Manchester United finally put their early season misery behind them last weekend as they ran out comfortable 2-0 winners at Burnley.

Things had been getting a bit pressured for manager Jose Mourinho and his squad as the Red Devils fell to losses against both Brighton and Spurs, and the win will have done the manager and the team the world of good.

However, there has to be an element inside the United manager which has some anger at the amount of summer transfers which were seemingly not completed at Old Trafford, and one man we at the Tavern think Mourinho will be annoyed about missing out on is Leicester City and England defender Harry Maguire.

The big defender had a superb World Cup and was clearly identified by Mourinho as a key target.

However, a move for Maguire failed to materialise, and with the defensive displays so far from United, the gaffer will no doubt be feeling somewhat aggrieved at missing out on his top target.

Maguire has gotten off to a superb start for the Foxes once again, bagging a late winner at Southampton two weeks back, while once again delivering consistent and steady performances at the heart of the defence.

For all the attacking talent at Old Trafford, they needed a dominant centre half. Maguire would have been that man, and as the season goes on, Mourinho will surely only live to regret not capturing the former Sheffield United man even more.

United fans, what do you think? Have you missed the boat with Maguire? Let us know in the comments!

Aston Villa once again fell to defeat this weekend as Sheffield Wednesday rolled into Villa Park to take all three points.

The pressure is continuing to build on manager Steve Bruce, and despite being rescued over the summer in terms of off the field problems and money to bring in new signings, it looks like being a bleak old season for Bruce and his squad.

One of the summer signings which caused quite the stir was the addition of Chelsea forward Tammy Abraham, a young striker who was well courted by a host of clubs throughout the summer.

However, it was Villa who got their man, and we here at the Tavern think that this season could really turn into make or break for the youngster.

Abraham has thus far in his career only showed consistent goalscoering form during one spell, that being his time with Bristol City two seasons ago when he smashed in 25 goals for the Robins and earnt himself a move to then Premier League Swansea the season after.

However, his form for the Swans was patchy to say the least, and despite getting off the mark already for the Villans, the pressure will be on the Chelsea man to find his form.

A poor season for Villa will see the doubters come out in force over his talent, while a good showing might well force him into the reckoning for Blues manager Maurizio Sarri.

Either way, this season is set to be a huge one for Abraham, as he looks to cement himself as one of the best up and coming talents in the country.

Villa fans, do you agree? Is Abraham going to produce the goods for you this term? Let us know your thoughts!

[ad_pod ]

Aston Villa fans have been debating some possible team changes ahead of the clash with Bristol City, and 52 per cent of fans want Tammy Abraham to lose his place.

Villa fell to their second defeat of the season against Sheffield Wednesday last weekend, but the performance was even more concerning than the result.

Steve Bruce’s side just had absolutely no fluidity in their attacks, and it didn’t help that the strikers couldn’t keep hold of the ball.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”301408″ player=”12034″ title=”Watch Fixture in Focus Chelsea v Liverpool”]

Both Jonathan Kodjia and Abraham were poor, and Abraham in particular just had one of those days.

The youngster only completed 55 per cent of his passes and touched the ball just 29 times in the entire match.

Both Yannick Bolasie and Anwar El Ghazi started the defeat to the Owls on the bench, and over half of fans want Bruce to change things up and axe Abraham for Friday’s clash against Bristol City.

You can find the full poll results down below…

[ad_pod ]

In early September, TEAMtalk reported that Middlesbrough were locked in a battle with Aston Villa over the signing of Bakary Sako.

The attacker became a free agent at the end of last season after being released by Crystal Palace, where he spent three years of his career.

However, it looks as though neither of those clubs will secure the 30-year-old’s signature.

The Express & Star reports that West Bromwich Albion are in talks with Sako’s representatives regarding a deal.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”300962″ player=”12034″ title=”Watch The FPL Show GW7 onestowatch”]

The former Wolverhampton Wanderers player is currently on trial with the Baggies, but a full-time arrangement is yet to be struck.

Despite this, it appears that Boro have missed out on the chance to sign a player that has a record of 24 goals in 78 Championship appearances.

At the moment Tony Pulis’s side are flying in second place, level on points with Leeds United after nine games, but will they wish they had Sako’s goals later in the campaign?

Let us know by voting below.

After only winning one of their previous five fixtures, Leeds boss Marcelo Bielsa will be relieved his club returned to winning ways against Hull on Tuesday night.Â

While it saw The Peacocks return to the top of the table -although that may only be for 24 hours-, the Argentinian clearly does not want to get too ahead of himself, and was rather critical of his side’s performance still.

Bielsa particularly highlighted how wasteful his team were, suggesting they made the ending much harder than it should have been.

Bielsa directed this criticism towards Tyler Roberts, who, despite scoring on the night, spurned a number of chances. He may have done this to quell the hysteria surrounding the 19-year-old, and also to show that he is not yet the finished article.

This will keep Roberts hungry to improve and, with Kemar Roofe nearing a return for the Yorkshire club, shows what he will need to work on to usurp Roofe as the number one striker at Elland Road.

Roberts has three goals in five games in the Championship so far this season, and has certainly played well recently, but these comments by Bielsa were wise in taking the player, and fans, down a peg or two.

[ad_pod ]

It was revealed on Thursday that Sunderland have come to amicable agreement over Didier Ndong’s departure that will see them rewarded financially, and they should consider revisiting signing a reported summer target in Peterborough United’s Marcus Maddison.

What’s the word, then?

Well, Black Cats boss Jack Ross was linked with a move for the highly-rated 25-year-old during the summer, but any move failed to materialise as the attack-minded midfielder ended up staying at London Road.

Meanwhile, the Wearside outfit decided to terminate Ndong’s contract last month after he failed to report for training having failed to secure a summer move away, and the club revealed in a statement that as of October 8 he is no longer an employee of them.

BBC Football add that Sunderland will be entitled to a compensation payment when the Gabon international signs for a new team, and that will be a huge boost for Ross ahead of the January transfer window given his hands were tied for FFP reasons previously.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”306536″ player=”12034″ title=”Watch The FFC Accy Show Whack your money on the EFL this weekend”]

Why should he move for Maddison again?

It is certainly a bit of a mystery that the 25-year-old is still plying his trade in League One given just how good he has been for Peterborough, but it may have something to do with the fee they could be demanding for his services.

He has scored 42 goals and provided a further 64 assists – including three this season – 186 appearances for the Posh in all competitions, as per Transfermarkt, and he would add some real quality to a frontline that is already impressing in England’s third tier.

It is the sort of addition that would delight someone prolific like Josh Maja, and it would be a statement of intent that would almost certainly fire Sunderland to a top-two finish this term.

The latest reports suggest Liverpool are considering activating the release clause of Hoffenheim star – Kerem Demirbay.

Liverpool could be in the market for a number ten in January with Jurgen Klopp’s midfield desperately lacking creativity in recent weeks. The Reds are yet to replace Philippe Coutinho, and a move for Lyon’s Nabil Fekir is showing no sign of revival. Reports suggest Klopp could turn to Demirbay as the ideal alternative for the Frenchman.

Klopp managed the Germany international during his time and is believed to be a massive fan of the playmaker. Demirbay is managed by the same agency as Sadio Mane and Naby Keita which could boost his chances of a move to Anfield. However, Liverpool should instead focus on luring Villarreal star, Pablo Fornals, to Merseyside.

Valued at £22.5m by Transfermarkt, the 22-year-old has become a key player for the Yellow Submarine after leaving Malaga back in 2015. Fornals enjoyed a sensational season last year, scoring four goals and notching 13 assists in all competitions. The youngster’s creativity is exactly what Liverpool need to get their forwards firing again.

Fornals has the quality to unlock a defence with his wonderful range of passing, averaging 1.5 key passes per game in La Liga this season. He is also extremely versatile and would have no trouble slotting into Klopp’s 4-3-3 system. The German’s gegenpressing philosophy should also not be a problem with Fornals averaging 1.6 tackles per game from attacking midfield this season (WhoScored).

Still young and developing, the Spaniard would only get better under Klopp’s tutelage.

Liverpool fans, thoughts?

West Brom have had a fantastic start to life back in the Championship this season, but they suffered a humiliating 4-1 defeat at home to Frank Lampard’s Derby on Wednesday evening.

After the game many Baggies fans were fuming with summer signing Kyle Bartley. The 27-year-old centre-back joined from fellow relegated side Swansea for just £4m and has made 15 appearances so far this season in Darren Moore’s back three.

At the Hawthorns on Wednesday, Derby took a two-goal lead after just 15 minutes through Jack Marriott and Tom Lawrence, before Harry Wilson and Scott Malone added to the Rams’ advantage in the second half as West Brom fell apart.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”310054″ player=”12034″ title=”Rafa’s Pub Facts Fake Madrid & Ross Barkley Emulates… David Ngog”]

Striker Jay Rodriguez netted a consolation late on for the home side but the Baggies have now lost two on the bounce in the league and sit in fourth place in the Championship. Among others, Bartley took a lot of criticism for his performance in the loss.

Check out some of the best tweets below.

According to the Birmingham Mail, Sheffield United are keen on signing Birmingham winger Jota amid the Blues’ Financial Fair Play issues. However, if any deal goes get off the ground for the 27-year-old, Leeds must be ready to hijack it to bring Jota to Elland Road.

What’s the story?

Jota, who is valued at £4.05m by Transfermarkt, joined Birmingham in the summer of 2017 from Brentford for a club-record fee of over £6m. Last season, the Spanish winger scored five times and provided five assists in the Championship as the Blues finished in 19th place.

Although these stats hardly set the league alight, during this campaign Jota has already recorded four assists and one goal in just 13 Championship appearances and the Birmingham Mail reports that he remains an integral part of Garry Monk’s plans.

[brid autoplay=”true” video=”310054″ player=”12034″ title=”Rafa’s Pub Facts Fake Madrid & Ross Barkley Emulates… David Ngog”]

Of course, the Blues will try desperately to keep one of their most creative players, but they may be forced to sell in January if more comes of the Financial Fair Play regulations that meant Monk was banned from signing players for the majority of the summer.

Leeds circling

With Sheffield United starting the season brilliantly it seems as though the top two spots could be fought out between the Blades, Middlesbrough, West Bromwich Albion and Leeds, but it is the Elland Road outfit who must challenge United if they do target a deal for Jota.

Marcelo Bielsa’s men started the season brilliantly but took a huge step backwards while Pablo Hernandez and Kemar Roofe specifically were out injured. Although both players are now back the Argentine boss still has an extremely small squad and any further injuries could see them miss out on promotion at the end of the campaign.

Jota then would be a fantastic option and could be deployed in any of the three attacking midfield positions behind a single striker. If Leeds are serious about a promotion push this year they will need to invest in January and Birmingham could well be needing the money.

So, Leeds fans, would you welcome a move for Jota or do his numbers from last season put you off? Let us know by voting in the poll below.

[ad_pod ]

Arsenal welcome unbeaten Liverpool to the Emirates Stadium on Saturday afternoon looking to stretch their unbeaten run to fourteen matches in all competitions. However, despite the home advantage, Unai Emery’s side face a tough task in getting a result against the Reds.

In order to come away with any points against Jurgen Klopp’s side, the Gunners must be solid defensively and can’t afford to make any errors. For that reason, the Spanish coach must make a big call and leave Shkodran Mustafi on the bench.

Despite having cost the Gunners more than £35 million to sign from Valencia in 2016, the 26-year-old German has failed to prove his quality in England and is a constant liability at the back. In Sokratis and Rob Holding, Emery has a far more reliable pair to call upon for this weekend’s match.

Many Arsenal fans agree that Mustafi must be dropped, with 65% of those we asked stating that they don’t want him in the starting XI to face Liverpool. See the full results below.