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Glasgow Rangers showed they are early favourites to win the Scottish Premiership title as Steven Gerrard’s side beat Celtic at Parkhead on Saturday.

Celtic were comprehensively outplayed from start to finish as the Light Blues cruised to a comfortable 2-0 victory over their arch-rivals on their home turf which sent them four points clear at the top of the table, having played a game more than Neil Lennon’s men.

A brace from Connor Goldson helped his side claim the spoils in the first Old Firm derby of the season but the Rangers boss will be well aware that there is still a long way to go between now and the end of the season.

The Gers won at Celtic Park last December but their title challenge crumbled before their very eyes after the winter break. Gerrard’s side dropped eight points in five games which left the Bhoys with a ten-point lead at the top of the Scottish Premiership last season.

History has a habit of repeating itself and as Celtic still have a game in hand and were without first-team regular starters Odsonne Edouard and Ryan Christie at the weekend, the Light Blues must already start to think about the next three points that are on offer.

Rangers midfielder Ryan Jack admitted his side received a reality check last term and vowed that they will not allow such an opportunity slip through their grasp once again. He said: “It’s always a great feeling to win a derby match, the boys are delighted.

“I thought we did very well, but it’s just another three points, a step to where we want to get to.

“The challenge is to put demands on ourselves to keep improving. It’s a big win but it doesn’t stop here. If we want to get to where we want to be then this is only the start.”

TGers registered another clean sheet when Celtic didn’t even manage a single shot on target throughout the entire game. Gerrard’s side have now only conceded three goals in eleven league games, four less than their arch-rivals who have a game in-hand.

Former Aberdeen striker Noel Whelan believes the Light Blues “look a lot more defensively sound.” He told Football Insider: “Steven Gerrard has changed that mental strength in that group of defensive players now, that’s what he’s been looking for.

“We’ve seen it from the start of the season, we’ve seen defensively they work hard, they look assured, they’re a lot more gritty at the back, they look a lot more defensively sound.

“That is where they were looking to strengthen and get better and they definitely have with their record this season in Europe and in the league.”

However, Rangers really cannot afford to slip up again and stutter for the second year running after beating their biggest rivals in their own backyard. To lose such a lead once may be regarded as misfortune; to lose both would be carelessness.

Let’s face it, Gers fans shouldn’t get too carried away. If there’s one thing for sure, the title race is far from over just yet.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers’ Glen Kamara dominates midfield battle in Old Firm derby…

Arsenal’s 4-0 victory against Norwich was shown on BT Sport yesterday and the Gunners have received a lot of praise for their performance. 

Former Manchester United defender Rio Ferdinand was one of the pundits talking about the north London side and he was particularly impressed with some of the youth at the Emirates Stadium. He believes Mikel Arteta has a great crop of young players at the club and feels that the Spaniard should start to rebuild his squad around three of their young stars in Bukayo Saka, Gabriel Martinelli and Joe Willock.

Speaking on BT Sport (via The Mirror), he said: “I think the great thing about seeing Saka’s tweet there and his statement is about how he loves the club, he believes in the philosophy and he wants to move forward here.

They need more players who think like that and they need to build around that. I’d build around him, around Martinelli, around Willock.

“These young players who have come through and the badge needs something to these boys, and they need to get players to build around that as well. To understand that and to come in and accept that this is the place we want to be, we believe in the management and we want to go forward together.”

It’s hard to disagree with Ferdinand on this one. Saka (18), Martinelli (19) and Willock (20) have all been progressing greatly this campaign and have clearly adapted well to both the Arsenal squad and the tough physicality of the Premier League. Between them they have made 96 appearances in all competitions this season, per Transfermarkt, and this highlights the faith that both Arteta and former Gunners manager Unai Emery have in the young stars.

The experience they are getting this season will help their growth massively and, under the right guidance, they could grow into future world-class stars, so there is no reason not to plan in the way Ferdinand has said and look to build a squad around them. A plan like this could help Arsenal to become a Premier League force again during the 2020s.

Gunners fans, do you agree with Ferdinand’s advice to Arteta? Comment below with your views!

Tottenham Hotspur face stiff competition from Arsenal to sign French midfielder Morgan Sanson from Marseille, according to reports from France. 

French publication Le10 Sport claims, as cited by football.london, that Arsenal have entered the race for the 10-cap former France international.

Recent reports suggested Tottenham have been offered the chance to sign Sanson in the summer, as his agent Pini Zahavi was instrumental in bringing Jose Mourinho to Chelsea (talkSPORT).

Zahavi has been given the job of “opening doors” to bigger clubs like the Lilywhites, while the centre-midfielder has attracted attention from several Premier League sides, including West Ham and Newcastle United.

Le Parisien revealed earlier this year that Spurs were considering signing the former Montpellier man as a replacement for the club’s record signing Tanguy Ndombele.

Ndombele shares a fractured relationship with Jose Mourinho which has been well-documented in recent weeks and questions remain over his future in north London.

However, given the imminent arrival of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg from Southampton, and it is unclear if they will make a move for the Frenchman in the summer.

Sanson, 25,  scored 25 goals and supplied 4 assists in Ligue 1 last season, taking 1.4 shots per game, averaging 1.1 key passes, and successfully completing 1.5 dribbles on average (via WhoScored).

The £20m-valued ace is reportedly eyeing a move to the Premier League, although he has already rejected interest from Crystal Palace and Wolves, as he wants to play Champions League football in the future.

Transfer speculation surrounding Sanson has circulated for several months, but a move has failed to materialise so far. While Marseille manager Andre Villas-Boas is willing to let him leave, a move to Spurs seems unlikely at the moment, as they have focused all their efforts on signing Hojbjerg instead.

Tottenham fans, do you think the board should sign Morgan Sanson in the summer? Join the discussion in the comments section!

Newcastle United fans are probably sick of hearing the same old things – will it happen? won’t it happen? The latest news is that the takeover is expected to go into next week at the very least.

The Times claim that the Premier League are continuing to work through a 350-page submission from the Magpies’ prospective owners and that rival teams have expressed their concerns.

It means this will all rumble on into a sixth week, leaving the St James’ Park faithful waiting even longer.

Reports had first emerged over a month ago suggesting that Mike Ashley was finally going to sell the northeast outfit with PCP Captial Partners’ Amanda Staveley leading a Saudi-backed consortium with the two parties agreeing to a £300m sale.

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This fresh information has been relayed to supporters on Twitter by @NUFC360 and has caused quite the reaction.

The twist comes just days after claims that the Premier League had given the green light on the deal, so it very much still remains up in the air.

Here’s what has been said…

AND in other news, The Sun’s Neil Custis claims Newcastle takeover has been delayed…

Chelsea will be looking to bounce back from their most recent Premier League result, a shock defeat at the hands of West Ham, when they host Watford tonight.

The Blues will take to the stage of Stamford Bridge, hoping their match against the Hornets will be one they can celebrate afterwards.

Although their visit to the London Stadium was a cagey one, the likes of Willian and Christian Pulisic stood out as Chelsea’s main threat. Frank Lampard will likely look to make the duo the main focus of the team he picks to take on the Hornets.

As of this morning, Nigel Pearson’s side are just one point away from slipping into the relegation zone and Chelsea could look to capitalise on Watford’s relegation-threatened status.

Transfer Tavern has predicted exactly how the Blues manager might line up ahead of their home fixture…

Since returning from injury, Tammy Abraham hasn’t been in his usual goalscoring form. Lampard may opt to start Olivier Giroud up front instead, after scoring against Aston Villa in their first match back in action. Regular choices Willian and Pulisic will likely feature out wide to provide support for the Frenchman.

Ross Barkley didn’t make much of an impact against the Hammers, so Mason Mount could return to the starting XI in order to maximise creativity from midfield. However, N’Golo Kante will likely remain the defensive midfield option to thwart any attempt on goal from a desperate Watford side.

After a disappointing display which saw him lose possession 10 times, Andreas Christensen is set to be replaced by Kurt Zouma in an otherwise unchanged back four.

With a few alterations to his line-up, Lampard will hope they can rectify mistakes made against West Ham and come away with three points to aid their Champions League chase.

How do you think Chelsea will line up against Watford, Blues fans? Have your say in the comments below!

With UEFA suspending the Europa League and Champions League until further notice, it’s still unclear whether the domestic game will resume at the end of April as planned or be out of action for a while longer.

Nonetheless, Manchester United midfielder Andreas Pereira has been discussing potential solutions to ensure the 2019/20 campaign actually finishes.

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He’s revealed to ESPN that he would be willing to play one game every day for a whole week to ensure there is a formal conclusion to the current season and believes the Red Devils could cope with such a hectic schedule.

But Pereira’s comments haven’t gone down too well with Red Devils supporters. Some clearly think it’s a bad idea and have told him to quieten down, while others have simply used the comments as an opportunity to blast the 24-year-old.

In fairness, Pereira hasn’t really taken the chances afforded to him by Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Despite usually operating in an advanced midfield role, he’s returned just one goal and three assists from 23 Premier League outings this season, 18 of those being starts.

Clearly United fans aren’t too happy with that contribution and have let their feelings be known on social media…

Tottenham Hotspur fans haven’t had much joy in 2020.

It began with injuries to both Harry Kane and Moussa Sissoko, which then doubled up to see Heung-min Son and January signing Steven Bergwijn join them on the sidelines.

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The north Londoners also crashed out of all their remaining cup competitions, including the Champions League where they were finalists just last season.

And Jose Mourinho’s side have sunk seven points adrift of the top four with only nine games to play.

Now supporters have been left reeling even more as their home kit for next term has been leaked on social media.

It remains to be seen whether the Nike-designed strip is accurate or not, but that hasn’t stopped several of the Spurs faithful from throwing in their thoughts about it.

Every word under the sun was used ranging from “disgusting” to “atrocious” and there was even a comparison made to Bolton Wanderers.

Here’s what has been said…

AND in other news, Whelan claims Spurs will be tempted by Barcelona offer…

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

There aren’t many bad things you can say about Leeds United’s defence this season.

Indeed, the Whites have been pretty much impeccable at the back as they’ve conceded just nine goals in 16 league matches this term.

However, their game against Blackburn Rovers on Saturday highlighted one area that they need to improve in, and that may involve getting a different type of defender.

Set-piece troubles

A staggering 44% of the goals conceded by Leeds this season have come from set-pieces. That number may be hard to believe, but it’s true as four of the nine goals they’ve let in have come from dead-ball situations, including Blackburn’s strike on Saturday.

This really is the only time that Leeds’ defensive acumen isn’t in play as these phases are usually just a physical battle between individuals.

That’s the only minor issue you can point at in Leeds’ backline, they simply don’t have a towering centre-back to deal with these issues.

In fact, Leeds’ tallest defender is Liam Cooper standing at 6 foot 2, so it’s clear to see that the Yorkshire outfit don’t really have a towering defender in their armoury.

Someone like Jansson

If only there were a 6 foot 4 centre-half who United could call upon, perhaps a player with enough talent to make it into the Championship Team of the Season.

Of course, we’re alluding to Pontus Jansson, and although Leeds’ defence has been impenetrable at times this season, it’s hard to say that they aren’t missing the Swede in these situations.

Indeed, Jansson has been a defensive juggernaut in the air as he won 4.9 aerial duels per game during his last season at Elland Road. On top of that, he’s won 3.6 in 2019/20.

Now, we’re not suggesting that Leeds should bring the £5.4m-rated Jansson back, but having a taller option at the back, especially when playing as a back three is certainly something that United should look at in January.

With margin for error incredibly tight in this division, it could well be something that ensures they don’t drop off like they did last campaign.

In this instalment of our TT Roundup, Football Transfer Tavern have gathered three of the biggest stories to have involved Rangers recently and have provided our thoughts on the reports published.

Rangers offer contract to Nathan Patterson

Rangers defender Nathan Patterson has been offered a new contract by the club to replace his current deal, as reported by Football Insider.

According to Football Insider, the 18-year-old has been presented with a three-year contract which will see the youngster receive a substantial pay rise.

Football Insider added that the right-back is regarded by senior coaching staff at Ibrox as a player who can establish himself in Rangers’ first team.

Verdict

Patterson has yet to make a senior appearance for Rangers but made his mark for the under-19 side in their UEFA Youth League first round win over Young Boys, his goal in the 3-3 draw in Switzerland proving pivotal as the ‘Gers advanced on away goals.

He has been earning plenty of plaudits among coaches and ex-Rangers players, with development team boss Graeme Murty saying he has “all the characteristics you would ascribe to an elite-level full-back” and Peter Lovenkrands intimating that the teenager reminded him of a young Alan Hutton. [via Football Insider]

Patterson will need a few games at senior level before a better judgement can be made but he might not have to wait much longer for a first team debut if the rave reviews of coaching staff are anything to go by.

Ally McCoist critical of James Tavernier’s defending

Former Rangers striker Ally McCoist was highly critical of James Tavernier following Sunday’s 3-1 win over Hamilton.

Speaking on BT Sport [via HITC], McCoist said that the 28-year-old is “brilliant going forward” but insisted that he needs to be better defensively.

He said: “We’re having this conversation every second or third week,” adding: “Your first job as a right-back is to defend and he’s not good enough at that at this moment in time.”

Verdict

McCoist is not the only one who criticised Tavernier’s defensive capabilities following the win at New Douglas Park – Jordan Carlisle of Rangers News said that the right-back “was caught out of position at times in a shaky second half”.

Last month, the 28-year-old endured an off-night in the Europa League defeat to Young Boys, with two errors leading to the Swiss team’s goals in a 2-1 loss for Steven Gerrard’s side. [via BBC]

Tavernier may be club captain but a continuation of defensively suspect performances could see his place in the team come under intense scrutiny.

Steven Gerrard commends Kai Kennedy

Steven Gerrard said that young attacker Kai Kennedy had merited his opportunity to travel and train with the first team ahead of Sunday’s 3-1 win at Hamilton.

Speaking to Rangers TV [via Rangers News], the manager said: “Kai’s trained with us all week, he got a cameo against Leicester and he earned the chance to come and train with the first team and warm up with us today.

“It’ll be a good experience for him because he’s certainly a talent. There’s a lot of work to do with him, but we certainly see a bright future for him.”

Verdict

The 17-year-old winger has featured regularly for Rangers’ youth and reserve teams this season, with two assists from seven appearances in the UEFA Youth League and Scottish Challenge Cup (as per TransferMarkt).

Also, Kennedy was named Player of the Tournament in the Alkass International Cup earlier this year, playing an integral role in Rangers’ triumph in the competition. [via The Scottish Sun]

With Gerrard calling him up to train with the first team, the teenager seems to be rated highly by the manager and may get his senior debut at some point over the next few months.

Rangers fans, what do you make of these stories concerning your club? Share your views in the comments section below!

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

According to The Sun, West Brom are the latest club to be linked with a move for their former loan ace Dwight Gayle.

It is a transfer that potentially suggests that Slaven Bilic is starting to regret one of his major summer decisions.

What’s the word?

The reports claim that the Baggies chief in command is keen on adding Newcastle United’s frontman to his league-leading squad.

Gayle enjoyed a fruitful loan spell at the Hawthorns last season under ex-boss Darren Moore as he bagged 24 goals in 41 appearances before returning in the summer.

Last weekend he finally played his first match back at his parent club after coming on as a substitute against Chelsea for four minutes.

Albion currently have Charlie Austin, Kenneth Zohore and Hal Robson-Kanu in the striking department with two of them being signed this summer.

Bilic’s blunder?

However, these links may tell a more damning story up in the west Midlands as, despite all of the goal-laden matches West Brom have been involved in, their strikers haven’t yet lived up to expectations.

The Baggies have netted 24 goals in 13 Championship matches this term, but just four of those have come from the three aforementioned strikers, which is quite a worrying return.

Austin was signed on deadline day for £4m from Southampton and has scored just the one goal in nine appearances.

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Now that the club are reportedly chasing Gayle again, it could suggest that Bilic is starting to regret his decision to force through a deal for the 30-year-old at the last hour.

Had the club spent a bit more money in the summer, they could quite easily have tempted Magpies boss Steve Bruce into making a decision in regards to selling the 29-year-old forward.

If the club do indeed pursue a striker in January, it will only reinforce the belief that he may have lost some faith in Austin at this early stage of the campaign.