Sam Allardyce looks to next season, Swansea find belief under Carlos Carvalhal and Liverpool’s defence worthy of praiseGet The Recap, the best of the Guardian’s sport coverageLiverpool’s oft-maligned defence deserved a little credit here. For almost the entire game they kept Spurs at bay, with Dejan Lovren and Virgil van Dijk making important blocks and Loris Karius looking a decisive shot‑stopper. Perhaps Liverpool could have been slightly quicker to close down Victor Wanyama when the Spurs substitute equalised but when Karius stood tall to deny Harry Kane from the penalty spot it appeared the home side had answered most of the criticisms of their defensive solidity. When Mohamed Salah scored at the other end in the 91st minute Anfield was...
Romelu Lukaku is weighing in with some key contributions, Christian Benteke is not and Tottenham are showing how much weaker they are without Christian EriksenSergio Agüero has had a curiosity of a campaign. He has been injured, benched and below par at times. He has been outscored by Raheem Sterling for much of the season. Yet his hat-trick on Saturday meant he has scored 20 goals for a fifth successive campaign. Further milestones await: Agüero is nine away from becoming the first man to score 200 for City. He is 11 behind his career-best tally of 33 and, with successive cup ties against Championship opponents, Bristol City and Cardiff, he has the chance to make further inroads before Gabriel Jesus...
His departure for Everton is a symbol of the later Wenger years, of always being same old Theo when new Theo was requiredIn the end the writing on the wall was spelled out boldly enough for Theo Walcott to recognise the comfort zone was not really that comfortable at all. Perhaps the most surprising thing about the departure of a forward who spent more than a decade at Arsenal, mostly in this strange space where he grew older and signed new contracts while being judged about how far he was – or ever could reach – on the potential fulfilment scale, is that he uprooted at all. Walcott has in some ways been a perfect symbol of the later Wenger...
Arsenal have hit an all-time low under Arsène Wenger, Chelsea could go for Andy Carroll and Sam Allardyce needs a resultChelsea have endured three successive goalless draws for the first time and it is inconceivable the scouting department is not exploring forward options. Something has clearly put them off the pursuit of Alexis Sánchez, whom they courted in the summer. Perhaps they believe he is set upon a reunion with Pep Guardiola at Manchester City. Maybe they feel they cannot compete with the financial package Manchester United could offer. Possibly they deem the costs excessive. Yet, if that avenue is blocked, and with Crystal Palace unlikely to entertain offers for Christian Benteke, there remains the possibility Chelsea will explore Andy...
Thrashing at Tottenham showed Everton’s early-season failings have returned and Allardyce must fix them quick if he hopes to have a future at the clubAs Everton’s players headed towards their supporters shortly after the final whistle had blown, it was not immediately obvious who there were more of. The exodus in that corner of Wembley was stark and had started some time before the end of proceedings, with many of those who had travelled from Merseyside and elsewhere clearly keen to get away from the misery taking place in front of them.It was hard to blame them. There is, after all, only so much any fan can take. The despair has been long-standing but this season particularly so given the...