Daily Cannon

Igor Tudor insists Spurs will go for the three points against Arsenal on Sunday, despite only having 13 senior players guaranteed to be fit.

As covered earlier this week, Tottenham Hotspur will have a number of injury and suspension absentees for Sunday’s visit from Arsenal for the north London derby.

At least 10 players are guaranteed to miss the match, with Cristian Romero suspended and Wilson Odobert, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur, Mohammed Kudus, Ben Davies, Lucas Bergvall, Destiny Udogie, and Kevin Danso all injured.

There’s also some doubt around Richarlison and Pedro Porro, both of whom have hamstring injuries. One or both could return, but there’s no certainty there.

To make matters worse for Spurs, they’ve been sweating on Dominic Solanke this week after he had an issue with his throat, though he’s since returned to training.

Speaking to the media, Spurs boss Igor Tudor admitted they’ve been holding training sessions with just 13 players, but he believes that’s enough to get the win this weekend.

“We made training with 13 players, so it is how it is,” Tudor said. “It’s not fantastic, beautiful, but in this case it’s an even bigger challenge to succeed.

“13 we will have for sure, and it’s quite enough to achieve what we want on Sunday, and that’s the first goal. Of course I understand the importance of this game. This is a derby, north London derby.

“Everybody expects the points, three points from us, and we are aware of this.”

Arsenal have had their own problems over the last week or so, and the pressure is definitely on in the Premier League title race.

But with Spurs sitting 16th in the table and struggling with so many injuries, the Gunners themselves need to be thinking that three points is the bare minimum to take away from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Tottenham Hotspur will be without at least 10 players for the north London derby on Sunday, with two more potential starters considered doubts.

Following a damaging draw away to Wolves on Wednesday, Arsenal need to get back to winning ways against Tottenham Hotspur this weekend.

Spurs are in poor form, sitting 16th in the Premier League table and just five points clear of the relegation zone. But a change in manager and Arsenal’s own recent slip-ups has given the hosts hope that they can pull off a result in the derby.

Yet one major problem for new manager Igor Tudor ahead of the game is that he’ll be without at least 10 players.

Cristian Romero is suspended after his recent red card, whilst Wilson Odobert, James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur, Mohammed Kudus, Ben Davies, Lucas Bergvall, Destiny Udogie, and Kevin Danso have all been ruled out through injuries until March at the earliest.

None of those ten players will be involved against Arsenal, but there’s a little more hope in the cases of Richarlison and Pedro Porro, both of whom have hamstring injuries.

Richarlison has been out for Spurs’ last seven games, whilst Porro has missed four, but prior to his sacking ex-Spurs boss Thomas Frank suggested it was a possibility both could return against Arsenal.

“That could be a dream scenario, and it just could happen,” Frank said on January 30th. “We will know a little bit more when we get closer – but it’s in that bracket.”

Arsenal certainly can’t take anything for granted, despite all the Spurs absentees.

The Gunners themselves are likely to be without at least a few players for the game, derby matches often bring surprise results, and after screwing up a 2-0 lead against the worst team in the Premier League on Wednesday, it’s clear that anything can happen if you aren’t up to the task on the day.

Tottenham Hotspur captain, Cristian Romero, will be suspended for the North London derby after a straight red against Manchester United.

With less than half an hour on the clock, Cristian Romero picked up his second red card of the season after a shocking tackle on Manchester United’s Casimero, leaving the midfielder writhing in pain and referee Michael Oliver with no choice but to send the Spurs captain off.

The red, Romero’s sixth of his Spurs’ career, will see him suspended for the next three games meaning he will miss Tottenham’s games against Newcastle, Arsenal and Fulham.

The suspension compounds what was already going to be a difficult tie for Thomas Frank, who is also set to be without James Maddison, out for the season with an ACL injury, Mohammed Kudus, sidelined until March with a tendon problem, Rodrigo Bentancur, facing around three months out after hamstring surgery, Richarlison, ruled out for up to seven weeks with a hamstring setback, Ben Davies, who requires surgery on an ankle fracture, and Lucas Bergvall, sidelined for an estimated two to three months with a high ankle sprain.

James Wilson was linked with Arsenal ahead of transfer deadline day, but here’s why the young Hearts striker ended up joining Tottenham Hotspur instead.

Ahead of Monday’s transfer deadline, Fabrizio Romano and Sami Mokbel of the BBC reported that Arsenal had made contact with Hearts over a loan move for 18-year-old striker James Wilson. Yet by the end of the window, Wilson had officially signed for Tottenham Hotspur instead.

In some ways, the deal to sign for Spurs was a similar one. Wilson has only moved to his new club on an initial loan, just as Arsenal were offering.

But the key difference is that Spurs have included an option to make the move permanent in the summer. Arsenal weren’t offering such an option, effectively viewing their initial loan offer as a trial for Wilson to prove himself ahead of a potential summer bid.

So perhaps part of the reason Spurs ended up securing the signing was because that purchase clause made the deal more appealing to Wilson and Hearts, but there’s also no evidence Arsenal ever followed up on their initial interest.

Hearts head coach Derek McInnes told the media on Monday afternoon that they hadn’t heard anything back from Arsenal after the Gunners’ initial contact on Sunday, saying: “There was a conversation with Arsenal [on Sunday], they called and spoke to Graeme [Jones, sporting director].

“But there’s been nothing since from Arsenal…those conversations with Arsenal were yesterday, we’ve heard nothing back from Arsenal today.”

Arsenal were clearly on the lookout for a youth forward, making contact with Hearts for Wilson and St. Mirren for Evan Mooney over the weekend. But after reaching an agreement to sign Mooney, there wasn’t quite as much need to bring in Wilson as well.

The Gunners also remain in the hunt for Igor Tyjon of Blackburn Rovers. Though they’ve now had many bids knocked back by the player’s club, he’ll be out of contract this summer.

With Mooney joining in the short term and the potential to add Tyjon in the summer, signing Wilson as well might have been overkill. That likely explains why Arsenal went cold after their initial talks, and why Spurs were ultimately able to snap the player up.

Rodri’s post-match comments following Manchester City’s draw with Tottenham Hotspur could constitute a breach of The FA’s Rules and Regulations.

Speaking after Manchester City threw away a 2-0 lead to draw with Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, City midfielder Rodri was incensed by what he believed to be an incorrect refereeing decision for Spurs’ opening goal.

The 29-year-old insisted the goal came from a clear foul, before going on to rant about City’s recent treatment by referees.

“I don’t know how to feel, honestly,” Rodri told Stan Sport. “Now I see the images, on the pitch of course you cannot see, basically a foul in the first action of the goal, it’s a clear foul! And VAR is for a reason, and these small details make the difference.

“It’s one game, and another game, and another game. It’s not possible.”

“But it’s not [just] today, it’s just two, three games in a row, and I don’t know why, honestly,” Rodri added.

“I know we won too much and the people they just don’t want us to win, but the referee has to be neutral. And for me, honestly, it’s not fair.

“We need to be fair in these situations. It’s not just one, because everyone can [make] a mistake, we all have mistakes, no worries about one. But when it’s one, two, three, four in a row…it’s not possible.”

Whilst most of Rodri’s comments fall into the same bracket as the usual complaints you get from players about referees and decisions, the comments implying people “just don’t want us to win” could prove problematic for him.

FA guidance states that they may take action in cases of “any comment which implies or appears to allege bias on the part of a match official”.

Rodri’s comments could also be considered to bring the game into disrepute, given the implication that the officials are pushing for a particular sporting outcome.

Pep Guardiola believes Jeremy Doku will miss Manchester City’s game against Tottenham Hotspur this weekend, after he was forced out of Wednesday’s match against Galatasaray with an injury.

Jeremy Doku made an excellent start to Manchester City’s final Champions League League Phase game on Wednesday, setting up both of his team’s goals against Galatasaray.

But after just 37 minutes, Doku limped out of the contest with an injury.

Speaking after the game, Pep Guardiola confirmed that Doku was “injured”, adding that the problem was “a calf, [he] felt something”.

Guardiola added: “It’s a big miss. Jeremy is such an important player for many reasons. The creativity in the final third. But yeah, we’ll see.”

When asked whether Doku would miss City’s trip away to Tottenham Hotspur on Sunday, the City boss responded: “I think so.”

Doku has already struggled with muscle injuries in recent months, missing three Premier League games and one League Cup game in December.

This would be very poor timing for another similar setback, with City playing Spurs (A), Newcastle (H – League Cup semi-final), and Liverpool (A) in their next three matches.

Doku didn’t make many friends in Arsenal circles ahead of the Galatasaray game, responding to a question about the Gunners’ defeat to Manchester United by laughing and saying: “Obviously if they lose, it’s better for us for sure.”

But the winger did add: “I saw that they lost, but I knew there are a lot of games in this competition. And I knew that United, we lost against them. There are a lot of games and we just need to focus on ourselves.”

Richarlison and Ben Davies have become the fourth and fifth Tottenham Hotspur players to be ruled out of the north London derby, still more than a month before the game.

Last week, we covered reports that Tottenham Hotspur had suffered three injuries to key players, with two almost immediately ruled out of the next north London derby.

First, Mohammed Kudus suffered a thigh injury, with Thomas Frank confirming it’s a tendon injury that will rule the player out until after the March international break.

Then, Rodrigo Bentancur tore his hamstring, with Sami Mokbel reporting for the BBC that the midfielder will need surgery and at least three months on the sidelines.

Richarlison then suffered an apparent hamstring injury as Spurs were eliminated from the FA Cup by Aston Villa, and further assessment has confirmed the forward is also facing a lengthy spell on the sidelines.

“Richy, unfortunately, got a hamstring injury which will keep him out for up to seven weeks,” Frank confirmed ahead of the weekend’s fixtures.

A seven-week absence from the date of Frank’s comments would mean a return on March 5th, but even just six weeks out would mean missing the north London derby against Arsenal on February 22nd.

Then Ben Davies has also been ruled out after Spurs confirmed he’s having surgery on an ankle fracture, and James Maddison remains out with his ACL injury, meaning at least five Spurs players are expected to miss the game.

Tottenham Hotspur have suffered a few significant injury setbacks over the last week, with multiple players now ruled out of next month’s north London derby.

Over the last week, Tottenham Hotspur have suffered three injuries to key players, with two already definitely ruled out of Arsenal’s visit in February.

First, Mohammed Kudus suffered a thigh injury, with Thomas Frank confirming it’s a tendon injury that will rule the player out until after the March international break.

Then, Rodrigo Bentancur tore his hamstring, with Sami Mokbel reporting for the BBC that the midfielder will need surgery and at least three months on the sidelines.

To compound Spurs’ woes at the weekend, Richarlison also suffered an apparent hamstring injury as they were eliminated from the FA Cup by Aston Villa.

“It looks like [a hamstring injury], but we haven’t assessed him yet,” Frank said afterwards.

If Richarlison’s injury ends up being anywhere near as bad as Bentancur’s, he’ll miss the Arsenal clash on February 22nd as well. But at this stage, only Kudus and Bentancur are confirmed absentees for the derby.

James Maddison also remains out of action for Spurs with an ACL injury, whilst Dejan Kulusevski could potentially make his comeback in time for Arsenal if the next month of rehabilitation goes well.

Tottenham Hotspur bid for Leandro Trossard before Arsenal secured the forward’s signing from Brighton & Hove Albion, according to a report.

Isaan Khan reports for the Daily Mail that prior to Arsenal signing Leandro Trossard in January of 2023, Tottenham Hotspur had made a bid for the winger in the same window.

According to the report, Brighton wanted £20m plus add-ons at that stage of the window. Spurs were only willing to pay £15m plus add-ons, so the deal fell through.

Brighton’s firm stance ended up paying off, as Khan reports that Arsenal ended up paying £27m for the player. By that later point in the window, with the Gunners seeing their move for Mykhailo Mudryk hijacked, the club were willing to offer the asking price.

Even if Arsenal ended up paying significantly more than Spurs were willing to bid, the decision to meet Brighton’s terms has paid off for Mikel Arteta’s side so far.

Trossard has over 60 goals and assists for Arsenal in under three years, including many in big games against the likes of Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Manchester United, Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa, PSG, Bayern Munich, FC Porto, and others.

Arsenal have been so impressed with Trossard’s form that over the summer they handed him a pay-rise without extending his contract.

According to the same Daily Mail report, Trossard was told prior to signing his new deal that he’d likely be used as a squad player rather than as a consistent starter this season.

But after an excellent few months, we’ve now reached the point where Trossard was reportedly rested against Bournemouth to be ready for Thursday’s big game against Liverpool.

No Arsenal player has more goals and assists than Trossard this season, so it makes perfect sense Arteta would want him available for the big games.

Thomas Frank has admitted he didn’t notice he was using a cup with an Arsenal logo before Tottenham Hotspur’s defeat to Bournemouth on Wednesday night.

Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank watched his team slip to another costly defeat on Wednesday, losing 3-2 away to Bournemouth to slip to 14th in the Premier League table.

Yet the night may well be remembered for something that happened before the game even kicked off, with Frank spotted walking around the pitch at the Vitality Stadium holding a cup with an Arsenal logo printed on it.

The Spurs manager was spotted by media photographers, who caught him on camera cradling the Arsenal cup. Speaking afterwards, Frank insisted he had no idea about it, and added it would have been “extremely stupid” of him to do it on purpose.

“Definitely [did] not notice it,” Frank said. “I think it’s fair to say that we’re not winning every single football match so it’ll be absolutely completely stupid of me to take a cup with Arsenal (on purpose).

“So anyone thinking I’ve done that or the staff has done it… You know, [Arsenal have] been in the changing room of the game before us, it’s normal, take a cup, give me an espresso, [I] do that before every game.

“I think actually it’s a little bit sad, in football, that I need to be asked a question about that. I think we’re definitely going in the wrong direction if we need to worry about me having a cup with another logo of another club.

“Of course, I will never do that [deliberately], that’s extremely stupid.”

Frank’s explanation makes sense. Arsenal were indeed the last team to visit Bournemouth’s home ground, the club probably left some spare unused cups in the away dressing room, and someone must then have picked up a cup without spotting the Arsenal logo.

Unfortunately for Frank, it doesn’t much matter whether he took the cup deliberately or not. The optics are the same either way, with an underperforming manager on the day of another defeat starring in photos holding a cup branded with the logo of his team’s biggest rivals.

At best, Spurs fans will forgive it as an honest but embarrassing mistake. At worst, it’s another stick to beat him with.