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In an exclusive interview with Football FanCast, Rob Lee, who made 280 Premier League appearances, claims that the West Ham board now have faith in David Moyes after his signings have propelled the Hammers into Champions League contention.

In the last 12 months, signings such as Tomas Soucek, Craig Dawson, Jesse Lingard and Jarrod Bowen have taken West Ham to the next level after fighting off relegation last season.

With numerous big-name signings falling to work out such as Sebastien Haller, Jack Wilshere and Felipe Anderson, Moyes went for under the radar signings which would provide competition for places and be hard working.

Speaking on how some of Moyes’ signings have done since they joined the club and what the board now think of their manager, after letting him go in 2018, Lee told FFC:

“Jesse Lingard has been a great signing by David Moyes as well as Jarrod Bowen who came from the Championship, and seeing what he’s done has been great. I still think he doesn’t get enough credit for what he’s done really.

“Bowen arrived from Hull and has continued to score goals. I think he’s done really well and David Moyes has proved he signs good players.

“I think the West Ham board have probably got a little bit of confidence in David Moyes now. They’ve allowed him to get the players he wants to sign for the club.”

West Ham let Moyes go at the end of the 2017/18 season despite him guiding the club to safety from a tough position in the table when he took over from Slaven Bilic.

After just 64 games in charge Manuel Pelligrini was sacked by West Ham, and the board decided to go against their previous judgement and hand Moyes another contract at the London Stadium.

Tottenham will be looking to continue their run in the Europa League with a positive result against Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday evening, although Jose Mourinho may have one eye on Sunday’s North London derby when he selects his team for the game at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Spurs progressed comfortably past Wolfsberger in the last round, whilst Dinamo Zagreb made it through to the Round of 16 after beating Russian side Krasnodar 4-2 on aggregate.

Whilst it won’t be an easy game for Spurs, the Portuguese manager should make the most of his squad depth and make plenty of changes for the visit of the Croatian side, with the likes of Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son perhaps deserving a rest.

Here’s how Football FanCast expects Mourinho to set his side up against Dinamo Zagreb on Thursday, with 10 changes from the side that started against Crystal Palace on Sunday…

Joe Hart is likely to continue his role as the usual starter in the Europa League, coming in for Hugo Lloris.

There are three changes in defence, as Serge Aurier comes in for Matt Doherty at right-back, and Ben Davies replaces Sergio Reguilon on the left.

Toby Alderweireld is rested, with Eric Dier partnering Davinson Sanchez at centre-back, with the Colombian the only man to keep his place.

Mourinho has already confirmed that Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg will be rested, and after sitting out against Palace, Tanguy Ndombele is likely to come back in, with Moussa Sissoko the man to partner him in midfield.

Dele Alli’s recent impressive form sees him come back in, whilst Erik Lamela and Steven Bergwijn start in place of Gareth Bale and Son, who reportedly earns £175k per week at Spurs, on the wings.

Finally, Carlos Vinicius will be looking to continue his decent record in the Europa League, with Kane rested, although it wouldn’t be a surprise to see the Englishman feature if Spurs are struggling to make the breakthrough on Thursday.

And, in other news… Mourinho masterclass: Jose has revitalised £110k-p/w gem at Spurs with one simple change

Many Liverpool fans are fuming after Jurgen Klopp revealed defender Ozan Kabak picked up an injury during his side’s 1-0 defeat to Chelsea on Thursday.

The German tactician revealed (via Anfield Watch) during his pre-match press conference that the 20-year-old is doubtful to feature in Sunday’s home game against Fulham.

Kabak will join the already overcrowded Anfield treatment room, with Virgil van Dijk, Joe Gomez, Jordan Henderson and Joel Matip out for a significant amount of time.

Klopp’s team has been seriously hampered by injuries, which has forced them to chop and change centre-backs, effectively halting their title charge this season and leaving them in a battle just to clinch top four.

Unsurprisingly, supporters were furious with the reveal from Klopp. One fan, bizarrely, broke into Bohemian Rhapsody. Somehow, the lyrics were appropriate to how the fans were feeling, as you can see below.

Kabak injury angers these fans

“Is this the real life? Is this just fantasy? Mammaaaaaaaaa WHYYYYYYYYY?”

Credit: @eriksgrafs

“This season is a joke”

Credit: @Fifi4Lfc

“Oh boy, here we go again”

Credit: @Ruddy_Strange

“This gonna be our 21st defensive duo this season? Fire the whole medical staff”

Credit: @paulo060802

“All the physio staff members should get sacked”

Credit: @sreqiri03

“Is this normal? The rate and amount of injuries we have? Is there something wrong with our fitness trainers or something ??!”

Credit: @blackpe96003219

In other news, Liverpool fans were not happy with Jurgen Klopp after what he said post-Chelsea.

Just when you think Sunderland are building ahead of steam, they are halted in their tracks.

The Mackems ended January with back to back League One victories but after yet another draw, they have now dropped out of the play-off places.

Drawing seems to be the order of the day for the Black Cats. Since dropping into England’s third tier, that result has occurred too regularly. They have dropped points in back to back matches now and despite having a new manager, the same old habits keep halting their progress.

Lee Johnson’s team are still yet to taste defeat on the road but after beating MK Dons 3-0 in the Papa John’s Trophy in midweek, you’d have been forgiven for thinking this would be another straightforward win.

However, it was anything but. Sunderland drew 2-2 with the Dons in a repeat of the fixture in the week. They were vibrant in attack last time out but on this occasion, they struggled to finish their chances.

Though, in forward areas, no player was arguably worse than Aiden O’Brien. It was Aiden McGeady who missed a late opportunity but at least he was actually getting in the right areas.

O’Brien struggled throughout the contest and despite a clever piece of play that produced an opening for McGeady in the first half, he was rarely involved.

The winger produced just 15 complete passes in the entire game, failing to put much pressure on the Dons defence. He attempted only one take-on and didn’t register a single key pass either.

Despite being on the pitch for just over 20 minutes and thus, having little time to make an impact, Jordan Jones was still more creative. He attempted the same number of dribbles as O’Brien and also provided a key pass.

With that in mind, it wouldn’t be a great surprise if he was in the XI from the off next time out. After all, the Rangers loanee started against Dons in midweek and caught the eye in their 3-0 win, completing a team-high four dribbles.

With Jack Diamond also starting among the subs, O’Brien has plenty of players trying to take his place in the team. If the latter keeps demonstrating the consistency he played with today, he will be out the side quickly.

O’Brien was a liability for the Mackems on Saturday, and Johnson should seriously consider dropping him.

AND in other news, 1 goal in 15 games: SAFC ace who left Parkinson fuming has been a passenger for months…

According to The Athletic’s Adam Leventhal, Sheffield Wednesday have approached Vladimir Ivic over the vacant managerial role at Hillsborough Stadium.

It’s claimed that representatives from the Owls made an enquiry to the unemployed 43-year-old boss at the end of December, around the time in which Tony Pulis was sacked after only 45 days at the helm.

The Serbian has been out of work since being fired himself at Championship rivals, Watford, though it is thought that he has remained in the UK, instead of returning to his home in Greece.

It is also thought that several teams have approached him across England and the Middle East, and Ivic is merely waiting for the right opportunity.

His short time at the Hornets should tell Wednesday owner Dejphon Chansiri all he needs to know about why this is a move that should be left at that approach.

Do not pursue him any more.

Ivic was described as “hard as nails, ruthless and a tough nut” upon his arrival at Vicarage Road in the summer, but that evidently didn’t correlate into results on the pitch.

He won nine of 20 matches, leaving them in fifth place but if the hierarchy at Watford didn’t think he was capable of leading them to glory with one of the most expensive squads in the division, then what’s to say he’d be fit for a relegation dogfight?

‘His overly defensive tactics have been unpopular with Watford fans, though, and the team’s style of play has not been easy on the eye,’ wrote the Guardian after his sacking.

Chansiri’s history with appointments should also provide clues into why Ivic should be avoided. Yes, there was a successful stint with Carlos Carvalhal, where the Owls finished in the playoffs in back-to-back campaigns, but his successor Jos Luhukay was some sort of antichrist to that.

Under the Dutchman, they finished in their lowest position in four seasons in 15th, and before the same could be repeated, he was sacked by Christmas.

What the Owls need is someone experienced not only this level, but in keeping teams up. 20 games at Watford isn’t going to be enough to convince you otherwise.

When there are candidates like Paul Cook out there, a man who would have achieved back-to-back survival bids at Wigan but for a points deduction, then names like Ivic shouldn’t be considered.

It’s heading down an all too familiar and dangerous path.

If Chansiri is to listen to his advisors on this one, then Wednesday are on the verge of disaster.

AND in other news, 31 y/o “midfield enforcer” could be a game-changer for Sheffield Wednesday

Mesut Ozil’s time at Arsenal is finally coming towards a conclusion.

It’s been a tumultuous season for the one-time £42.8m club-record signing and now his north London nightmare appears to be over as he edges towards a move to Turkish giants Fenerbahce.

The Athletic’s David Ornstein revealed on Saturday that the Gunners had an ‘agreement in principle’ to terminate the 32-year-old’s contract in order for him to complete a permanent move to the Yellow Canaries as a free-agent.

Despite not being registered in Mikel Arteta’s Premier League squad for the 2020/21 season, it still leaves Arsenal needing a replacement and there’s one name that technical director Edu Gaspar has to target, and no, it’s not Houssem Aouar.

That ship may well have sailed.

Instead, Norwich City’s Emi Buendia ought to be their top priority – according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, the Gunners have contacted the Argentinian’s agent over a potential deal, though the club are yet to submit an official bid.

The 24-year-old impressed again this weekend, playing an integral part to the Canaries seeing off Cardiff City in the Championship.

He managed to notch three key passes, completed 100% of his dribbles and even made four interceptions, via SofaScore. Indeed, this is the creative norm for the impressive playmaker as he’s averaging 3.3 key passes per game this term.

No other player in the English second-flight is managing close to that, in fact, it is a whole one extra key pass per game than Swansea’s Conor Roberts, who ranks second for chances created.

But this is something we already knew from Buendia’s time in the Premier League. Even despite Norwich’s relegation, the attacking maestro sat fourth behind Trent Alexander-Arnold, Kevin De Bruyne and Jack Grealish for chances created (83) during the 2019/20 campaign.

Ozil created only 52 chances for Arsenal too.

Buendia has been lauded as everything from a “revelation” by pundit Chris Sutton to a “game-changer” by current boss Daniel Farke, and you could argue that such a player is something Arteta is still lacking, despite forcing Ozil out the door.

Only Willian has created as many as five big chances in the Premier League this season, which tells a story in itself, whilst Emile Smith Rowe tops the charts with 1.5 key passes per game and that’s still less than half the number of Buendia.

Given his reported price tag of £25m, he could well be on Edu’s radar having been seemingly priced out of a €50m (£45m) move for Aouar in the summer.

But it’s time to move on from the Frenchman as Buendia could well prove to be better value for money. Ultimately, he can be the Gunners’ dream Ozil successor this transfer window.

AND in other news, Forget Balogun: Arsenal heading for unforgivable blunder with ANOTHER teen sensation…

Motherwell manager Stephen Robinson has slammed the recent form of on-loan Glasgow Rangers forward Jake Hastie.

Hastie disappointing

Hastie joined the Premiership side on loan from Ibrox during the summer, and has so far failed to score in eight games in all competitions.

Well boss Robinson has been far from happy with his displays so far, and hopes that he can turn things around after a bright cameo against St.Mirren. He said:

“Jak hasn’t done enough, there’s no disguising that. It’s taken us a long long time to get him to where we thought we could, through lack of confidence, lack of fitness.

“He’s been pushing himself over the last two or three months, he didn’t come to us in good condition and he knows that himself, that’s not saying it was anything to do with Rangers, he left them in good condition but he didn’t push himself and he has now.

“He deserves credit as he gave us the width we haven’t had. The other wide players we brought on haven’t done it.

“He gave us a little hope. We haven’t had a lot of options because of the form of certain players but hopefully this can spark Jake into this season.”

Not what Gerrard will want to hear

Steven Gerrard will not be wanting to hear this from Robinson. Hastie has made just two appearances for the Ibrox outfit since signing for the club in 2019, and at the age of 22, he will need to impress sooner rather than later if he wants a future with the 54-time Scottish champions.

This is surely amongst his last chances to perform. There is still plenty of the campaign left, and this display against St. Mirren at least gives cause for hope. Previously praised by Rotherham boss Paul Warne for his “unbelievable” crossing ability, it is up to Hastie to back it up on a regular basis.

In other news, this Gers man has been tipped for a January exit.

Aston Villa enjoyed another weekend off from Premier League action after their Friday night encounter with Newcastle United was postponed amid an outbreak in Steve Bruce’s Toon camp.

The pause in the campaign afforded Dean Smith the chance to rest some of his weary legs and set about putting together a game plan he hopes will see the Villans beat West Midlands rivals Wolverhampton Wanderers when his side next take to the field.

One name the Villa boss must ensure is on the coach to Molineux come Saturday is teen wonder Jacob Ramsey, with Smith rarely opting to unleash the young star who Academy Manager Sean Kimberley believes boasts “undoubted technical ability”.

Ramsey has not been seen on the field for a Premier League fixture in three months having played the sole 13 minutes of his 2020/21 campaign as a late substitute in Villa’s 3-0 win over Fulham on September 28.

Smith recalled the 19-year-old to the bench for last Monday’s defeat at West Ham United but opted against handing the attacking midfielder his latest senior outing, following a frequent role in the Villans’ EFL Cup efforts.

Ramsey started all three Carabao Cup ties as the Villa Park natives progressed through to the Fourth Round before losing at home to Championship side Stoke, yet offered glimpses of his potential with an assist away to Bristol City days before making his Premier League debut at Craven Cottage.

Ramsey’s progression through to the senior fold has seen him rarely turn out in the junior ranks, with just two appearances in the EFL Trophy and no outings in the Premier League 2 thus far this term.

Villa have high hopes for the England U20 international’s future in Birmingham and Smith has placed him firmly in the first-team fold to help realise that potential, with the Villans boss and his coaching team casting a careful eye over Ramsey in training.

But despite considering him to be a first-team figure now, Smith is yet to truly unleash Ramsey and must start doing so with Villa’s form nose diving from the early promise that took them to second place in the table with four wins from four.

The Villans have claimed just one win in the five league games that followed October’s narrow 1-0 win over Leicester and the 7-2 victory at home to Liverpool is now a memory looking all the more remarkable.

Smith has not been helped by his midfielders being unable to offer a consistent level of creativity, with John McGinn offering no key balls in defeat to Leeds, Bertrand Traore uncreative in defeat to Southampton and Trezeguet without a key pass in the victory over Arsenal as Ross Barkley penned six only to get injured during the defeat to Brighton.

McGinn again failed to provide a key ball in defeat at West Ham as Conor Hourihane similarly struggled before being replaced by Traore, who took just 18 touches but could only achieve one successful dribble as a point of merit.

The struggles of Smith’s more favoured options should ensure a place in his matchday squad is reserved for Ramsey come Saturday and allow the youngster of “undoubted” talent the chance to prove himself, even just from the bench.

AND in other news, Johan Lange and Aston Villa must bite the bullet on one-time £40k-p/w Dean Smith favourite.

Writing on Twitter, reliable Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold heaped praise on midfielder Tanguy Ndombele as the one ‘real ray of light’ after his first-half performance against West Brom at the Hawthorns.Â

Ndombele, who impressed during a somewhat lacklustre first 45 minutes, made two key passes over that time whilst standing out above the likes of Harry Kane, Son Heung-min and Gareth Bale – with that front trio tipped to take the game by storm.

Ndombele praise

However, during the first period, one man who really stood out for Gold was Ndombele – and the journalist called him a ‘real ray of light’ for his brilliant showing after he has seemingly been rejuvenated under Jose Mourinho.

Spurs went through a scare with the star man going down in a lot of pain at one stage, and was substituted soon after, with supporters potentially hoping it isn’t serious.

A report by Get French Football News earlier in the summer claimed both the Frenchman and Mourinho had a behind the scenes bust-up, with his future looking severely in doubt at one stage.

Transfer Tavern take

Signed for a club-record £53.8 million, a significant investment by chairman Daniel Levy, Spurs supporters could now be glad they’re currently seeing the very best of Ndombele after a brief spell of tension at the club.

Indeed, the ‘phenomenal’ 23-year-old has shone in a role more further forward recently in central attacking midfield, arguably a tactical masterclass by Mourinho which has allowed him to express his ability in a less shackled role.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Moussa Sissoko, the enforcers sitting just behind Ndombele, give license for the player to wreak havoc with his boundless energy and creativity.

After his first-half showing, as Gold says, it’s safe to assume Spurs won’t want to lose him.

In other news: Fans were in full reaction after Mourinho’s comments, find out more here.Â

One goal and one assist. Not bad for a night’s work for Nicolas Pepe. But whilst Arsenal’s record signing got himself on the score-sheet and contributed to another, Thursday night’s display against Molde in the Europa League was the perfect snapshot of his Gunners career thus far.

His debut season in English football was one filled with promise, with fans no doubt prepared to accept a difficult start to life in a new country and environment.

And when you think that he scored eight times and provided another ten assists last season, that’s not a bad return at all for someone trying to acclimatise to life in north London.

His start to this new campaign however, has been rather more frustrating. Mikel Arteta has played him in just 202 minutes of Premier League football, with his only start coming against Manchester City, whilst he didn’t even come off the bench against Manchester United last Sunday.

And on Thursday, the £36m-rated ace proved exactly why even though he may catch the headlines with his goal and assist, Arteta surely won’t be trusting him in the important Premier League games anytime soon.

As per Sofascore, he completed just 50% of his attempted dribbles, provided just one accurate cross and lost possession 15 times. What was most infuriating about his display however, was the sheer amount of times a lack of concentration and sheer carelessness saw him either lose the ball, or just mess up an easy pass or cross.

It was something Arteta himself picked up on after the game, saying: “Consistency. Throughout the game, throughout 90 minutes, every ball, in every action and every time he’s on the ball in the final third he (needs to) make a difference. And do it more and more and more.

“The final product has to be better, not just from him but if you want to become a top top team and score many more goals then it’s something we have to put higher demands on at the moment. Today he scored a really good goal and got an assist and he can do more. I think he’s on the right path.”

Unless he becomes more consistent even within a game, let alone over a period of a few matches, Arteta will simply rely on other players to do his work, as he did against Manchester United. It’s exactly why the Arsenal boss won’t be too carried away with the fact Pepe contributed to two goals on Thursday.