Arsene Wenger
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PL Stories – #ArseneWenger identifies #ThiagoAlcantara as the main reason for Liverpool’s bad results this season #LFC

February 18, 2021
Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger has criticised Liverpool for the signing of Thiago Alcantara, identifying what the team has lost with his arrival. Jurgen Klopp's side are enduring a disastrous defence of their Premier League crown, dropping to sixth in the standings and 13 points behind leaders Manchester City, who hold a game in hand. While there was plenty of excitement surrounding the capture of Thiago, the Spaniard has endured difficulties upon his arrival in the Premier League. Wenger has identified that his inclusion in the team sees Klopp's side lose some of the aggression they had in midfield in recent years and also hinted at why Wenger signed the played he did while at Arsenal. Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will auto-play soon8Cancel "Thiago Alcantara, for me, shows a problem for a manager. Liverpool were very hungry and aggressive in midfield, when you're a manager you think you want to make the team better and you take a technical player," he told BeIN Sports. "When you take a technical player, you lose the aggression in midfield and you destroy a little bit the strength in midfield that Liverpool had before. "They have certainly less capacity today to win the ball back and they suffer a little bit more. Sometimes when you want to improve the team, you take something away from it." Sign up to our Arsenal newsletter for the latest transfer news By signing up for our Arsenal newsletter, you will receive a once-daily email, focused around goings-on at Emirates Stadium. You won't miss a thing when it comes to the Gunners - you'll get all you need to know directly into your inbox. We'll also send out special newsletters with any big breaking news too. And with the January transfer window now open there's plenty of content to get your teeth into. How do you sign up? It's easy and only takes seconds. Simply type your email address into the box at the top of this article - or any article on the Arsenal section of football.london in fact - labelled 'Get the biggest daily stories by email' and click 'Subscribe'. And that's it, you're all set. If you decide later that you no longer wish to receive the emails, simply follow the unsubscribe link in one of the newsletters - but we don't think you'll want to. For more details, click here. That may also explain why Wenger regularly seemed to ignored calls for Arsenal to sign a defensive midfielder during the latter years of his spell in charge at the Emirates Stadium. It was repeatedly highlighted as an idea on the field where the Gunners needed to improve but Wenger pursued alternative additions - and his comments on Thiago taking something away from Liverpool may identify why.
Raul Jimenez Wolves
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #RaulJimenez plans to ‘repay’ Wolves fans when he returns #WOLVESFC

February 18, 2021
Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Raul Jimenez has revealed he plans to play in Europe for 'many years'. The Mexican striker is currently building up his fitness after fracturing his skull in Wolves' 2-1 win over Arsenal at the end of November. Many presumed Jimenez's campaign was over but Nuno Espirito Santo recently admitted Wolves are hopeful that he will be able to play again this season. Wolves have struggled in his absence and, despite a recent upturn in fortunes, Nuno's side have collected just 13 points from a possible 42 in the Premier League without their talisman. A lack of goals has been the major issue, with Pedro Neto's winner at Southampton on Sunday finally pushing Jimenez down to second in the club's goalscoring chart for this season. Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will auto-play soon8Cancel His return will be most welcome, but the club have always been keen to stress that Jimenez's health comes first. Jimenez was linked with numerous high-profile transfers before committing his future to Wolves by signing a new contract at the beginning of this season. All the noises coming from the 29-year-old suggest he intends to stay at Wolves for a good while yet - but he knows where he wants to end his career. Read More Related Articles Read More Related Articles “I would like to return to Club América at some point, but right now, my time is here in Europe," he told Mexican outlet EstiloDF (via Sport Witness). “I want to spend many years here; hopefully, I can continue my career here for many years and why not return to the club where I was born.” BirminghamLive understands the possibility of playing a friendly with Club America was being considered by Wolves' bosses before the coronavirus pandemic hit last year. A tour of the United States was in the pipeline for pre-season in 2020 and it could have included a showpiece fixture with Jimenez's former club. Wolves transfer news, rumours and analysis free to your inbox There's a quick and easy way to stay on top of all the Wolverhampton Wanderers news with our daily newsletter. Delivered straight into your email inbox each day, the bulletins will feature the latest Wolves transfer news, views, gossip and opinion from our man Alex Dicken. How do I sign up? All you have to do is punch your email in at the top of the article - or sign up here. And what's more, it's absolutely free! You can also get all the latest updates by following us on Facebook and Twitter. We also have a free app which you can download. It is always up-to-date with the latest news from across the region. Google Play Store and App Store That could yet happen in the future, but for now Jimenez only has one target and that is to return to the pitch and repay Wolves fans for their support. “It is very rewarding with the fans, the people who love me, who support me,” he added. “For example, in the stadium, they even created a song for me. “Now that the injury has happened, they sent money to make a banner and put it up in the stadium in support of me. “All that fills you up, you know you’re doing well, and when you come back, you have to give even more to repay them.”
Nuno Espirito Santo
Posted in2020-2021-Season Daily News

#PLStories- #NunoEspiritoSantos gives insight to half time message that inspired win over Southampton #WolvesFC

February 15, 2021
Nuno Espirito Santo has revealed what he told his Wolves players at half-time to inspire their second half turnaround at St Mary’s. Danny Ings’ goal had Southampton in front at the break before Ruben Neves (pen) and Pedro Neto turned the game around. Wolves’ first half showing was abject and Nuno has explained the words he had with his players at half-time. “The momentum changed in the second half, I'm pleased with the reaction,“ he said. "I just told them to correct things and find better solutions at half time. "We have talented players, Pedro, Adama, when they have space to do their actions they're very difficult to stop. It's a huge moment for us." Video Loading Video Unavailable Click to play Tap to play The video will auto-play soon8Cancel Wolves prioritised the Premier League game over Thursday’s FA Cup clash with the Saints, and this victory moves them up to 12th in the table. Some supporters remain frustrated that Nuno didn’t field his strongest XI in the cup game earlier this week. Explaining his decision to make six changes in more detail today, Nuno said: “I understand and respect their opinions a lot, more than anyone else. They are at home but they are aware of the situations - but they are not totally aware of everything. “For example, Willian (Jose) came from Spain, he played against Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Leicester - all these games and minutes - Pedro the same, Adama (Traore) the same. “When you consider a player is on the edge of getting injured you have to be aware of that and make the right decision.” Read More Related Articles Read More Related Articles Southampton manager Ralph Hasenhuttl, meanwhile, was left feeling aggrieved over the penalty Wolves were awarded at the beginning of the second half. Hasenhuttl believes the one given against Ryan Bertrand was similar to a later incident involving Wolves' Leander Dendoncker which wasn’t awarded. “He explained the arm was away from the body,” Hasenhuttl said of his conversation with referee Graham Scott over Wolves’ penalty. “It is the rule, OK, but then he must explain on the other side when the ball hits the arm and this is not a penalty. VAR maybe can explain this but I couldn’t speak with VAR.”