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Brentford once again fell short right at the end of the race and have ultimately missed out on their promotion chance for the Premier League. But that’s not the only thing they will have to yield this summer as Mirror claim Tottenham Hotspur are ready to invest around £16m for Said Benrahma in the ongoing transfer window.

Of course, the famous  ‘BMW’ trident consisting of Benrahma, Ollie Watkins and Bryan Mbeumo scored 58 for them throughout the campaign but now, as it seems, the Bees are finally ready to listen to offers and break up the band. Initially, as the same outlet informs, they wanted to get £25m for their forward with Arsenal and Chelsea also in the race.

But now that the Gunners are close to securing a deal for Willian and the Blues have already bought both Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech, it seems the interest has dropped ever so slightly. This, of course, opens the door for Spurs to swoop in and get Benrahma for a cut-price deal.

Daniel Levy is reportedly ready to sanction a £16m investment into a player that would essentially serve as a back-up for Harry Kane. Even though their offer is still £9m short of Brentford’s evaluation, it has been suggested they might be open for negotiations.

The situation would’ve largely been different had the Bees actually secured Premier League football for 2020/21 but now, they won’t exactly have as much power in this deal as they probably would’ve hoped for.

For Spurs, however, this is a perfect opportunity to strike with no rivals to fend off and the value for their target being just right.

Benrahma will help lighten Kane’s load

Benrahma seems like a versatile option that could indeed be good support for Jose Mourinho’s front line. He was predominantly played on the left side at Brentford but he does often cut inside and position himself more centrally in attack.

And we know that Kane’s fitness can’t always be counted on, with the Englishman missing 17 games due to an injury last season, and players like Vincent Janssen and Fernando Llorente not impressing with their attempts to emulate his contribution.

Of course, Benrahma, while a quality player, can’t exactly match Kane’s output but he can definitely ease the load and give Spurs some of that much-needed depth on the bench.

Key information about Meadow Lane

Meadow Lane was built in 1910 and is now the home of National League’s Notts County. The ground is located in Nottingham, England and is actually only 300 yards away from the City Ground, Nottingham Forest’s stadium.

Its current capacity soars up to 21,388 and the pitch measures 104m by 70m. The field is not surrounded by a running track but the surface is covered with natural grass, albeit they don’t have undersoil heating installed just yet.

The record attendance is 47,310 as people flocked in to watch Notts County yield a 1–0 victory to York City in the FA Cup Sixth Round on 12 March 1955.

A history of Meadow Lane

Before they finally moved to Meadow Lane in 1910, Notts County were actually playing their football across the River Trent at Trent Bridge as a tenant of Nottinghamshire County Cricket Club. Needless to say, this was far from an ideal situation since the pitch was mostly used for cricket rather than football and this forced the club to play their fixtures either far too late in the evening or far too early in the morning to avoid overlaps.

This was of course deemed unacceptable by the Football League and the club was asked to either relocate or negotiate more favourable terms with their ‘landlord’. Shortly after that, they leased some land on the other side of the river and constructed a stadium there and got it ready for the beginning of the 1910/11 season.

The first game played there took place on 3 September 1910 and the grand opening was celebrated with a 1-1 draw against old rivals Nottingham Forest, watched by 27,000 supporters. Even though they would still face some problems with the lease, they settled at Meadow Lane and started with the upgrades in the early 1920s. The first of those was the expansion with earth banks and a newly built main stand. This was followed by the addition of another stand in 1923 that saw the old Sneinton Side replaced with the County Road Stand.

Further renovations were necessary after World War II since Meadow Lane was badly damaged by the bombing and there were no fixtures played during the 1942 campaign. Interestingly, in times of need, the stadium would also host their rivals, Nottingham Forest, on two occasions when their own ground was unavailable first after the war and then once again in 1968.

In 1978, the club also demolished the Meadow Lane End and subsequently replaced it with a building which housed new dressing rooms, a social club and a variety of other facilities but around that time, their capacity dwindled to only 24,000 places, a far cry from their plateau that was reached in 1955 when 47,310 supporters watched Notts County face York City.

Meadow Lane was modernised in the 1990s, which was also a reaction to the Bradford City stadium fire and Hillsborough disaster with the Meadow Lane End, County Road Stand and Spion Kop all getting replaced in 1992 by the Family Stand, the Jimmy Sirrel Stand and the Spion Kop Stand respectively and the main stand by the Derek Pavis Stand two years after that.

In 2002, the stadium was briefly called Aaron Scargill Stadium due to sponsorship reasons but that couldn’t last and after the deal fell through, the ground’s name reverted back to Meadow Lane. Over the years and in modern times, there were several changes but none too drastic.

The Derek Pavis Stand now has a number of conference and function facilities to complement their Broken Wheelbarrow bar which is located behind the Family Stand. And the Family stand also got renamed to the Haydn Green Family Stand in 2007.

Tickets to watch Notts County at Meadow Lane

All the tickets to watch Notts County at Meadow Lane can be found on the club’s official website. The price range will vary depending on the seat you choose and the time of the purchase but you can find tickets for around £22-£24 for adults.

They also offer season tickets to their fans with the price for adults and seniors previously being £276 and £184 respectively. More information can be found on their website.

Related links

https://www.nottscountyfc.co.uk/ – Official website of Notts County

According to RMC Sport, Lille’s sporting director Luis Campos has made a formal request to leave his position, via @TranSPURS. 

The French outlet claims Campos has asked to be released from his contract after becoming unhappy that he has not been involved with key decisions, amid links to Tottenham Hotspur.

Football reporter Alasdair Gold noted the Portuguese is only employed as a consultant, rather than being tied down to a normal agreement, and the current deal is set to expire in three years time.

The 55-year-old is close with Jose Mourinho, as the two worked together during his compatriot’s stint in charge of Real Madrid, and has recently made it clear he wants to work with an experienced manager again.

Although nothing is guaranteed, The Guardian claimed Spurs were eyeing up Campos as the club’s new director of football back in December, and this latest update may provide Daniel Levy with the boost he needs to make a move.

Predictably, plenty of Spurs fans raved over the “amazing” news, with one supporter tweeting it is a “match made in heaven,” and another cheekily adding “Dybala here we come.”

Scroll through some of the glowing reactions down below…

Tottenham fans, do you think Daniel Levy should bring Luis Campos to North London before the start of next season? Let us know in the comments section!

Fans of Leeds United have been reacting to a post on Twitter, which highlights footage from Sky Sports News, in which Jim White reports that Leeds players, coaching staff and senior management have taken a wage deferral for the foreseeable future.

After a remarkable campaign so far, Leeds United currently top the Championship table, having amassed 71 points from 37 games.

However, due to unforeseen circumstances, all football in the country has come to an abrupt halt, leaving many clubs concerned about their future, having lost the usual income of match-day revenue.

While the Premier League is currently in discussions with its players regarding a pay decrease throughout the break from football, and so far, getting nowhere, Leeds United became one of the first English clubs to voluntarily differ their players, coaching staff and senior management’s wages, so that the club could continue to pay all non-playing or coaching staff throughout the break.

Leeds director of football Victor Orta stated on the matter: “My players have demonstrated an incredible sense of unity and togetherness. To Marcelo [Bielsa] and his staff and all of the players, we thank them for putting our wider team first and taking care of family.”

In reaction to the reports, which were relayed on Twitter here, fans have flocked to have their say on the matter, with many praising Bielsa and his players for their selflessness, while others have stated that this is the reason why they love Leeds United.

You can see more of their reactions below:

One fan even stated that they are surprised that they aired it on Sky Sports, which could relate to the fact that Leeds have had a previous incident with Sky Sports.

This week sees the launch of Football Beyond Walls, an initiative that pairs young people and professional footballers for a game of FIFA and a meaningful conversation about their lives in lockdown.

Ahead of the launch, Fulham’s Cyrus Christie spoke to Football FanCast about his involvement in the initiative and his thoughts on mental health and Fulham’s promotion chances.

It’s a very strange time for a lot of us right now, but there are still some things that remain the same, the joy of FIFA bringing people together.

Now the popular video game is being used as a tool to help people open up about their mental health and how they can deal with the stresses of the lockdown whilst at the same time coming together to talk about their problems whilst with the comfort of a controller in their hands.

Speaking to FFC, the Fulham defender talked about how the idea of using FIFA to inspire teenagers to open up about the subject came about.

“I spoke to Jasper [Jasper Kain, Director of Football Beyond Borders] and I was speaking to him about running a FIFA tournament that I was running, which is still ongoing now. I was speaking to him in the build up to it and I was saying that maybe we can partner with him and do it. And then he mentioned that they’ve also been speaking about a thing for FIFA and they said “Are you interested in playing FIFA against some of the kids and talking to them.”

In the film, Christie talks with his FIFA partners about how they are all coping with isolation during the lockdown and when speaking to Football FanCast he talked about how difficult a time like this is going to be for a lot of people given the circumstances.

“In general it is going to be tough for a lot of people. A lot of people obviously are going to be in certain different situations, maybe their home life might not be great. I think the cases of domestic abuse has gone up, and there are obviously people out there that are struggling on a day to day life of being locked in because they have got their freedom that potentially bravely keeps them sane.”

When asked whether or not he felt that there were enough safeguards in place to help people cope with their mental health, Christie felt that the way things were handled so haphazardly by those in charge, there wasn’t really a lot of time put aside to make sure that every single aspect of society was taken care of.

“I think on that kind of aspect, this obviously has not been thought about, but there’s not many measures are in place because we reacted so late to the virus that it kind of all come out at once, so people weren’t able to maybe plan and get themselves right for the potential of what’s happened. So, you know, it’s I think it’s like we said, it’s great that with the FIFA thing that their kids were able to talk and express themselves.”

The good thing about FIFA, and technology the way that it is today, is that it has allowed people to connect with others that they wouldn’t have had before, and Christie notes that for kids today, having this technology at their disposal has opened up great new possibilities that might not have come about if it were not for the lockdown.

“I think really, for a lot of people, especially when you look at the older people, their social life is people coming round to see them and them talking to people so I think you might find that a lot of these old people haven’t got maybe haven’t got the internet to talk to people. Whereas obviously, with a kid, it’s easy to communicate with others.

I think it’s been a blessing that it’s allowed other people to maybe give themselves a mental break and explore different avenues that they’re in, and work on themselves that they might not have had the time to do.”

The first footballer taking part in Football Beyond Walls is Fulham’s Cyrus Christie, who took on two teenagers at FIFA. You can see the results in this brilliant film – https://vimeo.com/415466197/45f135a012

At desperate times like these, Everton could really do with a pick-me-up. And in the form of Marcel Brands’ update on Richarlison, they have got exactly that.

The Brazil international has been a permanent fixture in the Toffees’ squad since his arrival from Watford, featuring 54 times across all competitions. There were even suggestions earlier this season that Manchester United have been watching him in view to him potentially being the solution to their lack of strikers.

But it now appears Richarlison’s long-term future is set to be at Goodison Park. Speaking to the club’s official website (as quoted by The Liverpool Echo), Brands said: “We have to look at the positives ahead and one of the positive thing this week is that we are now busy with the last details of extending a new contract with one of our key players, Richarlison, until 2024.”

After hearing the contract update on the forward, Everton fans flooded to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the situation.

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Many supporters of the Merseyside club insisted it is a great piece of news for the club moving forward, and that it is refreshing to hear something positive amidst the side’s struggles.

Check out some of the reaction of Everton fans below:

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Leeds United fans on Twitter have pulled no punches when discussing Kamil Miazek as the 23-year-old conceded seven goals as the Whites’ U23 side lost 7-1 to Derby County on Wednesday evening.

While we don’t like to see any footballer treated harshly on social media, we can kind of understand why the goalkeeper has been the subject of criticism.

Watch Leeds United Videos With StreamFootball.tv Below

Conceding seven goals in a single game is pretty much inexcusable, and fans have made it clear that they’re far from happy with his performance against the Rams.

If we were going to cut Miazek some slack we’d say that the East Midlands outfit fielded a few players who had first-team experience such as Mason Bennett while Kieran Dowell came on as a late substitute.

The goalkeeper probably won’t want to read any of these comments, but here’s what the Elland Road faithful have been saying on social media after their drubbing…

Leeds take on Luton on Saturday but it is a fixture which may come a little too soon for two key players, although Stuart Dallas is available.

Eddie Nketiah has been missing in recent weeks, last featuring at the end of October, whereas Liam Cooper sustained a groin injury in the last match against Blackburn – the same problem that kept him on the sidelines a few weeks earlier against Millwall.

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There is a chance he could aggravate the tear once again if he returns to action too soon, and that is a fear some Leeds supporters have.

With Ben White at the back it is unlikely Marcelo Bielsa or fans will be too concerned by the captain’s absence, and given Luton occupy 21st place in the table it is a very winnable game with or without their skipper.

The absence of Nketiah is a little more troubling as he provides a very useful option off the bench when the Whites are in need of a goal, and though his return is anticipated soon, it is likely he will miss out given Phil Hay’s suggestion.

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Here is some of the reaction to the injury update.

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…

Former West Ham United players Phil Parkes and James Collins have shown their backing for Manuel Pellegrini while speaking with Claret & Hugh and talkSPORT respectively.

What did they say?

There has been debate about whether Pellegrini should be sacked as West Ham manager, with the team on a run of seven games without a win in all competitions.

The West Ham board have backed the manager, as reported by BBC Sport, and the pair of former Hammers have shown they believe this is the correct decision.

Speaking with Claret & Hugh, Parkes said: “I agreed with the appointment and one run of bad games does not justify some of the maulings I’ve seen him getting on social media and elsewhere. He’s a top manager and there’s no doubts in my mind that he will sort it out so long as the players get their acts together.

“Too often the manager takes the stick when things go wrong – the screams of ‘sack him’ start, panic sets in and the truth is it’s not down to him but the players.”

While Collins accepted Pellegrini’s status could come under pressure at some point, he echoed Parke’s sentiment that it’s the wrong time to dismiss the Chilean while speaking on talkSPORT (8:48, Wednesday 13th November): “I think they’ve got to give him time, obviously his pedigree speaks for itself, look what he did at Man City, you don’t just turn bad in seven games, he’s got the squad there and their next two games are huge.”

A matter of timing

The pair are right that Pellegrini should be given time, especially when the current circumstances at the club are considered.

Having Lukasz Fabianski out injured has been such a huge blow, and it’s no surprise it’s coincided with the winless run. Pellegrini at least deserves the opportunity to fix things when the Poland international is back between the sticks.

The six-game run without a loss in all competitions, that came before the current hapless succession of games, highlights that Pellegrini can get the team playing when he has his key players on the pitch.

In addition to that point, if Pellegrini was to be sacked, these conditions would not help out any incoming manager at all, due to the fact he would be using Roberto, David Martin or potentially Joseph Anang in goal.

Regardless of whether Pellegrini will be able to instantly turn things around after the international break, the Hammers are better off sticking with him for the time being.

A selection of West Ham United fans took to social media during their loss at home to Newcastle United on Saturday to share their thoughts on Manuel Pellegrini replacing Mark Noble with Albian Ajeti at half-time.

The Irons entered the break two goals behind at home to the Magpies, after centre-half duo Ciaran Clark and Federico Fernandez fired past Roberto Jimenez.

West Ham had held more of the possession when they returned to the dressing room, but had only turned two of their five shots on target, while the Toon hit six of their seven efforts on target from just 31.7% of the ball, per WhoScored data.

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In search of something to inspire a comeback, Pellegrini made a double change at half-time with Ajeti coming on for Noble and Manuel Lanzini replacing Andriy Yarmolenko.

Only Sebastien Haller and Declan Rice had spent less time on the ball for West Ham from their outfield players in the opening 45 than Yarmolenko, while Noble marginally eclipsed Pablo Zabaleta.

Despite his reduced time in possession, Noble had attempted (26) and completed (21) more passes than almost all of his teammates before being replaced, with Felipe Anderson the only other non-Irons defender to complete more than 20.

Noble rarely made an impact in the final-third, though, as just eight of his passes were made in Newcastle’s defensive part of the pitch, while also offering little defensively with no interceptions or clearances and won just one tackle from three attempts.

Yet West Ham fans were not impressed by Pellegrini’s half-time switch, going by some of the reactions shared…