Football365

No surprise about where the majority of today’s media attention lands, with Spurs going beyond Full Spurs to previously undiscovered new levels under a manager plumbing previously undiscovered new depths.

Annoyingly for Mediawatch, the sheer nightmarish ridiculousness of Spurs’ reality means even some of what on the surface seems absurd coverage is actually, well, kind of fair enough.

But not all of it. Never all of it.

X rated

A rare day indeed when the biggest story of the day really is almost impossible to sensationalise. Pretty much every outlet has a TUDOR MUST GO story, and yet not one of these unequivocal assessments of a four-game managerial reign can possibly be considered hyperbolic or sensationalised.

It’s just… true. The only two possible quibbles are to wonder where this energy was from the press pack when their hero Thomas Frank was getting Spurs into this mess in the first place, and to wonder whether it really might be for the best to keep Tudor on until the annual Anfield humiliation is out of the way at the weekend before giving literally anyone else on earth a clear run at the free-hit second leg against Atleti and the monumental pre-interlull six-pointer against Nottingham Forest.

But yes, astonishing as it might be, the sight of the press pack in unanimous agreement that a manager must be sacked after just four games is neither surprising nor scandalous. It really is that bad. Spurs really are that club.

But the UK tabloid press are still the UK tabloid press, and almost impossible isn’t entirely impossible. Even now, housery must occur when there is clearly no need for it at all.

You’d think, really, that the sight of a team subbing off their goalkeeper for tactical reasons 16 minutes into a Champions League game would be wild enough, wouldn’t you? That this was a story already absurd and ridiculous enough to need no lily-gilding or garnish.

You would, obviously, be wrong.

Because why settle for that when you can suggest it was in fact Cristian Romero’s decision to replace Antonin Kinsky rather than Beleaguered Igor Tudor (to give him his now mandatory full name) calling the shots?

Now the one slightly awkward thing here is that this idea was put to Tudor in the post-match presser, and he dismissed the idea out of hand: “My decision, of course.”

So you can’t really flat out claim that Romero did it in the presence of that quote and absence of compelling evidence to the contrary. So what to do?

If you’re The Sun, simply spend less time than a Kinsky Champions League appearance on X-formerly-Twitter to find some randoms saying it and just make the story ‘Spurs fans claim’ instead.

Tottenham fans claim Cristian Romero ordered Igor Tudor to sub Kinsky off as touchline video surfaces

You’ve got all the usual stuff in here. A grand total of four random X-formerly-Twitter users quoted, three of whom were ‘eagle-eyed’ enough to watch the ‘viral video’ and jump to a reasonable yet unprovable conclusion, and one who said simply ‘WHAT IS THIS CLUB’ which is a valid and entirely unanswerable question.

Does The Sun bother to carry the only quote we have on the subject from one of the two people actually in a position to know the truth?

Like Spurs fans as a game kicks off, you already know the answer.

Storm warning

Crucial point of order for this Daily Express headline. These things matter.

Tottenham goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky humiliated by Igor Tudor as flop storms down tunnel

That was no storm. That was a trudge if ever we saw one.

Jungle is massive

Let it not be said that it’s all doom and gloom at Spurs. There is always some good news if you’re willing to search hard enough.

Take, for instance, this magnificent sentence from The Sun’s inevitably eclectic round-up of possible Tudor replacements (Mason, Poch, Keane… Amorim) about ‘Arry, clearly the only man for this particular crisis.

The former king of the jungle, 79, is set to appear in the upcoming series of I’m a Celebrity All Stars – but the series was pre-recorded in South Africa last September, meaning he is available.

Surely not until after Cheltenham wraps up on Friday, though?

History boys

The Express’ version of the ubiquitous TUDOR OUT missives this morning is broadly identical to all the other TUDOR OUT missives. There’s stuff about being on the brink. Reasonable assertions that subbing your keeper after 16 minutes and then blanking him might be sub-optimal. Fair observations that while Spurs were bad under Frank they are now somehow even worse.

But also, because it’s the Express and they can’t help themselves, just a really weird line snuck in among it all.

The history Spurs are making right now is the kind schools would be too ashamed to teach the future generations about.

Schools that spend valuable time teaching the history of comically inept football clubs? Sounds like utter woke nonsense to us. Probably on the curriculum at the same definitely real schools that exist where they put out litter trays for the students who identify as cats.

Gunned down

A fun game here based on this Daily Star headline.

Tottenham star makes feelings clear on Arsenal tactics with brutal ‘boring’ dig

How many times does Mathys Tel, for it is he, mention Arsenal in the subsequent quotes?

HINT: it’s the same number as Tottenham wins under Igor Tudor.

Me, Myself & I

Much like with watching Tottenham, Mediawatch often assumes we’ve seen everything the press are capable of, only to frequently find ourselves astonished anew.

Take this new wheeze from the Mirror, for instance.

Arne Slot points the blame at one person after Liverpool’s loss to Galatasaray

Sounds very harsh, doesn’t it? Singling out one person after a collective disappointment? What kind of manager would ever do that, perhaps after, say, 16 minutes of a Champions League game? Certainly not Arne Slot, surely?

No denying it grabs the attention. Who could possibly resist clicking that to see which poor sod is in the manager’s crosshairs. Certainly not Mediawatch, that’s for sure. So who’s he blamed, then, the big meanie?

Tuesday marked the 12th time this season that Slot’s side have lost a game after conceding first and the manager admitted it was up to him to improve in those situations.

Technically correct will always be the best kind of correct for sh*thouse headlines, and this looks sure to become a new staple of the genre – 10/10, no notes.

It has been claimed that Spurs boss Igor Tudor “killed” Antonin Kinsky against Atletico Madrid, but the head coach apparently did the goalkeeper “a favour”.

Kinsky endured a nightmare Spurs debut on Tuesday night as he was hooked after only 17 minutes in his side’s Champions League round of 16 first leg against Atletico Madrid.

The inexperienced goalkeeper slipped twice in the opening moments of the game as Spurs went 3-0 down in 15 minutes. Tudor then brought on Guglielmo Vicario to replace Kinsky.

Since this incident, Tudor has been accused of “killing” and “destroying” Kinsky, with it widely deemed that this moment will be difficult to come back from.

However, former Premier League forward Troy Deeney has sided with Tudor, with the pundit angered by the goalkeeper’s reaction to going off.

“We’ve all been subbed when a player gets sent off. You sit next to your team, you ride it out together,” Deeney said on CBS Sports.

READ: Tudor ‘kills’ another Spurs career besides his own as Kinsky becomes humiliated collateral damage

“He’s having a poor time, you get dragged… by the way, he made the mistakes, not the manager, no one else. Manager makes the change, you have to sit with your team.”

When asked if Kinsky was right to hide his emotions from the cameras, Deeney doubled down: “No because we’re in a situation where as a team and a group we’re in the trenches now.

“You don’t have time to feel sorry for yourself, you don’t have time to go and gather your thoughts, we’re all in this.”

Paul Merson also sided with Tudor. He said on Sky Sports: “The manager, to his credit, has done that tonight with the goalkeeper and thought ‘do you know what, I’ve got to bring him off’; he’s done him a favour, the lad was like a rabbit in the headlights.”

Spurs standout Micky van de Ven does have sympathy for Kinsky, though he has also spoken on the “doomsday scenario” at the club.

“It’s terrible for him too, he’s making his debut. You wouldn’t wish this on anyone,” Van de Ven said.

Speaking generally on the manner of Tottenham’s loss, Van de Ven explained: “Terrible, to be honest: a doomsday scenario.

“Everything that could go wrong in the first twenty minutes went wrong. Everyone slips, including me. Those are moments you simply can’t do anything about. I can’t just stand here and start blaming the pitch.”

READ NEXT: Top 10 absolutely dreadful Premier League managers with mercifully short reigns

Van de Ven added: “I could, of course, give the standard talk that we all have to stick together and work hard, but we’re just being dealt a blow after a blow. It’s just really difficult.

“We have an important match this weekend that I can’t be at, because I’m suspended, of course. But it’s a truly terrible time. How am I feeling mentally? It’s tough, I can tell you. Really tough.

“I have to keep going; this is life. I’m not on my phone anymore; I’m completely done with it. Only family and stuff.”

Tottenham will wave goodbye to almost every star of note if they’re relegated and Fabrizio Romano has revealed there’s already ‘movement’ on one of the biggest departures.

A recent report from The Athletic listed 15 stars Spurs fans can expect to leave their club if they fail to beat the drop.

The full list of players read: Guglielmo Vicario, Pedro Porro, Djed Spence, Destiny Udogie, Micky van de Ven, Cristian Romero. Kevin Danso, Conor Gallagher, Rodrigo Bentancur, James Maddison, Xavi Simons, Mohammed Kudus, Dejan Kulusevski, Richarlison and Dominic Solanke.

Some will leave on loan, while others will be sold and naturally, some exits will be more damaging than others.

One of the most crippling would involve captain Cristian Romero, and according to transfer guru Romano, the wheels for his exit are already in motion.

“Keep an eye on Romero in the summer transfer window, “declared Romano on his YouTube channel.

“He signed a new contract at Tottenham last summer, but my understanding is that some clubs also considering the Tottenham situation – which is really complicated in the Premier League – but several important clubs in Europe and not only are calling to ask about the situation of Romero.

“So there is movement around Romero. I think it’s absolutely normal for one of the best centre-backs in the world, a World Cup winner, crucial for Tottenham to win the Europa League last summer, always top performances for Argentina and Tottenham apart from the recent red cards.

“So at the moment his situation is one to watch because there are several clubs calling, and there is movement.”

Shedding light on one club we should keep an eye on, the reporter added: “One year ago, Atletico Madrid wanted him but it was not possible to proceed.”

Real Madrid and Barcelona have also been linked, with Romero seemingly on course for a switch to Spain if leaving Spurs.

He’s not the only high profile Tottenham star the transfer vultures are circling over either.

The Daily Mail recently revealed Newcastle are already lining up a summer swoop for Dominic Solanke if Spurs are relegated.

Newcastle have struggled to adequately replace Alexander Isak, with Nick Woltemade labouring after a bright start and Yoane Wissa’s impact negligible.

Eddie Howe managed Solanke during their Bournemouth days and the frontman has proven himself a capable striker at Premier League level in the past few years.

Despite wrestling with frequent injury issues, Solanke has scored 31 league goals in his last 75 appearances for a ratio of roughly one goal every two-and-a-half games.

READ NEXT: Igor Tudor sack inevitable as Liverpool branded ‘weak and pathetic’

Former Premier League star Paolo Di Canio has hit out at Tottenham Hotspur head coach Igor Tudor for “destroying” Antonin Kinsky.

Tudor is proving a disastrous appointment for Spurs. The former Juventus boss has lost all four of his games in charge and has arguably made the north London club worse than under former head coach Thomas Frank.

Tottenham are only one point adrift of the relegation zone in the Premier League, so Tuesday night’s Champions League round of 16 first leg against Atletico Madrid could have been a welcome distraction for Tudor’s side, but this was not the case.

Atletico Madrid hammered Spurs 5-2 on home turf to take a major step towards the quarter-finals, while debutant goalkeeper Kinsky was hooked after 17 minutes.

Kinsky twice slipped as Atletico went 3-0 ahead in 15 minutes, with Tudor admitting post-match that it was the “wrong decision” to start him ahead of Guglielmo Vicario.

“After seeing what happened, for sure it was the wrong decision,” Tudor admitted.

READ: Tudor ‘kills’ another Spurs career besides his own as Kinsky becomes humiliated collateral damage

“But it was, for me, the right decision to do, thinking before, because the team changed competition and it was, in the moment, right to do.

“Unfortunately, what happened happened. I’ve never changed my goalkeeper after 14 minutes. It’s not easy, it happened.”

Di Canio has hit out at Tudor over the Kinsky situation, while L’Equipe have given the Spurs boss a 1/10 rating for his performance against Atletico, which feels rather kind.

“I feel sorry for [Kinsky], perhaps [Tudor is] letting it all slide and doesn’t realise what the tabloids will write tomorrow,” Di Canio said.

“They’re [the media] mean, they’ll destroy him because when decisions like that are made, they’re incomprehensible.”

Di Canio also thinks Tudor was wrong to drop Vicario, while he has “destroyed” Kinsky.

“I don’t know if there was any problem with Vicario, and there were probably some clashes in the dressing room, but certainly not because the recent defeats are Vicario’s fault,” Di Canio continued.

“He made some mistakes, but with a ragtag army up front that’s leaking from all sides.”

READ NEXT: Top 10 absolutely dreadful Premier League managers with mercifully short reigns

On Kinsky, Di Caio added: “If you put a guy who’s made 17 appearances for Slavia Prague into such a delicate match and say he’s a good player with only six appearances, you asked for it and you destroyed him, even though it’s true that he could have done worse afterwards.”

There are already reports suggesting Tudor is on borrowed time at Spurs, and Di Canio reckons he will soon be replaced by an English manager.

“I often understand that Tudor is very tough, and I don’t know if he’ll pay for it in his career at the highest level. I really don’t think he’ll stay at Tottenham; they’ll go and get an English manager.”

Igor Tudor and Spurs get an expected kicking but Liverpool and Arne Slot do not escape censure.

We’re just glad to move on from Mikel Arteta and Arsenal. Send more mails on all subjects to theeditor@football365.com

Fewer English clubs please

Can somebody tell me why English teams are allotted 5-6 places in Champions League every year? After last night’s s***-show, I suggest UCL limit English teams to max 3 slots per season.

It would save us English football fans lots of embarrassment.

Alex Pang, Singapore Gunner

At least you’re not Spurs…

On behalf of MUFC fans (and maybe some Liverpool fans too), thank you Spurs for being the most Spursiest Spurs in my decades of following football!

Adidasmufc

(It’s almost at a point where you have to start feeling sorry for Spurs fans)

…That’s one of the most self-serving and utterly cowardly bits of man management I’ve seen from Tudor. It isn’t the kid’s fault your team is useless. It’s yours. Back him FFS!

Gary AVFC, Oxford (unusually irked by something that doesn’t really affect me)

…Has a manager ever been dismissed during halftime of a football match? This is embarrassing, even by Spurs’ standards. Igor Tudor is at the center of this situation. As I mentioned last week, the less said about the manager, the better…

Azeez Yusuf

…This is aimed at all the United fans reading this. Let’s all join hands and once again be greatful for our lord & savior David De Gea who kept some of the worst Manchester United teams ever seen, in respectable positions & never let us be where Tottenham currently are.

Cause looking at poor Kinsky, I cannot be thankful enough for all those times he kept some amount of respect even while getting trounced by City or Liverpool. It was never so bad.

That is a worse performance than Karius surely. Genuinely feel sorry for him & Spurs fans. Currently 4-0 down & keeper subbed 15 mins in. Tudor has no clue, and I could be a better manager than him.

Aman

Igor Tudor out

When Frank was fired, I agreed with the decision. I’m on record on this page saying that “Igor Tudor deserves an open mind” (see previous mailboxes)

But after four games and four defeats, things haven’t gotten better. They’ve gotten worse.

I’m also on record here saying Vicario is not good enough. He isn’t. It doesn’t follow that humiliating young, inexperienced Kinsky is better. When Kinsky was replaced in the Atletico game, senior players put arms around him, but Tudor just blanked him. No support. No attempt to inspire loyalty or to mentor a younger man.

I might agree with Tudor’s hard ass approach if we were winning. But we’re losing game after game.

We’re still not doomed. But can anyone make an argument that Igor Tudor is the man to save us?

Sam

READ: Top 10 absolutely dreadful Premier League managers with mercifully short reigns

Levy in, please

I’ve not said much this season regarding my beloved (just about) Spurs. I’ve barely been down there and allowed others to enjoy my seat, and am calmly riding the wave to the championship. I’ve gotten angry at the two centre halves for their respective reds but on the whole, you reap what you so. I say all this to get across that I am off sound mind and body (just about) before I say the following.

#Levyin

Jon (he wouldn’t have allowed this to happen), Lincoln

Meanwhile at Liverpool…

Well that was utterly toilet!

Please please can we have Rio from the start.

Wirtz at 10 instead of MacA.

And yes.. Frimpong instead of Mo.

We have got to do something different…

Is it just me?

Al – LFC

…​Somewhere in my loft is my expired FA coaching certificate, (level 1) I had a quick look but couldn’t find it. I’m pretty sure it’s one more than anyone on the current LFC staff.

When I do I’m going to send a copy to Arne Slot and Richard Hughes and offer my services, I’ll work for free as all I am going to do is to scream at Arne that putting our 5ft 8in midfielder marking the oppositions best header of the ball at corners is not a particularly good idea. It’s failed in the past and continues to fail.

Howard (the new Nate the great) Jones

…This numpty referee might as well have been Turkish but Galatasaray deserved tonight’s result, full stop. Gift store wide open, vouchers galore, again we come away with absolutely nothing.

It used to be that opponents needed to match our intensity, now we look to match half theirs and still fail, over and over again. Meek and pathetic. In a huge bubbling cauldron we are an ice cube.

I’ll say it here: we will not overturn this tie at Anfield, it’s just not on the cards. We’ve looked patchy for an entire year, before last season had even finished we’d already downed tools.

I’ll say this too: no-brainer that City prevails in our FA Cup tie. Odds on we might even play Dr Liverpool at the weekend to the sickliest patient the league has ever seen. Disastrous stuff.

Eric, Los Angeles CA

Bayern for the Champions League?

Great result for the Jordis.. uh, ( Cruyff reference ) ooh , penalty. Never mind. A memorable night all the same.

Do we not agree that the professionalism of these Tottenham players has to be called out ? Not all Thomas’ fault but….

Liverpool used to have a keeper nick-named calamity and that disallowed goal was up there, blimey! When that mojo goes , it sure does go .

Still, those players won’t fancy Anfield under the lights. By the way, was that the same stadium where they beat Carlo’s Milan or has it been changed somehow, somewhere ?

Are Bayern now the favourites or is the Italian league just currently pants?

Peter (looking forward to a Real elimination) Andalucia

There’s always one…

Joe Hart, Peter Schmeichel and Steve McManaman were all angry with Igor Tudor as Tottenham lost 5-2 to Atletico Madrid on Tuesday night.

Tottenham were 3-0 down within 15 minutes against the Spanish side in the Champions League on Tuesday with Antonin Kinsky, who made a surprise start, hauled off after the third goal went in.

Kinsky made a couple of glaring errors and was replaced by Guglielmo Vicario from the bench and Tottenham interim boss Tudor explained his decision after the match: “I am coaching for 15 years and never have done this, but it was necessary to preserve the guy and preserve the team. It was an incredible situation.

“Before the game it was the right choice, with pressure on Vicario and Toni a very good goalkeeper. After this happened, of course, it is easy to say it is not the right decision.

“Toni was sorry, he made an excuse for the team. He is a bright guy and a good goalkeeper. The team is with him. Me too. He understands.

“Unfortunately, it happened big mistakes in a big game. It was too much for us in this moment when we are fragile, we are weak.”

READ:Tudor ‘kills’ another Spurs career besides his own as Kinsky becomes humiliated collateral damage

Tudor seemed to blank the Czech goalkeeper as he made his way past him and down the tunnel with several Tottenham players, including Palhinha and Conor Gallagher, chasing after Kinsky to console him.

And former Manchester City goalkeeper Hart was angry at the way Tudor handled the situation and his treatment of Kinsky, he said on TNT Sports: “To get to this level, signed by Spurs, one mistake does not alter you. That is a technical error, but what precedes that… was it the right decision? Maybe it was. But what I saw after…

“I hate being reactive because I like to know all the facts. But the fact he has taken him off in that situation having played him… he is young, 22, he is not a man, he has done nothing to try and hurt Spurs.

“[He had] a couple of bad moments, but to rip him off in this situation and not even acknowledge the guy? Every single one of Tottenham’s players who are feeling the pain don’t know what to do. How is that good for him?”

Hart added: “It is a thing with keepers, you have got to accept you will have nights like that. Everyone has them. Buffon, Neuer, Schmeichel. They have had moments, but everything that has gone on on top of it, he will feel so unwelcomed as far as the management is involved.

“You have to be treated like a human, just a little bit. I understand the situation. This needs getting a serious grip of. Madness happens all the time in football. That was mad, maybe he didn’t handle it how he should have.

“I saw the whole bench’s hearts drop. They are saying, “don’t worry we are here for you”. It’s the human side of things. If you aren’t willing to show it, that’s when it starts to divide.”

MORE TOTTENHAM COVERAGE ON F365…

* Kinsky joins the most humiliating substitutions ever, featuring Mourinho and ‘really angry’ Klopp

* Who will be the next Spurs manager? Dyche, Redknapp and Mason among the frontrunners

* Tudor sack stance revealed as Tottenham hold player meeting with interim boss branded a ‘fraud’

Former Liverpool and Real Madrid winger McManaman, who was speaking alongside Hart, described Tudor’s call as “man-management at its very, very worst”.

Speaking at half-time, McManaman said: He is 22, been at Spurs for a year, getting paid Champions League wages. We all understand what happened and the mistakes, but it wasn’t about that, it was about being a figure to say, “don’t worry about it”. It was a small thing the manager needed to do.

“I have no issue with the sub, but go over and say, don’t worry. It takes five seconds. Then move forward. The optics look terrible, you aren’t doing anything to help that kid’s career at all.”

McManaman continued on the decision from the Tottenham manager: “That’s man-management at its very, very worst. Three or four of the players try and hug him.

“That poor goalkeeper has had a terrible night after being chosen by his own manager, and for his manager to not even acknowledge him, to not go over and say, “sorry, don’t worry about it”, put his arm round him, do something. That is cold as cold can be.”

Former Manchester United goalkeeper Peter Schmeichel was another pundit to feel sorry for Kinsky and accused Tudor of “killing his career”.

Schmeichel told CBS Sports: “I feel really, really sorry for him

“You make mistakes, you know, he’s put him in goal. Obviously, he’s costing the team the opportunity to win. Not that Tottenham have any opportunity to win. I mean, it was a terrible performance.

“But when this happened, when you look at the clock there, 14:55, what does Igor Tudor then? Well, he substitutes him.

“That’s going to have ramifications for the rest of his career. This will be a moment that everybody in football will always remember every time they see and hear his name.

“You make your choice as a coach and yes, it wasn’t going your way and you’re 3-0 down, there’s no way that this team would ever come back from that. You’ve got to stick with him and at least stick until half-time.

“What he’s done there, for me, he’s absolutely killed his career. That’s going to take something to get over that.”

Tottenham are thinking about sacking Igor Tudor before the weekend after Spurs were well beaten by Atletico Madrid in the Champions League on Tuesday night.

Tudor’s side found themselves 3-0 down inside 15 minutes at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano with Atletico Madrid taking advantage of a couple of mistakes from Tottenham goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky.

Tudor took the decision to haul off Kinsky following the third goal with Tottenham managing to limit the damage from there with both sides scoring two more goals as the game ended 5-2.

The interim boss was heavily criticised for his decision to start Kinsky in such a big match and the defeat means Tudor has now lost all four of his first four matches in charge of Tottenham.

And talkSPORT claim that Spurs ‘are considering sacking’ Tudor ‘before the weekend’ with Tottenham now facing a crucial match against Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.

The report adds: ‘The club’s hierarchy could already pull the plug on Tudor and look for a third manager of the season.

READ: Tudor ‘kills’ another Spurs career besides his own as Kinsky becomes humiliated collateral damage

‘talkSPORT understands Spurs owners the Lewis family have been left disillusioned by Tudor’s impact, or lack of.’

While it’s understood that the Tottenham hierarchy will hold a meeting with the players ‘to determine Tudor’s future at Spurs’ after the interim boss’ disastrous start.

Tottenham are now likely to go out of the Champions League unless they overturn the three-goal deficit at home and Spurs face a battle to stay in the Premier League too, as they sit just a point above the relegation zone.

Tudor has been labelled “a fraud” by former Tottenham midfielder Jamie O’Hara with Spurs overall summed up as “nothing short of a disgrace”.

O’Hara said on talkSPORT: “I’m absolutely embarrassed to be a Spurs fan. I’m embarrassed to be affiliated with this football club. It is nothing short of a disgrace. The manager is a fraud.

“The manager needs to go, sack him at half time. It’s a disgraceful performance from the players.

“The tactics, unthinkable. To set up 3-4-3 against Atletico Madrid is embarrassing. We cannot play that formation.

“He said it’s about experimenting. You cannot experiment in the Champions League playing 3-4-3 and to pick Kinsky….

MORE TOTTENHAM COVERAGE ON F365…

* Kinsky joins the most humiliating substitutions ever, featuring Mourinho and ‘really angry’ Klopp

* Who will be the next Spurs manager? Dyche, Redknapp and Mason among the frontrunners

* ‘Boring’ Arsenal pile-on continues as Tottenham flop sides with Arne Slot: ‘I’ll tell you the truth’

“Everyone’s saying all of a sudden they’re feeling sorry for this guy… he’s a professional football player. He’s a professional goalie. It’s his job. He can’t kick the ball.

“It’s their job to look through to wear the right footing. Put some studs on, you’re falling over the ball. I’ve never seen anything like it.”

O’Hara added: “I honestly cannot believe I’m sat here watching this garbage. [Micky] Van de Ven should’ve been sent off. He doesn’t want to be out there. They give us a sympathy vote VAR by not sending Van de Ven off.

“This could be 9-0, and to be honest, I hope we get pumped because this manager has got to go and the only saving grace out of anything is that we get pumped tonight.

“The Tottenham board might do something for once and actually sack this guy because he is absolutely shocking. I could do a better job at managing this football club.

“They can’t even pass a ball. They cannot string two passes together. This club is absolutely gone. The players are absolutely gone.

“”They don’t want to be there. They don’t want to play. for this manager. It is nothing short of a disaster. We are going down.

“This club is finished right now, and this is an absolute embarrassment to even watch.”

Continuing his rant, O’Hara said: “What has happened to this club? I can’t watch this anymore!

“I can’t believe how bad we are…this manager is a fraud, he’s the biggest fraud I’ve ever seen, who appointed this guy?”

O’Hara rounded off his outburst by claiming: “It’s a disgrace, the way this club is set up and run.

“He’s got to go, he’s got to get sacked tonight…I want it, if he’s not sacked, I won’t watch Spurs again, the team he picked, it’s an absolute joke.

“You’ve got Kinsky in goal…my nan could tell you that he’s not good enough to play in the Champions League in goal.”

In ordinary circumstances, it might seem bizarre to start a post-mortem of the latest Spurs defeat with a Mikel Arteta quote about Arsenal goalkeepers from September 2023.

But a) ordinary circumstances and Spurs are entirely incongruous, and b) in this of all seasons, there is every chance that an ongoing obsession with the superior half of north London inspired one of the most remarkable turns of events in modern football history from an entirely unserious institution that honestly must be stopped at this point and protected from itself.

“I’m a really young manager,” said Arteta two and a half years ago. “I have few regrets, but one of them is that on two occasions, I felt after 60 minutes and 85 minutes of two games in this period to change the goalkeeper in that moment.

“I didn’t do it, I didn’t have the courage to do it. Someone is going to do it, and maybe [people will say] that’s strange. But why not? Tell me why not. You have all the qualities in another goalkeeper to do something, you want to change the momentum, do it.

“It’s a regret that I have.”

‘Hold Thomas Frank’s Arsenal-branded coffee cup,’ said Igor Tudor, who flogged that absurd notion to within a millimetre of its already flimsy pretence in a season-immolating 90 minutes which equally underlined why Spurs will probably simply double or quits last campaign’s combination of a European trophy and 17th by winning the Champions League while finishing 20th.

It was an evening which, as Ally McCoist had it, likely rendered Antonin Kinsky’s time at Spurs “finished” – and a game which emphasised how fortunate the 22-year-old would be if that is indeed the case.

Not since Loris Karius in the 2018 final has such seemingly irreversible damage been done to a single player’s career. The hope is that Kinsky can recover from this in a way his Liverpool counterpart never really could, but it will be a long road, and one which absolutely must not involve Tudor in any way.

“You’ve got to stick with him at least until half-time,” said Peter Schmeichel afterwards. “He’s absolutely killed his career.

Tudor’s decision to drop Guglielmo Vicario for Kinsky in a Champions League game away at Atletico was curious in the first place. His call to remove the Czech after 17 of the most chastening minutes imaginable was ruthless. But Tudor’s choice to completely ignore Kinsky as he was consoled by players and staff all the way from the pitch to the tunnel was despicable.

Steve McManaman dubbed it “man management at its very, very worst”. A “heartbroken” Joe Hart was “flabbergasted” at the lack of any semblance of care or empathy. McCoist and Darren Fletcher were speaking like they had just witnessed a live death, they really were.

And in a way they had: of Tudor at Spurs; of Kinsky at Spurs; of whatever Spurs’ Champions League hopes were. It was uncomfortable viewing but impossible to look away. A complete and utter car crash in every sense.

Kinsky, on his third appearance of the season – and first outside the opening rounds of the League Cup – miskicked for the first goal and slipped for the third, as did Micky van de Ven for the second.

The perennial head-loss at Spurs was matched only by a forfeiture of balance at what was apparently the Metropolitano ice rink. The sheer amount of slips suffered by members of the visiting team was farcical, to the point it was assumed by many that it must have been the result of a deliberate #darkarts ploy from Diego Simeone to drench the playing surface but advise his squad to wear quadruple-length studs.

Tudor did not acknowledge any of the five players he brought off in fairness/a damning indictment of his tough guy act in which he’s actually just being a bit of a kn*b. If there is any footage of what Fletcher described on commentary – Djed Spence coming off, sitting on the bench, getting up again, tapping Tudor on the shoulder and making a point to shake his hand in a lesson on basic manners – it should be released in conjunction with the news of the manager’s demise.

There was a fifth goal for the hosts, expertly converted by Julian Alvarez on a quick break triggered by one of a great many ludicrously brilliant Antoine Griezmann touches.

But that goal was itself born from an excellent Jan Oblak save from a Richarlison header as Spurs, even while tripping over their own shoelaces, lurched in the general direction of the finish line.

Pedro Porro scored a wonderful team goal before setting up Dominic Solanke to close the deficit somewhat with a fine finish. Both sides had 11 shots in a game which ended 5-2. Spurs are honestly just so f**king stupid.

And they do appear to have accidentally called a pyromaniac instead of a firefighter to this unrelenting dumpster blaze.

It is the worst start for a manager in Spurs history. It is the first time they have ever lost six consecutive games in all competitions. And now Tudor, not quite content with torching an already doomed club’s season and his own hopes of managing at a relevant level again, has resorted to taking players’ careers down with him.

Tottenham Hotspur forward Mathys Tel has backed Liverpool manager Arne Slot in his brutal assessment of the state of the Premier League, as Arsenal boss Mikel Arteta sticks to his plan and continues to blow everyone away.

While Arsenal are the favourites to win the Premier League title this season for the first time since 2004, Liverpool, who became the champions of England in the 2024/25 campaign, may not even finish in the top four and Tottenham could get relegated.

Arsenal have not been very pretty to watch this season, with Arteta focusing on set pieces and being very professional in open play.

The Gunners have scored 16 goals from corners this season, with many criticising their tactics.

Earlier this month, Liverpool manager Arne Slot complained about the Premier League getting too boring because of set pieces.

BBC Sport quoted Slot as saying on March 2: “You have to accept it.

READ: Ranking all 31(!) Premier League managers this season: Mikel Arteta off top spot

“I think it’s mainly here in the Premier League. If I watch other leagues I don’t think there’s so much emphasis on set-pieces.

“If I watch an Eredivisie game, which I still do, I see goals being disallowed and fouls on goalkeepers being given and I think ‘wow, that’s a big difference’.

“Here, you can almost hit a goalkeeper in his face and the referee still says ‘just go on’.

“Do I like it? My football heart doesn’t like it. If you ask me about football, I think about the Barcelona team from 10, 15 years ago.

“Every Sunday evening, you were hoping they would play.

“Now, most of the games I see in the Premier League are not for me a joy to watch but it’s always interesting because it’s so competitive.

“That is what makes this league great because there is so much competitiveness. Everyone can win against everyone.”

Tottenhamforward Tel has now sided with Slot in his assessment of the Premier League and believes that the English top flight is boring.

Tel, who has been a huge disappointment for Tottenham and has started just seven Premier League games for the north London club this season, has lamented the lack of Real Madrid duo Vinicius Junior and Kylian Mbappe in the Premier League.

Maxi Foot has quoted Tel as saying to podcaster Zack Nani: “I’ll tell you the truth, yes, it’s not exciting.

“It’s boring to watch; it’s really just a clash between two teams with their own ideas.

“There’s less spectacle, there’s no Vinicius pulling off a sombrero flick, no dribble, no Kylian (Mbappe) accelerating past you.

“Here, I’d say it’s more structured, maybe too much so, with clear ideas, all those set pieces, little details that can sometimes make the difference.

“But sometimes you think it might be too much.

“I told the assistant coach in charge of set pieces, ‘Don’t put me on that one’. Because it’s a zoo.

“We’re all bunched together, everyone’s pushing, knocking each other to the ground, holding onto each other… Forget it. The goalkeeper can’t get out, he can’t see.”

Slot and Tel may moan and groan as much as they would like, but Arteta is not going to mind winning the Premier League title the ugly way.

Arsenal have proven to be very efficient using the corners like they have, and the Emirates Stadium faithful will not mind a bit if that continues and makes the Premier League boring, as long as the Gunners win the title this season.

Mauricio Pochettino is demanding four summer signings from Real Madrid if they want him to take over as head coach in the summer, according to reports.

Los Blancos are looking to replace Alvaro Arbeloa in the summer after the Spaniard has failed to impress in his short time as Real Madrid head coach.

Arbeloa took over from Xabi Alonso in January after the former Bayer Leverkusen head coach was sacked by Real Madrid following their defeat to arch-rivals Barcelona in the Spanish Super Cup.

Real Madrid immediately appointed Arbeloa but did not specify how long the Spaniard would be in charge and now there are rumours that he will leave at the end of the season.

One report on Monday even claimed that he could be sacked before the international break after losing two of his last three matches in La Liga.

Former Liverpool head coach Jurgen Klopp has perhaps been the most heavily linked with the job, while Aston Villa’s Unai Emery, Zinedine Zidane and Benfica’s Jose Mourinho have also been mentioned.

READ: Liverpool return mooted for Klopp as he ‘wants’ one Reds star in Real Madrid demand

Pochettino is one long-term option, with Real Madrid president Florentino Perez known to be a big admirer of the former Tottenham head coach, who is also being linked with a return to Spurs.

Real Madrid and Tottenham would both have to wait until after the World Cup in the summer to appoint Pochettino as he leads the USMNT into the competition.

And now reports in Spain claim that Pochettino is demanding two midfielders and two centre-backs in order to ‘agree’ to sign as new Real Madrid head coach.

The report adds: ‘The club’s biggest wish would be to sign Cuti Romero from Tottenham , their favourite centre-back for Real Madrid, but his price tag is currently exorbitant at €80 million.

‘Pochettino also wouldn’t be opposed to bringing [Marco] Verratti back to European football, as he’s playing exceptionally well; he’s the player who has impressed him the most [at PSG], and Pochettino believes that, for a relatively small fee, and despite being 33 years old, he would significantly improve the team, along with a second midfielder, who could be [Alexis] Mac Allister, Enzo Fernandez, [Adam] Wharton, or Vitinha.’

READ: Liverpool star’s ‘future lies with Chelsea’ as Real Madrid are beaten; Reds identify ‘chosen one’

Spanish journalist Jorge Picon insists that Como head coach Cesc Fabregas is a ‘dark horse’ to take over as new Real Madrid boss in the summer.

Picon told El Desmarque: “But there’s another coach who hasn’t been talked about as much, and he’s the one I wanted to mention. Well, I haven’t read anything about him myself, but he’s a coach who’s very much to the liking of some of Real Madrid’s top executives.

“His name is Cesc Fàbregas , a young coach, but with leadership qualities. He was already very popular as a player, and they wanted him when he was at Arsenal. But despite having been at Barcelona, ​​he’s a coach they believe has charisma and knowledge, and they see him as having the potential to coach Real Madrid in the future.

“Real Madrid has never lost sight of the coaching market. Arbeloa was brought in with the idea of ​​a transition period, and he’s a club man and will always have a place at Real Madrid, but it’s true that there are already important people at the club who are putting forward the names of coaches. Zidane, obviously, is Florentino’s dream whenever these things happen.

“He’s the number one option, but another option that’s very appealing is Klopp, and there have been contacts to find out about his situation.”