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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Sheffield Wednesday’s latest situation has drawn comment from one of Sky Sports’ Championship pundits as Don Goodman feels sorry for manager Garry Monk as he believes they have, or at least had, genuine playoff ambitions.

What’s he said?

Late last week, the EFL charged the Owls for financial misconduct over the £60m sale of Hillsborough stadium to owner Dejphon Chansiri.

It is something that the club intends to contest at the earliest opportunity, although one football finance expert has claimed that Wednesday are in line to face a 12-point deduction at the very least.

No penalty has yet been confirmed.

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Speaking on Sky Sports’ EFL Podcast this week, Goodman said:

“How unlucky can you be if you’re Garry Monk?

“It seems to have been a blatant disregard of the rules and that’s why they may well be hit very hard.

“You’ve got to feel for Garry Monk, you’ve got to feel for the fans.

“With Sheffield Wednesday, this season represents a wonderful opportunity for so many clubs that haven’t been around that area for quite some time and they are one of them.

“They have genuine playoff ability within that squad and Garry Monk, so any kind of points deduction is really going to hit them, you feel.”

Trouble follows Monk

It is not the first time that Monk has had to face such a situation.

During his reign at Birmingham City last season, the Midlands club were slashed with a nine-point deduction in March, which had them teetering around the relegation zone after having a somewhat decent season beforehand.

If anything that comes as a positive to the Owls as their chief in command has been through it all before, but as Goodman says, how unlucky do you have to be to face such circumstances in back-to-back seasons.

This is going to effectively end their promotion ambitions if the repercussions come into effect soon as they will go from being three points outside the playoff zone to on the border of the relegation zone overnight.

Barcelona are currently struggling to find their form.

Their latest two bouts were not really a success as the Catalans drew their Champions League clash with Slavia Prague and ended up losing against Levante last weekend.

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By all accounts, not really favourable results for a club of their magnitude.

But what was even more surprising to many of the Blaugrana fans was Ernesto Valverde’s reported reaction after the mid-week goalless draw.

According to David Ibanez, a journalist for Telecinco and Desportes Cuatro, the Basque coach has given his players a day off after the disappointing Slavia Prague game.

Upon hearing this update, however, many of the supporters simply couldn’t believe it and they quickly bashed their coach for bad management.

Some of them seem to believe the players don’t deserve such soft treatment after those poor displays and think that it isn’t the right way to handle the situation.

You can see some of their replies down in the collection of tweets below:

Wolverhampton Wanderers are cooking up some transfer activity during this international break as The Athletic correspondent Tim Spiers has claimed that the club have signed a new player.

The club reporter stated on Twitter that PSV prospect Nigel Lonwijk is set to join Molineux after agreeing terms over a contract.

Spiers also says that the 17-year-old will go straight into the academy setup, which has no doubt been Fosun’s doing as they have heavily invested in their development squads in recent times.

This summer saw Pedro Neto and Bruno Jordao join from Lazio while Meritan Shabani and Raphael Nya make the switch from Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich.

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It appears that their plan hasn’t stopped just yet, leaving many fans reacting to the imminent addition on social media.

One supporter claimed the centre-back looks like a young Virgil van Dijk while another called him a ‘regen’ of the defensive colossus.

A further member of the old gold faithful said Lonwijk was an ‘interesting signing’ and hoped he would be involved in the FA Cup squad soon enough with one more asking for some first-team additions.

Here’s the best of the reaction:

Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang scored a late penalty as Gabon beat Burkina Faso 1-0 during a friendly.

The Gabonese striker made the difference for his country once more as his strike six minutes from time won the game at the Stade Municipal.

After a scintillating start in the Premier League, the 30-year-old – who has scored seven goals in eight Premier League games this season – transferred his domestic form onto the international stage.

His recent form earned him the EA Sports Player of the Month award for September and a real incentive for the prolific striker to continue his form as the intense Christmas period approaches.

Fans were understandably delighted with Aubameyang and the fact that he consistently finds himself on the scoresheet.

One fan stated that he is the “best striker in the world”, while another said that he should be given a lifetime contract at the Emirates.

Here you will find some of the best responses from Arsenal fans:

Arsenal fans were impressed with Shkodran Mustafi’s performance as the Gunners beat Vitoria 3-2 in the Europa League on Thursday evening.The Gunners fell behind after eight minutes as former Tottenham Hotspur youngster Marcus Edwards netted, but Gabriel Martinelli equalised later in the first half.Bruno Duarte put the Portuguese side back in front and Unai Emery’s men were rescued by two late free-kicks from Nicolas Pepe, with the second coming in the 92nd minute.Per WhoScored, Mustafi had 85 touches of the ball throughout the game and also won a game-high 11 aerial duels, along with two successful tackles and one interception.And, despite the club conceding twice, fans were quick to praise Mustafi for his showing at The Emirates.

Indeed, he has yet to play in the Premier League this season, though he has made three appearances in Europe and one in the Carabao Cup.

Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

Many Leeds United supporters have been reacting on social media, after Leeds Live claimed that Mateusz Klich and Luke Ayling are set to sign new contracts at the Elland Road outfit imminently.

The Whites have recently tied Kalvin Phillips down to a new five-year contract, and agreed terms with Liam Cooper and Stuart Dallas to pen new five and four-year deals respectively.

Klich is expected to follow his teammates in putting pen to paper in the coming days, and commit his long-term future to the Championship outfit currently topping the second-tier table on goal difference over Swansea City.

Poland international Klich has featured in all of the eight league games played so far this term (WhoScored), and has contributed one goal while assisting the opener at home to Nottingham Forest before Sabri Lamouchi’s men later equalised.

He had a chance to double his personal goal tally for the term from the penalty spot on Saturday when Phillip Cocu’s Derby County travelled to Elland Road, but rolled the ball the wrong side of Kelle Roos’ post before the Rams pulled level in stoppage-time.

Leeds are keen to cement Klich’s place in Marcelo Bielsa’s plans with a new deal, as his current terms are due to expire in the summer of 2020, and doubt remains over an alleged 12-month option to extend.

The West Yorkshire outfit are also said to be in talks with Ayling over a new contract, and an announcement of his continued future should follow that of Klich’s, as negotiations are believed to be progressing positively.

Ayling is yet to feature for the Leeds first-team so far this season as a result of his ankle surgery carried over the summer break, but continued to step up his rehabilitation process in the Under 23s last week as he completed 70 minutes for Carlos Corberan’s junior side against Hull City (Yorkshire Evening Post).

The London-born 28-year-old made 42 appearances for Leeds across all competitions last season (TransferMarkt), scoring twice and assisting six goals all in the regular Championship campaign.

Here are a few of the reactions shared to news that Ayling and Klich are in line to sign new, long-term contracts….

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

According to Sky Sports, Callum Wilson is high on Manchester United’s list of striker targets ahead of the January transfer window.

What’s the word?

The Red Devils have struggled in front of goal this season, scoring nine times in their opening seven Premier League games. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side let go of both Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez earlier in the summer, leaving just Marcus Rashford, Anthony Martial and Mason Greenwood as their only striking options.

The United boss recently admitted his club would be looking to sign a new forward next, and Sky Sports now claim Bournemouth hotshot Wilson and Juventus veteran Mario Mandzukic are high up on the list of targets.

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

The report adds Wilson would “fall in line” with the Red Devils’ apparent policy of trying to sign leading British players, after capturing the likes of Daniel James, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire this year.

Proven goal-scorer

As Solskjaer himself revealed, it doesn’t take a “rocket scientist” to work out United need a new centre-forward. The injury to Martial has increased the goal-scoring burden on Rashford, and suffice to say he has failed miserably in his attempts to lead the line. In seven league games, the Red Devils striker has notched just three goals – two of them coming from the penalty spot.

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In Wilson however, the Manchester side would be getting a Premier League proven goal-scorer.

Last season, the 27-year-old bagged himself 14 goals and provided a further ten assists, whilst his start to the current campaign has been even more impressive. The England international has struck five times in seven appearances in the top-flight, and has been leading the line with aplomb for the Cherries.

Speaking after his performance for England against the USA last year, Jamie Redknapp delivered an impressive verdict on what the striker brings to the table.

“I have watched him at Bournemouth a lot and he works his socks off. He makes things happen, he puts defenders under pressure. He has got what defenders hate, running in behind, in between defenders. He’s extremely powerful and holds defenders off and he is an absolute nightmare.”

Someone like the Bournemouth forward who can press opposition defenders, cause them problems and be clinical enough to take his chances, is exactly what United need. The Red Devils would be making an incredibly smart choice in ending their Rashford misery by swooping for Wilson in January.

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Former Chelsea and Manchester United manager Jose Mourinho thinks Tottenham will finish ahead of Arsenal in the Premier League this season.

What did he say?

The Gunners and Spurs played out an intense and thrilling affair on Sunday in the first north London derby of the campaign. Mauricio Pochettino’s side move into a 2-0 lead, but Unai Emery and co were able to claw their way back to a 2-2 draw.

Following the match, Mourinho shared his thoughts on the two sides, and said he believes Tottenham will end the season in a higher position than their great rivals. He said on Sky Sports’ Super Sunday (via The Daily Express):

“I still think Tottenham.

“I still think what we laughed about when we were at Old Trafford, when I gave my four candidates to win the title, definitely City and Liverpool and then Tottenham is still the third-best team.

“But I like many things on the Arsenal squad.”

“It feels like a loss” – that was the view of a Spurs fan after this weekend’s North London Derby in the video below…

Arsenal to fall short despite positive attributes

There were plenty of positives for Arsenal to take from the game against Spurs. The fight they displayed to earn a draw when the game looked dead at 2-0 will set them in good stead this term. Also, the presence of Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Alexandre Lacazette and Nicolas Pepe moving forward will make them a dangerous proposition for any side.

However, when looking at Spurs’ squad, the talent is evenly spread out, where as Arsenal’s looks a little attack and midfield-heavy. There is a reason this Tottenham side made it to the Champions League final last term. Throughout the team, there are fantastic players such as Hugo Lloris, Toby Alderweireld, Christian Eriksen and Harry Kane, whilst the signings of Tanguy Ndombele, Ryan Sessegnon and Giovani Lo Celso should only strengthen the side. Emery, meanwhile, appears to have too many players who he does not fancy, such as Mohamed Elneny and Shkodran Mustafi. There is still some top quality there, such as the aforementioned attacking trio and others such as Dani Ceballos, but there appears to be less than what Pochettino can choose from.

Arsenal may have displayed grit and character, but it is talent that wins you points. As such, Tottenham should just edge the Gunners in the table.

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Wolves cruised into the next round of Europa League qualifying by repeating their first leg exploits with another 4-0 whitewash against Armenian outfit Pyunik.

The result was the club’s highest-ever aggregate score in a European competition and the first time they have recorded back-to-back wins in Europe since the 1971/72 season.

There were goals from a quartet of players, all of which came in the second half with Pedro Neto, Morgan Gibbs-White, Ruben Vinagre and Diogo Jota all scoring – the latter with the pick of the bunch after netting a sublime overhead kick three minutes from time.

Nuno Santo’s men are now just two games away from the group stages with Serie A side Torino standing in their way.

The performance from one of Wolves’ goalscorers has particularly drawn mass debate amongst the Molineux crowd.

Gibbs-White scored his first competitive professional goal for the club after 57 appearances and fans are torn over the 19-year-old with one believing he’s still some way off the mark but another noted that he’s a brilliant talent.

One supporter claimed that you would expect the 5 foot 10 midfielder to shine against a team of Pyunik’s stature and one day he will be great but for now he makes far too many mistakes.

Another fan added that he couldn’t understand the abuse the youngster gets as he’s a local lad whilst one said that Gibbs-White just doesn’t get him excited.

Here’s the best of the reaction:

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Speaking to 888sport, former Arsenal striker Jeremie Aliadiere has hailed Ainsley Maitland-Niles and revealed that the midfielder’s versatility is “priceless” to the team.

What did he say?

The Gunners academy product was predominantly used by Unai Emery as a right-back or a right wing-back last season following the long-term injury suffered by Hector Bellerin.

The Englishman has also previously played as a left-back and further forward in midfield and out wide, and his versatility was praised by Aliadiere.

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He said: “I rate Maitland-Niles really highly. With injuries last season it’s been tough for him on that level but he’s got all the attributes to become a top player.

“I think this season could be really big for him because it looks like Arsenal doesn’t have a lot of money to spend so I’m sure they will be counting on him. I like the fact that he’s so versatile and technically he’s very good and confident on the ball. The fact that Maitland-Niles can play anywhere makes him priceless to the team.”

An unsung hero

For someone who remains only 21, Maitland-Niles has proven himself to be mature way beyond his years. The England U21 international has time and time again answered the call for the team, and put himself in difficult situations for the greater good.

He coped admirably in an unfamiliar right-back role last season, and did so with little complaint. There were very few occasions where Maitland-Niles came in for criticism, despite the shoddy state of the defence as a whole, and that is a credit to his performances and commitment to the cause.

Reports in recent weeks have suggested that first-team regular Bellerin will miss the opening games of the Premier League campaign, and so it appears Maitland-Niles will once again have to fill in for his fellow teammate. As the Gunners’ leadership is questioned through captain Laurent Koscielny’s actions, one man whose heart cannot be debated is Maitland-Niles, and that is something to cherish.