Author: Frank G. Barnes

Purveyor of footy since the 90s. Favor the Premier League and old school Serie A with a touch of Bundesliga. More than a touch. Professional writer for 20 years, covering every sport but now focused on the Premier League and world football. You won't be able to guess my favorite team.
Mikel Arteta serves up brilliant Ben White, Piero Hincapie, and Cristhian Mosquera injury news
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Mikel Arteta serves up brilliant Ben White, Piero Hincapie, and Cristhian Mosquera injury news

Arsenal just lost Ezri Konsa to an injury over the September and October international break with the England national team, and while Mikel Arteta is giving him a chance to play in this huge matchup against underdogs Leeds United, who find themselves in the top five, he is a game time decision. The good news is that Arsenal do not have to push Konsa, because they can choose among a grab bag of four different defenders to start at center back, including Konsa, as three more key players are available. Arteta told reporters before facing the Peacocks that Ben White, Piero Hincapie, and Cristhian Mosquera are all back and available for selection on Matchday 6 against a team similar in underdog status to the side Arsenal lost 3-0 in Brighton. The Arsenal manager said of Hincapie and M...
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Transfermarkt isn’t making life easier for Florian Wirtz
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Transfermarkt isn’t making life easier for Florian Wirtz

Florian Wirtz is the latest young, stellar talent to suffer the wrath of a high price tag on the transfer market, as the Liverpool attacking midfielder is failing to help his team or show real end product since his 100 million pound signing from Bayer Leverkusen. A two time Bundesliga Player of the Season who went undefeated under Xabi Alonso, Wirtz's Liverpool was worse off last season and has not meaningfully recovered, with Wirtz failing to get enough goals or assists and barely creating more chances than an average No. 10 in English football. Transfermarkt recently updated their transfer valuations to start the 2026/27 season, and with Wirtz continuing to make little impact, he received the biggest dock of any player in the world in transfer value. Wirtz has lost 42 million po...
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Chelsea are eyeing the biggest dream replacement for Enzo Fernandez
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Chelsea are eyeing the biggest dream replacement for Enzo Fernandez

Chelsea sold Enzo Fernandez this past summer transfer window to Manchester City after Real Madrid rejected him and the Argentinian international demanded to leave the club still. The Blues did not sign anyone to replace him, and they have been hurting in the midfield, currently 10th in the Premier League table with Xabi Alonso badly lacking that general. According to a report from Diario Sport in Catalunya, Chelsea are interested in signing Barcelona superstar center midfielder Frenkie de Jong, who has remained in Barcelona despite years of transfer speculation. While De Jong is a multi time La Liga winner and one of the best metronomes in the world, after Barca signed Rodri and with young guns coming up like Marc Bernal and Marc Casado, perhaps the right offer could tempt Barca a...
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Gary Neville finally told the bitter truth about Cristiano Ronaldo’s second stint at Manchester United
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Gary Neville finally told the bitter truth about Cristiano Ronaldo’s second stint at Manchester United

Manchester United legend Cristiano Ronaldo was the best player in the world in his first stint at the club and made sure the Red Devils stayed on top, but his second stint as a veteran who had already conquered football was a disaster. Although Cris was amazing in the 2021/22 season as a goal-scorer, Man United almost seemed to go backwards as a team. And while he was right about a lot of the criticisms of Erik ten Hag and the club on his way out, his exit did not sit well with many fans, and neither did his lack of work rate on the pitch or his treatment of some of the young players. Speaking on The Overlap podcast, another Manchester United legend and Cristiano's former teammate Gary Neville spoke unkindly of Cris's second stint at the club, pointing out that he did not show the sa...
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Myles Lewis-Skelly said how every Arsenal fan feels about Mikel Merino
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Myles Lewis-Skelly said how every Arsenal fan feels about Mikel Merino

Young Arsenal star Myles Lewis-Skelly is developing into quite the press resistant stud in the middle of the park, joining a stacked group of midfielders that includes Ballon d'Or candidate Declan Rice, new star Bruno Guimaraes, and the borderline world class Spanish duo of Martin Zubimendi and Mikel Merino. Of all those five great players, Merino is the one whose greatness tends to go the most underrated, even after winning the World Cup and Premier League with all the clutch goals, including two more clutch ones in a recent UEFA Nations League win over Croatia. Any chance we can get to hype up Merino, who was class in La Liga for Real Sociedad alongside Zubi before Mikel Arteta wisely snapped him (and then Zubi himself) up, we will take it. And it sounds like MLS is the same way...
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Paul Ince said what Manchester United don’t want to admit about Andrey Santos
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Paul Ince said what Manchester United don’t want to admit about Andrey Santos

Manchester United wanted to rebuild their midfield this past summer transfer window, so they went ahead and signed two of the best young players in Carlos Baleba of Brighton and then Andrey Santos from Chelsea. While Baleba was once a top Premier League midfielder before a bad 2025/26 season with the Seagulls, Santos is only proven in Ligue 1 with Strasbourg and was not able to successfully transition to Chelsea, leading the Blues to view him as expendable for money. Santos could still come good, but, so far, Manchester United aren't getting anything out of their midfield, other than what Kobbie Mainoo is providing in bouncing back under Michael Carrick. Former Manchester United star Paul Ince has pointed this out, and he is wondering why Man United signed Santos instead of trusti...
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Sky Sports confirms tremendous Amad Diallo injury news for Manchester United
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Sky Sports confirms tremendous Amad Diallo injury news for Manchester United

Manchester United star right winger Amad Diallo has been missing in action for more than a month now after taking a knock to his ankle. After returning to practice, he has been targeting this weekend's big game against Tottenham Hotspur as his return date after the September and October international break. According to a report from Danyal Khan of Sky Sports, after his return to practice and his ability to, per Michael Carrick, practice a little bit, the Ivory Coast international is expected to be back against Spurs. Now, Diallo isn't guaranteed to be back, of course, but, at this point, it would be a huge surprise if he was not out there. Now, since he has been out for more than a month and is a young gem Man United have to protect, it is less likely he starts. But any Diallo is...
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Xabi Alonso’s Jamie Gittens injury news isn’t as harsh as what Chelsea fans think
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Xabi Alonso’s Jamie Gittens injury news isn’t as harsh as what Chelsea fans think

Jamie Gittens was one of the best players in the Bundesliga in the 2024/25 season, especially in the first half before Niko Kovac made the tactics more defensive so that Borussia Dortmund could actually stay in Champions League qualification. But since his approximately 50 million pound transfer to Chelsea, Gittens has been a disaster. Instead of looking like the improved player at Dortmund who was one of the best in Europe at taking defenders on, Gittens has been back to falling over the ball and carrying no goal threat. According to Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso at the press conference before Chelsea vs. Bournemouth, Gittens is injured and won't play against the Cherries. Furthermore, he won't even be available for weeks. Alonso said, "Jamie Gittens is out for tomorrow, that’s the...
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Liverpool fans will cringe at the latest Virgil van Dijk transfer news
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Liverpool fans will cringe at the latest Virgil van Dijk transfer news

At 35 years old, Virgil van Dijk and Liverpool are going to have to continue to contemplate the star center back's future, because he doesn't have a long term one at Anfield anymore, as sad as that is to say. But VVD is still going strong as one of the top center backs in the Premier League, forging a heck of a partnership with Jeremy Jacquet. And as a great leader and club legend, Kopites obviously don't want to see him gone if he is still playing at a high level. On an expiring contract, the big boys in Saudi Arabia and Turkey are vulturing for a potential transfer, and Fotomac in Turkey reports that the infamous Galatasaray are interested in bringing him over as a rival to Mohamed Salah on Trabzonspor. Per Fotomac, Van Dijk's old Manchester City rival Ilkay Gundogan is trying t...
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Xabi Alonso gave the Estevao update Chelsea fans needed to hear
9Oct By Frank G. BarnesNo Comments
Analysis

Xabi Alonso gave the Estevao update Chelsea fans needed to hear

Chelsea star right winger Estevao has only been able to play a couple of minutes here and there this season after a torn hamstring a couple of months ago, as the Blues have been wisely, slowly easing the way back for their biggest young gem on a squad filled with young gems. Estevao has a chance to become one of the best right wingers in the world, and after the September and October international break, Chelsea fans are dying to know when the 19 year old will be able to start again alongside an improved Chelsea attack after the signing of blockbuster left winger and attacking midfielder Morgan Rogers. Xabi Alonso gave an update on Estevao before Chelsea face Bournemouth in the return of the Premier League on Matchday 6, and it sounds like it won't be long before Chelsea rev up Estev...
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