Southampton supporters knew they were welcoming a manager with a prestigious background when Ralph Hasenhuttl entered the club, and he has thoroughly justified the reputation which preceded him so far. 

Finally, at long last, it seems that the Saints have turned a corner. The meek, confidence-sapping and frankly tepid performances which have consistently plagued their development have rapidly become a thing of the past; Hasenhuttl’s impact is almost entirely responsible for the change in fortune.

Last time out against Everton, Southampton were everything the supporters could ask for: relentlessly hard-working, decisive, exciting in possession and, ultimately, the winning side.

Players have been galvanised and a long lost feel-good factor has returned to St Mary’s, but how did the club’s hierarchy suddenly make such a wise appointment after a series of short-sighted and misguided appointments?

Well, German football expert Raphael Honigstein has a theory on why German managers do so well in English football.

Before the vultures swoop in to gobble me up, I appreciate that Hasenhuttl is Austrian, but the fact his entire managerial career took place in Germany before he moved to Southampton makes the point applicable.

While speaking on BBC Radio 5 live on Monday, Honigstein delivered his verdict on Huddersfield’s decision to appoint Jan Siewert (via BBC).

“What German coaches on the whole bring is two things that are very appealing to Huddersfield and other English clubs.”

“They are very used to working in a structure where they are not going to come in and say ‘I need six or seven players, I need three transfer windows to make this my team’.

“They are used to coaching, they want to have an input when it comes to the squad but their main job is getting the most out of the players that they have.”

Tangible effects concerning Honigstein’s analysis have already manifested themselves on the south coast: Nathan Redmond is playing with the confidence his ability merits, James Ward-Prowse is playing far closer to his true potential and Jan Bednarek has emerged from obscurity to become a centre-piece of Southampton’s defensive unit.

Hasenhuttl’s incredible ability to implement his philosophy both rapidly and effectively, sparking an improvement in collective and individual performances, is exactly the reason why they brought him to the club mid-season.

He will presumably get an opportunity to submit a shortlist in the summer window consisting of players he would like to add to the squad, but the manner in which he has maximised Southampton’s current resources suggests his work on the training ground will effectively produce new signings in the shape of substantial individual improvements.

After a career working in Germany, which is lacking the financial investment of the Premier League, Hasenhuttl has mastered the skill of getting the most out of his crop of players, and Honigstein’s quotes suggest that Southampton may well have made their latest appointment with that knowledge firmly in mind.

Southampton fans – thoughts? Let us know below!

أعلن سيد عبدالحفيظ، مدير الكرة بالفريق الأول لكرة القدم بالنادي الأهلي، جاهزية لاعب جديد قبل مواجهة مصر للمقاصة في الدوري المصري الممتاز.

الأهلي يلاقي نظيره المقاصة يوم السبت المقبل في إطار منافسات الجولة الثامنة والعشرين من المسابقة الأكبر محليًا.

قال عبد الحفيظ في تصريحات للموقع الرسمي إن حسين الشحات لاعب الفريق أصبح جاهزًا للتواجد تحت تصرف الجهاز الفني بعد إنهاء برنامجه التأهيلي للتعافي من آثار جراحة الفتاق التي أجراها مؤخراً.

وأضاف أن اللاعب شارك في مران اليوم، الخميس، بشكل طبيعي في التدريبات الجماعية وبات جاهزا للمرحلة المقبلة.

ويدخل الأهلي معسكرا مغلقا غدا الجمعة استعدادا لمواجهة مصر المقاصة المقبلة.

جدير بالذكر أن الأهلي يتصدر جدول ترتيب الدوري المصري برصيد 72 نقطة.

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Pablo Hernandez has been struggling to discover his magic touch in recent weeks and it’s no coincidence that his dip in form has coincided with Leeds United’s biggest blip of the season.

What’s the word?

Things haven’t quite been clicking for Hernandez with the same fluidity that they were before the turn of the year. His confidence has taken a small hit as a consequence, but his performance against Swansea City will have given him a huge mental boost as the club move towards the business end of the season.

There were plenty of positive performances from the home side, with the likes of Pontus Jansson and Kalvin Phillips coming in for esteemed praise.

However, Phil Hay was also eager to laud Hernandez for his performance, with the Yorkshire Evening Post reporter awarding him an 8/10 in his player ratings column and hinting that he was close to returning to his brilliant best.

‘Orchestrated so much again, with lovely deliveries and clever passes. Tough to play against when he’s in this mood. 8/10’.

Hernandez’s return to form arrives at a perfect time

A return to top form for the Spaniard is always good news for everybody associated with the Whites, but it could be particularly vital when you place Leeds’ run of fixtures into context.

On paper, Leeds are strong favourites to win their next two games. First, they welcome a Bolton Wanderers side to Elland Road who have only won twice on the road all season, and then they travel to QPR to go head-to-head with a side who have been leaking goals of late.

Of course, there are no easy games in the Championship, but both of the two upcoming fixtures should offer Leeds’ attacking players the chance to strut their stuff and continue to build momentum ahead of the huge clashes which follow thereafter against fellow promotion contenders West Bromich Albion and Bristol City.

If the 33-year-old can continue to build on his glowing performance against Swansea with excellent displays against Bolton and QPR, Leeds’ chief playmaker should be full of confidence and ready to offer a decisive creative threat in the defining moments of the season.

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Nigel Clough has backed Luton Town to win promotion from League One this season, per the Derby Telegraph.

Luton are five points clear of Barnsley at the top of the table, and the Burton Albion boss believes they are perfectly positioned to make the jump to the Championship.

What’s the word?

Clough’s Burton are currently 11th in the third-tier standings and lost 2-0 to the Hatters in December.

The Brewers boss was quizzed on who he believes will be promoted this season and insists that the two teams currently at the top of the tree will head into the Championship ahead of the 2019-20 season.

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Sunderland are third, four points behind Barnsley, while Portsmouth are a point further back, though they have not won any of their last seven fixtures.

Clough said, per the Derby Telegraph: “I think Portsmouth have hit a little bit of a wall, just at the moment.

“It’s better to do it now. In the last 13 games they are more than capable.

“They got a break with a penalty being missed against them (on Tuesday night).

“Sunderland are more than capable of going on a charge and scoring goals, but I think the best two are probably at the top at the moment, everybody else is trying to catch them.”

Luton’s to lose

Luton have gone 19 games unbeaten in League One and have taken six wins from their last six outings.

Indeed, their last defeat came in October, as they fell 3-2 to Barnsley. In total, they have lost four games all season.

Clough, then, is correct in his assertion that the best team are currently top of the league, and it will take something truly special for them to be knocked out of the automatic promotion places between now and May.

Barnsley are on a 13-game unbeaten run and could well become champions if they take advantage of any Luton slip but Sunderland, who have lost just two games this season, have drawn 14 times – dropping a total of 28 points.

They have to ensure that that habit is cut out if they are to head back to the Championship automatically at the first time of asking.

And that looks a tough task, with Luton and Barnsley seemingly safely ensconced in their current positions.

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Bradford City announced on Friday that striker Alex Jones has joined Cambridge United on loan for the remainder of the 2018/19 campaign.

Jones joined Bradford from Birmingham City in 2017 and has scored 10 times in 30 appearances for his current club in all competitions (Transfermarkt).

The 24-year-old has actually only made two League One appearances this term though, with his last coming against Coventry City at the end of October.

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Injuries have harmed Jones since arriving at Bradford, but it still seems strange that the club are allowing him to leave considering their problems.

Indeed, Bradford are currently 23rd in League One and were thumped 4-0 by Southend United last weekend.

The Bradford fans have been on social media offering their views on the loan, which is Jones’ third following previous spells at Grimsby Town and Port Vale.

And it would be fair to say that there was a mixed reaction from the supporters overall.

Indeed, whilst some believe that it was the right time to allow Jones to leave, others are finding it difficult to understand why the decision has been made with Bradford facing the possibility of dropping into League Two for the 2019/20 campaign.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Tottenham fans will not look back on January too fondly, as it was a defining month in their season.

In the space of four days, Spurs crashed out of both the League Cup and the FA Cup, meaning they only now have the Premier League and Champions League as a slim hope of achieving silverware this season.

What is worse is that they lost ground in their title chase as they lost to Man United at home at Wembley.

It was also a defining January for Tottenham after the summer transfer window where they infamously did not sign a single player. Fans and pundits alike were speculating whether the same would happen again or Tottenham would open their wallets.

With that in mind, these are the two biggest mistakes Tottenham made this transfer window:

Selling Mousa Dembélé

No Tottenham fan would argue that Mousa Dembélé was in the form of his life when he sustained an ankle injury in November. The Belgian midfielder had just come from a taxing summer with Belgium in the World Cup and looked slightly off the pace. Nonetheless, most Tottenham fans would have believed that he would eventually get back to his best.

But the 31-year-old was sold in January to Chinese Super League outfit Guangzhou R&F, which would have baffled many fans.

Of course, the 80-cap Belgium star only had half a season left on his contract and would have therefore left for free in the summer, but given the service that he has given to Tottenham and the fact that he could still play a part in their season, selling him for free at the end of the season may have actually been a better alternative to making money from him in January.

Subsequent injuries to Moussa Sissoko and Eric Dier had left Tottenham’s midfield looking very sparse indeed, forcing them to rely on the relatively inexperienced Harry Winks and the 18-year-old Oliver Skipp. Dembélé’s absence was certainly highlighted  during January and perhaps as the season goes on.

Not selling the fringe

Of course it is easy to say that Tottenham failing to sign a player over January was a mistake of theirs, just as it may have been in the summer. With injuries in the squad and fatigue, Tottenham certainly could have done with an extra face.

However, it has long been said that Tottenham need to unload of some of their unwanted players before they can sign anyone new, and that may have been an even greater mistake over the last month.

When thinking of unwanted Tottenham players, Vincent Janssen is probably top of the list. Mauricio Pochettino has made it clear that the Dutchman is not part of his plans and he is unlikely to play this season, particularly now Spurs are out of the FA Cup. Therefore, their inability to sell him not only wastes his career but fails to open up spaces and funds for Tottenham to sign any new players, which could prove to be their greatest error.

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Crystal Palace fans have taken to Twitter to react in horror after James McArthur submitted a contender for ‘miss of the season’ in the 1-1 draw against West Ham at Selhurst Park.

The Scotsman found himself one-on-one with Lukasz Fabianski, who was on his knees leaving most of the goal gaping, and both Christian Benteke and Patrick van Aanholt to his right if he opted to square it.

However, the 31-year-old lifted his effort onto the left-hand post to send gasps reverberating around south London, and sighs of relief from the away end inside the stadium.

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The moment is definitely up there as a potential ‘miss of the season’ winner, and could have cost the Eagles the game but for Wilfried Zaha’s late equaliser.

However, if McArthur had found the net, all three points could have been Palace’s, and fans of the club on Twitter were shocked with the former Wigan man’s mistake…

According to The Mail Online, West Ham have contacted Chelsea about potentially signing Olivier Giroud. 

This comes in light of Marko Arnautović possibly facing another spell on the sidelines after injuring his foot against Wolves yesterday.

With his contract expiring at the end of the season, as well as the recent arrival of Gonzalo Higuain at Stamford Bridge, The Blues could surely be tempted into selling the World Cup winner. Additionally, at the age of 32, it is not as if the Frenchman has a long-term future in west London.

However, from West Ham’s perspective, there is not much point in signing a player like Giroud. The Hammers are not going to get relegated this season, likewise, they are unlikely to make the top six- they will finish somewhere in between. There’s no point buying a player of his age at this stage of the season, they would be better off looking to recruit a younger player that has a longer future. Of course, Giroud is good, but this would be a short-term option they don’t need.

Chelsea signed Giroud last season, but that was a club that were chasing a top four place and were struggling with their strikers. With West Ham out of the FA Cup and League Cup as well, there is little need for an emergency signing like Giroud.

Furthermore, the Frenchman is not necessarily a player that brings a team a lot of goals. He worked well for France because he had the likes of Antoine Griezmann and Kylian Mbappé around him to find the back of the net. Outside of Felipe Anderson, West Ham do not really have other goalscorers to depend upon. It’s time West Ham look to the future.

يلاقي الفريق الأول للكرة الطائرة رجال بالنادي الأهلي نظيره الزمالك، اليوم الإثنين، في بطولة كأس مصر.

ويواجه الأهلي، الزمالك في نصف نهائي كأس مصر، وذلك علي صالة الصيد 6 أكتوبر.

وكان الأهلي تأهل إلي نصف النهائي بالفوز على الشمس تلاثة أشواط دون رد، فيما صعد الزمالك بعد انتصاره على الداخلية ثلاثة أشواط مقابل شوط

المتأهل بين الأهلي والزمالك سيلاقي الفائز من مباراة الاتحاد السكندري والجيش، التي ستقام اليوم، في الساعة الرابعة.  موعد مباراة الأهلي والزمالك في نصف نهائي كأس مصر للكرة الطائرة

وتقام المباراة في تمام الساعة السادسة مساءً. القناة الناقلة لمباراة الأهلي والزمالك

من المقرر أن تنقل المباراة عبر قناة  نايل سبورت. يمكنك مطالعة مواعيد ونتائج جميع المباريات لحظة بلحظة على مركز المباريات من هنا 

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West Brom grabbed all three points with a dramatic late win against QPR on Tuesday night, and the performance of Jacob Murphy had a little bit of everything.

West Brom are now one point behind the automatic promotion chasers, although Leeds United have played one games less than the rest of the top four.

The Baggies made up their game in hand on Tuesday, travelling to Loftus Road to take on Steve McClaren’s QPR.

Jefferson Montero opened the scoring on his first start for the club, firing past Joe Lumley after just five minutes.

Luke Freeman levelled for the hosts, but a breakaway goal from Murphy put the Baggies back in front on the hour mark.

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The hosts then equalised again through a Tomer Hemed penalty, but Jake Livermore delivered the goods in stoppage time, burying Mason Holgate’s low cross to win the match 3-2.

While there were plenty of good performances – Ahmed Hegazi and Holgate were superb – Murphy’s all-action display is definitely the major talking point.

The 23 year-old was a key player in Newcastle’s promotion season, but has made almost no impact in the Premier League.

He joined the Baggies on loan in January, and this was definitely his best performance so far. The youngster took five shots, three of which were on target, and also completed two dribbles.

Murphy also showed the wasteful side of his game though, completing just 63 per cent of his passes and finding a Baggies shirt with just two of his 15 cross attempts.

The Newcastle loanee was also dispossessed twice and recorded two unsuccessful touches.

West Brom were clearly wise to sign Murphy last month, as the young attacker’s speed and energy is a huge threat in the Championship.

His lack of quality on the ball is what cost him a chance to succeed in the top flight though, and it showed itself again on Tuesday night.

All things considered, the Baggies should not attempt to sign the 23 year-old permanently if they get promoted, the old cliché of “finding his level” has never been so accurate.