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Crystal Palace have been handed a significant defensive injury boost, with left-back Tyrick Mitchell ready to return to action.

The young defender has not played a single minute of Premier League action since the 2-1 victory against Brighton & Hove Albion in late February.

However, Eagles boss Roy Hodgson revealed the news of his return in a press conference, stating that Mitchell is “fully fit and available to play”.

His return will certainly be welcomed by Palace as the season enters its final stretch. Since breaking into the first team at Selhurst Park, the 21-year-old has developed a reputation as one of the most promising young defenders in the Premier League.

He has gone on to make 18 appearances for the Eagles, with his early performances being labelled as “excellent” by Hodgson.

The left-back has certainly been missed this season, too, having been absent for eight of Palace’s Premier League matches, whilst having been selected on the bench a further nine times (Transfermarkt). In matches where he has played, Hodgson’s troops have racked up a 38% win percentage in the Premier League and conceded on average 1.5 goals per game.

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Meanwhile, when Mitchell has been restricted to the sidelines, whether that be through injury or suspension, that win rate falls dramatically to 29%, with a further 1.6 goals conceded per game.

Even when comparing him to left-back rival and experienced campaigner Patrick van Aanholt, the youngster comes out on top. According to WhoScored, Mitchell produces far more tackles (3.6 to 1.6) and more clearances (2.5 to 1.6) per game in the Premier League this season than the Dutchman.

Judging by his statistics, the youngster’s return to fitness should be a big boost to Crystal Palace as the season enters the final stretch and the Eagles aim to secure a top ten finish.

AND in more news, take a look at which European giant has provided a big clue as to who the next Palace boss could be…

After being tested in a new right-back role against Manchester City in midweek, Ryan Bertrand returned to a more natural left-back position for the Saints’ game against Brighton on Sunday afternoon.

Unfortunately for Ralph Hasenhuttl, the 31-year-old produced another poor display, as the Seagulls claimed a 2-1 victory which leaves Southampton looking over their shoulders at the relegation spaces, as their woeful run of form continued at St Mary’s.

The former Chelsea man is yet to agree to a new contract with the South Coast club and Arsenal are reportedly taking an interest in him ahead of the summer, which makes you question whether he is completely focussed on Southampton right now.

As per SofaScore, Bertrand would earn a 6.8/10 rating for his performance, which was nowhere near the worst of any Saints player, however, his attacking play against Brighton was truly awful.

The left-back would fail with his only dribble attempt, whilst only one of his six crosses during the game would find a Southampton shirt.

His passing was nowhere near its usual standard, as he would complete just 33/49 of his passes, resulting in a poor accuracy rate of 67% – significantly below the 79.5% he has averaged in the Premier League this season.

None of his four long balls were accurate and he managed to lose possession on a remarkable 28 occasions, which was the most of any Southampton player on the pitch, and only second to Pascal Gross from Brighton’s team, with the German losing the ball 32 times during the game.

Whilst his defensive game was fairly solid, as he made four tackles and three clearances, the experienced defender’s attacking output has been a cause for concern all season, as he has just one assist to his name in the top-flight, and the game against Brighton was unfortunately no different.

Bertrand has to start offering Hasenhuttl more down the left-hand side from an attacking perspective, especially with the Saints struggling to create opportunities in the absence of Danny Ings.

As one of few experienced options in a fairly young Southampton side, it was a disappointing display from Bertrand once again against Brighton, and hopefully, his form will improve before the end of the season as Hasenhuttl really has his hands tied behind his back when it comes to possibly selecting an alternative, with back-up left-back Jake Vokins having left on loan in January.

And, in other news… Forget Forster: Saints can sign serious McCarthy upgrade in £8.6m beast

According to reports, Leeds United are eyeing a move for Stade Brest’s Romain Faivre.

What’s the story?

French publication L’Equipe claim that Marcelo Bielsa’s side have been monitoring the £7.2m-rated ace for several months now, but that they face a battle to land his signature in the summer transfer window.

The report adds that the likes of Bayer Leverkusen and Borussia Dortmund are also said to be interested, while Serie A giants Inter are known to be long-term admirers too.

Another Raphinha

One of the biggest success stories at Elland Road this season has of course been Raphinha, with the Brazilian enjoying a superb debut campaign in the Premier League – he’s scored five goals and provided another five assists in 22 games in the competition.

In Faivre, Victor Orta could sign someone remarkably similar in terms of his dribbling, and ability to both create and finish chances too.

His teammate at Brest, Steve Mounie, said: “He’s an elegant player, you know, as you can see. He’s a brilliant dribbler, every weekend he does some enjoyable dribbles, and he helps us a lot, he creates chances, and helps the team in different kind of ways.”

It’s something Brest manager, Olivier Dall’Oglio, waxed lyrical about too, saying: “He’s a boy with real potential. He’s comfortable on the ball, and fast in possession, he’s got great vision too. He’s got something special. He rarely loses the ball, he can break through the lines by dribbling, and his passing creates so many chances for us. He’s a boy who can provide passes, but who’s also capable of scoring goals.”

Given the rave reviews Faivre has earned, it’s no surprise to see that Leeds are interested in signing him. With the Frenchman predominantly playing on the left-flank – he’s been used there 14 times this season –  Orta would land someone who can work in tandem with Raphinha on the opposite flank.

Teams would no longer be able to try and double-team Raphinha in the knowledge that Faivre could wreak just as much havoc with his dribbling on the other side, and that would open up a different dimension for Bielsa and Leeds.

Having multiple strings to your bow, especially at Premier League level is crucial, and Faivre’s arrival would give Leeds a potent edge to their attack on the left-hand side just as they have on the right. You only have to look at Liverpool’s recent success with two wide players in the likes of Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane to see how influential and effective a team can be when they have a pair of wingers able to cause damage.

Meanwhile, this Leeds man is surely facing an uncertain future after Bielsa’s decision…

Manchester City have been linked with a move for Real Sociedad striker Alexander Isak recently, and he could be a serious upgrade on Gabriel Jesus in Pep Guardiola’s squad if he were to join.

What’s the word?

According to the Mirror, City are keeping close tabs on the 21-year-old forward after his impressive run of form with the Spanish side, and they could make a move for him in the summer.

Whilst Borussia Dortmund have an option to re-sign him for just £25 million, it is suggested that he doesn’t want to return to Signal Iduna Park anytime soon, which could open the door for City to bring him to the Premier League.

More clinical than Gabriel Jesus?

Whilst City have been unbelievably good at times this season, winning their last 20 fixtures in all competitions, there have been times where you feel they could have been a lot more comfortable if they possessed a quality finisher up front.

Sergio Aguero made his return from injury against West Ham at the weekend but struggled to have any real impact on the game, and with his contract up in the summer, it is still up in the air as to whether he will still be a City player next season.

Despite City’s dominance in league and cup competitions this season, Jesus has just nine goals and three assists in 26 appearances and has been guilty of being wasteful in front of goal on a number of occasions.

Isak, meanwhile, has 12 goals and two assists in just 20 La Liga appearances this season and has averaged an impressive 7.22 rating for his performances in the Spanish top-flight.

The Swedish forward, who is valued at £19.8 million by Transfermarkt, also averages more shots per game than Jesus (2.5 compared to 1.7), suggesting that he is more goal-hungry than the Brazilian, which is a trait City arguably lack, as sometimes it is better for a striker to be greedy and shoot rather than looking for the pass.

The football scouting website FBref suggests that Isak has scored more goals than his expected goals rate, and is expected to score 0.51 goals per game, whereas Jesus has scored fewer goals than expected, and is expected to score 0.48 goals per game.

Therefore, you could definitely argue that Isak is much more clinical than the 24-year-old, despite being just 21-years-old, and therefore, sporting director Txiki Begiristain should definitely consider him as an option for the summer transfer window.

And, in other news… Fewer passes than Ederson: £45m-rated City ace failed to seize rare opportunity vs WHU

According to The Mirror, Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos is reportedly pushing for a move to the Premier League amid interest from Manchester United.

What’s the word?

The centre-back has been heavily linked with the Red Devils for much of the window, with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer seemingly keen to bolster his defensive reinforcements.

Boss Solskjaer is reportedly looking to bring in a new centre-back to provide cover and competition for the likes of Harry Maguire, Eric Bailly, Victor Lindelof and Axel Tuanzebe.

And now, it seems that Ramos is so desperate to move to the Premier League, he is getting his agent and brother Rene to pull out all the stops to get a deal done.

It’s claimed contract talks between Madrid and the defender have collapsed, with the Spain international likely to leave the defending Spanish champions in the summer.

Solskjaer’s plan B

Maguire is pretty much guaranteed to start but Solskjaer has struggled to find consistency alongside the club captain, as Bailly and Lindelof are battling to bag the unreserved spot, though there are still question marks over both.

But if United nip and snap up the 34-year-old, who earns around £312,000-per-week at the Bernabeu, they could find the ideal partner for captain Maguire.

Signing Ramos would be a significant upgrade on Lindelof, who has struggled for consistency so far this season – against Liverpool, he was rated as the joint-worst player on the pitch for the Red Devils, along with Edinson Cavani in the 3-2 win at Old Trafford.

Despite his age, the veteran Ramos has shown no signs of slowing down anytime soon, as he currently averages more tackles (1.1) and more interceptions (1.5) per match across all competitions than Lindelof, per WhoScored.

Ramos is widely regarded as one of the finest defenders of his generation, with current Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane calling the Spanish international “a complete player” in an interview with SPORTbible.

Ed Woodward, therefore, would be wise to sanction a move for the experienced colossus in the summer as not only would he provide cover and competition for the likes of Maguire, Lindelof and Bailly, but he’d also offer an alternative threat in attack as well, having scored two goals in 14 top-flight appearances this season thus far.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Carlton Palmer rubbishes talk of Donny van de Beek leaving Man Utd on loan…

Many Liverpool fans were left stunned by reports regarding Bayern Munich defender David Alaba.

According to the Mirror, the 28-year-old is beyond the Reds’ reach as far as finances are concerned despite the Austrian centre-back due to be out of contract in the summer, news which some fans found ’embarrassing’.

Alaba is deemed to be too expensive for Liverpool due to his wages, while Napoli’s Kalidou Koulibaly and RB Leipzig’s Dayot Upamecano are also out of reach.

The nine-time Bundesliga champion has scored 32 goals from 405 appearances for Bayern over the course of 10 seasons, which included a brief loan spell at Hoffenheim in 2011 (TransferMarkt).

With the likes of Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez out for the season due to knee injuries, supporters were livid with this update. With Joel Matip unable to stay fit, some supporters felt humiliated about the fact their side couldn’t afford a player of Alaba’s calibre.

Fans in shock by Alaba update

“That’s literally not possible. We are one of the wealthiest clubs in the world. I could understand if he wanted £1m a week but he is not out of reach at all.”

Credit: @ronakricky

“embarrassing if true.. getting him in a free, wages should not be a problem!”

Credit: @RyanKeyo

“Wow. Financially out of reach in signing or wages, I don’t get.”

Credit: @Alexand36742345

“Embarrassing owners how are we so poor when we are champions”

Credit: @jmwLFC2000

“This is where FSG let themselves down and invite scrutiny on themselves. We clearly aren’t poor but they make out like they are so they don’t have to spend money.”

Credit: @Braden_Simmonds

“FSG out”

Credit: @SeanMG_

In other news, Exclusive: Carlton Palmer provides viewpoint on potential Georginio Wojnaldum replacements.

Liverpool have been linked with LOSC Lille midfielder Renato Sanches recently and the 23-year-old could prove to be the Reds’ replacement for Georginio Wijnaldum.

According to Le10 Sport, Jurgen Klopp is a big admirer of Sanches and believes that he could be the ideal replacement for Wijnaldum, who looks increasingly likely to leave the Merseyside club this summer when his contract expires.

Whilst the former Bayern Munich man struggle in his last spell in the Premier League with Swansea City on loan, his performances since joining the Ligue 1 side have demonstrated that he has a lot of quality.

Last season, the Portuguese international made 19 appearances in the French top-flight, contributing three goals and one assist, which helped him average a superb 7.13 rating.

He has continued his strong form with Les Dogues this season, averaging a solid 6.98 rating across his eight appearances in Ligue 1.

Despite being just 23-years-old, the midfielder already has 22 caps for his country and was one of the stars of Portugal’s Euro 2016 campaign, which saw them win the competition.

Liverpool also may be able to take advantage of Lille’s worrying financial situation to sign the £18 million-rated midfielder on a cut-price deal, suggesting that this is definitely a transfer that Michael Edwards could complete.

Earlier this year, Lille coach Christophe Galtier lauded the midfielder’s recent displays, saying:

“He has a capacity to play. He has personality, his balance is excellent. He’s a high-level player who needs to apply his qualities in service of the team.”

Considering WhoScored rates Sanches’ passing, dribbling and defensive contribution amongst his strongest attributes, it definitely seems as if he could replace Wijnaldum in this team, as his style of play could prove to be a perfect fit with the Reds.

The Dutch midfielder is undoubtedly going to be a tough player for the Merseyside club to supersede, considering he has featured 206 times for Klopp’s side, contributing 20 goals and 16 assists, whilst also writing himself into Liverpool folklore after his brace against Barcelona in the Champions League semi-final.

However, the Reds cannot afford to not replace the 30-year-old, and it seems as if Sanches could be the ideal man to step in at Anfield, so long as he doesn’t replicate his performances with Swansea City from the last time he was in England.

And, in other news… Forget Firmino: LFC beast was Klopp’s true hero vs Spurs

Dean Smith must be fuming at Johan Lange for his disastrous decision to sign Bertrand Traore for £19milion this summer, amid criticism of the midfielder from Aston Villa hero Gabby Agbonlahor.

What’s he said?

Speaking with Football Insider, Agbonlahor has praised Smith for his decision to favour Conor Hourihane in midfield against West Ham United on Monday night over Traore in place of the injured Ross Barkley.

The Chelsea loanee was forced to sit out the Villans trip to the London Stadium after sustaining a hamstring strain in the first minute of the prior weekend’s 2-1 loss to Brighton and Hove Albion, but is in contention to make his return for the upcoming Midlands Derby with Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Hourihane enjoyed 74-minutes on the field before being replaced by Traore as Villa chased an equalising goal, but Smith failed to see the 25-year-old register a single key ball from his nine accurate passes while completing one attempted dribble and taking one shot before the full-time whistle, per WhoScored.

Traore’s lack of creativity helped ensure Villa returned to Birmingham without a point, while stretching his wait for a maiden Premier League goal for the season and failing to build on his first assist achieved in the 2-1 loss at home to Brighton having replaced Barkley.

Agbonlahor believes Smith made the perfect decision by favouring Hourihane in the starting line-up against West Ham rather than Traore, as the £19m summer signing disrupts the balance Villa need in the engine room.

“With Hourihane, he came in and added that balance in midfield with John McGinn. He was a threat on set pieces, he kept the ball well and had a very good game,” Agbonlahor said.

“He added something to that midfield, and it was the better option adding Hourihane than Traore. Traore upsets the balance in that position.”

Traore, the Lange disaster

Agbonlahor slamming Traore for bringing chaos rather than balance to the core of the Aston Villa midfield will surely rile Smith, as Lange’s decision to splash an initial £17m on the Burkina Faso international had already failed to return many reasons for positivity.

Smith expected Traore to “really enhance our attacking options” when he lauded the 55-cap arrival from Olympique Lyonnais in the summer, describing the former Chelsea man as “a player with immense talent”.

But Villa fans are yet to see those words met on the pitch, with his assist at home to Brighton Traore’s only involvement in the scoring and having started just one of his seven Premier League appearances so far this season.

Defender Tyrone Mings has also registered the same number of key passes as Traore (2) in the top-flight this term, which is also three fewer than Hourihane who has played just 72 more minutes to date, per WhoScored.

Anwar El Ghazi even ranks just below Traore for successful dribbles with two to the 25-year-old’s three, despite playing just 35 minutes all season.

Lange will need to see Traore start delivering far above his current output for his decision to spend vast sums on the Chelsea flop not to appear any more of an absolute disaster than it so far has.

AND in other news: “I think Villa could” – Exclusive: Pundit makes bold Premier League claim about Aston Villa.

If you had thought the international break would give Mikel Arteta the time to try and change some of the things that has been plaguing his Arsenal side this season, then you were sadly mistaken.

The Gunners have looked toothless in attack all season – before the game against Leeds on late Sunday afternoon, they had managed just nine goals in their opening eight Premier League games – and it was a real test for Arteta to fix that.

Having made the call of using Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang through the middle, the Gunners boss opted for both Willian and Nicolas Pepe to start either side of him.

And whilst the latter may have gotten himself sent off for a stupid headbutt early in the second-half, it was actually the north London side’s summer signing, Willian, who was the real let down for Arteta.

As per Sofascore, he had absolutely no shots on goal whatsoever, delivered no key passes, and saw the only cross he attempted fail to find its mark.

Despite showing a couple of neat touches here and there to try and evade the Leeds press, it just seemed like the game passed him by, and he couldn’t cope with the speed and intensity of it all.

In the end, even Arteta had seen enough, and made a fairly rare decision in terms of his managerial career so far, of hooking a player at half-time.

Reiss Nelson and then Bukayo Saka, the Gunners’ two homegrown academy products, delivered the kind of pace and punch that Arsenal sorely lacked. The fact an experienced star like Willian couldn’t do that was bordering on a disgrace.

Glasgow Rangers will want to bounce back from the thrilling 3-3 draw with Benfica in the Europa League when Steven Gerrard’s side take on Hamilton Academical in a game of top versus bottom in the Scottish Premiership on Sunday.

Rangers gave away a three-goal lead in Lisbon on Thursday night and will want to get back to winning ways this weekend. The Gers are still unbeaten so far this season, so they will be looking to make short work of the Accies.

Scott Arfield reportedly faces a race against time after picking up a knock in the draw away at Benfica, whilst Nikola Katic remains the only long-term absentee injured on the sidelines. Gerrard is hopeful that Arfield will have recovered in time to face the Accies but it may not be worth the risk with the home game against the Portuguese giants at the end of the month.

Here, Football FanCast has taken a look at how Gerrard could set his side up for the clash with the Accies, which sees him make three changes to the side that faced Benfica.

The Ibrox boss has a decision to make with Connor Goldson and Filip Helander as the Gers gear up to face Hamilton on Sunday. Whilst we think Gerrard should give Goldson a rest, it’s likely Leon Balogun will replace Helander in the starting-lineup instead. Gerrard may hand summer recruit Calvin Bassey a rare start which will see Borna Barisic drop to the bench, whilst James Tavernier retains his place on the right flank.

As we outlined earlier, Arfield could still be sidelined for a few more days, meaning that Joe Aribo could come into the centre of the midfield alongside Glen Kamara and Steven Davis.

Ryan Kent is set to continue on the left of Alfredo Morelos, who broke club legend Ally McCoist’s record with his 22nd goal in 38 Europa League games for the Gers.

With Rangers such firm favourites for this match Gerrard may use this opportunity to run an experiment on the right wing which sees summer signing Cedric Itten start instead of Ianis Hagi – particularly given the form of Brandon Barker, who has only scored once in eight games in all competitions so far.

AND in other news, Lesson for Gerrard: Glasgow Rangers star striker Alfredo Morelos must not be benched again…