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Tottenham spurned a golden opportunity to heap pressure on the top two on Saturday afternoon, but one BBC pundit thinks the Lilywhites were never even in the title race.

After scraping wins against Newcastle, Leicester and Watford, it was perhaps unsurprising to see Tottenham falter this weekend.

Mauricio Pochettino’s side may have been picking up results in Dele Alli and Harry Kane’s absence, but outside of the 3-0 win over Borussia Dortmund the performances have generally been poor.

The display was sub-par again even with Kane’s return on Saturday, as goals from Chris Wood and Ashley Barnes were enough to life the Clarets to a 2-1 win, and Shearer believes that this has been coming for quite some time.

Pl>ymaker FC Exclusive: Jermaine Jenas reveals he would have snubbed Tottenham for Arsenal if they’d come knocking in 2005…

What’s the word?

“Tottenham didn’t do enough to win the game – despite having Harry Kane back from injury,” Shearer, a fixture on BBC’s Match of the Day, wrote for The Sun.

“Mauricio Pochettino can complain all he likes to the referee at the end but he’s got to look at his own players for not defending the corner properly.

“I thought Spurs were out of it (the title race) after their defeat to Wolves on December 29,” he continued.

“I don’t think there was ever a serious title threat from Tottenham and I never thought they would win it.”

Has he got a point?

Shearer is spot on in his criticism of Spurs’ performance, as the visitors at Turf Moor created little of any substance, yet looked vulnerable to every high ball into their box.

However, to say Pochettino’s side are out of the title race is truly absurd, as they still have games play against both of the sides above them.

The north Londoners are just six points off the top of the league, with trips to Anfield and the Etihad still to come.

Those will of course be mightily difficult fixtures to take three points from, but counting Spurs out is short-sighted and foolish.

Newcastle United supporters have suffered for the majority of the January window in predictable and uneventful fashion, but the conclusion of the month seems to have thrown up a handful of welcome surprises.

Shortly before Newcastle kicked off against Manchester City last night, news broke that, at long last, the club are on the brink of breaking their long-standing transfer record. After putting a first minute goal behind them, the news seemed to galvanise the club as Rafa Benitez’s diligent side managed to turn the game on its head and clinch three vital points against the reigning champions at St James’ Park.

The euphoria of a thrilling victory continued into Wednesday morning, but the supporters attention has largely been focused on the imminent arrival of Almiron, who arrived in Newcastle today to complete the record-breaking deal.

Weeks of speculation appear to be finally coming to an end in a dramatic conclusion which few would have been brave enough to predict given Mike Ashley’s transfer history, but who exactly is Almiron?

Well, avid watchers of the MLS will eulogise about the Paraguay international’s exciting all-action approach in the number ten role, but his lack of experience in European football is a notable concern.

Indeed, South American football expert Tim Vickery delivered his verdict on Almiron while speaking to Sky Sports, hinting that the speed of English football may catch him by surprise in the early stages of his career on Tyneside.

“I think he’s got a lot to bring to the Premier League, he is going to have to sharpen up his decision making in the final third, especially as he’s moving to a football which is much more intense than in the MLS and in South America.”

Making the transition to life in the Premier League is seldom a seamless endeavour and Almiron is unlikely to be an exception to the rule.

As Vickery has alluded to, the 24-year-old will need time to adapt to his new environment and it would be unjustified for supporters to expect instant fireworks from their club-record signing.

After all, the pressure that naturally arrives with that tag has been bestowed upon his shoulders due to an anomalous set of circumstances: a club of Newcastle’s stature would typically have broken their record years before Almiron’s arrival if the club were not constrained by the manacles of an atypical owner, while his price-tag remains modest in the context of an extortionate modern economic climate.

The pressure is on for the imminent arrival to succeed at Newcastle, but can Almiron rise to the challenge?

Newcastle fans – thoughts? Let us know below!

Liverpool lost further ground in the title race after lumbering to a 1-1 draw against West Ham at the London Stadium.

Despite taking the lead through Sadio Mane despite James Milner crossing from an offside position, Liverpool were far from their best and couldn’t find a winner after Michail Antonio equalised far too easily for the hosts. The second successive draw will be a cause for concern for Jurgen Klopp with Manchester City breathing down their necks. The injury-stricken Reds will hope to return to winning ways against Bournemouth at the weekend.

Both their brilliance in attack and resilience in defence has dissipated during their recent games. Indeed, their injury problems at the back have done nothing to help their rearguard. Both Joel Matip, Dejan Lovren and Joe Gomez have faced spells on the sidelines this season. Gomez, in particular, could miss the rest of the season – yet another long-term injury for the youngster.

While his form this season has been excellent, the England international has gained a reputation for picking up injuries and Klopp must question whether he can be relied upon as Virgil van Dijk’s long-term centre-back partner.

If not, the German should make a move for Napoli defensive rock – Kalidou Koulibaly. Valued at £63m by Transfermarkt, the Senegal international has developed into one of the world’s best defenders since joining the Serie A side – his excellent talents were on show against the Reds in the Champions League. Combining pace, power and composure – Koulibaly would be a frightening prospect alongside the Dutchman in the Liverpool back four.

It could take another world-record fee to prise him from Naples but his arrival at Anfield would take their defence to a whole new level.

Liverpool fans, thoughts?

توصل نادي مانشستر يونايتد إلى اتفاق مع لاعب فريق بورتو، أليكس تيليس، حول الشروط الشخصية لصفقة انتقاله إلى الأولد ترافورد هذا الصيف.

وأبدى الشياطين الحمر رغبتهم في التعاقد مع الظهير البرازيلي، في موسم الانتقالات الصيفي الحالي.

وحسب شبكة “RMC” الفرنسية، فإن مسؤولي مانشستر يونايتد توصلوا إلى اتفاق بالفعل مع تيليس حول الشروط الشخصية لصفقة انتقاله المرتقب إلى الفريق الإنجليزي.

اقرأ أيضًا.. هالاند يُلمح لمصير سانشو بعد ارتباطه بـ مانشستر يونايتد

وأوضحت أن تيليس وافق على عقد لمدة خمس سنوات مع كتيبة أولي جونار سولشاير.

وأشارت إلى أنه لا يوجد أي اتفاق بين مانشستر يونايتد وبورتو حول الرسوم المالية لصفقة تيليس، والذي يتواجد في الوقت ذاته على رادار باريس سان جيرمان.

West Ham’s main man Marko Arnautovic has been linked with a move away from the club for months, but he now needs to knuckle down and prove he’s worth being snapped up.

The Austrian striker’s brother pleaded with the club to let him leave in a statement in January, but his ‘dream move’ to an unnamed Chinese club fell through when a £35m bid was rejected. Why he wanted to go to China is beyond us all but since that deal didn’t materialise, the talented frontman should perform like everyone knows he can to earn a move to a club which is a step up from West Ham.

Why he’d even want to leave The London Stadium in January is another question that’s hard to answer. They’re playing some great football at the moment and are looking capable of mounting a challenge for a European spot over the next year or so. However, if he really does want to leave, then he needs to get his head back into playing for the Hammers until the end of the season.

There’s no questioning his quality, it’s there, but his attitude is something that sometimes lets him down, and that’s the difference between a good player and a world-class player – mentality. This is a test of character for the 29-year-old and could mean him signing for a Chinese club to rot away into obscurity or being picked up by a club already playing European football.

The opportunity to build up his goal tally is there. He’s now playing alongside players like Samir Nasri, Manuel Lanzini and Felipe Anderson who will be able to set him up for fun against most opposition. West Ham are creating chances against the best sides in the league too and he could be finishing those as their main man up top.

If Arnautovic would lift his head up and realise what an opportunity he has in front of him, he could be playing European football next season, whether that be with West Ham or not. Surely that would be more of a ‘dream move’ than China?

Where do you think Marko Arnautovic will be playing his football next season?

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Celtic fans have taken to Twitter to react after Scott Brown ended his near two-year long wait for a goal with an absolute scorcher against St Johnstone in the Scottish Cup rout.

The 33-year-old, who has been with the Bhoys for almost 12 years, found the top corner from almost 30 yards out to score his first goal since netting against Inverness back in February 2017.

Brendan Rodgers’ men recorded a resounding 5-0 victory to extend their domestic cup winning run to a remarkable 24 games, as they look to complete another treble.

Be sure to check out the incredible story of the man who rose from a Tanzanian refugee camp to become one of Australia’s biggest football stars in the video below…

Scott Sinclair also netted a hat-trick in the game, showing excellent composure in front of goal to ensure that he took the match ball home, whilst James Forrest also got in on the act to complete a fantastic victory.

Despite the former Manchester City man’s treble, it was Brown’s stunner that had the Celtic fans on Twitter talking, such was the rarity of the occasion…

تلقت اللجنة الأولمبية مجموعة شكاوى رسمية ضد مرتضى منصور رئيس مجلس إدارة نادي الزمالك على خلفية تصريحاته المثيرة ضد بعض الأشخاص في الوسط الرياضي المصري.

وجاءت الشكاوى من محمود الخطيب رئيس النادي الأهلي وعمرو الجنايني رئيس اتحاد الكرة، والمهندس هشام نصر رئيس اتحاد كرة اليد، ولجنة الحكام الرئيسيّة باتحاد كرة القدم، بخلاف عدة شكاوى ومذكرات من الدكتور حسن مصطفى رئيس الاتحاد الدولي لكرة اليد. طالع التفاصيل

وينشر “بطولات” نص الشكوى التي تقدم بها مجلس إدارة الأهلي برئاسة محمود الخطيب، والتي جاء أبرزها المطالبة بسرعة اتخاذ موقف بشأن التجاوزات التي يقوم بها رئيس الزمالك، مرتضى منصور. نص شكوى الأهلي

“السيد المهندس هشام حطب

رئيس اللجنة الأولمبية المصرية

تحية طيبة وبعد

النادي الأهلي يرفع إليكم شكواه مجددا وهو لم يتلق حتى الآن الرد على شكاويه العديدة لكم على مدار ما يزيد عن عام ونصف بشان التجاوزات “الفجة” من جانب رئيس الزمالك والتي لا تزال مستمرة بحق النادي الأهلي ومجلس إدارته من سباب وشتائم وإتهامات باطلة، وكذلك تجاوزاته بحق المنظومة الرياضية من .. التشكيك في نزاهة الحكام . التحريض على العنف. الحث على الكراهية . العنصرية والتحقير من الأشخاص .. إلخ، بما يخالف كافة اللوائح وبنود الميثاق الأوليمبي.

نطالب سيادتكم بسرعة اتخاذ اللازم قانونا بشان شكوانا الجديدة وبما يتفق مع بنود الميثاق الأوليمبي حرصا على السلم العام والعلاقة بين الجماهير خاصة وأن تجاوزات رئيس الزمالك فاقت كل الحدود وتنذر بفتنة كبرى في الوسط الرياضي.

وتفضلوا بقبول وافر التحية

رئيس النادي الأهلي

محمود الخطيب”

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According to Lieven De Turck, who represents Charlton in takeover talks, the club will commence contract negotiations with manager Lee Bowyer and his assistant Johnnie Jackson ‘in a decent time period’.

Both of their contracts are up in the summer – like many of the players’ deals as well – and the Addicks are keen to tie down the pair for the foreseeable future as they look to ease panic over the fate of those in the dugout and on the pitch.

Bowyer, since securing the job on a permanent basis, has guided the Addicks to sixth place – if they can remain in that spot, they have a real chance of promotion to the Championship via the play-offs, so it makes perfect sense that the club are keen to tie down the man that got them there.

Minutes from the Fans’ Forum meeting at The Valley on Monday night read:

“LDT [De Turck] said within the board there is consensus on Bowyer and Jackson.

“He said conversations will start soon on their contracts as they are doing a good job.

“LDT said they will do it in a decent time period.

“LDT said the consensus in the board is to continue with Bowyer and Jackson.”

Bowyer may be set to remain in the dugout beyond the end of the campaign, but he will not be in it for the next two matches; the 42-year-old is currently serving a three match touchline ban for confronting referee Chris Kavanagh after his side’s 2-1 win over Wimbledon last month.

Watch how to cross the road like a boss with freestyler Ben Nuttall in the video below…

Charlton fans must fear not, though, as it would seem this absence from the role is temporary and will not be made permanent in the summer, as long as contract negotiations go to plan.

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Tottenham Hotspur host Leicester City at Wembley Stadium on Sunday, and Mauricio Pochettino’s side will be looking to keep pace with the Premier League title race with a win. 

However, Spurs must be wary, as the Foxes showed in their recent hard-fought draw against Liverpool that they have what it takes to match the best. Every member of the Spurs team must pay due diligence to their defensive duties.

The indoor football skills in the video below have to be seen to be believed…

Pochettino will be looking to his midfielders to follow runners and drop deep to support their defence throughout the match. Harry Winks, who has impressed recently in the middle of the park for Spurs, will shoulder plenty of this responsibility.

The 23-year-old will have to balance his attacking duties with being mindful of the threat being posed by the likes of James Maddison and Demarai Gray who will be looking to exploit any gaps between Spurs’ midfield and defence.

The 3-cap England international must be mature and disciplined to ensure that his side aren’t caught out as they push forwards.

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According to The Telegraph, West Bromwich Albion striker Dwight Gayle has been charged by the FA for diving after he won a penalty in the 2-2 draw with Nottingham Forest at The Hawthorns on Tuesday night, and Reds fans have been quick to react on Twitter.

Martin O’Neill’s men looked to be on course to pick up a vital three points in their bid to secure a top-six finish in the Championship this season as they led 2-1 entering the closing stages, until Gayle went down in the area just a couple of minutes from time.

Referee Lee Mason awarded the spot-kick, but now the FA has charged the 28-year-old attacker with “successful deception of a match official” after an independent panel reviewed the incident and came to a unanimous decision, and he could be dealt a two-match ban.

Forest supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on the situation, and while one simply said “good”, another believes “the FA are setting a dangerous precedent”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…