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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 “The Last Word with Stan Collymore” podcast, the former Liverpool striker has revealed Newcastle are heading for relegation this season following their abject showing at the weekend.

What did he say?

The Magpies suffered a 5-0 humiliation at the hands of Brendan Rodgers’ Leicester side, and reports since the debacle have claimed the players will be holding a meeting to try and sort the situation out.

Watch the video below to see the most insane overhead kick you will see this week…

However, Collymore has slammed the side for their performance, and insisted they committed the ultimate sin on a football pitch.

He said: “One **** performance, two or three good ones, another diabolical one. That is heading one way and that will be relegation.

“The biggest criticism you can ever make of a football team is that they didn’t try. At Norwich, the narrative was that Newcastle United didn’t try. I’m accusing Newcastle United – their players – of not trying against Leicester City.

“Make no mistake about this if Newcastle had 12 men on the pitch, never mind ten, they could have been 5-0 down.”

Betrayal

To be accused of downing tools, and “not trying” as Collymore alludes to, is perhaps the biggest slight you could make on a footballer’s character. Whether you’re playing Sunday league football with your mates or matching up against the best in a World Cup final, there is no point playing football at anything less than 100%.

Watch Newcastle United Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Instead, the Magpies’ display has raised severe questions of whether they’re committed to the cause. Steve Bruce already had a difficult job on his hands in trying to replace Rafa Benitez, but when his players let him down as they did so against Leicester, then he really has no hope.

If they don’t buck up their performances, Newcastle look set for a really rough season indeed. The least the club’s fans deserve is the players trying their best. Anything below that level is unacceptable. On Sunday, the Magpies stooped lower than anyone could have imagined, and if Collymore’s verdict is correct, it is the ultimate betrayal of the fans who dedicate their time and money to the club they love so much.

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.

Aston Villa showed a ruthless side to their game over the weekend as they breezed to a 5-1 victory over Norwich City at Carrow Road.

Their second win of the season lifted them outside of the relegation zone into 15th as the Premier League now takes a second break for international duty.

It may have come at the worst possible time for Dean Smith as he probably would have liked to build on their rampant exploits with a game as quickly as possible, but now he’s been forced to wait a couple of weeks to do so.

Watch Aston Villa Live Streams With StreamFootball.tv Below

Wesley doubled his tally for the season to four goals while Jack Grealish, Conor Hourihane, and Douglas Luiz all too got on the scoresheet, so there were plenty of positives all round in what has been a difficult season so far.

Outside of the club, some of their young prospects have been impressing and that is certainly the case with Matija Sarkic.

He has had to endure four loan spells since joining the west Midlands club from Belgian outfit Anderlecht, his latest of which is at Scottish Premiership side Livingston.

And the Lions pulled off a shock result over the weekend as they defeated reigning champions Celtic at the Almondvale Stadium on Sunday afternoon.

Second-half goals from Scott Robinson and Lyndon Dykes condemned the Bhoys to their first defeat of the SPL season and at the same time, handed Rangers a two-point cushion at the top of the table.

Sarkic was thrown into the team for his debut, and they managed to record just their second clean sheet this campaign.

The 22-year-old commanded his box and pulled off a string of quality saves to help contribute towards the historic win.

He left pundit Kris Boyd particularly impressed too, he told Sky Sports (via Not The Old Firm): “I thought his handling was excellent, you could hear him communicating with his defenders. His kicking was really good all afternoon.”

In doing so, he may have not only built claims for the number one spot for Livingston this season but too that he could be a viable option behind Tom Heaton in the future.

The goalkeeping department is often a double-edged sword as there rarely is competition for places, and that can often lead to complacency.

WhoScored only rate Heaton’s spell at Villa so far at 6.29, which is one of the worst in the squad – so maybe he could do with some actual competition to get his season going at Villa Park.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Out of all the players in Crystal Palace’s squad, just four of them are under the age of 28.

26-year-old Wilfried Zaha, 24-year-old Max Meyer, 26-year-old Jeffrey Schlupp and the injury-stricken Connor Wickham – also aged 26 – are the players who fit into the aforementioned category – on-loan midfielder Victor Camarasa is 25, but isn’t technically a Palace player.

That is particularly concerning.

In a few years time, the core of Palace’s squad will be outdated and in dire need of a revamp, something that chairman Steve Parish and Sporting Director Dougie Freedman are somewhat aware of, at least.

The Athletic’s Dominic Fifield wrote that the pair are looking to target players in their early 20s with one eye on the future, with the snippet of information embedded in this article here.

“The sporting director, Dougie Freedman, and chairman, Steve Parish, were also acutely aware of the relatively hefty average age of the squad. There is a desire to bring in more players in their early 20s with an eye to the future.”

Their transfer vision for the club makes sense given the aforesaid, although there is another worrying stat that promotes their plans even more.

Prospect Watch, a site that keeps tabs on U23 players, revealed on their Twitter account that the south London side have handed the least amount of minutes to players who are 23 or under this season.

Palace have given just 156 minutes worth of playing time to players who slot into that category, and are in fact the second-worst side throughout the entire Football League for giving chances to players who are 23 or younger – only Championship side Sheffield Wednesday have given less minutes to such players, with 0 to their name.

If anything, this only reinforces and promotes Parish and Freedman’s transfer vision for the club.

While things are going well right now with Palace sat 6th in the Premier League, one can’t help but feel that there is an alarming lack of sustainability surrounding the playing staff, a concern that can only be backed up by Prospect Watch’s revelation.

A silver lining, at least, is that Parish and Freedman are seemingly aware of it and ready to fix it.

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…

BBC Sport’s chief football writer Phil McNulty believes Borussia Monchengladbach manager Marco Rose should be amongst the top candidates to replace Marco Silva.

What did he say?

Marco Silva is under immense pressure at Everton, with the club sat inside the relegation zone on just seven points from eight games. As a result, majority shareholder Farhad Moshiri has reportedly given the Portuguese the next three games to try and save his job on Merseyside.

Up next for Silva is the visit of West Ham United and then the trip to Brighton & Hove Albion, before they clash with bottom of the table Watford in the Carabao Cup.

Speaking about potential replacements for the Portuguese, McNulty stated: “Marcel Brands, Everton’s director of football, is a keen student of the European game, so could the longer term choice come from overseas?

“Marco Rose has guided Borussia Monchengladbach to the top of the Bundesliga in the early stages his first season and did so well at Red Bull Salzburg, and has a glittering reference from Klopp. Or perhaps there may be a candidate from Brands’ native Netherlands?”

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Brands should already be searching

Regardless of whether or not Silva can pass his three-game trial in the next few weeks, the 42-year-old may already be on borrowed time at the club, and as a result, it is wise that Brands chalks up a shortlist right now.

Rose would, as McNulty suggests, be a magnificent signing should he replicate what he has done in his homeland. Currently, the 43-year-old leads the way at the top of the table in the Bundesliga, with Monchengladbach losing just one game and sitting a point ahead of regular champions Bayern Munich.

Only Wolfsburg have conceded fewer goals than Rose’s side this season, with his men letting in just six goals in seven games.

There has also been the mention of Eddie Howe, who McNulty states is a boyhood Evertonian. This may add to the chances of luring him away from Bournemouth, although it does seem that Howe is settled on the south coast, with no reports of his desire to leave.

For now, Silva will remain. But there are many managers like Howe and Rose, out there under the age of 44 with proven ability. Brands should seriously consider some of these names.

Tottenham’s transfer list reportedly has another addition with Gremio’s Everton Soares now on the club’s radar, according to Sky Sports News.

The 23-year-old can play on either flank, much like his compatriot Lucas Moura, and he is quite a similar player to the Spurs forward, specialising in taking the ball past opponents.

This season he has averaged 3.1 successful dribbles per game in the Brazilian League, but has been more clinical than Moura, with 12 goals and six assists in 32 games.

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Some fans like what they see and think he could be a good alternative to Paulo Dybala, whose possible move to north London may have been put to bed once and for all as he begins to start for Juventus, scoring twice for them in the Champions League on Tuesday.

However, not everyone is convinced due to doubts about the level he is playing at, whilst also believing that if he was capable of improving their squad then he would have been signed by another club already.

Here is some of the mixed reaction from Spurs fans to the transfer news.

Crystal Palace midfielder, James McCarthy, has revealed in an interview with The Daily Record that he longs to pull on the famous green and white hoops of Celtic before he hangs up his boots.

The former Hamilton player is a lifelong Bhoys fan and has fond memories of sampling games against Rangers when he was younger:

“I’ve always been a Celtic fan; all my family are Celtic fans. From when I was born, I’ve had the Celtic strips. Obviously as a kid, you’re always watching. We’d go and watch the games. My brothers used to take me”.

“I went to quite a lot of them (games against Rangers). I was younger, maybe eight or nine. I’d always be at the game. It’s an amazing atmosphere, an incredible atmosphere and one that you really enjoy”.

McCarthy signed for Palace this summer having found himself out of favour at Everton, and it is the third time he has found himself in the same midfield as Scotland international James McArthur – a commentator’s nightmare.

McCarthy has had a solid Premier League career with over 200 appearances and, with nearly 100 Scottish Premiership games also under his belt, he should have no problems returning to Scotland.

These Celtic fans took to Twitter to suggest that McCarthy had missed the boat.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

Is this the biggest indicator yet that his future lies away from St Andrew’s?

Whilst the Blues were in the final preparations for their game against Luton Town last weekend, the club released the team sheet an hour before kick-off, as is now traditional on social media.

There was one name missing from the matchday eighteen, although given that he was predominantly a substitute this season, fans might be forgiven for not noticing that he was absent at all.

David Stockdale found himself out of the squad, with his place as the backup to Lee Camp given to U23 regular Connal Trueman.

During early September, Stockdale spoke about how hard he was trying to fight and get his place back in the starting eleven at Birmingham, and there were a number of fans who were incredibly supportive of him in his cause to make that breakthrough.

However, it looks as if those efforts have fallen short, and with no news coming out regarding an injury, it’s safe to assume that he has been dropped because of his displays in training rather than for practical reasons.

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With David Stockdale’s contract up this summer (via Transfermarkt), it looks as if the 34-year-old may have played his last game for the club.

So if he isn’t going to be utilised, it only makes sense for the Blues to start making plans for him to be shipped out in January.

Find out how to perform one of Ronaldinho’s most insane skills in the video below…

He currently holds a value of £450k (according to Transfermarkt), and although that might not be the biggest haul in terms of cash, it would still give them a little bit of leeway when it comes to making a push for another player in the window – that’s if any fee could be commanded given how short his remaining deal is.

It might also make sense to just let the 6 foot 3 stopper see out his contract on loan, and use the money freed up from his wages to bring someone in on loan.

Either way, if Stockdale isn’t going to offer anything to the squad, better to bring in something for him than let him leave for free.

Does Granit Xhaka have a future at Arsenal?

The past week indicates that he could soon be out of the door at the Emirates Stadium, despite being appointed as the club captain just a few weeks ago.

It all started when he was substituted off against Crystal Palace last Sunday with around 30 minutes left on the clock.

Watch the moment Granit Xhaka’s Arsenal career may have come to an ugly end in the video below…

An unpopular figure in North London, the Gunners supporters let their feelings about the Switzerland international be known as they booed him off the field. The 27-year-old, though, was far from impressed with the way he was treated and decided to retaliate by shouting expletives in the direction of the stands.

He has since apologised, but whether or not that will burn any bridges remains to be seen. Either way, the fans will not be able to share their thoughts of him against Wolves, with Unai Emery confirming that the former Borussia Monchengladbach midfielder will not feature.

Unsurprisingly, that has been met with delight by the Emirates faithful. They took to Twitter to share their thoughts, and you can see some of the best comments from the social media platform below.

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

Despite their lack of depth at centre-back, Leeds United have been hesitant to open up talks with Gaetano Berardi for a new contract.

This could mean a couple of things, either the Whites have someone lined up who they’re looking to sign, or Marcelo Bielsa trusts one of the young players in their ranks to make the step up to the first-team.

The latter scenario could well be true, and that man could be Oliver Casey.

Casey’s ability

Bielsa hasn’t been shy to get youth players involved in first-team action when he thinks they’re good enough.

Last season Jamie Shackleton and Jack Clarke both appeared over 20 times in the league, and this term we’ve seen Leif Davis make a real impact when he’s appeared in the first team as he’s drawn comparisons to Gareth Bale.

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There is plenty of evidence to suggest that Casey is the next in line to receive a first-team chance.

The teenager was included in the 19-man squad against QPR this weekend, and Marcelo Bielsa has previously pinpointed him as a youngster to look out for when Liam Cooper was injured.

The Argentine doesn’t just hand out that praise to anybody, so it’s fair to assume that the teenager is a rather talented individual.

Why being the away goalkeeper at Leeds is the toughest job in football in the video below…

Berardi’s new deal

If Casey does emerge before the end of this season and shows signs of being a decent player then Leeds would be justified in their decision to not hand a new contract to Berardi.

Although he’s been a great servant to the club, the Swiss defender can be a bit of a liability – earning seven red cards.

If Bielsa feels that he’s got a man who can adequately replace him already at the club you can understand why he wouldn’t want to offer him a new contract.

Whether or not the 31-year-old is eventually offered new terms remains to be seen, but if Casey bursts onto the scene in the near future that may be even more unlikely.

It really does feel like Berardi is fighting for his future in west Yorkshire.

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

Arsenal are set to stick by manager Unai Emery, per The Athletic’s Gunners reporter David Ornstein.

What’s the word?

The north London side lost 2-0 to Leicester City at The King Power Stadium on Saturday, their fourth successive Premier League game without a victory. Per Ornstein’s report, it is their worst start to a league season since the 1982/83 campaign. They finished 10th in that campaign.

Ornstein, though, claims that the Gunners have no plans currently to sack the former PSG boss.

In fact, Emery is said to have the “total backing” of the club’s board and ownership and they have made it clear they do not plan to axe the 48-year-old.

Players have to take responsibility

Arsenal are trying to grow and improve and yet there are Twitter hashtags calling for Emery to leave the club.

At the end of the day, would there really be much improvement if another manager came in? They have some genuinely excellent players; Last season’s Golden Boot winner Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and the club’s Player of the Year Alexandre Lacazette are two prime examples, but they have to start taking responsibility for this slump.

Against Leicester, Emery picked a 3-4-1-2 formation that was surely designed to smother the threat of the Foxes.

And, as The Athletic’s report states, it was working before the first goal, managing to nullify the threat of the Foxes. Arsenal actually opened the scoring, only for Aubameyang’s goal to be ruled out for offside.

Jamie Vardy scored the opener instead and, just like that, all of the club’s confidence evaporated.

That isn’t down to Emery; that’s on a unit devoid of the guts needed to fight back.

It is all very well calling for the manager to leave the dugout but it is down to the players to perform on the pitch. After all, they are the ones kicking the football, not the manager.

That they haven’t been playing to the best of their abilities isn’t entirely the Spaniard’s fault; this update ought to spark a reaction from the players as they look to get back to form.