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Journalist Beren Cross has slammed Leeds United winger Luis Sinisterra after failed to impress and looked "miles off it" in the club's most recent loss.

What's the latest on Luis Sinisterra and Leeds?

The Whites knew they had a big task on their hands as they travelled to the Emirates to take on league leaders Arsenal this Saturday in the Premier League.

And it all turned out to be too much for Javi Gracia and co as they slumped to a 4-1 away defeat with a brace from Gabriel Jesus and further efforts from Ben White and Granit Xhaka sealing their defeat.

There wasn't a whole lot to enjoy for Leeds fans but they did at least manage to score a consolation through Rasmus Kristensen but his deflected effort did little to change the final outcome of the match.

Evidently, it wasn't a fun afternoon for the relegation-threatened team and when writing the player ratings for LeedsLive, Cross noted that one player in particular struggled.

Indeed, the journalist gave Sinisterra a 3/10 for his efforts which was the lowest score from the entire Leeds United squad.

He also wrote: "Miles off it fitness-wise. Heavy legs made everything with and without the ball look a challenge. Feels like a long time since we saw those halcyon days of the autumn."

How poor was Luis Sinisterra vs Arsenal?

When you look at the match stats on SofaScore, it's quite easy to see that Sinisterra failed to do his job and have a positive attacking impact on the game

Indeed, he failed to get a single shot away at goal (either on or off target, or even blocked), while every other attacker who started managed this. What's more, he completed a dismal 8/16 attempted passes (at a dismal rate of 50%), and gave the ball away 13 times (the most of any outfield Leeds player).

The Colombian has struggled for fitness in 2023 so far, but his last Premier League goal for the club came way back in September and he has not provided an assist in his 14 appearances in the competition so far either.

Seeing as he's on a reported £65k-p/w, it's fair to say he needs to start earning his keep soon with some improved performances.

In fairness, this was Sinisterra's first start under new boss Gracia, so it may take some time to find his rhythm but in the midst of a relegation battle Leeds need big performances sooner rather than later.

Charles Watts has claimed that while it remains unclear as to how long Takehiro Tomiyasu will be out injured "it looks bad" as Arsenal do their final checks before an official announcement.

What's the latest on Takehiro Tomiyasu and Arsenal?

The right-back picked up a knock in the recent Europa League match against Sporting Lisbon and was spotted leaving the Emirates on crutches.

He then missed the following game against Crystal Palace in the Premier League, which Arsenal won 4-1. Up to this stage, though, it the club are yet to officially reveal the full prognosis.

But according to Watts, it doesn't look particularly promising. Indeed, while talking on his own YouTube channel, the journalist revealed his latest understanding of the situation.

He explained (09:13) "I'm afraid Tomiyasu, again, it's not looking good. We know that…

"There's not been a kind of official announcement yet. They're still going through the final sort of checks. But it looks bad.

"All the comments coming from Arsenal are suggesting it's bad, but they're waiting to get the final results for all the tests that he's gone through."

Will Tomiyasu play against this season for Arsenal after injury?

Speaking to the press (via Evening Standard) after the Palace win, manager Mikel Arteta certainly didn't seem to sound too positive about the situation as he too waited for the final outcome of the ongoing tests on the player.

He said: “We’ve had one assessment, they need to have another assessment tomorrow, but it’s not looking good, that’s for sure.

“Looking at Tomi, he’s not someone who exaggerates things. He was really concerned straight away, and we are concerned.”

Seeing as there are now just ten games left to play before Arsenal finish their season – having been knocked out of the Europa League during the game in which Tomiyasu picked up his injury – it feels unlikely that the right-back will be fit to play again this term.

Of course, the club might get lucky but even if he can come back after a few weeks or months, it may still take him a while to get back to full fitness, leaving his window to play an important role in the rest of the season even smaller.

Ben White has actually been the first-choice right-back in north London this season, starting all but two of the 28 league games so far. But with Tomiyasu out, it puts a lot of pressure on the Englishman to stay fit for the final run-in.

Glasgow Rangers manager Michael Beale is already beginning to make the tough calls that predecessor Giovanni van Bronckhorst failed to do so during his reign.

The Englishman has let James Sands return to his parent club New York City, cutting short an 18-month loan spell early and this ability to let players leave if they aren’t contributing or underperforming will be crucial in the long run.

Sands didn’t exactly set the fire alight at Ibrox during his 12 months at the club, failing to find his best position, although he was routinely used as a centre-back when perhaps utilising the American in a defensive midfield role could have been a better option.

His displays in the Champions League proved that he wasn’t quite up to the required standard for the club, averaging a Sofascore rating of 6.2/10, losing possession eight times on average per game, and winning just 41% of his ground duels, with his lack of physicality costing Rangers throughout the competition.

Beale may just be beginning the long overdue clear out and with Sands leaving a gap in the squad, youngster Leon Kind may find himself bumped back up a slot and this could be great news for the club going forward.

Could Leon King replace James Sands at Rangers?

King is no stranger to first-team action, having taken advantage of the defensive crisis at the beginning of the campaign to force his way into the starting XI on numerous occasions under Van Bronckhorst. The 19-year-old performed admirably across 11 Premiership appearances, averaging 50.5 touches and completing 88% of his attempted passes per match, suggesting his maturity on the ball and ability to constantly circulate the ball.

Utilising his physical presence, the 6 foot gem made 1.3 tackles per match while winning an impressive 56% of his total duels – 61% on the deck – and it’s no wonder he was dubbed a “Rolls-Royce” by former Ibrox defender Alan Hutton, who also claimed he was “very elegant on the ball” and his stats from earlier on this term certainly justify these comments.

King’s defensive strength, as shown by his success in physical battles, is far more impressive than what Sands showed during his time at Ibrox and the teenager could, therefore, be an upgrade on the American in that area of the game.

The centre-back made his debut under Steven Gerrard in 2020 before the Dutchman gave him a few more runouts toward the end of last season and there is little doubt his potential could lead him to be a future Rangers star.

With Sands gone and Filip Helander likely to leave come the end of the season, that leaves Beale with just Connor Goldson, Ben Davies, and John Souttar as his options at the heart of the defence.

Although yet to play under Beale due to the pairing of Goldson and Davies, the 42-year-old must finally unleash him and get the gem back up to speed ahead of 2023/2024.

Sands’ exit has provided the head coach with the perfect opportunity to hand King more first-team minutes and it is a chance that the youngster must take in the coming weeks and months…

Sunderland content creator Roker Report has poked fun at Newcastle United after a video of supporters waving flags in their Carabao Cup final defeat surfaced.

The Lowdown: Cup final heartbreak

It was heartbreak for Newcastle in the final in the end, as they lost 2-0 to Manchester United on Sunday evening.

In truth, Eddie Howe’s side did little to really test goalkeeper David de Gea despite recording more shots and possession than their opponents on the day, as they only recorded two shots on target compared to the Red Devils’ ten (SofaScore).

The Latest: Roker Report poke fun

Taking to Twitter in response to a video surfacing of Magpies supporters waving black and white flags at Wembley despite their team being 2-0 down in injury time, Roker Report could not help but poke fun at them, calling the waving of their white flags laughable and a ‘mark of surrender’:

“Keep laughing about this. Two nowt down, waving flags that were paid for by their Saudi overlords. The fact waving a white flag is a mark of surrender clearly lost on half of them. You just absolutely love to see it.”

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The Verdict: Just a bit of banter…

Roker Report’s cheeky jibe shows that the friendly banter between the North East rivals still exists despite the fact that they are in different leagues, and the Toon fans won’t dwell for too long when they look towards what is to come under their new owners.

The clubs have been on different trajectories in recent years, with Sunderland looking to bounce back to the Premier League and Newcastle dreaming of European football and domestic cup success.

Hopefully, the Black Cats will gain promotion back up to the top-flight this season, with them only five points off the play-off places in the Championship, to see the banter continue when they could come head-to-head in the Premier League next term.

Dan Cook has shared his concerns as Crystal Palace look set to be without Wilfried Zaha ahead of their derby clash at Selhurst Park this weekend.

The Lowdown: Crucial game on the weekend

After a horrid run of form that’s seen Crystal Palace win just once in their last 10 games across all competitions, one of the last teams they will have wanted to face is their in-form bitter rivals, Brighton & Hove Albion.

Palace will welcome the Seagulls to SE25 without their star talisman Zaha, who has been ruled out for several weeks due to a muscular injury that he picked up a few games ago against Newcastle United.

Some may have hoped that given the added importance of the game against Brighton, Zaha could have pushed his body to the limit and made himself available for the game this weekend.

The Latest: Zaha to miss the Brighton clash

Speaking on the HLTCO podcast, Cook believes that the standout ‘headline’ ahead of this weekend’s match is the absence of Zaha, which, although expected, is still a damning blow.

He said: “The main headline, of course, is that Wilfried Zaha won’t be available to us. He has been struggling with a thigh issue. I think he is due back towards the end of February.

“And even though he is an incredibly quick healer and has been throughout his career so far, it will be too early to expect Wilfried Zaha back in that first-team picture for the game against Brighton.

“That in itself is obviously a major blow given how much he cares about the rivalry and his own personal perspective when we do take on Brighton & Hove Albion given the history with the play-offs and everything else.”

The Verdict: Palace must learn to live without Zaha

Palace and Brighton couldn’t be experiencing more contrasting periods, as Palace could well be dragged into a relegation battle very soon and drop down into the Championship for the first time since 2013, while Brighton are on the cusp of qualifying for Europe.

However, when it’s a derby game, the form book tends to go out of the window, and given how raucous the Palace faithful can be at Selhurst Park, it won’t be a pleasant atmosphere for the visitors.

While Patrick Vieira would have loved to have Zaha fit and firing for this weekend, it has been reported that he likely won’t sign a new contract before the end of the season and therefore become a free agent, so Palace must get used to winning and playing without the Ivorian winger on Saturday afternoon is a great opportunity to show a positive glimpse of what life without him in the side will be like.

West Ham manager David Moyes has praised defender Nayef Aguerd for one key reason as he makes an intriguing transfer claim on the Morocco international.

The Lowdown: Aguerd absence…

The centre-back, signed from Rennes in a £30 million deal last summer, has been absent from West Ham’s season for the vast majority of 2021/2022.

In total, Aguerd has missed around 15 Premier League games through injury since putting pen to paper on a transfer to east London – much to the frustration of Moyes and supporters.

The African, however, is now becoming a West Ham mainstay – starting their last three league matches and putting in a brilliant FA Cup display against Derby County.

The Latest: Moyes praises Aguerd…

Speaking after the win over Derby, Moyes heaped praise on Aguerd and drew particular attention to his ‘stylish’ play, also revealing that the Irons had been chasing the player for ages.

The Scotsman explained (via The Evening Standard):

“We really wanted to buy him two years ago.

“He’s a really good player, really good on the ball, stylish. He’s got some really good attributes and I think he will big a plus to us.”

The Verdict: Right to be impressed…

The 26-year-old, despite suffering reoccurring injuries at the 2022 World Cup in Qatar also, managed to contribute to their semi-final run in parts.

As per WhoScored, Aguerd averaged their joint-second highest rate of clearances per 90 at the tournament whilst also making Morocco’s third-most blocks per match as well.

This was perhaps a glimpse into the player’s defensive qualities with Aguerd now seriously coming into his own at West Ham.

Moyes also had praise for the ex-Ligue 1 star after his performance against Everton in a crunch relegation encounter, branding Aguerd’s display as his ‘best’ for West Ham to date.

If the central defensive ace continues in this form injury free, Irons supporters could be about to see a key player emerge.

Leeds United look set to ‘complete a move’ for Hoffenheim forward Georginio Rutter, according to Transfermarkt reporter Stefan Bienkowski.

The Lowdown: Rutter linked with Leeds

The Whites appear to have turned their attention to the 20-year-old after completing the signing of Max Wober earlier this week.

Sky Sports reporter Florian Plettenberg shared news ofthe club’s interest in Rutter, with the French forward seemingly open to a move to Elland Road. It looks as if a potential transfer is gathering pace nicely, with a big-money deal now firmly on the cards.

The Latest: Move set to be completed

Bienkowski took to Twitter on Saturday afternoon to share what he’s heard about Rutter and Leeds, citing an update from colleague Daniel Busch.

The reporter said that ‘Rutter is set to complete a move to Leeds’, with a ‘deal worth between €30-€40m’, which amounts to somewhere in the region of £26.4m-£35.2m.

The Verdict: Record signing?

Brenden Aaronson is Leeds’ most expensive signing of all time, arriving last summer from Red Bull Salzburg for €32.84m (£29m), as per Transfermarkt.

Therefore, it appears as if there is a real possibility that an agreement for Rutter surpasses that figure, which would be a real statement of intent from Victor Orta and the Elland Road hierarchy.

Providing that a move goes through, you’d expect that Jesse Marsch will be looking at the 20-year-old to make an immediate impact, providing some much-needed centre-forward competition to Rodrigo, with Patrick Bamford’s injury troubles failing to show any signs of improvement.

Manchester United have not come to an agreement with Aston Villa over a potential deal for the England defender Harry Maguire.

What’s the latest?

There have been some reports to emerge over the weekend suggesting the 29-year-old centre-back was on the verge of leaving Old Trafford for Villa Park.

This comes amid the defender’s predicament under Erik ten Hag which has seen his game time dramatically decrease over recent months following the Dutchman’s arrival.

A lack of first-team action has seen Maguire urged by some pundits to get out of Manchester to reignite his career, with some suggesting Tottenham Hotspur as a potential suitor.

However, speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano has shut down any talk of Maguire being exit-bound at Old Trafford with his sources claiming a move to Villa is not currently on the cards:

“What I’m told in the last few minutes is that, at the moment, Manchester United have not agreed any deal with any club for Harry Maguire.

“Also on player’s side, they are denying any agreement. So let’s see how it will follow in the next days if something really happened, but at the moment, I don’t have any confirmation on this story. And also expectation is for Harry Maguire to stay and to be the captain of Manchester United.”

Here to stay

Perhaps the reports of Maguire’s potential move to Villa were ignited after a fan supposedly spotted (via Daily Mail) the central defender in a restaurant not too far away from Villa’s training complex.

Although Romano has suggested a move is not currently an option for Maguire, we feel this is something which the defender probably should be pushing for this month.

Before Ten hag’s arrival, the Englishman had been handed the captain’s armband at Old Trafford and was playing regular football for the Red Devils.

However, he now finds himself not starting and even struggling to earn some minutes in the third round of the FA Cup with just a seven-minute cameo against Everton on Friday night (via Transfermarkt).

And United are progressing well under Ten Hag. They find themselves in the next round of the FA Cup, fourth in the league and have a quarter-final tie to play in the Carabao Cup.

So with the established pairing of Lisandro Martinez and Raphael Varane, it is difficult to see where Maguire will be able to pick up an opportunity unless there is an injury to either of these players.

But, unless Ten Hag was to bring in another defender, it is difficult to imagine the Dutchman would be open to allowing Maguire to move this month and potentially leaving his side short of depth at the back.

Although Maguire has not played much football for United this season, three of his seven appearances in the league have come from the bench – including two of their last three league outings (via Transfermarkt).

And he did show he could be a useful player for Ten Hag during the Qatar World Cup with some impressive displays despite a rocky spell leading up to the tournament at Old Trafford.

Glasgow Rangers claimed their first win under new manager Michael Beale with a second-half performance which delighted the Ibrox crowd to seal a comeback 3-2 victory last Thursday on their return to Premiership action.

While the 42-year-old was a first-team coach under Steven Gerrard between 2018 and 2021, during which time he tasted victory on many occasions, this was his first competitive game as the Light Blues’ manager, and there is no doubt he will be wanting more.

The focus now turns towards tonight’s match against Aberdeen at Pittodrie, which will represent a different challenge, and Beale will be hoping that his team can carry the momentum from that excellent final 45 minutes against Hibernian into this game.

Alfredo Morelos was excellent against the Edinburgh club, scoring the winner while taking four shots in total, and he looked more comfortable in Beale’s new tactical system. Ryan Jack also impressed, receiving a Sofascore rating of 7.5/10 while chipping in with the second equaliser.

It wasn’t all positive though, with the centre-back pairing of John Lundstram and James Sands allowing Hibs to score twice and almost ruin the manager’s first match in charge.

The 22-year-old didn’t exactly click with the Englishman at the heart of defence, and with the American being moved between midfield and a defensive role under Giovanni van Bronckhorst, he hasn’t had time to properly settle into one position.

He wasn’t particularly bad against Hibs, although he lost possession ten times on the night. However, when the squad is back to full fitness, he will most likely return to the bench.

The American was miles out of his depth in the Champions League this autumn, receiving a Sofascore ranking of just 6.2/10 across his four matches in the group stage, losing possession eight times per match and winning just 41% of his ground duels.

Journalist Josh Bunting summed up Rangers’ lack of defensive options following a 4-0 thrashing away to Ajax in their first game of the group stage, saying: “The board have a lot to answer for, not just Giovanni van Bronckhorst. I don’t know how van Bronckhorst said he’s happy with the squad he has this time last year Scott Wright and James Sands couldn’t get near this team now they are regulars. Absolutely ridiculous.”

The quicker that Connor Goldson, Filip Helander and Ben Davies are back fit and firing, the better for Beake. Sands is a useful option to have, but when he isn’t settled in a particular position, it can have quite an impediment on the team.

His lack of chemistry with Lundstram nearly cost Rangers against Hibs last week, and if he starts again tonight, it might be the same old story.

West Ham are reportedly interested in signing Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo and his arrival could spell the end of cult hero Craig Dawson’s time at the London Stadium.

According to Claret and Hugh, the Hammers could look to acquire the centre-back after the World Cup break and could pay around £16m for the former Manchester City man, despite his contract at Craven Cottage being set to expire in June 2023.

Since joining the Cottagers from the Citizens in 2020, the 25-year-old has gone on to make 88 appearances in west London, contributing three goals and two assists.

He earned the move to Fulham after impressing with Championship side Blackburn Rovers on loan from Manchester City, with his centre-back partner Darragh Lenihan singing the defender’s praises in 2019.

He said: “He’s brilliant. His distribution is excellent, he’s quick, he’s big. I’ve said to him that he has all the attributes to play for Manchester City in my opinion.

“He’s here to learn, and help us out, but he’s a fantastic player.”

This season has seen him make ten appearances in the Premier League for Marco Silva’s side, in which he has averaged a solid, if unspectacular, 6.60 rating from WhoScored.

However, this still ranks him ahead of all of West Ham’s centre-back options bar Kurt Zouma, which emphasises what he could add to David Moyes’ side should he join in the January window.

Adarabioyo would join an already long list of centre-back options in Moyes’ side, especially with Angelo Ogbonna and Nayef Aguerd having returned from injury in recent weeks, which suggests that another defender could be moved on to accommodate the Fulham star.

That man seems very likely to be Dawson, given that he came extremely close to leaving the Hammers during the summer transfer window, as he seeks a move to a club closer to his home in the north of England.

The 32-year-old has become a fan favourite during his time with the Hammers, notably for his performances in the Europa League run last season, as he was named in the team of the tournament.

However, he has struggled after returning from injury this season, averaging a poor 6.47 rating for his displays in the Premier League, so perhaps it is time he was moved on and replaced by a better long-term option in Adarabioyo.