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[ad_pod ]This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…ÂBen White has very quickly become a fan favourite at Leeds, weaving his way into the hearts and minds of those at Elland Road.The defender was signed on loan from Brighton during the summer window as he became the sole replacement for the departing Pontus Jansson.Fears were initially shared over the defence by some supporters in pre-season but they have since put those worries to bed having conceded just three times in the Championship.However, one of the stars of their backline, White, could be set for a new role at some point this term.

On the chalkboard

Ahead of the game with Barnsley last weekend Marcelo Bielsa gave his thoughts on Kalvin Phillips and the role he plays as a holding midfielder.

Interestingly, however, he also stated White could play in a similar role.

This was an intriguing revelation from the Argentine who hasn’t been afraid to play some of his squad in unfamiliar roles.

Leif Davis has filled in at centre-half this campaign while Jack Harrison has even played up front next to Patrick Bamford.

It feels unlikely that the 21-year-old would be moved from a role where he won the PFA Fans’ Player of the Month in, but he certainly has the qualities to potentially shine if Bielsa does favour a degree of change.

White has starred in defence and has so far won 3.3 aerial duels per game in just seven outings.

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But what would make him a competent defensive midfielder is his range of passing and the way he can break up the play.

The young centre-back is confident on the ball and set Patrick Bamford free with a superb pass up the field against Nottingham Forest in one of his two chances he’s created this season.

He’s completed 87% of his passes and has also made a massive 3.9 interceptions per game.

That stat is one that betters Phillips who makes only 1.3 each match. One of White’s major strengths is reading the game, an attribute that would be incredibly suitable to playing in defensive midfield.

Following Bielsa’s comments, there are plenty of reasons to believe he could still thrive slightly higher up.

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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…

Speaking on BT Sport, Owen Hargreaves has tipped Mason Greenwood to finish as the Premier League’s top scorer one season.

What did he say?

The 17-year-old etched himself into Manchester United folklore by scoring his first competitive goal for the senior side in the Europa League clash against FC Astana on Thursday night.

After seeing Greenwood’s goal-scoring display, former Red Devils star Hargreaves delivered a stunning prediction as to what the teenager could hope to achieve in his career.

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He said (as quoted by The Daily Mirror): “Stay fit, stay healthy, and the sky is the absolute limit for him. He can be anything he wants, top scorer in the Premier League one day. I’m excited to see he’s able to decide a Europa League game at 17. For a young player to have that composure in the box, he’s going to be a top player.”

A touch of caution

Greenwood may be the name on everybody’s lips right now, but there is a striking similarity to the kind of start his teammate also enjoyed. Marcus Rashford also burst onto the scene on the European stage too, before having a break-through campaign under Louis van Gaal.

Since then however, the 21-year-old has seen his form called into question, and there is still a lingering debate about what his best position is. Greenwood’s own versatility – he can play off the right, the left, as a second striker and an out-and-out centre-forward – could prove to be to his detriment too.

It will therefore be up to Ole Gunnar Solskjaer to ensure the precocious teenager is managed carefully, both in terms of his playing time and tempering the understandable expectation and hype. If the United boss can do that, then the Red Devils academy product could eventually leapfrog the man whose path he is following.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

After Thursday night, it appears Wolves’ domestic woes have now crept into the Europa League and that’s something they don’t want happening at this early stage in the season.

Braga came to town and ran away with all three points as Nuno Santo’s men lost their Group K opener.

The Portuguese outfit were rewarded with a gift as Ryan Bennett misplaced a pass straight into the path of Wenderson Galeno, who handed it off to Ricardo Horta to fire home in the 71st minute.

It was only the visitor’s second shot on target in the entire match as Wolves succumbed to a third straight defeat in all competitions.

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On the Chalkboard

One player that has started all three of those matches is Leander Dendoncker, which isn’t a coincidence.

He was hauled off at half-time against Chelsea as he put in the worst performance of his season, recording a lowly rating of just 5.78.

And now he’s done himself no favours here as yet another disappointing showing has ensued.

The Belgian international registered a poor passing success rate of 68.2% whilst managing just one successful tackle – you’d expect more from a defensive midfielder.

Much of Wolves’ misery can be attributed to their midfield as it appears they are getting completely overrun, thus inviting the pressure on their own net.

They’ve conceded nine goals from their last three matches which is astounding considering Nuno sets his team up with three centre-backs, two wing-backs, and two defensive-minded midfielders.

Dendoncker should have been dropped for this match against Braga, but going forward now his place amongst the starting XI is surely hanging in the balance.

In their qualifying run, Romain Saiss played the full 90 minutes in their last four games which included a vital result against Torino, probably the best side they have faced this season considering they ply their trade in Serie A.

The Wolves boss is bringing it on himself in some ways, his stubbornness to change from his usual ways may ultimately cost them this season – Nuno only used a bare minimum of 19 players last season.

With so many games each week, he needs to rotate, and he certainly can’t afford to carry passengers whilst in a rut like this.

Dendoncker is proving to be exactly that in recent times – therefore, he must be dropped.

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This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

QPR boss Mark Warburton has found a way to help the previously faltering Yoann Barbet get through matches with his clever tactical tweak.

What’s the word?

In the first five league games of the season, the former Brentford boss adopted a 4-2-3-1 formation, which came with mixed results.

The R’s earned two wins, two losses and a draw while using the system, and summer signing Barbet, in particular, appeared to struggle in the system.

Signed from Brentford, the 26-year-old gave away two penalties at the start of the campaign. He said: “I gave away two penalties in the last five years, I think, and then I gave away two in four games against Huddersfield and Swansea. It’s obviously not what I wanted.”

What’s changed?

In the last three Championship outings, Warburton has used a 5-3-2 formation, a tweak which has merited three consecutive wins – the R’s have actually won their last four league games, but the first of those was with the 4-2-3-1.

In Barbet’s case, the mistakes have disappeared from his game almost entirely in the new formation.

It seems as though having Toni Leistner and Grant Hall alongside him, with Ryan Manning and Todd Kane in the wing-back positions, is helping Barbet get through matches in a more comfortable fashion.

He is no longer standing out like a sore thumb, nor is he letting the side down – Barbet’s mini-resurgence is a testament to Warburton’s coaching skills and his persistence with the Frenchman when he could simply have dropped him from his side and been done with it.

Barbet outperformed Hall in terms of WhoScored’s match ratings against both Sheffield Wednesday and Luton, while the Londoners have only conceded four goals in those three games – one of which was down to a horrible error by Joe Lumley against Luton.

Having previously looked very uncomfortable in the 4-2-3-1, Warburton has found a way to bring the best out of a previously underperforming ace.

For a footballer, being substituted onto the pitch but then being brought off must be your worst nightmare.

That became a reality for Tyler Roberts on Tuesday evening as he came on for Jamie Shackleton, only to be withdrawn in the second half for Luke Ayling as the game changed in nature.

Leeds went 1-0 up but were under the cosh in the second period, something that led to the young 20-year-old coming off.

It was arguably a strange decision considering he hadn’t long been on the pitch and it was a call that the Elland Road faithful were quick to debate.

One fan remarked on Twitter that it was an insult to the Welshman while a further supporter suggested he’d been humiliated.

Another individual said it was a decision that would come back to bite the side. Fortunately for him, that didn’t happen as they prevailed and held onto all three points.

Roberts was making his second appearance in the senior team since returning from an injury where he required fluid to be drained from his knee.

Here’s the best of the reaction from Twitter.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more… 

Out of sight, and possibly out of mind as well?

Having arrived on loan from Benfica in the summer, Alfa Semedo has made a bit of a rocky start to life in England, and it got even rockier a few weeks ago.

The midfielder currently finds himself injured having picked up a knock in the build-up to the Arsenal game and has not been seen since.

The question is though; will he be in contention once he finds his way back to fitness?

On the chalkboard

With Nottingham Forest alternating between a 4-3-3 formation and a 4-2-3-1 depending on how far up the pitch they want to play Joao Carvalho, the only way he is likely to be a long term success at the City Ground is as a partner for the likes of Samba Sow as the defensive midfielder in the 4-2-3-1.

He is unlikely to dislodge Sow from his place as the team’s primary defensive midfielder, as he has more or less cemented his place in front of that back four.

With an average of 4.2 tackles and 2.1 interceptions per game, the best of all the Forest squad, his place is secure.

A lot of that is going to depend on the form of Sow’s current partner Ben Watson.

The 34-year-old has been holding down the fort in his absence and has done an impressive job, so impressive that he finds himself nominated for the club’s Player of the Month award, and being second too. But will he be able to continue this form when we come back from the international break?

Having played the majority of his career as a defensive midfielder, it wouldn’t make sense for him to change and be pushed further up the field to partner someone like Joao Carvalho as his passing stats leave something to be desired.

Averaging 15.9 passes per game and a completion rate of just 66.1% he’s not exactly the kind of person you’d want creating plays.

If you look back in his past career, he was a much more effective at the role than he has been at Forest, completing north of 80% of his passes in rare appearances for Benfica and Espanyol.

His numbers have just seen a decrease since he’s moved to England, perhaps as a result of adjusting to new surroundings. So there is a good player in there, it just needs to be coaxed out of him.

After a summer in which Manchester United completed just three permanent signings in Daniel James, Aaron Wan-Bissaka and Harry Maguire, the Red Devils already appear to be paying for their lack of significant transfer activity.Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side currently find themselves in 12th place in the Premier League, having picked up just nine points from their opening eight games. Their poor start has already begun to ramp up the speculation on the United boss’ future, whilst several reports in recent weeks have claimed the club will look to be active over the upcoming transfer windows.Now, Spanish publication Sport, claim Barcelona are ready to let Ivan Rakitic leave the Catalan giants, and that United have contacted their European counterparts over a possible move for the midfielder.After hearing the transfer news surrounding the Croatia international, United fans flooded to Twitter to share their thoughts on the reported target.Watch Manchester United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Many supporters of the Manchester side slammed the links to the 31-year-old, and insisted he simply isn’t good enough anymore.

Some Red Devils supporters felt Rakitic is just looking for one last “pay day”, with one fan in particular describing a possible swoop as a “panic buy”.

Check out some of the reaction of United fans below:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Loan Watch series, which takes a closer look at those players who are aiming to galvanise their careers away from the spotlight of their parent club.

Conor Shaughnessy isn’t necessarily a Marcelo Bielsa player. As detailed previously, his inability to pass the ball to a teammate cleanly on a regular basis would hold him back under the Argentine.

On loan at Mansfield, the defensive-minded player has been making great strides and has been playing in both holding midfield and in the back four.His versatile nature is one aspect of his game that may have lent a helping hand this season if he stayed, but with Leeds now struggling in two significant areas, perhaps Bielsa actually made the wrong call in letting him depart.Shaughnessy’s passing leaves a lot to be desired but as far as depth and his aerial ability go, he could have been a big helping hand.Liam Cooper is currently out injured and with him gone, there is a lack of height in the Leeds backline.Cooper has won the highest number of aerial duels in the side so standing at 6 foot 3, Shaughnessy’s presence could have been put to good use as his replacement.It’s in terms of set-pieces where his qualities would have aided Leeds’ cause the most.John Dempster, the current manager at Mansfield, is the one overseeing his process and he’s been hugely impressed. He told Yorkshire Evening Post:”Conor is a good footballer and a calm, composed character.”He brings flexibility to the squad and is a good size, so handy at set-pieces both for and against.”If you consider Leeds are light in defence and struggle from set-plays, would he now not be an ideal candidate to step in for Cooper? Arguably so.In 2019/20, the Whites have conceded 43% of their goals from free-kicks and corners – a tally that stands at three from a total seven.Why are Leeds fans the best in the country? Find out in the video below…In the early stages of the campaign it’s caused them huge difficulties and that’s hardly surprising considering they lost Pontus Jansson.The 6 foot 6 defender has been a miss when it’s come to those types of scenarios and instead, Leeds have been left with 5 foot 10 Gaetano Berardi to fill in.Shaughnessy is less experienced but he’s played for the first team before and if he’s as good at defending set plays as Dempster suggests, there would have been a use for him at Elland Road this term.

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

Arsenal’s chances of signing Dani Ceballos permanently next year have been boosted by Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane and his current stance on the player, according to reports in Spain.

What’s the word?

Ceballos, 23, is currently on a season-long loan at Arsenal after falling out of favour with the Frenchman at the Galacticos.

After scoring just three goals in 23 league appearances last season, the arrivals of both Luka Jovic from Eintracht Frankfurt and Eden Hazard from Chelsea saw Ceballos fall further down the attacking pecking order at the Santiago Bernabeu.

El Pais (via Bleacher Report) have now revealed that the Madrid gaffer prefers Isco to Ceballos, saying Zidane has “no faith” in the the Gunners loanee.

It would be even more difficult for Ceballos to return to Madrid if the 13-time Champions League winners secure the likes of Spurs midfielder Christian Eriksen or Ajax middle man Donny van de Beek next summer, the report says.

Get it done

Ceballos is proving to be a clever piece of business by Arsenal and they simply must sign the Spaniard next summer after the revelations from the Spanish capital.

The Gunners midfielder can bring several elements to the squad that have been missing in recent weeks, the first being a strong mindset.

Emery praised the mentality of the 23-year-old before making his debut in the season opener against Newcastle, speaking of his eagerness to train through an injury, per the Daily Mail. This type of toughness has often been lacking in north London – just ask any of the pundits who have lambasted their ‘soft underbelly’ down the years.

Ceballos managed to accumulate a pass success rate of 92.6% and an average of 44.1 passes per game in La Liga last season. This illustrates his composure in the middle of the park, which is certainly a good asset to have in the often frantic Premier League.

Secondly, and most importantly, he can bring creativity to the midfield.

With two assists during the current campaign, it’s clear that the manager is working with Ceballos to be more of an attacking threat and express himself on the pitch.

The Spaniard has averaged 1.1 key passes and 1.4 successful dribbles in his first eight appearances, showing how much of a creative influence the 23-year-old could become.

With Ceballos working under the watchful eye of Emery during the current campaign, his attacking credentials can be a pivotal part in keeping the Gunners inside the Champions League places in the Premier League table, and they should absolutely snatch the chance to make his loan permanent if Zidane is not keen to use him at the Bernabeu.

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

According to The Daily Mail, West Ham United are interested in AC Milan’s Suso as Manuel Pellegrini looks to make further additions to his attacking options.

What’s the story?

The Hammers added Pablo Fornals over the summer but are apparently still keen on adding further creativity to the side, which is understandable given a return of just 11 goals in nine league games.

As a result, they have reportedly pinpointed Suso as a player who could solve their problems, and the fact he could be available after a disappointing start to the season may be what has sparked the interest.

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Suso has a foreign club release clause of £36m which may make such a move difficult, but the fact he is reportedly keen on a move means it is a deal which could happen.

Missing link

Although West Ham have a number of attacking midfielders in Manuel Lanzini, Felipe Anderson and Pablo Fornals, each has failed to support Sebastien Haller sufficiently this season.

They have just six assists between them and as a result the Hammers have often seemed to lack ideas in attack, struggling to break down organised sides like Crystal Palace and Aston Villa.

That is where Suso could be key.

He is a great crosser of the ball and his vision could be vital to Pellegrini, with 1.6 successful crosses and 2.8 key passes per game last term. He may have struggled this season with zero goals and one assist in eight games, with fan opinion seeming to turn against him, but he has proved previosuly that he has the quality to improve West Ham.

AC Milan fan reaction wanting him to leave is evidence of that:

In 2018/19 he scored seven goals and assisted 10, and judging by his start this season Anderson is unlikely to reach those figures. The Brazilian is beginning to disappoint fans and therefore a change could be needed – with Susi providing Pellegrini with an opportunity to breathe fresh life into the West Ham final third.

He is still only 25, too, and therefore a boost in confidence and a change in scenery could allow him to return to his best form, particularly as Pellegrini is a manager who bases his philosophy on players playing with belief and freedom.

Anderson’s form is a worry, with only 77% pass accuracy in the Premier League as well as a reduction in his average key passes, from 1.8 in 2018/19 to 1.5 this term.

That underlines the improvement Suso would likely bring to the squad, and in turn it could lead to West Ham, and Haller, scoring more.