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Few managers are remembered at the Hawthorns as fondly as Gary Megson, and fans have been discussing their former boss on the 20th anniversary of the day he took over.

He had a remarkably successful stint with the Baggies, twice getting them promoted to the Premier League in the early 2000s, becoming the first manager to take the club to the top division in 16 years.

It is little surprise that he is so highly-thought of, therefore. As one fan puts it, he never thought the club would reach the Premier League because of the position West Brom were in before the arrival Megson.

Supporters have been showing appreciation for the 60-year-old, who also took over temporary charge when the club was relegated in 2017/18 – drawing both of his matches in charge.

Some fans have specifically been focusing on the memories that mean most to them, and while promotion was a historic achievement it was arguably even more difficult to achieve the goal of survival.

The fact that the Midlands outfit have often been viewed as a yo-yo side in the years since supports that view, but Megson sustained their Premier League status for a time, and many have brought up that achievement as one of the best things he did.

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It would be fitting if Slaven Bilic could take over the mantle exactly 20 years later and sculpt his own legacy at the club, and he is currently on course to do exactly that with the Baggies sitting six points clear.

Premier League experts will get full marks: The ultimate quiz on top flight transfer flops…

Elsewhere, another manager has been in the news recently, due to the comments he made about West Brom following the weekend’s action…

Manchester United beat Derby County fairly comfortably in the FA Cup on Thursday, coming out of the game as 3-0 victors.

With the game being navigated without any real concern, plenty of the focus turned to United hero and current Derby player Wayne Rooney, as indicated by Jesse Lingard dedicating an Instagram post to him after the game.

The 34-year-old played a total of 559 times for the Red Devils, scoring 253 goals and assisting a further 146, which is enough for Lingard to have referred to him as a “legend” in his post.

Lingard will lay claim to the game’s opening goal, after Luke Shaw’s strike cannoned in off his back and over Rams goalkeeper Kelle Roos.

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Rooney, who was playing in the holding midfield role, completed five key passes, one dribble, two tackles, one interception, one clearance and maintained a pass success rate of 90% according to WhoScored, showing that he’s still got it.

Lingard’s original Instagram post can be seen below:

Meanwhile, Man United fans couldn’t help but laugh at him.

Earlier this week we wrote about how important it is for West Brom to sign a midfielder in the summer, and coincidentally, they’ve now been linked to a player who could potentially plug that problem position.

Indeed, the Baggies are after a 23-year-old who has been plying his trade in the Championship this term, but that doesn’t seem to be what they need at this moment in time.

What’s the story then?

The Daily Mail are reporting that plenty of top-end Championship and bottom-end Premier League clubs are interested in signing West Ham’s Josh Cullen.

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The 23-year-old is currently enjoying a rather successful loan spell at Charlton, and his performances have earned him interest from the likes of Bournemouth, Norwich, Leeds and West Brom.

As much as Albion are in need of more quality behind Romaine Sawyers and Jake Livermore, it’s hard to say that Cullen is the answer to their prayers.

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With promotion beckoning for the Midlands club, they need players to come in who can make an impact in the Premier League.

Unfortunately, Cullen isn’t that.

The West Ham loanee hasn’t been deemed good enough by the Hammers, being loaned out to Charlton this term, and that’s despite the London club being one of the poorest sides in the division, currently sitting 16th.

West Brom’s interest in the midfielder would have been justified if he was lighting up the Championship, but he’s only the 60th best player in the division according to WhoScored ratings, and that isn’t really anything special.

For context surrounding the squad, that puts him sixth out of Slaven Bilic’s current options. In terms of their midfielders, his pass accuracy of 83.2% is behind all of Sawyers, Gareth Barry and Chris Brunt.

If he’s available for a decent price, the Baggies could do worse than bringing him in, but they shouldn’t see him as the solution to their midfield problems. If he is signed in the summer they will still need to bolster that position with some stronger additions.

In other news, West Brom have received a big boost.

Marcelo Bielsa being a club’s manager is a massive blessing, but sometimes it has to be seen as a curse.

For all the Argentine’s brilliance, he certainly has a few flaws, and one of his biggest drawbacks is how he deals with new signings.

The 64-year-old’s ethos is quite clear, he wants his players to not only be clued up on the intricacies of his system, but he wants them to be up to his incredible fitness standards.

That’s all well and good for players who sign early, Ben White and Jack Harrison arrived at the beginning of July, and they slotted into the team straight away, starting every single league game since the start of the season.

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However, this becomes a bit of a problem when a player doesn’t have a full pre-season behind them, Eddie Nketiah got just two starts after arriving on deadline day, while Jean-Kevin Augustin has played just 49 minutes since joining the club on loan.

This policy has seen Nketiah get fed up with Leeds, revealing he wasn’t too happy with his lack of game time, and that same fate could be something Augustin faces in the near future.

It’s previously been reported that the Frenchman will join Leeds for €21m (£18.7m) upon their promotion to the Premier League, but Football Insider are now reporting a twist in the tale.

The site state that the player himself must sign off on the transfer, and after playing just 49 minutes in six weeks, there’s every possibility that he won’t want to stay beyond this initial deal.

Nketiah got fed up with it, so why wouldn’t a man who has previously scored goals at Champions League level?

To be honest, Augustin throwing the breaks on this move wouldn’t be the worst thing in the world. The Whites have managed to win each of their last five games without his presence, and if we’re being honest his form doesn’t suggest that he’s worth that fee anyway after netting just one goal in the whole of 2019.

In other news, Victor Orta may soon become better at his job.

In the summer of 2015, West Ham embarked on a busy spending spree which saw a whole host of new players arrive at Upton Park, including Nikica Jelavic, Victor Moses, Alex Song, Dimitri Payet and Manuel Lanzini.

The 12th of those new arrivals came on deadline day, when the Hammers wrapped up the £7m signing of Michail Antonio from Nottingham Forest.

The London-born forward had made his name in the lower leagues, scoring 17 goals in 84 games for Sheffield Wednesday before notching 19 in 54 outings for Nottingham Forest.

It was certainly a risk given that Antonio had never played in the Premier League before, although Slaven Bilic’s gamble well and truly paid off.

As we type, the 29-year-old has 30 goals for West Ham under his belt, as well as 21 assists in 145 appearances, which works out at a goal involvement every 2.8 games – a very decent record given his low transfer fee.

Additionally, Antonio has cost the Irons a total of £48.3k per appearance, and £137.25k per goal involvement, which is pretty good value for money in this day and age.

The former Tooting and Mitcham United forward also won the Hammer of the Year award in 2016/17, following a fine campaign in which he netted nine goals and grabbed six assists in the Premier League – he also scored the first ever goal at the London Stadium and the first ever strike by an opposition player at Tottenham’s new stadium.

For just £7m, Antonio was a fine capture by Bilic, and one who has gone on to be involved in some big moments for the club – it was his headed equaliser which allowed Winston Reid to win the last ever game at Upton Park.

Using the Bank of England’s inflation calculator, Antonio’s £7m fee would be worth £7,818,725.49 in today’s money, not taking Premier League TV money and other relevant influences into consideration.

Is life under Gold and Sullivan really that bad? Maybe this quiz will change your minds, West Ham fans…

It was truly a fantastic piece of business by Bilic and the Hammers, and the attacker is still doing the business to this day under David Moyes – he has two goals and two assists in the Premier League this season.

In other news, West Ham’s worst-ever signing looks more dreadful with each passing week…

Rangers are reportedly weighing up an offer for Nathaniel Clyne, who will be a free agent once this season concludes.

What’s the story?

According to Football Insider, the Gers have sounded out the possibility of signing Clyne this summer. The Liverpool right-back will not sign a new contract at Anfield, with his current deal set to expire at the end of the current campaign.

The report states that Steven Gerrard is personally eyeing the 28 year-old, who is likely to have to accept a big pay cut from his current £70,000-a-week deal.

Clyne has been pushed out of the Liverpool team due to injuries and the emergence of Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Stuck in isolation? Our mega footy quiz will cure any boredom…

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Catastrophe waiting to strike

Rangers certainly have some catching up to do if they are to compete with Celtic next season, having fallen off in decisive fashion after the winter break. That said, for all the stick he gets from fans for his lack of leadership, James Tavernier is certainly not the biggest weak spot in the team – he still has 15 assists even in a down year.

While the report suggests Clyne may be forced to take a pay cut, a Premier League player on £70,000-a-week is still likely to become one of the highest paid players at the club, and that is a monumental risk for a player whose injury record suggests he would not be a big upgrade on Tavernier and could be a total disaster.

Clyne has not played a single minute of action this season and only started one Premier League match for Liverpool last campaign, per Transfermarkt. He has suffered two extremely serious injuries in recent years, missing 44 games for a back issue and now 45 and counting due to a cruciate ligament rupture.

Even when he was fit, there were suggestions he was not up to scratch fitness wise, with Melissa Reddy claiming he could not meet Jurgen Klopp’s demands: “The people who worked with him day in and out at Liverpool knew his physical limitations as well as his tactical and technical limitations to play as a fullback the way Klopp now demands.”

Signing a player who has barely played football since Gerrard arrived at Ibrox would be a monumental risk, particularly when he is likely to demand a large signing bonus and wage packet considering his strong negotiating position as a free agent. With the Gerrard project perhaps entering a make or break year in 2020/21, Rangers would be absolute fools to risk what could be a catastrophic signing if his injury problems persist.

Rangers fans, check out a message from one of your former loan starlets here!

Liverpool have recently been linked with a move for Valencia prodigy Ferran Torres.

The 20-year-old, who is a winger by trade, has scored six goals and provided seven assists in all competitions this season – a run of form that has prompted interest from the Premier League leaders, per the Daily Mirror.

Hilariously obscure Premier League players – Can you name them all?

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The report claims that the Reds are monitoring his situation, but they are acutely aware of interest from Spanish giants Barcelona and Real Madrid.

Valued at £45m by Transfermarkt, the youngster is the third highest valued player on the planet of all the players born in the year 2000 according to the popular football website, with Jadon Sancho and Erling Haaland the only stars commanding a superior valuation.

And, with news of Liverpool’s interest in mind, supporters on Twitter have been endorsing a move for Valencia’s academy product.

Indeed, one fan suggested that the exciting prodigy is miles better than Harry Wilson, who is currently on loan at Bournemouth, and another claimed Jurgen Klopp is capable of prising the very best out of a potential future star.

Whether the Merseyside outfit will be able to beat Barcelona and Real Madrid to his signature, though, remains to be seen.

Here’s what the Liverpool fans have had to say about Torres…

Many Aston Villa fans were left stunned by James Chester’s incredible gesture to help the NHS during the ongoing global pandemic. 

Writing in The Athletic, the defender revealed he has placed his empty Birmingham flat “on a scheme for NHS staff called NHS Homes.”

Chester went on to add “if doctors or nurses in the area need a place to stay, it’s there.”

The centre-back was the January.

After joining Villa from West Bromwich Albion for £8.37m in the summer of 2016, Chester made 45 appearances for the club in his first season in Birmingham, averaging 1.6 tackles per game, making 1.6 interceptions, and completing a staggering 7.4 clearances on average in the Championship (WhoScored).

The Manchester United academy graduate has earned himself 35 caps for the Welsh national team, notably featuring six times for the side that famously stormed its way to the Euro 2016 semi-finals.

Understandably, Chester’s contribution has delighted lots of Villa supporters, with one fan calling his effort “top quality,” and another simply saying the Welshman is a “class act.”

Take a look at some of the best reactions online…

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Liverpool’s Harvey Elliott is already a record-breaker.

The 17-year-old became the youngest-ever player to play in the Premier League when he appeared for Fulham during the 2018/19 campaign, which then convinced the Reds to make a move for the teenager. As of yet, he is not a regular fixture in either Jurgen Klopp’s starting line-up or matchday squad, but he has featured in all but one of their cup matches this season.

Clearly, the Anfield outfit have already seen enough, and they are now ready to give him a new contract, as per Football Insider. However, despite his young age, they are said to be offering him £20,000 a week, which is only £8,000 less than 22-year-old England international and first team regular Joe Gomez.

Lots of the Liverpool supporters, it seems, are unhappy that he will reportedly be earning such a high fee at his tender age. They have taken to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

Let us know what you think!

Leicester City’s early-season struggles continued on the south coast as they fell to a 2-1 defeat at the hands of Brighton and Hove Albion.

The Foxes fell behind thanks to a controversial penalty dispatched by Neal Maupay before Danny Welbeck doubled the hosts’ lead with a glancing header.

Jamie Vardy’s third goal in five Premier League appearances brought Leicester back into the contest on the hour mark, but they couldn’t find an equaliser.

Both Ademola Lookman and Wilfried Ndidi had late efforts ruled out after Harvey Barnes strayed offside, condemning the Midlands outfit to their third defeat in just five top-flight fixtures.

And one player who struggled more than most at the Amex Stadium was James Maddison. As per SofaScore, the 24-year-old received a match rating of just 6.3 out of 10, the joint-lowest total amongst his teammates.

He was unable to provide the creative spark on the south coast as Leicester found chances hard to come by, and his underlying numbers are evidence of this.

Maddison failed to make any key passes, couldn’t create any big chances and recorded an awful passing accuracy of just 63%, highlighting his inability to carve open the opposition defence or simply find a teammate with any regularity when in possession.

His underwhelming performance against Brighton extended his run to 17 games without a goal or assist in all competitions, but it’s his overall displays that may be of more concern to Brendan Rodgers.

The one-cap England international was hauled off at half-time by his manager after only having 19 touches in the opening 45 minutes, failing to pick out a teammate with either of his two crosses, and winning just one of his four duels.

Rodgers and Maddison alike will be hoping the attacking midfielder can turn his form around in midweek when Leicester take on Championship outfit Millwall in midweek as the Carabao Cup returns.

And, in other news…Lost every single duel: Leicester lightweight badly let Rodgers down against Brighton