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Aston Villa defender Kortney Hause has been included in EA Sports’ FIFA 22 Team of the Week for his performance against Manchester United last weekend.

Villa shared the news on Wednesday evening via their official Twitter channel, which led to a number of fans giving their positive thoughts on social media.

The 26-year-old marked his 50th Villa appearance with a late winner at Old Trafford, heading to the net from Douglas Luiz’s corner.

Hause’s man of the match display against United earned him a place in the FIFA 22 Team of the Week, with Manchester City’s Gabriel Jesus and Arsenal’s Emile Smith Rowe the other Premier League inclusions.

The centre-back now has an in-form card rated at 81, six higher than his 75 base card which is available to find in packs for a week.

Villa fans react

Aston Villa posted Hause’s card on their official Twitter channel on Wednesday evening. Here is what these Villa fans had to say in reply regarding the £25,000-a-week defender, with many happy over the recognition from EA Sports.

“Omg yes in my villa team utv!!!!”

Credit: @undead_villian

“Get in!!! UTV”

Credit: @chipelibiza

“Siuuuu”

Credit: @AlexLeeXXI

“No one deserves it more! Get in there @Kortney_30”

Credit: @Villa4LifeAlex

“Well deserved”

Credit: @Lingwo0147

“My CB”

Credit: @h3_n7

In other news: ‘Believe it or not’ – Preece shares worrying under-the-radar update on Villa ace who Smith loves. 

Tottenham Hotspur are the latest team to be linked with a move for Ismaila Sarr this month…

What’s the word?

According to Eurosport, Spurs have registered an interest in the Watford sensation and will now look into his availability ahead of the transfer window’s deadline on August 31st.

Sources have indicated that the 23-year-old is not for sale, with his value expected to be north of £50m.

Over the past few windows, he has attracted the attention from the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United, though the Hornets will fight to keep hold of their impressive winger.

Traore 2.0

Spurs’ mooted interest in Sarr comes as a surprise but he fits the mould of the sort of wide man that manager Nuno Santo absolutely loves. You only have to look at the transformation of Adama Traore at Molineux to see that.

And whilst the Spaniard is built like a brick wall in comparison to the Watford star, there are plenty more similarities that could hint towards him being an ideal fit under the Lilywhites head coach.

Liverpool’s Sadio Mane waxed lyrical about his compatriot, describing him as “rapid” to The Athletic in the summer of 2019. “I think defenders will struggle,” he added.

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“Last time I was speaking to Robbo (Andy Robertson) I said, ‘Watford have a really good player. I will need to help you more otherwise Ismaila Sarr will kill you, because he is a good dribbler and very, very fast.

“He has a very big facility to win penalties. So I will be telling the Liverpool defenders to take care because he is very quick and can change the game by winning penalties because he is a very clever player. This is one of his strengths.”

Explosive speed and acceleration is certainly an attribute that Nuno reaped the rewards from with Traore over the past few seasons.

Sarr enjoyed a breakthrough campaign in North London last season, registering a career-high 13 goals and four assists as Watford won promotion from the Championship.

It’s widely believed that Spurs are seeking some creativity in attack and that’s what the Senegal international could bring in abundance. He averaged 2.2 shots, 1.1 key passes and 3.9 crossing attempts per 90 minutes, via WhoScored, which suggests that he would fit the criteria the club is clearly looking for.

Furthermore, Sarr’s former teammate Abdoulaye Doucoure, who is now at Everton, has previously tipped him to achieve on the biggest stage, claiming to talkSPORT:

“I’ve told him as a joke that he’s a Champions League player, but I really think it’s because I know he has exceptional qualities. He’s not just quick, he’s incredible at finishing, he can find space, keep the ball and I hope he’ll go very far.”

On the above evidence, Nuno could turn to Sarr to be his new game-changer from the right-flank and just like his former star Traore, he has the capability to play a little deeper as an attacking wing-back.

The Portuguese would surely love to seal a move for the £18m-rated speed demon.

AND in other news, Bye-bye Ndombele: Spurs must sign £12m-rated “great talent” who’s “similar” to Eriksen…

Bruno Lage has led Wolves to exceeding expectations in their Premier League campaign so far.

The Black Country club currently sit sixth in the Premier League table ahead of Manchester United and Tottenham to name of a few of their top six contenders currently trying to break into the Europa League spots.

Despite this surprising success in the top half of the table so far, Wolves are not without their needs to add quality and fresh legs to their side, with a couple of injury problems plaguing the side currently.

Pedro Neto, Jonny Otto and Yerson Mosquera are all notably missing from the side, without any sign of an imminent return to the squad.

One strike of luck is the return of Raul Jiminez, who suffered a horrific fractured skull injury that kept him out of the side until the start of this season, who bagged his third goal of the season in a win over West Ham at Molineux Stadium this weekend.

Wolves are not struggling to find the goal, but their defensive record is highly problematic, only keeping their first clean sheet at home against West Ham a few days ago, which could be due to a lack of squad depth and availability for rotation in their defensive line.

Lage spoke out on the defensive issues recently saying;

“It’s easy to concede chances against us, so we need to continue to work to help our players and improve the little details that cost us.

Journalist, Luke Hatfield, has blown the lid on a potential incoming transfer for Wolves, which could definitely solve Lage’s problems at the back. He told GIVEMESPORT:

“I imagine that they’ll be keen to revive their interest in Botman if it can be done. It’s an area they probably need to look at.”

The £25.2m-rated centre back has been previously linked with a move to the club, and the January transfer window may be the perfect time for the club to pounce on the opportunity whilst sitting in a very attractive position in the Premier League.

Former Lille boss, Christophe Galtier, has hailed Sven Botman as a “leader” which is something Wolves could use to tighten up their backline to make them more aware and focused.

“In football, you have leaders who are vocal, ones who gesticulate and ones who shake the team up… I have a few of those,” said Galtier. “But you also have people who lead by example, through their performances, and it’s true that Sven is emerging as this type of leader.”

Wolves could swoop in to secure the signature of the Dutchman in January, if Lage is given the freedom to add players into his team during the winter transfer window, it really could make or break their battle for European football.

Liverpool were unbeaten in all competitions the last time they had a game in the Champions League. Since then, they’ve only lost to West Ham but made up for it in an incredible performance that saw the side score four goals against Mikel Arteta’s Arsenal.

The Reds remain unbeaten and at the very top of the tree in their Champions League group, with the maximum 12 points and seven points clear of second-place Porto, who coincidentally are their opponents on Wednesday evening.

This unbeaten run in Europe has put Liverpool through to the last sixteen, and for this reason, we expect a much different side to the starting eleven we saw against Arsenal on Saturday evening.

Jurgen Klopp confirmed in his press conference that we would see changes in tonight’s game;

“We always respect the competition but we have to think about ourselves, our schedule and the situation of our players first,”

With that in mind, here is Football Fancast’s predicted XI for Liverpool vs Porto…

With seven changes to the starting line up, we predict that Liverpool will bring in many players that we only see in domestic cup tournaments, but Klopp will leave an element of first-team experience in each line of play, with Joel Matip, James Milner and Diogo Jota all starting.

The changes will see fan favourites like Sadio Mane, Virgil Van Dijk and Mo Salah axed from the line up, in an attempt to give them a rest before an important Premier League game against Southampton at the weekend, where Klopp’s side will look for an opportunity to close the gap on Chelsea and Manchester City.

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Taki Minamino will take the place of Mane, and will be hoping to have further impact on Liverpool’s season after he scored the fourth goal of the game against Arsenal at the weekend.

We expect to see some young players get minutes as well this evening, with Ibrahima Konate, 19-year-old Tyler Morton and Neco Williams predicted to join the side. All three will be hoping to make an impact to impress their German coach in the game.

Klopp will certainly not go into this game with the mentality of allowing a loss, so it is likely we could see him strengthen the side with more experienced players like Trent Alexander Arnold or Jordan Henderson in the second half, but only if the starting team is getting eaten alive by a Porto side who are in need of a win to push Atletico Madrid and AC Milan further away from qualification.

In other news: Liverpool must secure new deal for Sadio Mane

Crystal Palace are said to be in the hunt for Midtjylland midfielder Jens Cajuste, as their summer recruitment drive intensifies [SportExpressen via Sport Witness].

Primarily a holding midfielder, the 21-year-old enjoyed a commendable season for the Danish runners-up, making 39 appearances and registering one goal and two assists in that time [Transfermarkt].

Now attracting attention from Premier League clubs, he could have choice to make on his future sooner rather than later.

The Eagles are said to have ‘concrete interest’ in the Swedish youngster, alongside Wolverhampton Wanderers, Leeds United and Newcastle United [Sport Witness].

Furthermore, Cajuste was pulled from his current employers’ UEFA Champions League qualifying match against Celtic yesterday, with murmurings suggesting Midtjylland may not want to ‘risk anything because a big sale may be imminent’ [Sport Witness].

In light of this, no wonder loads of Crystal Palace diehards took to Twitter to express their thoughts on the latest news.

Crystal Palace fans react:

Replying to popular Crystal Palace fan outlet PALACE XTRA, here is what some fans had to say about recent reports:

“Very talented box to box midfielder, great vision, good on the ball. PL ready just yet? Maybe not but great potential. He was the second youngest player in our Euro squad, only featured once as a sub though. But he is likely to play a bigger part in the Qatar WC in 2022.”

Credit: @FIFA_hakke”Would take him over any of the other rumoured transfer targets”Credit: @getcomeuppance”Yes please”Credit: @longlivewilliam”Jens Cajuste’s stats last season: Minutes Played: 649 Assists: 1 Key passes: 4 Chances Created: 5 Accurate passes: 166 (78%) Dribbles succeeded: 7 (78%) Blocked shots: 3 Interceptions: 9 Clearances: 8″Credit: @cpfcgoaat”We have more pulling power then them, if we go strong we get him, Vieira will want who he wants and he will get them.”Credit: @Kevbartleyy”No young midfielder will turn down working for one of the best midfielders of all time”Credit: @cpfcharlie0In other news, Crystal Palace fans react to an Andros Townsend update.

Frank Lampard will not be appointed as the next West Bromwich Albion manager this summer.

What’s the talk?

That’s according to a report by the Express & Star, who claim that, despite West Brom’s approach for the 42-year-old, Lampard has no intention of considering a move to The Hawthorns this summer.

This news comes following David Wagner’s decision to take over at BSC Young Boys in Switzerland rather than becoming Sam Allardyce’s successor at West Brom, while the club’s owner Guochuan Lai has also vetoed a move for the former Sheffield United manager Chris Wilder.

The Baggies are also believed to have been in talks with Alex Neil, however, the Express & Star claim that, at present, it remains uncertain where Albion go from here in their hunt for a new manager.

Fans should be relieved

While the appointment of Lampard may have appeared on the surface to be quite an attractive prospect for West Brom, there are a number of reasons why fans should be relieved that the former Chelsea boss is not interested in taking the vacant position at The Hawthorns this summer.

Firstly, in what has been Lampard’s only experience in Championship management to date, the 42-year-old only just managed to secure a top-six finish with a Rams side that contained the likes of Fikayo Tomori, Mason Mount and Harry Wilson, before eventually losing out to Aston Villa in the play-off final.

So, while this is by no means a disastrous season, with the West Brom hierarchy undoubtedly hoping for an immediate automatic promotion back to the Premier League next season, and with managers who have achieved this feat being available, the appointment of Lampard would not seem to offer the club assurances regarding a top-two finish in the Championship.

Furthermore, during his second season at Chelsea, after spending a whopping £222.48m on incoming signings in the summer transfer window, the former England international managed eight wins, five draws and six losses in the club’s 2020/21 Premier League campaign, results that left the Blues languishing down in ninth place in the Premier League table, before he was sacked from the position in January.

As such, while Lampard may well have been able to use his connections in the game to bring in a few additions in the transfer window, there is not an overwhelming amount of evidence that his appointment would bring positive results on the pitch for West Brom, let alone promotion.

Albion fans will be frustrated at how long it is taking to appoint a new manager, but they should be relieved that it won’t be Lampard taking over.

In other news: West Brom given huge transfer boost over “magnificent” 28 y/o gem that’ll delight fans

Sevilla have increased their asking price for defender Jules Kounde by €10m (£8.5m), Sky Sports journalist Michael Bridge has told Football FanCast.

Kounde is a target for Chelsea and was thought to be close to joining the European champions last week.

According to the reliable Gianluca Di Marzio, a €50m (£42.8m) deal was close to being completed. However, at the last minute, it appears that Sevilla have shifted the goalposts with their asking price.

Chelsea are in the market for a new centre-back after selling Kurt Zouma to London rivals West Ham and if they manage to end up signing Kounde before tonight’s deadline, Bridge believes the Frenchman would complete their jigsaw.

“According to the contact I’ve got at Chelsea, Sevilla just whacked on another €10m, so they’re just playing silly now,” Bridge said to FFC. “But I think he would complete Chelsea’s jigsaw.”

Zouma’s just left, Thiago Silva is turning 37 soon and Antonio Rudiger is yet to extend his contract, which expires at the end of the season, so it is easy to see why Chelsea want to sign another centre-back.

Elsewhere on the centre-half front, Andreas Christensen looks close to signing a new deal at Stamford Bridge in a more positive development.

Express and Star journalist Luke Hatfield wouldn’t say that Aston Villa are definitely done and dusted in the transfer window, but it’s much more likely if a player does leave Villa Park that they go back into the market.

Dean Smith has brought five new players to the football club for his first team this summer, with Leon Bailey, Emi Buendia, Ashley Young, Danny Ings and Axel Tuanzebe all penning deals at Villa Park.

Villa responded to an opening day Premier League defeat to Watford (3-2) with a 2-0 victory against Newcastle in front of their own supporters at Villa Park last weekend, with new signing Ings settling in at Villa well, as he made it two goals in two Premier League games.

Villa have added some real quality to their ranks this summer and Hatfield believes it will take a very good deal to get them to go back into the market but wouldn’t say they are definitely done and dusted even if a player wasn’t to leave Villa Park.

“If no one leaves it will take a deal which is very, very good to get Villa back in the market now I think for incomings anyway, that’s not to say it won’t happen – you never know what happens in the final week of a window, a team could finally show interest in a player which hasn’t really seen any interest over the summer and equally a deal might present itself to Villa and they think this is just too good to turn down. 

“It wouldn’t shock me if they were in for a defensive midfielder, as I said, that’s the position they really need to address I think, someone just to screen that back four and help out there, who’s mobile as well and progresses the ball. So, it wouldn’t surprise me, I wouldn’t say they’re definitely done and dusted even if a player wasn’t to go, but I think it’s much more likely If a player does leave that Villa go back into the market,” Hatfield told Football FanCast.

With only a few days left to go in the transfer window, will Villa manager Dean Smith look to make any further additions to his side?

One of Tottenham Hotspur’s mooted managerial targets could be about to become a free man this summer…

What’s the word?

According to Italian news outlet La Gazzetta dello Sport, it is almost inevitable that Antonio Conte leaves Inter Milan despite clinching their first Serie A title in 11 years.

It’s thought that the 51-year-old is not happy about the direction the club is going in as president Steven Zhang and their Chinese owners Suning have asked the club’s hierarchy to cut the wage bill by 20% and raise €100m (£85m) in player sales to help their precarious financial situation.

Conte has remained firm in his belief that the squad needs backing financially, rather than the opposite.

La Stampa have also claimed that Spurs would be able to offer the former Chelsea man around €20m-per-year (£18m) amid interest from Real Madrid, and as a result, they represent the most attractive destination for him, should he leave the San Siro.

Get it done, Levy

A lot of targets have already come and gone in the month since Jose Mourinho’s surprise sacking and we’re still no closer to finding out who the next manager of Spurs will be.

If Conte does become available, then chairman Daniel Levy would be crazy to not consider him. After all, he’s a nine-time major trophy winner and has cleaned up the Special One’s mess before.

When Mourinho departed Chelsea for a second time, the Blues recorded their worst finish since 1996 (tenth) and in their very next season under the Italian, they won the Premier League title and finished runners-up in the FA Cup, before going onto win it a year later.

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In fact, the two have even clashed at times, with the 51-year-old lambasting Mourinho as ” a fake” and a “little man” back in 2018, when Chelsea met the Portuguese’s Manchester United side.

Conte has since gone on to transform Inter into a club to be feared for the first time in over a decade – a similar timeframe in which Spurs have suffered without a trophy.

His record at the Italian giants reads 64 wins from 102 matches (62.7%), whilst averaging 2.11 points and 2.10 goals per game, via Transfermarkt.

By comparison, Mourinho was sacked having won 52% of his games in charge of Spurs, where he picked up only 1.77 points and 2.00 goals per match.

During his time in England, Conte received a particularly glowing endorsement from Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola, who waxed lyrical about his impact on the English top-flight.

He said, via the Daily Mail:

“Tactically he is a master, he did it amazingly with Italy and when he went to Turin [with Juventus]. I think Conte is going to leave, going to give something to English football. I’m sure of that.”

With Levy thought to be seeking an attack-minded head coach, there are not many better candidates out there than Conte, who not only has a proven record in the Premier League but also has transformed a similar club in Inter Milan.

The Spurs chairman would be a fool to not throw everything he’s got at the 51-year-old “winner.”

AND in other news, Alasdair Gold drops exciting claim in Spurs’ manager search that’ll have fans BUZZING…

Antonio Conte’s Tottenham Hotspur side will make the short trip from north to west London this afternoon as they take on Brentford at the Brentford Community Stadium, looking to boost their top-four hopes with a victory.

The Italian’s outfit are currently fourth in the Premier League but have very close competition from arch-rivals Arsenal, who are behind on goal difference alone.

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Spurs had been on a good run of four consecutive victories in the league before last Saturday’s 1-0 defeat at home to Brighton.

Now, they’ll be looking to make amends for that loss by getting back to winning ways against the Bees.

However, after last weekend’s slip-up, Conte could be tempted to make changes to his side and axe some of those who let him down against the Seagulls, with left-wing-back Sergio Reguilon certainly a culprit.

On the chalkboard

Prior to Ryan Sessegnon’s hamstring injury, the Spaniard had lost his place in the side to the 21-year-old with the Englishman offering plenty of attacking flair in the final third.

The 25-year-old was left out of the starting lineup by Conte for six out of seven league matches between late January and early March, only coming back into the side when Sessegnon was withdrawn in the 5-0 victory over Everton.

Ironically, Reguilon did score in that match and has missed just one game since with a knock.

However, Sessegnon has since recovered from his injury and has been on the bench for Spurs’ last two matches. Whether Conte has kept the £68k-per-week Spaniard in the starting lineup for tactical reasons or concerns over the 21-year-old’s fitness is unknown.

What is known though, is that Reguilon is walking on a tightrope in terms of keeping his place in the side after coming back into the starting lineup last weekend for the injured Matt Doherty, who is now out for the season.

The Spaniard, who has made 25 Premier League appearances so far this term, averages just 24.3 accurate passes a match – at an accuracy of 79% – whilst winning just over half of his duels at 52% with 4.6 a game.

However, against Brighton last weekend, the wing-back was well below par for his standards.

The 25-year-old completed just 17 passes with an accuracy of 63% and couldn’t manage to complete a dribble, attempting just one.

Moreover, it was a timid performance defensively, offering 0 clearances, blocks or interceptions whilst making just one tackle. The only positive was a 70% duel win rate.

Speaking to Football Insider, Spurs insider John Wenham recently labelled the wing-back as “average” whilst also stating that “he’s the worst of the bunch.”

With Reguilon’s popularity amongst the Tottenham faithful at a low, now is the time for Conte to axe the Spaniard with the Italian unable to make mistakes if his side are to secure Champions League football for next season.

AND in other news: Conte must finally unleash “absolutely fantastic” Spurs sensation, he’s a “big talent”