Cartilage Free Captain

Buckle up, y’all — the rumors surrounding the future of Cristian Romero is about to become a SAGA. There’s been tons of smoke, most of it in the unreliable corners of the Spanish football media, that Cuti has been making doe-eyes at clubs in La Liga ahead of a potential summer transfer away from Tottenham Hotspur.

The club that is most closely linked to Romero is Atletico Madrid, and Cuti hasn’t exactly done a lot of work to distance himself from the idea of leaving Spurs. Cuti gave an interview last week and responded to a leading question that said he’d be open to playing in Spain, since that’s the major European league in which he hasn’t played in his career (with Romero notably omitting Ligue 1, whoops).

The latest transfer rumor came in over the weekend with Matteo Moretto writing in Relevo that not only is Atleti interested in Romero, Cuti has already said yes to the idea of playing for Diego Simeone next season. The report suggests that Romero is focused on Tottenham and the Europa League, but will see what happens with contract negotiations and the like at the end of the season.

Now “already said yes” to the idea of playing for Atleti is doing a lot of heavy lifting. Most likely this is Cuti’s agent keeping options open, which is what good agents do — how many times have we seen players agreeing personal terms with clubs only to have deals fall apart over transfer fees? And let’s not pretend that Daniel Levy isn’t going to drive a hard bargain. If we know anything about Levy it’s this — he has a player valuation in mind and will not budge from it. I saw a spurious report (which I won’t link to) that suggested Atleti were hoping to nab Cuti for €35m and [derisive laughter].

All that said, there’s a ton of smoke in the air about Cuti’s future. And I get it — if I’m considered one of the best central defenders in the league and have won a World Cup I’m not sure I’d want to stick around on a team that’s currently 16th in the table either. Cuti’s future might also hinge on whether or not Spurs win the Europa League and qualify for Champions League football next season, and come to think of it that’s probably why he’s so focused on the end of the season at Spurs.

So gird your loins, everyone — no matter what Spurs do against Bodø/Glimt over the next two weeks, these rumors aren’t going away. Might as well get used to the idea.

In case you hadn’t heard, Tottenham Hotspur’s season is still alive! Well, in Europe at least, and so all the eggs have gone into that basket. Unfortunately, Spurs do still have to contend with Premier League fixtures, albeit pointless ones, which means management of player fitness and conditioning in a manner as to prioritize the club’s European commitments.

With that in mind, Spurs are trying all avenues to fashion success in the Europa League, and as such requested movement of their May 18th fixture away at Aston Villa ahead of a hypothetical Europa League final - this according to Sami Mokbel of the BBC. Villa’s response?

Nah, we’re good, thanks.

Villa have reportedly rejected Spurs’ request. The final is currently scheduled for May 21st, three days after Spurs’ match in Birmingham (not London, guys), with the Villa fixture a week after the Lilywhites’ match against Crystal Palace and a whopping eight days after the Villains head to Bournemouth. The Spurs brass apparently asked for the match to be played on the 15th, which... sure, maybe there could have been some compromise somewhere between the 15th and 18th; but the proposed date is still four days after Villa take on the Cherries.

Mokbel is reporting Villa’s reasoning stems from them playing every 3-4 days through April (which, sure) and the fact that being their last home match of the season they have organized a number of fan-focused activities which couldn’t be easily rescheduled. There’s also the fact that Aston Villa are still in a battle for European (and Champions League) spots; but isn’t it more fun to imagine they are just being super messy and petty?

The infuriating thing is it actually helps clubs in Villa’s position for Spurs to do well in Europe. Trophies mean a decent weighting towards the FA’s European coefficient, resulting in more potential Champions League places for which Premier League sides could qualify - a bonus for a side like Villa who are at times on the cusp of those spots.

It may not matter, as Spurs still have to get past Bodø/Glimt, not a fait accompli, but I imagine the thinking was it was better to ask sooner or later. Regardless, the outcome has been a negative one: Aston Villa have rebuffed Spurs’ ask, and it remains to be seen if there is room for negotiation.

For the first time in history, we have seen a triple promotion.

Wrexham are now in the EFL Championship. Their promotion follows a late-season wobble from Wycome Wanderers, including a 0-1 loss to Leyton Orient (hellow Tottenham friends).

Now Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney are one stet closer to their dream of taking the Welsh club to the Premier League. Who knows how long that next step will take. There is s huge, huge gap between League One and the Premier League.

For as bad as Leicester have been this season, it’s hard to believe they’d struggle against a Leage One side.

I know it’s easy to hate on Wrexham right now, given the Hollywoodness of their story.

But I’d like to say, for the record, I didn’t like Wrexham first. That’s because of a Football Manager experience I had with them years ago. Long before Rob and Ryan entered the fold, I took Wrexham out of the National League with a poor squad.

I wanted to refresh the squad. I wanted to buy their football ground, to build it and to create a more sustainable football club. But I was rebuffed at every offer. And so, after much complaining, I was sacked.

But I can’t hold that against this current Wrexham. And next season’s Championship is going ot be very interesting, indeed.

Fitzie’s track of the day: the last great american dynasty, by Taylor Swift

And now for your links:

The Athletic ($$): “Liverpool 5 Tottenham 1 – Spurs hit new low in record-equalling defeat”

BBC: “Villa object to Spurs request for fixture change”

Dan KP: “Ange Postecoglou decisions leave Tottenham with an unwanted question to answer before Europa League showdown”

Telegraph: “‘We always felt if Spurs crossed the Watford Gap they would wet themselves!’”

What I take from this match is that 16th place Tottenham Hotspur’s highly rotated B-side is not as good as a full strength Liverpool playing for a Premier League title at home. And yeah, that’s pretty much all I’m taking from this match.

It’s time to rate the players.

Rate the players from 1⁄2 to 5 stars. If the player doesn’t deserve a rating due to minutes played, DO NOT RANK. I will round the stars up/down to the nearest half-star for the player ratings later this week.

Filed under:

Tottenham Hotspur Match Reports

Liverpool 5-1 Tottenham: Spurs deny Arsenal Premier League title

See? There’s a bright side to every situation!

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In what will go down as one of the most heroic performances in recent Tottenham Hotspur history, Spurs traveled to Anfield and proceeded to get their ass whupped by a final score of 5-1, bravely ensuring that there would be no way their arch-rivals Arsenal could win the Premier League title. Tottenham’s selfless display not only denied the Gunners the chance to win their first title since 2004, but also got minutes into the legs of several reserve players that might not otherwise have played much here in the tail end of the season.

What an incredible group of lads. I love this club. So selfless.

Here are my match reactions, such as they are, to another drubbing at Anfield.

Match reactions

Look, we’re all irritated. I am too. There’s nothing wrong with that, it proves that we care. Nobody likes to watch their sports team get pummeled, regardless of the context, so feel free to get grumpy if that’s what you feel.

That said, once again in the context of the season this match doesn’t matter much at all. You could see that based on the lineup, which was heavily rotated and featured a central midfield pairing of Lucas Bergvall and Archie Gray, and neither of our first choice central defenders. I’m half surprised Ange didn’t start Kinsky in goal.

Did anyone else think that, once that Solanke header went in, that Tottenham might just do the thing? Yeah, me either but I did think they could keep it close, or maybe eke out a draw. Alas.

The less said about the overall performance of the players in this match the better. I could single some out, but I’m not going to. What’s the point? It was a poor match from beginning to end against the best team in the league with literally everything to play for. Honestly, I’m already over it.

But after today you better damn well win on Thursday, Tottenham. I mean it.

Tottenham Hotspur Football Club will have both eyes firmly on their away trip to Norway in the Europa League. In the meantime, though, there is the small matter of a trip to Anfield to take on Liverpool.

Spurs’ record at Anfield doesn’t bear repeating; while on the other side of the ledger, the Reds are flying and can secure the Premier League title, their first in five years, with a solitary point in this match.

It does make you wonder though... what’s the more “Spursy” outcome here? Part of me wonders if Spurs go to Anfield with Liverpool expecting to cruise to victory, and instead the Lilywhites somehow steal a win.

Anything could happen...

COYS!

Lineups

Lineups will be posted closer to kick-off.

Live Blog

How to Watch

Liverpool vs. Tottenham Hotspur

Anfield, Liverpool, UK

Sunday, April 27, 2025

Time: 11:30 a.m. ET, 4:30 p.m. UK

TV: Not televised in USA, Sky Sports Premier League (UK). Check international listings at livesoccertv.com

Streaming: Peacock

Match thread rules

The match thread rules are the same as always. To any visitors coming here for the first time, welcome! We’re glad you’re here! Wipe your feet, mind the gap, and be sure to check out the other pages at this outstanding site. While you’re here, though, we have a few rules and regulations:

Absolutely no links to illegal streams. They’re bad and they get us in trouble. Violators will be warned or banned.

We have rules against “relentless negativity.” Nobody likes a Negative Nancy. Don’t knee-jerk and post outlandish or hurtful things just because you’re frustrated.

Along those lines, outright abuse of players or match officials is also not allowed. It’s fine to say “wow, that was a really bad call,” but it’s NOT okay to direct copious amounts of abuse in the direction of said official over a call you did not like.

Treat other people in the match thread the way you would want someone else to treat your grandmother. Be nice. This is a community of fans, not an un-moderated message board.

NO SPIDERS!

Finally, while we don’t have a rule against profanity, please try and keep the naughty words in check. Also, language that is sexist, racist, transphobic, or homophobic in nature will be swiftly deleted and you will be immediately banned. This is an open, supportive community.

Have fun, and COYS!

Ange Postecoglou is in the middle of his weekly press conference ahead of Tottenham Hotspur’s trip to Anfield to face Liverpool on Sunday, and the biggest open question — apart from that of his job — is whether Spurs’ club captain will be returning to the side.

The answer is no, at least not yet. Postecoglou said that while Sonny is back training on grass after missing the past week with a foot injury, he won’t be ready by Sunday for Liverpool. There IS, however, a chance he could return for the first leg of Spurs’ Europa League semifinal against Bodø/Glimt this coming Thursday at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

“Sonny is improving which is a positive for us, not for Sunday. Everyone else from the last game is fine. [By Thursday?] We’ll see. First time on the grass today and he said it felt better.

“[He needed] a bit of both [rest and treatment]. The foot element because it is weight bearing you just need to give him some rest and some time off it and give him some treatment. The main thing is to get him off his feet for a week and allow it to settle so he can start the process of getting back.”

Despite Son taking a bit of a step backwards statistically this season, he’s still Spurs’ club captain and a hugely important part of Tottenham’s offense. He will certainly be missed at Anfield against Liverpool, who could clinch the Premier League title with a win on Sunday. But more important is that he’s fit for at least one of the semi-final legs against Bodø/Glimt — Tottenham’s league campaign is practically unsalvageable but they can still win their first trophy in 27 years.

Elsewhere, it looks like Carty Free readers weren’t the only ones who noted that Archie Gray’s minutes have taken a hit recently now that a number of key players have returned from injury. When asked, Postecoglou said that Spurs were prioritizing getting those returning players minutes in their legs so they can return to fitness, but fans should expect to see Archie back in the rotation between now and the end of the season.

“With all of these things, people just look at them as a moment of time. If you had have said at the start of the year that Lucas Bergvall, Archie Gray and Mikey Moore would have played the amount of time they have as teenagers, I wouldn’t have said that that’s impossible.

“They’ve played a lot, they’ve played a lot because they’ve earned it, obviously opportunity as well, but Archie will play, he’ll play even between now and the end of the year, he’ll play significant minutes. Just the games haven’t worked out the way we wanted them to, and we needed to get game time with other guys.

He’s fit, he’s available, other guys, it wasn’t the case. As I said, we’ve got a real clear focus about where we need to be for the rest of this year and who needs to be in a good physical condition. Archie is in good physical condition, others weren’t, so we had to give them some game time but there’s no doubt that Archie will play a significant role still for the rest of this year.”

Tottenham kick off against Liverpool at Anfield this Sunday at 11:30 a.m. ET / 4:30 p.m. BST. The match is televised on Sky Sports in the UK, and streamed on Peacock in USA.

Your hoddler-in-chief is coming off a pretty long day at work and typing this hoddle from his bed, so it’s gonna be a short one.

But I ask: How can I fall asleep after Haim dropped their next single?

The three sisters released Down to be wrong which will be part of their upcoming album i quit, due to be released on June 20. Here’s the album artwork. They’ve gone back to their favourite director Paul Thomas Anderson:

For those of you keeping track at home, this is the third single Haim have released leading up to it. Here are the other two that have been covered by Hoddle HQ:

Relationships

Everybody’s trying to figure me out

Their latest single Down to be wrong follows more closely with their second, and hopefully Relationships is a bit of an outlier in terms of sheer pop.

I am also enjoying the lack of capitalised words here. Your hoddler-in-chief has never been a stickler for em.

Three songs into this new album and I’m a bit suspect, to be honest. None of them feel quite up to the standards of their previous albums. And this one especially feels very ‘middle of the road’.

But one thing I do not get sick of is listening to Danielle Haim play the drums. This, like Everybody’s trying to figure me out, definitely has that. So will we see more of this on the other songs? We’ll find out soon enough!

Fitzie’s track of the day: Down to be wrong, by Haim

And now for your links:

Football London: “The Tottenham loan players who could face extra games after the regular league season”

BBC: “‘A very unique character’ - Vardy will ‘never be forgotten’ by Foxes”

It might have taken Mathys Tel a little while to get up to speed during his half season loan at Tottenham Hotspur, but he has appeared to hit his stride over his past few matches. Spurs have a €50m purchase option for the French striker, on loan from Bayern Munich, and has performed well enough that Spurs are considering making his loan permanent, but according to one source in Germany not for the agreed-upon price.

Kicker is reporting (in a very short update) that Spurs aren’t willing to pay the €50m option for Tel, but would instead try to negotiate for a lower purchase price with Bayern at the end of the season. The report doesn’t say what that price would be (duh, “negotiations”), but it adds further credence to the idea that Bayern really have no intention of keeping him around.

There are some questions here, mostly involving whether Tottenham win the Europa League and subsequently qualify for Champions League football or not. If Spurs have European football next season they’ll need a bigger squad to compete on multiple fronts, so buying Tel at a discount (and possibly targeting another wide player) would be the play. Without Europe next season, I wonder whether Spurs might pass on Tel entirely.

How long have we had to wait for another series of Taskmaster? MONTHS!

Well, the wait for the newest series is nearly over. Because Taskmaster is back beginning 1 May with Series 19!

Here are the contestants:

Fatiha El-Ghorri

Jason Mantzoukas

Matthew Baynton

Rosie Ramsey

Stevie Martin

Who fitzie is most excited to see: Jason Mantzoukas —- This is a huge surprise to me. An American actor on Taskmaster? It’s never happened. But I’m glad that Mantzoukas is leading the helm here. He’s a maniac in every single show he’s appeared in, and I’m hoping for another one here.

Who fitzie thinks will win: Rosie Ramsey — I have no reason to believe why she’d win over the other TM contestants here. She’s the wife of former TM runner-up Chris Ramsey, so there’s a bit of trivia.

The hoddle will return next week with its rankings of every Taskmaster season.

Fitzie’s track of the day: That’s So True, by Gracie Abrams

And now for your links:

Dan KP: “Ange Postecoglou heading for Tottenham exit but could walk away a vindicated man”

The Athletic ($$): “Bruce Arena questions if Mauricio Pochettino hire as USMNT head coach was a mistake”

The Guardian: “Relegated players who will be targets for Premier League clubs this summer”