Football365

Tottenham Hotspur are keeping tabs on AC Milan forward Noah Okafor after being alerted that he may be available for transfer in January.

Milan Live write that Okafor looks set to lose his place to former Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham, who made the move to San Siro on loan from Roma on transfer deadline day.

That could make Okafor surplus to requirements with immediate effect, and it’s claimed that Spurs are eyeing the forward with a view to a January transfer.

Tottenham are said to be willing to put forward a deal worth €20m (£16.9m) plus add-ons for the Swiss international – and Milan are said to be likely to accept such a bid.

Okafor joined Milan from Red Bull Salzburg last summer and alternated between playing on the wings and at centre-forward, but was not able to establish himself as a regular in either position in an injury-hit campaign.

The 24 year old found himself unable to nail down a first-team place even before he was ruled out with a hamstring issue in November, with the bulk of Okafor’s appearances coming from the bench.

Okafor made a goalscoring return to action the week before Christmas, playing 13 minutes as a substitute against Monza, but was then sidelined again for another four weeks.

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Although his six goals in 28 appearances doesn’t look overly impressive on its face, those goals came in just 871 minutes of Serie A action – representing a goal every 146 minutes.

That’s better than anyone in the Spurs squad managed last season bar Richarlison (11 in 1,493 minutes, or one every 136 minutes) and the little-seen Alejo Veliz (a statistically insignificant one in 45 minutes, for a strike rate of, erm, one every 45 minutes).

Okafor was included in Switzerland’s squad for Euro 2024, where they reached the quarter-finals before losing on penalties to England – but played no part in the tournament having been an unused substitute throughout.

Tottenham have made the most mixed possible start to the new Premier League season with one win, one draw and one defeat from their three games to date.

Ange Postecoglou’s side will host North London rivals Arsenal on Sunday afternoon.

These eight left the Premier League in the summer transfer window and are already thriving at their new club. Three ex-Tottenham players feature.

Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg – Tottenham to Marseille

Hojbjerg didn’t have the best of times at Tottenham but is now thriving under Roberto De Zerbi at Marseille, starting three out of three in Ligue 1 this term.

The Danish defensive midfielder has only misplaced 14 of his 331 attempted passes in three French league fixtures, completing an astounding 136 of 138 on his competitive debut. While a lot of those passes were short distance and not in the final third, it illustrates the trust De Zerbi holds in Hojbjerg and his ability to dictate games.

It’s a far cry from the Spurs version of Hojbjerg known for doing the dirty work out of possession (sometimes a little too dirty). In three Ligue 1 appearances, Hojbjerg has made eight tackles, blocked six passes, made three clearances, and seven interceptions. Being where you are appreciated can work wonders.

Pascal Gross – Brighton to Borussia Dortmund

A player who was absolutely appreciated at his former club is Pascal Gross, who was allowed to return to Germany despite his importance for Brighton. We all know Gross is a fantastic player but moving to the Champions League finalists from Brighton and walking straight into their starting XI really does emphasise it.

The Germany midfielder already has three assists for his new team and has misplaced just 18 of his 214 passes in the Bundesliga which – looking at Hojbjerg’s statistics – feels rather pathetic.

To transition into the Dortmund set-up so seamlessly is a credit to Gross and his incredible development over the last five years. He really is aging like a fine wine.

Tanguy Ndombele – Tottenham to Nice

Now then, what do we have here? We have always known about Ndombele’s talent; it was always the work ethic in massive question. It absolutely did not work out at Spurs, having joined as their record signing, which was only recently broken by Dominic Solanke’s £55million move from Bournemouth.

Nice have won, drawn and lost in their opening three Ligue 1 fixtures and Ndombele has started in every match, playing 251 of a possible 270 minutes for his new club. He has started very well, assisting on his debut but surprisingly contributing with 11 tackles, two interceptions, and three successful take-ons.

This renaissance is welcome because Ndombele is a bit of a baller, and when ballers play well, everybody wins.

Michael Olise – Crystal Palace to Bayern Munich

Leaving Crystal Palace for Bayern Munich was always going to open all kinds of doors for Olise and since making the move, he has shone at the Olympics under Thierry Henry, made his full France debut, and assisted a goal for one of the biggest clubs in world football, which came during a 14-minute cameo off the bench on his debut.

Olise deserves to be where he is after an excellent time at Selhurst Park and has started both of Bayern’s opening Bundesliga fixtures, which they have won. No goal yet for Olise this season but he is loving life in Munich and should be a regular in the France squad moving forward.

Bryan Gil – Tottenham to Girona

Another player who failed to shine at Tottenham is doing well elsewhere. It really does make you think.

Gil has earned a move to a Champions League outfit – much to our surprise – in Girona and has started all four La Liga games for them. He has one goal to show for his stellar performances but he has been heavily involved following the exit of Artem Dovbyk. He is also willing to contribute defensively, completing an impressive 12 tackles.

Thiago Silva – Chelsea to Fluminense

Age is just a number for Thiago Silva, who is running the show at Fluminense after leaving the Chelsea circus as a free agent.

Back in Brazil, Silva helped himself to four clean sheets in his first four matches and is again on a solid defensive run, with two more clean sheets coming in his side’s last two fixtures. It has been light work for Silva at Fluminense, proving that he is still a world-class defender.

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Sergio Gomez – Manchester City to Real Sociedad

The Olympics was Gomez’s top priority after securing a transfer to Real Sociedad and his start to life in La Liga has not been too bad after winning gold in Paris.

He didn’t start on matchday one but got 23 minutes on the right wing and has started every match since, being used on the right and left flanks as his new manager, Imanol Alguacil, looks to deploy him as a more attacking threat than Pep Guardiola ever did.

Gomez has one assist to his name this term but has been a real asset going forward and looks to be enjoying playing some football for a change.

Mika Biereth – Arsenal to Sturm Graz

Biereth proved himself to be a great goalscorer during loan spells at Motherwell (aye, she’s fine thanks) and Sturm Graz. He helped the latter become Austrian champions and was signed permanently due to a blocked pathway into the Arsenal starting XI.

His fine form last term has carried into 2024/25, helping himself to three goals and an assist in five Austrian Bundesliga matches.

Biereth will get a taste of the Champions League with Sturm Graz, who were given a bloody delightful draw, by the way. They will play Brest, Club Brugge, Sporting, Borussia Dortmund, Girona, Lille, Atalanta and RB Leipzig. It doesn’t get much easier than that. Not that it will be easy, mind.

Arsenal are gearing up for a huge fixture with rivals Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday and Paul Merson believes the Gunners have the deciding player.

Despite dropping points against Brighton in their last fixture, the Gunners have had a good start to the season with Mikel Arteta’s men sat on seven points and fourth in the table.

Tottenham only have four points from a possible nine this season, despite them showing dominance in their matches.

Arsenal have a number of key players out through injury, like Martin Odegaard and Riccardo Calafiori – but Merson believes the Gunners have the trump card in Raheem Sterling.

The England international signed for Arsenal in an extraordinary deadline day move on loan from Chelsea.

Speaking to Sky Sports, Merson said this on penetrating Tottenham’s high line: “In my opinion, Mikel Arteta has now got to drop Kai Havertz back into the midfield but then there’s no Gabriel Jesus to play as the striker.

“They will probably end up playing with a false nine – that should be Leandro Trossard with Raheem Sterling on the wing.

“Against this Tottenham team, you have to have players who are prepared to run without the ball to get in behind a high line and Sterling does that.”

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Sterling is one of the most decorated players in recent English history from his time under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City and will be eager to win Arteta his first Premier League trophy.

This is what Sterling had to say on his late move to the Emirates stadium: “I’m buzzing. It’s one where we left it late but it’s one I was hoping for. Looking at everything, I’m just like: ‘this is a perfect fit for me’, and I’m super happy that we got it over the line.

“It’s a perfect fit for myself to be at a football club like this, where you can see that hunger, that desire, year on year, they are pushing and pushing and pushing. That’s exactly how I am as a person.

“Each year you want to get better and do better than the previous year. Hopefully I can gel really well with the boys and get going.

“It’s time now to meet the boys, get settled in and hopefully now see some game time and make my mark.”

There is no better way for Sterling to win over Arsenal fans than with a stellar performance against their biggest rivals.

No prizes for guessing the game of the weekend, but there’s also the prospect of a Manchester United debutant beginning the trivial task of simply fixing all of their problems. It is, in short, a Big Weekend.

Game to watch: Tottenham v Arsenal

Routinely two of the best games of every Premier League season, the North London Derby almost never lets you down. We can’t decide if it’s ironic or simply very apt that two teams who so often set the benchmark for letting you down in the end almost never, ever do when they come into direct contact with each other.

This one feels like it’s beautifully set up, too. Arsenal’s injury crisis is being overplayed, of course, but is still significant. As their most vocally online fans cry about cancelling the season because Martin Odegaard might be out for a fortnight, the more thoughtful might ponder just how far they’ve come in such a short space of time that having to rely on a midfield containing three vastly experienced senior internationals in Jorginho, Thomas Partey and Kai Havertz is what now constitutes a crisis.

But it does make this all look a little bit more old Arsenal. You know, like three-years-ago Arsenal. A potentially vulnerable Arsenal, and at a time when that is least welcome, with Spurs and City away either side of the first Champions League game of the season.

Decent case to be made that if you asked Arsenal to pick any two Premier League games in which they would most fear being depleted, it would be these two. City because they are City, and Spurs because they are Spurs.

The focus has, inevitably, fallen largely on the visitors here given the assorted setbacks across the international break but really it’s Spurs who have the most questions to answer. They’ve had a very silly start to the season, largely controlling games at Leicester and Newcastle yet carelessly emerging with only a point to show from them.

This game is unlikely to look much like those, and even less like the routine 4-0 thrashing of poor old Everton, but Spurs really could do with providing some evidence that the Postecoglou Project remains on track. They’ve been really quite poor for a really quite long time now, failing to beat anyone of note since a wild 4-0 win at Aston Villa back in March. They’ve been handed an unexpectedly feasible chance of putting that right.

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Team to watch: Everton

They head into the weekend as one of only two pointless teams left in the competition, and, with Southampton in Saturday lunchtime action against Man United, Everton might even be out on their own by the time they play Aston Villa.

They’ve had two weeks to stew on that truly absurd defeat to Bournemouth before the international break, and in classic Everton style the break has been spent in a swirl of unhelpful uncertainty over further takeover talk.

They take on a Villa side who have beaten West Ham and Leicester while losing to Arsenal, and the bad news for Toffees fans is that it’s quite obvious which category of club they are currently closer to.

A 4-0 defeat at Villa was one of three straight Premier League losses Everton suffered at the start of last season, but despite the assorted bleaknesses they’ve suffered over the years they have never started a Premier League season with four defeats in a row. Yet.

Player to watch: Manuel Ugarte

Hard to think of another summer signing of whom more is expected and indeed demanded than Ugarte. The timing of his move, arriving just before the latest Casemiro Blunder Hour against Liverpool but being unable to do anything about it having not been registered in time to feature is clearly no fault of the Uruguayan but has ramped up the already massive pressure on his shoulders.

His task is a deceptively simple one. Just come in and fix – or at the very least convincingly mask – all the problems currently afflicting Manchester United. Come on, mate, crack on.

There’s no doubt Ugarte possesses the qualities and talent that United’s midfield has lacked since Casemiro fell off so badly, and it’s worth remembering just how different a side Erik ten Hag’s United were in that first season when their midfield existed.

Everything being asked of Ugarte is clearly unreasonable, but he does at least have the advantage of a relatively straightforward opening task. What looked like a catastrophic misjudgement in not having Ugarte available against Liverpool might prove an accidental masterstroke; he now gets an easier start in every way. The opposition is easier, but so too is the task of being obviously better than what was there before.

Manager to watch: Eddie Howe

All feels a touch febrile at Newcastle. They’ve made a decent enough start to the season, but there’s a fragility to it. They made hard work of beating Southampton at home, were fortunate to escape Bournemouth with a point and the performance that sneaked them past Spurs would not have beaten a less generous team.

But more than that there remains what feels like an uneasy truce between manager and boardroom after what was by any reasonable measure a messy, botched summer for a club with Newcastle’s ambition.

Key gaps in the squad have been left unfilled and Howe is entitled to feel this isn’t quite what he signed up for, even if he remains reluctant to admit out loud precisely what it is he signed up for.

And yet, here they are with seven points from nine ahead of a trip to a Wolves side smashed to bits by Chelsea – Chelsea! – in their previous home game and with Fulham to come after that.

Newcastle could quite feasibly become the first crisis club in history to have 13 points from their first five games.

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Football League game to watch: Leeds v Burnley

A Premier League team from last season travels to one who reckon they should probably be one this season, with both setting about the task of ensuring they get there next season.

Leeds had a tumultuous summer and difficult start but back-to-back wins in Yorkshire derbies have got them back on track while Burnley have gone the other way, starting with a pair of wins before defeat at Sunderland and a draw with local rivals Blackburn.

It all leaves both sides in the top six and a point apart heading into what even at this early stage looks a pretty significant fixture for the Championship promotion picture.

European game to watch: Girona v Barcelona

Barcelona take their flawless La Liga record to Girona for a Catalan derby with plenty on it. Last season’s surprise package, Girona inflicted a pair of memorable 4-2 defeats on Barca and don’t yet appear to be going away quietly like so many surprise packages before them.

After this local derby they face PSG in their Champions League bow and, while this is a very different Barcelona side in lots of ways, the memories of last season and the adventure that awaits means Girona once again present a uniquely vexing threat to their more storied rivals.

Another international break has been navigated and the Premier League returns with some lovely debuts, including one which may make Erik ten Hag look silly.

Eddie Nketiah

Not since the January transfer deadline dashes of Tony Pulis and Sam Allardyce have Crystal Palace supporters had to familiarise themselves with so many new signings all at once.

It could be suggested that the calibre of player has improved and the club is able to peruse a different market as a more established Premier League shopper. Under Pulis in 2014 it was Scott Dann, Wayne Hennessey, Joe Ledley, Jason Puncheon and Tom Ince shuffling through the door. Three years later with the chequebook in Allardyce’s hands the late arrivals were Patrick van Aanholt, Luka Milivojevic and Mamadou Sakho.

Nketiah cost more than all eight players combined. Maxence Lacroix, Trevoh Chalobah and, bless him, Matt Turner represent varying degrees of seemingly excellent business overall but the £30m capture of an Arsenal benchwarmer is most intriguing.

“I’m really excited for my Selhurst debut and hopefully I can make it one to remember,” Nketiah said this week. Jean-Philippe Mateta might have something to say about that but Nketiah did score a hat-trick three Premier League starts ago, which sounds impressive until you realise it was last October.

Federico Chiesa

Another who won’t start, Chiesa will be under no illusions otherwise as Liverpool prepare to host Nottingham Forest. The forward has not featured in any competitive capacity since Italy crashed out of the European Championship, and it seems particularly unlikely that Arne Slot will be longing to disrupt a fully operative attack.

Liverpool thrashed Manchester United before the international break and that wave of momentum will only have been paused rather than halted altogether. Mo Salah (Egypt), Luis Diaz (Colombia) and Cody Gakpo (Netherlands) all scored on duty for their countries, while Diogo Jota fulfilled the role of every Portugal player over the past two decades, that of perennial subservient foil to Cristiano Ronaldo, impeccably.

Darwin Nunez did not feature for Uruguay, but he remains Darwin Nunez at his very core.

Chiesa will thus have to work tirelessly for his opportunities but almost a fortnight of diligent and focused training away from the spotlight should have brought him up to enough speed for a substitute cameo, probably coming on for an annoyed Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Manuel Ugarte

“He didn’t play so far in the season, not one match minute, and so he needs to build his fitness state and then we have to build him in the team. And then I am sure he will contribute to our level and he will be an important player, but that will take a couple of weeks, maybe even months.”

Six days later, Ugarte played 79 minutes of a World Cup qualifier against Paraguay. Four days after that came a trip to Venezuela, in which he played a full hour and a half and picked up the sort of booking to which Manchester United fans should become accustomed.

There is obviously more nuance involved – Ugarte has to be integrated in various different ways by his new club in a manner a 23-cap international does not when it comes to his country – but one of Erik ten Hag’s convenient excuses not to fast-track a necessary revamp of his midfield was removed over the international break.

Ugarte has the “match minutes” and “fitness state” to be thrown straight in. And while he only returned from Uruguay camp on Thursday afternoon and needs time to understand the tactical approach of a team which either specifically bypasses the midfield or places so much undue pressure on it it collapses in on itself, he cannot possibly be a worse option than Casemiro. At this point Davy Klaassen looks like an upgrade.

Raheem Sterling

Nicolas Anelka might contest the point on a technicality but Sterling will soon became the first player to feature for four of the Premier League’s Big Six. In this, the week of #Barclaysmen, it is a remarkable feat.

If it is to be achieved against Spurs then the omens are positive. Sterling has eight goals and five assists in 24 games meetings with them; only against Bournemouth (16) and West Ham (15) has he provided more career goal contributions against a single opponent.

And Arsenal really might need him. Mikel Arteta has options when it comes to replacing Declan Rice and Martin Odegaard but a version of Sterling fit from an intensive pre-season, fresh after sitting out the campaign’s first few weeks and motivated to prove Chelsea wrong would be a powerful weapon to unleash on a vulnerable Spurs side.

Jadon Sancho

The other side of that coin is Sancho, who “has been exactly what I expected” and a player Enzo Maresca is “sure he’s going to help us”.

Chelsea have resisted any reflexive temptation to exile their new signing to the reserves, affording Sancho the opportunity to train with the non-international seniors under a coach who probably doesn’t spend entire training sessions muttering derogatory phrases about him under his breath.

Quite where he or indeed any of those players actually fit into a coherent Chelsea system is something of a mystery but that is for nerds to figure out.

Ange Postecoglou’s honeymoon period as Tottenham manager has come to an end and the pressure may soon be mounting on him to deliver success.

That’s the verdict of former Tottenham and Arsenal winger David Bentley, who admits he fears Spurs could be edged out of the battle to finish in the top four of the Premier League this season.

The bookies have slashed their odds on Postecoglou becoming the first English top flight manager to lose his job this season after Spurs collected just four points from their opening three games.

They missed a host of chances in their opening game of the season at Leicester and dropped two points in a 1-1 draw, with a defeat against Newcastle in the last round of Premier League fixtures dampening pre-season optimism among Spurs fans.

Now Bentley is predicting Spurs boss Postecoglou could start to feel the heat for the first time since his arrival at the club if he loses Sunday’s North London derby against Arsenal.

“You are going to find yourself under pressure at a club like Tottenham if you are losing matches,” Bentley told Football365 with William Hill.

“Ange was welcomed into the football club because what came before him with (Jose) Mourinho and (Antonio) Conte was not what the fans wanted to see.

“There was negativity both with the style of football and also among the fans in general and I think Ange has repaired those two elements.

“After that, it all comes down to results and if they are going against you, the pressure will not be long in coming your way.

“I like Ange and what he has done at the club. He has changed the energy among the fans for the better, but that only goes so far. You need to win matches or the pressure builds. That’s football.

“The honeymoon period of last season is over now so they have to try and get to the next level.

“That means finishing in the top four and trying to win a trophy because as we know, Tottenham haven’t won anything for a long time and their fans are fed up hearing about it.

“You look at Man City, Arsenal and Liverpool and they are really strong. You’d expect them to be in the top four and then you see Spurs fighting it out with Chelsea and Man United.

“Even though they have had their problems, Chelsea and United have a great squad and if they get it right, Spurs might struggle to finish fourth.”

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Bentley, who spent five years at Tottenham after starting his career at Arsenal, believes the 1-1 draw at Leicester on the opening weekend of the season highlighted the flaws in Pochettino’s side.

“I looked at the Leicester game and it was a big worry for me,” stated Bentley. “You can take a lot out of that game and say it summed up Tottenham.

“The first half, they were moving the ball around and they were absolutely battering Leicester, they couldn’t get near them.

“Players were on the ball and expressing themselves, James Maddison bossing it and you would think there is only one winner.

“Then you look at the second half and they could have lost the game. That’s Tottenham. This is the side Ange has to work on.

Arsenal sealed a 3-2 away win against Tottenham last April as they soaked up the pressure and hit their North London rivals with sucker punches.

Now Bentley believes Gunners boss Mikel Arteta may attempt to repeat that approach this weekend as he added: “Tottenham have to go after them and their big players need to have a major influence.

“They also need to get their fans involved and use that home advantage. If they allow Arsenal to dictate the game, Spurs will come out second best.

“That’s what happened in this match last year. Arsenal put pressure on their keeper and everything they tried worked. They absorbed what Tottenham threw at them and hit them hard on the break and were 3-0 up quickly.

“So they need to impose themselves on the game and hopefully run over Arsenal. That’s easier said than done.”

Martin Odegaard has missed 11 games for Arsenal since joining on a permanent basis. Is there anything to learn from those matches before Spurs make it a round dozen?

These are the games in which Odegaard has not featured since joining Arsenal permanently in summer 2021. It is a small sample size which Mikel Arteta might have to learn from in time for the north London derby this weekend. Perhaps start with teaching them to not get sent off.

AFC Wimbledon (September 2021, League Cup third round)

Who replaced Odegaard? Ainsley Maitland-Niles.

All three goalscorers in a comfortable home victory over lower-league opposition have since left, as well as the player who filled in for Odegaard while he was afforded a rare rest. Cedric Soares managed an assist; Maitland-Niles did not.

Funnily enough, the Norwegian was given the evening off in preparation for Arsenal’s next game: a North London derby four days later. That’s hilarious, right? Why aren’t you laughing, Arsenal fans? It’s…oh right.

Leeds (October 2021, League Cup fourth round)

Who replaced Odegaard? Emile Smith Rowe.

Another comfortable Emirates victory, this time against a struggling Premier League side. Calum Chambers and Eddie Nketiah were in and around the goals on this occasion, helped along by a single Nicolas Pepe assist, raising the prospect of whether anyone currently employed by Arsenal has ever had to experience any length of time without Odegaard.

Liverpool (January 2022, League Cup semi-final, first leg)

Who replaced Odegaard? Granit Xhaka.

A 0-0 draw featuring the prestigious final red card of Xhaka’s Arsenal career, obviously for planting his boot in the general area of Diogo Jota’s chest. That inevitably changed the gameplan somewhat and the Gunners held firm for a spirited goalless draw despite having three shots to 17 and just 21.9% possession.

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Brentford (September 2022, Premier League)

Who replaced Odegaard? Fabio Vieira.

Arsenal further underlined their burgeoning credentials with a mightily impressive 3-0 away win, in which Ethan Nwaneri became the youngest player in Premier League history with his late cameo. Could he step up in place of Odegaard two years later?

Probably not, no. Nice idea, though. Vieira was impressive enough in the creative midfield role, scoring the third after William Saliba and Gabriel Jesus punished Brentford in the first half.

Odegaard sat it out but do you know who Arsenal played next in his return? It’s pretty funny actually – it was Spurs! What’s wrong? Why are you tearing up again?

Brighton (November 2022, League Cup third round)

Who replaced Odegaard? Fabio Vieira.

Nketiah gave Arsenal an early lead from a Reiss Nelson assist but Brighton came roaring back with three unanswered goals, led by Danny Welbeck. As if to rub salt in the retrospective wound, Joel Veltman played.

Arteta launched a defence of Vieira after the game but those early growing pains were indicative of the Portuguese’s struggles to ever truly acclimatise to the challenge at Arsenal.

Oxford (January 2023, FA Cup third round)

Who replaced Odegaard? Fabio Vieira.

Yet the experiment continued, taking in a 3-0 win which featured a couple of Vieira assists and even a Mo Elneny goal. It was against a team battling League One relegation but still.

You’ll never guess who Arsenal played next when Odegaard came back into the side six days later. Spurs. Away. 2-0 win. Odegaard scored as captain.

This isn’t helping, is it?

Sporting (March 2023, Europa League round of 16, first leg)

Who replaced Odegaard? Granit Xhaka.

A performance of two halves for Arsenal, who arguably cannot have expected much more with Matt Turner in net, Jakub Kiwior at centre-half and Nelson starting on the left. Odegaard was absent due to illness but did travel to Portugal. Someone please just tell him to stay at home and be weird and abusive on social media like a normal Arsenal fan next time he’s not 100%.

Sheffield United (October 2023, Premier League)

Who replaced Odegaard? Kai Havertz.

The answer as to what precisely is needed for Arteta not to play Odegaard was finally delivered with this: a home game against one of the worst Premier League teams of all time, when the Norwegian had sustained a minor injury.

Odegaard was an unused substitute afforded a front seat for Nketiah’s hat-trick and goals from both Vieira and Takehiro Tomiyasu. Havertz was entirely fine, albeit hardly properly challenged.

Newcastle (November 2023, Premier League)

Who replaced Odegaard? Kai Havertz.

The only sustained spell of absence in Odegaard’s entire Arsenal career came around this time last year, when the small issue which kept him out of the Sheffield United rout developed into something substantial enough to sideline him for a trip to St James’ Park; Odegaard played and scored in ten minutes of a League Cup defeat to West Ham in between, which probably didn’t help.

The tempo and control he provides on the ball might well have been missed but it was a tetchy, fractious old game and could have gone either way. Then again, Havertz’s most telling contribution was the awful tackle which lit the black-and-white touchpaper so maybe Odegaard’s slightly less prickly approach might have been beneficial.

Sevilla (November 2023, Champions League group stage)

Who replaced Odegaard? Kai Havertz.

A slightly more malleable opponent presented themselves soon after in Sevilla, who helped Arsenal recover from those damaging consecutive defeats to West Ham and Newcastle.

Leandro Trossard impressed at centre-forward with Havertz slightly deeper; that might be the call Arteta makes for Spurs, unless Raheem Sterling fancies the chance to make Chelsea look silly as quickly as possible.

Burnley (November 2023, Premier League)

Who replaced Odegaard? Kai Havertz.

Only once since his permanent move has Odegaard failed to feature in more than one consecutive Arsenal game. A three-match stretch without him ended in a solid enough win over Burnley at home which reinforced two ideas: Trossard is a wonderful centre-forward option; Vieira is not a reliable attacking midfield alternative.

Trossard scored one and assisted another in a 3-1 victory. Vieira replaced Havertz on the hour and was sent off 24 minutes later for investigating the structural integrity of Josh Brownhill’s knee with his studs.

Even without his loan back to Porto, it feels unlikely Vieira would have been eagerly anticipating the call from Arteta to stand in for Odegaard on Sunday.

Man Utd declared their interest in Tottenham defender Cristian Romero during the summer transfer window, according to reports.

The Red Devils were looking to improve their central defence over the summer with Erik ten Hag bringing in Leny Yoro from Lille and Matthijs de Ligt from Bayern Munich.

But there were rumours of many other targets, including Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite, and now TYC Sports in Argentina insist that Man Utd were also interested in doing a deal for Tottenham centre-back Romero.

Three European giants ‘approached the English club in this last transfer market to sound out the situation’ with Man Utd, Real Madrid and Paris Saint-Germain all making ‘proposals’ for the Argentina international.

But Man Utd and the other two clubs all ‘received a resounding no as an answer’ to any negotiations with Tottenham insisting it ‘was not the time to get rid of the defender’.

Tottenham ‘did not put a price on him’ as he is seen as a ‘crucial player’ for Ange Postecoglou, although the report claims that Romero ‘will leave Tottenham to play for one of the most important clubs in the world’ at some point.

TYC Sports journalist Gaston Edul also wrote on X: “Cristian Romero had the interest of three teams in this transfer market: Manchester United, PSG and Real Madrid. Tottenham responded that they would not sell him. He is essential for Postecoglou.

“They did not even put a price on him. He will have offers again in the next transfer market when Romero only has two years left on his contract.”

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It has been a mixed start to the new season for Tottenham and Spurs legend Teddy Sheringham is hoping to see more from Brennan Johnson this season.

Sheringham told Prime Casino: “I’m expecting better performances from Brennan Johnson this season; more consistent performances. That’s what you expect from your players in their second season at the club. I’m still not sure what his best position is. Is he a right winger? Is he a centre forward? I’m not really sure.

“He’s a little bit like Marcus Rashford, in that he’s a player that plays wide, but you wouldn’t call him a winger because he doesn’t really get that many crosses into the box.”

Sheringham added: “I think he’s shown glimpses of his potential since joining the club – he’s shown some nice flashes, but now it’s about doing that consistently. When you’re a £50 million player, there’s more expectancy on your shoulders. Now is the time for him to kick on, but he’s definitely demonstrated that there’s a good player in there.

“The challenge for him is to score more and create more goals. Improve on your numbers from last season (5 goals, 10 assists in 30 Premier League games). I also want to see him being more positive, taking on and beating players.

“Off the ball, I’d like to see him mastering the art of that deceptive far post run, because if he can do that, he’ll start racking up the goals for Tottenham. Those little tap-ins can really add to your tally, but the movement has to be right to give you the opportunity to put them away. He’s got the first season out of the way and he’s ready to kick on. I think there’s glimpses that there’s a good player in there.”

Arsenal are sweating over the fitness of captain Martin Odegaard after he limped out of Norway’s 2-1 Nations League win over Austria on Monday.

The Gunners midfielder was left clutching his left ankle after an innocuous tangle with Christoph Baumgartner on the hour mark and was helped off the pitch in tears by team-mate Erling Haaland.

Odegaard’s apparent injury is a further setback for Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta, who is already without the suspended Declan Rice for the clash at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Norway team doctor Ola Sand said: “Martin is doing quite well now. He got a small ankle sprain. We will see throughout the evening and tomorrow what happens next and what we will do about it.

“It is currently difficult to say anything about the extent of the damage. Ankle sprains are difficult to deal with straight away, so we almost have to see how things go forward.

“We will examine him when we are back at the hotel. Maybe we use ultrasound to look at it. If we are unsure, there will be an MRI tomorrow (Tuesday).”

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Norway manager Stale Solbakken added: “Martin Odegaard’s injury looked bad in the dressing room as well.

“I saw that he was sitting with the physios around him. He had no chance of continuing. It was probably an overstep, and those who have played football know that it can go well if the ligaments have not gone. It is not certain that Arteta will call and praise me tonight!”

Haaland lashed home his 32nd goal in 35 games for his country in the 80th minute to clinch victory after Felix Myhre’s ninth-minute opener was cancelled out by a Marcel Sabitzer effort shortly before half-time.

Odegaard looked uncomfortable throughout Arsenal’s last match against Brighton after suffering a knock to his ankle but still represented Norway in both of their matches this month.

The Norwegian’s importance for Arsenal can’t be stressed enough and if he is unavailable against Spurs, it is going to be very difficult for Arteta’s side.

It has been a frustrating international break for the Gunners, who could also be without summer signing Riccardo Calafiori on Sunday.

The Italian suffered a freak ankle injury during last week’s win over France and has returned to north London for further analysis.

Italy boss Luciano Spalletti was hopeful Calafiori would be available for Monday’s match against Israel, which was a good sign, but Arsenal were not taking any chances.

Arsenal are definitely without summer signing Mikel Merino on Sunday after he fractured his shoulder in one of his first training sessions.

That means the Gunners could be without Arteta’s ideal midfield three against Spurs with Odegaard and Merino injured, and Rice suspended.

Raheem Stering could make his Arsenal debut against Ange Postecoglou’s side.

“We have to see him, speak to him (about) what he’s been doing and how he’s feeling about it,” Arteta said on Sterling’s availability.

“Try to find quick wins to get him up to speed as quickly as possible and for him to understand what we are looking for from him in the dynamics of the team.

“We will use that time to do that and get him involved as soon as possible.”

On Rice’s suspension, Arteta added: “Well, this is what happens. We have to adapt to that context.

“That’s why we have other players that can fulfil that (role) and (I can) give that opportunity to somebody else.”

Ex-Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rafael van der Vaart has reacted to Aston Villa missing out on one of their top summer transfer targets.

The Birmingham club had their sights set on Feyenoord’s Lutsharel Geertruida as Villa manager Unai Emery was keen to strengthen the right back position to give himself options in a busy season.

However, the Dutch club were seeking £30 million for him which meant Villa needed to sell players to make way for the defender. This deal never came to fruition which disappointed Villa fans.

This allowed German club RB Leipzig to swoop in and sign Geertruida for a fee of £25m in a late deadline day deal with the right-back agreeing to a five year contract at the Bundesliga club.

The former Tottenham midfielder Rafael Van Der Vaart has given his opinion on the 24 year old’s decision to join Leipzig over Aston Villa.

“A really good step, I think. This is a nice intermediate step. It’s really a perfect club for him,” the Dutchman told Voetbal Primeur.

“He is very calm and can also play in midfield. Not many defenders can do that,” the pundit continued. “I thought it was a relief when I saw him play.”

Emery has had a busy time with it in the transfer window but is pleased with who they signed to help bolster their squad for the Champions League. He spoke to the press on their business in the transfer window and the high demand of playing in the Premier League and Champions League.

The Villa manger said: ” “I’m very happy because we did the things we were planning at the beginning. The squad we have now, with some important players like Tyrone Mings, Boubacar Kamara and Emi Buendia who are coming back progressively and feeling good.

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“It is very difficult. Very, very difficult, but this is football. We are in the best league in the world. It is the most difficult because every match we face against West Ham, Arsenal, Leicester City tomorrow, they are all difficult to get three points. Through the Premier League you usually can get your first objective which is to play in Europe and hopefully the Champions League.

“We are excited and motivated. We are really being connected to our supporters, enjoying playing together playing in the Champions League. If we want to play in it again then we have to be consistent in the Premier League.

“Last year we finished two points ahead of Tottenham and every game we fight for three points. Brentford then finished two points behind the previous season. We are very, very motivated and we know our way. To be intelligent, working hard always and very, very demanding. Even more than last year and more than other teams as they have more potential than us to be in the top four, top five.”

Aston Villa will face Everton on Saturday night football after the international break.