Saido Berahino scores four as West Brom sweep aside Gateshead in the FA Cup Third Round. Bafetimbi Gomis serves up a brace and a pair of assists as Swansea trounce Tranmere, whilst Leonardo Ulloa heads Leicester past an injury-hit Newcastle.
Berahino Notches Four in Baggies’ Stroll
Tony Pulis engineered his first win as West Brom boss with a 7-0 hammering of Gateshead yesterday. The new man in charge named seven of the XI that started against West Ham on Thursday, with Ben Foster, Joleon Lescott, Andre Wisdom and Youssouf Mulumbu dropping out for Boaz Myhill, Craig Dawson, Sebastian Pocognoli and Victor Anichebe.
Whilst Anichebe, James Morrison and Chris Brunt all grabbed a goal apiece, the star of the show was unquestionably Saido Berahino – handed another start by the new manager, he notched four times to suggest that his recent spell on the bench was fundamental to the slump in form which ultimately led to Alan Irvine’s dismissal. The youngster was afforded just one start in the last five league matches of Irvine’s spell in charge but has now scored five times in two first XI appearances since the Scot’s departure, after grabbing the equaliser at West Ham. If the Baggies are to stay up, he looks vital to their prospects ahead of an excellent run of matches (HUL, eve, TOT, bur, SWA, sun), though with speculation mounting over his future, it remains to be seen whether he’ll still be at the Hawthorns by the end of the transfer deadline.
Berahino’s failure to celebrate any of his goals merely heightened suggestions that he’s looking for a way out, though post-match, his manager reckoned otherwise:
“The kid’s a very talented lad. He has great ability and scores goals. I’m looking forward to working with him. Someone told me he didn’t celebrate. But people want to see how happy he was in the dressing room. He was happy in there. It was nice to see the players go over – that showed unity. I haven’t trained or worked with him but he looks talented.”
Gomis Stakes a Claim
Garry Monk made nine alterations from the side that drew against QPR on Thursday as Swansea made their way to Tranmere. Only Nathan Dyer and Bafetimbi Gomis kept their starting berths and, with Wilfried Bony now off to the Africa Cup of Nations, the Frenchman suggested that, with consistency of starts, he could be a viable alternative to the Ivorian for our three-man frontlines. Gomis produced two goals and a pair of assists in a 6-2 rout, with Tom Carroll, Nathan Dyer, Mo Barrow and Wayne Routledge also getting amongst the goals as the Swans’ strength in depth proved decisive. Gomis is priced at just 6.5 in the Fantasy Premier League game, but with West Ham, Chelsea and Southampton in the next three, the fixtures could be kinder.
After the match, the Swans boss reserved praise for Gomis’s display, with the Frenchman hoping to stave off the challenge of on-loan Nelson Oliveira for the lone forward role in Bony’s absence:
“Strikers thrive on goals. Bafe is a quality striker, I’ve said that all along. It was a good performance from him and hopefully he takes that into this run of games coming up. He has shown glimpses of what he can do but the goals will do him good.”
Ulloa Sees Foxes Through
Nigel Pearson made seven changes from the side that salvaged a late draw at Liverpool on New Year’s Day, as Tom Lawrence, David Nugent, Leonardo Ulloa, Anthony Knockaert, Liam Moore, Esteban Cambiasso and Paul Konchesky all started at home to Newcastle. In spite of the numerous alterations, the Foxes maintained the momentum from the 2-2 draw on Merseyside by grabbing a 1-0 win, after Matty James teed up Ulloa to head home off the underside of the bar.
Ulloa has been utilised sparingly over the winter period, and with his manager citing fatigue, the Argentine has managed just two lots of 90 minutes since October. With Riyad Mahrez now off on international duties, though, Ulloa’s contribution in the final third looks vital as the Foxes prepare to welcome Villa, Stoke and Palace to the King Power in the next four.
Cambiasso is a doubt after being forced off with a thigh injury yesterday, whilst Pearson also rolled out an update on Jeffrey Schlupp. The Ghana international scored his third league goal of the season on Thursday before being forced off with a knee problem and his manager admitted that there are question marks hanging over Schlupp’s participation in the upcoming Africa Cup of Nations:
“He had a scan yesterday (Friday). It (his participation) depends on the results of the scan and the rules and regulations of the tournament, but our priority is our player. We’ll do what we need to do in terms of rehab, and if he goes and plays in the tournament, then that’s all well and good for him, if he doesn’t and he has to stay behind, then fine. It’s one of those where first and foremost, if he picks an injury up while he’s playing for us, then we’ll make sure we take the steps that we need to take to make sure that his welfare is put top of the list.”
Injury-Hit Magpies Limp Out
Caretaker boss John Carver made seven changes for the visit to Leicester as Davide Santon, Mike Williamson, Massadio Haidara, Vurnon Anita, Haris Vuckic, Adam Armstrong and Remy Cabella all earned starts in the 1-0 defeat. Having made the bench in the 3-3 draw with Burnley, Santon returned to the starting line-up – his first appearance in the XI for nine months – whilst Carver opted to rest Ayoze Perez and rolled out a 4-3-3, with Armstrong and Cabella on either side of Emmanuel Riviere.
After the match, Carver defended his team selection as the Magpies exited the cup at the first hurdle and cited a number of injuries to key first-team players:
“I put out the strongest team today other than Ayoze Perez. If you had seen him after Burnley or the following morning at the training ground, he’d run out of fuel. For me to take a massive gamble 48 hours later would have been too big a gamble…Daryl Janmaat had a problem with his groin. Moussa Sissoko – both of his hamstrings were tight and I didn’t want to risk that. Coloccini had a problem with a nerve leading into his buttock. Steven Taylor we lost because of a snapped Achilles. Even this morning we had Jack Colback with us as he travelled with us despite having a tight hamstring. Unfortunately he felt worse this morning. That’s why I didn’t take the gamble and he wasn’t even on the bench.”
