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Amidst Rangers’ first Scottish Premiership title win in ten years, the inevitable debate revolving around Steven Gerrard and the managerial hotseat at Liverpool soon followed.

There have previously been suggestions that FSG could be lining up the former Reds’ midfielder for the role at Anfield should Jurgen Klopp depart in the near future.

Despite former Reds’ hero Mark Lawrenson stating that the 40-year-old is “not ready” for the job, it could soon be time for Gerrard to take his fledgling coaching career to the next level.

Initially, it is clear that the former midfielder has had a dramatic impact on Rangers. Appointed in June 2018, he has transformed the Glasgow outfit from a side perennially in the shadow of fierce rivals to one capable of toppling the Hoops’ monopoly in Scotland.

Their first title in ten years then is a remarkable achievement, highlighted by Gerrard’s “emotional” response at the team’s coronation.

Whilst not the strongest league in Europe, the way he has gone about getting Rangers back to the top has been impressive.

The Gers have been unstoppable this season, currently undefeated after 32 matches of the campaign, a fantastic achievement regardless of the league.

Their goalscoring has also been comparable to Liverpool in their title-winning season. The likes of Alfredo Morelos, Ryan Kent and James Tavernier have helped the club to a stunning record of 77 goals in just 32 matches at a rate of 2.4 per game.

This style of play would surely go down extremely well at Anfield considering the attacking talents on offer at the club.

On the topic of the Reds, it could soon be the perfect time to make a change.

The reigning Premier League champions have faltered in their title defence, leading to rumours Jurgen Klopp could depart. Of course, it would be a sad end to a fruitful relationship between the German and the Merseysiders but a managerial switch could be a necessity at the club in the near future if things don’t show signs of improvement.

Liverpool would certainly have to take caution in appointing a former hero after Frank Lampard’s sacking at Chelsea proved that hiring a young ex-player doesn’t always work.

However, with more patience compared to Roman Abramovich’s ruthless approach at Stamford Bridge, the Reds could see Gerrard thrive at Anfield at some point in the near future.

AND in more news, have a look at why the Reds must also bring Danny Ings back to Anfield…

Southampton are reportedly interested in signing goalkeeper Fernando Pacheco from Deportivo Alaves this summer and, if he were to join, he could usurp both Alex McCarthy and Fraser Forster and become first choice under Ralph Hasenhuttl.

According to reports from Spanish outlet El Gol Digital, Leeds United and Southampton are keen on signing the 28-year-old shot-stopper this summer, with both reportedly willing to pay the €10m (£8.6m) that Alaves would demand for their number one.

The former Real Madrid youngster has been a mainstay in Alaves’ side for the past six years since joining on a free transfer from Los Blancos, making 207 appearances, in which he has conceded 257 goals and kept 67 clean sheets.

The football scouting website FBref rates Pacheco highly when it comes to passing, as he scores 95/100 for his passes over 40 yards completed. In the same statistic, McCarthy scores a measly 2/100.

It seems as if the Spanish ‘keeper also has the advantage when it comes to saving shots, as he scores 98/100 for the expected goals per shot he faces, meaning he concedes far less than expected, whereas McCarthy scores 82/100 in this statistic.

It has been suggested that McCarthy has had the edge over Forster for much of the season because of his ability with the ball at his feet, but it seems clear that Pacheco would be an upgrade from this perspective, with WhoScored also suggesting that his main strength as a goalkeeper is his long passing.

Forster has been between the sticks for recent games against Everton and Sheffield United and, whilst he boasts an impressive clean sheet record on his rare appearances this season, it seems clear that Hasenhuttl sees him as second choice behind McCarthy.

The former Celtic loanee is also 32 and McCarthy is 31, and whilst that isn’t particularly old for a goalkeeper, Pacheco is 28 and therefore could be a fixture in this Southampton team for the next few years he were to join.

Considering Alaves currently sit 19th in La Liga, it seems likely that if Southampton were to come knocking in the summer following Alaves’ possible relegation from the Spanish top flight, then Pacheco could be easily convinced by a move to the south coast of England.

Therefore, Martin Semmens should definitely try and bring him to the Premier League, as the statistics seem to suggest that he would fit in well in Hasenhuttl’s side and could be an upgrade on both McCarthy and Forster.

In other news… Southampton handed big boost in hopes of axing £40k-p/w flop this summer

Glasgow Rangers fans have been reacting to a claim from Slavia Prague’s Alexander Bah that Gers fans stormed Ibrox after Thursday’s Europa League clash.

The 55-time Scottish champions were knocked out of the competition after losing 2-0 to Slavia at home and 3-1 across the two legs. However, the game was marred by a number of unsavoury incidents. Kemar Roofe committed a terrible challenge on Slavia goalkeeper Ondrej Kolar, while Ondrej Kudela allegedly racially abused Rangers midfielder Glen Kamara.

The fall-out has continued since the final whistle, and now Danish defender Bah has had his say on the events. He has claimed Rangers fans stormed the stadium in the aftermath of the game (Bold.dk) – but it appears that may not be the case. Journalist Graeme Hanna shared a picture from the outside of Ibrox after the game, and there was not a person in sight.

He shared the photo on Twitter, and it attracted plenty of attention from the Gers supporters. They took to the social media platform to share their anger.

Let’s see what the fans had to say about the claim from Bah

“No one there as everyone is in the stadium, clearly”

Credit: @scaricus

“Connor Goldson is spot on, nothing will change while clubs and fellow players are lying to cover up what has actually happened. And this nonsense about it having been a dirty game, totally unbelievable!!”

Credit: @JBallany

“Slavia digging that hole deeper and deeper. Fans inside Ibrox…”

Credit: @55titles2021

“He’s a blatant lier and knows it… Been told by the club to say this”

Credit: @mightyger55

“Absolutely vile it’s been lie after lie after lie”

Credit: @conaghan_kathie

“We all know it’s a total lie. They are trying everything to deflect away the attention from what their player did. Seems to be used quite a lot in Scotland at the moment by certain people.”

Credit: @S_The_Invisible

In other news, Alan Hutton believes this Rangers ace may leave Ibrox this summer.

According to a report by El Gol Digital, Tottenham summer signing Sergio Reguilon wishes to return to Spain after falling into an ‘unstable project’ in north London, coming as a potential blow for manager Jose Mourinho and the Lilywhites.

Tottenham dealt potential Reguilon blow

Reguilon has arguably been impressive since joining from Real Madrid in 2020, with a report from Football Insider at the back end of last year describing him as ‘phenomenal’ in training.

He has also been a regular for Mourinho since signing at Hotspur Way, starting 16 Premier League matches whilst grabbing three assists in that time (WhoScored). He is in the top four Spurs performers for both tackles and interceptions per game over the course of the season (WhoScored).

Providing an update on Reguilon’s future amid the presence of a buy-back Real Madrid clause, El Gol Digital have provided a potentially alarming claim.

Transfer Tavern take

The Spanish outlet stated that he now wishes to return to Spain, preferably with his former club Sevilla, as the 24-year-old emerges as a top target for Los Palanganas at left-back.

A potential blow in Spurs’ wishes to keep Reguilon, it is stated by El Gol Digital that he wants to go back to his homeland amid this interest, but only time will tell what comes of the report.

One of only two left-back options, it’s safe to say that Mourinho will not want to lose the Spaniard after a solid debut season.

In other news: Tottenham have identified a potentially ‘perfect’ heir to Mourinho, find out more here.

Seven years ago to the very day, Wolves took 10,000 fans to Stadium MK when the club were sat in League One.

It was a period of time that Wolves spent in the doldrums of the football league, but that day will stand tall as one of their proudest moments, certainly from a supporter’s perspective.

In early 2014, a group of fans sat down in a pub and embarked on the project of taking 10k to Milton Keynes. Then, in March 2014, they achieved exactly that.

Decked out in Old Gold, their supporters witnessed a 1-0 win thanks to a goal from Liam McAlinden.

Wolves have come a considerable way since. McAlinden is now playing in League Two for Morecambe while the Molineux outfit have now even competed in Europe again.

They have spent a considerable sum of money and have established a partnership with super-agent Jorge Mendes. He has a number of Wolves players and the manager, Nuno Santo, on his books at Gestifute.

He has helped take Wolves to the next level but he could be on the verge of making his biggest deal yet with the Midlands club.

That’s because according to sensational reports in Spain (via The Express), Cristiano Ronaldo is being linked with a move back to the Premier League.

Ronaldo’s future at Juventus is currently in doubt and because of his agent’s ties with Wolves, a natural link has been drawn.

It is, of course, incredibly farfetched to think one of the best footballers of all time could end up at Molineux but it’s a prospect worth drooling over.

Wolves have been desperately poor in attack this season with club-record signing Fabio Silva scoring just twice since his £35.6m arrival. Willian Jose has hardly set the world alight either, failing to find the back of the net after moving in January.

Merely improving their forward line in the summer is crucial, but adding Ronaldo would be mind-blowing.

He is one of the greatest to grace the football world and has won four Ballon d’Or trophies; the latest of which was awarded to him in 2020.

The forward is now 36 years old but age is no barrier to the Portuguese legend. His performances for Juventus have defied description with the veteran racking up 30 goals this term, taking his tally in black and white to 95 since he joined from Real Madrid.

This is a player who has earned copious amounts of praise during his career, but two comments stick out when assessing just what Ronaldo is.

Writing about the icon in his book, Sir Alex Ferguson said: “He possessed an unbelievable talent. I can place everything on that list: training performances, strength, courage, skill with either foot, heading ability.”

When comparing Ronaldo to a certain Lionel Messi, Robbie Savage told BT Sport: “Both are from a different planet, both work incredibly hard, but for me Ronaldo edges it because he’s done it in England, Spain, Italy and for his country.”

We don’t need to tell you why this would be a good deal for Wolves; the statistics, honours and appraisals paint a perfect picture.

This would be one of the biggest moments in the club’s history.

AND in other news, Bye-bye Neto: Wolves must sign “complete” £140k-p/w gem whose “shot is incredible”…

Carlo Ancelotti and Marcel Brands dodged a £13m bullet in Everton’s failed bid to sign Parma striker Joshua Zirkzee on loan from Bayern Munich this January.

What’s the word?

According to Sky Sport Germany, all indications currently point to Zirkzee returning to the Allianz Arena at the end of the season after a sobering first few months on loan with Parma.

The Serie A side acquired the 19-year-old during the winter market in a half-season deal which carries a €15m (£13m) option to buy, but are yet to see anywhere near the best of what the Netherlands under-21 international has to offer.

Zirkzee has lived life on the fringes since his arrival at the Stadio Ennio Tardini, with head coach Roberto D’Aversa so far offering a mere 108 minutes of action over four substitute appearances.

Zirkzee is yet to start a match or score a single goal for I Crociati and missed three fixtures with a back injury, to leave his long-term future ‘more open than ever’.

Parma, Bayern and Zirkzee had high hopes for his spell in Italy to prove a success after talks over moves to Everton and Eintracht Frankfurt fell through.

Reports by the Daily Mail in January had claimed that Everton wanted to sign the Dutch forward on loan with a £9m option to buy as Ancelotti sought attacking reinforcements.

The Toffees ultimately signed Joshua King in a £2m deal with Bournemouth which could reach £5m should the Goodison Park natives look to retain the Norwegian beyond the end of the season.

Everton dodged a bullet

Everton’s decision to seemingly reject Bayern Munich’s demands of a £13m option and look toward alternative targets in the winter market has proven to be a bullet dodged, as Zirkzee has been hugely underwhelming for Parma.

Sky Sport Germany add in their report that all the hype surrounding Zirkzee has fallen silent, as his year continues to get worse after starting 2021 by receiving a three-game ban for kicking 1860 Munich goalkeeper Marco Hiller in the face while playing for Bayern’s reserves.

Bayern boss Hansi Flick scolded Zirkzee for his decline in form and actions in Germany, noting: “He’s a great talent, but talent alone isn’t always enough. It’s important to work on yourself.”

Flick was a big advocate of Zirkzee’s potential last season when he broke into the first team fold and offered a key contribution to Bayern’s charge to the Bundesliga title, claiming: “His development has been remarkable. He still has a long way to go, but this is definitely an early reward.”

However, that potential has stagnated to the point of no goals in 13 games across all competitions for Bayern and Parma this season, of which Zirkzee has only started five – four of which came with Bayern’s reserves.

It’s impossible to say how Zirkzee would have fared at Everton if working under Ancelotti in a push for Champions League football rather than with D’Aversa as Parma fight for Serie A survival, but his time in Italy makes the forward appear much more a bullet dodged than a missed opportunity from a Toffees perspective.

AND in other news, Farhad Moshiri is set to back Everton as Carlo Ancelotti eyes a 29-y/o he described as “the best” in the world…

Speaking exclusively to Football FanCast, former Aston Villa midfielder Lee Hendrie has attributed Ezri Konsa’s incredible rise this season to John Terry.

The 23-year-old, who stands six feet tall, has been one of Villa’s standout performers and arguably their best defender. In the Premier League, he has been averaging 1.3 blocks per match, the most in his squad, and is only being dribbled past 0.1 times a game (via WhoScored).

Konsa has performed so well this term that some, including ex-Tottenham player Jamie O’Hara, feel he was unlucky to miss out on Gareth Southgate’s England squad for this round of World Cup qualifiers.

Whatever the case, it has still been a good campaign for Konsa, and Hendrie believes part of that is down to the influence Villa assistant coach Terry has had on the former Brentford centre-back.

“He [Terry] guides that defensive area. I’ve seen the difference with Konsa, how better and how much he’s come on and how much his game has come on,” Hendrie told FFC in an exclusive interview. “You know, people sometimes don’t understand and don’t realise what JT would bring into that defensive structure – he would have a big say on how they play.”

Should Konsa eventually be called up to the England squad, then the Charlton Athletic academy graduate could find himself competing against the likes of Villa team-mate Tyrone Mings, Harry Maguire and John Stones, with all three central defenders currently a part of the Three Lions squad.

Manchester City fell to a shock 2-1 home defeat against Leeds United on Saturday afternoon, despite the visitors playing the whole second half with ten men.

Here are our player ratings from the game at the Etihad Stadium…

Starting XI

Ederson: 6/10

Couldn’t do anything about Stuart Dallas’ opening goal as it deflected off Ake before going in off the post. Did brilliantly to deny Raphinha after he found himself through on goal. Nutmegged for Dallas’ late winner.

Joao Cancelo: 6/10

Spotted the danger well a few times early on when Helder Costa looked to break away. Very weak defending for Leeds’ opening goal as Costa got past him twice too easily. Denied by Meslier after a shot from the edge of the box. Put in a very dangerous cross late on but there was nobody on the end of it.

John Stones: 6/10

Guilty of losing possession on a few occasions early on but had a lot of success making forward runs with the ball, which caused Leeds some problems. Started the second half in the same manner and earned City a free-kick in a dangerous position with an excellent run. Couldn’t keep pace with Dallas for his late winning goal.

Nathan Ake: 5/10

Picked up an early booking for a late challenge on Patrick Bamford and looked a bit rusty on his return to the side. Yellow card perhaps played a factor as the Dutch international was substituted shortly before the hour mark.

Benjamin Mendy: 5/10

Troubled by the runs of Raphinha early on, with the Brazilian regularly running in behind down City’s left-hand side. Struggled to get forward effectively, despite moving forward in the second half, and his shocking cross moments before his substitution summed up a poor display.

Fernandinho: 7/10

An excellent first half from the veteran midfielder as he regularly won possession back and burst forward with the ball. Brilliant run led to City’s best chance of the first half but Sterling dragged it wide. A powerful strike from the edge of the box was tipped over by Meslier but then sprinted back to deny Alioski when he was through on goal. His incisive pass to Bernardo Silva was the catalyst for City’s equaliser. Gave the ball away late on and then scythed down Raphinha

Oleksandr Zinchenko: 8/10

Put in some excellent deliveries for Torres and Stones. Pushed City forward in the second half and was denied by a brilliant save from Illan Meslier after a fierce strike from the edge of the box. Regularly put dangerous crosses into the box and was certainly one of few bright sparks for Guardiola’s side. Excelled in his midfield role, playing five key passes.

Ferran Torres: 7/10

Had a great opportunity to open the scoring from a corner but took far too long to get his shot away. Headed way over the bar from a Zinchenko free-kick when he should have done better. Struggled to get involved but then popped up with the important equaliser with a composed finish after Silva’s assist.

Bernardo Silva: 7/10

Kept things ticking over for City in midfield but was rarely involved in an attacking sense in the first half. Had a huge chance to equalise in the second half but his volley was deflected just wide. Showed his quality with a great touch and assist for Torres’ equalising goal. Fizzed an effort just wide with a few minutes remaining.

Raheem Sterling: 5/10

Guilty of another awful miss as he dragged his shot well wide after a superb run from Fernandinho. Had another half chance when he turned Torres’ cross wide of the goal. The £90m-rated forward did nothing to suggest that he should keep his place in Guardiola’s side for the important game against Dortmund on Wednesday.

Gabriel Jesus: 6/10

Poor decision making from the Brazilian in the first half as he took a shot on himself despite having Torres and Sterling available. Involved in the game-changing moment as Liam Cooper was sent off for a high tackle on the Brazilian. Took a few heavy tackles from Leeds players and struggled to get involved, although he didn’t really have any chances to score.

Subs

Ilkay Gundogan: 6/10

Immediately involved as Stones’ shot fell into his path but he couldn’t get an effort away, later volleyed well over Meslier’s bar. Put in a superb cross after some lovely dribbling in the box late on but Fernandinho headed straight at Meslier.

Phil Foden: N/A

A few nice touches aside, he was barely involved after coming on.

In other news… Bye-bye Fernandinho: Txiki should seal City swoop for PL beast loved by Klopp

Liverpool’s UEFA Champions League campaign came to an end on Wednesday evening at the hands of Real Madrid.

The Reds were not able to overturn their 3-1 deficit from the first-leg, eventually earning a stalemate against Los Blancos at Anfield.

We take a look at how Jurgen Klopp’s men rated:

Starting XI

Alisson – 7/10: Whilst not forced into too many saves by Zinedine Zidane’s men, the Brazilian performed at exactly the right time for Liverpool by denying both Vinicius Jr. and Karim Benzema in quick succession in the second-half.

Andrew Robertson  – 6/10: It was a solid if unspectacular night from the left-back. He coped well with the threats of Ferland Mendy and Marco Asensio down the Real Madrid right but his final product ended up disappointing on one too many occasions.

Ozan Kabak – 6/10: The Turk did not do all too much wrong having kept Los Blancos quiet in his time on the pitch. He was replaced somewhat out of consequence with Liverpool pushing for a couple of goals after a steady hour.

Nathaniel Phillips – 7/10: The 24-year-old produced what was arguably one of his most impressive performances in a Reds’ shirt by keeping the likes of Karim Benzema, Marco Asensio and Vincius Jr. quiet. He was evaded late on by the French striker but in the end was not punished for that. Phillips eventually produced a team-high four interceptions.

Trent Alexander-Arnold – 8/10: By far the best of Liverpool’s defence, the Reds’ academy graduate was hugely impressive going forwards and in defence. According to WhoScored, he produced two tackles and three interceptions, whilst also contributing a huge six key passes. Alexander-Arnold will certainly have felt unfortunate to have not at least notched a couple of assists.

Fabinho – 6/10: Whilst the former Monaco man was an ever-solid presence in the Liverpool midfield, he did not stand out too much. His defensive awareness was probably not what the Reds needed.

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James Milner – 5/10: Retaining his spot in place of Thiago Alcantara, the veteran midfielder did not contribute all too much but for a booming effort from range that was well tipped over from range. He was the victim of a crunching challenge from Casemiro in the first-half and did not appear to regain his footing, eventually being replaced by Thiago.

Georginio Wijnaldum – 6/10: Having previously starred against another Spanish club in the form of Barcelona a few seasons ago, the Dutchman could not replicate that performance against Real. Wijnaldum was tidy on the ball with his 87.9% pass accuracy but simply did not threaten enough going forwards.

Sadio Mane – 5/10: Another hugely quiet evening for the Senegalese as his inconsistent run in front of goal continues. Mane certainly looked off-colour again versus Real having had just one shot and lost the ball on five occasions with poor touches. The £90m-rated star was eventually replaced late on after his shocker.

Mo Salah – 6/10: His impressive Champions League record has finally come to an end. Having scored in each of his last four games in the competition, he looked the most likely to find the net having had three shots but he was not accurate enough. His evening was summed up with a second-half left-footed effort that drifted harmlessly over.

Roberto Firmino – 6/10: Another of the Liverpool attack to have an under-par evening, Firmino also did not seem to have his shooting boots on. He really should have scored midway through the second-half but was replaced by Xherdan Shaqiri.

Substitutes

Thiago Alcantara – 5/10: As has been seen in the past, the Spaniard really did not affect the game all too much against Real Madrid. He played some nice cross-field passes but that was the limit of his contribution after he replaced Milner.

Diogo Jota – 6/10: Initially looked a threat after his introduction with his pace and was somewhat unfortunate to maybe not have scored but faded towards the closing stages.

Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain – 6/10: Despite not being on the pitch for long enough to really get a fair rating, the former Arsenal man turned one of his typical performances, being full of effort and endeavour.

Xherdan Shaqiri – 5/10: Did not have enough time on the pitch to have a contribution.

AND in more news, Liverpool made the wrong choice in signing Kostas Tsimikas last summer…

Daniel Pinder, the editor-in-chief of Get German Football News, has exclusively told Football FanCast that he believes there are similarities between Tottenham manager target Julian Nagelsmann and Mauricio Pochettino’s coaching styles.

Nagelsmann is now the bookies’ favourite to become the next Tottenham manager following the recent sacking of Jose Mourinho, who was relieved of his duties at Spurs on Monday morning.

Like Pochettino, Nagelsmann started his managerial career at a young age, leading Hoffenheim into the Champions League in his first full season in management before becoming the Leipzig manager back in 2019.

And the German has continued his excellent work with Leipzig, reaching last season’s Champions League semi-finals, plus securing consecutive third-place finishes in the Bundesliga, with the possibility of going one better this campaign.

Pochettino produced similar work at Tottenham, making them top four regulars, whilst memorable reaching the Champions League in his last full season in north London.

And when speaking to Football FanCast, Pinder has drawn comparisons between the two:

“I haven’t seen much of Pochettino at PSG, but during that Champions League run at Spurs, they played extremely well and I think given their form during the league at the time, his sacking was a surprise.

“There are similarities between him [Nagelsmann] and Pochettino – they like to press high up the pitch, like to play quick, fast, football get the ball up front and play like that.”