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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

He might come across as a Swiss Army Knife, but it looks like he might be missing a couple of tools.

Given the recent injuries to Liam Cooper and Jamie Shackleton, there has had to be a couple of tweaks to the team setup. As a result of these, Stuart Dallas has been moved out of his right-back position that he started off the season in and been shifted into a central midfield role instead.

Dallas comes across as a great utility player, someone who can fit into a number of different positions given the amount he’s had to play throughout his career. But as a central midfielder, he’s just not cutting the mustard.

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On the chalkboard

Dallas has always been more effective out wide, whether that be as a winger or a full-back. In fact, if you look at where his goals involvements have come when he’s been playing for Leeds, all of his assists have come when he was playing out on the left-wing, and all of his goals have come from the flanks.

Whilst he may be cut out to fill in multiple positions on the pitch, he just isn’t creative enough when it comes to playing central midfield, and that is holding himself and Leeds back.

He averages a 74.3% pass completion rate through his career, when you compare that to the other midfielders like Adam Forshaw and Mateusz Klich, both of them are pushing north of 80%.

For him to play in the middle, the £1.8m-rated utility man needs to be far more careful in possession.

The injuries to Cooper and Shackleton should have been a chance for Marcelo Bielsa to try out some new players in their respective roles.

However, he should have gone for players who are more natural in those spots, like bringing young Mateusz Bogusz or Robbie Gotts into midfield, rather than shoe-horning someone who just isn’t effective there.

Hopefully this Dallas experiment won’t be carrying on much longer, or it could end up with Leeds dropping more than the five points they have already from Millwall and Preston.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s In Numbers series, which takes a statistical look at performances, season-long form and reported transfer targets… 

Everton have fallen into the relegation zone after losing 1-0 to Burnley over the weekend, with the team averaging a performance rating of 6.59 at Turf Moor. Although the team did indeed perform poorly, in a surprising manner, Lucas Digne was extremely wasteful in the game and produced an uncharacteristically bad display.

Digne is Everton’s current Player of the Year and Players’ Player of the Year, after an incredible debut season on Merseyside, which saw him average very respectable 7.36 during the Premier League last campaign.

Against Burnley, however, the Frenchman lost possession 26 times throughout the 90 minutes he played and did not threaten much going forward, nor was he defensively astute throughout the game.

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Considering Everton had 60% of the ball, it is quite an alarming statistic to see such a talented, tidy player lose the ball so frequently, especially when you add in that Digne also completed just one cross out of the 11 he attempted.

On the other hand, the ex-PSG man did not make a single tackle or clearance during the whole game and considering the team made 14 clearances during the match, it is somewhat surprising to see the left-back not make a single one of them – he averaged 2.7 clearances per game last season.

The former Barcelona player was one of the best in the business going forward last campaign, providing four assists, scoring four times and averaging two key passes per match and 2.4 crosses each game. At Turf Moor, however, Digne failed to dribble past a single player nor did he even attempt to do so, and at the same time completed only 35 passes – 11.5 less than his average for the season.

Throughout his time on Merseyside, the Toffees have looked to the Frenchman to provide devastating deliveries into the box and there is little doubting his importance to the club right now. However, this poor display against Burnley is perhaps a sign of the times for Everton, and when such a crucial player struggles in this manner, questions have to be asked of the whole team and the manager.

Going forward, should Marco Silva stay or go, the Blues must hope that one of their key players gets back to his usual threatening ways, otherwise, the Merseyside outfit may find themselves in around the relegation zone for much longer.

Hugo Lloris will not feature for Tottenham Hotspur again in 2019, after dislocating his elbow against Brighton & Hove Albion, as has been reported by talkSPORT.

However, the Spurs captain seems to have remained in high spirits, with the club posting a video of the Frenchman greeting his teammates while he continues his rehabilitation:

The spirits of some Spurs fans are not as high as those of the 32-year-old though, with concerns around the team’s performances and the goalkeeper himself being aired in the replies.

Lloris has played 9 games across the Champions League and Premier League this campaign, conceding 17 goals and keeping just 1 clean sheet, as per Transfermarkt.

To make things worse, this comes in a season where Spurs have only won 3 games from 11 in all competitions so far.

Some fans are suggesting the club needs to buy a new goalkeeper to fix their problems, while there have been other suggestions that the Frenchman should be stripped of his captaincy.

A selection of Twitter reaction to the video, including posts from downhearted Spurs fans, can be seen below:

Spurs fans, do you still trust Lloris? Join the discussion by commenting below…

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The fifth game week of the Premier League season draws to a close tonight as Aston Villa play host to West Ham at Villa Park.

Dean Smith’s men will be looking to turn their fortunes around after losing three of their opening four matches while for the visitors they’ll be wanting to continue their unbeaten run after losing the first match of the season to reigning champions, Manchester City.

Villa’s only win of the campaign came here in a live televised game against Everton, so there’s definitely some cause for optimism going into tonight’s fixture.

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The manager will be forced into at least one change as winger Trezeguet faces a one-game suspension for picking up two yellow cards last time out against Crystal Palace.

So, how will Villa line up against the Hammers?

Matt Targett’s injury means that Neil Taylor is likely to keep his place while the rest of the backline and the goalkeeper should remain pretty much the same – Tyrone Mings is fresh from international duty and did not feature for England.

His partnership with Bjorn Engels has been an early-season highlight, both rating inside the top four for average rating in the side, per WhoScored.

A tough decision for Smith lies in midfield, will he stick or twist with Douglas Luiz? We think he’ll opt for Marvelous Nakamba, who would be making his Premier League debut if so.

The 48-year-old’s recent comments offer encouragement to why and we also make a case for it being a good move to add some defensive stability to their midfield here.

Smith recently said: “[Marvelous Nakamba] hasn’t missed a training session and has looked really good. He’s one who’s really pushing the likes of Douglas Luiz in the team.”

Anwar El Ghazi and Jota could occupy the two wing positions in the absence of Trezeguet while Wesley should continue to lead the line – he scored his first goal for the club at Villa Park a few weeks ago.

If he could do it again, that would certainly help their cause.

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Lee Bowyer haunted one of his former sides on Saturday afternoon as he masterminded a gritty Charlton win over Leeds United at The Valley.

The Whites came into the game as favourites, of course, but it was the home side that led thanks to a goal that was eventually credited to Macauley Bonne.

And, despite the away side having more of the possession and plenty of ball in the final third, they actually did not create that much, with Charlton proving stubborn, dogged opponents.

Another setback for Leeds, then, who have just one win in four league games and a big game with Championship leaders West Brom on Tuesday night to try and bounce back in.

Whether or not summer signing Helder Costa starts the game, though, remains to be seen with the attacker proving largely anonymous in the clash in south-east London.

Indeed, that didn’t escape Leeds fans on Twitter so let’s take a look at some of the comments about his display…

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Leeds fans have taken to Twitter to react in horror after an article from the Yorkshire Evening Post highlighted just how badly they have suffered with injuries this season.

The article reveals that, if you were to combine each game that a Leeds player has missed through injury this season, it would tally a whopping 140 matches, which is truly absurd.

Admittedly, since Marcelo Bielsa’s arrival back in the summer, the Argentine boss has demanded a much higher intensity of play, which may have been something of a culture shock to the players who were used to a different tempo.

In fairness, Bielsa’s methods have worked in terms of results, as Leeds sit just two points off the top of the league with a game in hand over their rivals, although their good form appears to be coming at some cost to the physios.

Let’s see how Leeds fans on Twitter reacted to the disturbing revelation…

It’s not often a footballer can be on the end of a 4-0 thumping and come out with any credit. Ryan Christie appears to have managed just that after his performance against Belgium on Monday night. Despite only scoring 4.05/10 on the BBC Sport website, he was Scotland’s second highest rated player behind goalkeeper David Marshall.Christie has started this season well for Celtic with eight goals and five assists in thirteen games. It was a surprise that he didn’t start Scotland’s first game of this international break against Russia when his goal scoring prowess could have helped to prevent the 2-1 defeat.The Celtic midfielder has said after the defeat via The Daily Record that he will look to use the game as a learning experience having shared the pitch with world class players like Kevin de Bruyne.Although it will be scant consolation for Christie, several Scotland fans raved about his performance wishing he’d started in the more winnable game against Russia and that his showing may have given hope for a brighter future for the Scottish national team.Here’s a look at what they’ve been saying on Twitter…

With Sheffield Wednesday manager Darren Moore previously sharing his hopes at being able to bring some new players to the club before the end of the current January transfer window, it seems as though there could be a decision to be made on the future of one of their current players.

What’s the news?

In a recent Twitter post from Wednesday journalist Dom Howson, Lewis Wing’s future at the Yorkshire club has been thrown into question after being left out of the last two matchday squads by Moore.

Howson also said in his post that it “remains unclear” whether the midfielder will still be a Wednesday player by the end of the month.

The Owls signed Wing on a season-long loan deal from Championship club Middlesbrough back in the previous summer transfer window.

Since then, the 26-year-old has been a fairly regular figure in the team for the Yorkshire club with a total of 24 appearances under his belt across all competitions, chipping in with one goal and two assists in the process.

Fans will be worried

Despite being picked on a regular basis by Moore, apart from their two previous league games, Wing has not exactly been a top performer for Wednesday.

After all, Howson said in his post that the midfielder “has been a big disappointment this season,” which is back up by WhoScored listing him as Wednesday’s 11th-highest rated player with an overall performance rating of 6.73/10.

With that in mind, while it could be an option to keep the Englishman out of the team for a while based on his lacklustre performances, Wednesday fans would surely rather keep him in the squad as a viable option for Moore to have rather than see him leave the club early and have to worry about whether or not the club will be able to bring in a suitable replacement before the deadline.

If Moore continues to keep the midfielder out of the squad, then this could force Middlesbrough to bring him back to the club and look for another loan move for him, in a similar fashion to what happened with Theo Corbeanu earlier this month.

Either way, it would be in everyone’s best interest if a decision is made on Wing’s future to put to bed any speculation on the matter that could distract Wednesday from potentially strengthening their squad with some new incoming transfers before the end of the month.

Considering how their January has played out so far, yet more uncertainty is surely a worry for supporters.

In other news: “I have been told:” – Moore delivers SWFC transfer update that’ll have fans concerned – opinion

Frank Lampard has made an incredible first impression at Goodison Park with a 4-1 victory under his belt, meaning that Everton will now progress into the fifth round of the FA Cup, with a promising performance and a taste of what is yet to come under the new manager.

The 43-year-old set up his team up a 3-4-3 formation which worked wonders for the Everton players who have been struggling throughout the season, setting up the side much more offensively compared to the passive approach taken by his predecessor Rafael Benitez.

It was a real team performance with four goals spread out evenly throughout the team. Yerry Mina opened the scoring when he came on for Ben Godfrey, who sustained an injury in the first 12 minutes of the game. Richarlison, Mason Holgate and Andros Townsend also found the net over the course of the game, with Brentford only scoring from a penalty due to a late challenge from Jordan Pickford.

One player who didn’t score but made a huge impact on the team during his 74-minute performance was local youngster Anthony Gordon, who was clearly keen to impress his new manager with his place in the team perhaps in doubt following a number of signings in the January transfer window.

Lampard was forced to leave his two Deadline Day signings out of the team, with Dele Alli and Donny Van de Beek cup-tied. The starting line-up was full of players who were already at Goodison Park all along, and Gordon in particular will be giving his new manager nightmares about future team selection dilemmas after putting in an outstanding performance.

The £7.2m-rated Liverpudlian, who was dubbed “tidy” by Everton journalist David Prentice, will have to compete with a number of attacking players, including new signing Alli, for a place in the forward line, but he did not make that decision any easier for Lampard.

According to SofaScore, the 20-year-old won 85% of his duels, was successful in all three of his dribble attempts, had more touches than Richarlison and lost possession less than any other player in the forward line. He proved to Lampard that he is more than capable of rising to the occasion and able to provide healthy competition for his place in the team.

The 43-year-old will be delighted with the result and will be hoping that this phenomenal team performance can build the confidence and resilience that Everton need if they are to climb the Premier League table. They return to action in the league on Tuesday night against Newcastle United, and it will be interesting to see if Lampard sticks or twists with the team from today when new signings will be available for selection.

Gordon is one of those who may well have put his hand up for breaking into the starting XI for the trip to St James’ Park.

In other news: One Everton ace proved Lampard wrong with an outstanding performance today

Newcastle United have now made contact with Arsenal for striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang ahead of a potential move in this January transfer window.

What’s the story?

According to Italian journalist Rudy Galetti, the Magpies are “trying” for the Gabon international, and that “contact” has already been made with the Gunners for the maverick striker.

It’s added that a “possible loan is being discussed”, and that crucially, Aubameyang himself “would like the destination”.

Fans will be buzzing

While Aubameyang may not have covered himself in glory this season either on the pitch or off it – he’s netted just four goals in the Premier League and was recently stripped of the Arsenal captaincy by Mikel Arteta – he still remains a class player who could provide Newcastle with genuine quality up front.

It was only a couple of seasons ago that Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville was waxing lyrical about the striker, and how good he is compared to the rest of the Premier League’s elite forwards.

He said: “Including me, we have stopped short of announcing Aubameyang as world class. We’re happy to go with (Sergio) Aguero, we’re happy to go with (Sadio) Mane and (Mohamed) Salah, (Roberto) Firmino, (Harry) Kane… all these players who have graced the Premier League in the last two or three seasons.

“I feel that Aubameyang doesn’t get that same credit and maybe it’s something that comes from when he first entered into English football. I think he’s been absolutely sensational, and I think now’s the time for us all to start recognising the quality and the brilliance of this player. He fights for the team, he’s always there, and for me, he’s everything you would want in a football player.”

The man with 294 career goals to his name could be the perfect replacement for the injured Wilson for the remainder of this Premier League season.

Galetti’s update that the Magpies have now made contact for him, and that Aubameyang himself is interested in a move to St James’ Park is sure to have fans absolutely buzzing.

Meanwhile, Newcastle United have held talks with this director of football candidate…