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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

David Luiz insists he has no plans to leave Arsenal just yet, per ESPN Brasil via Sport Witness.

What’s the word?

The defender joined the Gunners in an £8m deal from Chelsea in the summer.

He has since made a total of eight appearances in the Premier League, even scoring the winner in a narrow 1-0 win over AFC Bournemouth.

And while he says he does not know what will happen in future, having been asked about a potential return to Brazil, he maintains that he has no desire to move away from north London.

He said: “I, today, have no such plan. I don’t have that as a goal. But we never know, football goes very fast.”

He added: “I’m sincere to say that today I don’t have this idea. I have a two-year contract with Arsenal. I have my ambitions and goals here with Arsenal, so I came here. But we never know in the future.”

Seasoned winner

One has to imagine that Luiz is hoping to win trophies with Arsenal, having hinted towards his “ambitions and goals”.

The defender has won trophies at Benfica, PSG and Chelsea, including the Primeira Liga, Ligue 1 and the Premier League, one Champions League trophy and two Europa Leagues.

He is exactly the kind of character that the Gunners need and bringing him into the club was a major step forward.

And with him insisting that he is planning on sticking around for some time, his influence will be felt by the youngsters such as Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith-Rowe and Gabriel Martinelli.

His words, then, will be a boost for those looking for the Gunners to continue improving under Emery.

James Maddison has garnered a reputation as a bit of a flash footballer.The media often paint him as the stereotypical modern footballer. Whether it’s wearing a backpack worth thousands of poundsÂor getting into an argument with Jeremy Clarkson on Twitter – it seems that he’s a player certain outlets are desperate to paint with the arrogance brush.Watch Leicester City Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

However, one thing that will humble any young footballer is being called up to the England duty, and Maddison was no different as he was named in Gareth Southgate’s latest Three Lions squad.

Maddison stated that he was very grateful to have received the call-up to the national team.

The midfielder clearly takes great pride in playing for England as his current pinned tweet is his reaction to his previous call-up, and his profile picture is of him during a warm-up before a Three Lions match.

He’s yet to be handed his full debut for his country, but when the time does come for him to get onto the pitch we’re sure he will grab it with both hands, and his behaviour around his time in the international set-up proves he’s as humble as they come.

Rafael van der Vaart stepped onto the pitch for one final time earlier this week as the midfielder played in his testimonial match to commemorate his incredible career.Of course, as with any good testimonial, the former Spurs man had a number of ex-teammates taking to the pitch with him.Watch Tottenham Hotspur Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

A couple of former Premier League stars took to social media to pay tribute to the former Netherlands international after his special game.

Dirk Kuyt and Robin van Persie both sent tweets after the game to wish their former international teammate well in his retirement.

It seems to be quite an emotional occasion for the two Dutchmen, as van der Vaart was a key man in an unforgettable era for the national team.

The former Real Madrid star played in the team that reached the World Cup final back in 2010 – coming off the bench in their defeat against Spain.

Wolves midfielder Romain Saiss has emerged as an injury doubt for his team’s Premier League clash against Chelsea on Saturday.

Birmingham Live reported that the 29-year-old withdrew from international duty with Morocco through injury, although no clarification was given as to the type of knock he has received.

Birmingham Live noted that the midfielder was not in his national team’s squad for their 1-1 draw against Burkina Faso on Friday and could also miss their clash against Niger this evening.

Saiss featured in all six of Wolves’ Europa League qualifying matches and started the last four, being given the full 90 minutes in each. [via TransferMarkt.co.uk]

However, game time in the Premier League has been harder to come by for the midfielder, with only one start and one substitute appearance encompassing 68 minutes of action. [via TransferMarkt.co.uk]

Fellow defensive midfielder Leander Dendoncker has started three of Wolves’ four league games so far this season and recovered from a knock he picked up on international duty with Belgium to take his place in the starting line-up for last night’s 4-0 win away to Scotland in Euro 2020 qualifying.

Saiss also had fewer Premier League starts than Dendoncker last season, with only 12 for the Morocco man compared to 17 for the Belgium international.

Saiss was one of Wolves’ most reliable ball winners in the air in 2018/19, with 3.2 successful aerial duels per game the highest in the squad when defenders are excluded. Dendoncker, who like Saiss is 6 ft 3 (1.88m), won 2.9 aerial duels per game. [via WhoScored.com]

The Morocco man recorded more interceptions per game last season than Dendoncker, with 1.4 to 1.2, but the Belgium midfielder won 2.8 tackles per game to Saiss’ 2.1. By way of comparison, Ruben Neves averaged 2.1 tackles and interceptions per game from defensive midfield, having made 34 Premier League starts in 2018/19. [via WhoScored.com]

In terms of using the ball, Dendoncker also comes out on top over Saiss for multiple metrics, with a better passing accuracy rate (79.4% to 77.1%) and more key passes per game (0.4 to 0.2). while both players scored twice for Wolves last season and once so far this term. [via WhoScored.com]

Statistically, Saiss is not far behind Dendoncker for several key metrics, but the Belgium man appears to have the upper hand on his defensive midfield colleague across the board.

Dendoncker’s recovery from his knock last week leaves him in line to start again on Saturday, even if Saiss manages to shake off the injury that curtailed his involvement for Morocco during the current international break.

However, if the 29-year-old is still out of action by Saturday, that would deprive Nuno Espirito Santo of one committed, ball-winning defensive midfield option for the visit of Chelsea to Molineux.

Wolves fans, how damaging would Saiss’ possible absence be if he fails to recover for the Chelsea game? Let us know your thoughts by commenting below!

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It’s safe to say that Ansu Fati is enjoying a breakout year at Barcelona.

The 16-year-old prodigy has already broken all kinds of records – becoming the youngest-ever player to appear for the club in the Champions League, while also being the youngest player to ever score in La Liga.

On Tuesday, he featured at the Camp Nou once again in his side’s 2-1 victory over Villarreal in La Liga.

Watch Spanish Football Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Even though he barely played 15 minutes throughout the game, coming on for a lacklustre Luis Suarez, Fati still managed to impress many Barca fans with his performance.

A number of them took to Twitter to shower him with praise, calling him the future of the club.

Indeed, with Lionel Messi sustaining an injury in the game, Fati could well be in line for even more minutes in the coming weeks. Barca fans are likely to be delighted with that…

You can see some of their replies and comments on the youngster down in the collection of tweets below:

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A massive cohort of Celtic fans are in transit towards Valencia for Thursday’s Europa League tie in the Mestalla.

Last week’s 2-0 defeat in the first leg has barely dampened enthusiasm for the trip – in contrast to the equivalent fixture last season in St Petersburg where a heated stadium was needed for the match to go ahead.

Tickets for Thursday’s match are at a premium but that isn’t bothering the fans who are arriving at airports from Barcelona southwards with Alicante seeing a flood of green and white Hoops coming through the Arrivals gate.

Brendan Rodgers will take his squad out on Thursday, host a media conference then continue his preparations to pull off a shock result.

There isn’t likely to be any surprises in the team Rodgers selects but if the visitors open the scoring the locals will know all about it – there will inevitably be some fans in the home sections struggling to keep their emotions intact.

The winger has named his second child Pedro, and although he’s less than a week old it’s fair to say that we could see quite a lot of him over the next few years.

Lucas’ eldest child, Miguel, became a bit of a cult hero last season, after the Brazilian netted a hat-trick against Huddersfield Town.

Of course, the winger was allowed to keep the match ball after netting three goals against the Terriers, and he wasted no time in getting his kid onto the pitch for a bit of fun with the ball.

Fans cheered every touch the youngster took after the game in a very sweet moment.

Now, the next time the 27-year-old nets a hat-trick we could see the newest addition to the Moura family step onto the pitch with him, or crawl perhaps.

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Tottenham insider John Wenham believes defender Joe Rodon could seal a north London exit in the final days on the January window, Football Insider report.

The Lowdown: Rodon under Conte

Rodon is one of five senior centre-backs on the books in north London but has hardly featured under Antonio Conte.

The 24-year-old has made just one appearance under the Italian, coming against Morecambe in the FA Cup earlier this month. He’s been a regular in Conte’s Premier League matchday squads but hasn’t managed to make a cameo off the bench.

Leeds were name-checked with an interest in Rodon ahead of the January window, with reports suggesting that Spurs were likely to give the green light to a temporary exit. However, Alasdair Gold recently admitted that Spurs are yet to receive any official offers for the Wales international.

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The Latest: Wenham’s comments

Wenham was talking to Football Insider regarding Rodon and a possible exit this month.

Here’s what he had to say, labelling it a ‘surprise’ that no offers have come in but backing Rodon to seal an exit ‘in the last days of the window’.

“It is a surprise there have been no offers.

“He might not have played much this season but he did really well at the Euros, clubs must know how good he is.

“A lot of clubs should be looking for a centre-back with plenty of Premier League experience, is capable of playing in a two or three at the back and a full international.

“It does surprise me that it has been reported there have been no offers. I think this is one of those things that might ramp up in the last days of the window.

“Maybe it’s one where clubs will look to sign him after they have been snubbed by their preferred targets.

“I still expect him to leave.”

The Verdict: Will Conte need him?

If Rodon doesn’t seal a Spurs exit before the end of the month, it may not be the end of the world for Conte. That’s because the Spurs boss could be down to the bare bones at the back with Cristian Romero and Eric Dier injured and Japhet Tanganga linked with a move to AC Milan.

Should the latter of the three depart and no defensive reinforcements arrive, Rodon would be one of two fit centre-backs available, meaning the Italian may be forced to use him over the coming weeks.

Things could change between now and the end of the month of course, so the Welshman’s future could be one to keep an eye on.

In other news: Spurs make 11th-hour attempt to dramatically scupper rivals’ move for £40.5m-rated ‘beast’. 

Following on from the departure of Valerien Ismael as West Brom’s head coach, the club have now completed the appointment of Steve Bruce as their new manager on an 18-month deal.

While some Baggies fans may be against this latest appointment due to the 61-year-old previously having spells in charge of some of Midlands rivals Birmingham City and Aston Villa, or perhaps because of the poor relationship he had with many Newcastle supporters, there is one thing he could do at The Hawthorns which would surely win over some of the doubters.

On the chalkboard

Taking into account how West Brom have only scored four goals in their past seven league games, three of which came in a 12-minute spell in one match, it’s safe to say that their forward line could do with some freshening up as they look to win promotion back to the Premier League by the end of the season.

With that in mind, one player that Bruce could bring in to add an extra dynamic to Albion’s attack is 21-year-old Rayhaan Tulloch.

Having made just seven senior squad appearances and played a solitary minute of Championship action for the Baggies so far this season (way back in August), the attacker barely got a look-in when Ismael was in charge.

In 94 appearances across West Brom’s under-18 and under-23 sides, the 21-year-old has racked up 40 goals and 15 assists, showing how much of an attacking threat he can provide.

Also, with Tulloch having played in numerous attacking positions throughout his fledgling career, his versatility on the pitch and presumed eagerness to become a regular first-team player could make him a useful figure for the Baggies.

Unleashing the 21-year-old, who has been called a “star boy” in the past by Jonathan Leko, and seeing Bruce giving him a proper chance to prove his worth to the team could also help the new manager to become an instant favourite among The Hawthorns faithful.

Bruce should definitely consider playing Tulloch in the first team in the coming weeks to see if the youngster has what it takes to perform at a high level and hopefully get them finding the net with greater regularity.

In other news: West Brom handed huge injury boost in recent days

An update has emerged on Ivorian gem Ibrahim Sangare, regarding Newcastle United’s interest in his services…

What’s the talk?

According to the Daily Mail, the Magpies are keen on a deal to sign the PSV midfielder as Eddie Howe looks to strengthen his Magpies squad in the coming weeks.

The report, however, does not state how far along a move is or how much the Eredivisie club want in return for his services.

Midfield beast

Howe can find the midfield beast his side has been lacking this season by securing a deal to sign Sangare from the Dutch giants in January.

He has been sublime for PSV this term and is producing performances that suggest he could be a huge asset for the Magpies in the Premier League. Sangare has averaged a brilliant WhoScored rating of 7.59 in the Eredivisie – making a whopping 5.6 tackles and interceptions whilst also producing 2.8 key passes and dribbles per game.

Meanwhile, Sean Longstaff’s 3.0 tackles and interceptions per game leads the way for Newcastle in the Premier League, with the academy graduate averaging 0.8 key passes and dribbles per match. This suggests that the Ivory Coast international would come in as a sizeable upgrade in the middle of the park as he is efficient from box to box and can dominate teams with his physical strength.

PSV head coach Roger Schmidt showered the midfield monster in praise earlier this season, saying:

“Ibrahim Sangaré is important in any system. It has nothing to do with a system. He has everything a central midfielder needs. He could already win balls, but now he makes better decisions and uses his ability to dribble. He had to hold the ball a little longer for that. Sometimes he is just unstoppable.

“He really grows into a very crucial player for us. He is better on the ball, makes fewer mistakes and plays forward more often. Last season he could be characterized as a player with quite a few lateral and backward passes during the game and that is a lot easier. Passing forward is more difficult, but you have to show that at the top level. He does that now.”

It is worth saying that it is impossible to guarantee that he will be able to translate his form over to the Premier League, but there is risk attached with every signing and Newcastle can only go off the sample size he has provided in the Netherlands.

His statistics and these quotes from Schmidt suggest that he could be a monster for Howe and the ex-Bournemouth boss must ensure that a deal gets done this month.

AND in other news, Howe can land NUFC’s new Andy Carroll in swoop for £72k-p/w beast who’s “Sheareresque”…