The excitement is starting to build among the Tottenham Hotspur faithful after new signing Giovani Lo Celso started training with his new teammates.

The Argentine joined Spurs from La Liga side Real Betis on a season-long loan with an obligation to buy for £60m if the club qualifies for the Champions League.

The 22-year-old enjoyed a fine campaign with the Spanish side as he scored 16 goals and assisted a further six in all competitions.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side face reigning champions Manchester City on Saturday after a 3-1 win over Premier League newcomers Aston Villa.

Harry Kane and new signing Tanguy Ndombele scored the goals as the North London side came back from 1-0 down to snatch victory.

Fans couldn’t help but get excited over Lo Celso’s training video, with some wanting to see him play on Saturday versus Pep Guardiola’s side.

Here is a selection of tweets following the release of the video:

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s Expert Roundup feature, which provides three quotes from those in the know in order to illuminate fundamental strengths, weaknesses, quirks, kinks, stylistic comparisons and general observations of transfer targets and confirmed signings.

West Ham United confirmed the £45m club record signing of Sebastien Haller from Eintracht Frankfurt earlier this week.

The London Stadium outfit have said goodbye to Andy Carroll, Lucas Perez and Marko Arnautovic this summer and, when West Ham revealed that Javier Hernandez will wear the number 9 for the 2019/20 season, fans were surely concerned that the Mexican would be the club’s first choice striker.

However, with 25-year-old Haller moving to east London, Chicharito will have stark competition for a place in Pellegrini’s starting XI.

Given the size of the 6ft 3 powerhouse’s price tag, expectations will understandably be high, especially when you consider the impact Felipe Anderson made in his first season after becoming the club’s record signing.

It will be intriguing to see how he performs this season, but what can the fans expect from their new addition?

Here’s what those in the know have had to say about his talent…

Kevin Hatchard, European football expert

Before the deal had been struck, Kevin Hatchard had this to say while speaking to talkSPORT:

“I think he’s a super player. He’s a centre-forward who is great at bringing others into play […] His all-round game is great; he’s good in the air and a really good goalscorer. I think he’d be an absolute steal if West Ham could get him […] If they can get it done, I think it could be one of the deals of the season.”

Indeed, the former FC Utrecht man netted 20 goals last term and also provided an impressive 12 assists, totalling 32 goal contributions in just 41 games across all competitions.

Haller is a physical force to be reckoned with at 6ft 3, and his ability to hold up play should help him bring the likes of Anderson, Andriy Yarmolenko, Michail Antonio and Manuel Lanzini into play.

This feature of his game is something the player shares with new Shanghai SIPG man Arnautovic, who is ‘strong’ at holding up the ball according to WhoScored, and registered five assists last term. Hopefully Haller’s stay will be longer.

Adi Hutter, Eintracht Frankfurt manager

The Eagles boss was full of praise for a player who made huge improvements last season:

“Haller’s ball control wasn’t the best in pre-season, he was losing a lot of balls. He always had fight in him, but the way he’s now bossing the ball, winning challenges and taking on players – he’s come on leaps and bounds.”

Despite Haller’s seemingly immobile frame, the number 9 completed 1 dribble per game last term – testament to his ability to take on his man, as Hutter says.

He also wins an incredible 6.9 aerial duels per game, so it seems he is fully capable of making a nuisance of himself in the final third.

It sure sounds as though West Ham are getting a perfectly-rounded striker here.

Niko Kovac, Bayern Munich manager

Kovac, who managed Eintracht Frankfurt between 2016 and 2018, said of the powerful forward:

“A bulldozer couldn’t knock him over.”

While the likes of Pep Guardiola will strive to turn the game into an art form, there will always be a place in the Premier League for big, bustling strikers and Haller seems to fit the bill perfectly.

There are plenty more strings to the former France youth international’s bow beyond his physicality, but Kovac’s assessment suggests that the strongest and most imposing central defenders will struggle to contend with him.

Having a striker whom opposition defenders simply bounce off can be an invaluable weapon to have in the armoury.

Haller could well make the Hammers faithful forget all about Arnautovic next season.

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On Monday, Tottenham Hotspur announced their squad for the Audi Cup.

And the notable inclusion was Danny Rose, who has been strongly linked with a move away from the club in this summer’s transfer window.

Indeed, Rose has missed Spurs’ pre-season to date, with the club confirming that the England international was free to seek a move away from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The 29-year-old is still with the capital outfit, though, and could now feature in the Audi Cup, which will see the club face Real Madrid in the semi-finals on Tuesday, before either a third-placed play-off or final against Bayern Munich or Fenerbahce on Wednesday.

The Tottenham fans have been on social media reacting to Rose’s inclusion.

And there are a lot of mixed opinions on whether it is a good idea to bring the defender back into the selection.

A number of the club’s supporters have had their say:

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Celtic fans are divided after finding out their potential fourth-round opponents in the Champions League qualifiers.

Should they get to the final round of the qualifiers, Neil Lennon’s men will take on Slavia Prague of the Czech Republic for a place in Europe’s elite club competition.

To do so, the Celts will have to see off Romanian champions CFR Cluj over two legs.

Lennon’s side will travel to Romania on Wednesday, with the return leg at Parkhead on the 13th of August, and they now know their opponents should they progress.

This draw has garnered a mixed reaction from the Celtic faithful. Some believe the draw has been kind and they expect to defeat Slavia, but others are concerned by the Czech outfit’s recent record in European competition.

A few supporters are aware of their potential opponents’ run to the Europa League quarter-finals last term – Prague were only knocked out by eventual winners Chelsea, which has got some Celts fearing the worst for their side should they get past Cluj.

Here are the mixed reactions from the fans on Twitter:

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Rangers have sold Andrew Dallas to Cambridge United and the fans are far from pleased to be losing the youngster.

Dallas departs Ibrox having never featured for the first team, but he had been a key part of the youth set-up for the Gers, described as a “prolific goalscorer” for the development sides by the club’s official statement.

The 20-year-old spent the second half of last season on loan at Championship side Greenock Morton under former Light Blues striker Jonatan Johansson.

The striker joined Morton on loan in January and did okay at a struggling club, scoring once in 13 appearances as he helped steer the side away from the relegation places.

The fee is unknown at this time, but one would hope the Gers will get a small compensation sum for a player clearly highly rated for his goalscoring efforts in the youth sides.

The 20-year-old had impressed on a two-week trial at Cambridge and departs Steven Gerrard’s side with the fans wishing he could’ve stayed and developed at Ibrox.

Here’s what the disappointed supporters had to say about his departure on Twitter…

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Manchester United are ignoring a major attacking weapon.

Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s men may have beaten Chelsea 4-0 on the opening weekend of the season but that was a game that was out of keeping with the statistics and, really, a freak.

BBC Sport reported that United had 11 shots on goal at Old Trafford. Chelsea had 18.

They followed that up, though, with a dour 1-1 draw with Wolverhampton Wanderers and, in the second half, Solskjaer’s men were outplayed.

A Ruben Neves stunner from range earned Nuno Espirito Santo’s impressive side a point but it felt on the day as though United had missed a trick.

The following weekend, Crystal Palace delivered the type of reality-checking sucker punch that serves to expose fragility and deeply-entrenched problems.

One of those problems lies within the defensive unit but the decision to lavish a world-record fee on Harry Maguire will not resolve that overnight.

But is there another characteristic to Maguire – a centre-back who is a genuine menace at corners and free-kicks – that could bolster United’s proficiency at both ends of the pitch?

In his career, he has scored 13 headed goals compared to five with his feet. Of the latter, he netted one in injury time against United after ghosting past the defence, and also earned Leicester City a point against Liverpool at Anfield last season with a sweeping volley into the bottom corner.

This is a defender by trade, of course, but he is a talent and a multifaceted one at that. At Leicester in 2018/19, per WhoScored, Maguire averaged one shot on goal per game, as well as 0.5 dribbles, 0.4 key passes, a pass completion rate of 85.6% and 1.2 interceptions.

It should be clear to see that Maguire can make an impact in the final third of the pitch as well as at the back and not solely at corners. United should still try to improve those as well.

Of course, Sheffield United’s promotion to the Premier League has placed central defenders under a microscope. Chris Wilder’s side utilise overlapping centre-backs, bringing the defenders forward in a bid to create overloads in the final third.

It works for them because they have defenders with the attributes to make it work and also adds an element of surprise; most backlines don’t expect to suddenly be marking the centre-half instead of the centre-forward.

One feels that this could be expanded to bigger clubs with better players, too, and Maguire is ideally suited.

He can bring the ball out of defence and has done it repeatedly for both Leicester and England; his rampaging runs were a highlight of the Three Lions’ run to the semi-finals of the 2018 World Cup.

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An excellent distributor of the ball, he is quick, too, and has the ability to slip into midfield and then further forward as United look to break down opposition backlines.

They have a functional midfielder in Scott McTominay who could drop into defence to cover him, and it could add an extra dimension to their forward play.

This isn’t to say that Martial should be slipping Maguire into a one-on-one situation, but the latter’s mere presence in the final third can bring the Frenchman into play and also confuse the opposition by being a spare man in the box.

It is a difficult tactic to master and Solskjaer would have to work at it on the training ground but one feels that Maguire could play a major role in transforming United’s attack this season.

It is an idea that the Norwegian should be exploring; it could make all the difference as United look to produce more performances of the Chelsea ilk, as opposed to the Wolves or Palace ilk.

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Wolves fans have been left wondering why they let Ivan Cavaleiro leave the club this summer following his stunning performance for Fulham on Wednesday night.

The 25-year-old bagged a brace and laid on an assist for another as Scott Parker’s side emphatically defeated Millwall 4-0 at Craven Cottage.

Aside from the four goals, Fulham dominated with 84.4% possession in the match with Cavaleiro receiving a perfect ‘10’ rating from WhoScored for his performance.

The winger made the switch south at the start of July, joining on a season-long loan which also has an option to make the move permanent next summer.

A number of fans at Molineux are wishing they still had the exploits of the Portugal international after his latest contribution for Fulham.

One claimed that Cavaleiro was ‘massively missed’ whilst another asked if they could have him back considering he is joint-second in the Championship goalscoring charts.

The 5 foot 9 man originally joined Wolves in the summer of 2016 from Monaco and had made 106 appearances for the club, scoring 19 and assisting 20.

Others called him a ‘class act’ and a ‘sick player’ with a further supporter labelling the move as a ‘bad mistake.’

Here’s the best of the reaction:

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سخر دين سميث مدرب فريق أستون فيلا من التكهنات المنتشرة حول اهتمام أكثر من نادِ إنجليزي بضم المدافع إزري كونسا في الصيف المقبل، ومن ضمنهم ليفربول.

ويُعد كونسا ضمن أبرز لاعبي أستون فيلا في الموسم الحالي، حيث ساهم في تقوية دفاع الفريق والحفاظ على نظافة الشباك في الدوري الإنجليزي.

وذكرت تقارير صحفية في الفترة الأخيرة أن أداء كونسا جذب انتباه أكثر من نادِ إنجليزي لضمه في موسم الانتقالات الصيفي القادم، وأبرزها ليفربول وتوتنهام.

اقرأ أيضًا.. أنشيلوتي يعلن عودة نجمي إيفرتون أمام ليفربول

وعندما سُئل دين سميث عن ذلك الأمر، قال ساخرًا: “سأمزح مع كونسا بشأن ذلك الأمر”.

وأضاف في تصريحات نشرتها صحيفة “ميرور” الإنجليزية: “كونسا متفوق في مركزه، لقد كان أحد أفضل لاعبينا هذا الموسم، يتسم بالاتساق والثقة”.

ويمتلك كونسا عقدًا ساريًا مع الفيلانز حتى عام 2023.

Todd Cantwell has given an interview highlighting his wishes to play a more central role for Norwich City moving forward.

”I would say it’s probably a favoured one,” he said to EDP24.

However, for the time being, Cantwell said he was happy to play wherever manager Daniel Farke sees fit for him.

“But playing off the left under Daniel is not like a normal left midfield role, so I wouldn’t say it’s too far out of position but naturally I’ve always been a number 10 and it’s always been a position that’s I’ve felt like I’ve flourished.”

The youngster starred for Norwich during the club’s 4-1 loss to Serie A top-four finishers Atalanta on Tuesday.

Cantwell started the game due to a knock picked up by Marco Stiepermann in the 5-1 win over Luton Town last Saturday.

Moving to a central role may not be too far off in the near future for the 21-year-old despite the form of Marco Stiepermann last season. The German scored 10 goals and assisted a further nine as Norwich City won promotion to the Premier League.

However, despite Stiepermann’s form, he remains the only out-and-out attacking midfielder at the club, according to Transfermarkt. Cantwell himself has played the majority of his games at the under-23 level as an attacking/central midfielder (26). His suitability for the role is further enhanced by his statistics from last season.

The youngster averaged exactly one key pass per game (per WhoScored) in the Championship last season, showing his creative prowess. To put that into context, only six players in their squad averaged more last season, all of whom were older and more established.

Cantwell should be given a chance to impress manager Farke in the centre of the pitch. He appears to have all the attributes to succeed in the position, from his stature and body shape (pointed out in a scout report by the Daily Mail) to his dribbling ability on the ball against opposing defenders.

And with Stiepermann the only out-and-out attacking midfield option, the rotation will be necessary especially with the Carabao Cup and FA Cup games next season. Those will be the games where Farke needs to use Cantwell as his number 10.

Cantwell has a bright future after being named in the young EFL team of the year last season. With issues ranging from a lack of options to his own strong contributions, the 21-year-old should be used in a central role.

How big a role will Cantwell play? Join the discussion by commenting below…

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Some Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter to express their relief at the news that a late summer move for Manchester United defender Marcos Rojo collapsed.

The Athletic reports that a late move for the Argentina international fell through this summer for reasons that are not detailed, with the Eagles eventually opting to sign 33-year-old Gary Cahill on a free transfer instead.

Rojo managed to make just five Premier League appearances for the Red Devils last term, as he was blighted by injuries – he has missed 53 games since the start of the 2017/18 campaign.

The 29-year-old cost United £16m back in 2014, and has made 113 appearances for the club – his chances of game time at Old Trafford look bleak following Harry Maguire’s arrival, however.

One fan below said that he’d ‘prefer to have Gary anyways’, whilst another recalls a terrible studs-up challenge that Rojo made on Zaha at Selhurst Park back in the 2016/17 season.

Let’s take a look at some more of the Twitter reaction…

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