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The 2019/20 season has been a difficult one for Tottenham Hotspur after the highs of reaching the Champions League Final last year.

A poor start to the campaign resulted in former boss Mauricio Pochettino losing his job in November, only for the Argentine to be replaced with Jose Mourinho.

While the team have seen results improve it has not been all plain sailing under the Portuguese and with nine league fixtures to play they are seven points adrift of Chelsea in fourth place.

As it was confirmed last Thursday the Premier League will return on June 17, with Spurs preparing to face Manchester United in London on their return.

One reason to be cheerful for the North London club is the impending return of Harry Kane, who last played for the club on New Year’s Day in a 1-0 defeat to Southampton.

Kane has certainly been prolific in recent years, but on how many occasions was he actually top goalscorer as we run through the past 15 seasons at the club.

Having only managed to bring in Steven Bergwijn as a new permanent signing in the January transfer window, Jose Mourinho will no doubt be keen to strengthen his Tottenham squad this summer.

And according to the latest reports, one man who the north London side could well be targeting, is Bournemouth’s David Brooks.

The Sun claim that the Cherries are bracing for a shake-up in the summer window, and that both Manchester United and Spurs “could rekindle their interest” if the 22-year-old can regain his fitness again – he has missed 251 days of action thanks to an ankle injury suffered back in July of last year.

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After hearing about the links to Brooks, Spurs fans took to Twitter to voice their thoughts on their potential summer transfer target.

A couple of fans however did raise concerns about Brooks’ track record with injuries, with one supporter in particular claiming that a move “would be a risk”.

Another Spurs fan meanwhile was far less enthusiastic about the prospect of Brooks signing, instead suggesting QPR’s Eberechi Eze as a better option.

Having missed the entirety of this campaign, Spurs would no doubt be taking somewhat of a gamble in making a move for Brooks in the summer.

But based on his performances last season, he does seem like he would be a shrewd swoop. He netted seven times and provided a further five assists in just 33 games across all competitions for Eddie Howe’s side, and that included some big-time moments too – not least the goal and assist in the 4-0 thrashing of Chelsea.

Most Spurs fans are right to be excited by Brooks’ potential arrival.

Meanwhile, Spurs fans react to Victor Wanyama’s admission.

Loads of Tottenham Hotspur fans are buzzing after an interview with Gareth Bale was shared by Daily Hotspur on their Twitter page.

The former Lilywhites man referred to himself as a Spurs fan when asked what it was like watching the Champions League final against Liverpool last year, branding it a bit disappointing.

The north London club were defeated 2-0 by the Reds with goals from Mohamed Salah and Divock Origi sinking the Spurs ship on the night.

Indeed, Bale was watching his old side suffer but it is his comments that have given THFC supporters a buzz.

The 30-year old became a fan favourite at White Hart Lane, scoring 56 goals and providing 58 assists in 203 appearances in all competitions across six seasons with the club, according to Transfermarkt.

He broke many supporter’s hearts by moving to Real Madrid, and has since netted 105 times and made 67 assists in 249 games in all competitions for Los Blancos, as per the website.

Nevertheless, these fans were buzzing when they heard his comments, with some predicting a return to Tottenham:

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Talk about rounding off the campaign in style. After clinching automatic promotion last week, Leeds romped to a 4-0 victory over Charlton in their final Championship game of the season.

Marcelo Bielsa’s side were in celebratory mood at Elland Road, and delivered the kind of vintage attacking performance that has been the hallmark of their impressive campaign.

Goals from Ben White, Stuart Dallas, Tyler Roberts and Jamie Shackleton sealed a comprehensive victory for the Whites, but one man in particular proved once again why he is one of Bielsa’s personal favourites.

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Dallas has been the ever-reliable figure in this Leeds starting eleven, playing numerous different positions, and never really letting the side down. He missed just the one Championship game all season, and played in five different roles, including both full-back positions and central midfield too.

It was no surprise that earlier this campaign, Bielsa waxed lyrical about the 29-year-old, saying: “It’s not usual to find a player like that. He can play on both sides, even if he’s right-footed. He has the agility of a winger and is powerful as a defender. Technically, he’s a complete player. He has enough aerial play to play on every level of the pitch. Even if he’s a player of the sides, when he has to play in the centre he doesn’t have problems.”

And against Charlton on Wednesday night, Dallas was every bit of the all-action star that Leeds have come to know and love.

As per Sofascore, aside from scoring his goal, the versatile ace had four attempts on goal, a 100% dribble success rate, 85 touches and provided four key passes. Not to mention the fact he also contributed defensively too, making one tackle and one interception a piece, and making three clearances.

Dallas is Leeds’ Swiss army knife, capable of doing multiple things very well. The kind of under-rated player that you can reliably build a side with, knowing you’ll get a consistent standard of performance from them week-in and week-out.

Loads of Liverpool fans have been reacting on social media after Kenny Cunningham told Off The Ball that Fabinho is the weak link in Jurgen Klopp’s plans, and will likely struggle against Manchester City on Sunday.

Fabinho has been a key part of the German’s squad since moving to Merseyside in 2018, with the Brazilian included in 45 of his Premier League matchday squads following the midfielder’s summer switch from AS Monaco.

Cunningham, though, is not entirely convinced by the holding midfielder’s ability to control the defensive position, as the former Republic of Ireland international doubts Fabinho has all of the qualities needed to excel in the role.

“I’m not totally convinced about him in that holding midfield position,” Cunningham claimed. “We’re not arguing here if he’s a very good player or not, he is a very good player, but, as a purely defensive midfield player, going into this game against Manchester City you need a very specific skill set to deal with what David Silva and Kevin de Bruyne are going to bring.

“You’ve got be able to sense danger, slide across the pitch, make tackles, track runners and I don’t think that’s the strongest part of his game.

“For me, the first name on the teamsheet would be Jordan Henderson in that holding role. He has the best defensive mindset in that Liverpool midfield and it’s going to be needed.”

Liverpool fans have been fiercely rejecting Cunningham’s verdict, with one of the more frequent remarks shared being that the Reds are unbeaten in the Premier League whenever the 6 ft 2 midfielder has started.

Fabinho has featured in the opening line-up for 37 of his 38 English top-flight outings, winning 31 and drawing six while losing away to Manchester City last season having come off the bench.

The £100,000-per-week anchor has also averaged the most successful tackles per ninety minutes of any Liverpool central midfielder to have played more than once in the Premier League this season with 2.5 from 3.7 attempts, per WhoScored data.

He also ranks second to Henderson for interceptions with 1.4, and second to James Milner for successful aerial duels with 1.4 from 3.2 battles, as well as for accurate long passes with 5.2.

Here are some of the messages shared from supporters reacting to Cunningham’s comments…

Morgan Schneiderlin made just his seventh Premier League appearance of the season on Saturday as Everton took on Southampton.

The midfielder had played in five straight league defeats earlier this season – featuring in the losses to Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Sheffield United, Manchester City and Burnley.

The Toffees did beat Wolverhampton Wanderers during that run but Schneiderlin was an unused substitute in the 3-2 success.

As a result, the 29-year-old’s record for Everton this season is pretty disastrous.

He was included in the XI against Southampton, though, and ended up playing the full 90 minutes as Marco Silva’s side recorded a 2-1 win.

According to WhoScored, the former Manchester United midfielder won two tackles and two aerial duels, whilst his pass success rate was at 86%.

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Some Everton fans were pleased with what they saw from Schneiderlin on the afternoon, although that was not an opinion shared by everyone.

A selection of the Twitter reaction is available to view below:

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Pundit View series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent quotes from journalists, pundits, players and managers…

Can you believe it’s been just over six months since the first story about QSI investing in Leeds United was published?

Over half a year of rumours have swirled, the deal has been on and off more times than a light switch, but the whispers still haven’t died down.

Surprisingly, we’ve not heard much on that front for a couple of weeks, but Phil Hay has given us some insight into the current ownership and how willing they’d be to allow the Qataris to invest in the Yorkshire club.

What’s been said then?

The Athletic’s Leeds United correspondent was hosting a Q&A on the website, and one fan asked if there was any update on QSI and if it was likely.

“I’m not aware of any more progress but there’s a chance that it will. I think it depends on various factors. If, for example, Leeds don’t make it out of the Championship this season, does Radrizzani have another year of ownership in him? I’m not sure that he does. The door is certainly open for investment.” Hay replied.

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Exciting

While Hay saying that he’s not aware of any more progress may seem rather disheartening, the conclusion of his response should excite a number of Leeds supporters.

The fact that the door is open for investment combined with the interest that QSI have in the club may point towards one inevitable eventuality.

Of course, there are a lot of factors at play such as QSI’s valuation at the club, which currently stands way below what they’re actually worth, but if the door is open there’s no reason why the Qatari firm can’t get involved with the Whites.

Perhaps one of the most intriguing aspects is whether Radrizzani will stay. The current owner has stated in the past that he’s not looking to sell but another failed promotion attempt may well see him pack his bags.

In other news, Leeds fans have been praising one man who they believe has turned a corner

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…

We sometimes talk about players ‘sending a message’.

More often than not that comes in a metaphorical sense after the player has a great performance, we use it as a way of saying how he’s trying to prove his worth to the manager.

On this occasion though, it looks as if one person has sent an actual message to the manager with his comments.

Eddie Nketiah scored twice on Tuesday night for the England U21 team as they demolished their Austrian counterparts 5-1 last night in Milton Keynes.

It was yet another example of showing just what Leeds are missing this season as they continue to struggle to find the back of the net this season, whilst the 20-year-old watches from the sidelines.

Speaking to Sky Sports after the game, the Arsenal loanee voiced his frustrations at being limited to just a role on the substitutes bench:

“I’ll never be happy with being on the bench, when I pride myself on being on the team and I think I’m good enough to be on the team. All I can keep doing is putting in the performances I do when I come on and try and contribute.

“I think with the chances I’ve had I’ve done really well. I think going away with England is always a great opportunity for me to continue to put a case forward and show myself.”

It’s no secret that there are many Leeds United fans who have been calling for Nketiah to get more minutes, and those cries have been echoed by former Leeds men such as Noel Whelan and somewhat by Patrick Bamford.

However, the fact that this latest demand is coming from the player at the centre of all the attention means that it is really getting harder and harder for Marcelo Bielsa to ignore the cries for him to become more of a regular.

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Whilst things can obviously change, it is worth noting that a report from Football Insider last week said that, despite all these calls from various people, Bielsa was still set to persist with Bamford upfront for United once the international break was over.

The question is, was his performance for the England U21 side enough to convince him to change his mind?

It would be foolish if it hadn’t at least provoked some change of thought.

This article is part of Football FanCast’s Off the Bench series, which places in-game managerial decisions and squad selections under FFC’s microscope.

Liverpool continued their unbeaten start to the Premier League season against Tottenham on Sunday, recording their ninth win of the campaign to extend their lead over Manchester City to six points.

Jurgen Klopp’s men managed to overturn a 1-0 deficit after Harry Kane immediately opened the scoring, as goals from Jordan Henderson and Mohamed Salah in the second-half earned the Reds all three points at Anfield.

However, there was one thing that the German manager should’ve done immediately after the Egyptian’s goal.

Snapshot

Liverpool took the lead in the 75th minute thanks to Salah’s penalty, which was won when Serge Aurier clumsily fouled Sadio Mane in the penalty area.

The former Basel, Chelsea and Roma forward wheeled off in celebration before playing the next ten minutes of the game until Joe Gomez replaced him shortly after he was seen on the turf clutching his ankle.

Klopp should’ve subbed Salah straight after his goal

The Egypt international recently missed the 1-1 draw against Manchester United due to an ankle injury he sustained in the 2-1 win over Leicester, before returning to action in Wednesday’s Champions League win over Genk.

Salah played every minute of that win over Genk, and Klopp only seemed to withdraw him in the 85th minute against Spurs because he was down holding his ankle.

So, why on earth didn’t the former Borussia Dortmund boss get his star man off the pitch and wrapped in cotton wool as soon as his side took the lead?

Liverpool have arguably their biggest league game of the season coming up soon with Manchester City set to arrive at Anfield on the 10th November, a game that the Merseysiders would love Salah to be available for.

Furthermore, with a lack of quality reinforcements to replace the No.11, it seems strange that Klopp felt the need to keep him on even longer in what was Salah’s second game of the week just after returning from injury.

The Mirror’s David Maddock reported that Salah walked through the Anfield tunnel with a huge ice pack on his ankle, and one can’t help but wonder why Klopp didn’t get his striking asset off shortly after the penalty.

The road to becoming a professional footballer is filled with many twists and turns.

There are a number of points in a young player’s career where it can all fall apart, with many youngsters playing at academies during their teenage years never going on to make a single senior appearance for a professional team.

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However, for the players that are destined for the big-time, there comes a point where they realise they’ve made it.

Tyrone Mings appeared on the BBC Sport YouTube channel to answer a few questions this week, and he revealed when he realised his dream of becoming a footballer was coming true.

The Aston Villa man’s answer was quite hilarious in its sincerity, as he revealed that he thought he’d hit the big time when he swapped his Citroen Saxo for a Vauxhall Corsa soon after he’d signed for Ipswich Town.

We’re sure that Mings can afford something a bit better than a Corsa nowadays after signing for Aston Villa for £26.5m, but it’s funny to see how far the defender has come over the years.