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Tottenham Hotspur were booed off the pitch tonight after slumping to a feeble defeat against Chelsea.

It was a night of drama in north London, where the two sides were - on the scoreboard at least - only separated by the fine margin of a first-half Joao Pedro strike.

But in reality, Enzo Maresca's men could have left with two, if not three goals, and Spurs fans would not have much room to complain. They are growing frustrated with their side, who at this moment appear devoid of any creativity under Thomas Frank.

Tonight, however, they will be mainly stinging from yet another defeat to their bitter rivals - who have extended their dominance in this fixture to five consecutive league victories.

Daily Mail Sport's Kieran Gill was at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium to watch it all unfold. Here's how he rated the players...

TOTTENHAM (4-2-2-2)

Guglielmo Vicario – 6

Denied Joao Pedro the first time, but not the second after Caicedo’s clinic in how to win the ball. Chelsea would have won by more than their one goal were it not for Vicario.

Pedro Porro – 5

Hardly had an impact on this game, which was surprising given we know how good he can be, though perhaps it was primarily due to Tottenham’s tactical set-up.

Kevin Danso – 5

The latest long thrower to try to hurt Chelsea, but on this occasion, the visitors managed to avoid conceding from such a scenario, even if Bentancur did come close once.

Micky van de Ven – 5

Caicedo never needs much invitation to get stuck in, but Simons’ pass to Van de Van was soft enough to entice him in. Chelsea’s midfield enforcer won his tackle cleanly and they scored.

Djed Spence – 4.5

Seconds before Chelsea’s opener, Spence seemed to fancy trying to take on multiple opponents, as if he wanted to go as a winger for Halloween. He lost the ball, and the Blues scored.

Joao Palhinha – 5

We wondered whether he might plop himself into the defence to create a back three – Chelsea hate that system, after all – but Spurs used their four midfielders much more traditionally.

Rodrigo Bentancur – 4

Lucky boy in that VAR did not order a review on his terrible tackle on James. It looked red-card worthy to me, but Bentancur was shown only a yellow as the monitor remained unvisited.

Lucas Bergvall – 5.5

Was not happy at all that Spurs’ club doctor Tamim Khanbhai forced him into being substituted after a rigorous concussion check. Good to see player welfare taking priority for once, though.

Pape Matar Sarr – 4

Anonymous, and so not worth trying to fill the word count here.

Mohammed Kudus – 5

Just so hard to get the ball off Kudus, who at least is the type to try to create something from nothing. He was one of the only attackers for Spurs attempting some invention.

Randal Kolo Muani – 4

Hardly provided any service while trying to lead the line for Spurs. All felt rather thankless as this side were devoid of any and all real creativity.

SUBS

Xavi Simons (for Bergvall, 7) – 3

Going to make a special exception and give a substitute a write-up here because Simons helped Chelsea score with an error, and was then the sub who was subbed. After a summer in which he flirted with signing for the Blues.

Cristian Romero (for Danso, 60) – 6

Richarlison (for Bentancur, 60) – 5

Brennan Johnson (for Simons, 73) – 5

Wilson Odobert (for Kolo Muani, 73) – 5

Destiny Udogie (for Porro, 73) – 5

MANAGER: Thomas Frank – 3

Courtesy of Opta, Tottenham’s xG of 0.05 from this 1-0 loss to Chelsea is their lowest ever recorded in a Premier League game. That says it all.

CHELSEA (4-2-3-1)

Robert Sanchez – 8

I lost count of how many times Tottenham chucked the ball into the box, only for Sanchez to either clear or catch those crosses. Commanded his area brilliantly.

Malo Gusto – 6.5

Inverted from right back into midfield, but also had to track Simons. Not everyone’s cup of tea, but Maresca likes how he can take on whatever tactical instructions he gives him.

Wesley Fofana – 7.5

Nothing got through Fofana today. He may be a numpty what with his dangerous driving – Google it if you don’t know already – but he showed his defensive qualities here.

Trevoh Chalobah – 7.5

Not all Chelsea fans are fond of Chalobah despite him being own of their own and having amassed more than 100 appearances, but he refused to be beaten here.

Marc Cucurella – 6.5

Not easy trying to take possession from Kudus. Ball sticks to his foot like it’s been doused in PVA. But Cucurella held his own and still got forward whenever he could.

Reece James – 8

Proper captain’s performance from James who, by the end, was celebrating every tackle and block. He kept going, even after Bentancur’s ugly foul on him before half-time.

Moises Caicedo – 9

Some prefer Declan Rice. Others fancy Rodri. But Chelsea would not swap Caicedo for anyone. He won the ball not once but twice in the build-up to their opener and had the presence of mind to set up Joao Pedro rather than go for glory himself.

Pedro Neto – 6

Started over Estevao Willian but then Neto has been in good form, and stung the palms of vicario twice with vicious cracks in the second half.

Enzo Fernandez – 7

Headed chance for Chelsea’s second went over after he did well to get up there to meet James’ cross. Cautioned for a clumsy challenge on Palhinha which escaped further VAR scrutiny.

Alejandro Garnacho – 6

With Jamie Gittens pushing hard for a Premier League start, Garnacho had to impress. Despite getting into positive positions, wastefulness saw him replaced by Gittens after 65 minutes.

Joao Pedro – 7

Could have scored more than the one he did and so, as a goalscorer, he will be kicking himself for that. But still, he left here as the match-winner for Chelsea.

SUBS

Jamie Gittens (for Garnacho, 66) – 5

Romeo Lavia (for Gusto, 76) – N/A

Estevao Willian (for Neto, 85) – N/A

Tosin Adarabioyo (for Fofana, 89) – N/A

MANAGER: Enzo Maresca – 7.5

His players executed his plan to perfection, coming to Tottenham and controlling the game. They didn’t even finish it with 10 men! Progress is being made!

REFEREE: Jarred Gillett – 5

He showed a yellow to Bentancur for his awful foul on James, which in my book deserved a red or, at the very least, a pitch-side review.

Xavi Simons hit a new low when he was brought on and later substituted by Thomas Frank during Tottenham's Premier League defeat against Chelsea.

The £52 million summer signing began the match on the bench against their London rivals but was introduced as a concussion substitute after Lucas Bergvall sustained a head injury in the opening minutes.

With Spurs trailing, Simons on a yellow card and struggling to find his rhythm, Frank decided he had seen enough. The Spurs manager replaced the 22-year-old with Wilson Odobert in the 73rd minute.

Simons trudged off, visibly dejected as he watched his side fail to mount a comeback against a team that has now beaten Tottenham in their last five consecutive meetings. Joao Pedro's 34th-minute goal was enough to seal all three points for Enzo Maresca's side at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Frank downplayed his substitution after the match, though, claiming he had not started Simons due to managing match fitness reasons.

'There's a reason why we played him on the bench,' he said. 'He played on Wednesday night (in their Carabao Cup defeat at Newcastle) and he can't play with that extra freshness, energy. There's not too much into that, that's just the way it is.'

Much like Liverpool’s £116 million signing Florian Wirtz, Simons has struggled to make the leap from the Bundesliga to the Premier League this season. Neither of the 22-year-olds has scored for their respective clubs since arriving in the summer to plenty of fanfare.

The Netherlands midfielder, who had been chased by several European clubs in the summer before settling on Tottenham, had scored 22 goals and assisted 24 others in his 78 appearances for RB Leipzig.

Yet Simons has now played over 500 minutes in all competitions for Spurs and is yet to score. He has registered one assist, on his debut at West Ham when one of his corners was headed in by Pape Matar Sarr.

His new manager has recently called for patience as the youngster adapts to the demands of the English top flight.

'It's a very good comparison,' said Frank, ahead of Spurs' Champions League tie in Monaco last Wednesday.

'Wirtz, also a very good player, just like Xavi coming into a new country, new club, new city, (they) just need to settle.

'We are all getting judged every game, but we also need to see the bigger perspective. I look for glimpses and with Xavi I asked him to arrive more in the box and when I looked back at the (Villa) game, he did.

'Was there a big eye-catching moment? No, but there were glimpses so it's going a little bit in the right direction.'

A product of Barcelona's La Masia academy, Simons moved to PSG in 2019 as a teenager before impressing during a loan spell at PSV in 2022-23.

He went on to spend the next two seasons at Leipzig before becoming the second major transfer from the club to the Premier League after Benjamin Sesko's £74million move to Manchester United.

Signed as a creative playmaker, Simons will be eager to establish himself quickly and justify the club’s investment.

Meanwhile, Tottenham’s defeat to Chelsea leaves them with just three wins in their last 19 Premier League home games with no ever-present team having won fewer home matches over this period.

Their expected goals (xG) of 0.05 against the Blues was the lowest they have recorded in a Premier League match since 2012-13, in what was their 504th game in the competition since that season.

The Premier League has issued an explanation to clarify why Tottenham midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur was not shown a straight red card for his tackle on Chelsea's Reece James on Saturday.

Towards the end of a feisty first half, Bentancur stopped Chelsea's counter attack with a forceful tackle on James, catching the defender on the ankle.

The Chelsea captain was furious to see referee Jarred Gillett only reach for a yellow card, convinced that it should have been deemed serious foul play.

As soon as Bentancur made contact with James' ankle, several players from both sides came together in a chaotic melee, which resulted in Trevoh Chalobah also being shown a yellow card after getting in the face of the Uruguayan.

Eager to clear up why VAR had not overturned Gillett's on-field decision, the Premier League Match Centre released an explanation on social media shortly into the second half.

'The referee’s call of yellow card to Bentancur was checked and confirmed by VAR – with the contact deemed to be a reckless challenge and not serious foul play,' the post read.

Former Spurs star Jamie Redknapp, who was working as a pundit in the Sky Sports studio, claimed that Bentancur only escaped serious punishment because the challenge was low on James' ankle.

'He knows he's leaving a little bit on him,' Redknapp said at half time. 'He's late, he's aggressive, he's over the top of the ball. A little bit higher, it's a red card.'

On Sky Sports commentary duty, Jamie Carragher hinted that Bentancur was lucky not to be given his marching orders.

'It catches him on the ankle and it'll be a sore one for him. It looks worse in slow motion,' the Liverpool legend said.

Meanwhile, during beIN Sports' half-time analysis, Richard Keys simply said: 'I'm lost for words. He's got to go!'

Despite feeling aggrieved by the decision, Chelsea still went on to claim all three points at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with a comfortable 1-0 win.

Joao Pedro ended his goal drought with a cool finish inside the penalty box in the 35th minute, firing Chelsea in front after being set up superbly by the tenacity of Moises Caicedo.

The Ecuadorian showed great spirit to twice win the ball off Tottenham's defenders and lay the ball into Pedro's path, before the striker finished with aplomb.

Follow Daily Mail Sport's live blog for the latest score, team news and updates as Chelsea host London rival Tottenham at Stamford Bridge in the Premier League, with Oliver Holt and Kieran Gill reporting from the ground.

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Football fans can look forward to a blockbuster evening of Premier League action tonight - as Tottenham host Chelsea in a highly-anticipated London derby, and Liverpool and Aston Villa clash at Anfield.

If you're one of the many who will be following both fixtures closely - let's take a look at Full-time Result market on offer courtesy of Sky Bet.

Tottenham vs Chelsea

Firstly, in the London derby at 5:30pm - Chelsea are marginal outsiders at 29/20 to win at home.

Conversely, Tottenham are slight favourites at 17/10, while a draw is at 5/2 odds.

The Blues boast a strong recent record against Tottenham in recent times - with Chelsea having won their last four against their bitter rivals, of which includes two wins at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

With that being said, this is a completely different Spurs side under Thomas Frank, with the north London club sitting third in the table after a strong start that has seen them claim five wins and two draws in their opening nine games.

With their great form in mind, will this be the game Tottenham break Chelsea's head-to-head winning streak? Or, will Enzo Maresca's side make it five straight against their London foes?

Liverpool vs Aston Villa

Liverpool's struggles continued during the week - with Arne Slot's side thrashed 3-0 by Crystal Palace in the Carabao Cup.

It marked the Reds' sixth loss in their last seven games across all competitions - and as a result - their manager Arne Slot has shortened to a 5/2 second-favourite to be the next Premier League boss sacked.

That would have seemed unconscionable just a couple of months ago - as the reigning champions had won their opening five league games.

However - now seventh in the table and seven points adrift of league leaders Arsenal - Liverpool are in desperate need of a win if they are to stay in the title race.

Despite their horrid run of form, Liverpool are odds-on favourites with Sky Bet to win at home tonight - with Mohamed Salah and Co priced at 8/13.

Meanwhile, their opponents Aston Villa 15/4 to upset the applecart, and a draw is 10/3 odds.

Villa could prove good value, with Unai Emery's side in a rich vein of form that has seen them win their last four league games.

Accumulators

For those anticipating a pair of upsets tonight - there are odds of more than 11/1 on offer for Tottenham and Aston Villa both to win.

When you couple Tottenham and Villa's fantastic form with Chelsea and Liverpool's lacklustre play of late - there's a real chance of a couple of surprise results this evening.

Conversely, if you're tipping their opponents to get up - Chelsea and Liverpool both to win is garnering just shy of 3/1 odds.

John Terry ripped into Tottenham's history after Jamie O'Hara claimed the north London club were historically bigger than Chelsea.

The Blues legend made a brutal joke at the expense of Tottenham's trophy cabinet, which had its first addition in 17 years when they won the Europa League last season.

Ahead of Saturday's derby, he phoned in to O'Hara's talkSPORT show after the host argued that Chelsea only became big when they 'bought the league' after Roman Abramovic took over in 2003.

'What on earth is he on about this morning, O'Hara?' Terry said. 'Even using those two words together, "Spurs" and "globally", should never be in the same sentence ever again.

'They're still doing their pre-season tours around north London, absolutely ridiculous.

'I've been invited to the game by Tottenham at the weekend. It's a 5:30 kick-off, they've asked me to get there at 5:29 and they've said they'll take me around the trophy cabinet and they'll have me in my seat by kick-off,' he joked.

'That's how miles off it they are.'

O'Hara and his co-host Gabby Agbonlahor saw the funny side, though the former stood firm in his opinions.

He had said earlier on Friday: ''Everyone sees Tottenham as a cup final in London. Chelsea treat it as a cup final.

'On recent success, Chelsea have obviously become a big club because of the investment that they got from Roman Abramovich.

'They bought the league, they bought a load of amazing players, and fair play to them.

'Chelsea weren't bigger than Tottenham before.'

And replying to Terry's voicenote, he said: 'Listen, JT, he played in the era when they were big. They had Roman Abramovich and he was unbelievable.

'But before then, they were nowhere near as big as Tottenham. They weren't!'

The debate has arisen ahead of Tottenham's clash with Chelsea att 5.30pm on Saturday and will be hotly contested in pubs across London.

Nowadays, seeing Chelsea with their five Premier League titles and two Champions Leagues, it might seem a bit of a moot debate. But is it?

Before Abramovic's arrival in 2003, Chelsea had won 10 elite-level trophies. Tottenham's total was 16.

Expand that to total trophies won and Chelsea's tally sat at 15, while Spurs were already on 27.

Moreover, we can get a good handle on how many points the two clubs have historically accrued, though different websites have slightly varying data.

In the all-time table for the Premier League and Division One combined, Chelsea have accrued 5,431 points - only eight points more than Tottenham's haul of 5,423. And that's in four more games (3,635 - 3,631). The margins are remarkably tight, with the figures taken from worldfootball.net.

Using another website, football365,we can see how many of those points were earned since the beginning of the Roman Abramovic era.

Since Abramovic arrived, Chelsea have picked up more points than any team: 1,663. Tottenham falter quite a way behind on 1,402.

But what that tells us is that before Abramovic arrived, Spurs were some way ahead of their London rivals. Until June 2003, they had collected 4,021 points, compared to Chelsea's 3,768.

Obviously, there are other factors to this. Before Roman Abramovic's arrival, Chelsea average a higher attendance; subsequent stadium expansions and moves have helped Spurs exceed that.

But, given that Tottenham had won more elite titles, more trophies in total, and more points before Abramovic arrived, perhaps O'Hara has a point after all.

Matchday ten of the Premier League season is almost upon us and that means one thing - it's time to play Predictor!

Predictor is our simple, free-to-play competition where you can win big cash prizes, with £1,000 up for grabs weekly. Simply guess the winner of seven Premier League matches - or play it safe with a draw. There's also a £5,000 prize if you come first across the whole season.

And yes, we have leagues! You're able to create or join them, and they can be public or private. Now is your chance to definitively prove you know more than your mates or even more than our experts - play now at dailymail.co.uk/predictor.

The weekend kicks off with a massive five 3pm games on Saturday. Brighton host Leeds while Arsenal will look to bag three points at Turf Moor and extend their lead at the top of the table against promoted Burnley.

Crystal Palace also stage a London derby when they take on Brentford, and Fulham will look to end their four-game winless run against league strugglers Wolves.

Ruben Amorim's side will look to make it four in a row for the first time since February last year to cap off the afternoon's games behind the TV blackout.

EXPERT PREDICTIONS

BRIGHTON v LEEDS - HOME WIN

BURNLEY v ARSENAL - AWAY WIN

CRYSTAL PAL v BRENTFORD - HOME WIN

FULHAM v WOLVES - HOME WIN

N FOREST v MAN UNITED - AWAY WIN

SPURS v CHELSEA - DRAW

LIVERPOOL v ASTON VILLA - AWAY WIN

WEST HAM v NEWCASTLE - AWAY WIN

MAN CITY V BOURNEMOUTH - DRAW

SUNDERLAND V EVERTON - HOME WIN

Later on, Chelsea will look to overcome bogey team Spurs at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium at 5.30pm. The Blues have lost their last four consecutive games against their capital rivals.

Liverpool close out the day with a tricky test against Aston Villa at Anfield at 8pm. The champions have lost their last four in a row and are struggling to find their rhythm this season, while Aston Villa have recovered from an early-season blip and capped off their return with a 1-0 victory against Manchester City last weekend.

There's then just two games on Sunday with the London Stadium staging a clash between West Ham and Newcastle at 2pm, followed by Manchester City taking on Bournemouth at 4.30pm.

Lastly, Monday sees Premier League high-fliers Sunderland play Everton at 8pm.

Daily Mail Sport's Craig Hope is the next expert for you to try and beat.

Here are Craig's thoughts and picks:

I never thought I’d be writing this after a few weeks of the season, when Liverpool were top of the table and Aston Villa were in the bottom three, but I fancy Villa to go to Anfield and win.

Arne Slot’s Carabao Cup team selection was short-sighted and Liverpool missed out on the chance to restore the feel-good factor.

As it is, after another defeat, they’ll be low and nervy going into this game. Villa, by contrast, have won their last four in the Premier League and have the attacking players to trouble the champions.

But I can also see Manchester City dropping points at home to Bournemouth, and that shouldn’t really be too great a surprise given it is fifth hosting second.

Perhaps the most intriguing game of the weekend, and one that is difficult to call, is Manchester United at Nottingham Forest. While I’m far from convinced Ruben Amorim is the right manager for United, they’ll always have enough good players to win games.

Right now, the likes of Bryan Mbeumo and Matheus Cunha are proving that theory. I think they can be the difference against a Forest team still low on confidence.

Do you agree? Or think you can beat and the rest of our experts? Play now.

We will be back on Monday to assess all the action, review the leaderboard and get ready for the next weekend of games.

You can play Predictor every round of Premier League matches this 2025-26 season.

Play on the web or on our app, whatever you like. Fancy yourself as the Predictor Supremo? Dive right in at dailymail.co.uk/predictor .

A member of Tottenham's Europa League-winning squad from just a matter on months ago has called time on his footballing journey for a shock new career.

The star, now 27, was with Spurs from his youth teams days before signing his first professional deal, and was with the team until the end of last season.

During that time, he had two loan spells - both with Swedish side Degerfors, but never really looked like making any impact of sorts on the first team and found himself way down the pecking order regularly.

So he started dipping his toes into other areas of live to try potential careers, including acting classes, broadcasting, and photography.

According to The Athletic, he expected to continue his footballing career when he was released by Tottenham at the end of last season, but called it a day on his own terms in the summer.

The player in question is goalkeeper Alfie Whiteman. He also featured for England at Under-17 and U19 levels, but has now hung up his boots for the lens.

'I signed for Spurs at 10 years old,' he told The Athletic as he announced the news publicly. 'Then I left school at 16 and went straight into this full-time life of football.

'When I was around 17 or 18, living in digs, I just had this feeling inside of, "Is this it?" Getting on the mini bus, going to training, doing the Sports Science BTEC and going home to play video games. I realised, "Oh, I'm not happy here" from quite a young age.

'The stereotype of a footballer is generally quite true. It's the golf, washbag culture. I was that young footballer. I wanted the Gucci washbag and I drove the Mercedes. You all just become a reflection of each other. You're a product of your environment. It's the way football is in this country; it's so shut off from anything else. You go to training and then you go home, that's it.

He added: 'Football is a short career regardless, even if you do really well, and I knew that I didn’t want to stay in it. It was about trying to gain experience and be proactive in learning about these things I was also interested in, but mainly because I was enjoying it, and was surrounded by the kinds of people that were doing what I enjoyed as a job. They were making things. It was really inspiring.'

He made one appearance for Tottenham at senior level, which came under Jose Mourinho in the Europa League in 2020. He tried to leave in 2024, but Spurs needed club-trained players for their Europa League campaign, and he ended up being part of the winning squad.

He went onto explain that he has two trials in the summer - one at a League One club and one at a Championship club - but eventually decided he saw 'happiness' in his other ventures.

Whiteman has since worked with the likes of Nike and rapper Central Cee, also performing his craft in the likes of Norway and Ukraine. He also said he has not watched any football since retiring from playing.

The Carabao Cup has a way of energising Newcastle’s seasons, but it’s the fizzy stuff at the end of it they’re addicted to now.

That is why this victory was roared home with even greater relish than the recent wins over Benfica and Fulham, completing a trilogy of home triumphs across the Champions League, Premier League and the competition for which they are holders.

Over four campaigns they have lost just once in the Carabao Cup from 19 matches, and that was defeat in the final in 2023. They corrected that in February with victory over Liverpool at Wembley.

This has become Eddie Howe and Newcastle’s favourite platform. After 70 years waiting for a domestic trophy, those bubbles can be intoxicating.

But it’s not just the road to Wembley that keeps them motoring, it’s the knowledge that Champions League qualification has ran parallel to both of their appearances in the final. There is something about a cup run in these parts that stokes the imagination. It acts like a page-turner, maintaining intrigue, interest and possibility.

For all of the debate about priorities given the proximity of those three home matches, the past week has returned the verdict of Howe and his players - we’ll try and win the lot.

When you have a midfielder like Sandro Tonali - an Italian of style and substance - and a striker in Nick Woltemade who has now scored six goals from six shots on target, winning becomes a whole lot easier. Howe will hope that three in eight days forms a habit.

For Spurs, meanwhile, the colour of their shirt was reflective of their application. They wore yellow and went down like a submarine. And playing away was supposed to be the strength of Thomas Frank’s new-look side.

It had felt like 1-0 to the visitors in the battle of the team-sheets, an arbitrary contest that only really matters on domestic cup nights. But Newcastle, with eight changes, would not have named this XI for a Premier League match. Spurs, with four, looked stronger and more recognisable.

And yet, when said battle switched from paper to grass, it was they who looked nothing like the team who have the top-flight’s best away record this season.

There’s an old adage about sides not putting their boots on. Well, Djed Spence wore his, he just hadn’t tied the laces properly. So when he asked for time to tighten his boot as Newcastle prepared to take a corner on 24 minutes, the hosts weren’t best pleased about waiting.

They gave him a few seconds to form the bow, but his absence from the goalmouth when Tonali swiftly delivered left Spurs in knots. Fabian Schar took advantage of his match-up against Richarlison to climb and head in.

They did improve slightly, but the man their supporters had booed before kick-off - former Arsenal goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale - had the last laugh. He made a string of saves during a period when Frank’s men belatedly threatened parity. That rally expired when Woltemade headed Newcastle’s second in the 50th minute.

One observation of the £69million German - let’s not call it a criticism just yet - is that he does not touch the ball enough in the penalty area. It is hard to tell if that is his doing or a fault of the team around him. Either way, Woltemade’s response would surely be that every time he does, it ends up in the net.

And so, with his first effort of the evening, he steered a close-range nod from Joe Willock’s cross into an empty goal. He didn’t even have to jump, given his 6ft 6ins frame was too much for the fist of Antonin Kinsky to overcome.

It was a lame effort by the Spurs goalkeeper, and the defending of Kevin Danso - pinned beneath the scorer - was not much better.

The result was never in doubt thereafter. It seldom is when Newcastle play in this competition. They are now two ties from a third Wembley outing in four years and, with a taste for what awaits in the capital, you would not back against them making it there.

The home fans sang about their team 'never being defeated’ on full-time. In the Carabao Cup, that has become as good as factually correct.

Former Tottenham Hotspur fan favourite Toby Alderweireld has hinted that he's one of the contestants on the current season of The Masked Singer in Belgium.

The 36-year-old called time on his playing career in the summer after an impressive 17 years at the top of European football for Ajax, Atletico Madrid, Southampton, Spurs and lastly Royal Antwerp.

He spent six seasons at Spurs after joining the club in 2015, becoming a cult hero in north London alongside centre-back partner and fellow Belgian Jan Vertonghen.

However it seems in retirement that Alderweireld could be displaying a very different set of expertise.

Back in his home country, rumours have been rife amongst Saturday night television viewers about who exactly the 'eagle owl' is on the Belgian version of The Masked Singer.

The contestant has impressed viewers with his singing ability and extravagant performances. On the show's most recent episode last Saturday, his rendition of The Killers' classic tune Mr. Brightside went down a treat with the judges.

Speculation has incredibly suggested that Alderweireld is the man behind the mask and, speaking this week, the former Belgium international didn't deny it.

During an appearance on HLN Voetbalpodcast, he said: 'I've been asked that question (about the eagle owl) a few times.

'I know of the question, but who knows? Who knows? Do I have a set answer to that question? Well, no, I don't know myself. So maybe that's the answer I have to give.'

Alderweireld signed for Spurs for from Atletico Madrid just over a decade ago following an impressive season-long loan at Southampton.

The defender went on to feature 236 times in all competitions for Spurs and was a key figure in the side that reached the Champions League final back in 2019.

Following six years at the club, Alderweireld eventually left for Qatar side Al-Duhail where he would only spend one season before moving back to his hometown club.

He spent three seasons at Antwerp making 134 appearances before hanging up his boots last summer.

The highlight of Alderweireld's homecoming came at the end of the 2022-23 season, his first at the club. The defender netted a stunning last-minute goal from distance during the club's final game of the season to earn them their first league title in 66 years.