Maybe a case of careful what you wish for and if we go 4 games losing without scoring again I’ll be begging him back but -

I’d love to see a team with Eze and Olisse supporting Edouard from the wings whilst Gallagher goes through the middle. We could finally do some real damage and drop the ‘1 man team’ tag if we get this right.

We have Zaha in the Ivory Coast squad, and though Ghana and Senegal haven't named their squads yet, I expect Ayew and Schlupp will probably be selected for the former, and Kouyaté for the latter. All three nations have strong squads and will expect to stay in the tournament until the latter stages.

Meanwhile back in Blighty, Eze and Olise could play either side of benteke, with Edouard able to play in all three positions across the front, so I think we'll be OK up top. Perhaps Rak-Sahki will get a sniff as well.

In midfield, Hughes has looked pretty good, and we have Luka available again, plus possibly McArthur at some stage. Gallagher remains, and can't be recalled by Chelsea even if they wanted to.

On top of all this, I doubt all the planned fixtures will proceed, so the four African players won't miss as many games as they might have done.

Good luck to all four of them in their continental championship endeavours.

Edited by TheBigToePunt (24 Dec 2021 9.30am)

Kouyate is in Senegal squad

The Transfer window starts on the 1st Jan, maybe a couple of loans could help out, midfielder would be ideal

“That’s a joke son, I say, that’s a joke.” “Nice boy, but he’s sharp as a throw pillow.” “He’s so dumb he thinks a Mexican border pays rent” “ “Son… I say, son, some people are so narrow minded they can look through a keyhole with both eyes.”__ Forhorn Leghorn