Inside Futbol

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Leeds United have put in an offer for a Ligue 1 star who has been tracked by Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur and the Championship club are expected to open discussions with the French club as well.

The Whites are considered one of the favourites to gain promotion back to the Premier League and they are at the top of the league table in the Championship.

They are expected to strengthen the squad with fresh faces in January and they have already taken important steps for Lens defender Abdukodir Khusanov.

The Ligue 1 defender is subject to interest from Newcastle and north London club Tottenham are also interested.

According to French outlet Top Mercato, Leeds have sent in a €20m offer for the highly-rated Uzbek defender as they ‘take action’ to try to sign him.

Even though Lens have an asking price of €25m to €30m for the defender, the opening bid is expected to create a base for further discussions.

His agent, Jorge Mendes has an ‘exclusive mandate’ when Khusanov moves, is trying to push a move to the Premier League for better capital gain.

Lens are happy to sell if their price is met as they look to bring in cash.

Now it remains to be seen where Khusanov’s future lies amid genuine interest from multiple Premier League clubs and Leeds United’s opening offer.

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Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou has struck a sceptical note over using one of his midfielders at centre-back, amid the crisis in the position worsening.

Spurs Tottenham are already without the services of key defenders Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero through injury and that crisis deepened after yet another specialised player for that area, Radu Dragusin, was forced off in the loss to Nottingham Forest.

Bissouma filled his shoes and kept Nottingham Forest from scoring any more goals for the remaining minutes of the game.

Ahead of the final match before the January transfer window opens, Postecoglou might have to seek the help of Bissouma yet again to fill the role.

However, the Tottenham manager insists that he is not sure about that option and will wait and see how to go about it.

“I don’t know. I mean Yves has never played there so I am not sure why I would put him there”, Postecoglou said at a press conference.

“I had to put him there last night because I had no one else, but we’ll see. We’ll see what happens.”

The manager also took time to give a medical update on injured defender Dragusin.

“Bit early to tell, he obviously tweaked his ankle and felt like he couldn’t continue, we’ll just have to wait and see.

“Wait until he gets in today and then assess it from there.”

Wolves, Tottenham’s opponents on Sunday, will visit the London Stadium with the confidence they have built from their last two wins against Leicester City and Manchester United.

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Nottingham Forest midfielder Elliot Anderson has revealed that he and his team-mates targeted Tottenham Hotspur for counter-attacks given the kind of pace they got down the wings and that worked perfectly for them.

Despite managing just 29 per cent of possession, the Tricky Trees were able to come away with a narrow 1-0 win over Ange Postecoglou’s team on Boxing Day.

The only goal of the match came from winger Anthony Elanga’s foot as Nuno Espirito Santo’s side hit the visitors on the break.

Responding to a question on whether they targeted counter-attacks against an attacking team, Anderson insisted that it was the case given how much pace they have there through Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi.

“Definitely [we targeted counter-attack]”, Anderson was quoted as saying by the BBC.

“We’ve got pace on the wings as you can see, especially with Ant [Elanga].

“We tend to go down that way, hold it deep and try and find Ant and Cal [Hudson-Odoi]. It works, so it is perfect.”

The loss was Tottenham’s fourth defeat in the last five league games and took them further away from a European spot, consolidating their position in the bottom half of the table.

It also helped further increase pressure on an already under-pressure manager Postecoglou.

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Tottenham Hotspur manager Ange Postecoglou has revealed that the club are working hard behind the scenes on transfers but the focus for now will be on the last match of the year against Wolves.

Spurs were on the receiving end of yet another negative result as they were humbled 1-0 away from home against Nottingham Forest on Boxing Day.

The day went from bad to worse as they lost one of their few available defenders, Radu Dragusin, through injury in the 49th minute and Djed Spence in the 94th minute through a red card.

Totteham’s injury situation at the back means that they might be forced to look for options in the January transfer market.

Manager Postecoglou revealed that the club are working hard behind the scenes to find solutions.

“We are working hard behind the scenes”, Postecoglou was quoted as saying by the BBC while responding to a question on transfers.

On the team’s immediate focus, the manager added: “But we’ve got a game on Sunday and focus on that first. Then, we will look at January.”

The extent of Dragusin’s injury is yet to be ascertained, but Spurs were already expected to be active in January before he picked up a knock.

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Fixture: Nottingham Forest vs Tottenham Hotspur

Competition: Premier League

Kick-off: 15:00 UK time

Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou has picked his team to lock horns with Nottingham Forest at the City Ground in the Premier League this afternoon.

Spurs under Postecoglou are in the bottom half of the league table and have already lost eight times so far this season.

Nottingham Forest have only lost half as many games and sit a lofty fourth, under former Spurs boss Nuno.

Forest have won their last three games on the spin, beating Manchester United, Aston Villa and, last time out, Brentford.

Spurs have Fraser Forster in goal this afternoon, while in defence Postecoglou goes with Djed Spence, Radu Dragusin, Archie Gray and Destiny Udogie.

Midfield sees Postecoglou select Rodrigo Bentancur and Pape Matar Sarr, while Dejan Kulusevski, Brennan Johnson, Dominic Solanke and Heung-Min Son lead the attacking threat.

Options are on the bench if Postecoglou requires them and they include James Maddison and Timo Werner.

Tottenham Hotspur Team vs Nottingham Forest

Forster, Spence, Dragusin, Gray, Udogie, Bentancur, Sarr, Kulusevski, Johnson, Solanke, Son

Substitutes: Austin, Porro, Reguilon, Bissouma, Bergvall, Maddison, Olusesi, Werner, Lankshear

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Former Netherlands international Wesley Sneijder has pointed out why Tottenham Hotspur tracked David Hancko is ‘on everyone’s list’.

The left-footed Slovak defender has been on Feyenoord’s books since 2022 and he has established himself as an instrumental player at the Dutch outfit.

Spurs are going through a major defensive injury crisis and Hancko, who can play both centre-back and left-back, has emerged as a top target for them.

Serie A giants Juventus are interested in the 27-year-old, while Chelsea have also joined the race for the Feyenoord star man.

Sneijder insisted that Hancko is a brave forward-mined player and he feels his qualities have made him so desirable for top European clubs, something which have put him on everyone’s list.

“If Hancko leaves in the winter, it will be very difficult for Feyenoord at the back”, the former Dutch national team superstar told Dutch broadcaster Ziggo Sport (via Voetbal4u) about the Spurs-tracked versatile defender.

“Then it will be very difficult for them, I think he is really the best there, at Feyenoord.

“And most importantly, he always sees between the lines, plays everyone in, he dares.

“That’s why he’s on everyone’s list. Many top teams in Europe.”

Feyenoord could well lose their star defender amid high-profile interest in him and Spurs may need to move quickly if they want to secure Hancko’s services.

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Former top flight striker Clinton Morrison has insisted that Tottenham Hotspur’s way of defending against Liverpool made him ‘upset’ as he feels they are so frustrating to watch.

Tottenham’s 2024/25 season has been marked by inconsistency, preventing them from building any momentum and casting real doubt over whether they will be able to qualify for Europe.

They were guilty of conceding six goals against leaders Liverpool and their defensive performance on the afternoon left Morrison frustrated and upset.

Picking Ange Postecoglou’s team as one of the most entertaining teams in the Premier League, Morrison said on BBC 5 live: “They’re probably the most entertaining team in the Premier League.

“If you don’t support them and want to go and watch someone, go to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium because you’re guaranteed goals.”

Voicing the frustration of the Tottenham fans, who he believes want attractive football but have been left disappointed, Morrison added: “Tottenham fans, they want attractive football but they’re not even in the top 10, it’s been nowhere near good enough.

“I do get that they have injuries but the way they defended against Liverpool, probably the best team in Europe at the moment, and big gaps that Tottenham left enabled it and made me upset because they’re so frustrating.

“The fans are not happy at the moment and it’s been nowhere near good enough.”

Tottenham are currently in the bottom half of the table with 23 points from 17 matches, and have lost three of their last four matches, with their only win coming against Southampton.

Postecoglou’s team have ensured progress in the EFL Cup, though at the expense of Manchester United, but they are now set to play against Liverpool again in the two-legged tie, which will last through January and February.

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Liverpool legend Phil Thompson has insisted that he feels sorry for Tottenham Hotspur’s Archie Gray and Radu Dragusin after the Reds demolished Spurs on Sunday, dubbing the pair ‘absolutely appalling’.

Spurs have experienced a shaky season so far and were thrashed 6-3 at home by Liverpool at the weekend to leave them on eight Premier League losses from 17 games.

Ange Postecoglou’s men are going through major injury issues, especially in defence, where Gray played as a makeshift central defender alongside Dragusin.

Spurs went on to concede six times against the Reds at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium and Liverpool could even have scored more goals.

Thompson feels sorry for Gray and Dragusin, who he thinks looked ‘frightened’, and says the pair were ‘absolutely appalling’.

Thompson said on LFC TV post-match about Spurs: “I felt for their back four because they were all over the place.”

“Honestly, young Archie Gray there with Dragusin, they were absolutely appalling.

“They were frightened literally to pass the ball forward, they were nervous, they just wanted to pass the ball back and forward to each other and we took full advantage of it.”

Postecoglou will be desperate to get the likes of Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero and Ben Davies back as his side are set to face Newcastle United, high-flying Nottingham Forest and arch-rivals Arsenal in the upcoming weeks.

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Leyton Orient boss Richie Wellens has hailed Tottenham Hotspur loan duo Josh Keeley and Jamie Donley for their performances against Barnsley at the weekend

Keeley and Donley are considered players for the future at the north London outfit and this summer they have been sent to League One outfit Leyton Orient.

The custodian has featured 13 times so far for the Os while Donley has played 20 times already and has chipped in with four direct goal contributions.

At the weekend against Barnsley, Keeley kept a clean sheet and Donley scored in Leyton Orient’s 4-0 win.

Wellens insisted that the 19-year-old attacking midfielder put in a brilliant performance against Barnsley.

“Jamie Donley, for a young kid, who wants to play football, I thought he was outstanding”, Wellens told Leyton Orient’s media after the Barnsley win.

“Our two wingers and centre-forward really hard and when you put them under pressure and they cannot serve long balls forward, we nullified their threats a lot.”

He also noted that Keeley did very well and he feels the shot-stopper is a vital part of his side’s defence.

“But I have to say our defensive department at the moment, the goalkeeper, both I include Zach [Obeiro] and Josh [Keeley] and whoever plays right-back, I thought [Ethan] Galbraith again, was outstanding.”

Keeley and Donley will be looking to put in consistent performances for the rest of the season to impress their parent club at Leyton Orient.

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Fixture: Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool

Competition: Premier League

Kick-off: 16:30 UK time

Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou has picked his team to welcome Liverpool to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in the Premier League this afternoon.

Spurs have shrugged off a poor run of form by recording back to back wins, first thumping Southampton 5-0 in the league and then edging a 4-3 thriller against Manchester United in the EFL Cup in midweek.

Spurs continue to sit just eleventh in the league standings though and there will be pressure on Postecoglou to drive them up the table soon.

Tottenham beat Liverpool in the last meeting between the two teams in north London and Postecoglou will fancy his side’s chances of downing the Reds again today.

Fraser Forster is between the sticks for Tottenham, who have a back four of Pedro Porro, Radu Dragusin, Archie Gray and Djed Spence.

In midfield, Tottenham field Yves Bissouma and Pape Matar Sarr, while leading the attacking threat are James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Dominic Solanke and Heung-Min Son.

If Postecoglou needs to try to influence the game from the bench then he does have options and they include Timo Werner and Destiny Udogie.

Tottenham Hotspur Team vs Liverpool

Forster, Porro, Dragusin, Gray, Spence, Bissouma, Sarr, Maddison, Kulusevski, Solanke, Son

Substitutes: Austin, Reguilon, Udogie, Dorrington, Bergvall, Olusesi, Werner, Johnson, Lankshear