Inside Futbol

Alex Pantling/Getty Images

Former Premier League defender Frank Leboeuf is of the view that Tottenham Hotspur have two defenders who should be leading on the pitch and stopping Spurs doing stupid things.

This season Tottenham have been inconsistent and former players have criticised Ange Postecoglou’s team for being defensively vulnerable.

On Sunday, Spurs suffered a 2-1 defeat at home against Ipswich Town and are currently in tenth place in the Premier League table, with real questions being asked about their top four credentials.

Leboeuf is of the view that experienced players like Cristian Romero and Pedro Porro should shout instructions to their team-mates during the game to stop players from making stupid mistakes and organise the defence.

He stressed that Romero, with his experience, should be leading Tottenham and added that he should help his team-mates in tough on-the-pitch situations by guiding them with his knowledge.

“18 months ago, when he [Postecoglou] came to Spurs, he changed dramatically the way Spurs were playing”, Leboeuf said on ESPN FC.

“They were mostly playing defensively but offensively; it was like a show and it was entertaining and we loved it but it was not enough.

“It is not enough right now but the players, especially some players like Romero I would say or even Porro, experienced players they should deal at some point and say, come on guys we are going to start defending, so you come back, you come back, you stop your stupid things which you know is going nowhere and not defending… You have to organise something.

“It is an intuitive sport and players from the back, especially experienced players, have to deal with situations and right now I am sorry, Romero, he has the experience for that; he should be the leader and people should listen to him.”

Tottenham are set to face Manchester City after the international break and it remains to be seen whether they will be able to bounce back with a win.

Veteran broadcaster Richard Keys has insisted that Tottenham Hotspur fans might have to accept that Spurs will never win a trophy.

Tottenham have often been criticised for their lack of lethal nature when it comes to winning silverware and they have not won a trophy since 2008.

Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou was bullish at the beginning of the season about winning a trophy in his second season at the club but their form this term has been majorly inconsistent.

They suffered their first Europa League loss of the season against Galatasaray last week and on Sunday they lost 2-1 to Ipswich Town.

Keys stressed even though Spurs fans have the state-of-the-art Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to watch their team play at, they might just need to accept that their club are never going to win any trophies.

“I think Tottenham fans might have to accept they are never going to win another trophy”, Key said on beIN SPORTS after Tottenham’s defeat against Ipswich.

“They have got a fabulous stadium to play football in and occasionally they will enjoy watching their team in.”

Postecoglou’s side have two difficult games remaining this month after the international break, where they will face Manchester City in the league and Roma in the Europa League, and it remains to be seen if Spurs will finish the month on a high note by getting positive results in them.

Clive Rose/Getty Images

Journalist Henry Winter thinks Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou playing a high line when he does not have Micky van de Ven at his disposal is ‘madness’.

Postecoglou’s side took a big step back in the Premier League on Sunday when they were beaten 2-1 on home turf by Kieran McKenna’s Ipswich Town.

Sammie Szmodics and Liam Delap fired Ipswich into a two-goal lead by the break and though Tottenham pulled a goal back with around 20 minutes left, through Rodrigo Bentancur, they could not find a leveller.

The win is Ipswich’s first of the season and pushes them just above the relegation zone heading into the international break.

Tottenham were without defender Van de Ven for the game, with Radu Dragusin partnering Cristian Romero in the heart of defence.

And Winter thinks that keeping the same high line approach without Van de Ven in the side was madness on the part of Postecoglou.

“It’s madness for Tottenham to play that when they haven’t got someone as quick as him [Van de Ven] to get them out of trouble”, Winter said on talkSPORT’s Sunday Session after the game finished.

Tottenham now have to wait until after the international break for the chance to get back to winning ways, with a trip to Manchester City next up in the Premier League.

Bryn Lennon/Getty Images

Tottenham Hotspur could ‘shake up’ their goalkeeping department if a young option becomes available, according to journalist Alan Nixon.

Spurs have had an inconsistent season so far, with good performances and results punctuated by losses, a pattern which continued on Sunday when they were turned over 2-1 by Ipswich Town in the Premier League.

Ange Postecoglou’s side lost in the Europa League in midweek against Galatasaray and the Australian boss picked Fraser Forster between the sticks.

Guglielmo Vicario was back in goal for the clash with Ipswich, but Tottenham could ‘shake up’ the department.

They are keen on Ivory Coast goalkeeper Yahia Fofana to come in and push Vicario and scouted him this weekend as his side Angers played Paris Saint-Germain.

Angers are prepared to sell the 24-year-old for a fee in the region of £15m.

He would fit the bill for Tottenham to come in and shake up the goalkeeping department for Postecoglou.

However, Fofana has interest from another Premier League side in the shape of Brentford, who could themselves launch a swoop.

Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

Fixture: Tottenham Hotspur vs Ipswich Town

Competition: Premier League

Kick-off: 14:00 UK time

Tottenham Hotspur have named their starting line-up and substitutes to welcome Ipswich Town to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the Premier League this afternoon.

Spurs saw their winning run in the Europa League brought to an end on Thursday night when they went down to a 3-2 defeat at Galatasaray in Turkey.

Boss Ange Postecoglou will be keen for a return to winning ways and three precious Premier League points ahead of the international break this month.

Richarlison is out of action due to a hamstring issue, while Micky van de Ven, Wilson Odobert and Mikey Moore are also not available for Postecoglou.

Guglielmo Vicario is between the sticks for Tottenham, while at the back they go with Pedro Porro, Cristian Romero, Radu Dragusin and Destiny Udogie.

In midfield, Spurs go with Rodrigo Bentancur and Pape Matar Sarr, while Dejan Kulusevski, Brennan Johnson and Heung-Min Son support Dominic Solanke.

If Postecoglou wants to shake things up then he has options off the bench that include James Maddison and Timo Werner.

Tottenham Hotspur Team vs Ipswich Town

Vicario, Porro, Romero, Dragusin, Udogie, Bentancur, Sarr, Kulusevski, Johnson, Solanke, Son

Substitutes: Forster, Spence, Davies, Gray, Bissouma, Maddison, Bergvall, Werner, Lankshear

Alex Pantling/Getty Images

Galatasaray star Kaan Ayhan has insisted that his side played better than Tottenham Hotspur and consider themselves to be every bit as much favourites in the Europa League as Spurs do.

Spurs made a perfect start to their Europa League campaign as they won their opening three games until they faced Galatasaray in Turkey.

They faced the Cimbom at Rams Park on Thursday night and suffered a 3-2 defeat after Will Lankshear was sent off.

The north Londoners are considered one of the favourites to win the entire Europa League this season and Ayhan also made it clear that his side have the same ambition.

The Cimbom defender stressed they were very comfortably the superior team to Spurs in Turkey.

“We definitely played better than the English team”, Ayhan said via Turkish outlet A Spor after beating Spurs.

“But when it comes to analysis, the last 15 minutes of the match became unnecessarily difficult.

“Just as Tottenham see themselves as Europa League favourites, so do we. So it was good to win.”

The north London side will host Ipswich Town at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this Sunday in the hope of winning back to back Premier League matches.

Ryan Pierse/Getty Images

Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou believes that teenage forward Will Lankshear will have learnt a lot from his 60 minutes of action against Galatasaray in the Europa League.

In his second outing in the tournament, the 19-year-old scored his first senior goal for the north London side in their 3-2 defeat in Istanbul.

However, Lankshear’s night was soured by a red card that he received on the hour mark, leaving his team with a mountain to climb.

Postecoglou was pleased with what he saw from the young forward and feels Lankshear learnt a lot from just a single game in Istanbul.

“Yes, look Will took his goal well, he worked hard for the team”, Postecoglou said at a press conference.

“Obviously he hasn’t had a lot of experience at senior football so he would have learnt a lot today.

“The red card, it was a bit of overenthusiasm in that moment to give away a foul, but he’ll learn from that.”

Another young player that started the game on the night was Lucas Bergvall.

As far as the 18-year-old was concerned it was about giving him an understanding of the levels of playing in Europe for Postecoglou.

“The same with Lucas here.

“Giving him an understanding of the levels here.

“It is not easy when you are playing away in Europe.

“You can only allow them to learn that by exposing them to it.”

The loss at Galatasaray was Tottenham’s first in the Europa League this season and they will try to bounce back when Roma visit later this month.

Mike Hewitt/Getty Images

Fixture: Galatasaray vs Tottenham Hotspur

Competition: Europa League

Kick-off: 17:45 UK time

Ange Postecoglou has picked his Tottenham Hotspur team to face Turkish champions Galatasaray in the Europa League this evening.

Spurs have been superb in the Europa League so far, winning all three of their league stage games, and another win tonight would put one foot firmly in the knockout rounds.

Tottenham will also head into the game high on confidence after beating Manchester City and Aston Villa in back to back games.

Opponents Galatasaray are on a run of four consecutive wins and edged out Besiktas 2-1 in their last game.

Fraser Forster is in goal for Spurs tonight, while at the back Postecoglou goes with Pedro Porro, Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies and Archie Gray.

Midfield sees Spurs deploy Lucas Bergvall, Yves Bissouma and James Maddison, while Brennan Johnson, Will Lankshear and Heung-Min Son lead the attacking charge.

Postecoglou has options off the bench if needed, including Dominic Solanke and Destiny Udogie.

Tottenham Hotspur Team vs Galatasaray

Forster, Porro, Dragusin, Davies, Gray, Bergvall, Bissouma, Maddison, Johnson, Lankshear, Son

Substitutes: Vicario, Austin, Udogie, Dorrington, Bentancur, Sarr, Kulusevski, Cassanova, Olusesi, Williams-Barnett, Solanke

Ahmad Mora/Getty Images

Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou believes that his team will have to work hard defensively to stop a Galatasaray team who are an attacking threat with the players they have in the final third.

An undefeated Tottenham side, currently placed second in the Europa League league phase table, are set to visit Turkey to take on the country’s defending champions on Thursday.

Assessing their opponents for the game, the Tottenham manager insisted that Okan Buruk’s side can be a threat from set pieces and open play given the players they have.

“Yes, they have scored a lot of goals from set pieces. They are a threat”, the Tottenham manager said at a press conference after reaching Istanbul.

“I think they are an attacking threat with the players they have, especially in the front third.

“So again we’re going to have to work hard defensively tomorrow at different times.

“I think you always do when you play away in Europe. We will be ready for that.”

The match will also give Postecoglou the chance to catch up with one of his old players in the form of Davinson Sanchez.

When discussing that meeting, the manager added: “Davinson Sanchez, yes, it will be good to see him again.

“He was at the club when I first arrived.

“Very good professional, always trying very hard.

“Good guy and looking forward to seeing him tomorrow.”

The Turkish champions are also one of teams yet to lose any match in the competition, though they have drawn one of their three games.

Tottenham will hope to carry forward their form from the Aston Villa game at the weekend into the match in Istanbul.

Marc Atkins/Getty Images

Tottenham Hotspur are one of the clubs to have started the process of trying to sign a teenage attacker from Argentine powerhouses River Plate.

The Spurs hierarchy backed Ange Postecoglou during the summer transfer window and the Australian swooped to bring in several young talents.

The north London side brought in the likes of Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert, while 18-year-old South Korean attacker Min-hyeok Yang will join the club in January.

The January transfer window is inching closer and the Spurs are set to follow the same transfer approach as they are looking to bring in more highly thought of youngsters.

According to Catalan outlet El Nacional, Spurs are involved in the scrap to sign 16-year-old River Plate talent Felipe Esquivel.

He has not played for the River Plate senior team yet but his performances for Argentina at youth levels so far have European teams excited.

It has been suggested that Barcelona sporting director Deco is already in negotiations with the Argentine outfit as the Spanish giants believe in his potential.

Spurs are also trying to sign him and are joined by a host of other European sides.

The likes of RB Leipzig, PSV Eindhoven, Benfica and FC Porto are in the race for the 16-year-old Argentine.

He is under contract until the end of 2026 and has a €30m release clause in his deal.