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As Tottenham Hotspur head into a crucial period, injury concerns are mounting, particularly surrounding their captain, Heung-min Son. Following a hamstring injury sustained in the Europa League win over Qarabag, Son’s fitness remains a point of concern for manager Ange Postecoglou. With pivotal clashes against Manchester City, Aston Villa, and Galatasaray on the horizon, Spurs face a race against time to have their star forward fit and ready.

Heung-min Son’s injury on September 26 kept him out of action for four matches across all competitions. Despite missing South Korea’s international fixtures to focus on recovery, Son returned to Spurs’ lineup in the London derby against West Ham, marking his comeback with a goal and a spirited 70-minute performance in their 4-1 triumph. However, his return was short-lived, as Postecoglou later confirmed Son experienced “some soreness” post-match, ruling him out of their recent Europa League encounter with AZ Alkmaar.

Postecoglou explained that Son “would not have played in that game anyway” due to his recent fitness struggles. The situation took a disappointing turn for Spurs fans when Son also missed the Premier League match against Crystal Palace, where Tottenham suffered a frustrating 1-0 defeat. His absence has amplified the uncertainty surrounding his availability for upcoming high-stakes fixtures. Postecoglou remains cautious but hopeful, indicating, “Sonny is still not right or feeling 100 per cent…unlikely for the weekend, and we’ll see how he is beyond that.”

Another player whose return could impact Spurs’ fortunes is Djed Spence. The versatile full-back, who recently extended his contract until 2028, has been sidelined with a groin injury sustained during training. Spence’s absence has limited Tottenham’s defensive options at a critical juncture, though there’s optimism surrounding his progress.

According to Postecoglou, Spence is “getting closer,” with hopes that he could rejoin training at Hotspur Way next week. While he missed the recent Palace fixture, his availability could bolster Spurs’ defence for either the Manchester City clash or their subsequent match against Aston Villa. The manager’s cautious yet optimistic approach highlights Tottenham’s current balancing act in managing injuries as they juggle league and cup commitments.

Potential return date: Wednesday, October 30, vs Manchester City or Sunday, November 3, vs Aston Villa

With a Carabao Cup last-16 face-off against Manchester City just days away, Tottenham’s injury challenges are arriving at a challenging moment. As Spurs prepare for a hectic schedule with multiple competitions in play, the urgency to have both Son and Spence back on the pitch is evident. Fans are left anxiously awaiting updates, hoping the team’s depth and resilience will carry them through this demanding stretch.

Crystal Palace Secure Victory Over Tottenham in Premier League Clash

In an electrifying match at Selhurst Park, Crystal Palace clinched a crucial victory against Tottenham Hotspur, marking their first win in this season’s Premier League. The game’s pivotal moment came when Jean-Philippe Mateta, reinstated to the starting lineup, exploited a defensive lapse to net the winning goal. This strike not only sealed the match but also spotlighted the forward’s crucial role, adding to his impressive tally after last season’s 16-goal feat.

Defensive Drama and Offensive Opportunities

The encounter between Crystal Palace and Tottenham was rife with intensity and strategic gameplay. Early on, Spurs defender Micky van de Ven lost possession deep within his territory, leading to a chaotic scramble that concluded with Mateta’s decisive shot. Tottenham responded vigorously, nearly equalising through a deflected corner kick that hit the post, demonstrating the game’s fine margins.

As the match progressed, Dean Henderson, Palace’s goalkeeper, was a standout performer. One of his critical contributions was a remarkable save against James Maddison, denying the midfielder on his 200th Premier League appearance. This fingertip save was crucial in maintaining the lead and showcased Henderson’s pivotal role in the squad.

Photo: IMAGO

Palace’s Strategic Execution

Under the guidance of their management, Crystal Palace showcased a well-executed defensive strategy paired with rapid offensive transitions. Eberechi Eze was particularly notable, proving to be a persistent threat. His ability to unsettle the Spurs defence was evident, although his potential goal was disallowed for offside. The decision not to award a penalty after Eze was brought down in the box only added to the game’s tension.

The latter stages of the match saw substitute Richarlison miss a significant opportunity to draw level for Tottenham, his misconnection in the six-yard box mirroring Spurs’ frustrations throughout the game. On the flip side, Adam Wharton was close to doubling Palace’s lead with a spectacular long-range effort, which was superbly saved by Guglielmo Vicario.

Grit and Determination Seal the Deal

Crystal Palace’s resilience was on full display as they managed to withstand Tottenham’s late onslaught. The home defence, which has been under scrutiny for their solitary clean sheet this season, held firm against a desperate Spurs attack. This defensive solidity was instrumental in lifting the team out of the relegation zone, providing a significant morale boost.

The match’s outcome has far-reaching implications for both teams. For Crystal Palace, the victory is a vital lifeline and a testament to their strategic prowess and determination. Tottenham, on the other hand, will have to regroup and reassess their approach, particularly in penetrating tight defences and capitalising on their opportunities.

In conclusion, this Premier League fixture was not just a demonstration of tactical football but also of the sheer unpredictability and excitement that the league brings. Crystal Palace’s ability to secure a win under pressure is a positive sign for their campaign, potentially setting the tone for their season.

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Fixture: Tottenham Hotspur vs AZ Alkmaar Competition: Europa League Kick-off: 20:00 UK time

Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou has picked his starting line-up and substitutes to play host to Dutch side AZ Alkmaar in the Europa League at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this evening.

Spurs have won both their Europa League league phase games so far and another victory tonight would mean a foot in the qualification zone early on.

They take on an AZ side who arrive in poor form, having lost their last four games across all competitions, including one in the Europa League, at Athletic Bilbao.

Tottenham start as firm favourites, but AZ did win their Europa League opener, against Elfsborg, and will be eyeing a shock in north London.

Fraser Forster is in goal for Tottenham this evening, while at the back Postecoglou picks Archie Gray, Radu Dragusin, Ben Davies and Destiny Udogie as a four.

In the engine room, Tottenham go with Rodrigo Bentancur, Lucas Bergvall and James Maddison, while Mikey Moore and Richarlison support Timo Werner.

Postecoglou can chop and change if needed and his options tonight include Dominic Solanke and Brennan Johnson.

Tottenham Hotspur Team vs AZ Alkmaar

Robert Vilahamn felt we needed to be stronger in both boxes as Chelsea claimed a 5-2 victory in the Barclays Women’s Super on Sunday evening.

Similar to our performance against Manchester United last weekend, we started well and were on the front foot, but it was the hosts who broke the deadlock through Maika Hamano on 10 minutes. However, this time we fought back and found an equaliser midway through the second half as Amanda Nilden’s cross was dropped by Hannah Hampton and was adjudged to have bounced over the line.

But, once again, like last time out at United, we conceded on the stroke of half time, Amanda heading home into her own net, to find ourselves behind at the break. Then, two goals in a five-minute spell put the hosts in control in the second half and, despite Eveliina Summanen cutting the deficit with a free-kick from the edge of the box, Johanna Rytting Kaneryd netted her second of the game to seal the win for the Blues.

Speaking to SPURSPLAY after the game, Robert highlighted the importance of being sharper inside our own box to avoid the goals we conceded, but was pleased with parts of our performance against one of the top teams in the WSL.

“A 5-2 loss is not fun at all, especially when it’s your third defeat in a row, but then you need to calm down after the result and see what was good, we have just played Chelsea away and we played some good football in parts,” he said.

“The first half was quite good, but what’s killing us is the goals we’re conceding too easily, we need to fix that, find ways to be better and sharper in those situations… we need to fix that as it’s not good enough.

“On the other hand, you need to see where we are, a team that’s wanting to grow, build an identity and compete with the top teams, so we came to Chelsea and played our football and that’s a big step, but we need to make sure we take steps in other situations as it’s too easy to concede five goals.

“We scored two goals away at Chelsea, which is offensively good, and we created chances but, if you look at it the other way, you are like ‘how can we score even more goals’ and I absolutely think we could have scored three or four more. However, if we want to win the game 2-1, we need to look at how we defend, collectively and also individually, and some of the goals are brilliant stuff from the Chelsea players but we need to defend better.”

We now head into an international break before returning to action with a home clash against West Ham United on Sunday 3 November (2pm UK) and Robert was asked about coming back strong for another London derby.

“There’s still positives to take and, of course, we want to be a top team and we want to compete in these games, but we also need to accept that it will take a bit more time, Robert added. “So, in the upcoming weeks, with a small group, is to make sure we have good training sessions, reflect on this game and, then with the other players coming back, we need to make sure we have a good game plan for West Ham.”

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Tottenham Hotspur head coach Robert Vilahamn says that he strongly believes that his side are capable of beating Chelsea this weekend.

The Lilywhites travel to Kingsmeadow to take on the Barclays Women’s Super League champions on Sunday evening.

Chelsea will be the huge favourites going into the game but Spurs boss Vilahamn has faith in his side’s ability if they deliver the perfect performance

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“I feel that we have a more clear identity now, everybody knows how to play,” Vilahamn said when speaking in the pre-match press conference. “We have some quality players but I know that we are playing one of the best teams in the world away, so we need to have a perfect game to win. I know that we can do it, we have the characters in this squad to do it but we also have to nail the whole game.

“We know how good Chelsea are but we know we can compete against them and we know what we need to do to win. We have a good chance and I strongly believe that we can do it.”

Going on to discuss Chelsea, Vilahamn knows that The Blues are not yet at their most fluid but they have found ways to keep winning game-on-game.

He said “Sonia [Bompastor] has a very impressive CV. I went up against her in the Champions League with Häcken and they had a strong team and a good identity.

“You can see that she has adapted to the English league in a very good way, she’s got really good players and you can tell that they know how to win games because they’re not looking brilliant in every game but they are finding ways to win. You can see that they have tactical stuff where they do rotations as well. She’s a great coach, it’s a great team and it’ll be a tough game.

“On the other hand, we had some good games against Chelsea last season and I feel like we are performing quite well. We just need to make sure we have a really good defensive mindset and some really good finishing then we will have a chance.”

Spurs go into the game off the back of tough defeats to Liverpool and Manchester United. The North Londoners lost the first game through a soft penalty before conceding poor goals against Manchester United last weekend. Vilahamn has been pleased with the players’ response in midweek.

He said “When you get two hits in consecutive games, you can go down and feel sorry for yourselves or take action. It was fun in the week to see that the players wanted to replace yoga with boxing to make sure they get a really good attitude and energy. I think that was a really good call because they showed that they wanted to take the fight and keep going. We’ve had a great training week, we’ve given constructive feedback from the games and the team took it well.

“We have a tough schedule. In six games, we play all of the top five from last season. You also need to understand that every game is a tough game; you need a really good game plan and performance to get the result. If you don’t get that, you have to realise that the table only matters after 22 games.

“We are making sure we train hard and develop every week because sooner or later, the way that we play and create chances is going to be very effective for us.”

Tottenham Hotspur’s Barclays Women’s Super League fixture against Chelsea kicks-off at 6.45pm on Sunday evening.

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Robert Vilahamn spoke to the media on Thursday afternoon ahead of our Barclays Women’s Super League encounter against Chelsea at Kingsmeadow on Sunday (6.45pm).

Here’s what he had to say…

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Team news

First up, team news and an update on Hayley Raso, Amanda Nilden and Ella Morris…

Robert: “Amanda is in training so, hopefully, she can play on Sunday but she’s still training on Saturday to make sure we have the right progress with her. Hayley's still out for this weekend, she's on the field, but she's not really back yet. Ella is back in full action so she will, if everything goes well, be ready for Sunday as well. Shuang [Wang] and Amy [James-Turner] are not ready yet and Maite [Oroz] is out as well for six to eight weeks.”

Robert was then asked about the impact of Maite’s injury to the squad…

Robert: “She was one of our big signings and, I think, she was one of the best players in the first games. She has a quad injury which means there's nothing to do… it's unexpected and not like there was any reason behind that, it was more like an accident in training. For me, we have good players that can replace her but, of course, she's one of the best technical players and passing players so we're going to miss her, but part of this game is to make sure we have a good squad and the players coming in get the chance to show where they are. I always try to find a way of seeing injuries, not as a good thing for the player, but as a good thing for the group because other players get the minutes to show where they are.”

Sonia Bompastor

Robert was asked about Chelsea boss Sonia Bompastor and what he made of her start at the Blues…

Robert: “She has a very impressive CV. I played against her with Hacken against Lyon in the Champions League, they had a strong team and they had a good identity as well. She's adapted to the English League in a very good way, signed some really good players and she knows how to win games because they're not looking brilliant in all the games so far, but they’re finding ways to win them. She’s a great coach with a great team, it’s going to be a tough game. On the other hand, we had some good games against Chelsea last season and I feel like we are performing quite well, so we just need to make sure we have a really good defending mindset and some really good finishing this game, then we have a good chance.”

On producing more history

We have yet to take points off Chelsea in the WSL since our promotion to the top flight in 2019 and Robert was asked whether his side can produce history this weekend…

Robert: “We have a clearer identity now, everybody knows how to play and we have some quality players. We are playing one of the best teams in the world so we need to have a perfect game to win this, but I know that we can do it, I know that we have the characters in this squad who can do it. If you look at the Man United game, it's not a bad performance for most of the game but it's some poor situations that creates the loss. We know how good Chelsea are, but we also know that we can compete against them.”

How would you look to contain Chelsea’s goal threats?

Robert: “They have scored a lot of goals in that game against Crystal Palace, but if you look at Chelsea's squad, you realise that they have a very, very good squad with a lot of talented players. The main thing is how they score goals in different positions, Rytting Kaneryd is one type of player, Aggie Beever-Jones is another type and Mayra Ramírez is a different player so, of course you need to look at the structure, how they want to score goals from phases of the game and then you can look individually as well and support the players with individual clips depending on who you’re playing against. We also try to mostly focus on ourselves, how we are going to collectively defend in parts of the game so they don't create those chances, but it's a tough task because they have so many good players.”

On last week's learnings

Robert was asked about what he and the squad learned from the 3-0 defeat to Manchester United last weekend…

Robert: “We looked at the analysis of the game and how we started the game well, how we pressed well, and then we looked at the goals they got and how they created those goals, it was not like they were playing us out, it was us not taking the work we should do or we're not in the positions we should be. It’s situations that we need to learn from and we learned the hard way in this game…. we have addressed that. It was also a learning like last season, we worked quite a bit with box defending and how to protect the crosses, we were quite good at it in the end. We just need to keep going back to stuff as well and make sure we work with that and, of course, we need to finish the goals as well. We had some really good chances in the beginning and if you score there, you have a bit of self-confidence to keep dictating the game, but we’re learning every week, whether we’re winning or losing.”

“When you look at the players, how they've tried to follow the game plan, tactically and how they tried to take the game all the way to the last second, even at 3-0 down, that shows some really good character. We’re also learning that if we don't do it all the time, the teams are too good, so we can never, ever do that. I feel like the most important thing is to go there on your own and, if you don't do it, we need to demand that from each other and make sure we dare to tell each other what to do in those situations. We are a team, we demand stuff and we need to be brave enough to tell people to do the work.”

Jess Naz

Robert was then asked about the forward’s call-up to the England senior squad for the second time following her strong start to the season…

Robert: “I think her journey together with me, how we have worked, it's been great to see her come from in and out, injured, not playing too much to actually take a starting position, be a really good threat, handling out of possession, how we press and creating chances. I think if you look at the first games of this season, she's been good but she's not been great because she's still hasn’t got the consistency of finishing one against one, scoring goals and doing assists, so there’s still stuff to improve, but she's still very good in the games. I’m really pleased with what she has done and I also know that the potential in her is so much higher, so when she gets more consistent and creates more chances, scores more goals, then she’s probably going to start for England as well because she's that high quality and when I speak to Sarina, she sees the same stuff we see. There’s more to come, she can be even better but she already now a top player in this league, she just needs to be a little bit more consistent.”

Lenna Gunning-Williams

The academy graduate received her maiden call-up to England Under-23s squad this week and it was put to Robert about what is the plan with her for the rest of the season…

Robert: “We had a chat in the first week where we discussed potentially going out on loan again, or to stay and fight and I said, ‘I actually think you are ready to fight and get minutes, if you are ready to also handle some weeks without minutes’ and she liked that, so we started there. Then during pre-season, she was really good, she was scoring goals and was understanding the tactics, so she's getting closer and closer. We then signed Haley Raso and Anna Csiki, having more players to compete with, but she has continued to compete and perform.

“She's in my head sometimes to actually be able to start games now but the main thing is to find ways for her to grow with the team. I'm happy that she's in England Under-23s now because that's a good thing for her to develop as a person, to go away and see some high potential to be a starting player in this team, but also respect the journey. She played for Ipswich last season, it’s a big step to play now in the WSL and there’s more stuff that she needs to learn, but I have a plan to try to make sure she gets the minutes here and there, then it's up to her to take those minutes and how quickly she wants to play even more minutes. But she’s a great person to work with, I just love her attitude and how she takes information and tries to do what we ask for.”

Watch - Vilahamn speaks to media ahead of Chelsea trip

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Paul Gascoigne’s recent comments about being charged by Tottenham Hotspur for tickets caused a stir among fans, but his manager has now stepped in to clarify the situation. The former Spurs star claimed earlier this week that he was asked to pay “£400 each” for tickets to watch a match at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, a statement that left many supporters dismayed given his legendary status at the club.

Gascoigne’s remarks raised concerns about how the club treats its former stars, particularly one who delivered so many iconic moments, including his memorable free-kick against Arsenal in the 1991 FA Cup semi-final. “I was like, wow, with all I did for that club, you know?” he said, adding that he would be supporting Rangers when Spurs face them in the Europa League.

However, his manager, Katie Davies, was quick to address the issue. Speaking to The Standard, she said: “Paul’s comments are not an accurate reflection of his relationship with Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, which has provided a huge amount of support to him over the years and always looks after its former players.” She further clarified that the tickets in question were for associates of Gascoigne, not for him personally.

Gascoigne’s manager also emphasised that Spurs have consistently supported him and ensured that he has never been charged for attending matches. “We hope this draws a line under any misunderstanding on this matter and a positive dialogue is maintained moving forward,” she concluded.

While the comments have been clarified, the episode has reignited the ongoing debate around the treatment of former players at big clubs, with many supporters calling for more open communication and understanding between clubs and their legends.

Paul Gascoigne is not just a former player; he is a legend. To hear him speak of feeling undervalued or unwelcome at the club that once hailed him as a hero is disappointing. Even if there was a misunderstanding, the fact that such a conversation arose reflects the need for Spurs to do more for their former icons.

Supporters want their club to be a place where legends feel celebrated and appreciated. Seeing Gascoigne feel more connected to Rangers than to Spurs should raise eyebrows among the higher-ups at Tottenham Hotspur. Gascoigne’s brilliance and spirit were instrumental in some of Tottenham’s finest moments, and for many fans, he is part of the club’s identity.

The episode should serve as a wake-up call for Spurs to strengthen ties with their former stars and ensure they feel welcome in every way. A hero like Gascoigne deserves to be embraced, not alienated—especially by the club where he etched his name into the history books.

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