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This weekend sees two Premier League giants go toe-to-toe as Arsenal head to Old Trafford to face Manchester United.

United will be desperate to get one over on their rivals and close the gap on fourth place, which the Gunners currently occupy.

The occasion will also be made all the more heated by the presence of managers Jose Mourinho and Arsene Wenger, with the two rarely seeing eye to eye in the past.

Earlier in the week, we ran a poll asking United fans which Arsenal players they would like to see Jose Mourinho sign in the coming transfer window.

With Arsenal outperforming United in the league over the past few seasons, there were naturally a few assets the Red Devils supporters are keen on recruiting.

A number of fans put aside their bias and had their say on which of Wenger’s men they would have in the United first team.

We can exclusively reveal the results of our poll with a rundown of the top five!

5. SHKRODAN MUSTAFI

At number five we have Arsenal new boy, Shkrodan Mustafi.

The £35m signing has adjusted to life in the Premier League very quickly and looks to have solved the centre-back problem that has plagued the Gunners backline for so long.

United currently have something of a defensive problem themselves with Chris Smalling in inconsistent form of Eric Bailly facing a long spell on the sidelines. It would appear some United fans are regretting not signing the dominant German themselves.

4. LAURENT KOSCIELNY

Rather than just bringing in one of Arsenal’s centre-backs, it seems United fans would rather have the whole partnership as Koscielny comes in at number four.

It’s only natural they would covet the Frenchman, who has arguably been the most consistent defender in the Premier League over the past five years.

The 31-year-old would immediately shore up a United defence that has kept only four clean sheets in eleven games this season and is just preferred to his German partner.

3. ALEXIS SANCHEZ

Alexis Sanchez is one of the few world-class players in the Premier League, and it is therefore a surprise to see him down in number three.

The Chilean boasts an impressive 33 goals in 73 games for Arsenal despite often playing as a winger and has adjusted to his new striker position well this campaign, hitting six goals in ten games.

Sanchez would undoubtedly be an improvement on Marcus Rashford for United’s left-wing spot and on current form would even oust Zlatan Ibrahimovic up top.

2. HECTOR BELLERIN

At number two we have Arsenal’s flying right-back Hector Bellerin.

The Spaniard has possibly beaten the more prestigious Sanchez because he has the potential to improve so much in the future, despite already being a regular in the Gunners first team.

At 21 years of age, he is already a more accomplished right-back than both Antonio Valencia and Matteo Darmian.

Fortunately for United fans, Bellerin is set to miss out Saturday’s game (and the next few weeks) due to injury.

1. MESUT OZIL

Finally, at number one, we have Mesut Ozil.

Despite having a difficult time with form and injury early in his Gunners career, Ozil has become not only one of the key players for Arsenal, but also one of the most accomplished in the Premier League.

There are very few teams the playmaker wouldn’t command an immidate place in at the moment and it appears United fans would jump at the opportunity to have him orchestrating their attacks.

Ozil also enjoyed some of the best form of his career under Jose Mourinho at Real Madrid, racking up an incredible 47 assists in three seasons.

Click the next button to see the results in full.

FINAL RESULTS

The November injury curse seems to have struck Arsenal again as midfielder Santi Cazorla has been ruled out for three months with an Achilles problem.

The Spaniard has not been seen since he picked up a knock in the Gunners’ 6-0 victory over Ludogorets Razgrad in the Champions League on October 19.

The initial prognosis was not thought to have been very serious, but doubts grew when manager Arsene Wenger continued to admit uncertainty over Cazorla’s return.

On Thursday, the fans’ biggest fears were confirmed when Arsenal released a statement announcing that the 31-year-old requires surgery to cure the problem.

“Santi Cazorla is travelling to Sweden early next week to undergo surgery to his right ankle.

“The club’s medical team and specialists have decided that surgery is required to the plantaris tendon in the Spain international’s right foot.

“Everyone at the club will be working hard with Santi to make sure he’s back on the pitch as soon as possible.”

Cazorla will miss the crucial festive schedule, which includes Premier League games against Manchester City, West Bromwich Albion, Crystal Palace and Bournemouth.

Arsenal are currently fourth in the table, three points adrift of leaders Chelsea and have not been beaten in the top flight since their opening-day loss to Liverpool on August 14.

As expected, supporters have been left in despair at the news, with many predicting that the club’s title campaign is over with five months left to go.

Some have taken to Twitter to vent their anger, while others believe that it will give other players an opportunity to shine.

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Pep Guardiola’s interview after Manchester City’s victory over Burnley was hardly one of the most exciting managerial rants of recent times.

In fact, it wasn’t even a rant. And for the type of wall-to-wall press coverage it seems to have garnered, it’s actually fairly tame. He didn’t say anything of much note, he didn’t call anyone out, he didn’t say anything that would leave him open to an FA fine – not even a sarcastic clap. And, indeed, given his previous with emotional reactions to questions from journalists, I’d say we got off lightly in the end.

But we all love a good managerial meltdown, one where you can see the anger in a manager’s face, everything in between his vocal chord and his mouth fumbling to get the words out. And preferably – for the baying masses – words which will entertain the crowd for a brief moment, but which will land the manager a hefty fine or even a touchline ban.

If you thought Guardiola’s reaction to the media this week was a meltdown, here are five of the best managerial outbursts to remind you that Pep’s passion was actually fairly restrained.

Giovanni Trapattoni’s broken German

Some managerial rants come from an underlying annoyance, festering below the surface until it boils over. Usually it hints at a deeper problem at the club, with player performance or just with the manager himself.

This from a legend of the managerial game Giovanni Trapattoni as Bayern Munich manager back in July 1998 was just anger pure and simple. His broken German is spelled out by the magnificent (and purposely ungrammatical) translation into English in the video above.

“I deliberately raised my voice to make myself understood,” said Trap later. Mission accomplished, sir.

Benitez and his facts

When you feel like you’ve been wronged, and you’re definitely in the right, there’s a simple recourse: the facts. If the truth is on your side, it’s the most powerful weapon you can have, right?

Benitez was waiting for the question, he came prepared with his secret weapon, but succeeded only in showing that the mind games had worked against him. He was calm, he was collected, and he was right. But that didn’t matter: it had revealed the pressure bubbling under the surface.

This was the moment that Sir Alex Ferguson knew that he had managed to get under the skin of Liverpool manager Rafael Benitez, it was the moment he knew that he’d won the title.

Louis van Gaal’s long ball nightmare

Benitez’s facts rant will probably stand alone as a classic of the genre, but a new adaptation a few years later by Louis van Gaal is certainly worth considering.

What really irks a manager – especially an intellectual like Van Gaal – is when the press latches onto a theory that shows you up as classless: the fabled ‘long ball merchant’. The Dutchman could have hardly felt himself more different in styles to then-West Ham United boss Sam Allardyce, but when Big Sam accused Manchester United of playing long balls, the charge stuck.

And angry Van Gaal, with outrage seething underneath his cool exterior, set out to show that his side certainly weren’t the long ball merchants. It’s a very Van Gaal meltdown – educational and overly theoretical – but it showed that the manager was struggling to implement his ideas properly and win over English football with his style of play.

Ron Atkinson v Richard Keys

“You can sit there and play with your silly machines as much as you like”.

When you’re in the relegation zone, a post-match interview is tough at the best of times, but when the interviewer is an actual fan of the club you’re managing there’s a visceral tension present.

Sky Sports’ new-fangled coverage of the game clearly riled Atkinson, who let rip on Richard Keys before finding a joker in the pack: “who won the man of the match award? The opposition goalkeeper! Well, he must’ve played not bad then.”

Keegan I would love it

And finally. The daddy. The meltdown of all meltdowns. It incorporated all of the right ingredients for a proper managerial rant: a post-match interview, a clearly emotional Keegan, a crackling voice, the outing of an underlying gripe, and a genuine raised-voice attack on a rival manager. It even has its own soundbite ending.

Keegan’s rant is one for the ages, and frankly, it will take some beating. Love it.

Newcastle are expected to make an immediate return to the Premier League this season.

Keeping Rafa Benitez at the club was obviously key to their chances of bouncing straight back and they should secure promotion one way or another come May. They have made life difficult for them in recent weeks, but that hasn’t prevented them from being anything other than the bookies’ favourites to go back up.

Newcastle were last competing in the second tier back in 2009/2010 and they made easy work of winning the league, securing 102 points in the process. They only lost four league games during that campaign and scored an impressive 90 goals.

So with Newcastle back in the Championship and once again expected to come up at the first time of asking, we’ve gone back in time to bring you the squad that helped them win the league and promotion back to the Premier League in 2009/2010.

Take our quiz below – brought to you by EFQ, and see if you can name every player that featured in the Championship for Newcastle that season.

You’ve got five minutes to guess all 33 players. Once you’re done, submit your score to our leaderboard and challenge your mates to beat you via Twitter and Facebook…

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Download and play Elite Football Quiz for your chance to win £150 by proving you know more about football than your mates!

Download the EFQ app on iOS here.

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Swansea, Everton and Southampton are all keen on signing Young Boys ace Yoric Ravet, according to reports from The Mirror and French outlet L’Equipe.

What’s the word?

As is customary with the transfer window, Premier League sides are set to go toe-to-toe with each other for the services of Young Boys ace Yoric Ravet- with Swansea, Everton and Southampton all said to hold an interest in the 27-year-old.

The French midfielder only signed for his current side last year but has thoroughly impressed, netting six goals and providing 16 assists in all competitions- which has got Europe talking and many clubs eyeing a move.

Ravet could end up in the Premier League, with the trio of aforementioned sides expressing an interest, making it anyone’s guess where he’ll end up.

Who needs him most?

Everton are been in-and-out of form this season and Ronald Koeman has made it clear he wants to improve the attack in his side, having already seen a swoop for Swansea’s Gylfi Sigurdsson fail. Ravet may not have Premier League experience but he would be a decent signing.

Southampton, meanwhile, are another side who have been in-and-out of form this season and Pavet would perhaps not get guaranteed football at St Mary’s- which isn’t the case at the final interested club, Swansea City.

Rooted to the bottom of the table, Swansea need all the help they can get and the potential arrival of Ravet would certainly be a huge boost- as his goals and assists could help the Welsh side fight back this season to avoid relegation.

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Premier League fans are being treated to an absolute feast of football this week, with two rounds of action due before Monday comes around.

Last night saw Liverpool host Chelsea in a firey title clash and although Manchester City and Manchester United may grab the headlines tonight, we at FootballFanCast have a feeling Stoke vs. Everton will provide a little more bang for our buck.

After all, there’s so little to choose between these sides ahead of kick-off. Before Tuesday night’s run of fixtures, they were separated by just two places in the Premier League table, and perhaps most tellingly of all, the last six meetings between the Potters and the Toffees have been split exactly down the middle with three wins apiece.

With that in mind, tonight’s encounter under the Bet365 Stadium floodlights looks set to come down to which side dominates the key individual battles. We take a look at THREE that could decide the outcome.

Romelu Lukaku vs. Ryan Shawcross

After conceding four goals to Liverpool and Chelsea in consecutive fixtures at the end of December, Stoke’s defence has tightened up in recent weeks, keeping clean sheets against Watford and Wolves whilst conceding only one apiece during the win over Sunderland and draw with Manchester United.

But Everton striker Romelu Lukaku has enjoyed a similar revival in 2017; after enduring a dry spell of three goals in ten appearances across all competitions, the Belgian battering ram has netted three in four outings – and bagged one assist – since the turn of the year.

Vital to stopping the 6ft. 3″ striker will be Stoke skipper Ryan Shawcross, perhaps not performing to the same levels he was a few years ago but nonetheless a solid Premier League centre-back and a key member of the Potters defence. He’s got the strength, height and aggression to match Lukaku’s, but won’t want to find himself in a footrace with the 23-year-old.

Marco Arnautovic vs. Seamus Coleman

It’s not been a stellar season for Marko Arnautovic, especially when compared to his twelve-goal haul during the 2016/17 campaign. Nonetheless, we all know how talented the Austrian attacker is and there has been evidence of an uplift in form recently, performing well against Watford before grabbing a brace in the win over Sunderland.

His battle with Everton right-back Seamus Coleman could be a pivotal one this evening. Despite lining up at the back, the Irishman is the Toffees’ second top scorer this term with four goals, whilst Arnautovic incidentally holds that title for the Potters – albeit shared with three of his team-mates.

With that in mind, Coleman and Arnautovic face a similar challenge; aiding their teams’ attacking efforts as much as possible, whilst making sure the other doesn’t have a similar or greater impact on the match. It’s a real balance of responsibilities and the duo’s shared mix of pace and power adds another exciting dynamic to this potentially result-defining battle.

Ross Barkley vs. Joe Allen

Albeit operating in slightly different systems and slightly different positions, Joe Allen and Ross Barkley essentially have the same role in their respective engine rooms – offering box-to-box dynamism whilst providing that killer pass to the front line.

Allen’s struggled to maintain an early-season flurry that saw him clinch three goals and two assists in five outings but has unquestionably proved his quality since leaving Liverpool for the Bet365 Stadium in the summer. Even amid the absence of such prominent output, yet to score or assist in 2017, he remains Mark Hughes’ preferred choice at No.10.

Barkley, meanwhile, has been asked to operate slightly deeper as part of a midfield three in Ronald Koeman’s 3-5-2, yet it appears to be getting the best out of him offensively. Barkley’s form has notably improved since the start of December, notching up three assists and one goal in his last eight appearances.

Ultimately, this battle will come down to which British talent can do the most for their side going forward, whilst putting in a shift off the ball. Both are creative and gifted technicians – now it’s a question of who can deliver on Wednesday night.

After a tough week which saw defeats to Liverpool and Gent, Sunday’s trip to Craven Cottage to face Fulham could’ve been a very tricky encounter. As it was, Mauricio Pochettino’s side showed enough professionalism and class to get the job done, booking their place in the FA Cup quarter-finals with a comprehensive 3-0 win.Fulham didn’t put up the resistance expected and fell short of threatening any sort of shocking cup upset.Harry Kane was the hero of the day, scoring a superb hat-trick, the fifth of his Spurs career so far.Spurs will now face Millwall in the next round in another potential slip-up but the White Hart Lane faithful are growing ever more confident that this could be the year they finally lift the FA Cup after a 26 year wait.It’s been quite the turnaround in the competition after being just minutes away from being eliminated by Wycombe Wanderers.The performance of the team, and in particular Kane, delighted supporters and they took to Twitter to let their feelings be known…

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Lorenzo Insigne has excelled with Napoli this season and could be eyed by many Gooners as the ideal replacement for Alexis Sanchez, should the Chilean declare his intention to leave this summer and snub a new contract with the club.

Italian ace Insigne has been linked with Arsenal for a number of years now but recent reports suggest the Gunners may have missed their chance, with Insigne having revealed his desire to stay at the club for the long-term.

That may lead Arsenal to look elsewhere but Insigne’s statistics this season show Arsene Wenger’s side should not give up on a chase too swiftly, as he’d be an ideal addition to the attacking line.

In 24 appearances this season, Insigne boasts an impressive return of eight goals and six assists, whilst his general attacking play is impressive- standing at 91 shots, 86% passing accuracy, 43 chances created and 27 take-ons.

Arsenal should even consider going for Insigne even if Alexis remains at the club, as the Italian would excel on the left-side with the Chilean ace playing centrally.

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As we discussed earlier today, Pedro Caixinha has wasted no time in making bold decisions at Ibrox. He’s axed long serving goalkeeping coach and former player Jim Stewart in a shake up of the club’s backroom staff.

Stewart has been at the club for over 10 years, part of Walter Smith’s staff when the managerial legend returned to the club in 2007.

He’s played a key role in shaping the Ibrox career of players like Allan McGregor and Wes Foderingham. The 63-year old has also shown incredible loyalty in staying with the club through some dark years in the lower leagues of Scottish football, at a time he probably could’ve left.

Still, football is a ruthless game and in order to bring the club to the next level, Caixinha is going to have to put his own stamp on the footballing staff at Auchenhowie.

Whether it’s a mistake or not time will tell, but the news certainly hasn’t been very well received amongst Rangers supporters who feel he still had something to offer their team.

They took to Twitter to share their thoughts on the news…

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Visit Britain are looking to find football’s Super Fan, and there will be more than a few suitors for the title.

After all, the Premier League is quickly rising in popularity across the Atlantic – with particular growth coming from the wealth of American players embarking on careers in Britain.

The most recognisable player is, undoubtedly, Brad Friedel, who spent much of his career in the Premier League before retiring whilst playing for Tottenham in 2015.

There have also been a host of outfield players that have attempted to hone their craft in the Premier League, many of which have scored crucial goals in the English top flight.

Whilst some have only stayed for a few years, they have often been able to achieve impressive goal tallies – but who has been able to bag the most?

It is certainly a list filled with quality players, but can you name the top 15 American goalscorers in Premier League history?

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Do you think you have what it takes to be Visit Britain’s biggest Super Fan? Click on the link below to find the details.

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