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Tottenham Hotspur fans have performed something of a 180-degree turn and lavished praise on goalkeeper Hugo Lloris after a game-changing performance against Manchester City in the Champions League.

The France international – who Transfermarkt value at £27milion – made a vital penalty save in the opening 15 minutes of the encounter, denying Sergio Aguero from 12 yards.

The save came about after a highly controversial refereeing decision; Bjorn Kuipers pointed to the spot after the ball hit Danny Rose’s arm as he attempted to make a sliding block.

Spurs, of course, will take an advantage into the second leg at the Etihad Stadium after Son Heung-Min scored in the second-half.

And fans have been quick to talk up Lloris’ contribution after his third penalty save in a row, after also denying Leicester City’s Jamie Vardy and Arsenal’s Alexandre Lacazette.

Lloris, of course, has made a number of mistakes this season, most recently in the 2-1 loss to Liverpool, as he palmed a simple Mohamed Salah header against Toby Alderweireld to concede an own goal, and made two errors in the Champions League group stages as well.

He was sent off against PSV Eindhoven after a terrible challenge on Hirving Lozano and also rushed out of his goal to allow Philippe Coutinho to score for Barcelona at Wembley.

But fans appear to have changed their minds with the team seemingly in pole position to qualify for the semi-finals of the Champions League. Take a look at the best of the reaction below!

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According to O Jogo, Liverpool would be interested in signing Wolves midfielder Ruben Neves, who has shone in patches during the Molineux outfit’s return season in the Premier League.

But the Portugal international could set them back a staggering £110million according to reports from September and Liverpool already have a wealth of options in central midfield, few of whom – much like Neves – offer a consistent supply of creativity and goals.

So, should Liverpool swoop for Neves at the campaign’s end? Football FanCast’s writers give their verdicts below…

Billy Meyers

“I think Neves is just what Liverpool are missing in the midfield. Admittedly, they have a lot of options already, but the Portuguese midfielder is a general in the middle of the park and a man capable of dictating things from deep. He is also used to hitting long-range passes to speedy attackers at Wolves, so he wouldn’t need much time to adapt at Anfield as Mohamed Salah and Sadio Mane would make life easy for him.”

James Beavis

“Liverpool already have a plethora of midfielders who are decent defensively – Georginio Wijnaldum, James Milner, Jordan Henderson, Fabinho and Naby Keita – but don’t offer enough going forward, and Neves hardly breaks that mould. Yes, he is capable of getting up and down the pitch, dictating the play from deep and scoring the odd brilliant goal, but he hasn’t shown that he has that creative brain in the centre that the Reds are crying out for next season. In truth, he’s no better than Wijnaldum. Maybe in another year’s time a move could happen, but he isn’t ready yet.”

Ben Goodwin

“With Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain coming back, Jurgen Klopp now has two options in each of this 3 midfield positions. The “6” can be occupied by Henderson or Fabinho, both of whom can also fill the box-to-box role usually occupied by Wijnaldum or Milner, while Oxwlade-Chamberlain will return to compete with Keita for the most advanced midfield spot. There is simply no room for a big money signing who will expect to play week in week out.”

Jack Saville

“I can’t see why Klopp would be interested in a move for Neves. Liverpool’s squad is stacked with quality options in central midfield and Neves’ influence has diminished as the season has developed. The early season hype was thoroughly justified but he has been overshadowed by the brilliance of Joao Moutinho. That in itself is enough to suggest Neves could damage his career by trying to play his way into an incredibly competitive midfield unit – just look at Keita.”

Aston Villa are on the up, and they’ll need experience to continue their return to where they believe they belong. Indeed, John Terry had a massive impact when he signed and now Ashley Williams can do the same.

The Sun on Sunday (28/04; page 62), via HITC, reported the Villans want to bring the Everton centre-back to Villa Park in the summer. The 34-year-old is on loan at Stoke City this season and has played 33 times in the Championship.

Yes, we know what you’re thinking, but hear us out.

Right now, he’s surely got no chance of a new deal under Marco Silva at Goodison Park, so he’ll probably now have to look for a move in summer. The report states Huddersfield, New York City and DC United are also keen, but if he signs for Villa it’d be a masterstroke.

His experience at the back would give the Villa forwards more confidence to express themselves no matter what division they’re in. They’ve been exciting over the last few months, so imagine what they’d be like with Williams behind them.

Obviously, the years haven’t been overly kind to him or his reputation but few would have questioned his ability around 18 months ago. Behind a solid side and if used correctly, there’s no reason the Welshman can’t enjoy a swansong.

John Terry was a huge success when he came from Chelsea. Many thought it was a pointless signing, but his old-style leadership gave structure to an otherwise shoddy back line. Williams will be leaving on a free in summer so it’s fairly risk-free.

Villa could do with more experience at the back. Getting that for free would be a major coup for the Villans who will need a balance of veterans and youngsters to re-establish themselves in the top flight.

Villa fans, who do you think your club should sign at the back this summer? Join the discussion by commenting below…

The good, the bad and the Roque Junior.

Players often earn themselves big moves after performances in a major tournament, it has become the easiest way and most convenient method of scouting players every two years without needed to send staff off to the far corners of the world.

Roque Junior was one such character.

The Brazilian defender was a member of the World Cup winning Brazil squad in 2002, which is always a good sign, we suppose, and a Champions League winner with AC Milan. Also a good sign.

Understandably former Leeds boss Peter Reid wanted him some of that. How could he fail, after all? This lad was clearly a born winner. It was in his blood. He had to succeed. He had done it before; he was going to be the making of this side and drive them forwards to eternal glory.

We imagine these were the thoughts probably streaming through Reid’s head when he made the call to secure the Brazil international on a season-long spell in 2003. Or, alternatively, maybe those that circled his thoughts as he tried to sleep at night by the time it became increasingly obvious that he may as well have burned the money used in some sort of voodoo ritual.

When we talk about terrible records, they do not get much worse than Roque Junior’s. In his opening seven first-team appearances, he yielded a remarkable four cautions and one dismissal, conceded 24 goals and was on the end of six defeats. Impressive stuff, hey. Junior did manage to bag two goals against Manchester United, though – which is more than enough to book a player in the history books under normal circumstances.

But he was extraordinarily bad, so, unfortunately, this rule did not apply.

Roque Junior left Elland Road as one of the worst signings of the century.

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Crystal Palace host Manchester City this weekend in a clash that doesn’t look too promising for Roy Hodgson’s side – their visitors are strolling through games at the moment without getting out of second gear, while the Eagles’ woeful home record this campaign speaks for itself.

Despite the shocking result at the Etihad Stadium in December, this game looks more or less like a write-off for Palace, but it could give Hodgson the epiphany he needs to turn Palace’s Selhurst Park fortunes around.

On the chalkboard

Pep Guardiola’s side are masters of ball retention and pinning their opponents’ backs to the wall for the full 90 minutes and are confident enough to do it wherever they go, SE25 included.

Palace will likely be forced to sit back and soak up pressure, denying all the intricate runs and passes made by their opposition for much of the game, despite it being on their own ground.

It will most likely be damage limitation for the Eagles, who will look to keep the score down and get some joy on the counter – sound familiar? It’s what they’ve been doing on the road all season and it has yielded results.

Hodgson’s epiphany

No matter how much Hodgson tries to turn Palace into an attractive footballing side, the Eagles are a counter-attacking outfit – they were much better under Sam Allardyce and even Alan Pardew at times when they played direct.

There’s some exciting changes happening at Crystal Palace next summer. Find out what in the video below…

At home, Palace tend to be the aggressors and they always get caught out on the counter – the roles will be reversed on Sunday though, and the Eagles can turn it into an away game.

They have the pace – and Wilfried Zaha – to cause the Premier League champions all sorts of problems on the counter and, should they get anything close to their Boxing Day result, then Hodgson might finally realise where his side’s true quality lies.

The Croydon outfit desperately need to improve their home form if they are to avoid another relegation battle next year, and this could be the game after which the turnaround begins.

أجرى لاعب وسط الفريق الأول لكرة القدم بنادي برشلونة، ميراليم بيانيتش، حوارًا مع المركز الإعلامي في العملاق الكتالوني وتحدث من خلاله عن مركزه المفضل وطموحاته مع البلاوجرانا ومنتخب بلده البوسنة والهرسك.

وانتقل بيانيتش في الميركاتو الصيفي الماضي قادمًا من يوفنتوس بمبلغ مالي قيمته 61 مليون يورو، في صفقة تبادلية رحل فيها آرثر ميلو إلى بطل الدوري الإيطالي مقابل 71 مليون يورو.

اقرأ أيضًا.. سبورت: مطالب ألابا المادية تصعب انضمامه إلى برشلونة

بسؤال بيانيتش عن إذا ما كان يفضل تسجيل هدف مذهل أو صناعة 3 أهداف؟

أجاب: “ثلاث تمريرات حاسمة للأهداف”.

هل تفضل اللعب على اليسار كلاعب وسط أم في اليمين كلاعب جناح؟

أجاب: “مع اليسار في خط الوسط”.

ما هي طموحاتك، هل تفضل الفوز بدوري أبطال أوروبا مع برشلونة أم كأس العالم مع البوسنة؟

أجاب: “كلاهما، لا يمكنني الاختيار بينهما”.

There’s nothing better than beating one of your rivals to a signing. With that in mind, if Arsenal can bat off the competition to capture Hakim Ziyech it’d send a huge statement to the rest of the top six.

The 26-year-old right winger is another rising star Ajax have thrown into the limelight this season and the Mirror claimed in late April that the Gunners, Man City, Man United and Liverpool are all interested in signing him up. Indeed, Arsenal should put all their weight behind this guy and forget Dennis Praet.

Unai Emery’s side are also believed to be after Praet according to the Daily Star, but he’s miles behind Ziyech considering he’s still playing for Sampdoria rather than one of Europe’s top clubs. He may be younger, but Arsenal need success now.

Ziyech has shone in the Eredivisie this season, scoring 16 goals and making 15 assists. He’s even scored two and assisted three this Champions League campaign, so he can certainly perform in more competitive matches too. What’s there not to like about that?

He’d be a huge upgrade on their attacking players already, and that includes outgoing Aaron Ramsey. If they sign him he’ll make Arsenal’s attack unbearable to defend against because they’ve got such depth up there. It’ll have a phycological impact on their rivals too.

If Arsenal can beat their main rivals to his signature, it shows they’re ready to battle for the title with the likes of Liverpool and City. They have some way to go, but if they can pull this off, they can make it all the way.

Arsenal fans, what do you think it will take for Arsenal to challenge for the title next season? Join the discussion by commenting below…

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On Thursday, former Premier League ace Yossi Benayoun announced his retirement from professional football at the grand age of 38.

Benayoun turned out for the likes of Liverpool, Chelsea, Arsenal and West Ham United during his career, which finished with Beitar Jerusalem.

The 102-time Israel international scored trebles in each of the Premier League, Champions League and FA Cup during his time at Liverpool.

Benayoun made 134 appearances for the Reds, scoring 29 times in the process.

The attacker did not win any trophies during his time at Anfield, but was a part of the Chelsea side that won the Europa League in 2013.

There is absolutely no question that he was a success in the Premier League.

And a number of Liverpool fans have taken to social media to lavish praise on Benayoun, who has given no indication as to whether he will look to remain in the sport.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

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West Brom were able to cement their place in the play-offs with a 3-2 win over Hull on Good Friday. They didn’t do it in the most convincing of ways but it was yet another win for James Shan.

Kieran Gibbs and Dwight Gayle were among the stand out players but Baggies supporters had bones to pick with youngster Rekeem Harper.

The 19-year-old is out of contract at the end of the season and in February was apparently one step closer to signing a new deal according to the Express & Star.

However, as the season drags on it’s looking increasingly likely he may not be at the club next term.

As a result of that and his poor performance on Friday, one fan on Twitter claimed he didn’t care if he left. A further tweeter said he shouldn’t play again until he’s sorted his head out.

Meanwhile, other comments saw one supporter say that Harper didn’t look interested, suggesting Kyle Edwards had done more.

The 6 ft midfielder has featured in 13 Championship games this season and has claimed one assist. However, in matches against Bristol City and now against Hull, he’s looked disappointing.

Here’s what Albion fans have been saying about the player.

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Leeds United’s playoff bid was given a massive setback after Kemar Roofe was ruled out of the second leg against Derby County on Wednesday.

The striker scored the only goal in the first leg of the tie but will now be unable to play at Elland Road.

A huge miss

Leeds’ top scorer this season looked back to his best against the Rams on Saturday. His dynamic movement and goalscoring threat made him a handful for defenders, and he got what he deserved when he found the back of the net early in the second half.

The Englishman now has a record of four goals in three games against Frank Lampard’s side this season, and he seemed poised to add to that in the return fixture.

Bielsa’s system is perfectly set up for a player like Roofe, and he will be a huge miss in the second leg on Wednesday.

Tactical reshuffle

Patrick Bamford is more than likely going to be the player who replaces the 26-year-old in Leeds’ starting XI, but problems elsewhere may have also scuppered Bielsa’s plans.

Bamford may have returned regardless of the fitness of his strike partner, as injuries to Tyler Roberts and Adam Forshaw could’ve seen Roofe drop back into a number 10 position as he did earlier in the season, with Bamford starting up top.

As the debate over THAT Leeds goal rumbles on, Pl>ymaker FC’s newest squad member has his say in the video below…

That now, of course, cannot happen as the striker is set for a spell on the sidelines, so Bielsa may have to rejig his side to prepare for Derby.

Jamie Shackleton is one option in the middle, but the 19-year-old hasn’t seen many first-team minutes this season. another option would be to move Pablo Hernandez into the attacking midfield position and bring in Jack Clarke to play on the right wing.

Hernandez is more than capable of operating centrally, and it allows Shackleton to remain as Bielsa’s substitute option if he is needed.