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Chelsea’s two-time Premier League title winner Oscar has opened up on his decision to snub Tottenham in favour of a move to Stamford Bridge.

Spurs were the first team to contact Oscar about a move to the Premier League after he emerged as a star at Brazilian side Internacional.

Then-Tottenham manager Andre Villas-Boas called Oscar personally to try to convince him to sign for the north London club.

But Oscar then received an offer from Chelsea and says it was a relatively straightforward decision to reject Tottenham and join the Blues.

Chelsea spent around £25m to bring Oscar to west London and the Brazilian playmaker proved to be a shrewd signing, making over 200 appearances for the club.

Asked about his move to the Premier League, Oscar said on former Chelsea teammate John Obi Mikel’s podcast: ‘I had Tottenham as well, Andre Villas-Boas was there.

‘Yes, Villas-Boas was the first one to call me. Wow. I later played with Villas-Boas in China and he always said, “I talked to you, why didn’t you come?”

‘But, you know, Chelsea… I cannot compare. Chelsea is better, so I chose Chelsea. And it was the right choice, because I played good football there, we won some titles that year. So it was amazing.’

Oscar helped Jose Mourinho’s side win the Premier League in 2015 and was a key player when Chelsea won the title two years later under Antonio Conte.

Tottenham, in contrast, finished fifth in what would have been Oscar’s first season at the club and second to Chelsea in 2016-17.

The Brazil international was one of the first high-profile players to move to the Chinese Super League in 2017, signing a deal with Shanghai Port worth over £20m-a-year.

Oscar had eight seasons at Shanghai, scoring 77 goals in 248 games, before returning to his boyhood club Sao Paulo this time last year.

Sao Paulo signed Oscar on a three-year deal but reports claim the midfielder is set to retire due to issues with his heart.

The decision comes after Oscar collapsed during a training session in November and spent five days in hospital being treated for vasovagal syncope, a condition which affects blood pressure and heart rate.

Oscar is not the only Brazilian player to light up Stamford Bridge in recent years, with the likes of Ramires, Willian and Thiago Silva also establishing themselves as firm fans’ favourites.

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The latest Brazilian to be adored by Chelsea fans is teenage sensation Estevao Willian, who joined in a £51m move from Palmeiras last summer.

Estevao, 18, is already rated as one of the best young players in the world, having scored five goals for Chelsea and five in 11 appearances for Brazil.

‘He’ is very good,’ Oscar said of Estevao. ‘He has the dribbling, he likes to score goals, has a lot of talent.

‘We need to give him time to adapt in Europe. It’s not easy to arrive there. But he goes to one of the best teams in Europe, so let’s see what happens in the next couple of years.’

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Chris Richards is a major doubt for Sunday’s Premier League clash with Tottenham after being stretchered off in Crystal Palace’s Carabao Cup defeat to Arsenal.

Richards has been an ever-present figure in Palace’s back three this season and was once again in the lineup as Oliver Glasner’s side travelled to the Emirates for the League Cup quarter final.

However, the United States international raised alarm bells in the second half when he slumped to the turf and required treatment.

Richards’ foot was bleeding heavily, with the Palace physios eventually needing to take his boot off in an atempt to stem the flow of bood.

Eventually, the defender was stretchered off and replaced by Will Hughes as Palace went on to lose agonisingly on penalties after Maxence Lacroix’s sudden-death miss.

The Eagles have endured a hectic schedule in recent weeks, and are back in action at the weekend when they host London rivals Tottenham at Selhurst Park.

And speaking after their defeat to Arsenal, Glasner suggested it would be unlikely that Richards would be passed fit to feature in the clash.

‘He got a knock on his foot, like stamped on his foot, and had to be stitched,’ the Austrian said.

‘I don’t know how many stitches but a few but the doctor told me it doesn’t look so bad. So, I’m always hopeful and, of course, we have to be hopeful.

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‘I don’t know if he will be okay for the Tottenham game but I am still hoping that he will be back against Fulham because, of course, as mentioned we have 16 outfield players and we can’t allow to miss someone else.’

There was more bad injury concern when Eddie Nketiah was forced off at half-time, but Glasner is confident the striker will recover in time for Sunday’s league match.

‘Edie got a slight knock. Doesn’t look so serious and I hope that he… I’m sure that he will be back for the Tottenham game,’ he added.

Elsewhere, Chadi Riad, Daniel Munoz, Daichi Kamada, and Cheick Doucoure remain sidelined for Palace with longer-term injuries.

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Paul Merson believes Antoine Semenyo should snub interest from Chelsea, Manchester United, Liverpool and Manchester City to sign for a different Premier League club.

The future of Semenyo will dominate the first part of the January transfer window, with the Premier League’s top clubs all desperate to sign the Bournemouth superstar.

So far this season, the winger has eight goals – a tally bettered only by Erling Haaland and Igor Thiago – and three assists in 16 appearances.

Semenyo, who will turn 26 next month, has a £65million release clause in his contract but it must be triggered by January 10.

United, Liverpool, City and Tottenham have long held interest in the Ghanian though it is said he has no interest in joining Spurs.

On Tuesday, it was reported that Chelsea had made an approach for the forward, but top of the table Arsenal will not enter this transfer race.

It would seem Semenyo has his pick of the clubs, but in a somewhat surprising twist, Merson thinks he should reconsider moving to north London.

‘Tottenham need to make a real key signing that would kickstart them for the next five, ten years. I think he suits them,’ the former Arsenal player and life-long Chelsea fan told Sky Sports.

‘That would be a statement for them. They need to make a key signing and beat a couple of other clubs that are after him. But will they? I don’t know.

‘They’d have to do all that behind the scenes and make sure they get it over the line. They won’t want to be embarrassed like they have over the last three or four transfers they’ve been in for.’

Merson went onto add that Semenyo’s playing style would be well suited to Tottenham who are struggling for consistency under Thomas Frank.

Moreover, he believes the promise of being a permanent starter for Spurs would trump become a squad player for the rival teams looking to sign him.

‘I ain’t sure if he suits the others. Liverpool maybe but then you’re taking [Mo] Salah’s place.

Bournemouth don't want to sell Semenyo

Speaking on Tuesday ahead of Bournemouth’s match against Brentford, Cherries manager Andoni Iraola made it clear that he is keen to keep Semenyo at the club for as long as possible:

‘Semenyo right now is with us. He trained today with us.

‘I know that there is lots of noise around him. Not my concern, my concern is it doesn’t affect his performances. It is not doing, he is very committed to the team and I hope we can keep him here.

‘Situation we cannot control, but Antoine right now is our player. Going to continue playing for us. If you ask me, I don’t want to lose him, definitely don’t. But every time the market opens you never know what is going to happen.’

Asked if he understood the level of interest in Semenyo, Iraola replied: ‘Yes, he is performing amazingly well but lots of wingers from other teams are performing amazingly well.

‘In the league, nearly all teams have a difference maker. Especially offensively. I don’t know what is going to happen in the winter market.’

‘Chelsea have got loads of wingers already, they’ve got [Alejandro] Garnacho, [Pedro] Neto, Estevao, [Jamie] Gittens – who’s not really produced at the moment – so I don’t know about that. Plus, he’s 26 so I don’t see the sell-on on that one.

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‘Man United? He’ll play wingback, he won’t play in his favoured position there. He won’t want to play wingback, he won’t want to run up and down the wing every week, he just won’t.

‘Man City? How long will Pep Guardiola be there? If you sign a four-year contract and the manager leaves at the end of the season, whose to say the next manager comes in and wants to play him. You just don’t know that.

‘So for me, Tottenham would be the one. Plus he’ll play every week at Tottenham. At the end of the day, he seems like one of them lads that just wants to play football. He’ll get that consistency of playing week in, week out.

‘You go to Man City or Liverpool or Chelsea, you’re not playing every week, you’re playing every now and then and he’s not that player.’

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Liverpool have confirmed that Alexander Isak has undergone surgery on a serious injury picked up in the win over Tottenham on Saturday.

The Swedish striker scored the opening goal of the game but was challenged by Spurs defender Micky van de Ven in the process.

The Dutchman was trying to block Isak’s shot but failed to do so and slid into the forward, leaving him in pain on the deck.

The summer signing from Newcastle was forced off as a result and there were quickly concerns that he had suffered a serious problem.

The club has now confirmed that an operation has been carried out on an ankle injury, which Liverpool say ‘included a fibula fracture’.

While the Reds have made no prediction on when Isak will return to action, he will be sidelined for a number of months with the injury.

The statement from the Premier League champions read: ‘Alexander Isak today successfully underwent surgery on the injury he sustained on Saturday.

‘The Liverpool striker was injured in a challenge in the process of scoring the opening goal against Tottenham Hotspur and had to be substituted.

‘After diagnosis, an operation was completed today on an ankle injury that included a fibula fracture.

‘Isak’s rehabilitation will now continue at the AXA Training Centre, with no timeframe yet placed on his return.’

Speaking on Sky Sports’ Monday Night Football, Liverpool legend Jamie Carragher defended Van de Ven, saying it was a challenge that needed to be made and Isak was just unlucky to suffer as a result.

‘It’s a huge blow because I think Liverpool were actually one attacker short anyway,’ Carragher said.

‘There’s a lot been made about a lot of the challenges in the game from Tottenham players and a lot of them weren’t clever. I’ve put myself in Van de Ven’s position and that’s a challenge I’d probably make.

‘He’s trying to block it, it’s just the follow through. I don’t know where else anyone thinks his foot’s going to go. He has to make that challenge. You can’t let the striker just get a shot away there in that situation.

‘It’s just really bad luck for Isak. It’s probably one of the first glimpses we’ve seen of his real quality in a Liverpool shirt.’

Arne Slot has issues in his front line, with Mohamed Salah at the African Cup of Nations and Cody Gakpo also out injured.

The Reds are back in action on Saturday at home against Wolves in the Premier League.

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Arne Slot admits he had a bad ‘gut feeling’ about Alexander Isak’s injury after Liverpool’s 2-1 win against Tottenham on Saturday.

Spurs were reduced to 10 men in the first half with Xavi Simons’ red card and had to wait until the 56th minute to open the scoring through Isak.

After meeting Florian Wirtz’s pass, Isak was on the receiving end of a heavy challenge from Micky van de Ven as he finished past Spurs goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Isak, who was brought on as a half-time substitute for Conor Bradley, received treatment on the pitch and was then replaced by Jeremie Frimpong.

Liverpool doubled their lead through Hugo Ekitike before Richarlison’s goal in the 83rd minute set up a nervy finish for Slot’s side at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

‘I don’t have any news on him,’ Slot said of Isak after Liverpool’s win.

‘But if a player scores and then gets injured and doesn’t come back on the pitch, and also doesn’t try to come back, which Conor Bradley for example did but I had to take him out as well because he couldn’t go on, but if a player doesn’t try to come back that’s usually not a good thing.

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‘But I cannot say anything more than that, that is just gut feeling, nothing medical.’

Asked if Isak had his own feeling about his injury, Slot replied: ‘Haven’t spoken to him about that yet.

‘It’s a good thing he scored, a good goal, assisted by Florian Wirtz, I said last week players are getting better, the team is getting better, again, wasn’t perfect today, especially in the last 10 minutes but in the meantime we pick up points and I see the team developing in a way I’d like to see.’

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Alan Shearer has provided us with his latest Premier League predictions for the final round of fixtures before Christmas.

His beloved Newcastle United get the weekend up and running at home to Chelsea before Manchester City have the chance to go top of the tree against West Ham United.

Tottenham host Liverpool what could be a pre-Christmas cracker on Saturday evening before Arsenal face a stern test away to Everton.

Aston Villa host Manchester United in Sunday’s showpiece before Fulham and Nottingham Forest collide on Monday.

As ever, England legend and Betfair ambassador Alan Shearer has revealed his Premier League predictions to Metro.

Newcastle vs Chelsea

Chelsea got a good win last weekend. A deserved the win, and they played well. Malo Gusto, I thought, was absolutely superb. And Enzo Maresca completely changed the 11 for midweek in the Carabao Cup.

Newcastle, as we know, we don’t need to go into what happened last weekend again. They’re at home, they have to bounce back. And I know they’ve had the Carabao Cup and the manager did change it around and rightly so.

We’ll have to wait and see what he goes with tomorrow in that early game. But two clubs who desperately need a result for obvious reasons. Maresca on the back of what he said and putting huge pressure on himself in saying that…

They did win with a completely new 11 in the League Cup, but then it’s back to league game again. So they have to get a win for obvious reasons or a performance. And Newcastle, as we know, they’re at home. They have to bounce back after that shocker last weekend.

I think Newcastle will go again. They will try to get that energy back that makes it really difficult for teams at St. James’ Park. I know they conceded late against Liverpool, conceded late against Arsenal, and Spurs.

However, they need to get back to winning ways against clubs that are going to finish in and around them, I guess. And let’s hope that starts tomorrow. So maybe my heart is ruling my head here. I’m going to go home win.

Prediction – Newcastle win

Bournemouth vs Burnley

Burnley have lost seven on the spin. So, for that reason and that reason alone, and for what Bournemouth did at United being so good in forward positions – I think they’ll have too much for them, particularly being at home to Burnley.

If it was anyone else, I’d be reluctant to say it, but they’re playing against Burnley who have been really poor and give me no confidence whatsoever that they can stay up. I’m going to go home win for Bournemouth.

Prediction – Bournemouth win

Brighton vs Sunderland

I guess Sunderland losing players to AFCON will affect them. There’s no bitterness here whatsoever after what happened last weekend! I’m going to go for a Brighton home win because Sunderland will miss those players who have left.

Let’s see how Sunderland gets on for the next five weeks or so without those players. But yeah, I can’t say anything other than good things about them, unfortunately, as much as it pains me to do it. They’ve been immense and they deserved their victory last week.

They deserve where they are in the league because they’ve made it so difficult for anyone that they’re playing against. But I think Brighton away, losing players to AFCON… I’m going to go home win.

Prediction – Brighton win

Manchester City vs West Ham

City changed their lineup in midweek. Haaland didn’t play but they got the result they needed and are through to the semi-final. They’re at home. I wouldn’t give too much hope for West Ham to get anything at Manchester City.

They could put Arsenal under massive pressure by playing before them. And I don’t see anything other than a home win. I think with the form they’re in, the football they’re playing, the goals they’re scoring, that will be a tough afternoon for West Ham.

Prediction – Manchester City win

Wolves vs Brentford

Wolves have given themselves a little glimmer of hope because of that performance last weekend. I mean, everyone I guess other than Arsenal fans felt sorry for Wolves and their performance last week, getting nothing out of that game.

Brentford are in poor form after a good run of results before that. It doesn’t seem as if they can get a win. I’m going to go for a draw. I’ll go a point apiece.

Prediction – Draw

Tottenham Hotspur vs Liverpool

It’s a tough one to call after what happened to Spurs last week and Liverpool have got a couple of results. I’m going to go draw. I’m going to go sit on the fence. I think that won’t be great for either side, but it wouldn’t be a disaster coming out with a point apiece. So, I’m going to go draw.

Salah came on last week and did really well. I guess he had an hour last week and I thought his performance was excellent. He brought an energy, still looked as if he was strong and fit and did really well. He should have scored though missing a big chance.

I think they’ll miss that. They haven’t got him to do that if that happens again this week, particularly with the injuries Liverpool have got. Without doubt, even with all the noise that was around him, there’s no doubt that they’ll miss him as an option.

I would still have Liverpool getting into the top four, despite what I’ve seen all season. I still think they’ve got enough to make a push, and they might even sign one or two in January. So, for me, it would still be Liverpool getting in the top four.

Prediction – Draw

Everton vs Arsenal

This is a really tricky game for Arsenal. David Moyes has got Everton playing well and he’s got them tough to beat. I know that they went to Chelsea last weekend and didn’t get the result. But Arsenal going there… if it was at Arsenal, it would be a no-brainer to say home win, but it’s not, it’s at Everton which makes it totally different.

I still think they’ll have enough. I still think with what happened last weekend and getting that last minute winner, that would hopefully kick them on to go and get the result, but this is a tough one for them.

Arsenal were in a very sticky situation last weekend against Wolves. We said before the game, if you wanted a game straight after a poor result, then you’d want Wolves at home. But to be fair to Wolves, they made it really difficult for them.

But Arsenal didn’t play well. They weren’t at their best at all. But the bigger picture is somehow they managed to win with an own goal at the last minute.

But that can go either way for them. I guess they take huge confidence, get a huge boost from not playing well and still get the win when under huge pressure. Or they start asking themselves questions again with the form that Manchester City are in. It could go either way, let’s see what happens this weekend.

Prediction – Arsenal win

Leeds vs Crystal Palace

I think Oliver Glasner will revert back to what works best for him or has in the league other than last weekend. But they should have scored some goals in that first half against Man City last weekend.

And I think they’ll beat Leeds tomorrow despite the run that Leeds are on, so I’m going to go away win.

Prediction – Crystal Palace win

Aston Villa vs Manchester United

I think Villa at home will have too much for them, particularly with Mbeumo gone and Diallo gone. It’ll be really interesting to see what they do, whether he reverts back to his five at the back, Amorim.

But I just think the form that Villa are in, some of the players that are on song at the minute… I mean, Morgan Rogers is flying. Watkins, Tielemans. I think Villa will have too much for them, so a home win for me.

Prediction – Aston Villa win

Fulham vs Nottingham Forest

Fulham went in strong against Newcastle on Wednesday. They’ll be hurt after that. And I think with Forest’s result last weekend, then that would give them belief and confidence. And I think the way they’ll play; they’ll go there and sit and hit them on the break. It wouldn’t surprise me if Forest went there and got a win. So, I’m going to go away win.

Prediction – Nottingham Forest win

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Liverpool remain optimistic over Dominik Szoboszlai’s ankle injury ahead of their Premier League match away to Tottenham on Saturday.

The midfielder was forced off in the 83rd minute of Liverpool’s 2-0 win against Brighton at Anfield last weekend.

With Joe Gomez also replaced in the first half due to injury, Szoboszlai deputised at right-back as Conor Bradley missed the game due to suspension.

According to The Athletic, Szoboszlai has undergone a scan on his ankle injury and the results have indicated that the Hungary international has not suffered significant damage.

The report adds that the midfielder has ‘responded well to treatment in recent days’ and is not yet ruled out of Liverpool’s trip to Spurs.

‘It didn’t look great when I just saw him. But he has unbelievable mentality so let’s hope for the best,’ Slot said of Szoboszlai after the win over Brighton.

Liverpool also expect Szoboszlai to return against Wolves on December 27 if he does miss the trip to Tottenham this weekend.

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Elsewhere, Joe Gomez is set to be unavailable for the game against Spurs due to the hamstring injury he suffered against Brighton.

According to The Athletic, Liverpool will adopt a ‘cautious approach’ with Gomez but believe the injury is ‘relatively minor’.

‘If I have a player who goes off with a muscle injury like Joe, that’s normally not a positive thing,’ Slot said last weekend.

‘I would not expect him to be in the squad next week [against Tottenham] but sometimes you get a positive surprise.’

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Manchester United and Tottenham have both made an approach to sign Koln winger Said El Mala, according to reports in Germany.

The 19-year-old is regarded as one of the brightest young prospects in German football and has made an excellent start to his first Bundesliga campaign with six goals and two assists in 14 Bundesliga appearances.

Last month, El Mala was rewarded for his form as Julian Nagelsmann called him up to Germany’s national team for the first time, while in the summer, El Mala was a key figure for Germany at the UEFA European Under-19 Championship and ended up being named in the team of the tournament.

According to Sport Bild, United and Tottenham have now contacted Koln through intermediaries to register their interest in El Mala ahead of next summer’s transfer window.

The report claims that United and Spurs have indicated that they would be willing to pay a transfer fee between €30 million (£30.7m) and €40m (£35m).

However, the Premier League duo are in competition with Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain, who are also monitoring the midfielder’s progress at Koln.

Earlier this summer, Brighton made an approach to Koln to sign El Mala but their €15m (£13.1m) offer was rejected.

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The Bundesliga club are in a strong negotiating position as El Mala’s contract runs until 2030 and he does not have a release clause.

‘Said has a long contract and he doesn’t have a release clause. As things stand today, there’s no reason to even consider it,’ Koln’s sporting director, Thomas Kessler, told Sport1.

‘If a club does come along and we as Koln have to consider whether it’s worth taking this money and reinvesting it to improve the squad overall at the top, then we will think about it at some point.

‘He received a new contract and we increased his salary. Within this contract, Said has the opportunity to be even better paid based on performance, and Koln aresuccessful and we achieve our season goals.’

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Former Tottenham chairman Alan Sugar has told the club to axe manager Thomas Frank and make an incredibly ambitious appointment to replace him.

It was another bad day out for the Dane on Sunday as Spurs were beaten 3-0 at Nottingham Forest in the Premier League.

A Callum Hudson-Odoi brace was followed by an Ibrahim Sangare goal to hand Tottenham their sixth defeat in 16 league games and leave them sitting 11th in the table.

Pressure is building on Frank and there are tough tests coming up against Liverpool and Crystal Palace before the end of the year.

The Apprentice star, Sugar, reckons Spurs should ditch the Dane and bring in a Premier League icon next month.

He reckons the vast wealth of owners, the Lewis family, could tempt former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp back to the Premier League and that is the appointment he would love to see.

‘With the massive fortune of the Lewis family it would be a win-win situation if they hired Jurgen Klopp in January,’ Sugar posted on X.

‘Loads of money for players and a great manger. Who agrees #coys @SpursOfficial.’

It was pointed out to Lord Sugar that Klopp stated he would never manage another English team after he left Liverpool last year.

The 78-year-old replied: ‘People change their mind MONEY TALKS he is doing adverts for Travel Hotels.’

Klopp is indeed advertising Trivago, while he is also in his position of Head of Global Soccer for Red Bull.

The German has suggested he is unlikely to take another job as a manager, although has not ruled out a return to the dugout.

He even said he could have a second stint as Liverpool boss, telling the Diary of a CEO podcast in October: ‘I said I will never coach another team, a different team, in England. So that means if then it’s Liverpool … yeah. Theoretically it’s possible.

‘I’m 58, that means I could make the decision in a few years, I don’t know. Do I have to make the decision today? Then I will not coach again. But thank God, I don’t have to do that. I can just see what the future brings.’

More recently Klopp has been linked with the Real Madrid job as pressure grows on Xabi Alonso at the Santiago Bernabeu.

As for Frank at Tottenham, he expects to be given time to improve things after a disappointing start to life in north London.

‘I can’t see why not. I think it’s pretty evident that if no one gets the time, no one can turn this around,’ he said. ‘This is not a quick fix.’

He added: ‘I think it is extremely important to be calm and measured and of course, have very, very direct and clear messages at the right time, so they’re not in doubt of what I think.

‘I’m very honest about where we are as well. I was also very honest, today was a very bad performance, no two ways about that.

‘But I also know that to change this will take some time. No one will want to hear about that. It’s just reality.’

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Chris Waddle has urged Tottenham to avoid a shock transfer move for Manchester United’s Marcus Rashford, insisting he is too ‘inconsistent’.

Currently on loan at Barcelona from United, Rashford has been linked with Spurs but Waddle says he has ‘not shown enough in the Premier League’.

The 28-year-old, who also spent time on loan at Aston Villa last term, has played a total of 297 games in the top-flight with 89 goals and 42 assists.

Rashford has shined since joining Barca on loan and the La Liga side have the option to make it permanent in the summer but it’s reported a transfer may be complicated due to his high wages and the Catalan club’s finances.

That could see Spurs attempt a move for Rashford if and when he returns to Old Trafford but Waddle wants his former club to snub a potential deal.

Speaking to WhichBookie, Waddle said: ‘Spurs have failed to replace Harry Kane. They now seem to be too interested in only signing young players like Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and Wilson Odobert and trying to develop them. It’s about time they started signing ready-made players.

‘They have been linked with Marcus Rashford and although he’s better than what they’ve got, I’m not too sure they really need another left-winger.

‘He’s not shown enough in the Premier League for Manchester United. He had one good season a few years ago, but apart from that he’s been quite inconsistent.

‘I personally wouldn’t be trying to sign him. Spurs should be looking at somebody who is proven in this league.

‘They shouldn’t be put off trying to sign players from other Premier League clubs who have performed well.

‘I know they’ll be doing their scouting far and wide across Europe and elsewhere, but sometimes I think they just need to buy somebody who is ready-made for the league and is already performing week in, week out.’

United allowed Rashford to join Barca on loan after his significant fallout with Ruben Amorim and it seems the player has no future at Old Trafford.

Rashford, who came through United’s academy, was publicly criticised by Amorim over his lack of effort and professionalism.

Since his loan switch to Barca, Rashford has enjoyed an upturn in form, conjuring up six goals and 11 assists across 21 games to date.

Former United defender Wes Brown feels Rashford was destined to improve after leaving the Red Devils.

‘Marcus Rashford was always going to do well, I think he needed the change from Manchester United,’ Brown told BetWright casino.

‘He’d been at the club for so many years and not all those years would have been enjoyable for Marcus. He got a lot of stick from people, and I don’t blame him for making a change, and I think his departure suited United as well.

‘He just wasn’t in the right headspace to perform at United – it wasn’t working. It’s great to see how well he is doing now at Barcelona, he’s absolutely flying and he deserved to get back into the England squad. I’m sure he will have a great World Cup.’

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