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Tottenham Hotspur have appointed Carlos Raphael Moersen as director of football operations.

Details of his arrival come a day after it was confirmed sporting director Fabio Paratici will leave in February to join Fiorentina, although Spurs have said Moersen will fill a newly created role.

A club statement added that Moersen will lead the club's football administration, player care and training ground operations, as well as joining the club's executive leadership team and overseeing women's football at the club.

Spurs have said the new position is "part of the club's approach to build a modern, high-performance football structure to drive long-term success".

Moersen previously worked for the City Football Group, most recently as director of football transactions.

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Conor Gallagher says his decision to join Tottenham proved "very easy" and the midfielder has been hailed as a player of "huge experience" by Spurs boss Thomas Frank.

On the completion of a £35m switch from Atletico Madrid, Gallagher, 25, said: "I'm so happy and excited to be here, taking the next step in my career at an amazing club. I wanted to be a Spurs player and thankfully the club felt the same. It was very easy, it happened very quickly and I'm ready to get on the pitch.

"I know how great the fans are, I'm really happy to be a part of it here and want to create special moments and memories together."

Former Chelsea midfielder Gallagher made 77 appearances for Atletico, having joined in August 2024.

His arrival comes as Frank faces pressure, with Spurs sitting 14th in the Premier League and on a winless run of four matches in all competitions.

"Conor is a top midfielder, who we have worked tirelessly to add to our squad," said Frank.

"He is still young, so has plenty of room for improvement, but also has huge experience across the Premier League, La Liga and with the England national team.

"Conor has captained teams, so will bring leadership, maturity, character and personality to our dressing room, while his running power, pressing ability and eye for goal will strengthen us in a key area of the pitch.

"I'm excited about working with him every day and I know the fans will love what he will bring to the team."

Tottenham have confirmed the signing of England midfielder Conor Gallagher from Spanish side Atletico Madrid for £35m.

Spurs beat Aston Villa to the 25-year-old's signature, with the former Chelsea player joining on a long-term contract.

Gallagher left the Blues for Atletico in August 2024 for about £33m, with Portugal forward Joao Felix - who has since left Chelsea - moving the other way.

"I'm so happy and excited to be here, taking the next step in my career at an amazing club," he said.

"I know how great the fans are, I'm really happy to be a part of it here and want to create special moments and memories together."

Tottenham sporting director Fabio Paratici will leave the Premier League club after the January transfer window to join Seria A side Fiorentina.

The Italian first joined Spurs in the summer of 2021, but left the club in 2023 after an appeal against a two-and-a-half-year ban for alleged financial irregularities - dating back to his spell at Juventus - was rejected by Italy's highest sports court.

Paratici received the 30-month ban from world football's governing body Fifa, but worked as a consultant for Tottenham before he officially rejoined in October.

In a statement released by Spurs, he said: "I have loved my time at the club, however this opportunity, together with the need to be based in my homeland, has led me to this decision."

Reports of Paratici's return to Italy came at the end of 2025, with Spurs boss Thomas Frank saying: "We're paying his wage, he's working very hard."

Fiorentina are currently 18th in Serie A and Spurs winger Manor Solomon recently joined the Italian side on a loan deal with the option to buy.

Spurs chief executive Vinai Venkatesham, who brought Paratici back to the north London club, said: "Our management structure is designed to be resilient to personnel changes, and it will be business as usual moving forward."

Tottenham Hotspur and Aston Villa have been charged with misconduct by the Football Association following a melee at the conclusion of their FA Cup match on Saturday.

Players from both sides were involved in a confrontation shortly after Villa's 2-1 win in the third round at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

The clubs are accused of having "failed to ensure their players and/or officials did not behave in an improper and/or provocative way after the final whistle".

Both have until Friday to respond.

Goals from Emiliano Buendia and Morgan Rogers put Villa into a 2-0 lead at half-time. Although Wilson Odobert replied for Spurs after the break, Thomas Frank's side were unable to avoid an early exit.

Villa, who sit third in the Premier League, will host fellow top-flight side Newcastle United in round four.

As the halfway point of the transfer window approaches, Tottenham's troubles in attack have come under the microscope. Just one win in six Premier League games sees the north London side 14th in the table, with pressure mounting on head coach Thomas Frank.

Frank's cautious approach has come in for criticism and while the impending arrival of England international Conor Gallagher from Atletico Madrid will bring proven top-flight pedigree in midfield, the jury is out on whether his attributes are likely to inspire a charge up the table.

This season, Gallagher has scored more goals, taken more shots and completed more passes per 90 minutes than Frank's current midfield options Rodrigo Bentancur, Joao Palhinha, Lucas Bergvall, Xavi Simons, Pape Matar Sarr or Archie Gray.

The ex-Chelsea man's passing accuracy is the best too, but barely one-fifth of his passes are played forward – the lowest percentage among those mentioned. He also ranks below all of those, bar Gray, for carrying the ball over distance and is yet to register an assist this campaign.

With a middling record in terms of through balls and chances created, Spurs fans might rightly ask if the 25-year-old, who is expected to cost £35m, offers enough of a difference from the likes of Sarr or the on-loan Palhinha.

But with a point to prove before Thomas Tuchel names his England World Cup squad, a fired-up Gallagher could still prove a useful asset for the under-fire Frank.

Tottenham defender Cristian Romero should have been sent off at Brentford for bringing down Igor Thiago, the Premier League's Key Match Incidents Panel has said.

Thiago ran on to a ball over the top in the 56th minute of the 0-0 draw on 1 January, with Romero making a wild swipe to try to intercept. Referee Andy Madley allowed play to continue at the Gtech.

Romero made no contact on the ball and brought down the Brentford striker. The video assistant referee (VAR), Alex Chilowicz, felt there was no clear and obvious error in not giving the foul.

It was a split 3-2 vote of the KMI Panel, both on the on-field decision not to show a red card for denying an obvious goalscoring opportunity (DOGSO) and the potential VAR intervention.

The KMI Panel said Romero "brings down Thiago, who has a high likelihood of gaining control of the ball, travelling towards goal, with no covering defenders".

It was also felt Madley should have given a spot-kick (3-2) for Kevin Schade's challenge on Archie Gray, but it did not reach the threshold for VAR (3-2).

Romero could also have been sent off for a serious foul play challenge on Thiago when the teams met in December. The KMI Panel voted 3-2 that it should have been a red card, but 4-1 that the VAR was right not to intervene.

Brentford suffered two VAR errors of the 13 logged in the first half of the season. The second was a penalty not awarded in the home victory over Newcastle.

The Bees also gained from a mistake when Nathan Collins was not sent off against Manchester United for a DOGSO foul on Bryan Mbeumo.

Tottenham have not been involved in any other VAR errors.

It might be time to put Thomas Frank, and therefore everyone else at Spurs, out of their misery.

I have been desperate for it to work with Frank, not least because I am so bored of this endless cycle of replacing managers without changing anything else behind the scenes to support them.

I know much of the fanbase has been calling for him to be sacked for a while now, but I had been prepared to endure a season of change under Frank, fully aware that it would take time and might not initially be fun to watch.

However, even taking our significant injury list into consideration, Frank has failed to convince an increasingly impatient, unforgiving and vocal audience that he has a clear plan and intended identity for his team.

Tellingly, Frank himself appears utterly dejected by the whole experience. He looks exhausted and emotionally drained, and sounds increasingly monotonous in his interviews.

It feels inevitable that eventually this situation will become so toxic – if it has not already – that the board will be forced to part ways with yet another manager.

The most frustrating part for me is that I am confident Frank will succeed wherever he goes next. I do not think he is a bad coach. He is simply struggling to thrive at Spurs – and, worryingly, he is not the first.

Which brings us to question of who is likely to be next? Who would even want this poisoned chalice of a job?

Even if we can lure a strong candidate to agree to the role, what else will change to ensure it is any different for them?

The painful truth is that so much more than a change of manager is needed at Spurs. Let's hope we see it.

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Rodrigo Bentancur has had surgery on his right hamstring and is set to be out at least three months.

The Uruguay international, 28, suffered the injury in Spurs' 3-2 defeat by Bournemouth in the Premier League.

He is set to start his rehabilitation immediately with Tottenham's medical staff.

With Bentancur set to miss the majority of the rest of the season, it remains to be seen whether Spurs will enter the transfer market to bolster their midfield options.