Tottenham’s manager, Mauricio Pochettino, picked his biggest attacking threats and watched them beat Fulham 3-0 at Craven Cottage in the FA Cup fifth roundAt the most disarming of venues Tottenham Hotspur found their way through by dispatching the heavy artillery. Four days ago Mauricio Pochettino might not have imagined letting Harry Kane stretch out from the start against Fulham, much less if he had known a knock to his knee would render him a slight doubt; sometimes, though, a job needs doing properly and, if the purpose here was to blow the cobwebs of a sterile February away, then it was served conclusively.Supporters foraging their way to Craven Cottage through the artisan food market in Bishops Park might have expected...
Jürgen Klopp was kept in dark over training-ground get-together before 2-0 win at Anfield because players needed to step upPinning blame on players may be justified, tempting and good for self-esteem but can come at a price for managers who succumb. “That is killing for a team,” said the Dutch midfielder Georginio Wijnaldum. Liverpool repaid Jürgen Klopp for his refusal to give the last rites before Saturday’s comfortable defeat of Tottenham Hotspur was under way.At Melwood last week, while Klopp was continuing to take responsibility for Liverpool’s 2017 slump, the captain, Jordan Henderson, called a team meeting without the manager’s knowledge. The anaemic display at Hull City was the signal for some home truths, with Champions League qualification in danger...
The Dutch striker has failed to make an impact at Tottenham but both his current and former coaches believe he has the application to turn his fortunes roundEveryone remembers what Vincent Janssen did in the second half of last season, not least Mauricio Pochettino. It was what persuaded the Tottenham Hotspur manager to take the centre-forward from AZ Alkmaar to White Hart Lane in a £17m deal. Janssen caught fire after the winter break in the Netherlands, scoring 21 goals in 17 league matches to help AZ to a fourth-place finish and qualification for the Europa League. It was form that catapulted him into the national team and on his first start, he scored a penalty in the 2-1 win...
Liverpool’s defence needs to find cohesion fast, Lincoln felt the force with Alan Power and Bastian Schweinsteiger is welcomed back by José MourinhoIt was an afternoon when the ball would not go in for Ruben Loftus-Cheek. The Chelsea attacking midfielder was twice denied by the Brentford goalkeeper, Daniel Bentley, and, when he clipped over him on 58 minutes, the effort came back off the crossbar. Loftus-Cheek had two other moments when he jinked inside the area but could not find a finish. It was, nonetheless, an eye-catching performance from the 21-year-old – in front of the watching England manager, Gareth Southgate – in which he advertised both his power and the deftness of his touch. Could it offer him a...
Will Daniel Sturridge get a chance to regain his verve? Will Ranieri fine-tune for a relegation battle? Will Ravel Morrison return to Old Trafford?A clutch of (fool)hardy Lincoln City fans queued through Wednesday night in sub-zero temperatures in order to get their gloved hands on the last tickets for their club’s biggest and indeed only fourth-round FA Cup tie since 1976. Those fans were evidently not discouraged by the fact that the National League leaders had suffered their heaviest defeat of the season the previous night, when they were beaten 3-0 by Barrow, whose rugged approach on a treacherous pitch fairly knocked Danny Cowley’s men out of their impish stride. The Championship leaders, Brighton, will probably not resort to such...