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The wait is finally over and later on this week, the Champions League will finally make its grand return. It has been a long five months without the most prestigious club competition on the planet but alas, we made it.

This Friday, Manchester City will welcome Real Madrid at the Etihad Stadium to open the proceedings and Juventus and Lyon will face each other at the same time over in Italy. The Citizens are still very much the favourite in this tie, having dispatched Los Blancos 2-1 at the Santiago Bernabeu in the first leg.

The day after, Frank Lampard’s Chelsea will have a mountain to climb in order to somehow overturn Bayern’s 3-0 victory and will have to do it on enemy territory. But when exactly is the Champions League final and where will it be held?

UEFA have now officially confirmed the final will be staged at the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica on 23 August, with all the games, from the round of 16 and all the way to the final, being played at 21:00 CET, which is 8 pm UK time.

Who are the favourites for the Champions League?

Initially, and especially after such a dominant domestic campaign, not many would be willing to bet against Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool. However, the Reds are already out after Atletico Madrid had shocked them both home and away to progress past the reigning champions.

Without Liverpool, the stage is now primed for Manchester City to take over. Guardiola has set his gaze on that trophy, the only crown to have eluded him for years across his managerial stints apart from the golden Barcelona team, and one the Citizens crave the most.

However, we shouldn’t look past Bayern Munich that easily since the Bavarians have been one of the most dominant forces throughout last season and have looked like one of the best teams on the planet for a while now.

But, there is an added caveat in there somewhere – their season had ended much sooner than their rivals’. Will match fitness have a big role to play in their chase of European glory?

Chelsea have made it their mission to bring in another high-profile striker in this transfer window. 

According to Football Insider, Frank Lampard wants to add another marquee singing to his roster and another talented centre-forward to compete for a place in the team.

The report claims that, with the backing of the Chelsea board and Roman Abramovich, Lampard really wants to kit out his squad ahead of next season. He has already secured the signings of Hakim Ziyech and Timo Werner, who cost a combined £90m.

ESPN reported that Chelsea have a further £120m to spend this summer, which will help the Blues to strengthen several areas of concern.

Lampard has identified his defence as the main priority, with hopes to replace goalkeeper Kepa Arrizabalaga, who hasn’t done enough to prove himself to the manager this season. It now seems that the Stamford Bridge legend is looking to ensure he has one of the best attacking units, if not the best, in the Premier League.

Chelsea have acknowledged that they need to bridge the gap on Liverpool and Manchester City. In order to do so, the Blues must field an attack that any opposing team will fear and it seems that this is exactly what Lampard is trying to do.

The report hasn’t mentioned a specific new target, but with big money potential transfer Kai Havertz also on the radar, it’s likely that the club want to spend big. However, this could be a problem for Werner, who may have joined Chelsea with the idea of becoming the main focus up front.

If Lampard brings in another high-calibre centre-forward, the German may have some serious competition on his hand, especially with the 42-year-old’s ruthless nature this season in his regular chopping and changing of the starting lineup. As such, Werner may be snubbed in favour of the potential new signing on more than one occasion.

Do you think Chelsea should sign another striker this summer? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below…

Tottenham Hotspur are set to beat Arsenal to sign Kim-min jae this summer.

Tottenham have been close to completing the signing of the Beijing Guoan defender for a number of months, but now negotiations have moved one step nearer.

According to KBS News, as per @TranSPURS, Kim is flying to north London to finalise the move.

The Mirror claimed earlier this year that Spurs were leading the race to sign the South Korean in the summer, as relayed by HITC.

Recent reports suggested both sides have agreed a fee of £15m is acceptable, and he now only has to complete a medical to seal the deal.

Kim, who is known as ‘Monster’, is an international teammate of Son Heung-min, who is the club’s second-highest goalscorer this season.

The Lilywhites have leaked goals for fun over the course of the campaign, conceding nearly 50 goals so far.

Jose Mourinho wants to fix his defensive problems as soon as possible, as Jan Vertonghen is seemingly destined for the exit, while questions remain over Juan Foyth’s future at the club.

The 23-year-old has already won 30 caps for his country, winning a gold medal at the 2018 Asian Games in the process, which earned him certain military privileges (via The Guardian).

Kim cuts quite the imposing figure at the back as he stands 1,9m tall, which explains why Mourinho wants to sign him in the summer.

The Portuguese tried to sign Harry Maguire during his time in charge of Manchester United, although he was unsuccessful in his attempt, and the South Korea shares similar physical attributes with the Englishman.

At £15m, Kim should be more than affordable for Spurs, as this will surely fall within Mourinho’s restricted budget.

Spurs attempted to pursue the centre-back several years ago but it now seems like they have finally got their wish.

Tottenham fans, should Daniel Levy sign Kim in the summer? Let us know down below!

Former Sheffield Wednesday man Jose Semedo has vowed to keep this huge promise to Owls fans…

The Portuguese midfielder and close friend of world icon Cristiano Ronaldo wants to ensure an old promise is kept to the Wednesday fans. Speaking to The Star, Semedo has revealed his plan to bring the Real Madrid legend to Hillsborough once the pair have both retired, which the 35-year-old hopes will be around the same time.

Ronaldo and Semedo enjoyed playing together during their early days with Sporting CP, before they went off in search of pastures new. As CR7 famously dominated the Premier League and La Liga and now features as the star of Juventus, Semedo made himself a Wednesday legend after devoting six years to the club.

In his interview with Joe Crann, the former Owls captain has said he wants Ronaldo to ‘see what I went through’ after both Portuguese players have hung up their boots.

“It’s for sure, one of the things is that when I retire from football I’ll have more time,” Semedo said. “I promised to the crowd that I would take Cristiano there, and I will pay my promise, 100%…

“When we’ve finished football, me and him will go to watch a game in Hillsborough together – for him to see what I went through.”

The 35-year-old, currently playing for Vitoria Setubal, has proudly said he wants Ronaldo to feel the atmosphere from ‘the amazing fans Sheffield Wednesday has’.

Do you think Jose will keep his promise and bring CR7 to Hillsborough one day? Join the conversation in the comments below!

With clubs like Manchester United, Chelsea and Arsenal all turning to former players to take the manager’s helm, one of the big positives of taking such an approach is the unity it can inspire in fans.

And it appears Newcastle’s prospective new owners want to tap into something similar. According to The Chronicle, the consortium buying the club are looking at bringing back some club legends in some capacity as part of their plan to inspire a revolution at St James’ Park.

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The Magpies have got a rich history of players and icons to tap into, most notably the likes of Alan Shearer. And after hearing about the club’s reported plans, Newcastle fans took to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the situation.

One Newcastle fan in particular spoke glowingly of how the club’s potential owners are already taking them in the “right direction”.

Understandably, most Newcastle supporters seem excited at the prospect of seeing some of the club’s favourites head back to St James’ Park in some fashion.

Getting them involved in and around the scene only serves to bring the entire club closer, and it does sound like the new owners are already beginning to get a feel for the Magpies.

Tottenham Hotspur announced on Tuesday evening that Mauricio Pochettino had been sacked as head coach of the London club.

In a statement, Spurs chairman Daniel Levy said that he was “extremely reluctant” to make the change.

However, Pochettino has now been relieved of his duties and the search for his successor didn’t take long at all, with Jose Mourinho being appointed less than 12 hours later.

Tottenham reached the 2019 Champions League final but there is no getting away from the fact that results have been poor this season.

Indeed, the capital side have only won three of their 12 Premier League matches to sit down in 14th position in the table.

The change has occurred ahead of Saturday’s derby with West Ham United, which has just become an even bigger match than it already was.

And the overriding feeling from the Spurs fans on social media is that their club have got this particular decision badly wrong.

A selection of the Twitter reaction is available to view below:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news…

In a rather surprising turn of events, Paris Saint-Germain have taken an interest in Liverpool’s Adam Lallana, as per a report coming exclusively from The Mirror.

What’s the word, then?

The same source explains how Paris Saint-Germain seem to think Edinson Cavani will be moving away from the French capital to join LA Galaxy in the near future and they will need a replacement for him.

The Uruguayan forward is out of contract next summer and with him leaving, there would be a big void up front that would definitely need covering sooner rather than later.

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Lallana, whose contract expires in the summer as well, is one of their options at the moment but the Englishman is also wanted by clubs from China and the MLS, The Mirror reveals.

And looking at the deal as a whole, Paris Saint-Germain should really stay away from the Liverpool outcast.

A drop in quality

Without exaggerating too much, Cavani truly is still one of the best strikers on the planet.

Even though the Uruguayan is on the wrong side of his 30s, his output is still fairly impressive.

This season, PSG’s prolific forward has bagged two goals in six Ligue 1 games – which is slightly less than his usual tally – but we shouldn’t forget we’re talking about a man who managed to score 195 goals and assist further 40 in 287 games for the French giants.

If we crunch the numbers ourselves, that amounts to about 0.67 goals per game.

When we compare Lallana’s output with that of the Uruguayan, the difference is staggering, to say the least.

22 goals in 164 games or 0.13 goals per game is miles behind what Cavani does.

Not to mention it would be replacing a 32-year-old player with a 31-year-old player, which makes little sense to begin with from a long-term point of view.

Lallana is struggling for game time at Liverpool – seeing how he has only tallied 304 minutes in eight games so far – as it is and getting someone else’s outcast for their main striker, who also represents a drop in quality as per the aforementioned stats, shouldn’t be top of PSG’s priority list.

Not to mention that the Englishman’s £7million-a-season salary would put him ahead of the likes of Marco Verratti and Julian Draxler, who earn €7,175,000 (£6.15m) according to Capology, and that’s without taking into account the possibility of a raise were he to join the French club.

When everything is said and done, this is one deal PSG should not be chasing.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Charlie Eccleshare, of The Athletic, has been speaking about the restraints Mauricio Pochettino has worked under due to Daniel Levy’s policies.

What did he say?

Spurs’ current position in the bottom half of the table means that the manager will naturally come under some pressure.

The club’s latest result, a 1-1 draw against Sheffield United, has definitely not helped his situation, though it is difficult to distinguish how much of the club’s current predicament is down to the manager.

When asked about the various issues facing Spurs and whether another manager who could succeed under Levy’s constraints as part of a Q&A, Eccleshare replied: “Pochettino saw this coming to be fair, and wanted to overhaul the squad. Your final question is for me the crux of it – if Levy carries on with his approach as it is, then you’re talking about a tiny group of managers who could do what Poch has.”

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Difficult circumstances

There has been frustration for Pochettino regarding transfers, to the extent that he has distanced himself from the club’s policy.

In July, the Argentinian was quoted by ESPN as saying: “I am not in charge and I know nothing about the situation of my players, I am only coaching them and trying to get the best from them. Sell, buy players, sign contract, not sign contract – I think it is not in my hands, it’s in the club’s hands and Daniel Levy.

“Maybe the club need to change my title and description. My job now is to coach the team. Of course I am the boss deciding the strategy to play, training, in my area, but in another area, I don’t know. Today, I feel like I am the coach.”

With the modern game now having roles such as the Director of Football, there are situations like this at many clubs, but there are arguably very few who have done so well with the restraints Pochettino has faced.

There won’t be many clubs fighting for a place in the Champions League without making a single signing, as Pochettino did last season – even the Chelsea side Frank Lampard took over with a transfer ban during the summer had Christian Pulisic coming in and secured Mateo Kovacic’s services permanently.

There are certain restrictions that are limiting what Pochettino is able to do at Spurs and Eccleshare is right in saying many managers would struggle to replicate what he has done. That may well factor into how long Pochettino lasts in the face of disappointing results.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Sheffield Wednesday boss Garry Monk has downplayed his team’s lack of goals during his time at the helm so far, which comes as a concern on their long-term ambitions.

What’s he said?

The 40-year-old has been in charge of the Owls since the start of September and has currently guided them to fifth in the Championship table after picking up 15 points from a possible 24.

In that spell, Wednesday have recorded just one defeat, meaning Monk is well on track to surpass his previous incumbents, most notably Carlos Carvalhal, who was the last man to guide the south Yorkshire club to the playoffs.

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If the current boss can keep this level of form going, then it could well correlate into their first post-season venture in over two years.

Although that will be hard to achieve if Monk’s attitude towards their struggles in front of goal is genuine – speaking to The Star, he said:

“We’re taking points and we’re doing well.

“You want to be clinical, but I can’t pin that on anyone. We’ve been unlucky I think.

“If we keep performing like that and pushing that standard as we have been doing then we will win games and dominate games.

“We’ve been taking points while we’ve been growing.”

Deflecting the pressure

The Owls manager could well be diverting some of the pressure off his misfiring team, which would be fair and easy to understand.

But his remarks are still somewhat concerning as come May, much of the Hillsborough faithful will not want to be rueing them missing out on an automatic promotion spot or even the playoffs by just a few points, which would have no doubt been helped if they scored more goals.

The 0-0 stalemate with Leeds United is a case in point.

If Wednesday were able to find a way through on Saturday, they would have gained two extra points, which would have them just one point behind league leaders West Brom, who they face in a couple of weeks.

Football FanCast have previously outlined the reliance Monk has on Steven Fletcher for goals, this is something that needs to change, and with January coming up, there are no excuses not to act.

The transfer saga to end all transfer sagas, Paul Pogba’s long-term future at Manchester United has been the subject of great debate. The France World Cup winner re-joined the club from Juventus back in 2016 for a then world-record fee of £89m, but since then, the jury has been out on his performances.

The maverick midfielder has flattered to deceive on occasion, often coming under criticism from sections of the United faithful for his displays. Things appeared to come to the boil at the end of last season when footage emerged of Pogba being involved in an altercation with a group of Red Devils supporters at Old Trafford.

And when the 26-year-old publicly admitted he would embrace a “new challenge” over the summer, speculation intensified over a potential return to Juventus, or a high-profile move to Real Madrid. Neither materialised before the end of the deadline however, but that didn’t stop the Frenchman from suggesting there is still a “question mark” over his future earlier this season.

The indoor football skills in the video below have to be seen to be believed…

Despite United continuing to struggle on the pitch – they have just nine points from their opening eight Premier League games – should the club finally cut their losses on their big-money star? Football FanCast writers have given their thoughts on the situation below…

Matt Dawson

“For the sake of probably everyone in football, including Paul Pogba, this is a saga that I would love to see end. It’s driven on for longer than I think anyone could imagine and one way or another, it has to come to a conclusion soon.

“Pogba is a wonderful player and his impact at the World Cup in 2018 shows that – he was influential in scoring in the final and was fouled a career-high 2.8 times per game. The fact he also scored 13 times in the Premier League last season shows how good he is.

“Those performances have rather gone under the radar, however, and perhaps that’s down to the managerial circus that’s ensued. Jose Mourinho’s defensive style didn’t particularly lend itself to the Frenchman while Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s record at a win percentage of just 47.5% won’t have helped either.

“This saga could boil down to whether Solskjaer leaves. If United replace him, a new manager could be game-changing. That’s especially if they get Max Allegri as has been touted. Under the Italian, Pogba scored 20 times and grabbed 26 assists in just 90 games. That record speaks for itself. There’s plenty of ifs and buts in this but for now, United shouldn’t cut their losses.

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“Given the right platform, he’s someone who could just turn their fortunes around. Whether it happens or not remains to be seen.“

Charles Jones

“Personally, I don’t think United should consider getting rid of Paul Pogba. Although the Frenchman hasn’t been at the races so far this season he’s one of their only players that you could genuinely describe as world-class, and you just can’t trust the board to reinvest any money they’d get for Pogba.
“This is the same team that paid £47m for Fred, and if they were to sell Pogba and make another blunder like that it’d be disastrous. Pogba is worth more to United than £100m is in Ed Woodward’s hands, so unless the Red Devils have a good replacement lined up then they shouldn’t consider cashing in.”

Billy Meyers

“I think it was a ridiculous decision not to let Paul Pogba go in the summer – the Frenchman couldn’t have made it more obvious that he wants to leave.  In fairness to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, one thing that he has been good at is shipping out the deadwood, and I think Pogba now falls under that category despite his obvious, world-class talent. 
“Jose Mourinho once described him as a ‘virus’ in the dressing room, and while I cannot second that in any concrete way, the former Juventus man is now akin to an infection at Old Trafford in the sense that he doesn’t want to be there. Holding a player against his will is never a smart idea, and the only thing United have achieved in keeping Pogba at the club is delaying the inevitable. The sooner they can sell this soap opera of a player, the better.”

Vijievan Jeevathayalan

“On his day, Paul Pogba has the ability to turn games on its head. Look no further than his starring second-half performance against Manchester City at the Etihad back in April 2018. The midfielder’s quick-fire brace set Manchester United on their way to a remarkable turnaround to clinch a stunning victory at the home of their ‘noisy neighbours’.
“But the fact that display came about 18 months ago and is still the reference point for the Frenchman’s most promising performance speaks volumes about just how little significant impact he has had on the Red Devils. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer is admirably trying to take United in a different direction, and has already shunted the likes of Romelu Lukaku and Alexis Sanchez out the exit door. The time is now right for him to do the same with Pogba too.”