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Jurgen Klopp pointed to atmospheric conditions after drawing with Everton – but he is far from the only person to make outlandish excuses in the sport

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  1Just the fax

  Rumours linking David de Gea to a Real Madrid move have been almost constant since he hit the big time at Man United. But the Reds have been equally insistent in fending off Real's interest, even when a transfer looked inevitable. 

  The closest De Gea came to moving was in 2015, when only a reported malfunctioning fax machine stopped the clubs from completing the paperwork on time on transfer deadline day. 

  Both sides blamed each other for what was reported officially as a "technical glitch", and more than three years down the line De Gea remains safely at Old Trafford.

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  2Too many injuries?

  Managers blaming their team's failings on a spate of unfortunate injuries is nothing new. But perhaps only Klopp has dared to use the opponent's physical issues to explain away a poor result. 

  Manchester United held Liverpool to a draw in February despite being forced into three first-half substitutions, something the German paradoxically believes played into their hands. 

  "Everyone saw at United we were confident and we were much better when all of United’s players were on the pitch but the game changed completely," he claimed after the match.

  "The open game and we were better. It changed and we were still in charge and gave nothing away. That is important."

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  3Hopping mad

  Spain began the 2006 World Cup in style, destroying Ukraine 4-0 in their first match. But that heavy defeat was naturally no fault of the beaten team, who decided to blame a host of tiny amphibians who had croaked through the night outside their Potsdam hotel.

  "Because of the frogs' croaking we hardly got a wink of sleep," defender Vladislav Vashchuk explained after the game. "We all agreed that we would take some sticks and go and hunt them."

  Perhaps Vashchuk had a point, though. Once away from the noisy intruders results picked up immediately, as Ukraine battled through to the quarter-finals before eventually going out to winners Italy.

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  4Where have all the ball-boys gone?

  When it comes to ball-boys, too few can be just as damaging to a team's chances as one who is a bad-luck omen. That is, according to Jose Mourinho. 

  "What I'm about to say is not a criticism, I'm just stating a fact: There were no ballboys in the second half," Mourinho griped in 2011 after his Real Madrid side fell victim to Barcelona in the Supercopa. 

  "This is something typical of small teams when experiencing difficulties."

Southampton have been linked with a move for Leicester City ace Demarai Gray recently and the winger could be the man to replace Nathan Redmond at the South Coast club.

What’s the word?

According to Portuguese news outlet Record (via Sport Witness), Southampton have ‘taken the first steps’ towards signing Gray on a free transfer next summer when his contract with the Foxes expires.

It suggests that although Benfica are interested in signing the 24-year-old, Southampton have contacted his entourage and would be able to offer better financial terms to the Englishman.

Redmond successor?

The former Birmingham City man is clearly surplus to requirements in Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester side, having made just one substitute appearance in the Premier League this season, featuring more prominently in the Premier League 2 with the Foxes’ U’23 side.

During his time with the club, he has made 169 appearances, contributing 13 goals and 17 assists, suggesting that he has never really been able to consistently score and create goals in the Leicester side.

However, he has shown glimpses of his ability, with Rodgers labelling his performance against Bournemouth last season as “excellent”, whilst also suggesting that, despite his lack of appearances, he is a “big talent”.

Gray’s best season in the Premier League perhaps came in the 2018/19 campaign, where he made 34 appearances and contributed four goals but he followed that up with just three starts in the top-flight last season.

However, he could still be an excellent signing for Southampton, if Ralph Hasenhuttl was able to unlock the winger’s obvious potential.

Considering he is valued at £10.8 million by Transfermarkt, it would make a lot of financial sense to sign him on a free transfer, as even if he wasn’t able to perform for the Saints, they would surely be able to make a profit on him in the future.

It could also be argued that Gray could prove to be the successor to Redmond at Southampton, with the former Norwich City man having struggled to perform at times this season, with one goal and no assists in nine appearances in the top-flight, resulting in a less than impressive 6.51 rating.

Gray has rarely enjoyed a strong run of starts in the Leicester team and if Hasenhuttl gave him the opportunity to impress as a regular in this Southampton side, there’s no reason why the former England U21 international couldn’t become a success in the Premier League, so this definitely looks like it could be a worthwhile signing for the Saints.

And, in other news… Southampton should axe 21 y/o once dubbed “fantastic”; he has no future under Hasenhuttl

Goal looks at the players who dazzled all too briefly on the biggest international stage

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  Asamoah Gyan

  Ghana were so very close in 2010. Had it not been for the truly despicable actions of Luis Suarez, Gyan and his team-mates would have become the very first African team ever to reach the semi-finals of the World Cup. Gyan was central to their push, leading the line, scoring three goals – two were penalties – but his tournament ended in heartbreak, as Gyan hit the bar in the last-minute of their clash with Uruguay. His career never truly recovered.

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  El-Hadji Diouf

  Selected in the FIFA All-Star Team after the 2002 World Cup, Diouf was truly brilliant for Senegal in South Korea and Japan. After inspiring his country to a remarkable 1-0 win over France – Diouf set up Papa Bouba Diop’s winning goal – Diouf also laid on goals against Uruguay and Sweden. Ultimately, Senegal were knocked out by Turkey in the quarter-finals, and Diouf went on to become one of the most vilified figures in English football at Liverpool.

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  Oleg Salenko

  Prior to the 1994 World Cup, Salenko had not scored for Russia. He netted once from the penalty spot against Sweden, warming himself up rather nicely for an encounter with Cameroon. Nobody saw what was coming, but Salenko scored five times as Russia won 6-1. As a result, he shared the Golden Boot with Bulgaria’s Hristo Stoichkov, despite Russia failing to progress past the group stage. He never played for his country again, and retired at the age of 31 due to weight issues.

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  Salif Diao

  Along with El-Hadji Diouf, Diao was a key part of Senegal’s Earth-shattering win over France, and also scored in the later group stage clash with Denmark, though joy quickly turned sour as he was sent off for a high boot. His displays led to a move to Liverpool, but he was unable to replicate his international form at Anfield and quickly faded from the public consciousness.

According to Football Insider, RB Leipzig have made an approach to sign Aston Villa starlet Jaden Philogene-Bidace in the January transfer window.

Nightmare for Dean Smith

The 18-year-old has yet to make a single senior appearance for Dean Smith’s side, spending all of his career thus far with both the U18s and U23s.

This season has seen the left-winger start off the campaign superbly, bagging four goals and providing a further two assists in just eight Premier League 2 level games.

Now, Football Insider claim that Leipzig are keen to take advantage of the fact he has just six months remaining on his current contract, and that the Bundesliga side have been alerted to the fact they could sign him on the cheap next month, and that will be a nightmare for Smith.

Unforgivable from Lange

As Jack Grealish has shown over the past few years, giving a young rising talent the chance to shine in the first-team can see a pretty big risk pay off spectacularly.

And in Philogene-Bidace, they have got someone who has got considerable talent, and is very similar in his style of play to the club captain. His former coach, Ahmed Abdulla, said: “He can come inside or go on the outside. The model winger.

“He hugs the touchline and can beat his man. (He’s) Very confident and very light on his feet and skips past tackles, not one of them that gets hit and goes down. He bounces off tackles. He’s very strong and outstanding in one-v-ones.”

It would be unforgivable from Villa’s sporting director, Johan Lange, to just let Philogene-Bidace walk away without first seeing how he might perform in the first-team. The fact he has just six months left on his contract and can leave on the cheap makes the whole situation that much more ridiculous.

Lange is heading for a inexcusable nightmare unless he intervenes.

Recent reports revealed that Glasgow Rangers striker Chris McKee has signed a contract extension that will keep him at Ibrox until 2022. Now Rangers must focus on tying down the irreplaceable James Tavernier.

What was the story?

The club captain has been in electric form this season, having scored 14 goals and supplied 10 assists across all competitions, with nine of those goals in the Scottish Premiership so far.

Ever since Steven Gerrard first took charge of the 54-time Scottish champions, the 29-year-old has struck 34 times in 126 games in total.

Naturally, his performances haven’t gone unnoticed, with West Ham and Newcastle United among his admirers south of the border.

Despite Gerrard’s insistence the skipper wasn’t for sale in the summer, former Rangers midfielder Andy Halliday believes it is only a matter of time until they face a bidding war in the not too distant future.

Speaking on Open Goal, as quoted by The Herald, Halliday said: “Take away his penalties, he has still scored six goals. How can a team not be watching that? Everyone has their price, I think he would wait until the summer.

“But if a team sits down and offers double, triple your money – some people are going to get their head turned.”

Keep Tavernier at all costs by any means necessary

Halliday’s stark warning will come as no surprise to many, least of all Ross Wilson, who was the key figure behind Southampton’s recruitment strategy before he joined the Gers.

However, this doesn’t mean that his statement should be simply ignored, either.

Reports in recent months claimed that West Ham were considering a bid for the ex-Wigan star in the summer, and there’s no doubt that the right-back may be tempted by such a move, should the Hammers return for their long-term target before too long. After all, every footballer has a price.

So if Wilson can convince him that he would be best served by staying at the Govan stadium, and that Gerrard is the man to get the best out of him like he has done so far, then that would be a real statement of intent.

Gerrard has developed an attacking, possession-based brand of football that relies heavily on the backs bombing up and down the wings and providing width and Tavernier has shown he is a player who can do precisely just that.

The free-scoring full-back is the undisputed first-choice starter, and it would be a bitter blow if the Light Blues can’t convince him to sign a new contract, especially when you consider the fact that his current deal will run out in just over a year’s time.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers must act quickly to fend off Premier League interest in Borna Barisic…

After securing a place in the Champions League knockout stages in midweek with a win against Olympiakos, Manchester City return to Premier League action on Saturday afternoon, as they face Burnley at the Etihad.

A goal from Phil Foden proved to be the difference in Greece but with Kevin De Bruyne set to return to the starting eleven after not travelling in midweek, the English midfielder may miss out against Sean Dyche’s side.

The Clarets secured their first win of the Premier League season last time out with a 1-0 triumph against Crystal Palace so will be buoyed ahead of their trip to Manchester, and they certainly won’t make it easy for the Citizens.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Guardiola to line up his side against Burnley, with the Spaniard making four changes…

Ederson unsurprisingly keeps his place in goal, whilst Kyle Walker will also more than likely return to the starting 11 after he also didn’t travel in midweek.

Despite an impressive display from John Stones, Aymeric Laporte will probably return at centre-back to continue his recent strong partnership with Ruben Dias.

Although it was a decent returning game from Benjamin Mendy after his latest injury, Joao Cancelo will probably switch back to left-back for the game against Burnley.

There’s one change in midfield as De Bruyne replaces Foden, as although the 20-year-old was extremely impressive against Olympiakos, the game against Burnley will be much more of a physical battle in midfield, so he may be the one axed in place of De Bruyne.

However, he could still make an impact from the bench, as he did earlier in the season against West Ham, which led to Joe Cole praising him following the game, with the pundit saying:

“You can see he’s got a hunger to score and it was an outstanding goal.

“He looked like the best player when he came on the pitch. You look at the amount of money spent on some of the players out there and that’s a young Englishman.

“He’s an outstanding talent and after today Pep (Guardiola) will look at him with a different light because he changed the game.” (per Daily Mail)

Meanwhile, Ferran Torres should return to the starting line-up on the right-hand side, in place of the out-of-form Bernardo Silva, whilst Raheem Sterling and Gabriel Jesus will more than likely complete the attack, although they will want to put their missed chances in midweek behind them.

Guardiola’s side are in desperate need of three points, as they currently sit 14th in the Premier League table, so nothing but maximum points from this game will be acceptable if they have title aspirations for this season.

And, in other news… Manchester City must complete signing of £63m-rated “complete” striker loved by Messi

Neil Lennon’s worries continue as Celtic’s run of inconsistent form is dragged out. They were made an example of on Thursday evening as Sparta Prague hit them for four goals in yet another Europa League defeat. The Hoops are now rooted to the bottom of their group table, having banked just one point in the campaign so far.

But the defeat to the Czechs has produced even more of a headache for the manager. High-flying attacker Mohamed Elyounoussi may have completely ruined his chance under Lennon after foolishly getting out his phone on the sidelines.

The Norwegian was substituted off just before the hour mark after struggling to make an impact on the game. He was then pictured on his phone, which has resulted in an awful lot of backlash already.

Love lost between Elyounoussi and Lennon

“He better not have been. That’s something I’ll deal with,” Lennon warned after being informed of the incident. The Hoops boos was rightfully unimpressed with the news and the likes of Chris Sutton have given Elyounoussi both barrels over his behaviour.

The ex-Celtic man slammed the striker for being “selfish” and “egotistical” and has questioned his commitment to the club (via Daily Record).

Indeed, such actions do not paint the player in a positive light. Elyounoussi, on loan from Southampton, has been seriously impressing with his recent form, but that could all be out the window over something ridiculous yet costly.

The 26-year-old, currently earning £60,000 per week, has been the forefront of a lot of praise recently. His goal against FK Riga was the difference between a draw and a win, which attracted a glowing review from Lennon.

“I can’t speak highly enough of him,” Lennon said. “He took the goal fantastically well and he’s a great example to the rest of the squad. His attitude is great.”

The comments could now stand to be void. Whilst Celtic do indeed need to score more goals, the disrespect shown by Elyounoussi could be enough to completely remove him from any remaining games this season. Such incidents are not taken lightly and to keep him in the starting lineup despite his actions would set entirely the wrong example to the rest of the squad and the young players coming up through the academy.

In other news, one man was the biggest Celtic disappointment against Sparta Prague…

David Gold, David Sullivan and Karren Brady’s slack efforts in the summer transfer market ensured West Ham United failed in their chase of new Tottenham Hotspur signing Joe Rodon.

What’s the word?

Spurs confirmed their capture of Rodon on Friday, having agreed to pay Swansea City a rumoured £15million to make the 22-year-old Jose Mourinho’s seventh signing of the summer.

Rodon, who joins the north London for an initial £11m with £4m in future add-ons and has signed a five-year contract, made 54 appearances for Swansea since emerging from their academy in 2018.

Jacks boss Steve Cooper had called on the centre-half to start all four of their Championship fixtures this term, in which the Liberty Stadium outfit kept three clean sheets to open the campaign unbeaten and two points behind early leaders Bristol City and Reading.

West Ham had considered approaching Swansea over the potential of signing Rodon this summer, with The Guardian’s Jacob Steinberg proposing in late September that the Wales international was being assessed along with Arsenal’s Calum Chambers and AS Monaco full-back Djibril Sidibe.

But a deal for Rodon was deemed too expensive, opening a clear path for Spurs to push on and finalise their £15m deal for a defender who started each of Wales’ October internationals for his fifth, sixth and seventh caps.

GSB’s slack efforts prove costly

While West Ham are said to have walked away from any deal to sign Rodon after deeming the £15m fee needed to be too expensive, the slack efforts of Gold, Sullivan and Brady to offload those deemed surplus to requirements must be held partly responsible for the 22-year-old joining Spurs.

From the end of the prolonged 2019/20 season, the Irons were touting the likes of Felipe Anderson on the transfer market in the hopes their departures would raise needed funds that could go towards improving David Moyes’ squad. But the Brazilian remained in east London right until the international market closed when he joined FC Porto on loan.

The departure of academy graduate Grady Diangana was also said to have been sanctioned so that the £18m raised could be put toward signing a new defender, and yet Rodon was deemed too expensive and it was not until the final week of the domestic window that Watford’s Craig Dawson was signed on loan.

Had GSB managed to offload more of the deadwood soon enough, then West Ham may have been able to persist with negotiations for Rodon and not see the 22-year-old join London rivals Tottenham in what he has since described as a dream move.

“It’s a massive honour,” Rodon said of his transfer, via quotes by the Daily Mail. “This is a massive club, and I can’t wait to get started.

“Coming from my boyhood club to this position is only something I could have dreamed of. It’s been a great week and to finish it off in this way is a dream come true.”

AND in other news, West Ham potentially saved £16m in being snubbed by a summer target.

West Ham United must make a late U-turn and submit a transfer offer for Blackburn Rovers forward Adam Armstrong, who Hammers chiefs reportedly admire.

What’s the word?

According to Irons insider ExWHUemployee, Armstrong is a player thought of highly by club chiefs at the London Stadium but an offer is not expected ahead of the EFL transfer window closing on Friday.

West Ham currently have a striker group consisting of Michail Antonio and Sebastien Haller, with boss David Moyes thus far favouring the former to start each Premier League game this term and the latter in the Carabao Cup.

Armstrong, nicknamed the ‘Angel of the North’, was Blackburn’s top-scorer last season with 17 goals across all competitions and has started the 2020/21 campaign strongly with six in six games.

The West Denton-born centre-forward opened his tally for the term with a strike against the recently-relegated AFC Bournemouth, before bagging a hat-trick at home to Wycombe Wanderers.

Armstrong joined Blackburn from Newcastle United’s academy side in 2018 for what Rovers boss Tony Mowbray described as a “bargain” £1.75million (Chronicle), and would set any interested party back an eight-figure fee after Premier League interest earlier in the year.

He left St. James’ Park having played just 565 minutes in the Toon first-team, but has impressed Magpies boss Steve Bruce with how he’s taken his game to another level since leaving Tyneside.

“He’s a great finisher the kid, great with both feet, he can finish,” Bruce said ahead of facing Blackburn in the Carabao Cup last month, via quotes by the Chronicle.

“We have the situation now where sometimes you have to leave the club to progress in your career. That happens up and down the country. What you want is to see people go and have a career and to be fair Adam Armstrong is one.”

GSB must pull a U-turn

With Moyes currently able to call on just two recognised senior strikers, David Gold, David Sullivan and Karren Brady would be wise to pull a late U-turn and approach Blackburn over talks to lure Armstrong to the London Stadium.

The 23-year-old has proven to be a machine in front of the net since his move to Blackburn Rovers, and currently boasts a goal every 72 minutes in the Championship this season after turning home five in four games. He also averages 4.3 shots and plays 0.8 key balls a match, while making one successful dribble, wins 2.5 ground duels and earns one foul, per SofaScore.

His average 35.5 touches per game are also spread out across the opponent’s half, showing how Armstrong could become a versatile member of the Irons offence if signed before the window closes on Friday.

If not, GSB risk Moyes persisting with a limited offence if Antonio or Haller are forced to sit out any fixtures, with Jarrod Bowen and Pablo Fornals the only others to have fired home in a Premier League game this term.

AND in other news, West Ham can sign a “gifted” long-term target before Friday’s deadline after a Premier League rival turned to alternative options.

West Ham United are yet to make any substantial moves during this summer’s transfer window but an audacious claim has been made on Sky Sports this week…

What’s the word?

Speaking on Sky Sports News (16/09, 17:30 pm), Kavel Solhekol claimed the Irons had been in discussions with Lyon over a potential deal involving their striker Moussa Dembele.

It would see both Issa Diop and Sebastien Haller move in the other direction, though no fees were mentioned in the process.

Back in January, the Daily Mail reported that David Moyes had sent scouts to watch the 24-year-old in action, so the interest has always been there from the Hammers’ point of view.

Manchester United have previously tried to bid £40m for the Frenchman too.

Major upgrade

With West Ham looking at centre-back targets, such as James Tarkowski and Rob Holding, they could perhaps afford to offload Issa Diop whilst the less said on Haller, the better as Moyes clearly doesn’t fancy him.

Dembele, who is valued at around £36m by Transfermarkt, is a prolific goalscorer who could thrive in the one-up-top system deployed at the London Stadium.

Just think of him as a better Michail Antonio.

Last season, he bagged 24 goals in all competitions whilst averaging 2.1 shots and 2.6 aerials won per game in Ligue 1, via WhoScored.

Dembele is quick, powerful and can find the back of the net with relative ease – everything that should be the case for their club-record £45m signing.

Former manager Brendan Rodgers is a massive fan, previously stating that he’s “everything with his power and pace” and that he can “create something out of nothing”.

Whilst Dean Saunders believes he’s a “wonderful talent” who has “clever movement”.

Moyes’ side only scored 49 goals in the top-flight last term, so adding a player who bagged nearly 50% all by himself would be one surefire way to improve their fortunes in front of the sticks.

AND in other news, West Ham could target £30m “monster” as a Declan Rice replacement…