Southampton will be hoping to put last week’s disappointing result against Manchester City behind them, as they face Scott Parker’s Fulham on Boxing Day.

The Saints travel to Craven Cottage on Saturday hoping to pick up three points against the relegation candidates but will be without some key players due to injury and suspension.

Danny Ings, Jannik Vestergaard and Nathan Redmond all look likely to miss the trip to West London through injury, whilst key midfielder Oriol Romeu is suspended for Ralph Hasenhuttl’s side.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects the Austrian manager to line his side up against Fulham, with four changes from the side that started against Man City…

There’s one change in the Southampton defence, with Mohammed Salisu looking likely to make his debut against the Cottagers, following the injury to Vestergaard, which is undoubtedly a blow for Hasenhuttl’s side.

Ibrahim Diallo seems the natural replacement for the suspended Oriol Romeu in midfield, and he looks likely to make his first Premier League start at Craven Cottage, after Hasenhuttl spoke about the summer signing ahead of this weekend’s game.

Stuart Armstrong comes in on the left-hand side for Moussa Djenepo, as he was missed against Manchester City.

During his time with Celtic, the Scottish international was lauded by Brendan Rodgers, with the manager saying:

“Technically he has everything. He’s strong. I wasn’t sure tactically how he was but he looked like he had an idea. Physically he has everything: he’s fast, he’s strong, he’s powerful. Mentally, I had to find out, because playing for Celtic you have to be mentally strong to cope.”

Walcott starts on the right-hand side, although he could easily interchange with Armstrong throughout the game, or even move up front if Hasenhuttl desires.

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With Ings absent, Hasenhuttl may choose to start young Nathan Tella up front. The 21-year-old replaced the striker against Manchester City, and a recent academy display where he scored four goals as a striker certainly suggests that he could be dangerous if played there. This would be his full Premier League debut.

And, in other news… Exclusive: Carlton Palmer makes Danny Ings contract claim…

It’s been a while since Crystal Palace could lay claim to having one of the best players in the country on their books, hasn’t it?

Palace talisman Wilfried Zaha is, of course, worth a shout, whilst Eberechi Eze may not be too far behind his teammate after his heroics against Sheffield United, but other than that, it’s fair to say that Roy Hodgson has been left with slim pickings indeed.

However, things could have been very different for the Eagles as had Steve Parish simply plucked up the courage in the summer, they could have had arguably one of the best strikers in the EFL at Selhurst Park right now. And no, we’re not talking about Bournemouth striker Joshua King.

According to The Guardian’s Ben Fisher, Palace missed the opportunity to sign former Peterborough striker Ivan Toney back in 2020 as they lost out to Brentford.

The Bees paid a club-record fee of £9m plus performance-related bonuses to prise him away from the Posh, which isn’t exactly a huge amount of cash, especially when you consider the fact Palace spent £7m on Connor Wickham.

It’s easy to say with the benefit of hindsight, but if Parish had been brave enough to pull the trigger, they could have had an absolute goal machine on their hands.

Toney is easily one of the best strikers in the Championship, he’s the joint-leading goalscorer in the competition this season, and his ridiculous record speaks for itself – 16 goals in 26 appearances across all competitions, via Transfermarkt.

Posh director of football Barry Fry heaped praise on his former charge at the end of last season, saying: “Ivan has been an incredible signing. His improvement in two seasons with us has been remarkable.

“He was by far and away the best player in League One last season and he deserves a shot at the Championship or even the Premier League.”

Parish wouldn’t part ways with his money last year, and now just six months later, it looks like an inexcusable mistake as he’s turned out to be a true bargain for the Bees.

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AND in other news, Crystal Palace given major boost after Roy Hodgson confirms Christian Benteke’s injury isn’t too serious…

Newcastle United are expecting Callum Wilson and Jonjo Shelvey to be back available for selection at Sheffield United on Tuesday as Steve Bruce issues a raft of changes from the side which lost to Arsenal in the FA Cup.

The Magpies are now winless in the last month with five defeats and two draws in their past seven fixtures, while being eliminated from both the Carabao Cup and FA Cup in the space of 18 days.

Wilson and Shelvey failed to feature at the Emirates on Saturday, where their replacements squandered a string of chances to seal a rare victory over the Gunners and were punished by extra-time goals from Emile Smith Rowe and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang.

But Bruce faces selection dilemmas across the field ahead of travelling to Bramall Lane, a ground where he has won on four of five previous visits. So, with that in mind, here’s a potential line-up the 60-year-old could favour…

Martin Dubravka made his first appearance of the season at Arsenal after a heel injury but is likely to return to the bench against Sheffield United in place of Karl Darlow, with the £25,000-per-week ‘keeper impressing far beyond his three clean sheets throughout the campaign.

Jamaal Lascelles also earned his first start since November in north London after testing positive for coronavirus, and will likely be a gameday decision after being taken off at the break following an early yellow card for a foul on Reiss Nelson.

Matt Ritchie replaced Lascelles at half-time for his 10th outing of the term and will likely start at left-back against the Blades, with Fabian Schar and Federico Fernandez expected to be recalled to central defence after sitting out the Arsenal defeat.

Andy Carroll led the line against Arsenal but was wasted in the capital by Bruce’s defensive tactics, which left the rumoured West Bromwich Albion target to drop deep until the closing stages when he let two clear cut chances to steal the win go to waste.

Yet the 6 ft 4 target man may be one of only four players to be retained from the Gunners defeat, allowing Bruce to partner the returning Wilson with a strike partner as he looks to ease the burden on the Toon’s eight-goal top-scorer.

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Like Wilson, Shelvey is expected to be given a role in the starting line-up for the first time since Newcastle drew 1-1 with Fulham last month, potentially joining Isaac Hayden in the engine room against Sheffield United.

Miguel Almiron could only produce one key pass at the Emirates on Saturday but may be considered for a central role at Bramall Lane to help connect the Magpies’ strikers and midfield in a side that has scored just four goals in their last seven games.

AND in other news, a Newcastle gem embarrassed his teammates as Steve Bruce’s only positive at Arsenal…

As Celtic lurch from one disappointing game to another, Neil Lennon must be desperately searching for ways to get his side back to winning ways.

The Hoops have completely fallen out of the title picture already, finding themselves a whopping 21 points behind arch-rivals and leaders Rangers in the Scottish Premiership.

Lennon’s side face Livingston tonight looking to regain some much-needed momentum, and Kristoffer Ajer may be the man to come in and bring some stability back.

The 6 foot 6 centre-back has been linked with a move away from Celtic, and has had to miss the last two games in the Scottish Premiership after being forced to quarantine.

Now that its over, Lennon may look to recall the £3.6m-rated man, and instead drop the woeful Shane Duffy. Celtic’s summer signing has been in awful form since arriving from Brighton on a season-long loan, not least a shocking cameo in the Old Firm clash against Rangers earlier this month.

In Ajer, they would get someone who’s been the closest thing to a Virgil van Dijk since the Dutchman made the move south of the border to join Southampton.

Speaking earlier this season, Alex McLeish said: “I go back to that St Johnstone game, you see sometimes when it’s not going for Celtic and the game’s in its dying embers, and then all of a sudden you see Ajer striding up the pitch trying to inspire like Roy of the Rovers.

“Running from defence, augment the attack and then it leads to a goal – these are inspirational moments and he is an inspirational, influential player for Celtic.”

Ajer’s teammate and fellow centre-back partner Christopher Jullien described him as a “unique talent”, and it’s no surprise given his incredible size but elegance on the ball when he brings it out from defence.

A clean sheet against Livingston last time out might leave Lennon feeling he should stick to the same back-four, but Ajer’s return could allow the Hoops to play out from the back instead of someone like Shane Duffy hoofing it into row Z.

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Ajer has averaged almost twenty passes more per game than Duffy this season in the Scottish Premiership (69.2 to 50.1), and boasts a far better passing accuracy too at 89% to 83%.

Retaining possession and starting counter-attacks from the back could be key to ensuring they don’t draw another blank against Livingston tonight, and Ajer’s extra composure from the heart of defence could be key.

Meanwhile, Celtic must play this exciting prospect against Livingston…

Liverpool must bring in a centre-back this month, regardless of whether it’s a long-term signing or not to give the players confidence.

Centre-back required

Those were the words of former Premier League midfielder Carlton Palmer, who reacted to the Reds’ recent poor run in all competitions.

In 2021, Liverpool have won just once from five attempts and have scored six goals, with key defenders Virgil van Dijk and Joe Gomez ruled out with season-ending knee injuries.

On top of this, Joel Matip continues to struggle with his own personal fitness issues – leaving manager Jurgen Klopp with no established centre-halves at his disposal.

Speaking exclusively to Football Transfer Tavern, Palmer believes that Liverpool must prioritise bringing in a centre-back this month, regardless of the financial implications.

“Liverpool are not keeping clean sheets. They’re not out of the Premier League title race so they need to get a centre-back in until Van Dijk gets back. They need to do that because that gives (the team a) basis,” he said.

“People are looking at the front three and saying, ‘Oh, they’re not performing anymore’ but you see, if you remember last year when they won the league, they played at Southampton, I remember that game specifically because that was typical of their performances in the league that season where it was a strong first half defensive display by Liverpool to keep them in the game. Mane scores a goal out of nothing, just before half time, and then they go on to win the game comfortably.

“But it’s that basis that you need to keep clean sheets and Liverpool are not keeping clean sheets. So they need to do that now. They’ve either got to go for a loan or a short term signing and get somebody in so they can get a platform, then the rest of the players now can start believing that ‘yes, we’re going to keep clean sheets. Now. We’ve got the front three, we’re going to score goals.’”

Transfer Tavern Verdict

Palmer is spot on. While Klopp has dropped subtle hints to the club’s owners FSG about the possibility of signing a defender, it is something that the Reds desperately need.

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Liverpool are making the same mistake as Manchester City last season, with Aymeric Laporte’s injury, no Vincent Kompany replacement and Fernandinho having to step in. It seems all too familiar and it looks like lessons that haven’t been learned from that.

With the transfer deadline on Monday, Liverpool do not have long to make a move but Palmer thinks they need to if they want a chance at retaining their title.

In other news, James Pearce provides silver lining regarding Jordan Henderson’s latest setback.

Tottenham Hotspur’s week from hell continued as they were defeated in a second successive Premier League match by Brighton on Sunday night.

First, it was an injury blow to Harry Kane, and then defeat to Liverpool, and now Jose Mourinho’s men have lost again, putting their quest to make the top four in jeopardy.

Spurs were lacklustre in the absence of their leading talisman, but once again, there were underperformers in defence, namely Moussa Sissoko, who massively let his manager down considering his vast experience.

The £90k-per-week star was deployed in an unfamiliar right wing-back role as he was preferred to Serge Aurier – snubbed completely from the matchday squad – and Matt Doherty, which speaks volumes.

Though, that said, Sissoko has still played at right midfield or right-back 139 times, as per Transfermarkt’s recorded matches.

But he endured a nightmare evening at The Amex, and it culminated in the game’s only goal of the game coming from a switch-off defensively.

Pascal Gross was given time and space along the right flank, but Sissoko allowed his man, Leandro Trossard, into the penalty box without following him.

And that’s only half the story…

[snack-amp-story url=”https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/read-this-weeks-latest-spurs-news-and-transfer-rumours” title= Read this week’s latest Spurs news, transfer rumours and more…”]

The 31-year-old was also the most wasteful player on the pitch, from either side, as he lost possession a whopping 23 times. It meant he handed the ball back to the Seagulls once every 3.9 minutes or once every 4.3 touches as he had the second-most touches (100) of anyone on the pitch, via SofaScore.

Given his vast influence in the game, he should have done better.

Sissoko managed to only make one of five crossing attempts (20%) and was rather lightweight in his battles as he won only 50% of his duels, both aerially and on the ground.

Sissoko’s teammate, Steven Bergwijn, has taken a lot of flak on social media since kick-off but the young winger was exposed in a solitary striker role, so he should be forgiven for not having the same sort of impact that Kane would’ve had.

And at the end of the day, he was the only player to have a shot on target for Spurs.

The Evening Standard’s Dan Kilpatrick graded Sissoko a 5/10 in his post-match ratings column and wrote: “Completely ineffectual as a wing-back and effort was unusually lacking on occasion.”

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Sissoko was far worse than Bergwijn on the night.

Mourinho may want to think again before he axes Aurier or Doherty – he clearly needs one of them, however bad they may be, in their natural right-back role.

As evident above, the wasteful, inefficient and weak Sissoko massively let Mourinho down.

AND in other news, Levy have struck gold in dream deal for £45m-rated “born leader”…

After seeing Kalvin Phillips limp off in the dying minutes of Leeds’ 2-0 win over Crystal Palace, Marcelo Bielsa will no doubt be sweating over his talisman’s fitness during this week.

The Athletic’s Phil Hay revealed after the game that it was “too early to say” about the midfielder, but considering that he initially seemed to go down with a calf problem, he faces a real race against time to make the Premier League game against Arsenal at the Emirates on Sunday.

But in Jamie Shackleton, Bielsa could find his saviour.

The 20-year-old has been on the fringes of Leeds’ long-awaited return to the Premier League, playing just 296 minutes of football in the top-flight.

And quite recently, Bielsa hasn’t even turned to him as an option off the bench – barring the two minutes that he came on to replace Phillips against Palace last time out, Shackleton remained an unused sub for the past four Premier League matches.

But with question marks over Phillips’ availability, Bielsa must unleash Shackleton on Sunday when they travel to north London to take on Arsenal.

Speaking after his cameo in that 5-0 win over West Brom earlier this season, the Leeds boss said: “Good organisation, energetic, he’s quick, he can surprise opponents, plays in a position which has many varieties as a box-to-box midfielder.”

Shackleton wouldn’t exactly be a like-for-like replacement for Phillips, but his extra energy and dynamism could counter Arsenal’s young guns well.

The likes of Emile Smith Rowe and Bukayo Saka have been two of Arsenal’s stand-out players in recent weeks, and Shackleton’s own youthful endeavour could be key to combating that – his average of 0.8 interceptions per game in the Premier League ranks him seventh among his Leeds teammates, while he actually gets dribbled past the least amount in the squad, just 0.5 times per match.

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And, after he produced a tigerish performance against Aston Villa, Leeds Live’s Beren Cross wrote: “Settled in so quickly and linked up the play between midfield and attack beautifully. So important for his confidence and visualising himself in this team going forward. Tireless running and helped Klich win that midfield battle with McGinn and Barkley.”

On Sunday, Leeds will need every bit of that tireless running as they try and find a unique way to replace Phillips. Shackleton’s introduction to the starting eleven could prove to be a masterstroke from Bielsa and one that helps the Whites boss forget all about his main midfield man.

Meanwhile, Bielsa can find his next Klich in this Leeds transfer target…

In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, ex-Bradford City man Dean Windass has played down West Ham’s chances of finishing in the top four.

Despite losing narrowly at Manchester City on Saturday, David Moyes’ still find themselves sitting 4th, one point clear of Chelsea and a further point ahead of Liverpool, who beat Windass’ former side Sheffield United on Sunday evening.

The Hammers face the likes of Manchester United, Arsenal and Leicester City in the coming weeks, but David Moyes’ team have continued to defy the odds in recent matches – with their defeat at the Etihad Stadium just their second in the Premier League since Christmas.

Only the top-three have won more Premier League matches than West Ham this season, but Windass doesn’t believe the East Londoners can keep churning out results.

Asked whether the Hammers can sustain their current form, Windass told FFC exclusively:

“No. West Ham, another football club, you know, the new stadium. It was a great place to play at Upton Park and a great atmosphere. I’ve never been to the new stadium, but obviously played at the old one and you know, some atmosphere.

“The problem you’ve got is obviously if you don’t get the Champions League, then how do you enhance Champions League footballers to go to West Ham? They’ve had a remarkable season, and anything they get now, even if they don’t get in the Champions League, they’re pulling up trees. Can they sustain this? I’m not sure.”

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There’s no two ways about it, West Ham have been outstanding this season, but Windass might well be right with his prediction.

With Chelsea having turned a corner under Thomas Tuchel and the likes of Spurs, Everton and Liverpool still in the mix for the top four, it would be some achievement if Moyes’ side were to maintain their current place in the table.

According to Football Insider, Glasgow Rangers star Alfredo Morelos is likely to be sold this summer, with Steven Gerrard’s side banking at least £15m from the striker’s potential sale.

What’s the word?

Morelos has been nothing short of a revelation for Rangers since joining the club from HJK Helsinki on a three-year deal in 2017.

Since his debut, he has scored 90 goals, recording a further 42 assists, in 171 appearances across all competitions during his time in Scotland and has already broken Ally McCoist’s European goalscoring record this season.

The 24-year-old had apparently made up his mind to leave Rangers last year and his desire to leave the Light Blues was no secret in the summer.

However, Rangers refused to sell their prized asset, and the centre-forward has continued his fine form in the Europa League, racking up three goals and six assists in eight appearances in the competition this season.

Football Insider claims this would in turn significantly increase his market value if he can continue to repeat his Europa League exploits for the remainder of the campaign.

His stats suggest he should be able to do this, given his excellent goal record for Rangers, having made 33 appearances this season with 13 goals and 12 assists to show for his 27 starts.

Good news for Ross Wilson?

Rangers sporting director Ross Wilson has developed a reputation as one of the most successful negotiators in the transfer market, and his handling of this ongoing transfer saga should only reinforce that view.

It seems Morelos is now worth at least £15m, showing Rangers have benefited from refusing to sell him in the summer, as this figure could rise between now and the end of this season.

Reports at the time revealed French Ligue 1 leaders Lille were apparently only willing to offer €15m (£13m) plus €2m (£1.8m) in add-ons for the Colombia international, which was swiftly rebuffed by the 54-time Scottish champions.

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With Rangers posting an annual loss of £15.9m in their most recent financial report, selling a top-class centre-forward for such a huge amount of money would make perfect business sense.

Wilson, therefore, should be praised for making the most of the situation and maximising the value of an unsettled player potentially set to depart Ibrox this summer.

AND in other news, Nathan Patterson earns shot at redemption amid James Tavernier injury blow…

Brendan Rodgers’ comments over Youri Tielemans have caused confusion as the season moves into its twilight.

Due to the Foxes’ hectic schedule, having been involved in the UEFA Europa League this season, the Foxes’ boss has said that he would have ‘wanted’ to rest Youri Tielemans more than he has so far this campaign.

This makes sense considering that the Belgian is Leicester’s most used player this campaign having made 37 appearances in all competitions.

As a matter of fact, the £45m-rated midfielder has played 400 more minutes than anyone else in the Leicester City squad.

In that time, he has been in sparkling form, hitting seven goals and providing four assists in all competitions this season.

Due to Tielemans’ commitment so far this season, Rodgers has even gone as far as to say that he would ‘love to take him out’ of the starting XI, but with injuries to Dennis Praet, James Maddison and Ayoze Perez, that has simply not been possible.

The decision has almost been taken out of the Foxes’ boss’ hands but these recent comments are particularly jarring though when looking at Rodgers’ opinion of the 23-year-old just a little under four months ago.

Following a win against Leeds United against Elland Road, the Northern-Irishman said that Tielemans was better when in ‘rhythm’ and did not want to give him a rest.

Of course, Rodgers is entitled to change his mind on his squad as they got to grips with the UEFA Europa League and injuries started to hit but it’s a confusing change in opinion.

With the number of players missing, it almost became a necessity to keep playing Tielemans – as per Rodgers’ recent comments concerning a rest.

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It now looks hugely unlikely that the former AS Monaco will finally be afforded time to rotate having once again been included from the off in Wednesday’s clash against Burnley at Turf Moor.

It will be interesting to see as the Foxes’ injury crisis abates later on in the season whether Tielemans is afforded a well-earned rest or whether Rodgers allows him to keep his “rhythm” and play through the fatigue.

AND in other news, take a look at our Leicester City predicted XI to take on Burnley…