Darren Moore picked up his first win as Sheffield Wednesday manager on Saturday afternoon but despite all of the positives, there was one glaring downside – the performance of Adam Reach.

The versatile 28-year-old has been the epitome of inconsistency throughout his Owls career – you get moments of magic with the odd screamer thrown in there, and then you get displays like that.

This is something Reach has even admitted himself, speaking to YorkshireLive last season, he said: “My own season’s been similar to the team’s, a little bit topsy-turvy. I’ve had some good moments and some not-so-good moments.”

We certainly saw the latter this weekend, even if Wednesday ended a run of eight matches without a victory.

SofaScore graded him as the worst player on the pitch with a 5.9 ratings yet somehow, he lasted the entire duration of the match.

In that time, he lost possession a whopping 40 times, meaning he lost the ball once every two minutes and after racking up a squad-high 81 touches, it means every other touch involved him gifting possession back to Barnsley. Very, very poor.

On average, the £2.5m-rated star loses possession 13.6 times per outing, so this is rather telling on just how shocking he was on the day.

Reach was also weak in his battles, winning just five of 12 duels (42%), both on the ground and in the air. Moore is rather lucky that the in-form Tykes didn’t punish such mistakes as that left flank was clearly an area of weakness that could’ve been exploited.

In addition to that, the Owls ace was dribbled past three times – only adding to the idea that the home side should have done a lot more to damage their struggling rivals.

The rangy 6 foot 1 dynamo, who is thought to be among Wednesday’s high earners on £20k-per-week, badly let his manager down with his performance. He cannot be excused just because they finally won a game, he’ll have to improve to help ensure it wasn’t merely a fluke result in the coming weeks.

Reach was quite simply abysmal with the ball – he managed to make just 46% of his 46 passing attempts, including only five of 24 long balls finding a player in an Owls shirt, as per SofaScore.

Somehow, there were even worse returns amongst the Owls squad here, but still, this did not help Reach’s overall game.

The 28-year-old’s pathetic outing shouldn’t dent confidence going into the international break, though he will certainly need to improve if the Owls are to stand a chance of beating relegation.

AND in other news, 20 clearances: Owls colossus stole the show for Sheffield Wednesday…

يواصل الدولي البرازيلي، نيمار دا سيلفا، جناح فريق باريس سان جيرمان، عملية التعافي من إصابته مع النادي الباريسي، قبل مباراة ريال مدريد في دوري أبطال أوروبا.

ويُعاني نيمار من إصابة بالتواء في الكاحل الأيسر، ويغيب الدولي البرازيلي عن الملاعب مُنذ 28 نوفمبر من العام الماضي 2021، حين أصيب في مواجهة سانت إيتيان الدوري الفرنسي.

وحسب صحيفة “آس” الإسبانية، فإن نيمار عاد للركض من جديد لأول مرة مُنذ شهرين وكل شيء يُشير إلى أنه سيكون جاهزًا لمباراة الذهاب ضد ريال مدريد في دوري أبطا أوروبا.

اقرأ أيضًا – راموس: الجميع يريد اللعب في باريس سان جيرمان.. ونسعى لحصد دوري الأبطال

وأوضحت الصحيفة أن نيمار من المتوقع أن يعود للعب مع النادي الباريسي، يوم 6 فبراير ضد ليل في الدوري الفرنسي، وبالطبع سيكون متاح للعب أمام رين، قبل أيام من مباراة ريال مدريد.

يُذكر أن مباراة الذهاب سوف تُقام على ملعب “حديقة الأمراء” يوم الثلاثاء 15 فبراير 2022، في تمام الساعة العاشرة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، الحادية عشر بتوقيت السعودية.

بينما تلعب مباراة الإياب في معقل النادي الملكي بـ”سانتياجو برنابيو”، يوم الثلاثاء 8 مارس 2022، في تمام الساعة العاشرة مساءً بتوقيت القاهرة، الحادية عشر بتوقيت السعودية.

According to a recent report, Tottenham Hotspur are interested in the signing of VfB Stuttgart centre-forward, Sasa Kalajdzic, as a replacement for Spurs’ loanee striker, Carlos Vinicius, this summer.

The report by the Daily Mail claims that, upon the expiry of his season-long loan at Tottenham, Vinicius is set to make a return to Benfica, as Daniel Levy is unwilling to pay the £36 million option to buy clause in the 26-year-old’s contract.

As a result of Vinicius’ impending departure from north London, it is then claimed that Jose Mourinho is searching for replacements for the Brazilian, with Kalajdzic believed to be one of the 58-year-old’s targets.

Last month, a report by Kicker (via Sport Witness) claimed that West Ham United are also interested in the 6 foot 5 Stuttgart forward, for whom the Bundesliga side are thought to be demanding a fee of between €20-25 million (£17.4-21.75 million) to part with this summer.

Transfer Tavern Take

With Vinicius starting just three Premier League fixtures during his loan spell at Spurs so far, with the striker only managing one goal over his total of nine top-flight appearances, it is hardly surprising that the club are unwilling to pay a substantial amount of money for the Brazilian this summer.

And, with Kalajdzic having scored 14 goals and provided four assists over his 27 Bundesliga appearances for Stuttgart this season, as well as the fact the 23-year-old is reportedly available for much less than it would cost to sign Vinicius, it is easy to see why Tottenham may feel that the Austria international would be much better value for money.

In other news: ‘It may be’ – Spurs target drops huge hint on transfer; Mourinho fascinated by ‘remarkable’ star – find out more here!

All in all, it was a pretty successful day of international football if you’re an Aston Villa fan.

Ollie Watkins marked his England debut by scoring in a 5-0 thrashing of San Marino, while Tyrone Mings also featured in the drubbing of the minnows.

However, one man who arguably outshone Villa’s Three Lions contingent was John McGinn.

The £34m-rated midfielder was the star of the show as Scotland rescued a late 2-2 draw at home to Austria on Thursday night, with the Villa man scoring an incredible overhead kick in the final few minutes.

It wasn’t just his superb goal which saw McGinn really stand out for the Tartan Army, with the 26-year-old really showing a defensive nous and in holding down the midfield alongside Scott McTominay.

As per Sofascore, his tally of four interceptions was the highest of any player on the pitch, and he could be often seen shuttling across the pitch to close down the passing lanes into Austria’s two-man strike force.

McGinn was also a threat at the other end of the pitch, with his usual energy and dynamism seeing him pop up in the opposition box, as he did for his goal – his total of three shots on goal were the joint-most of any Scot.

Writing in his post-match player ratings for The Scottish Sun, Kenny MacDonald gave McGinn a seven, noting: “30th cap for the Villa man started in an oddly withdrawn midfield role before being freed when McGregor came on – and responded with fabulous technique to level with eighth international goal.

The display sent a huge message to Villa manager Dean Smith about what McGinn can bring to the table, with the midfielder facing added competition for places at Villa Park thanks to the arrival of Morgan Sanson in the January transfer window.

With the likes of Douglas Luiz and Marvelous Nakamba also battling out for those all-important midfield spots, McGinn’s Scotland masterclass will have been a timely reminder to Smith of his qualities.

Meanwhile, Gregg Evans has delivered a major transfer update on Aston Villa…

The Celtic managerial pendulum is swinging once again. A few weeks ago it looked as though the Bhoys would appoint Roy Keane but then it was Eddie Howe in their crosshairs.

However, they may now have to turn their attentions elsewhere after a major update emerged on Howe’s future.

What’s the word?

The former Bournemouth boss has been touted as Neil Lennon’s successor for over a week now but an immediate move for the 43-year-old has now been put in doubt.

News from Sky Sports late on Wednesday evening revealed word coming from Howe’s camp that he wouldn’t be arriving at Parkhead until at least the summer.

The manager’s rep said: “Talks of any deal being close are extremely premature.”

They added: “His plan remains to not return to management until the summer at the earliest.”

Howe left the Cherries by mutual consent last August after they were relegated from the Premier League but he is yet to find a new job.

Desmond seething

This is news that will have rocked Celtic considerably. They evidently had ideas of replacing John Kennedy as interim boss in the immediate future with talks taking place with both Keane and Howe over the last month.

However, the idea that they may have to soldier on with Kennedy at the helm until the summer is unlikely to be greeted too kindly by supporters and majority shareholder Dermot Desmond.

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The businessman seemingly has his work cut out when it comes to finding a new manager for the playing squad and he may now have to look elsewhere again if Howe wants to wait until the summer before making an executive decision.

Last week it looked as though Howe was all but through the door after advanced talks had taken place.

There is nothing to play for in the league right now but finding a new manager to guide their Scottish Cup run could have been game-changing in providing them with some light relief after a difficult campaign.

This is their last remaining chance of winning a trophy this term but with Kennedy at the helm and Rangers to come in the next round, the opportunity of lifting silverware feels slim.

Though, with fresh ideas and a new manager like Howe arriving, it may have given the club some added impetus.

The fact that the Englishman won’t want to arrive until the summer at the earliest should leave Desmond particularly annoyed and frustrated.

AND in other news, Left for £0, now worth £63m: Celtic will rue rash call on “unbelievable” £100k-p/w gem…

Rob Lee has dropped a quite worrying claim on Newcastle United involving the Premier League’s decision to aim to have fans in the stadiums this season.

The top flight are hoping that fans will be allowed back into St. James’ Park for the North East club’s final home game of the 2020/21 term against Sheffield United.

Speaking to Football FanCast, Lee has claimed that having supporters back inside the stadium ‘could go either way’, but also admitted that it could be ‘detrimental’ to the Tyneside club’s players as the Blades will know that they can go there and quieten the crowd:

“I think it could go either way but the fans will 100% be behind the team from kick-off. However, Sheffield United will know if they go there and can quieten the crowd then it could be detrimental to the Newcastle players.

“Kevin Keegan used to say to us in the first 10-15 minutes go out and entertain the crowd and get them on your side and then they’ll be behind you for the entire match.

“That’s what Newcastle fans want to see right from the off their team flying into players, pressing the opposition and creating chances and then they’ll get behind you.”

Fans need to get behind Newcastle

If fans are to be allowed back into the ground for that match, every single Magpie will need to get behind the team as it could well turn out to be a vital moment in their season.

The Toon are currently in a relegation battle, and no matter what fans think of Steve Bruce, projecting that frustration onto the players could prove costly.

As Lee points out,  the Toon Army can have a huge impact one way or the other, and it is indeed worrying to think what could happen if it goes the wrong way.

In other news, find out which Newcastle ace ‘will leave this summer’ according to one pundit here!

ينتظم محمود متولي، مدافع الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الأهلي، في التدريبات الجماعية للفريق بعد انتهاء كأس العالم للأندية في الإمارات.

ويلتقي الأهلي أمام مونتيري في المباراة المقرر إقامتها مساء السبت المقبل في الدور التمهيدي لبطولة كأس العالم للأندية.

وأوضح الدكتور أحمد أبوعبلة طبيب الفريق للموقع الرسمي أن متولي يخوض حاليا المرحلة الأخيرة من برنامجه التأهيلي في مستشفى سبيتار الطبي، المتخصص في مجال ‏الطب الرياضي بالعاصمة القطرية الدوحة، وتخلص من آثار الإصابة بشكل نهائي.

طالع | حسام حسن يخضع لفحص طبي أخير قبل مباراة الأهلي ومونتيري

وأضاف أن متولي سيكون جاهزا للمشاركة في التدريبات الجماعية للفريق بعد انتهاء كأس العالم للأندية وهو ما دفع الجهاز الطبي لتأجيل عودته إلى القاهرة لحين انتهاء البطولة.

Several Aston Villa supporters have been sharing their love at the club’s reported summer transfer plans on social media.

Villa spent over £88m during the current campaign, bringing in the likes of Ollie Watkins, Bertrand Traore, Matty Cash, Emiliano Martinez and Morgan Sanson in eight-figure deals.

And it seems as if the club will be splashing the cash once again ahead of the 2021/22 campaign.

According to John Percy of The Telegraph, Villa are looking to bring in at least one more winger and another centre-forward to provide competition and backing for Watkins.

The likes of Anwar El Ghazi and Trezeguet have struggled to consistently perform in the top flight, whereas Dean Smith isn’t thought to be convinced over striker Wesley, who has been out for over a year through injury.

Villa fans react

@villareport shared Percy’s comments on social media on Friday, which, as to be expected, had plenty of fans talking. Here’s what some had to say, with one describing the update as ‘positive news’.

“Positive news from a reliable source”

Credit: @dan_AVFC88

“Yasss Yasss Yasss”

Credit: @JaVilla__

“oh yes”

Credit: @wesavfc

“OMMMGGGGGG ITS HAPPENING”

Credit: @VillaVisionBen

“FINALLY”

Credit: @champagnema_

“Bring on the summer”

Credit: @LordMillman29

In other news: £55,000-a-week Villa star not in Smith’s plans, find out more here. 

Most supporters would have been forgiven if they had forgotten that Crystal Palace had signed goalkeeper Jack Butland.

Indeed, the former England goalkeeper has made just one appearance for the Eagles this season since his summer move from Stoke City, a drab FA Cup defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Having previously been talked up as one of the most promising stoppers in the Premier League with the Potters, Butland’s career is now at a new low.

As recently as May 2018, the goalkeeper was valued at £19.8m and being rumoured as a potential replacement for Thibaut Courtois at Chelsea.

He was fresh off of the back of a season where he was Stoke City’s undoubted number one, despite the club’s demotion to the Championship. The stopper had also racked up 20 clean sheets in the English top-flight.

Since then though, Butland’s rating has taken a huge drop of £17.1m, all the way down to £2.7m, with 27 goalkeepers in the Premier League now holding a higher transfer rating than Butland.

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Whilst Palace will certainly have not lost any money on the 28-year-old if they sold him for that amount, with him being brought to Selhurst Park for just under £1m last summer, they are now lumbered with a player who appears to be in habitual freefall.

Having signed a contract to 2023, the question has to be asked whether the Eagles will ever be able to recoup even that amount should he be sold.

It is certainly a huge drop off then for a man who had managed to accumulate nine caps for his country, even being named in his nation’s squad for the 2018 World Cup in Russia.

Considering he has not made an appearance for Palace this season in the Premier League, it now seems a baffling move for Steve Parish to have brought Butland to Selhurst Park last summer.

AND in more news, take a look at which current Palace wideman could have his Selhurst Park career ended by the arrival of Florian Thauvin…

Barry Ferguson has suggested teams will be looking at six Glasgow Rangers players in particular this summer.

Ferguson discusses Gers transfer plans

Ferguson was speaking to The Go Radio Football Show (via Ibrox News) about what the Gers’ transfer policy will be this coming summer.

He believes the Gers will be looking to hold on to their best players, but suggested Alfredo Morelos, Borna Barisic, Joe Aribo, Ryan Kent, Connor Goldson and Glen Kamara could all attract interest. He said:

“This run in Europe and regaining the league title back, I’m just thinking that the Rangers board may say to the manager, ‘look we’ve got an opportunity to make it into the group stage of the Champions League, let’s try and keep our best players and let’s add to that’.

“I know money talks, if somebody comes in with a ridiculous offer they will need to consider it but I think the Rangers board at this moment in time will fully back Steven Gerrard and allow him to try and keep the ones he wants to keep.

“I think he’ll add some quality to it [the squad] because the best time to strengthen is when you’re on top.

“There are six assets in that Rangers team; Goldson, Barisic, Kamara, Aribo, Kent and Morelos…that’s the six I would probably say teams are looking at.”

Big summer ahead

There is no doubt that that this summer’s transfer window will be an important one for the 55-time Scottish champions. They have a chance of reaching the Champions League group stages next season, which would be a huge achievement for Steven Gerrard and co.

To do that, they will need to do all they can to hold on to their best players. One consolation if they were to depart could be the potential windfall the Gers would receive as a result. According to The Athletic, those six aforementioned players combined are currently valued at a whopping £80m – a considerable amount for a side like Rangers. It remains to be seen what Ross Wilson and co decide in a few months.

In other news, Rangers fans react to this injury news.