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Ex-referee Mark Halsey was not impressed by Celtic striker Albian Ajeti for diving during his side’s 4-0 win against Kilmarnock on Tuesday night.

Halsey not impressed

It was a much-needed win for the Bhoys in what has been a largely forgettable season for the reigning Scottish champions, inspired by Scott Brown returning to the side following his recent suspension.

The skipper got the opening goal before the interval, which was followed by a second-half brace from Odsonne Edouard and Ajeti found the net with four minutes of normal time to play.

However, the 23-year-old has attracted some controversy in the build-up to the second goal as he won the penalty for Celtic. As the challenge came in from Killie goalkeeper Colin Doyle, Ajeti appeared to go down without any contact, putting his feet together to simulate contact from the challenge.

When asked whether he thought it was a dive from Ajeti, Halsey told The Transfer Tavern: “Oh absolutely, absolutely it was.

“When I saw it I didn’t think the goalkeeper touched him. He’s deceived the referee – there’s no qualms about that. It’ll be interesting to see if the Scottish FA take retrospective action.

“I didn’t think it was a penalty, you could tell from the goalkeeper straight away, he probably knew he was never touched and he just went down.”

Transfer Tavern Verdict

We have to agree with Halsey here. While it was great for Celtic to react in the right way after their defeat to St Mirren at the end of January, Ajeti’s simulation definitely had an impact on the game.

Both sides had the same amount of shots on goal in the end, and while Celtic were of course much more clinical, Killie would not have been out of the match at 1-0.

But Neil Lennon will certainly not be phased by it and will just be relieved to get three point, as the Hoops now move on to face Motherwell on Saturday.

In other news, Pundit slams Celtic following Dominic McKay’s appointment as CEO for key reason.

Many Aston Villa fans have been talking about a tweet from Gregg Evans that recently emerged on social media.

Evans recently tweeted out an article about the club’s recent form. The tweet stated that the club’s squad will look more complete when the signing of Morgan Sanson is complete. It also talked about why Villa should sign a striker this month, saying that Ollie Watkins is the only striker in the Premier League who has played every minute of every game.

But the Englishman will need to rest at some point in the campaign and because of that, Villa may need to sign another striker in the ongoing January transfer window.

Evans’ article for the Athletic states that owners Nassef Sawiris and Wes Edens will continue to back head coach Dean Smith in the market whenever the need arises. Adding another striker could mean that Villa could have the ‘perfect’ January window and it would allow them the chance to finish as high as possible.

It also states that Villa are in a better financial position than other clubs this month but despite that, January is a tough market to do business in. It also talked about the fact that having another striker wouldn’t hurt them.

Evans’ tweet caught the attention of many Villa fans, who gave their opinion about what the article said.

What did Villa fans make of Gregg Evans’ tweet?

“Think it will be a massively missed opportunity if we don’t sign another Striker to help Watkins. A loan would work and less risky.”

Credit: @chris_dolan

“I know he’s young but we should start thinking about integrating Barry into the first team squad a little.”

Credit: @_porsalin

“Does seem silly to only go with 1 recognised striker, if Watkins gets injured then the whole thing potentially falls apart due to his work rate and ability to occupy the whole back 4 on his own. We seen last season what an injury to your only striker can do.”

Credit: @VillaWayne

“I’d be surprised if we sign a striker. Traore would play up top if anything happened to Ollie with EG or Trez on the wing. Who, of real quality, would come to us knowing they would be just the back up? No time to panic. Address this in the summer. Re Barry, trust the coaches.”

Credit: @BrumRadioPete

“A striker addition with a loan to buy option would make sense for us to help Ollie take a breather and rest and rotate a bit, if ever he gets injured our European football adventure may end.”

Credit: @UTViIIa
“Another striker is essential Gregg, Loan out Davis and have Barry around the first team … Watkins over Christmas was shattered.”
Credit: @Naathan_lowe

In other news, Fabrizio Romano has issued an update about an Aston Villa target – read more here.

Manchester City return to Premier League action on Wednesday night, as they take on Brighton and Hove Albion at the Etihad.

Pep Guardiola’s side cruised through to the FA Cup fourth round after a comfortable 3-0 win against Birmingham City at the weekend and the Spanish manager was able to rest some of his key players ahead of the game against Graham Potter’s side.

City are also beginning to welcome back some of the individuals that tested positive for the current viral outbreak but the likes of Nathan Ake and Aymeric Laporte are injured, whilst Sergio Aguero is self-isolating.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Guardiola to line his side up against Brighton on Wednesday evening, with five changes from the starting team that beat Birmingham…

Ederson reclaims his place in between the sticks, although Zack Steffen showed himself to be a reliable back up in his recent appearances for the Citizens.

There are two changes in defence, as Kyle Walker moves back out to right-back, having started at centre-back at the weekend, with Joao Cancelo moving to left-back, as we saw regularly earlier in the season.

John Stones gets the start alongside Ruben Dias at centre-back, with the duo rapidly becoming the best centre-back partnership in the Premier League on current form.

Ilkay Gundogan returns in midfield, with the German international having been rested against Birmingham.

In order to accommodate the former Borussia Dortmund man, Kevin De Bruyne pushes forward into the false nine role, which he played so effectively in, in the 3-1 win against Chelsea recently, with Gabriel Jesus dropping to the bench as a result.

The Brazilian, who earns £90k per week at City, once again failed to find the back of the net at the weekend and considering this is a must-win game for the Citizens, they cannot afford to be wasteful in front of goal.

There’s one change on the wing as Raheem Sterling replaces Riyad Mahrez, with the English international missing the game at the weekend due to a lack of match fitness but he should be fine to feature against the Seagulls, whilst Bernardo Silva keeps his place after his impressive brace against Aitor Karanka’s side.

Three points against Brighton keeps the pressure on those at the top of the league, so Guardiola must select a strong lineup to ensure his side secures the win against a struggling Brighton side.

And, in other news, Guardiola must swoop for “unbelievable” £90m-rated beast; he can break Aguero’s Man City record…

The day Pablo Hernandez calls time on his long and illustrious career, Leeds United fans will no doubt be in mourning.

The Spanish wizard has been an absolute revelation since joining from Swansea, making well over 150 appearances for the club and scoring 36 goals and providing 41 assists in total.

But with him turning 36 in April, Victor Orta will have to be on the look-out for a potential long-term successor to the veteran, and he could do a lot worse than bringing in Celtic’s Ryan Christie.

According to reports, there is considerable interest in the Scotland international, and that with him currently being unwilling to sign a contract extension at Parkhead, he could be on the move, with Leeds one of the clubs keeping a close eye on his situation.

Able to play anywhere across midfield, but perhaps at his most destructive when in the middle of the pitch, Christie has been an absolute machine when it’s come to driving Celtic’s attacks.

This season alone has seen him already reach double figures in terms of assists with 11, including setting up a goal each in both of Celtic’s Europa League clashes against Serie A giants Milan.

And when you compare his influence in game with Hernandez, Christie goes clear. As per Sofascore, the latter has averaged an impressive 2.4 shots, 2.6 key passes, and 1.9 dribbles per game this season, whilst Leeds’ resident magician has managed just 0.8 shots, 0.6 key passes and 0.4 dribbles.

That’s not to mention the fact Christie is the kind of hard-working team player who Bielsa would surely love to build his team around – he’s averaging close to two tackles per match in the Scottish Premiership.

Bringing Christie in would go a long way to completing Bielsa’s dream Leeds team as he looks to establish the Whites as a Premier League force.

Meanwhile, Leeds could Bielsa’s dream signing in this “unplayable” £40m star.

Speaking exclusively to FootballFanCast, former Aston Villa ace Marlon Harewood has insisted he hasn’t been surprised by the form of summer signing Ollie Watkins.

The 24-year-old arrived from Championship side Brentford to reunite with Dean Smith at Villa Park, and has hit the ground running at his new club, bagging eight goals in just 11 games – that of course includes his memorable hat-trick in the 7-2 thrashing of Liverpool.

Now, Harewood has given his thoughts on the club’s new centre-forward, saying: “I’m not surprised. He’s a top-class player in the striker situation, and it’s good to see him doing what he’s doing. Obviously, the players around him they’ll want to do well as well. It compliments him in positions where he’s going to score goals.”

Watkins’ arrival and good form has been a welcome shot in the arm for Villa this season, with Smith’s side managing just 41 goals in 38 games last season in the Premier League.

Their campaign wasn’t helped by the fact Wesley suffered a knee injury at the start of the year and is only just working his way back up to full fitness, so having the man from Brentford just click as a new player straight away has been music to the ears of Smith.

Whether he can keep up his consistency over the course of his first season in the Premier League remains to be seen, but all the early signs point to him doing exactly that.

He’s come up with some big goals against the likes of Liverpool and Arsenal, and with Villa flying high and even seemingly up for a potential challenge for a European spot, Watkins could hold the key.

Having led Leeds United to the Championship title last season, it was inevitable that a lot of people’s eyes were going on to be Marcelo Bielsa.

“Here comes El Loco” was the title that The Guardian ran with in the first week of September, as excitement grew over seeing the man Pep Guardiola hails as his mentor.

But whilst Leeds have had an encouraging start to the new Premier League campaign with seven points from their opening five games, that’s not a patch on what Dean Smith is managing over at Aston Villa.

Having survived relegation back to the Championship by the skin of their teeth last season, Villa have done a complete 360, and currently sit second in the table with four wins from four – even a point against Leeds on Friday night would send them top and above Everton thanks to goal difference.

Despite the fact they’ve confounded everybody’s expectations, Bielsa continues to be the topic of conversation.

Sky Sports ran a lengthy feature ahead of his team’s clash against Manchester City about how he inspired Guardiola, whilst before that, after a 4-3 loss to Liverpool, the headline was “Marcelo Bielsa’s Leeds show no compromise in Liverpool thriller”. It’s been all about how the Argentine has shaped the Yorkshire club in his own image.

He’s a magnet for attention with his quirky style of management – since when did sitting on a stool on the touch-line become a thing? – and it’s no surprise that people gravitate towards that.

But on Friday, Smith can strike a blow to that love-in with a tactical masterstroke. In the games Leeds have dropped points in thus far – their defeats to Liverpool and Wolves and the draw to City – they have come undone against teams who have quick forwards who are prepared to run in behind.

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Mohamed Salah scored a hat-trick, Raheem Sterling netted for City, and Wolves had the likes of Daniel Podence, Pedro Neto and Adama Traore to call upon as they won last time out.

With Leeds’ high-pressing, by-passing that with a quick ball over the top for wingers and central strikers to chase onto can leave them unstuck, and it’s why Smith may be tempted to throw in someone like Keinan Davis into the attack on Friday.

The 22-year-old is a willing runner and makes constant movements into the channels, and instead of relying on just Ollie Watkins to do that, having another outlet in Davis could leave Bielsa in a muddle.

Smith has the perfect opportunity to get one over on his counterpart, and prove why he’s been the outstanding manager of these first few weeks of the Premier League season.

Liverpool’s transfer pursuit of Brighton and Hove Albion defender, Ben White, seemingly edged closer last night with reports that the Seagulls have identified three possible replacements for the 23-year-old.

Jurgen Klopp is in need of defensive reinforcements, following Virgil van Dijk season-ending injury, and has made White a transfer priority ahead of the January window although it will cost the Reds in the region of £50m to secure his services.

Despite being ever-present in Graham Potter side this season, sources close to Football FanCast have revealed that Brighton are already identifying contingencies should they sell Ben White and are keeping close tabs on Middlesbrough’s defensive duo, Dael Fry and Anfernee Dijksteel – as well as Blackburn Rovers’ Darragh Lenihan.

Dael Fry has come through the Middlesbrough Academy and has represented England at every level up to the U21s; however, is out of contract at the end of the season and therefore Boro may look to cash in. His defensive teammate, Anfernee Dijksteel, has been a mainstay in the side since his £2m move from Charlton back in 2019 and has impressed for Neil Warnock’s side this season in what has been a strong start to their Championship

campaign.

Darragh Lenihan, who has previously been linked with a move to Sheffield United is a Republic of Ireland international defender and vice-Captain at Blackburn Rovers. Currently sidelined with a knee injury, the 26-year-old is highly thought of at Ewood Park and Tony Mowbray wouldn’t want to lose a key cog in his pursuit to get Rovers back into the Premier League.

AND in other news, Liverpool handed major transfer boost in potential David Alaba deal…

Glasgow Rangers are getting ready to face Celtic in the Old Firm derby. Neil Lennon’s side are in the middle of a crisis but Steven Gerrard has a few injury concerns of his own to worry about…

What’s the word?

According to The Daily Record, Rangers defender Filip Helander faces a race against time to prove his fitness for the clash with Celtic. The 11-cap Swedish international had been in fine form for his club before being called up by his country before the international break.

But he was told to return to the Ibrox outfit by boss Janne Anderson after turning up for training with a “slight injury.” And Rangers will have to wait and see if he can shake off any issues so he can be available for selection at Parkhead.

Cause for concern?

This isn’t the first time Helander has had to overcome adversity. In fact, he has had to deal with his fair share of injury problems in recent years, including a lengthy spell on the sidelines due to a foot injury. However, the “really positive” player worked his way back into contention, and he has been a regular feature in the squad ever since alongside Connor Goldson.

Per SofaScore, Helander has played seven games in the Scottish Premiership this season, having started six games so far, keeping four clean sheets, whilst averaging 2.9 tackles, at least 1 interception and 2 clearances per game.

Even so, his latest setback will have given Gerrard some cause for concern. After missing a large chunk of last season, he cannot afford to endure another long spell without football. There is also the possibility he could aggravate any lingering issues against Celtic in a game that is almost always expected to be a physical encounter between the two sides.

Helander’s teammate Leon Balogun partnered Goldson at the heart of the back line against Ross County in the Gers’ last game before the international break. And the bargain ace gave a good account of himself whilst away on international duty.

Therefore, the Rangers boss may instead opt for a back four including Calvin Bassey, Balogun, Goldson and Tavernier to face Celtic. He will need his side to be fully fit and firing on all cylinders when the team travel to Celtic Park.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers given major boost as Steven Gerrard cleared for Celtic clash…

Having slipped to a frustrating draw against Livingston last time out, Steven Gerrard’s Rangers bounced back to winning ways with a 1-0 win over Kilmarnock on Saturday afternoon.

And after providing an impressive 15 assists across all competitions last season, and picking up one each in his last two games, James Tavernier would surely have fancied his chances against doing the same at the weekend.

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And whilst he did eventually set up Ryan Kent for Rangers’ second, it was arguably his poorest display in a Rangers shirt in this new campaign. As per Sofascore, he provided just two accurate crosses all game, attempted no dribbles whatsoever, and lost possession 16 times – only two of his teammates conceded more.

After seeing his performance against Kilmarnock, Rangers fans took to Twitter to share their reactions.

A couple of Rangers fans simply insisted that Tavernier looked “non-existent”, and that there was “no urgency”.

It’s safe to say the Rangers skipper didn’t enjoy the greatest of afternoons on Saturday.

The right-back really struggled as an attacking threat, and that just increased the pressure on his teammates to start fashioning out chances. The stats sheet may say that the 28-year-old picked up his third league assist of the season, but that simply doesn’t tell the full story.

Gerrard will be hoping that Tavernier simply had an off day.

Manchester United could spring a surprise and sign former Burnley midfielder Jeff Hendrick on a free transfer this summer.

According to Football Insider, as per Daily Express, Man United are plotting a shock move for Hendrick in the summer following his release by the Clarets and amid reported interest from AC Milan. The Red Devils are ready to move for him as he can fit into multiple positions in midfield.

It is no secret that United want to sign Jack Grealish and Jadon Sancho, but the 2-2 draw with Southampton showed that still need to shore up defensively.

The Irish international, who has won 54 caps for his country, is now a free agent.

Hendrick has impressed for Burnley this season, as Sean Dyche’s side have climbed their way into the top half of the Premier League table. He played 24 games in the Premier League this term, scoring two goals, supplying two assists, winning 1.1 headers per game and recording a passing accuracy rate of 75% (via WhoScored).

Nemanja Matic remains the club’s only specialist in the defensive midfield position, which is a major cause for concern as the 31-year-old Serbian isn’t getting any younger, but the Republic of Ireland midfielder could provide cover as a midfield anchor if necessary.

Dyche had made it clear that he wanted Hendrick to stay with the Clarets but the 28-year-old rejected the offer of a new deal from the Turf Moor outfit.

His versatility could prove useful as Solskjaer’s side seek to challenge for silverware next season. However, whether or not the Red Devils will be able to stave off interest from AC Milan and Newcastle is another matter altogether.

United fans, should Ed Woodward sign Jeff Hendrick in the summer? Let us know in the comments section!