for Gomez, and are willing to meet his €50m (about £43m) release clause.

The striker has been heavily linked with a move to East London ever since Marko Arnautovic’s future was cast into doubt earlier this month.

BBCÂreported a £35m bid from China for Arnautovic, although the Austrian international expressed his desire to remain a Hammer on FridayÂand has since signed a new contract.

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A new dawn

Despite some disappointing recent results, West Ham are absolutely flying under Manuel Pellegrini, finally producing the exciting, attacking football fans have been crying out for.

Last season’s upheaval against Burnley now seems a million years ago, as the club made good use of the summer, appointing a world class manager and backing him with big name signings. Now, a move for Gomez once again shows the club being proactive and brave in the transfer market.

22 year-old Gomez has scored nine times and added five assists in a struggling Celta side this season, per Whoscored, and his rare skillset of strength, speed, skill and tenacity is very similar to that of Arnautovic.

Even if the Austrian international does stay in East London beyond this season, the move for Gomez should have fans fully confident that the club have prepared for life without their talisman – who turns 30 in April.

So, West Ham fans, do you think Gomez will join? Let us know your thoughts in the comments down below…

[ad_pod ]Aston Villa are admirers of Nottingham Forest midfielder Joe Lolley, according to a recent report in The Sun.Lolley, who joined Forest from Huddersfield Town in January 2018, has been in excellent form during the 2018-19 campaign.Indeed, the 26-year-old has scored eight times and contributed eight assists in 35 appearances in all competitions for the east Midlands outfit.The Sun have claimed that Villa see Lolley as a potential replacement for Jack Grealish, who could well leave the club at the end of the current season.He has a contract with Forest until the end of the 2021-22 campaign, meaning that Villa will have to come up with a decent offer to sign the winger.It would be fair to say that the Villa fans are in favour of the deal taking place, with many taking to social media to call on their club to sign Lolley, who played non-league football before joining Huddersfield Town in 2014.A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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