West Ham United have given their academy products chances this season, whether out of necessity or choice, with Declan Rice, Nathan Holland, Conor Coventry and Jeremy Ngakia among those to get minutes.

The latest player who fans are excited about the prospect of seeing in David Moyes’ squad is Xande Silva, as was displayed by fans on Twitter after a highlight clip of his goal against Stoke City U23s was shown by the club’s official account.

As unpopular as this opinion may be, when watching the 22-year-old during the 2-2 draw, there was a feeling that he is not yet ready to be playing first-team Premier League football just yet.

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This is not to say that he never will be, as the Portuguese forward carried himself in a confident enough manner, and showed the technical quality to show that he can make the step up.

However, it should be noted that this was just his second appearance and first start of the campaign after recovering from a bowel obstruction. He played a half against Sunderland, though he did bag a goal and assist in that game.

He added to his tally against the Potters, when Bernardo Rosa played him in behind the opposition defence. He just about dribbled past the goalkeeper which saw him forced wide before he cut back and managed to hit the back of the net.

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The 22-year-old should have had more goal contributions to his name though and would have done if he was more decisive in and around the opposition box.

There were times when he over-complicated things for himself, which often led to the Stoke defence eventually being able to dispossess him – some of those incidents could have led to a clear goalscoring opportunity if he had been quicker in thought.

It is this part of his game that showed while he is an exciting talent, who should eventually be involved in Moyes’ side, it may be best to show patience towards him and allow the forward to get fully up to speed rather than being thrown in at the deep end.

Meanwhile, one West Ham starlet stood out during the game.

Sunderland have officially turned a corner.

Their mesmeric form has placed them well in the hunt for promotion, going from winning two of their opening 14 matches under Phil Parkinson, to tasting just the solitary defeat in their previous 13 fixtures.

It’s been a fabulous run and they’ll be hoping that continues on Saturday afternoon when Bristol Rovers travel to the Stadium of Light.

Currently placed 13th in League One, they’ll arrive on Wearside with a goal difference of -7. If there was ever a positive to take, it would be Sunderland’s opponents’ inconsistencies.

Considering the Mackem’s fantastic run, you’d be forgiven for thinking that nothing needs to be changed.

However, they’ll be forced into making at least one change on Saturday. Beyond that, we also think Parkinson should make a further switch to his starting XI.

The first notable absentee is, of course, Bailey Wright.

Sunderland have confirmed that he is likely to miss 12 weeks and the rest of the season after suffering ankle ligament damage in the win over Oxford United.

The Australian has been a vital cog in Parkinson’s side, helping the Black Cats keep four clean sheets in their last five matches after arriving on loan from Bristol City.

With the 27-year-old missing, that means there is a chance for Alim Ozturk to come back into the fray as he starts ahead of new signing Tommy Smith. He’ll be hoping to replicate Wright’s performances in the backline while also ensuring Sunderland’s fabulous defensive record is kept intact.

No side have kept more clean sheets in England’s top four divisions than Parkinson’s men in 2020.

The other change comes in a forward area. If Sunderland could be guilty of one thing, it’s a failure to really put teams to the sword. Since the manager walked through the doors, they’ve only won three matches by a margin of three goals or more.

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With that in mind and the fact Charlie Wyke only has one strike in his last seven, Kyle Lafferty comes in for his first Sunderland start.

It’s not too unrealistic to suggest he’ll finally get an opportunity, especially considering the demanding fixture list in League One.

Meanwhile, Stewart Donald’s potential parting gift could be right in front of Sunderland’s eyes…

Sunderland were dealt a major setback on Sunday as they fell to a 1-0 defeat at promotion rivals Coventry, a result which saw the Sky Blues extend their lead over Phil Parkinson’s side to six points.

The only positive from the weekend was Rotherham’s draw with MK Dons, meaning the Black Cats are still only four points off the automatic promotion spots, though they did drop to fifth place.

Parkinson went with an unchanged line-up once more and was unfortunate not to find an equaliser, with Charlie Wyke particularly guilty of missing some good chances – sending a first-half header over the bar from a few yards out for example.

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Supporters aimed criticism at his performance after the match and there have now been some calls for the 27-year-old to be dropped in favour of Will Grigg, who hasn’t featured since December.

The Northern Ireland international has been unfavoured by his manager possibly due to his lack of goals and poor physicality, averaging just 1.5 aerial duels won per game compared to Wyke’s 4.1.

However, with Sunderland chasing the game on Sunday and in need of something different it is a little surprising that Grigg wasn’t considered, even if he does only have three goals this season.

Some fans are still supportive of the player despite his inadequate contribution this term, suggesting that he should have been given a chance against Coventry and must be an option from now on.

Not all fans are keen to see Grigg back in action, however, arguing that his problem is not just a lack of ability but also poor attitude, an issue that doesn’t exist with Wyke or Kyle Lafferty.

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Meanwhile, fans have also been criticising a first-team regular this season who has seen his form dip in recent games…

Pedro Chirivella has issued his thoughts following Neil Critchley’s departure from Liverpool.

The Reds midfielder – who has spent most of the campaign playing under Critchley in the Reds’ U23 ranks – took to his official Twitter account to share a message after the 41-year-old left Anfield to take up the role of Head Coach at Blackpool.

Critchley would usually be in the shadows given his role, but Jurgen Klopp shone the spotlight on him twice this season when vacating the touchline for Liverpool’s Carabao Cup quarter-final tie against Aston Villa, and then again for the club’s FA Cup fourth round encounter with Shrewsbury.

Liverpool lost 5-0 to Aston Villa while Klopp, Sadio Mane, Mohamed Salah and others were on Club World Cup duty, although Critchley achieved perhaps his finest moment as a coach when he recorded a 1-0 win over Shrewsbury at Anfield.

Chirivella – who has made 11 first-team appearances for Liverpool – shared his heartfelt thoughts on Critchley following his exit, which you can see below:

In other news, Troy Deeney was spotted poking fun at Virgil van Dijk in the tunnel before Watford beat Liverpool…

Sunderland dropped more crucial points on Saturday but former player Stephen Elliott thinks the result was totally avoidable and laid blame for the draw at Phil Parkinson’s door.

What did he say?

The Black Cats scored in the last ten minutes to seemingly wrap up all three points, only for Mikael Mandron to equalise for the visitors with one of the last touches of the game.

It is a result which adds another dent in Sunderland’s promotion bid, making it three games without a win in a pivotal moment of the season.

Phil Parkinson’s team dominated for large spells, achieving 62% possession and six shots on target, but Elliott still feels that a key failing of the manager was responsible for the dropped points.

In a tweet he wrote after the match, Elliott said:

“Think Parkinson should have changed it today. Why has he brought Scowen and John to the club? Deserved the plaudits after a good run but surely he has to recognise that the team needed freshening up after last few performances.”

There is a lot of truth to what the former striker says, as the only change from the Coventry defeat was Kyle Lafferty taking the place of the unavailable Charlie Wyke.

Costly stubbornness

Sunderland fans have grown increasingly frustrated recently that underperforming players like Wyke and Denver Hume continue to start, particularly as the likes of Lafferty and Declan John were added in January to provide an alternative in the positions they play.

Lafferty’s two goals against the Gills show how effective he can be, considering that was his first start since joining.

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It is concerning, therefore, that the only reason he got his chance was because Parkinson couldn’t pick Wyke. Now, especially as fatigue could be a factor after conceding so late on, the Black Cats boss must be open to change, and look to give others in his squad a chance.

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Josh Scowen and John, the two payers mentioned by Elliott, both have Championship experience and could provide a big boost to the team if they were to start. A failure to even test them out now appears to be holding Sunderland back.

Meanwhile, Sunderland have made their feelings perfectly clear about one aspect of the team following Saturday’s draw…

John Moncur was a special guest on the We Are West Ham Podcast and talked about the recent emergence of Jeremy Ngakia in the senior squad of David Moyes.

Even though he is still officially a player of West Ham’s U23 squad, Ngakia has been something of a regular presence in the east London club’s right-back position in the last few weeks.

And the youngster hasn’t disappointed so far, drawing all sorts of praise from Moncur who hailed him for his natural talent and even compared him to Aaron Wan-Bissaka as well.

Here’s what he said for the We Are West Ham Podcast (11/3/2020): “He’s got a lot of natural talent. He eats the ground up and he looks good at times going forward. He reminds me a little bit of Wan-Bissaka. He’s leggy and he’s a good defender. He’s hard to get past.”

Ngakia has so far played a total of four games for West Ham and has also remained on the pitch for the full 90 minutes in all of those clashes, three of which have unfortunately been defeats.

But it seems that Moyes trusts him enough to let him start games regularly now and whenever such a promising young talent emerges from the youth squad, it’s a big bonus since you’re basically getting him for free.

It’ll be interesting to see how he develops in the near future.

West Ham fans, what do you think about Ngakia? Do you see him as a big talent capable of playing for the seniors? Let us know down in the comments below!

West Brom centre-back Semi Ajayi has clearly been enjoying his time off after uploading a video of his fresh new haircut to

/B-Ff0LbgCqN/” data-lasso->Instagram this week, and it’s sparked a reaction from two members of the Albion setup.

The summer signing has been a frequent figure in Slaven Bilic’s backline this term, starting 35 league games whilst also contributing with five goals, per Transfermarkt.

His different look has seen both winger Kyle Edwards and assistant manager Danilo Butorovic reply with the following remarks…

The two responses were in a light-hearted joking manner, and it only goes to show that without training and regular fixtures, there really isn’t much they can do other than keeping up with their own fitness levels.

For just £1.5m, Ajayi has arguably been one of the steals of the season as the Baggies find themselves sitting in second place with a six-point advantage over those in the playoff positions.

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Only a major collapse stops them from returning to the top-flight after a two-year absence – you’d imagine.

And in other news, talkSPORT got West Brom pre-season call ever so wrong…

Sky Sports transfer expert Kaveh Solhekol has made a strong claim about Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho ahead of the summer transfer window, in a Transfer Talk Q&A.

What did he say?

Well, Solhekol was asked by a fan whether the Portuguese boss was genuinely happy with his squad ahead of the next window, and his answer was pretty clear.

He told Sky Sports: “There’s no chance that Jose Mourinho is happy with his Tottenham squad. Spurs were all over the place before the season stopped. They lost four and drew two of their last six games. They had no strikers. They were knocked out of the FA Cup by Norwich at home. They were knocked out of the Champions League without laying a glove on RB Leipzig.

“When Mourinho got the Spurs job, he said he was happy with his squad. He didn’t mean it. He was just saying the right thing. There are problems all over the Spurs squad and it’s going to take more than just one window to fix them. And somehow he has to convince Daniel Levy to spend big again.”

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Solhekol went on to say that as well as needing to keep hold of Harry Kane, they probably also need at least six new faces.

Is he right?

It certainly wouldn’t be a surprise if he was right about Mourinho’s thoughts.

Spurs look to have a decent enough squad on paper, but far too many of their players have underwhelmed during the 2019/20 campaign to date.

Their form before the current halt to proceedings tells you all you need to know as Solhekol has pointed out, with no striker available and a leaky defence costing them over and over again as they were knocked out of the FA Cup and the Champions League.

It is clear that the backline needs to be a priority for Tottenham in the summer, with the likes of Hugo Lloris, Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen – if he signs a new contract – not the players they once were, while there are questions marks over whether the likes of Davinson Sanchez, Ben Davies and Serge Aurier are good enough to be regular starters.

Solkehol says that Tottenham need to spend – presumably also to keep Mourinho happy.

Over to you, Daniel Levy.

In other Tottenham news, talkSPORT pundit Adrian Durham has launched a brutal attack on Jose Mourinho & Harry Kane…

Liverpool fans are reflecting on a goal scored by Yossi Benayoun back in 2009 against Fulham in order to send the Reds to the top of the Premier League.

In a tense game that looked sure to end as a stalemate, Liverpool’s Israeli winger thumped a last-gasp strike home in order to clinch all three points and send his side to the top spot in the league (via The Guardian).

Benayoun spent three years with the Merseyside outfit after joining from West Ham in 2007 for a fee of £6.5million (via Transfermarkt). He went on to become a Liverpool centurion after making 134 appearances for the club, scoring 29 goals and assisting 19 in that time (also Transfermarkt).

Reds fans are remembering the day the winger pulled off his heroics at Craven Cottage and reminiscing over where they were and what they were doing at the time. One supporter has recalled watching the match and there being ‘limbs everywhere’ when Benayoun netted the winner, whilst another has said it was ‘total bedlam’.

What are your memories of Benayoun? Join the discussion by commenting below… 

Crystal Palace have had some seasons to forget over the years, but there have been some moments that have really sent the Eagles fans into fits of rage.

Here’s a look at just a few of them…

Christian Benteke penalty miss

In a moment where it mattered the most, club-record signing Benteke failed to step up and deliver for his team. In the match against Bournemouth, Palace could have been on their way towards climbing out of the relegation scrap after a golden opportunity presented itself.

Following a foul on Wilfried Zaha, Benteke fought off his teammates and put himself forward to take the spot-kick despite not scoring in over six months. He wrestled the ball away from Luka Milivojevic, who is of course known for his pinpoint set-piece accuracy.

Every Crystal Palace fan must have had their head in their hands when the Belgian scuffed his shot and saw the penalty saved. Fortunately, the Eagles stayed up that season, but Benteke’s selfishness had sent his side hurtling to the bottom of the league table and could have cost them deeply.

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Luka Milivojevic red card vs Derby

Earlier this year, Crystal Palace hosted Derby County in the FA Cup third round. Not only were they handed an early exit from the competition but their skipper was shown a straight red card for his scuffle with Tom Huddlestone.

Originally handed a yellow card, the Eagles thought they’d gotten away with the captain’s unprofessional bust-up, but after VAR made a historic overturn, Milivojevic was given his marching orders.

Fans were absolutely livid with the Serbian’s behaviour, with many demanding he be stripped of the captaincy.

Wilfried Zaha’s transfer request

The likelihood of Zaha leaving Selhurst Park has increased over the last couple of seasons as Crystal Palace have failed to put any major stamp on their performances. However, the nature of their star man’s transfer request rubbed some Eagles supporters up the wrong way.

The Ivorian announced he wanted to leave the club last summer with just three weeks of the transfer window left. The club had already rejected offers from Arsenal and Napoli with Everton still keen on the winger.

Although some Palace fans acknowledged it wouldn’t be long before Zaha left the London outfit, many were irritated at his latest approach and stated it was ‘too late’ to leave.