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This article forms part of our Profit Players feature series, which is where Football Transfer Tavern takes a look at how well a player has fared since being signed or sold, using statistical figures and statements from pundits to prove how good of a deal the club managed to achieve.

Walter Zenga was a busy man in the summer of 2016, signing 10 players in one month for Wolves after he became their manager on July 30th (as per BBC).

Among the last batch to arrive just before the August 31st deadline (as per BBC) was midfielder Romain Saiss, who signed from French club Angers for a fee of £3.6m, according to TransferMarkt.

BBC reporter Mike Taylor wasn’t wholly unconvinced by Wolves’ scattergun approach in the market that summer, saying: “How much value they will get for their money will not be clear for some time. If things go well, Wolves could have a midfield full of continental flair, but it will be a challenge to get the best out of those players in the gruelling Championship once the days grow short.”

Zenga’s stay at Molineux was decidedly brief, with the Italian sacked after just three months in charge, but Saiss would have far greater longevity in the Black Country.

He was by no means a fixed presence in Wolves’ line-up in his first season at the club, starting 19 Championship games and coming on in five more, but once Nuno Espirito Santo pitched up at Molineux in the summer of 2017, the fortunes of club and player would accelerate rapidly.

Saiss made 42 league appearances (37 as a starter) in the 2017/18 campaign as Wolves romped to promotion back to the Premier League after a six-year absence, the Moroccan chipping in with four goals and impressing sufficiently to make his country’s World Cup squad, featuring in two games at the tournament in Russia.

In preparation for Wolves’ top-flight return, Nuno brought in a multitude of players that summer, including midfielders Joao Moutinho and Leander Dendoncker. [via TransferMarkt]

The heightened competition for places had an impact on Saiss’ involvement in the team, featuring in just half of their Premier League games last season and starting only 12.

However, he applied himself very diligently whenever he was on the pitch – only three Wolves players won more aerial duels per game last season than the Moroccan’s 3.2, while he was also in the top five for tackles (2.1) and interceptions (1.4) per game. [via WhoScored]

Despite those impressive figures, he appeared to be on his way out of the club at one stage this summer, with Turkish journalist Sercan Dikme tweeting in August (via @sercan_dikme) that representatives from Besiktas were negotiating a potential transfer with Wolves.

The 29-year-old stayed put, though, and is on course to feature more prominently this season, with six Premier League starts and six Europa League starts (between qualifying and group stage) to his name already, as per TransferMarkt.

Saiss has made his mark in the latter competition, scoring the equaliser in last week’s 2-1 win away to Slovan Bratislava, and is one of only four players still at the club from the first half of the 2016/17 season. He has again displayed his aerial ability this term, winning 2.9 headers per game – only Willy Boly has a better average, as per WhoScored.

Zenga may have barely had time to organise his desk at Wolves, let alone build a legacy, but his fleeting era has left behind a lasting presence in Saiss, who has repaid his reported £3.6m transfer fee with eight goals in 110 appearances following Sunday’s 1-1 draw at Newcastle.

The most recent of those helped Wolves to an away win in Europe, something that would have seemed rather far-fetched when he came to a club that finished 14th in the Championship the season before his arrival.

Wolves fans, do you think Saiss has proven to be excellent value at a reported fee of just £3.6m? Have your say by commenting below!

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

Life seems to be going well at Anfield at the moment but Jurgen Klopp still needs to decide who is best placed to fulfil the role of third-choice centre-back.

On the chalkboard

The Reds have won nine matches from ten in the league and although clean sheets have been somewhat of a rarity this term, with only two in the league, the defence has still been a strong point with only eight goals conceded in the league.

However, with Joel Matip ruled out for up to six weeks the German boss suddenly has a big decision to make, and that is who should partner Virgil van Dijk in what could be a key period of Liverpool’s season.

During this spell the club will play an important Champions League match against Napoli which could decide if they storm to the top of the group or endure a nervy ending to the group stages, whilst also welcoming Manchester City to Anfield, and therefore Klopp has to be confident in his selection choice.

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Currently, there seems to be indecision. Matip was first sidelined after the Sheffield United match a few weeks ago, and after that both Dejan Lovren and Joe Gomez have been rotated, with both failing to thoroughly convince in the Cameroonian’s absence.

Trust in the long-term

Though Klopp seems in two minds, the simple solution would be to place his trust in Gomez.

Not only is he younger than Lovren, but he is also a better defender, and his physical attributes alone mean that he is the more useful option and better partner for van Dijk.

The Croatian was exposed in that department against Tottenham on Sunday. A simple long ball by Paulo Gazzaniga was misjudged by the defender and Heung-Min Son was able to round the keeper, with Lovren and the Reds only escaping because his shot hit the bar.

The 22-year-old, by contrast, has the pace to deal with most opposition players, and if he can rediscover the form he showed before the severe injury he suffered last year then he could even rival Matip in an audition for the role of van Dijk’s sidekick.

Gareth Southgate’s remark that he is an England star of the future attests to the enormity of his potential, and suggests that Lovren isn’t the answer for Klopp – not now and certainly not in the future.

As a result, the German should begin to bed-in Gomez once again and restore the confidence he may have lost, as that will likely get him playing to his highest level once again.

A number of Liverpool fans have urged head coach Jurgen Klopp to select Naby Keita for Wednesday’s Champions League with Genk.

The midfielder made his first Premier League appearance of the season against Manchester United on Sunday – featuring for the final eight minutes at Old Trafford.

Indeed, Keita has been on the sidelines for much of the campaign with a muscular problem that he picked up ahead of the UEFA Super Cup against Chelsea in August.

The 24-year-old is now back to fitness, however, and has been included in the squad for Wednesday’s European fixture against Genk.

Klopp is bound to shuffle his pack following Sunday’s clash at Old Trafford, and it would be fair to assume that midfield could be an area where alterations are made.

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A whole host of Liverpool fans have taken to social media to urge their manager to hand Keita, who has only played three minutes of their Champions League group stage campaign to date, the opportunity to impress.

And a selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Wolves must be hating the international break right now.

The west Midlanders finally began to turn things around with three straight victories in all competitions, which culminated in the shock scalp of Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium after Adama Traore netted a quickfire brace in the final ten minutes.

Now the club are faced with various transfer rumours surrounding key members of their squad with defender Willy Boly being linked to the two north London rivals.

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The Sun originally stated that Arsenal were keen on signing the 28-year-old, but new reports from Football Insider suggest that Tottenham Hotspur have also joined the race.

Boly has played such a crucial part in Nuno Santo’s plans so far this season, most notably seen when he hasn’t featured, strangely enough.

The one league game the Frenchman missed was the 5-2 defeat by Chelsea at Molineux – Boly has played in all three of those matches mentioned above.

WhoScored currently rank him as the best-rated member of Nuno’s squad at 7.45.

In contrast, Wolves have been linked to a defender themselves this week, and he’s eerily close to being a like-for-like replacement for towering Boly.

One Wolves fan thinks he’s pinpointed the moment when they went from EPL strugglers to “peak Barcelona 2011” in the video below…

According to Fanatik, Galatasaray centre-back Christian Luyindama is being watched closely by the west Midlands club, and when looking at his profile, it should serve as a warning that Boly could well be on his way out if such reports turn out to be true.

At 6 foot 3, the 25-year-old is only two inches smaller than the Wolves defender – he has also won an average of 4.8 aerial duels in the Super Lig so far this campaign.

In comparison, Boly is registering slightly under that figure with 4.7.

It remains to be seen how accurate these reports are, but if Wolves are genuinely scouting another defender it could be in preparation for Boly’s exit, which is a wise thing to do considering the impact he has had at the club.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

With West Brom leading the Championship heading into the international break, the spotlight will quite rightly be on them – will they keep it up going into the festive period, or will they falter?

Their fate may well be out of their control, especially if they continue to dazzle on the pitch – as weird as that sounds.

Grady Diangana has been an integral part of the exciting, pacy, and possession-based brand of football that manager Slaven Bilic wants to play.

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The winger has scored four goals while laying on three assists in just six starts so far this campaign, per WhoScored. On two occasions his impact has practically won Albion the game – think of Luton away and more recently against Huddersfield.

He is currently the joint-top goalscorer amongst the squad, but given he is only on loan, a huge problem may arise come January.

The 21-year-old’s rich vein of form could result in his parent club, West Ham, wanting him to contribute to their Premier League exploits this season – that has to be the reason why they installed a recall clause as part of the deal.

If that did happen, it would be an absolutely killer blow to their title hopes considering the impact Diangana has had already in just six starts.

Young Kyle Edwards would have to step up as fellow Albion winger Oliver Burke was sent out on loan while Chris Willock seems to only be an option for the U23 squad as he is yet to feature in the league despite joining from Benfica for a temporary stint of his own.

Edwards has scored just one goal in ten appearances, so there’s nothing to suggest he could fill Diangana’s void.

It would likely also cause unrest amongst the Hawthorns faithful considering a year ago the very same thing happened with Harvey Barnes.

The Leicester City ace scored nine goals and provided six assists in 26 appearances, per WhoScored, before the Foxes recalled him to feature for the senior side.

Ultimately, the point of these loan deals has paid off, but it does still leave West Brom hanging in the mire.

With sporting and technical director Luke Dowling putting a two-year timeframe on the club returning to the top-flight, losing Diangana would only put a dent on such hopes.

Whether the Baggies would have gained promotion with Barnes still at the club post-January remains to be seen, but you’d imagine he would have undoubtedly helped their cause.

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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… 

Leeds’ woes when it comes to creativity is clear to see.

This season, Jack Harrison has completed just one accurate cross out of 31 attempted in the Championship.

If you consider that statistic, is it really any surprise Leeds failed to win against Derby? Arguably not.

However, they should have been out of sight and Harrison’s form really shouldn’t have become such a talking point.

Patrick Bamford hit the post and Mateusz Klich saw his spot-kick go wide of the target but ultimately the Whites couldn’t do enough.

The solution to their problems could well involve Helder Costa.

On the chalkboard

Signed on loan from Wolves in the summer transfer window, Costa is yet to start in the Championship. It’s something that’s had Leeds supporters rather baffled as they call for him to be included.

It could be that he replaces Harrison in the side. For all of his hard work, his final ball is missing and his quality in the final third is too infrequent to have a say on proceedings.

Not since the opening weekend has the 22-year-old contributed to a goal and this will only continue to halter Leeds in their tracks.

If he does get dropped from the side then Jack Clarke should be eagerly waiting for his chance too. It seems like a last resort but the neglected teenager may have to be used sooner rather than later.

The 18-year-old has been restricted to just two appearances in the Carabao Cup, failing to earn a place in the squad because of a rule that restricts more than five loan players from appearing in a single matchday squad.

Something drastic would have to happen for Harrison to fall out of the squad entirely but unless his numbers improve and he starts impacting goals, he could be under threat.

Watch Leeds United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

At the weekend, Leeds had a lack of genuine attacking options on the bench to change the game.

Instead, Bielsa had a goalkeeper, three defenders and Tyler Roberts, who is arguably not 100% match fit, on the bench with Eddie Nketiah and Costa.

Roberts wasn’t used and instead they went for Barry Douglas to replace Pablo Hernandez. This was strange but showed there is a lack of depth in forward areas. Perhaps they needed Clarke?

The only way the winger will get his chance is if one of their loan players drop out. The more realistic options, if things got worse, would be to lose Harrison or stopper Illan Meslier.

Liverpool’s Michael Edwards ‘has all the qualities needed by Newcastle’ as they search for a sporting director, The Telegraph’s Luke Edwards writes.

The lowdown

Edwards was promoted to the role of Liverpool sporting director in 2016 and has helped to bring the likes of Sadio Mane, Georginio Wijnaldum, Virgil van Dijk, Mohamed Salah and Alisson Becker to Anfield. All of those players have since been nominated for the Ballon D’Or.

However, he is expected to step down from his role at the end of the current season when his contract expires (via The Athletic).

Newcastle’s owners want to appoint someone to work above the manager and ‘lead the technical aspects of a new era’.

The latest

In The Telegraph, Luke Edwards noted that his namesake is ‘widely’ viewed as one of the architects of Liverpool’s success alongside Jurgen Klopp.

‘His CV commands respect’ and he ticks all of the requisite boxes, while there’s a possibility that he ‘could be persuaded’ to leave Anfield early given that he has already made his intentions clear.

The verdict

Having money isn’t in itself a guarantee of footballing success, but if you give an elite operator like Edwards control of those funds, you’re unlikely to go too far wrong.

Hailed as a ‘visionary’ by The Athletic’s James Pearce, he has had to work within a self-sustaining business model at Liverpool. It’s scary to think what he could do at Newcastle with the shackles unleashed.

In other news, a manager who’s never had a job in Britain is under consideration by Newcastle. 

There are a lot of problems at Tottenham Hotspur right now.

Nuno Santo’s side crashed to their third straight heavy Premier League defeat, this time at the hands of arch-rivals Arsenal in the north London derby and the pressure is starting to mount on the Portuguese.

They are now leaking goals for fun, whilst their struggles in the final third are a major cause for concern.

As per Understat, the Lilywhites rank second-last for expected goals after six matches (5.47 xG) and they also sit last for average number of shots per game (9.3) – even the bottom three of Norwich City (10.2), Burnley (12.2) and Leeds (14.2).

Ever since Christian Eriksen departed N17 for Milan, Spurs have struggled to find a replacement capable of providing plenty of goals, quality set-pieces and assists from attacking midfield.

Arguably, one of the biggest disappointments has been Giovani Lo Celso, following a £55m move from Real Betis in August 2019.

The 31-cap Argentina international has provided only seven goals and four assists across 71 appearances, averaging one contribution every 365 minutes – or once every four games, per Transfermarkt.

This is some way off the level of Eriksen during his time in north London. By comparison, the Danish playmaker averaged a goal or assist every 151 minutes across a whopping 305 appearances.

After the 25-year-old was signed, plenty of outlets, such as 90min and The Times, tipped him up to fill the void left behind by the Inter Milan star but as evident above, that’s just not worked out whatsoever.

Having been described as a “technically gifted” and “exciting” player by teammate Harry Winks and “phenomenal” by Jose Mourinho, some comparisons could be made to former Spurs flop Adel Taarabt, someone who had undoubted quality in the final third but more often than not, went missing whenever given a proper opportunity.

Indeed, the Moroccan sensation was once dubbed “a wizard” by ex-Lilywhites boss Martin Jol, whilst another former boss in Harry Redknapp claimed he was “three stone overweight,” merely highlighting just how polarising he was during his time at the club.

Luka Modric even went as far as suggesting that he thought Taarabt would one day play for either one of La Liga’s biggest giants, Real Madrid or Barcelona.

These are two teams that have also been interested in Lo Celso in the past, so there are further similarities.

After signing as a teenager, Taarabt failed to deliver any contribution of note in 15 senior appearances for Spurs and whilst the £26m-rated Argentine midfielder is some way ahead of that already, his recent form and creative drought is certainly putting him in danger of being the next big midfield flop at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

AND in other news, Journalist drops major behind-the-scenes Hotspur Way claim, Spurs fans will be buzzing…

West Ham United will be looking to get back on track in the Premier League after they picked up their first defeat of the 2021/22 campaign last weekend, but they will be buoyed by revenge in midweek.

David Moyes’ side fell to a gutting 2-1 defeat to Manchester United, with last season’s loan star Jesse Lingard bagging the winner, but the east London outfit overcame a much-changed Red Devils side in the Carabao Cup third round on Wednesday.

Overall, the Irons’ start to the new season has been hugely encouraging and it leaves the 58-year-old with a selection nightmare as several fringe players excelled after a number of key starters were rested.

The Hammers head to Yorkshire to face Leeds United, who appear to be decimated in defence – Marcelo Bielsa is expected to be without three senior centre-backs, with Robin Koch, Diego Llorente and Pascal Struijk either on the treatment table or suspended. There are also doubts over vice-captain Luke Ayling.

It gives Moyes something major to exploit, which means he should probably recall Said Benrahma to the starting XI – and he must be played out on that left-flank.

The tricky Algerian winger could feast upon the Whites’ troubles. Bielsa will either have to turn to 19-year-old Charlie Cresswell to make his Premier League debut or drop Kalvin Phillips into the backline from defensive midfield, whilst midfielder Stuart Dallas may have to feature at right-back.

Someone of Benrahma’s skill and technical ability should be able to make the most of these setbacks.

The £26m-rated dynamo has started the season on fire, providing three goals and two assists across five appearances, via Transfermarkt, and he could continue that rich vein of form at Elland Road if unleashed from the off.

Benrahma has been described as a player who “could nutmeg a mermaid” by his ex-Brentford coach Sam Saunders, whilst former Nice teammate Lorenzo Vinci once dubbed him a “true magician.”

The Irons star is averaging 2.2 shots, 1.4 key passes and 1.2 dribbles per league outing so far this season, via WhoScored, and that is exactly why he could absolutely terrorise a barren Leeds side this afternoon.

Moyes simply has to start Benrahma up in Yorkshire today.

AND in other news, West Ham handed boost over “devastating” beast ahead of Leeds clash, Moyes will be buzzing…

Steve Bruce is set to make a change in goal for Newcastle United’s clash with Leeds United on Friday night, according to Tuesday’s Daily Mirror (via Chronicle Live).

The lowdown

Freddie Woodman has started Newcastle’s first four Premier League matches with Karl Darlow recovering from a bout of coronavirus that saw him hospitalised and Martin Dubravka sidelined by a foot injury.

But Woodman’s form has been unconvincing. The former Swansea City loanee has conceded 12 goals from a post-shot xG of just 8.9 (via FBRef).

After the 4-1 defeat away to Manchester United on Saturday, Woodman wrote on Instagram that he ‘wasn’t good enough’ but was determined to ‘learn and react in the right way’.

The latest

The report states that Darlow, who was back among the substitutes at Old Trafford, is to be recalled.

Following a tough afternoon in Manchester, Woodman will drop to the substitutes’ bench for Leeds’ visit.

The verdict

Steve Bruce has probably made the right call here. Woodman was excellent for Swansea in the Championship, and so Newcastle would have viewed him as a more than able deputy.

But his performances surely haven’t lived up to expectations, and his confidence will have been damaged ahead of a test against a Leeds team who unleash constant waves of attack, despite their own deficiencies at the other end.

It will be interesting to see how quickly Dubravka is restored to the line-up when fit. Can Darlow force Bruce to hesitate?

In other news, Newcastle have been dealt a significant injury blow.