Mauricio Pochettino has been influential in Tottenham Hotspur’s rise in the Premier League and Europe.
The Argentine took over at the North London outfit in 2014 after leaving Southampton, and in the last two seasons he has guided the club to third and second in the top flight respectively.
In the current campaign, the title looks beyond them as Manchester City have a 16-point lead over the rest of the pack.
In the Champions League, though, Tottenham are impressing having already held their own against Real Madrid in the group stage.
On Tuesday night, the team came from behind to earn a 2-2 draw with Italian giants Juventus thanks to goals from Harry Kane and Christian Eriksen.
According to The Telegraph, the club are keen to tie Pochettino down to a new contract, which will include a pay rise, if the Argentine snubs interest from Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain.
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The publication claims that Tottenham are keen for the manager to take the team into next season when they move into a state-of-the-art new stadium.
Fans have been giving their reactions to the news about Pochettino’s future.
Much of the transfer talk surrounding Real Madrid prior to the outset of the World Cup was of the futures of Karim Benzema and Luis Suarez. The need for Los Blancos to satisfy their craving for a big-name signing comes with it a cluster of transfer rumours, and following the ignominy of Suarez’s biting debacle, Florentino Perez’s sights seem to have turned to Colombia’s newest star, James Rodriguez.
The 22-year-old was forced into the limelight this summer when his Monaco teammate, Radamel Falcao, was ruled out of the World Cup this summer after failing to recover from serious damage to his anterior cruciate ligament. He has taken the responsibility in his stride, currently topping the goal scoring chart with five goals to supplement his claim to be the current player of the tournament.
As rumours persist that the Colombian is set for a second big-money move in as many years, once again, it appears as though the business of Real Madrid could be inextricably linked to that of Arsenal. Last time, the deal to bring in Gareth Bale resulted in Mesut Ozil completing a record move to Arsenal. This time, the Gunners are looking to cash-in on Angel Di Maria’s uncertainty.
Madrid have never been ones to pass up an opportunity to sign a star name, even if it involves offloading one of their current stars in order to accommodate. Even after his best campaign yet in the Madrid white, Di Maria appears to be surplus to requirements.
Di Maria capped off an outstanding season with a man-of-the-match display in the Champions League final. He’s one of the more understated heroes of Madrid’s double-winning campaign, and a big player in the fortunes of Argentina’s World Cup success too.
It’s well-documented that Arsene Wenger is on the lookout for more attacking power this summer. Much of the backlash of their collapsed pursuit of the Premier League title focused on the lack of strength in depth in attack. The long-term absence of Theo Walcott, Aaron Ramsey, Jack Wilshere, and Mesut Ozil saw their attacking potency seriously reduced as the season wore on.
Rumours surrounding potential moves for the likes of Julian Draxler and Antoine Griezmann suggest that the Gunners’ boss is keen to add a player of Di Maria’s ilk to Arsenal’s squad. A creative player who has the capacity to fill wide or central positions, who can add pace, trickery, and an eye for goal seems to be the order of the day. Whilst Lukas Podolski deputised admirably towards the end of the season, there seems to be a general consensus that he lacks the requisite quality to have an impact in the big games.
Di Maria’s versatility is another feature of his game which is particularly noteworthy. The shift to a deeper midfield role under Carlo Ancelotti this season was largely forced upon him, but he took it in his stride, combining an incredible work ethic in performing his defensive duties whilst also bursting forwards, initiating attacks from the centre, either through surging runs or cutting through balls.
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As Madrid’s hierarchy seem focused in on the new flavour of the month, the policy of ‘out with the old, in with the new’ persists. Di Maria’s qualities may be deemed old news at Real Madrid, but plenty of clubs will be keen on securing his signature if he is on his way out. If Arsenal fans are looking for a new Ozil, cast your eyes once more over to the Bernabeu, because he may once more be coming from that neck of the woods.
A black player’s union being formed to combat racism in football; not something you would expect to see in 2012, when we should have moved on from such barbaric and ignorant views held by a supposed minority.
The topic of racism has been splashed all over the news with Terry/ Ferdinand row dragging on for the past year; whilst repercussions from the Suarez/Evra case also dragged on, with trivial talks of handshakes and T-shirts dominating the news.
So when assessing whether a black union would undermine the work by the Kick It Out campaign, one must judge what strides the campaign has taken to eradicate racism from the game.
The PFA, who are responsible for the campaign, released a six point action plan to tackle racism which screamed of desperation in trying to get black players back on the organisation’s side.
Former Wolves striker, Noel Blake admitted he would be keen to join a black players’ union as he feels there is a lack of empathy among those dishing out punishments for racist behaviour.
This is a sound argument, as how would someone know the true effects of racist abuse without being a victim themselves?
It seems that not being in charge of their destiny is causing the likes of Blake and current players like the Ferdinand brothers to shun the campaign.
But this serious issue has been dumbed down to such a degree that we are left wondering who would wear the kick it out T-shirts during the campaign’s week in action- a chance to for the campaign to promote activities encouraging greater multi-cultural awareness and review the progress made so far.
Rio Ferdinand’s decision involving initially deciding against wearing the T-shirt provoked a backlash from Sir Alex Ferguson, who many believed at the time showed a lack of sensitivity in the issue.
Rio along with his brother Anton, made reference in a statement that they felt let down by the PFA and FA’s lack of action to combat racism in the past year, thereby giving a degree of credence to not wearing the shirts as a form of protest.
Reading striker, Jason Roberts also refused to wear the shirt, despite being on the PFA’s decision committee.
But how can racism be tackled if divisions are being created? Surely a united front needs to be presented in order to challenge racist behaviour head on?
If there is a formation of a black players union, then how would those of mixed race or Asian backgrounds who have suffered racial abuse feel?
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It could lead to an undesirable scenario where each minority feels the need to form their own union- something which the true racists would love to see.
This is discrimination its own right and in my opinion, the game’s governing bodies simply need sit down and address the concerns of those players who feel let down by a perceived lack of action in tackling the problem.
A message needs to be conveyed that we’re all in this together; something which the FA and PFA have clearly failed to do in recent months.
As reported by The Daily Mail, Rangers striker Alfredo Morelos could be set for an Ibrox exit this summer, with teams from three countries chasing his signature in the upcoming transfer window.
What’s the story?
Morelos has only been at the club for one season but has already been consistently linked with a move away from the Scottish Premiership side, with rumours surfacing in January he was set for a move to China.
That speculation looks guaranteed to rumble on throughout the summer, with The Daily Mail reporting that clubs in France, China and Turkey are all interested in making a £6m move for the player.
The paper reckon that the player’s representatives are bracing themselves for firm offers in the coming weeks.
Is he a player that the Light Blues should be looking to sell ahead of the new season?
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Is it time for Morelos to leave?
Having already spent a significant amount of money in the transfer market already, there’s no doubt that a fee like £6m would go a long way to helping Rangers this summer and ultimately that may be the determining factor in whether they sell Morelos or not.
From a purely footballing perspective though it is not time for him to leave yet. His 18 goals of last season were a decent return in his debut season at Ibrox and if Steven Gerrard can inspire the motivation fans hope, surely he will improve again next term?
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That’s the kind of attacking contribution that Rangers can’t afford to give up easily and without a replacement, selling Morelos should be one of the furthest things from their minds over the next few months.
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The sky is blue and water is wet. In other news, Tottenham Hotspur fans love Harry Winks.
The 22-year-old joined Spurs at the age of eight, and has progressed through the various academy teams into the first-team set up.
Winks, who made his England debut in October 2017, has wracked up 22 appearances for Tottenham’s first team during the 2017-18 campaign.
An ankle problem is currently keeping the midfielder on the sidelines, but he has already made 16 Premier League appearances this term, which is extremely impressive for a side that is packed full of talent in that area of the park.
Winks actually turned 22 on Friday, and as expected, Tottenham’s official Twitter account was on hand with a birthday message for the England international.
Aside from the fact that he can play, Tottenham fans relate to Winks. He is one of them.
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He is an extremely popular player with the club’s fans, and many were on hand with their own special messages. A selection of the reaction can be seen below:
Nobody can disagree that it has been a poor season for Manchester United and it is hard to see a way that it can improve.
David Moyes has taken a fair bit of stick since taking charge but surely the players need to be held accountable as some of them have massively disappointed.
Saying that, Moyes’s tactics have been baffling at times and he seems to play a certain shape and style just to accommodate players who seem to square pegs in round hols.
Here is why we think United need a new man ahead of next season:
Transfer business has been poor
Marouane Fellaini – enough said.
The Belgian defines the term panic buy and after failing to get his main summer transfer targets, Moyes simply dived in with an expensive, bad decision.
Juan Mata arrived in January, again for a lot of money, and he simply wasn’t the sort of player United needed with central midfield and defence the issues.
Tactically inept
Today against Liverpool summed up United under Moyes.
The central area in midfield was open and the wingers were not in the game. You can’t help but feel another manager would have seen that and not simply fielded a certain side based on reputation.
It seems as though the players are either being fed bad information or are simply ignoring what Moyes says.
The fans are starting to turn
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The most important part of a football club are its supporters and when they are not happy, the whole club is worse place to be.
There is no doubt that the fans at Old Trafford welcomed Moyes and have stuck by him, but with a massive rival defeat today coupled with possibly/probably going out of the Champions League in midweek it is starting to turn.
God knows what sort of state the fans will be in after the Manchester derby next week.
Stoke City boss Tony Pulis has revealed that his star defender Ryan Shawcross will not be leaving the club in the January transfer window.
Since moving from Manchester United to Stoke in 2008, the defender has gone from strength to strength.
His form has been rewarded with a call up to the last two England squads for the World Cup qualifiers against San Marino and Poland.
One of the biggest compliments that Shawcross could receive was the praise from Sir Alex Ferguson in Saturday’s match programme the Scotsman said he wished to have kept Shawcross.
Ferguson revealed that the reason why he let Shawcross leave was because of a strong group of defenders coming through the ranks at the same time.
“We had Jonny Evans, Gerard Pique, Ryan Shawcross, Craig Cathcart, and Paul McShane, and something had to give. He told the BBC website.
“We made the right decision keeping Jonny Evans but I’m not sure about letting Shawcross join Stoke.”
However current manager Pulis has said there is no chance that he will sell the defender.
“Ryan is our captain, he is only just 25, he told BBC sport.
“We won’t see the best of him for another two or three years.”
Shawcross played in Stoke’s 4-2 defeat against Manchester United, but could not prevent defeat.
Pulis is delighted that he benefited from the arrival of the defender and that Shawcross will only continue to get better.
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“The big clubs spend a hell of a lot of money on their youth development programmes but there is always a player there who might get stuck in the traffic of people coming through, Pulis added.
“Ryan is one of them. He was a great signing and the good thing is he wants to get better. He has that desire about him.”
Yaya Toure has been making headlines over the last few days due to his controversial comments about Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola.
The Ivory Coast international, who has picked up 13 trophies in his professional career so far, gave an explosive interview to France Football.
In the piece, the 35-year-old suggested that Guardiola dislikes African players and that the successful coach was “jealous” of the midfielder.
The shocking comments have somewhat tainted Toure’s eight-year spell at the North-West outfit.
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Now, though, the former Barcelona star is looking for a new club to take him on, and his agent Dimitry Seluk has surprisingly admitted that his client will play for a salary of £1 per week.
While speaking to Sport24, Toure’s representative said:
“At a time when English clubs are spending huge sums of money on players, I officially declare that Yaya is ready to move to any top-six English club as a free agent with a salary of £1 per week. As long as a success-based bonus system is in place.”
These comments have attracted the attention of rival fans, including Tottenham Hotspur’s following.
The supporters have debated whether or not it would be a good move to bring in Toure, despite his controversial antics.
Some deem it a no-brainer, while others think that Spurs are better off without.
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According to reports in The Telegraph, West Ham United are keen to sign out of favour Inter Milan midfielder Joao Mario on loan before the January transfer window slams shut.
The Telegraph says that talks are on-going although an agreement has been reached between the two clubs, and now the east London outfit must convince the 24-year-old to move to the London Stadium.
The report adds that the Portugal international, who has struggled to make an impression following his move from FC Porto in 2016, doesn’t want to make an immediate decision and is keen to weigh up all of his options first, which will allow other teams to enter the race for his signature.
Meanwhile, Newcastle United are situated precariously above the Premier League relegation zone with just a three-point gap separating them and 18th-placed Stoke City, and the club suffered a further blow this week when owner Mike Ashley pulled out of a proposed takeover deal by PCP Captial Partners.
The situation certainly won’t have pleased manager Rafa Benitez as he looks to strengthen his squad before the end of the month, but the Spaniard will know that Ashley has to back him now and bringing Joao Mario to St James’ Park could prove to be a shrewd move.
Here are three reasons Newcastle must hijack West Ham’s bid to sign the Portuguese midfielder…
His qualities
Newcastle boss Benitez will be looking to add some quality to his squad in the remaining days of the January window if he is given the green light to bring in new players by Mike Ashley, and Joao Mario would certainly fit the bill.
The 24-year-old has plenty of experience at the highest level with FC Porto and during his time with Inter Milan – not to mention winning Euro 2016 with Portugal.
According to WhoScored.com, his main strengths are his set-pieces, making key passes and interceptions, and his dribbling ability.
Versatility
The Express reported earlier in the month that Jonjo Shelvey could complete a move to West Ham if Newcastle found a suitable replacement, and Joao Mario could the option they need to do that until the end of the season.
The 24-year-old can play in a central midfield role like Shelvey, but he can also play in a more attacking midfield position through the middle too – as he often has for Inter this season.
That versatility of being able to play alongside the likes of Isaac Hayden or Mikel Merino – as well as covering and providing competition for Ayoze Perez in the No 10 role – should make him an attractive option for Benitez.
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Loan deal
Ashley looks unlikely to back Benitez with huge transfer funds this month given his desire to sell up, and in that respect the opportunity to bring Joao Mario to St James’ Park on loan should prove to be attractive for the Magpies owner.
While the Tyneside outfit may have to cover at least a portion of his wages until the end of the season, the fact that they wouldn’t have to pay a transfer fee would certainly make the 24-year-old a viable signing, and it would be a deal that the Spanish boss would love to get over the line ahead of West Ham.
Arsenal’s win at Bayern Munich last season was the catalyst for the team’s strong finish in the Premier League, emerging from a final day slug against Tottenham’s effort for the last place in this season’s Champions League.
The win at Bayern and the qualification for Europe which followed gave Arsenal the impetus to sign Mesut Ozil and turn the club’s fortunes and image around. This season, with a higher mountain to climb and greater rewards at stake, Arsene Wenger needs to act in similar fashion to steer Arsenal towards some silverware.
The team are in a difficult place, though far from a dark one. It’s February, and unlike seasons gone by, there hasn’t been any need for serious calls of crisis. The losses to Liverpool and Bayern in recent weeks, coupled with the failure to not only beat but score against Manchester United, helps to tell a story that betrays Arsenal’s true standing at this time. They’re still very much in at least two competitions for silverware.
Last season, Wenger acted to find an attribute in his team that would combat or compensate for the weaknesses elsewhere. Uncharacteristically for the Arsenal manager’s team, it was the defence that offered the strongest foundation to build the late-season surge that saw the club finish fourth in the Premier League.
Wojciech Szczesny was dropped in favour of Lukas Fabianski for the trip to the Allianz Arena this time last year, but it’s often forgotten that Arsenal’s fine defensive display away to Sunderland a month earlier allowed Wenger to identify how Arsenal could achieve what was required of them.
This season, that excellent defensive form has continued. Bar a small handful of poor performances, Arsenal’s centre-back pairing of Per Mertesacker and Laurent Koscielny, and of course Szczesny in goal, have been among the very best in English football.
Where Arsenal need something decisive, something different, is in attack, where they’ve become predictable in the midst of a lack of willingness to invest in reinforcements.
Yaya Sanogo has come in during the last two cup games, and against heavyweight opposition in Liverpool and Bayern. Upon Olivier Giroud’s return to the starting XI this weekend against Sunderland, the French striker scored a brace, likely being fuelled by the rest afforded him, but hopefully re-focused by the very real competition provided by Wenger’s potential ace card in Sanogo.
If this is to be the course of action that sees Arsenal to a major trophy this season, then Wenger needs to continue to see it through. In the absence of Aaron Ramsey and Theo Walcott, Arsenal have been stripped of consistent, big-game firepower. In their absence, Arsenal have remained in the mix, hanging on to the coat tails of Chelsea in the league and now seeing Manchester City as the only remaining major threat in the FA Cup.
If the attack is to produce something different, Lukas Podolski needs a run in the team from the left. He may not be to Wenger’s liking in the way Santi Cazorla is from the left, but the German is a direct player, one who is Arsenal’s most dangerous in front of goal and who can work well with the holdup play of Giroud and the creative talents of Ozil.
Wojciech Szczesny was allowed the time to regroup and put himself back on the right track. Fabianski, previously one of the many scapegoats and names cast aside as totally worthless to Arsenal’s cause, stepped in and played a large part in taking Arsenal to fourth place in the league.
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If this season plays out in a similar way, Sanogo, alongside further help from Podolski, can offer Arsenal and the team’s senior striker that unlikely albeit decisive contribution.