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While pre-seasons shortened by the World Cup and last-minute transfers will leave many Premier League managers with some difficult selection decisions to make this weekend, Pep Guardiola’s biggest problem is more simply the sheer talent and depth at his disposal.

Indeed, City have put together a formidable squad over the last few years and they now boast an embarrassment of riches in pretty much all departments – including up front where Sergio Aguero is understudied by supremely talented youngster Gabriel Jesus.

With that in mind, we asked City fans earlier this week to vote for who should start up front in the biggest clash of the Premier League’s opening weekend – the reigning champions’ trip to the Emirates Stadium to take on Arsenal.

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While starting Aguero unsurprisingly proved the most popular option and the idea of both leading the line certainly captured the imagination of some, an incredibly small minority of just 4% would be prepared to start Jesus alone without the Argentine on the pitch or alongside the young forward.

Aged 21, Jesus is surely one of the most exciting prospects in Europe – but perhaps the Etihad faithful aren’t quite as convinced about the Brazilian’s ability as most would assume.

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According to a recent report from The Daily Telegraph, Danny Simpson could be set for a move away this summer. The 31-year-old currently plays his football at Premier League side Leicester City and has done so since 2014, in which time the right back played a key part in helping the Foxes pull off the impossible by winning the title in 2016.  

Yet it appears that the arrival of Roberto Pereira could push the £4.5 million-rated star (as per Transfermarkt) out of the King Power Stadium this summer, in news which should be of interest to West Brom manager Darren Moore as he seeks to bolster his right back department.

The Breakdown

Ultimately, reports recently have suggested that the Championship club are interested in bringing in a right back before the end of the loan window on August 31, what with current first-choice Allan Nyom making an unconvincing start to the new season.

In fact, the 30-year-old hasn’t always produced the goods for the Baggies since his move to the Hawthorns back in 2016 to suggest that there is something of a problem in that area of the pitch – an issue that would be resolved if Moore lures Simpson across the Midlands.

The Leicester defender came up through the ranks at Manchester United but managed just eight senior appearances for the Red Devils, yet that hasn’t stopped him from going on and having a great career in turning out for the likes of Newcastle United, Queens Park Rangers, and indeed Leicester.

In fact, the 31-year-old boasts over 200 Premier League appearances worth of experience which can only be of benefit to West Brom, let alone the fact that Simpson remains a hugely adept full back, both defensively but also getting forward and helping out in attack.

And it’s not as if the right back has never played in the Championship either having done so in helping Newcastle win promotion back in 2010, so not only would he bring genuine quality and experience to the Baggies squad, he’d also bring a know-how in getting the job done at second tier level.

Thus, while it won’t necessarily be a long term solution, given it’d only be a loan deal, Simpson’s arrival would go some way to solving the right back problem at the Hawthorns, which is why Moore must lure the defender across the Midlands from Leicester this month.

West Brom fans… what do you think? Let us know!

Tottenham Hotspur fans will be forgiven for forgetting that there is more to their attacking contingent that Harry Kane, after the England star became the leading light in North London.

Mauricio Pochettino does have other options to consider in his side, although many will be fearful of an injury to Kane as the Lilywhites currently lack depth with Vincent Janssen sidelined and Fernando Llorente out of the picture.

24-year-old Janssen has struggled for form since moving to the Premier League and faces a stern fight to force his way into the first-team fold on his return from injury, which is still some way off after the club confirmed that the Netherlands international has undergone minor foot surgery.

Scoring just two goals in 27 Premier League appearances for Spurs and spending last year on loan with Fenerbahce, Janssen has a long road ahead of him but many Tottenham fans have offered their support to the striker.

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We have rounded up some of the best reactions below, as some believe he could still be an asset in the future.

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Leeds United earned a respectable point against Swansea City in what looked like a clash between two sides that could be playing in the Premier League next season.

After a storming start to the season which saw the Yorkshire club go on a run of four wins, Leeds were stopped in their tracks by a very impressive Swansea side under Graham Potter.

Although Bielsa has tried to keep the same team throughout the early stages of his league campaign, the Argentinian manager was forced to make a change last night due to an injury to centreback, Liam Cooper.

Cooper was injured in the warm-up last night while fan favourite, Pontus Jansson was also ruled out of the game.

As a result of Cooper’s injury, Luke Ayling was drafted into the heart of defence with Jamie Shackleton brought in to play at right-back.

Under Bielsa’s intense and energetic style of play, it’s unlikely that he will be able to maintain an injury-free squad throughout the whole season.

Earlier in the month, Leeds approached Everton according to the Yorkshire Evening Post over the signing of young defender Matthew Pennington and it’s a move Bielsa needs to push through.

The Breakdown

The loan window for English Football League clubs is still open until the end of the month and Leeds could very much still be in the market for some additions.

Having spent last season on loan with Leeds, Matthew Pennington has valuable experience of how tough the league is and isn’t another youngster who may be overwhelmed by the tough 46-game season.

He may not be a top quality centre-back but Leeds need a backup defender to bolster the squad.

Leeds fans – thoughts?

Everton forward Richarlison has been handed a call-up to the Brazil squad for their upcoming friendlies against the United States and El Salvador.

The 21-year-old joined Everton from Watford in the summer transfer window, and has scored three times in his first three Premier League appearances for the Toffees.

That said, the attacker was sent off against Bournemouth at the weekend, and is now facing an enforced spell on the sidelines.

Richarlison has made 10 appearances for Brazil’s Under-20 outfit, but has never appeared for the senior team.

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An injury to Fluminense attacker Pedro has opened the door for Richarlison, and the 5ft 10in ace will now be looking to potentially cement a spot in the squad.

The Everton fans have been offering their views on the call-up on social media, with many taking the chance to congratulate Richarlison.

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the Everton supporters can be seen below:

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Newcastle United have only collected one point from their first four matches of the 2018-19 Premier League campaign, which is not exactly ideal.However, it must be pointed out that three of those matches have been against Tottenham Hotspur, Chelsea and Manchester City.Newcastle lost all three fixtures 2-1, and will be looking to record their first victory of the new Premier League season when they host Arsenal after the international break.Joselu is the club’s top scorer this season having netted twice in four matches, but he was dropped to the bench against City as summer arrival Salomon Rondon came into the XI.[brid autoplay=”true” video=”288872″ player=”12034″ title=”Rafas Pub Facts Murray The Magician & Desperately Seeking Zaha”]The 28-year-old only managed four Premier League goals last term, but is on course to better that tally this season.The centre-forward’s work-rate has also continually impressed the Newcastle fans, and it seems that he is very popular with the supporters despite a lack of goals since arriving in the summer of 2017.A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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Leeds United will attempt to continue their unbeaten start to the 2018-19 Championship season when they travel to Millwall on Saturday afternoon.Leeds currently sit top of the Championship having collected 14 points from their six matches under the leadership of new head coach Marcelo Bielsa.The Whites have beaten Stoke City, Derby County, Rotherham United and Norwich City, in addition to picking up draws against Swansea City and Middlesbrough.Bielsa’s team will be without the services of Patrick Bamford for the next four months, but Kemar Roofe has been in excellent form in the final third of the field.[brid autoplay=”true” video=”291495″ player=”12034″ title=”Rafa’s Pub Facts Giroud Emulates Zidane & Rashford Emulates… Welbeck!”]Leeds will visit a Millwall side who have lost each of their last three Championship matches, with the London side just struggling for a bit of form at the moment.It will be sell-out at the Den this weekend, and the Leeds fans have revealed their views ahead of what should be a very interesting game of football.A selection of the Twitter reaction from the Leeds supporters can be seen below:

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Rangers have been doing a decent job under the stewardship of manager Steven Gerrard this season, but they are yet to set the world alight with their performances.

The club have lost just once in all competitions since the season began and they currently sit seven points adrift of Scottish Premiership leaders Hearts after five games.

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In that time, the Gers have claimed just two wins, with two ending in draws and one – against Celtic – in defeat.

Gerrard has some attacking talent at his disposal, but perhaps a former Rangers player would boost that even further.

Steven Naismith, who left the Glasgow-based club in 2012 after a five-year spell in which he scored 33 goals, is in good form at Hearts.

The Scotland international joined the club on loan for the season from Norwich City, and so far he has racked up five goals.

We asked you if Rangers would benefit from having Naismith back in the team, and the majority believe so.

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It’s been an ok start to the season for Gunners as Arsenal had two very tough opening games before stringing three wins together to push them back up the table. 

It was always going to be a hard season for the Gunners considering the introduction of a new manager, a raft of structural changes, and five new players joining the club. As he’ll probably be more than aware of now, Emery has a very tough job on his hands but so far, the former PSG boss hasn’t done too badly.

Refreshingly for the fans, the four new players that have featured so far, have all played well. Despite not splashing too much cash, the Gunners strengthened in key areas, specifically the backline. One area Arsenal didn’t strengthen over the summer was on the wing and according to the Daily Mail, they are keen to sign Boca Juniors winger Cristian Pavon.

The Breakdown

The 22-year-old winger caught the eye last year as he scored six goals and created a further 13 for the Argentinian side. Such were his impressive performances that he was called up to the national squad for the World Cup and despite a fairly poor showing from the team, Pavon was one of the few players to actually play anywhere near to his level.

A quick and skilful player, Pavon would certainly add some dynamism to Arsenal but the reported £44 million release-clause, seems slightly steep. In an era where it looks like the Gunners will concentrate on scouting and finding reasonably prized gems under Sven Mislintat, splashing out £44 million on Pavon is a deal they should avoid.

What do you think Arsenal fans?  

Ahead of West Ham United’s Premier League clash with Everton on Sunday afternoon, former footballer and now pundit Stan Collymore had a go at Marko Arnautovic.

Indeed, in his column for The Mirror, Collymore claimed that West Ham should not be relying on Arnautovic as he is not going to help them in the tough times.

Of course, Arnautovic went on to star against Everton as he scored one and set up another to help the Hammers record a 3-1 win at Goodison Park.

It was not the best of timing from Collymore, and the West Ham fans cannot believe what the 47-year-old had written when it was pointed out.

Arnautovic is always going to have his critics, but there is no getting away from the fact that he has scored three Premier League goals for a struggling team this season.

In total, Arnautovic has 14 Premier League goals in 36 appearances since arriving at the London Stadium, which is a very impressive record all things considered.

A selection of the Twitter reaction from the West Ham fans can be seen below:

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