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Tottenham Hotspur manager Jose Mourinho was left fuming with his team’s display on Thursday evening as they succumbed to their first defeat since the opening day of the new season.

The north Londoners squandered the lead in Group J after losing 1-0 in Belgium to Royal Antwerp. It was so bad that the Portuguese wanted to change his entire starting XI at the break.

He did, however, make a shock quadruple substitution, taking the likes of Dele Alli and Steven Bergiwjn off after a lacklustre opening 45.

In those changes, perhaps most surprisingly was Giovani Lo Celso, who was arguably the best player on the pitch in a white shirt. The fact that no other player, even those that played the entire duration, recorded a high rating (7.3) speaks volumes.

Per FotMob and SofaScore, the 24-year-old was still his creative self, delivering two key passes, but also quite industrious as he put in five tackles, made five recoveries and won 86% of his ground duels.

After he was withdrawn at the break, Spurs then failed to register a single attempt on target in the second half. They also recorded half the number of successful dribbles Antwerp could manage and lost possession 99 times – they missed the energetic Argentinian in the heart of the engine room.

Therefore, some of the blame must fall at the feet of Mourinho. It could have been a totally different game if the £31.5m-rated dynamo was kept on the pitch.

If he wanted Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg’s influence, then perhaps he should have dragged Harry Winks off, which would have allowed the £70k-per-week sensation to play a more natural advanced role.

The England international has previously lauded his teammate as an “exciting player” whilst Spanish football expert Guillem Balague once dubbed him “extraordinary.”

This is the sort of star that Mourinho ought to be building his team around. That half-time calamity may only dent his morale and confidence now. It was a scandalously wrong call.

AND in other news, FORGET Alli, £36m-rated Spurs passenger should’ve been hooked instead…

According to The Express, Liverpool are ready to reignite their interest in Bournemouth defender Lloyd Kelly this summer.

What’s the word?

Jurgen Klopp’s side were reported to be interested in the ace last year, but a deal failed to materialise before the end of the transfer window.

Now however, the Cherries’ relegation from the Premier League has opened up the team to a raid from some of the big-hitters in the top-flight, with Liverpool eyeing up a move for Kelly in particular.

Can you spot your Xabi Alonso from your Bruno Cheyrou? This Liverpool quiz will have you questioning your knowledge…



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The report claims that following Dejan Lovren’s departure to Zenit St Petersburg in recent days, Klopp is interested in bringing in a new centre-back to the club, with Kelly also being able to play at left-back too.

A masterstroke from Michael Edwards

Standing at 6 foot 3 and being left-footed, Kelly does inspire comparisons with former Liverpool centre-back Daniel Agger, who played for the Reds 232 times.

The Cherries defender is comfortable with the ball at his feet – he averaged an 80.1% pass accuracy in the Premier League this season – and has the kind of mobility that marks him out as a potentially elite centre-back in the modern game.

After completing a deal to sign him for Bournemouth, Eddie Howe said: “Lloyd is an exciting talent and a player of real potential, while at the same time already possessing good experience for someone so young. He is athletic, versatile, physically excellent and has a very bright future ahead of him.”

Still only 21, and earning only a reported £30k-per-week, Kelly would slot in seamlessly as a rotation option in the Liverpool back-line, and as a left-footer, offers the Reds something completely different in the centre of their defence. Michael Edwards could pull off a masterstroke by finally landing him for the Merseyside club this summer.

Make no mistake about it, Wednesday night was one of Celtic’s most humiliating defeats in European competition.

The Hoops suffered their earliest exit from the Champions League in 15 years as they were beaten by Hungarian top-flight champions Ferencvaros, meaning they will now drop into the Europa League’s third qualifying round.

Speaking after the game, Celtic boss Neil Lennon – who has come under fire for his team selection and tactics – was very critical of his players, even calling into question whether they wanted to be at the club.

He said: “We seem to have made the same mistakes as last year. I don’t know if it’s attitude or mentality but it’s cost us again. I’ll have to carry the can, and take the responsibility for it. I’m not saying Ferencvaros are a bad team – they’re not – but we had so much control we should have won. That doesn’t make us weak, it doesn’t make me weak, but people will cast aspersions.

How’s your Celtic knowledge? Always been a loyal fan? Well can you spot Stilian Petrov from John Hartson? Give it a go if you’re brave enough …

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When asked what message he would send to his players, Lennon responded: “Get your mentality right, get your attitude right. If some of you don’t want to be here, leave.”

One man whose attitude and desire can’t be questioned, but whose his performance certainly can, was Scott Brown.

For all the mistakes Lennon may have made with his starting line-up, including the baffling decision to not start with an out-and-out number nine, Celtic’s skipper badly let the side down with a deeply frustrating display.

As per Sofascore, his 6.9 match rating was the lowest of any outfield player for the Hoops, and when you look at the some of the numbers behind it, you can clearly see why.

Despite seeing his team dominate the ball – Celtic enjoyed a whopping 70% of the possession – Brown failed to attempt a single shot or dribble, not getting himself forward enough to unsettle Ferencvaros.

Whilst he was his usual tigerish self – he made three tackles and four interceptions – Lennon’s side desperately needed their captain to be far more adventurous with the ball at his feet.

His 93 touches was the highest of any midfielder or attacker on the pitch, but he could only provide one key pass in the 90 minutes – to put that into context, left-back Greg Taylor delivered six.

The Scottish Sun’s Robert Grieve wrote in his post-match ratings that Brown looked “nowhere near his best”, and that he “was almost trying too hard at times”. Celtic needed their captain to step up when needed, and he simply didn’t.

After completing a permanent move for Ianis Hagi recently, Rangers are back at it again in the transfer market with the confirmation that they have signed Calvin Bassey on a pre-contract.

The former Leicester City starlet has inked a four-year deal with the Gers, and the Scottish side will only have to pay training compensation to their Premier League counterparts.

Can you name every one of the Rangers’ top goalscorers from the past 15 seasons? It’s a tricky one…

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And speaking after the deal was announced, Steven Gerrard waxed lyrical about his side’s latest recruit. He said: “There was a lot of clubs interested in Calvin and for us it’s pleasing to secure the services of another young talent.

“He’s a strong and dynamic athlete who is very much the modern day full back. He will develop further and we are excited to have made another strong addition to our group.”

After hearing about Bassey’s arrival, Rangers fans took to Twitter to voice their delight at the news.

A few fans paid special tribute to the club’s sporting director, Ross Wilson, for getting such a smart deal over the line, with one supporter insisting that with him leading the transfer front for the Gers, there are “very exciting times” ahead.

One Rangers fan hailed the deal for two particular reasons, praising the fact that the club are continuing to get their business done early, and also for bringing in cover for first-choice left-back Borna Barisic.

So it’s been a fairly impressive couple of weeks for Rangers.

Bringing in Hagi on a permanent deal was one major win considering his performances at Ibrox – the Romanian had netted three goals in 12 games – and now, they can revel in Bassey’s signing.

At just 20-years-old, he could potentially be an option for the present and the future under Gerrard.

Burnley manager Sean Dyche has said that he has spoken to club chairman Mike Garlick about his wishes for the summer transfer window, although he did not go into details about the number of players that he wants or the positions that he is targeting.

As per Lancashire Live, the 49-year-old said when pressed about the subject of transfers: “We always keep him [Garlick] informed on what needs to be done and what will at some point have to be done, I think. He’s certainly in the loop with the information that is important.”

While Burnley may have lost only one of their last 11 Premier League matches and remain in a hunt for a Europa League place, in one way the season cannot end quickly enough for Dyche, whose squad has been decimated by injuries and expired contracts.

Ashley Barnes, Chris Wood, Johann Berg Gudmundsson and Robbie Brady have been among several players missing since the Premier League restart due to injury, with Jack Cork and Ben Mee now set to miss the rest of the campaign after body blows in recent days.

As per TransferMarkt, Dyche is operating off a squad of just 21 senior players and has even been unable to name the full complement of nine substitutes for some matches despite drafting in academy players to make up the numbers.

A lack of squad depth is a glaring issue at Turf Moor while the Clarets tend not to be the most spendthrift of clubs – as per TransferMarkt, they have parted with less than £17.5m in signings over the last 12 months and more than half of that went on one player in Josh Brownhill. With Premier League clubs’ spending likely to be heavily curtailed this summer due to a loss of income amid the coronavirus pandemic, don’t expect Burnley to be splashing the cash in 2020, either.

Dyche is in something of a Catch-22 situation regarding Burnley’s summer transfer plans. Even without Europa League qualification, there is a need to add greater squad depth, something which could be made tougher if their spending power is limited following the effects of COVID-19.

If they do get into Europe, that would bring greater income from prize money but would also provide another obstacle in the form of a busier fixture list, therefore intensifying the need to bulk up their squad for next season.

The Clarets face a delicate balancing act in the next transfer window – they could certainly do with a bigger squad but the finances may just not be there to allow for it.

Burnley fans, how many new signings are needed in the summer and which positions should be prioritised? Join in the discussion by commenting below!

Plenty of Newcastle United fans have discussed takeover advice given to the prospective new owners by Sir John Hall, who owned the Tyneside club before selling it to Mike Ashley.

Hall has called on PCP Capital Partners, run by Amanda Staveley, to rebuild the Magpies properly and hopes that the takeover will be the start of better times at the Toon, he told Sky Sports News.

The 87-year old sold NUFC to Ashley for £135 million back in 2007 and any deal to sell the club this time around will be closer to £300 million, as per the report.

The former Newcastle owner warned the potential new owners to take in the city and the community, and referenced Liverpool as an example. He added that he would not like the money to be spent irresponsibly, but would like to see a team built with some superstars as well as local lads to challenge the top five over the next few years.

Hall also claims that his relationship with Ashley was not an issue and that the CEO of Sports Direct was fine to deal with.

These supporters discussed the advice from their ex-owner on Twitter:

Missing football!? There’s still plenty of Newcastle discussion going on in the Vital Newcastle Forum! Click here to get involved!

A large section of Manchester United fans reacted to posts from the club’s official account praising Harry Maguire’s debut campaign as a Red Devil. 

According to United’s Twitter, Maguire has played in every single minute of the Premier League this season and made the most passes out of all his teammates so far.

Ever since he arrived at Old Trafford from Leicester City for £78.3m last year, the club captain has really led from the back, registering at least 1 tackle on average, completing 4.5 clearances, making 1.8 interceptions on average per game in the English top tier up until now (via WhoScored).

The 27-year-old started his career at his boyhood club, Sheffield United, and has gone on to win 26 caps for the England national team, famously scoring in the 2-0 win over Sweden at the World Cup.

Naturally, many United fans raved over the club’s tweets, with several marvelling over his “impressive” and “massive” statistics. One fan added he has been in “top form” all season alongside his defensive partner Victor Lindelof.

Scroll through some of the glowing reactions down below…

United fans, do you think Harry Maguire is the best centre-half in the league? Join the discussion in the comments section!

This article is part of Football FanCast’s The Chalkboard series, which provides a tactical insight into teams, players, managers, potential signings and more…

Conor Gallagher has been impressive since joining Charlton Athletic on loan from Chelsea, but there are still two aspects of his game that need to be improved.

On the Chalkboard

Gallagher has been a revelation for Charlton this campaign, starting 15 games and coming on as a substitute once, scoring 5 goals and adding an assist.

He has also shown a willingness to work defensively, making 1.9 tackles, 1.1 interceptions and 0.8 clearances per game.

In addition, he averages 0.7 key passes and 1.6 dribbles per game, with the aforementioned statistics showing how influential the teenager has been across the pitch for the Addicks.

He has even got himself into a position where he was able to make his full debut for England U21s, in which he scored to help secure a 3-0 win over Albania.

However, the idea behind him joining Lee Bowyer’s team will have been for him to develop as a player so that he can challenge for a place at Chelsea in the future.

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Room for improvement

Of the two areas he should be looking to improve, the first is the number of yellow cards he has been picking up.

The teenager’s willingness to work hard for the team is admirable, however, he needs to be more precise with his tackling, as pointed out by the fact he makes 1.7 fouls and is dribbled past 1.7 times per game.

His 4 cautions mean that he is already just 1 away from a suspension and it will be a blow for Charlton if he is to become unavailable, even if it is only for one match.

If he develops a bit more precision in his tackling then it should definitely help him in this respect.

The second area is that his pass success rate of 78.9% needs to be bettered if he is to reach the very highest echelons of the game.

Looking at some of Chelsea’s current midfielders, Mateo Kovacic completes 90.3% of his attempted passes, while Ross Barkley manages 86.6%.

It can’t be expected that he is going to be getting these numbers immediately on his first loan, but this is the type of accuracy he should be aiming for if he wishes to make the transition from Championship to Premier League football.

Gallagher has certainly been impressive since joining Charlton, but he needs to improve these two aspects to continue on his upward trajectory.

Arsenal fans have been discussing the possibility of signing Ajax midfielder Donny van de Beek this summer, and to say they would love to see him at the Emirates Stadium would be a massive understatement.

According to Marca, via Sport Witness, the Gunners had interest in the Dutchman before the season kicked off alongside La Liga giants Real Madrid and arch-rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

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His future in Amsterdam is very much in the air as it was reported in January by De Telegraaf, via Marca, that he is due to join Los Galacticos for €55m (£48m) at the end of the current campaign – but the 22-year-old has refuted such claims in an interview with Helden magazine as per Football.London.

Thus, this opens the door for any interested parties to come forward to try and clinch van de Beek this summer, and clearly, the Gunners’ faithful are desperate for it to be them.

The box-to-box midfielder was part of Ajax’s historic Champions League run last season and has continued his rich vein of form into this campaign, scoring ten goals as well as laying on 11 assists.

Here’s what Arsenal supporters have been saying about him…

AND in other news, Arsenal’s £20m target fires transfer hint to Raul and Edu…

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Opinion series, which provides analysis, insight and opinion on any issue within the beautiful game, from Paul Pogba’s haircuts to League Two relegation battles…

West Ham may have struggled in goal of late but the stats suggest that Manuel Pellegrini’s side have been down on luck.

On the chalkboard

The Hammers have just 12 goals in ten league games this term and the finger of blame has been pointed in several directions.

Pellegrini has stated that more movement is required of Sebastien Haller, but fans think he has targeted the wrong player, and their vocal criticism of Felipe Anderson and Manuel Lanzini would suggest there has been a lack of service.

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However, Declan Rice believes that the team isn’t doing a lot wrong, suggesting it is a case of being more clinical, saying: “We’re creating enough, but we’re not scoring enough. In the Premier League you need to kill teams off and we haven’t been doing that of late.”

Under performing or simply unlucky?

According to the xG (expected goals) stats provided by Understat, the East London outfit should have 1.59 more goals from open play and 1.12 from corners – with Jordan Pickford’s remarkable save to keep out Angelo Ogbonna at Goodison Park the stand-out in that area.

Evidently, the xG stats indicate that Rice may be onto something in regard to their lack of proficiency in front of goal.

The positive for West Ham this season is that they have been competitive in all but one league match, the exception being the match against Manchester City, and if they could add more goals they could be challenging for the European qualification spots.

Pellegrini recognised the flaw last week by replacing Lanzini with Robert Snodgrass, with the Scot scoring where Lanzini had missed a couple of weeks before against Crystal Palace.

Under Pellegrini the Hammers have slightly improved going forward, scoring 52 league goals last term compared to 48 the year before, and the match against Sheffield United proved that they can be dominant in possession with 61% of the ball.

However, that fixture also underlined their poor finishing, with Anderson and Snodgrass guilty of missing chances they should have finished, and that explains why West Ham have won only three times in the league this season.

Another factor worth noting is Sebastien Haller replacing Marko Arnautovic. In ten games he has shown glimpses of what he can offer but it will take time for him to adapt and discover his mojo in front of goal.

When he adapts and hits top form the Hammers might just start to see a notable upturn in their fortunes.