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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

Wolves face a trip to Newcastle United on Sunday afternoon as they look to continue their unbeaten run of form in the Premier League.

Nuno Santo’s side can make it a fifth straight game without defeat at St James’ Park, although, it is really about time they started picking up more victories – no team in the top-flight has drawn more games (five) than the west Midlanders this season.

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Wolves somewhat lack a cutting edge in attack, but it must be said that last time out against Southampton, they could have seen more goals fly in as Raul Jimenez had two attempts chalked off by VAR before he finally stuck the ball in the net from the penalty spot.

Only two players have scored two or more in the league, per WhoScored.

Goals need to be shared out amongst the team, and this is where their midfield has lacked this season, particularly with Ruben Neves, who appears to be playing a much deeper role for his fellow countryman.

On the Chalkboard

As highlighted earlier this week by Football FanCast, Neves is averaging an xG per 90 minutes of just 0.03 this campaign, per Understat.

This just isn’t good enough for a player that has previously bagged 11 goals in the last two seasons, helping the club to the Championship title and a Europa League place.

But it isn’t entirely his fault as Nuno is asking him to play deeper, maybe because they lack an out-and-out defensive midfield type of player.

Are Gareth Southgate’s Aston Villa roots the reason behind the Wolves player in the video below being overlooked?…

Birmingham Live claim the Portuguese boss wants to add a central midfielder in January, while La Gazzetta dello Sport, via Calciomercato, state that Wolves have already put in an offer for AC Milan’s Franck Kessie.

He would be the ideal man to bring in and help Neves as his presence would allow the 22-year-old to play further forward, where he can once again be a valuable attacking threat.

You only have to look at his strike against Manchester United to see what he could offer.

Last season in Serie A, Kessie displayed aspects of his game that would suit the role that Wolves are longing for – he averaged 1.2 tackles and 1.5 clearances per game while still being a threat in the final third having netted on seven occasions too, per WhoScored.

The 22-year-old, who is valued at £27m by Transfermarkt, would be the perfect accompaniment to a midfield trio that includes Neves and Joao Moutinho, and he would certainly help them get back on track in the heart of the pitch.

A titan in the middle of the pitch, he would certainly add a different dimension to Wolves – one which finally allows their dynamic Portuguese to thrive in the Premier League.

Lots of Liverpool fans have been reacting to an update from James Pearce, who expects the Reds to offload Adam Lallana despite his goal at Old Trafford.The England international had not found the net for the Reds since May 2017 before his strike on Sunday, but what a way to rediscover his goalscoring touch.Lallana ghosted in behind Manchester United’s impressively parked bus to tap in the equaliser at the back-post, with Sky Sports commentator Martin Tyler proposing that the strike could get the 31 year-old’s career “back on trackâ€.Pearce though, writing for The Athletic, has stated that this is “likely†to be Lallana’s final season in a Liverpool shirt.He is out of contract next summer, and even though there is an option to extend it, the belief is that the option would only be used to increase his sell-on value and prevent losing him for free.Fans have produced a mixed reaction to the update, with some cursing his injury record and praising his talents, while others look to the future and eye up Marko Grujic as a potential replacement.Either way, you can find some of the best Twitter reactions down below…

Arsenal will be ruing the fact they missed out on three points against Crystal Palace on Sunday.

The Gunners were 2-0 up against the Eagles thanks to goals from David Luiz and Sokratis, but they were unable to hold on to the victory and could only depart the Emirates Stadium with a 2-2 draw.

In the video below, we look at where it all went wrong for Arsenal’s former ‘saviour’, Mesut Ozil…

For Granit Xhaka, it was a particularly difficult day.

The Switzerland international is not exactly the most popular man in north London, but he is the club’s captain and one of the more experienced players in the squad.

Unai Emery decided to take him off with 29 minutes left on the clock, and he was met by a chorus of boos as he departed the field.

The 26-year-old was clearly not happy with the supporters, and he let his frustration be known. He cupped his hand to his ear before shouting an expletive towards the stands.

As the skipper, it can be argued that it was unprofessional for him to act the way he did. However, many of the club’s supporters actually appear to be defending him.

They took to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

Charlton fans have taken to Twitter to reveal that they don’t believe Lee Bowyer, after the 42-year-old ruled Lyle Taylor out of next weekend’s south London derby clash against Millwall at The Den.

The Montserrat international striker damaged his knee ligaments whilst on international duty after six games of the Championship campaign, ruling him out for around two months at the time.

Taylor, 29, recently came out of his knee brace, but Bowyer revealed that his five-goal forward suffered a minor setback in his recovery and will miss the south London derby against the Lions.

While this information has come from a pretty concrete source having literally been said the boss, some Charlton fans on Twitter still aren’t convinced that their side’s manager is telling the truth.

One fan said that Taylor will come on and score a hat-trick, whereas another just said that they “fully expect” the striker to start.

Let’s take a look at some more tweets…

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…

Derby week.

Either the week you’re playing Derby, or the week that you have a derby. Luckily for Forest fans, it means the same thing on both occasions.

What’s he said?

Does the fact that they’ve already faced off against each other this season in the Carabao Cup add to the whole story or take away from it somewhat?

Both teams named far from full strength sides that night, although Derby’s was much weaker than their Forest counterparts.

However, that certainly isn’t going to be the case this time around as Derby manager Phillip Cocu joked ahead of the clash.

Speaking to Derbyshire Live, Cocu mentioned that the team he picks for this Saturday’s encounter will be a lot stronger than the one earlier in the season, as he stressed just how important the match was for his side:

“I don’t think the same team will play! It is a tough, and important away game. Of course, the ambition for us to get a result against Forest and also in an away game is very important for us.”

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A different kind of atmosphere

An affair like this is going to be won by who keeps control of their emotions better, and that’s where the manager’s come into the fray.

Whilst it’s always important to win, you could argue that this game is more important for the hosts rather than the visitors.

As pointed out earlier, this isn’t the first time that the two clubs have squared off against each other this season, and whilst the Carabao Cup fixture might have been a little bit of a taster of what the East Midlands Derby is like, this is going to be a completely different proposition.

Once again, this is going to be yet another ‘big test’ for Sabri Lamouchi in his first season in charge of things at the City Ground.

Especially in the wake of what has been happening in recent weeks at Derby, and the way Forest fans have reacted to it along the way, it could be an incredibly heated occasion and it’s up to him to make sure that the players don’t get caught up in the emotion of it all.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

When Manchester United slipped to an embarrassing 1-0 defeat to Newcastle on October 6, the writing appeared to be on the wall for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Reports in the aftermath of the game suggested that he was fighting for his long-term future at Old Trafford, with claims that a heavy defeat in their next outing against Liverpool could prove to be the final nail in the coffin.

Crucially however, the clash against their arch-rivals was preceded by an international break. And boy did United need it. The Red Devils had the chance to regroup, get back to basics and quite simply for those selected by their respective countries, be far away from the turmoil surrounding Old Trafford. The time away from the spotlight and pressure no doubt proved to be the tonic to a lot of the side’s cures, and their subsequent run after that certainly showed that.

After halting Liverpool’s flawless run to the Premier League campaign with a hard-fought draw, Solskjaer’s men rattled off five wins in six games – with their only blip coming in a 1-0 reverse to Bournemouth. Four of their five victories saw them score more than one goal – something they couldn’t do since the opening match of the season.

So after beating Brighton 3-1 on Sunday afternoon, the last thing United would have hoped for is another international break. The last one seemed perfectly timed for them; this one just feels like a completely unnecessary nuisance. When you’re on a run of form and the confidence is flowing back as a result, you just want to keep on going, playing games and picking up wins.

This latest round of internationals essentially dissipates some of the feel-good factor, and could lead to the Red Devils coming back on November 24 against Sheffield United with none of the momentum that they had desperately gained.

Where before the stars seemed aligned for United, now the club could suffer contrasting fortunes to what they previously enjoyed.

West Bromwich Albion extended their run at the top of the Championship table with a resilient 1-0 victory over Hull City on Saturday afternoon, but not everything was completely positive.

Slaven Bilic’s men are well on course for automatic promotion this season as if they keep progressing at this current rate, then their projected points total has been enough in four of the last five seasons.

The Baggies keep hold of their two-point cushion over second-placed Preston North End and Leeds United as they embark on a two-week hiatus for the third international break of the season.

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Albion captain Jake Livermore netted the only goal of the game against his old side with a fantastic strike from 25 yards out in the 28th minute.

However, the 29-year-old picked up his fifth booking of the season, meaning he will be suspended for the first game after national team duty when West Brom host Sheffield Wednesday, who are on the cusp of a playoff position.

But the bad news doesn’t stop there as his midfield partner, the influential Romaine Sawyers, also picked up his fifth yellow, so Bilic will be without two integral players who have started every single Championship game this campaign.

Livermore’s reaction below quite rightly sums up the situation considering they won the match…

Livermore and Sawyers have been the engine room to the Croatian’s system paying off with the latter topping the midfielder charts for passing success rate in the league while no player in the Albion squad averages more tackles per game than the skipper.

They look awfully light on backup options too as Gareth Barry has only just re-signed for the club despite nearly facing a career-ending injury while the promising Rekeem Harper has only played six minutes all season and hasn’t been in the matchday squad for months.

That leaves the possibility of Semi Ajayi stepping out of defence into midfield despite picking up back-to-back clean sheets for the first time this season or number ten Filip Krovinovic dropping deeper.

Losing just one of the duo would have been fine for one game, but to lose them both at the same time, it’s the worst nightmare for anyone involved at West Brom.

Check out the most insane fan meltdowns in the video below…

According to 90min, West Ham United are considering a move for Manchester United midfielder Nemanja Matic when the January transfer window opens for business.

However, it would be fair to say that not too many of the London club’s supporters are interested in a potential deal for the Serbia international.

Matic – currently on the sidelines with an unspecified injury – has only made five appearances for Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side during the 2019/20 campaign, with just three of those outings coming in the Premier League.

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The experienced midfielder will see his contract at Old Trafford expire next summer.

And The Manchester Evening News recently reported that the 31-year-old is open to the idea of leaving United at the start of 2020.

West Ham are being linked with a swoop for the two-time Premier League title winner, but the club’s supporters are just not interested despite Matic’s impressive CV.

A selection of the Twitter reaction is available to view below:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Off the Bench series, which places in-game managerial decisions and squad selections under FFC’s microscope.

After going 2-0 down at Sheffield United on Sunday afternoon, Manchester United thought they had clinched a dramatic victory with a second-half turnaround, only for the Blades to snatch a late equaliser to make it 3-3.

Snapshot

The Red Devils came into the game on the back of a run of five wins in their last six games across all competitions, but that form appeared to completely go out the window. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side fell behind to a goal from John Fleck, before Lys Mousset doubled the home side’s advantage at Bramall Lane.

However, in a dramatic sequence of events, United turned the game on its head with three goals in the space of seven second-half minutes. Brandon Williams kick-started the comeback, before fellow academy product Mason Greenwood netted the equaliser. Marcus Rashford thought he had given the Red Devils all three points with just over ten minutes to go, but Oliver McBurnie salvaged a draw for Chris Wilder’s men deep into stoppage time.

Whilst Solskjaer can take a huge amount of credit for bringing on Jesse Lingard and Mason Greenwood to initiate their response, the Norwegian must also share the blame for bringing on Axel Tuanzebe into central midfield with a few minutes remaining.

Hero to zero

After his mistake in handing Phil Jones a rare start – the England international was at fault for the opening goal of the game when he was bullied off the ball by Mousset – Solskjaer promptly hooked the centre-back at half-time, and brought on Jesse Lingard. It meant a much-needed change in formation, as United reverted to a back-four.

And following Williams pulling a goal back, the United boss once again saw his stock go higher, by bringing on teenage sensation Greenwood for Pereira. Within minutes of the forward’s introduction into the game, he had poked home the leveller, with Rashford then netting the goal to put United in front for the first time.

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However, in a substitution that Solskjaer will surely be regretting, his decision to take off Anthony Martial and bring on Axel Tuanzebe into midfield to offer up some more defensive protection back-fired. Former United ace Owen Hargreaves criticised the Red Devils boss for opting against going for the fourth goal.

“Get the fourth and kill it off. But because he didn’t have that experience in there he put on Tuanzebe to protect and it went the other way. I really like him, but that last sub maybe didn’t go the way Ole wanted.”

So after earning a lot of deserved plaudits for making substitutions that worked in United’s favour, the Norwegian cost his side a chance of an unlikely victory with his Tuanzebe decision.

Meanwhile, Marcus Rashford has given his complete backing to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer.

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…

Despite the fact that Marcelo Bielsa has a rather small first-team squad, Leeds United have a huge amount of players at their disposal.

In fact, it’s easy to forget that some of these players are actually on the books at Elland Road.

However, a couple of these forgotten men may not be at the club for much longer after Phil Hay provided an update on two Leeds outcasts.

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What’s been said then?

During a Q&A session with the Athletic on Thursday, the reporter was asked about a couple of players that haven’t been in Bielsa’s plans since his arrival.

Firstly he was asked whether or not Jay-Roy Grot has a chance of featuring in the future, to which he gave a very blunt reply.

“No, it’s not going to happen for Grot here.” Hay said.

Another fan went on to jokingly ask Hay if Eunan O’Kane is still alive, and Hay give an update on his future.

“Yes and expected to go in January, either on loan or permanently. He had a really bad leg break and it’s taken him a long time to get fit.” He replied.

Right decisions

It should come as a surprise to absolutely nobody that Hay has said these two players don’t have a future at the club.

Bielsa has pretty much frozen them both out of the squad as he’s sent Grot out on loan two years in a row, and if it weren’t for O’Kane’s horrific injury you’d have to think he’d already be gone.

Are they a loss? Probably not, Grot has scored just once in 20 league appearances for Leeds, and O’Kane may not be the same after his injury, and Bielsa can’t afford to experiment with that at this point in time.

To ship them on for good in January or next summer would make complete sense.

In other news, Phil Hay has predicted a mass exodus from Leeds if they don’t go up this season.