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Over the last few weeks, it looked as though Wolves were back in business. Yet, enter Manchester City.

The Citizens have now won 21 games in a row so on paper, Nuno Santo’s men stood no chance.

They gave Pep Guardiola’s side a good game and it wasn’t until the final ten minutes that City finally began to run riot. Though, what didn’t help Wolves’ performance was some risky changes from the manager.

Nelson Semedo started at right-wing, further forward than he traditionally plays, while Adama Traore led the line over the so-far disappointing Willian Jose.

Yet, the biggest risk was at right wing-back where Ki-Jana Hoever started and he was given a rough evening during their 4-1 defeat.

Against Manchester United in December, he looked imperious and in the words of Birmingham Live reporter Alex Dicken, “didn’t put a foot wrong.”

Though, on this occasion, he proved why Nuno has difficulties in trusting the young Portuguese ace. In that defeat to United, his communication levels with Conor Coady were top drawer. Yet, with Leander Dendoncker behind him on Tuesday, he evidently struggled.

It may have been the towering Belgian who scored an own goal, but if we assess both of their performances, it was undoubtedly Hoever that came off worst.

He was given a horrible night by Raheem Sterling and the dynamic Joao Cancelo down City’s left-hand side.

In total, Hoever was dribbled past on five occasions, the highest number of anyone to take the field at the Etihad Stadium. Defensively, the teenager was not up to scratch and played a poor part in City’s second strike.

He allowed Kyle Walker to race down the right-hand side completely unopposed and unmarked. That meant the right-back had all the time in the world to pick out a cross for Gabriel Jesus to fire home.

Unfortunately, the defender was also poor in possession. No Wolves player surrendered the ball more times than Hoever’s 16.

Considering this was a night where he barely got forward either, that kind of statistic should be of even more concern, especially when he was losing the ball in the defensive third of the pitch.

The 19-year-old has only started three Premier League games this season and on this evidence, you can see why. He was caught ball watching for the second goal and against such high-class opposition, you cannot afford a lapse in concentration like that.

However, he shouldn’t be too disheartened after playing against undoubtedly the league’s best side this season. There will be easier tests to come but it’s fair to say he let his manager down at the Etihad.

AND in other news, Wolves may have their new Saiss in rarely-seen “talent” who is “wise beyond his years”…

Wolves youngster Andreas Sondergaard gave an exclusive interview to Football FanCast where he spoke in detail about making his dream move to England.

The Danish shot-stopper grew up wanting to play in England’s top league, so when Wolves came calling it was something he could not turn down.

Having the opportunity to ply his trade alongside world-class players is something that will only make Sondergaard a better player and aid his development.

Moving to a different country is too much for a lot of young players who end up back in their homeland, but Sondergaard wants to prove to people that he is different and ready to make this move work.

The motivation to prove people that doubted him when moving to Wolves wrong is something that drives him to be the best keeper every day.

He spoke at length to Football FanCast about moving away from home in Denmark and making his opportunity count at Wolves, he said:

“I always wanted to go to England at a young age if the possibilities were there.

“When I found out that I had the opportunity to go to England at a young age, I was quite clear about it that I wanted to take the chance.

[snack-amp-story url= “https://www.footballfancast.com/web-stories/exclusive-andreas-sondergaard-wolves-premier-league” title=”Exclusive! Andreas Sondergaard talks all things Wolves”]

“This is because when I was young, I heard that there was a lot of young players going abroad. There was a lot of talk that they didn’t manage to settle in and they kind of went back to their home countries again, after a short while.

“I wanted to prove that you can actually go at a young age and you can do well and you can settle in and have some success actually.

“That’s definitely giving me some motivation to go and do that.”

Sondergaard is ready to grasp his chance at Wolves with both hands and forge a career for himself in England.

Many come to England and can’t deal with the intensity and focus on players, however, Sondergaard seems prepared and willing to tackle anything if it means he plays in the Premier League.

Many Nottingham Forest fans were quick to rush to Twitter to slate the performance of Sammy Ameobi during their Championship fixture on Saturday, despite the forward scoring twice in the 3-1 win.

Chris Hughton’s side have started to pick up some great form lately, and are now undefeated in their last seven matches (Sky Sports). This has not only seen them climb out of the relegation zone (SofaScore), but it has also seen them advance to the Fourth Round of the FA Cup.

Fans picked a rather peculiar target during Saturday’s win though, as one supporter tore into Ameobi and called him ‘lazy’ after he grabbed the first two goals on the day. That said, it appears fans may have a point, as some of the stats do reveal why there was frustration aimed at the player.

He lost five ground duels and all four of his aerial duels (SofaScore). He also lost possession 19 times, which was the second most on the pitch.

We suspect these supporters will be relieved the former Newcastle man was able to add some end product to an otherwise wasteful display, but the stats suggest their criticisms are just.

Here is how Leeds fans reacted to his performance:

“Does Ameobi ever hit the target”

Credit: @MedCLJS

“Why is Ameobi so slow with the ball.”

Credit: @NickBriggsNFFC

“Ameobi looks knackered after 10 mins. Stamina of a chihuahua”

Credit: @NJL82

“Ameobi stopped trying and reverted back to his lazy self showing his true colours #nffc”

Credit: @Jamsmitchell

“What will it take for Sammy Ameobi to put a bit of quality into the box? #NFFC”Credit: @DGBCampbell”Ameobi needs hooking. Another game there for the taking where he is completely anonymous #NFFC”Credit: @mikewood77In other news, fans were fuming with a tactical decision Chris Hughton made. Have a read what it was here!

Celtic midfielder Olivier Ntcham has been linked to a loan move to the Premier League as Newcastle show interest in his services. According to Sky Sports’ Keith Downie, the Magpies are looking to get a deal over the line to acquire the Frenchman before the January transfer window slams shut.

Steve Bruce is looking to bolster his options in midfield and out of favour Ntcham is seemingly one of his top targets.

Although they are only looking to sign him temporarily, it could foreshadow the 24-year-old’s future, which looks like it will be away from Celtic Park.

Olivier Ntcham’s Celtic days numbered

Ntcham currently has just 18 months left on his current contract with the Bhoys and heading out on loan this month could suggest that a permanent move is on the horizon.

The France youth international has slipped down the pecking order this season after Neil Lennon took a punt on promoting Ismaila Soro to the first team. Along with David Turnbull, the midfielder has seriously impressed since he was given his chance, even usurping Scott Brown on more than one occasion.

According to Transfermarkt, Ntcham has missed out on Celtic’s last eight Premiership fixtures. Although he missed two matches through self-isolation, Lennon has dropped him from his usual role in the team.

As a midfielder who can sit back but also contribute to the attack, he should be one of the first names on the team-sheet. However, his 2020/21 season has left a lot to be desired.

Ntcham has just one goal and two assists across competitions so far. Even in games where Lennon deployed him as a centre-forward, he has struggled to make an impact.

Should he move to Newcastle for the last half of the season, Ntcham will likely be gaining a lot more game time than he is right now.

As he continues to stay out favour under Lennon, a permanent transfer could become a priority for him. Although the boss has waxed lyrical about the midfield man – recently lauding him as one “hell of a player” – Ntcham’s lack of game time is a glaring hint that he could end up moving on from Celtic in the very near future.

In other news, Exclusive: Rob Lee dismisses idea of Frank Lampard to Celtic…

West Brom boss Sam Allardyce is looking to stamp his mark on the Midlands outfit next month, but one mooted target is far from what he needs to change their fortunes this season…

What’s the word?

According to All Nigeria Soccer, Albion are set to reignite their interest in Nigerian winger Ahmed Musa, who is out of work following his exit from Saudi Pro League outfit Al-Nassr in October.

They claim that the 28-year-old was close to joining the Hawthorns in the summer, agreeing on a season-long loan but his parent club were reluctant to sanction his departure despite releasing him just months later.

Big Sam is thought to be a big admirer of Musa as he tried to sign him during his stint in charge of West Ham. West Brom could effectively land a player that commanded a £15m fee (€16.5m) just two years ago, for free.

Shades of Oli Burke

Whilst the opportunity to land an illustrious international sensation for a bargain may seem like a smart piece of business from the new Baggies boss, it could actually be the adverse as the £16m Musa has already flopped in the Premier League before.

He managed just five goals in 33 appearances for Leicester City before being shipped out on loan to CSKA Moscow and then sold to the Saudi side.

It’s been reported that Musa was on around £60k-per-week at his last club, which would comfortably put him among Albion’s highest-earners, something that is just not justifiable.

As a result, it bears similarities to Tony Pulis’ disastrous £15m deal for Oliver Burke in 2017 – the club have only just been able to get rid after four goal contributions in four years.

Once dubbed “excellent” by former Foxes boss Claudio Ranieri, Musa is far from what is needed in this relegation dogfight. Big Sam would be better off signing tried and tested players.

AND in other news, Exclusive: Sam Allardyce tipped to sign £50k-p/w colossus this January…

West Brom may have picked up their first win under Sam Allardyce at the weekend, defeating arch-rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers, but there is still so much work to be done to salvage their season.

And next up is the 66-year-old’s former club, West Ham United.

Indeed, the Baggies’ only second win of the campaign would have lifted spirits in the dressing room considering they’ve just seen off their local neighbours, though they were fortunate to be gifted two penalty decisions.

“But again we conceded poor goals and we cannot do that against West Ham,” said Allardyce after the game, he also added: “Our goals have been stupid mistakes in open play and allowing the opposition to capitalise on those mistakes and score.”

This is certainly the case as no other Premier League team has leaked as many as the 41 goals that Albion have this term. In fact, that’s seven more than Leeds United.

Big Sam needs to find a new way to help his backline, and that may well be through the introduction of a proper holding midfielder. We know the Midlands outfit are looking for one in the transfer market amid links to Hamza Choudhury, William Carvalho and Okay Yokuslu.

But maybe it’s time to finally unleash Sam Field now he’s back from injury?

The 22-year-old enforcer was a surprise name on the bench up at Molineux despite Allardyce practically ruling out him being involved, which means he’s surely fit enough to feature having been back in training for several weeks now.

Last season in the Championship, West Brom did not have a better option in the role statistically, as per The Athletic.

Since the start of the 2020/21 season, Albion’s midfield has been far too easy to bypass, summed up by neither Jake Livermore nor Romaine Sawyers managing an average WhoScored rating above 6.22 despite being the two usually sitting deeper.

As you can see above, Field offers far more stability as he outscored the duo (whilst on loan at then-league rivals Charlton) for every facet one might expect an anchorman to be good at.

He won possession back more than Livermore and put in more tackles than either of the duo too.

Once again, if Field were to perform at a similar output in the top-flight, he would still rank above both of them for tackles, clearances and blocks, per WhoScored.

“He is a proper holding midfielder,” said ex-boss Slaven Bilic in the summer, adding: “He’s very good tactically, he keeps his position, he’s very good at slowing the play down, very good at helping the centre-backs when they need it, he’s quite tall so is good at heading the ball and good at tackles, reading balls and opening attacks with a good range of passing.”

Whilst Tony Pulis, who handed Field his Premier League debut, once claimed: “I think he’s going to be a fantastic player for the club. Technically, he’s as good and as gifted as any footballer I’ve seen at that age.”

Also dubbed an “intelligent player” by Darren Moore, it’s a travesty that we haven’t seen Field play more than five times in the past 18 months.

He could well be the solution to Albion’s defensive problems, he must be unleashed against the Hammers this evening. He’d be a much better option than Sawyers, that’s for sure.

AND in other news, Albion can kill two birds with one stone with Jan swoop for £9m-rated colossus…

Following the summer signing of Kyle Walker-Peters from Tottenham Hotspur, Southampton right-back Yan Valery has struggled for a spot in Ralph Hasenhuttl’s team, and perhaps the South Coast club should consider loaning him out in January.

The French defender is yet to make an appearance for the Saints’ first-team so far this season and has only made the bench on three occasions, as he has been dropped to the U’23s for a few fixtures so far this campaign (per Transfermarkt).

The 21-year-old looked set for a bright future with Southampton after establishing himself in the first-team in the 2018/19 season, when he made 23 appearances in the top-flight, contributing two goals and one assist (per Transfermarkt).

However, he failed to really push on from there, as he made 11 appearances in the top-flight last season, due to the loan arrival of Walker-Peters, as well as him suffering from a virus that kept him out for two months between November and January.

Considering his lack of minutes this season, as well as the form of Walker-Peters, perhaps Hasenhuttl should consider loaning out the 21-year-old in the upcoming January transfer window, to ensure that his progress isn’t stifled too much.

He would surely have plenty of suitors from the top two divisions, having earned plenty of Premier League experience in his career thus far and it would surely benefit both parties if Valery was to get some much-needed first-team football out on loan, rather than just being a back-up with Southampton.

However, this could be a risky decision from the Saints, as Valery and Walker-Peters are the only two senior right-backs in the senior squad, so if the former Spurs man were to suffer an injury, it would mean having to play another player out of position, or trusting someone from the academy, if Valery had already departed on loan.

After he signed a new contract until 2023, Hasenhuttl was full of praise for the defender, saying:

“I am very happy first that he has made good development in the last month.

“He has got a lot of trust from my side and he grabbed the chance with both hands.

“His development was good, so it’s a very important sign for us as a club and for him that he signs a new contract.”

“It depends on his work and his ability, but we see Yan working very hard and working on his deficits he still has in his game.

“But I think he is a perfect example of The Southampton Way that we want to go in.” (per Southampton)

Therefore, the Austrian manager is clearly a big fan of Valery but if he wants to ensure that his progress isn’t stifled, he needs to bite the bullet and send the French U’21 international out on loan.

And, in other news… Southampton sold lazy flop at the perfect time; he’s sat on the bench now

A resilient Manchester United fought back to see off a spirited West Ham in the London Stadium that saw the Red Devils record their ninth away win in a row in the Premier League.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side bounced back from their midweek Champions League defeat to Paris Saint-Germain at Old Trafford to climb to fourth in the table.

However, it didn’t exactly go to plan, as United went in 1-0 down after Tomas Soucek buried a header at the far post.

But goals from Paul Pogba, Mason Greenwood and impact substitute Marcus Rashford in the second half spared Solskjaer’s blushes as United moved two points behind leaders Tottenham Hotspur at the top of the table.

Bruno Fernandes pulled the strings, Pogba looked back to his very best, but this doesn’t excuse the abysmal display by others who were fortunate enough to be entrusted with a start, none more so than Anthony Martial, who has seemed devoid of confidence since the start of the season. The Frenchman’s market value is estimated at €90m, which is roughly £81m, via the CIES Football Observatory (CIES). 

If their calculations are to be believed, he had nothing to show for it – SofaScore graded the 25-year-old with a terrible rating of 6.2 out of ten – the worst out of any United player on the pitch including Edinson Cavani (6.5) – as he lost possession 10 times, won just two duels from nine attempts, was caught offside twice, dribbled past once and only took one shot on target.

The Daily Mirror gave Martial a 4/10 and claimed he ‘failed to look a threat and his disappointing season continues,’ whilst The Manchester Evening News went even further in their scathing assessment, insisting he was ‘weak on the ball and West Ham preyed on his flakiness.’

It’s no wonder, then, that the passenger was replaced by Juan Mata, although we do have to ask the question why he even started at the London Stadium in the first place, and he ought to be nervously looking over his shoulder after Greenwood and Rashford got themselves on the scoresheet, so his place in the starting line-up can no longer be guaranteed.

He came close to levelling the score after he latched onto a sensational pass from Fernandes shortly after the break but was flagged offside to sum up his frustrating night.

Martial’s sixth start of the campaign could be his last for quite some time after his poor performance with next week’s home fixture against derby rivals Manchester City firmly in the front of Solskjaer’s mind. There’s no doubt the United boss will have to reconsider his options ahead of what will be a hotly-contested clash towards the top of the table.

AND in other news, Forget Sancho: Manchester United must swoop for Erling Braut Haaland…

Leeds United’s team of the early 2000s is full of players we could spend all day fawning over.

Rio Ferdinand is one of the greatest defenders this country has ever produced, Lucas Radebe has captained Leeds more times than any other player, Mark Viduka was nigh-on unplayable on his day, while not many could match Lee Bowyer for heart and desire.

However, two players that don’t quite get the credit they deserve are Ian Harte and Gary Kelly.

The Irish pairing were driving their team forward from the back before it was fashionable, and the club haven’t quite had a pairing as good as those two since.

Stuart Dallas and Luke Ayling are brilliant in their own right, but when you consider that Kelly and Harte had key roles to play in Leeds consistently challenging the top four, it’s hard to envisage them surpassing Harte and Kelly’s achievements, especially as they’re both closing in on their 30th birthdays.

Luckily, the next generation could see two fresh full-backs take up the mantle, and if they reach their potential, they could be United’s best pairing since the two Irishmen.

Indeed, Leif Davis and Cody Drameh are both developing at Leeds, and they look like they could be the perfect modern full-backs.

Davis’ talent has already been seen by Leeds fans as he’s made a dozen appearances for the first-team, earning all sorts of plaudits along the way, being tracked by Liverpool and compared to Gareth Bale, which is some of the highest praise you can get as an attacking left-back.

Drameh on the other hand has been courted by Manchester City and compared to Ryan Sessegnon – a man often touted as the next Bale, so you can see something of a pattern emerging here.

If Davis and Drameh reach their perceived potential they could realistically be United’s full-back pairing for the next decade, and if they manage to break through while Marcelo Bielsa is still at Elland Road that will be even more exciting, considering how forward-thinking the Argentine is with his use of full-backs.

Tyrick Mitchell remains sidelined after picking up an injury in training prior to the defeat at Wolves last week. Crystal Palace manager Roy Hodgson confirmed that he will need further assessment after missing the Premier League clash with Leeds United on Saturday afternoon, according to the club’s official Twitter account.

He said: “Joel Ward, Tyrick Mitchell and unfortunately James Tomkins are not available for this weekend.”

Mitchell has played six games in the Premier League so far, having played in every single minute of the competition prior to his absence against Wolves after breaking into the first team towards the end of last season.

Per SofaScore, the 21-year-old received a solid rating of 6.7 for his efforts in his last outing against Fulham, as he made two tackles, three clearances, one interception and blocked one shot, whilst he produced 3 out of 3 accurate long balls, took 56 touches of the ball, and completed 33 out of 36 passes (92%).

Given his fine form, Hodgson could have easily kept Patrick van Aanholt on the bench, but his recurring injury problem has given the veteran a timely boost to preserve and protect his Palace career.

Van Aanholt started the defeat away at Wolves as the Palace boss rang several changes to rotate his squad, and had a game to forget all about as he lost possession 11 times, only won one ground duel out of six attempts, was dribbled past once and failed to register a single tackle throughout the entire game, as per SofaScore.

Alan Shearer once singled the 30-year-old out for praise after he put in a “brilliant” performance for his former club Sunderland as he came off the bench against West Bromwich Albion to change the game. He has scored 14 goals and supplied five assists in all competitions during his time at Selhurst Park.

Whilst it’s unlikely the £7.2m-rated Dutch colossus would’ve been sold in the winter transfer window, as Hodgson made it clear he is not for sale earlier this year, he is reportedly looking for new terms.

Now Van Aanholt will be hoping he can take full advantage of the situation if he can quickly find his feet after working his way back from fitness.

AND in other news, Steve Parish must return for long-term Crystal Palace target Rafael Santos Borre…