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Having been an integral part of the coaching staff at Stamford Bridge since September 2008, Ray Wilkins’ departure has caused sizeable tremors at Chelsea. With some feeling that the insensitive manner in which Wilkins, who began his footballing career at The Bridge in 1973, was unceremoniously given the boot has facilitated a noticeable dip in form from the 2009-10 champions. But is Wilkins’ departure the principal reason for such a tangible reversal of fortune?

The clandestine way Wilkins was relieved of his duties must signal some sort of backroom fallout, and as the assistant manager is not that far in the background, this will, without doubt, have had an effect on the players. As Wilkins himself has recently noted;

“I am very disappointed that the board decided that I had no further contribution to make at Chelsea Football Club which has played such a huge part in my life… The LMA’s legal advisors are assisting me in obtaining answers to a number of questions arising from my undoubtedly unfair dismissal, and all efforts are being made to reach an amicable solution”

With Carlo Ancelotti reportedly wanting to quit after the fallout from Wilkins’ departure, and more reports of ‘player power’ being a factor in the sacking, turmoil is reigning supreme at Stamford Bridge, and it is being felt on the pitch, not necessarily just in terms of results, but also in terms of performances.

The truth is, although undoubtedly a good coach and assistant manager, Ray Wilkins departure alone cannot cause the dip in form that Chelsea are currently suffering. Rather than the man himself it is more the principal of the entire situation that has affected the squad.

Through Wilkins’ sacking, if player power was indeed involved, we can see Chelsea heralding back to the days when Avram Grant was in charge and it was highly publicised that the players essentially ran the team, and that is not a road Chelsea want to travel down again. For every player that wanted Wilkins out the door, there will be another who didn’t, and if the order to get rid of the 54 year-old came from higher, then the players may be more than a little disgruntled, both on and off the pitch.

If you liked this and would like to read more, then why not check out my blogs, or follow me on Twitter, where you can also keep up to date with the latest Chelsea news!

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Arsenal have a crucial end to the season as it will give them a big indication as to how the 2018-19 campaign will shape up.

At the moment, Arsene Wenger’s side are unlikely to finish inside the top four of the Premier League as they are 13 points adrift with eight games left to play.

Their only likely chance of playing in next season’s Champions League is if they go all the way in the Europa League, and in order to do that they need to get past CSKA Moscow in the quarter-finals.

Due to the team’s inconsistent performances throughout the season, some would have tipped Arsenal to struggle against AC Milan in the last-16 stage.

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It was quite the opposite, though, as they made it through comfortably, and the supporters were particularly impressed with Jack Wilshere’s display.

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In the next six games, the North London outfit will face Stoke City, Southampton, Newcastle United and West Ham United in the league, as well as CSKA Moscow twice in Europa.

Fans have been making predictions on social media.

Celtic’s Virgil van Dijk is currently one of the most sought after young defenders in the whole of Europe. The 23-year-old Dutchman has everything in his skill-set to become of the world’s top centre-backs, and with several Premier League sides reportedly interested in Celtic’s latest sensation, his admirers certainly go beyond the realms of Scottish football.

Despite not being a main feature of Louis van Gaal’s 2014 World Cup squad, where the solid but slightly suspect Ron Vlaar and Bruno Martins-Indi were considered first choice centre-backs, Virgil van Dijk has been making tremendous strides in the 2014/15 campaign for Celtic.

While the Hoops will of course like to keep their main man at Celtic Park for the foreseeable future, if van Dijk were to leave this January, which sides are in the running to land him? And would a potential move to the Premier League prove a step too far for the young Dutchman?

The answer to the latter question is a most probably – no. Virgil van Dijk has a good turn of pace, can play the ball out the back comfortably with his feet, and remains a strong contender in any aerial challenge. Although he may not be used to facing the likes of Diego Costa or Sergio Aguero on a regular basis, van Dijk’s experiences in the Champions League with Celtic should hold him in good stead to play in one of Europe’s stronger leagues.

Celtic’s no. 5 began his career in Holland with the likes of Willem II and Groninghen, before making the switch to Glasgow in 2013. During his time with the Hoops, van Dijk has made over 70 appearances, recorded countless clean sheets and even popped up with a few important goals. His crowning individual achievement was being named Celtic’s Young Player of the Year in 2013, but at only 23-years-old, his career is really only just beginning.

In response to where the young defender may end up this winter, Celtic boss Ronny Delia has been quick to dispel any rumours linking van Dijk with a move away from Celtic Park – ‘He’s very happy. I have spoken to him and we are very happy to keep him as well. He’s a top player.’

While the latter part of that comment is undeniable at the moment, the rest of Delia’s statement could well be intended to drive up Virgil van Dijk’s transfer fee, should his move away from Celtic become an inevitability.

As several of England’s top sides are currently going through somewhat of a defensive crisis, Celtic are going to have to do all they can to stave off interest from the Premier League this January. Both Arsenal and Tottenham are reportedly interested in bringing van Dijk to North London, as the Gunners in particular failed to adequately strengthen their defensive vulnerabilities in the summer.

While the same can’t be said of either Manchester City or Liverpool, as both aimed to strengthen at the back through Eliaquim Mangala and Dejan Lovren respectively, their current defensive problems could be solved by van Dijk as well, should Celtic see fit to finally let the Dutchman go.

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Manchester United, despite all their summer spending on Luke Shaw, Daley Blind and Marcos Rojo, are also supposedly interested in van Dijk this January. Louis van Gaal’s failure to properly include the Dutchman in his World Cup plans may hold this potential move back however, as van Dijk will not be short of suitors should he choose to look elsewhere.

Although it currently seems unlikely that Celtic will sell their best defender half way through the season, if the money is right and the January transfer window lives up to the hype it is often portrayed with, Virgil van Dijk could be on the move sooner rather than later. As he looks to be a top star in the making, fans of English football should rejoice at any sign of the Dutchman making his way to the Premier League in the near future.

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Arsene Wenger has urged his Arsenal players to reverse their recent poor form, as they take on Reading.

The Gunners have been out of sorts lately, winning just one of their last four Premier League games.

Last week the Londoners were defeated by League Two outfit Bradford City in the Capital One Cup, and Wenger has called upon his players to bounce back from the disappointment with a positive result against the Royals:

“There has been disappointment and frustration (this week), but that is normal when you go out in a competition like that.” He is quoted by The Metro.

“However, having said that, we can only look at ourselves, get on with it and look for the future.”

Poor results have seen Wenger’s transfer policy called into question, with many fans urging the Frenchman to spend in January.

But, full-back Kieran Gibbs defended his manager, pointing out that his strategy has unearthed a number of stars at the Emirates Stadium:

“He has built a reputation for signing players for a modest fee and turning them into great players.

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“I don’t think many people in England had heard of Thomas Vermaelen before he arrived and yet he became an instant fan favourite.

“The manager has an eye for noticing the potential in promising players.”

West Ham United lost heavily at home to Burnley on Saturday in a match that also saw crowd trouble at the London Stadium, with fans taking to the pitch in anger at the current status of the club, even scuffling with players.

Even without the pitch invasions, the match itself was dire enough for level-headed supporters watching on, the Hammers no match for an impressive attacking performance from the Clarets in the second half.

Losing 3-0, fans were left fuming with the performance of Joe Hart, who made another goalkeeping blunder for the third goal.

It was the England shot-stopper’s first game since January, but supporters are positive they don’t want to see him in a West Ham jersey ever again.

They’re calling on David Moyes to stick Adrian back in goal as soon as possible, believing Hart simply isn’t the goalkeeper he once was at Manchester City.

They took to Twitter to share their thoughts…

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Former Tottenham forward Jurgen Klinsmann is adamant that Mauricio Pochettino is the right man to be in charge at White Hart Lane.

The Argentine was drafted in to replace Tim Sherwood over the summer, after chairman Daniel Levy had sacked the controversial boss after just half a season in charge.

However, despite his impressive spell on the South Coast at Southampton, the former Espanyol chief has struggled in north London, with his side currently say in 12th spot in the Premier League.

WANT MORE? >> Spurs transfer news | Latest transfer news

Even though he’s only been at Spurs for a matter of months, ‘Poch’ is rumoured to be battling for his future, with rumours suggesting that patience is running out among members of Tottenham’s hierarchy.

But Klinsmann believes that Pochettino is the right man to be in the dugout:

“Pochettino absolutely needs more time,” he told talkSPORT. “He’s a high quality, talented coach. Everyone going to a new club, and a new environment, needs time to get their head around things.

“Sometimes it takes two years and others it can be four or five years. That’s a long time for impatient media people and fans but he has all the qualities to build something very special here at Spurs. I hope he is given the time.

“He needs a couple of transfer windows of his own to put the pieces together that he wants to. He has a specific way that he wants the team to play and that’s orientated by some of the best teams in the world.

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“He’s showed with Southampton that his system works but now he has a different category of players. Working with different characters is not easy.

“The bigger the club the more egos there are. You need time and patience. I hope he gets all the time he needs.”

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Manchester City midfielder Yaya Toure has expressed his desire to finish his career at the club and is hungry to help bring more silverware to the Etihad, the Guardian reports.

The Ivory Coast international has become a key figure of Roberto Mancini’s set up since joining from Barcelona in the summer of 2010, and has now vowed to see out the remainder of his career with the Premier League champions.

“I would love to end my career here,” said Toure. “Nobody knows what the next step is in football and I believe that if you stop dreaming, you should stop playing football, but this is where I want to be.

The news will be greatly welcomed by City fans who saw the powerful Ivorian play a huge part in the clubs success last season, scoring six goals as well as providing nine assists in the league.

The Sky Blues have had an indifferent start to this season, eliminated from the group stages of the Champions League and now six points off the pace behind leaders Manchester United in the Premier League following their derby defeat last Sunday.

Toure however remains confident that last seasons title win will be the first of many for the Manchester club:

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“We want to make history and that was part of my plan when I first signed – to make history – and we’ve made a start but there is so many more chapters to be written,” he told the club’s website.

City will hope to get back on track in the Premier League this weekend when they visit struggling Newcastle United at St James Park.

Tottenham Hotspur winger Lucas Moura produced an impressive display and picked up two assists in his side’s 6-1 FA Cup fifth round replay win over Rochdale at Wembley on Wednesday night, and Spurs fans are all making the same shock claim that the Brazilian should start over Dele Alli at home to Huddersfield Town on Saturday.

With Alli, Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen on the substitutes’ bench, it gave the likes of Lucas, Erik Lamela and Fernando Llorente an opportunity to impress against the League One strugglers, and they didn’t disappoint.

The January signing from Paris Saint-Germain has scored once and provided two assists in two starts and two substitute appearances for the north London outfit so far, and the Wembley faithful are seemingly keen for him to make the XI ahead of Alli against the Terriers.

That is despite the fact that the 21-year-old was one of their most important players last season and has five goals and eight assists in 27 Premier League outings this term – although he has none of either in his previous five top flight appearances.

Tottenham supporters have been quick to have their say on the duo via social media, and while one said “tonight’s game showed why Lucas Moura should start ahead of Dele Alli”, another said they ‘would seriously consider leaving Alli on the bench against Huddersfield and have Son and Lucas on the wings’.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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Borussia Dortmund will top group

The opening game in Group D tonight was suggested by many as the game that would give us an indication as to which team would finish top. If that is to be the case, then it will make pleasant reading for Borussia Dortmund after they comfortably overcame an Arsenal side lacking ideas, desire and defenders.

Arsenal missing Olivier Giroud

Often a figure of ridicule, however, Arsenal fans would’ve loved to have seen their injured Frenchman leading the line tonight. The jury is still out on Deadline Day signing Danny Welbeck and, after that performance, the former Manchester United striker won’t be keeping Oli G out once he returns from the sidelines.

Mesut Ozil needs to be dropped

When you’re a club’s record signing, the pressure to deliver is greater than anything they will have experienced before.

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Since his arrival from Real Madrid, Ozil has been on the decline which has brought out the critics in full force.

Maybe a few games on the bench will help the German international recharge his batteries and rediscover his devastating form?

Manchester City manager Roberto Mancini claimed that his side’s 3-2 Premier League defeat to Manchester United was undeserved.

The Sky Blues went behind to a last minute Robin van Persie free-kick after fighting back from a 2-0 deficit.

Mancini felt his team’s efforts over the 90 minutes deserved a share of the points:

“For 20 minutes they didn’t touch the ball and the first chance they got, they scored a goal,” The Italian told SkySports after the game.

“We recovered very well and we dominated the second half.

“We wanted to win the game and we had chances.”

Despite the relatively early stage of the season, speculation had been rife in to the build up to the game that the winners would have a clear advantage in the title battle.

The Red Devils moved six points clear of their rivals at the top of the table, but Mancini feels that the fight is far from over:

“We have showed we are a really strong team and we can win this title again. We can’t win always.

“There is a moment when you lose at home and it happened today. But the season is a long one.

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“We won the league with the last touch of the ball last year. But we didn’t deserve to lose this game. We played very well.”

Wayne Rooney struck twice to give United a 2-0 lead, before goals from Yaya Toure and Pablo Zabaleta levelled.

Van Persie provided the winner as his deflected free-kick evaded Joe Hart.