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Former Crystal Palace chairman Simon Jordan has criticised Manchester City and the football authorities as the Premier League champions look set to escape a ban from the Champions League despite breaking Financial Fair Play rules.

In May, UEFA launched an investigation into allegedly being misled with regards to the calculation of City’s finances, with the club appearing to break even by inflating the cost of a sponsorship deal.

According to The Athletic, UEFA are merely preparing to fine the Premier League club, despite fining City £49m for a previous breach of regulations back in 2014.

Speaking on TalkSPORT, Jordan attacked the unwillingness of UEFA to throw the book at City, arguing that football is not operating in the way it should.

He said: “I admire Manchester City on the pitch, I admire a lot of their commitment to the community with the regeneration surrounding the stadiums and their investment in their academy, and I know they’ve been very influential all around the area.

“I’ve also likened them to a bit of a Frankenstein club, because I don’t like the way they just seem to buy everything and have this Middle Eastern money behind it.

“The idea that football won’t regulate itself, won’t control the very rules that it seeks to impose – I think they will be forced to now, because it is becoming a very divisive subject.

“Why should the world’s biggest, most influential sport seem to think that it can operate in a way that other sports don’t think that you should operate?”

There may be an element of jealousy from Jordan given City’s riches, but his disappointment over their rather lenient impending fine is more than justified.

Jordan continued to touch on other sports’ handling of similar matters, and brings to mind the recent case of Premiership Rugby side Saracens, who were docked 35 points and fined for breaching salary cap rules – a punishment some thought was not enough.

So for City to simply be let off without a European ban – despite AC Milan suffering such a punishment this year – will surely only add insult to injury for the likes of Jordan.

City fans, has your team got off lightly? What would be the potential damage of a Champions League ban? Let us know your thoughts below!

This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets… 

If there was one word to describe Patrick Cutrone it would be enigmatic.

Once a hot prospect, he scored 18 goals in 2017/18. However, he’s since dropped off and found himself at Wolves where a lack of game-changing impact is evident.

It’s perhaps indicative of the way his career has panned out at the age of 21 that he’s playing at Molineux, rather than the San Siro, and his performances to date in England are also a hallmark of how his form has dipped.

In 2018/19, he netted nine times and he’s only scored once in the English top-flight since arriving. For a man now rated at £22.5m you’d expect more.

Restricted to a plethora of substitute appearances, he’s failed to really impress in his time on the field. The Italy international struggles to retain possession, registering a measly pass success rate of 69.2% while his goal threat, amassing just a solitary shot per game points to a man low on confidence.

However, this international break may have just renewed his vigour and brought back the swagger we saw so often from Cutrone in Serie A.

Playing for Italy U21s, he was in exceptional form as he netted twice in a 3-0 win over Iceland.

During this outing, the young forward was playing on the left-wing, rather than in a central striker position that he’s played in for Wolves. He thrived, performing three dribbles and showing a far greater threat on the opposition goal.

Being utilised in a two up front with Raul Jimenez this term simply hasn’t worked and all it has taken is one performance on the wing to prove that Nuno Santo has been going wrong with his positioning of the summer arrival.

Cutrone was utilised six times on the flanks for Milan and in the process he scored on three occasions and also picked up two assists. It shows how valuable he can be in wide positions and another example was given over the weekend.

The £16m signing has played all 15 games for Wolves in a more central role but in order for him to prosper in England, perhaps playing him on the left of Jimenez would be beneficial. After all, Diogo Jota is struggling himself and only has one strike in the Premier League.

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

According to The Sun, Manchester United are ready to exercise an option which would see them extend Eric Bailly’s contract by one year.

What’s the word?

The Ivory Coast international has been out of action for the Red Devils since suffering a knee problem against Tottenham back in the summer in pre-season, and his current deal with the club expires at the end of the campaign.

Despite his troubles, The Sun claim United are ready to stop Bailly leaving on a free, and will take up their option of a further year on the 25-year-old in the coming weeks.

The report further claims a source revealed that the club have been “very prudent” in ensuring players don’t run down their contracts, and that “for the next year, at least, we will box him off and see how his playing time fares over the rest of this season.”

Waste of money

At what point do United simply go ‘enough is enough’? Bailly’s injury hell has been hard to watch, particularly for a centre-back who, in the times he has gotten out onto the pitch, has performed reasonably well. As per Whoscored, in his debut campaign at Old Trafford after Jose Mourinho signed him for £30m, he averaged an impressive 2.4 tackles, 2.4 interceptions and five clearances per game in the Premier League.

But that was more than two years ago. Since then, the Ivorian has been beset with injury after injury, and as per Transfermarkt, has already missed a staggering 62 games for the Red Devils. Whilst simply adding one year on to his deal doesn’t seem like much, his reported £80k-a-week contract will continue to be an albatross around United’s finances. The club are effectively paying someone who you wouldn’t bet on playing on a regular basis.

With Harry Maguire and Victor Lindelof seemingly Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s established partnership at centre-back, and with academy product Axel Tuanzebe waiting in the wings too, United have an abundance of options in the position. They should really be ruthless and cut their losses on Bailly, and quite simply, move on.

A lot of Aston Villa fans are not pleased to see a graphic on Twitter which shows fan favourite and club captain Jack Grealish in Birmingham colours.

The image also shows Jude Bellingham in the colours of Villa, prompting the Blues fan who found and shared the image to the site to say, “Just been sick in my mouth.”

With football postponed due to recent events, it seems like fans are trying to find ways to be entertained, and putting players in the colours of their rivals is a new trend which has not gone down well.

Both Grealish and Bellingham have had good seasons, and the two attackers have seen themselves linked with moves to Manchester United, per the Manchester Evening News and Sky Sports. Indeed, Grealish has had a great season, contributing to 38% of Villa’s goals in the Premier League this season with seven goals and six assists in 28 games, per SofaScore.

The two rivals despise each other but it seems like this image has managed to unite both fanbases as they both do not like the concept.

Here’s what fans had to say following the post:

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Leeds United fans have reacted to Liam Cooper’s comments on who he supported growing up as a kid via a Q&A on the club’s official website.

Cooper has played a big part in the success at Elland Road this season, helping The Whites to sit top of the Championship as thing stand.

Born in Hull and starting his professional career with the Tigers, Cooper would have three loan spells away from the club before moving permanently to Chesterfield.

Impressing, Cooper would finally earn a bigger move, joining Leeds in 2014, and he has since gone on to become a key starter at the club, making a total of 190 appearances for the West Yorkshire outfit (Transfermarkt).

Due to the current coronavirus pandemic, footballers across England have been engaging with fans over social media, official website’s and more to keep them entertained.

Club captain Cooper took part in a new series from take-away service Deliveroo, receiving questions from the club’s fans, and one response in particular has gained a response from Leeds fans.

Asked: ‘Who did you support growing up?’, Cooper responded with comments about his dad’s loyalties towards West Ham United and his families ties with Hull City, before revealing that he was a Leeds fan.

Below are just some of the responses gained to Cooper’s answer on supporting Leeds:

Missing football!? There’s still plenty of Leeds discussion going on in the Vital Leeds Forum! Click here to get involved!

As Jose Mourinho looks forward to his first summer in charge at Tottenham, he will know that the north London side may require a lot of wheeling and dealing to get the squad in his own image.

The Lilywhites have endured a difficult campaign this season filled with injuries and off-the-pitch turbulence, and it’s no surprise that before football was postponed, they found themselves lying in eight place in the Premier League and seven points off the all-important top four.

With finances set to be tight due to the current climate, Mourinho will certainly be wary of potentially not getting all the signings he needs.

The Greatest Bargains in Premier League history – How much did they cost?

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But according to 90min, Spurs are the latest club to be interested in West Ham midfielder Declan Rice. And to even sweeten a potential deal to bring him across London, the Lilywhites are willing to offer Eric Dier as some sort of a part- exchange deal to convince the Hammers to sell one of their prized assets.

If Spurs can bring Rice to the club by offering smaller amount of money and giving back Dier, then it would go down as a masterstroke from Daniel Levy.

Dier hasn’t enjoyed the greatest seasons either on-the-pitch or off it, featuring only 14 times in the Premier League and of course getting into an altercation with a section of the Spurs support after the FA Cup defeat to Norwich earlier this year.

Both he and Rice are in a similar mould in terms of their playing styles, with the duo equally capable of playing the holding midfield role as they are at filling in at centre-back. But to put it bluntly, the latter is quite simply a much better upgrade on what Spurs currently have to offer.

As per Whoscored, Rice averages an impressive three tackles and 2.1 interceptions per game, and has a pass accuracy of 86.2% in the Premier League this season. Compare that to Dier, who averages just 1.4 tackles and 0.8 interceptions per game, and has a pass accuracy of 77.7%.

The Hammers man comfortably betters his Spurs counterpart in the key categories for their position, and it’s why Levy could kill two birds with one stone this summer. By getting rid of Dier, they would be cutting their losses on a player who just isn’t good enough at the level the Lilywhites need to be at.

And in the same deal, they would be getting someone in return who is markedly better and would improve Mourinho’s team straight off the bat.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans elated by this transfer report.

Tottenham Hotspur continue to be linked to Fenerbahce striker Vedat Muriqi and fresh reports this week suggest that Daniel Levy has actually bid for him, sparking a reaction from the north London fanbase.

According to Turkish outlet A Spor, Spurs have offered £4.5m for the Kosovan’s services whilst Italian duo Lazio and Napoli are said to also be keen on Muriqi.

The 26-year-old has been in decent form this term, bagging 15 goals and six assists in 28 appearances in all competitions, via Transfermarkt.

But it is not Muriqi’s goalscoring prowess that Spurs fans have been discussing on Twitter this week but rather the bold yet small figure of £4.5m being bid.

The Champions League runners-up may have broke their transfer record in the summer, splashing £55m on midfielder Tanguy Ndombele, but in the past Levy has been known for his tough negotiations that have often left Spurs behind.

Cameo Clubs: Which obscure teams did these football legends play for?

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Sir Alex Ferguson once said dealing with the Spurs chairman was ‘more painful’ than his hip replacement, so that tells it all really.

And that is why supporters have singled out the higher hierarchy at the club, blasting him for being up to his old ways.

Here’s what has been said…

AND in other news, Spurs fans react over reported Morgan Sanson interest…

The rumoured deal of Timo Werner to Liverpool is likely to be the will-he, won’t-he transfer saga of the summer.

The Reds have now been linked with the 24-year-old since last year, and his form this term has done little to cool down the speculation of a potential switch. So far this campaign, he has managed 27 goals in all competitions, and the Anfield outfit’s supporters will no doubt be keeping an eye on the striker as the Bundesliga approaches the end of its campaign in the coming weeks.

The latest update on the situation appears to illustrate how desperate Jurgen Klopp is to sign him. According to Le10 Sport, the 52-year-old has involved himself in the negotiations and has called the Germany international several times to explain his project to him.

The club’s supporters have been reacting to this latest update in their droves, and they have taken to Twitter to do so. You can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

Let us know what you think!

Former Manchester City striker Shaun Goater believes that “serial winner” Pep Guardiola will not be content to let the rest of the Premier League season play out, even with his team seemingly having little at stake in the competition this season.

The champions of the past two years are almost certain to lose their title to runaway leaders Liverpool, who hold a 25-point lead at the top of the table, while a gap of 12 points to fifth-placed Manchester United means that they are highly likely to finish in the top four. Even that won’t see them into next season’s Champions League, though, if their upcoming appeal against a two-year ban from UEFA competitions is unsuccessful.

Guardiola’s team are only four points ahead of Leicester in third, though, and Goater believes that the thirst for success from a manager who has won 29 trophies in his career will ensure that he doesn’t allow his team’s league season to peter out.

The Bermuda native told Sky Sports [via Manchester Evening News]: “Pep Guardiola is a serial winner and it seems very odd that we’re talking about solidifying second place, and what a win could do in terms of creating that gap and solidifying that.

“This seems very odd to be so far behind but that just shows the amazing season Liverpool have had. [Guardiola] will without doubt want to finish second. He will look at this as a bad season and think ‘Yeah we’ve got some way to go, we’ve had some inconsistencies but we want to improve on that’, but no doubt he wants to finish second.”

Goater is right to emphasise just how important it will be to Guardiola not to let Manchester City’s league position slip any further – only once in 11 seasons as a manager has he finished outside the top two, and that was a third-place finish in his first year at the Etihad Stadium in 2016/17 (as per TransferMarkt).

It appears that, league pride aside, there will still be plenty of incentive for the Cityzens in the remaining weeks of the season. The FA Cup and Champions League, both of which they remain involved, are set to resume over the coming weeks, so Guardiola will surely be eager for his team to maintain winning momentum in the Premier League to support their bids to win those two competitions.

As per Manchester Evening News, the Spaniard is on record as saying that winning those two competitions along with the Community Shield and Carabao Cup that have already been secured would still be inferior to Premier League triumph because the latter is “the most beautiful and the most difficult” to win.

Considering that Guardiola is a manager who once berated his team for a substandard warm-up not long after they clinched the league title two years ago (as per the Amazon Prime All or Nothing series), Goater is quite right in saying that the 49-year-old will be determined to at least secure second place in the division this term if, as seems inevitable, a third successive title is beyond them.

Man City fans, how seriously do you think Guardiola will take the rest of the Premier League season? Let us know in the comments section below!

Aston Villa ace John McGinn is on Leicester’s radar this summer as Brendan Rodgers reignites his interest in the Scot.

According to The Sunday Times (via The Boot Room), the Foxes are eyeing up the midfield talent as the transfer window creeps up. Rodgers is reportedly looking to sign the player on whom he missed out during his time with Celtic.

Villa were dealt a huge blow in December after McGinn suffered a fractured ankle in a Premier League match against Southampton.

Before his injury, the 25-year-old was enjoying a solid performance despite Villa struggling in a relegation battle. McGinn currently has three goals and two assists in the Premier League from the middle of the park, which are solid numbers given the club’s current situation (via Transfermarkt).

Prior to McGinn’s move to England in 2018, Rodgers was looking to poach the playmaker from rival Scottish side Hibernian. He missed out on his signature after Villa snubbed the move, offering the midfielder a four-year deal (via BBC Sport). It seems that the Irishman’s interest in McGinn didn’t go away and he is once again a target for the 47-year-old ahead of the transfer window.

If Aston Villa are to face the drop this season, it’s likely that high-profile players will want to leave the ship before it sinks. Jack Grealish is on the radar of a lot of Premier League clubs, including Manchester United. McGinn could also be looking for a move should the worst come for the Midlands side.

Leicester could be an ideal destination for the Scotland international. The Foxes have had a blistering 2019/20 season, going toe-to-toe with Manchester City as they challenge for second place in the table. Champions League football is a very hard lure to turn down and McGinn could be tempted by the opportunity to face some of the world’s best players in that competition.

Under new management and with world-class players around him, the 25-year-old should thrive. He could also slot in as a replacement for James Maddison, who has been linked with a move away from the King Power Stadium with big interest surrounding his name this summer.

McGinn’s Transfermarkt value is currently £14.4m, which could predict a similar asking price should Villa suffer relegation.

Do you think John McGinn would make a good Leicester signing? Have your say in the comments below!