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According to the South London Press & Mercury, Lee Bowyer has said that Charlton will sign a left-back in the January transfer window, and he should look no further than Liverpool youngster Adam Lewis.

What’s the story?

Bowyer told the South London Press & Mercury: “It is too soon to say what sort of players we will want to bring in elsewhere but we need to try to get a left-back, 100 per cent.”

The 41-year-old boss, who only took the job on a permanent basis this summer, also said that the Addicks would not be looking overseas to fill the role and it would seem that Lewis could be the perfect option.

Charlton are currently sitting in sixth place in League One and adding to the squad in January will give them a good shot at promotion. However, with the problems off the field, Bowyer may be limited to loan signings in the winter window.

Star in the waiting

Recently, Goal reported that Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp had been hugely impressed by 19-year-old academy prospect Lewis, and that the attacking left-back would become the understudy to Andrew Robertson at Anfield next season upon the expiry of Alberto Moreno’s contract.

This represents huge praise for the young Englishman and proves just how highly rated he is at the Premier League giants.

Lewis has played 12 games for Liverpool’s U23s so far this season, scoring one goal and providing an impressive five assists. However, although he looks to be a serious talent, Lewis has never experienced first-team football and so a loan to Charlton for half a season would be perfect at this stage in his career.

So, Addicks fans, would you like to see Lewis as the left-back who joins in January? Have your say by voting in the poll below.

The arrival of Maurizio Sarri over the summer was sweetened by the return of a former Chelsea man and icon to many of the Stamford Bridge faithful in Gianfranco Zola. 

The Italian hadn’t returned to Chelsea since he left back in 2003, so when he did join the club as a part of Maurizio Sarri’s management team, the news was even sweeter.

It’s been great for the club, too, as the Italian has been able to have a significant impact, as proven by the fine form of the Blues this term.

Sarri immediately made a good impression by bringing back Zola, and so perhaps this is something that he should look to repeat.

Significantly, another Chelsea legend has hung up his boots this week in the form of Didier Drogba, and with the Ivorian out of a job – could a return to Stamford Bridge make sense?

Well, for the Blues, it does seem like a wise move. First and foremost, it would make Sarri even more popular. Drogba is a hero to an entire generation of Chelsea supporters, and having him in the management team would deepen the connection between the fans and the club.

More important, though, is what Drogba can offer the club.

He knows everything about the Blues, and for a manager that’s only been at Chelsea for a few months, that’s huge. He had two spells at the club, and he won practically everything there is to win in a Chelsea shirt. That experience and knowledge of the club would be invaluable.

Furthermore, his experience of playing as a forward could help Chelsea, given their struggles in that regard. Both Olivier Giroud and Alvaro Morata have had spells of poor form over the last year, and Drogba could be the perfect motivator as they look to regain their form consistently.

Bringing Drogba back offers no downside for the Blues. It just makes sense.

Thoughts?

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Rangers fans have taken to Twitter to react in amazement after Greg Docherty, who is on loan at Shrewsbury from Ibrox, scored a stunning goal against Salford in the club’s FA Cup first round replay.

The 22-year-old has impressed for the League One side since arriving on a temporary deal back in the summer, scoring five goals and recording four assists in 18 appearances for the club.

On Wednesday night against non-league Salford, however, the Scotsman scored arguably the best goal of the lot. Docherty received the ball out on the right wing before driving inside past a couple of defenders, and it looked as if he had overran the ball.

However, the winger somehow poked the ball upwards into the roof of the net in emphatic fashion to double his side’s lead and see them into the next round of the famous competition.

Naturally, fans of the Glaswegian giants were overjoyed with their player’s amazing goal, and have reacted accordingly…

Playmaker FC’s Matchday with Max caught up with Jamaica’s women’s team. See what happened when he met the history makers in the video below…

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As revealed by Manchester City’s official Twitter account during Pep Guardiola’s press conference before the West Ham game, first choice left-back Benjamin Mendy will be out for up to 12 weeks as he recovers from knee surgery.

Although Fabian Delph can provide cover, this is the perfect opportunity for Oleksandr Zinchenko to stake a claim for a first-team place.

What can he offer? 

The 21-year-old came into the side at the back end of last season as Mendy was recovering from another injury and largely impressed out on the left, getting up and down the flank and supporting his teammates where need be.

He has rarely been deployed from the start as, when the currently injured Frenchman is fit, he is an exquisite performer and one of the first names on the teamsheet. However, he has never let Guardiola down, and will need to grab this chance with both hands if he is to get ahead of the 6ft tall Mendy in the pecking order.

Playmaker FC’s Matchday with Max caught up with Jamaica’s women’s team. See what happened when he met the history makers in the video below…

Before arriving at the Etihad, the Ukraine international was in fact an attacking midfielder by trade, although his traits tend to suit what the Spanish coach likes in his full-backs as he often deploys them infield closer to the central midfield positions.

Does he have a chance of becoming first choice? 

Definitely. Guardiola has often voiced his displeasure at Mendy’s lack of professionalism at times, with the World Cup winner regularly turning up late to physio sessions and making more progress on his social media accounts than on his fitness.

The fact that the former Barcelona and Bayern boss has taken to the media to voice his concerns over the former Monaco full-back, rather than have an in-house discussion about it, shows that he is losing patience with the Frenchman.

If Zinchenko can come in and go some way to replicating the dynamism shown by Mendy down that left flank, with constant overlaps and inch-perfect end product, then Guardiola could well use the youngster as an example to Mendy and start making him take his football that bit more seriously.

Do you think Zinchenko could take Mendy’s spot in the team? Have your say in the poll down below…

Liverpool are having a strange season in that the performances are not matching up to the results.

Jurgen Klopp and his men blew teams away with their fast-paced attacking style, but during the current campaign, they have been lacklustre at times.

In the Premier League everything is going to plan as the Reds are unbeaten and sit just two points behind leaders Manchester City.

However, in the Champions League, they are in danger of failing to qualify from the group stage as they need to overcome Napoli.

Against Paris Saint-Germain in midweek, Liverpool were faced with the same criticism – a lack of creativity.

Klopp fielded a midfield trio of James Milner, Jordan Henderson and Georginio Wijnaldum, while the front trio of Mohamed Salah, Roberto Firmino and Sadio Mane failed to impress in the 2-1 loss.

After the match, we asked you what Klopp needs to do to solve the team’s problem, and the majority believe that a dip in the January transfer market is in order.

Check out the video below to see how Brazil fans reacted to being asked how Cristiano Ronaldo would perform for them in a hilarious prank by Playmaker FC…

Leeds United remain very much in the promotion race despite their terrible luck with injuries.

Whether it’s just natural wear and tear as a result of a very competitive Championship season or Bielsa’s demanding style of play, Leeds have been hit with a raft of injuries this season.

Bielsa has already had to deal with losing Kemar Roofe, Pablo Hernandez, Barry Douglas, Ponsuss Jansson and now most recently, Jamal Blackman, Liam Cooper and Luke Ayling.

As a result of the injuries, Bielsa has had to lean on the youth academy and has brought in the likes of Jack Clarke, Aapo Halme, William Huffer and Leif Davis into the squad.

While the Thorp Arch graduates have all performed well, Leeds fans will be begging Bielsa to dip into the transfer market and bring in some much-needed cover.

However, Yorkshire Evening Post journalist Phil Hay has remarked that it’s unlikely that Bielsa will bring in any outfield players in January.

The Breakdown

While Bielsa’s faith in the squad and youngsters is commendable, not bringing any outfield players could be a huge mistake. As we’ve seen over the last few weeks, Leeds haven’t been able to replicate the dynamic football that they showed during the early part of the season due to the amount of injuries at the club.

With Norwich City, Middlesbrough and Aston Villa in excellent form, Bielsa needs to keep up the pressure at the top and may well fall behind their rivals in the second-half of the season.

While Izzie Brown and Patrick Bamford are back, it sounds as though Bielsa is getting ready to make a huge gamble next year.

Thoughts Leeds fans? 

Leeds will be inclined to believe that their promotion chances are very high after they continued their scintillating start under Marcelo Bielsa.

The Argentinian boss was brought in with the hope of achieving just that and with Leeds occupying 2ndplace, people have high hopes for the second half of the season.

The Peacocks have a strong Championship squad and they wouldn’t be out of place in the Premier League, judging by their strong performances this season so far.

However, to ensure their return into the top flight after nearly 15 years out of it, Leeds must turn to a player who has successfully been promoted previously and has starred in the division.

Wolves forward Leo Bonatini is a player that took the Championship by storm and alongside Kemar Roofe for example, Leeds could have a serious frontline for teams to contend with.

Bonatini, who is valued at £4.5 million on Transfermarkt, is a striker that could do serious damage in a team like Leeds.

With the options they have available to them, the Peacocks would only be getting better if they loaned another top player.

Wolves already have a number of attacking options with Bonatini included, meaning they could be willing to part ways with the 24-year-old temporarily.

If Leeds could secure a loan deal, options such as Patrick Bamford, Kemar Roofe and Leo Bonatini would certainly allow their promotion hopes to come true if the team as a whole keeps up the good work.

The Brazilian forward scored 12 times in the Championship last season and whilst yet to start a single Premier League, he may feel ready to step down a division to re-find his best days.

Do you agree… Let us know!

Last Saturday’s mediocre performance against Watford at Goodison Park should’ve signalled to Marco Silva that right-back Séamus Coleman won’t be Everton’s long-term solution in this specific position.

After making a successful return to the Toffees first-team this season after a lengthy injury layoff, Coleman’s showing against the Hornets should tempt the manager to start looking for a fresh replacement that would offer more direction, defensively and in attack.

One such player could be Fiorentina’s Vincent Laurini.

After making more than 140 appearances for Empoli, the Frenchman joined Fiorentina in the summer upon the completion of a season-long loan spell at Viola.

Despite having to fight for a place in the starting lineup of late, Laurini was an integral part of the Fiorentina defence that saw them finish in eighth position in the Serie A last season.

The 29-year-old immediately proved to be a talent in the Fiorentina setup when he joined them on loan last season with his vast experience and excellent technical defending on the right flank.

Everton, though, could definitely benefit from someone with his skill-set. Saturday’s draw against Watford proved how inconsistent and static Coleman still is and the two goals were conceded mainly because of the sloppiness in defence by the 30-year-old.

Laurini would offer Silva a much more hands-on defender who is quick to throw himself at opposition attackers. His ruthlessness has also been a superb feature of his game with his energetic and non-stop commitment.

The defender completed his first 90 minutes of the season last weekend in a dramatic 3-3 draw with Sassuolo and could now continue to be the main right-back in Stefano Pioli’s team.

But an active transfer market by Silva and his recruitment staff in January could tempt Laurini to consider his options outside of the Serie A as Coleman’s inconsistency could continue to cost Everton throughout the season.

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Manchester United officially parted company with embattled manager Jose Mourinho this week. Since then, former Red Devils striker and ex-Cardiff City boss Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has been placed in caretaker charge at Old Trafford until the end of the season.

In the aftermath of the Portuguese’s departure, United attacking midfielder Jesse Lingard has sent a message of thanks to his outbound boss.

Not everyone was pleased with Mourinho’s sacking. Check out American Soccer Fan’s hilarious take on it in the video below…

The 26-year-old, who enjoyed extensive game time for the club under Mourinho, said “thank you for the wisdom.”

The 22-cap England man may well have plenty to thank Mourinho for. He is one of the few United players to have significantly improved during the former manager’s tenure, and he became a much more central figure under the 55-year-old than he had ever previously been at the club.

After posting his message of thanks and farewell, plenty of Man United fans took to Twitter to react to Lingard’s words…

According to a recent report from The Daily Mail, West Ham are one side interested in a move for Everton midfielder James McCarthy. The 28-year-old has been playing his football at the Premier League outfit since leaving Wigan Athletic back in 2013 to thus reunite with former manager Roberto Martinez, although a lack of regular game time under current boss Marco Silva this term has called his future at the club into question.

And reports suggest that Manuel Pellegrini’s Hammers, as well as Claudio Ranieri’s Fulham and Darren Moore’s West Brom, are eyeing up a January move for the Republic of Ireland, yet his recurrent injury woes in years gone by should prompt the East London club to forget about him and instead target his Everton teammate Morgan Schneiderlin.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, 28-year-old McCarthy has spent much of the last 12 months out due to injury, with knee and hamstring injuries thwarting the first half of his 2017/18 season, only for a broken leg to end that campaign prematurely in January and indeed so far restrict his chance of appearing this time round as well.

As such, it means that the Irishman has managed just four Premier League appearances for Everton in the last 12 months to suggest that maybe he isn’t quite at the level needed to make an immediate impact at the London Stadium – after all, he would be being brought in to ease the workload as a result of an injury crisis, which demands that he can hit the ground running.

And that seems like too big a risk to take given it will likely take time for him to get up to speed, whereas teammate Schneiderlin is another who while is down the pecking order at Goodison Park does have much more football under his belt in recent times than McCarthy.

The France international started well upon arrival at Everton in January 2017 only for things to tail off during the 2017/18 season, ultimately culminating in the midfielder struggling for game time this time round under Silva with no Premier League start since September.

However, one mustn’t forget just how integral he was to Southampton during his time there between 2008 and 2015, with his efforts in the Premier League in his final three years at the club particularly impressive in underlining just how good a central midfielder he was – there’s no reason why he can’t get back to that level.

In fact, Schneiderlin was arguably one of the most impressive midfielders in the top-flight during his time at St Mary’s hence Manchester United paid big money to sign him in 2015 – yes, things haven’t quite been as good since then for the 29-year-old, but there is clearly a hugely accomplished midfielder in the Frenchman.

Significantly, he’ll likely be able to hit the ground running a lot sooner and more effectively than teammate McCarthy were he to move to West Ham, which is why the Hammers must opt against the Irishman and instead target ex-Southampton star Schneiderlin this month.

West Ham and Everton fans… what do you think? Let us know!