Fresh Spurs From the fans, for the fans

With Kyle Walker leaving to join Manchester City for £50million earlier this month, there has been lots of speculation as to who Tottenham will sign as a replacement. The club have been very quiet in the transfer window so far, but surely armed with so much money, they would go and invest in a replacement.. no?

Well some fans are starting to think that Kieran Trippier could be the internal replacement. The 26-year-old thrived towards the end of the season and with the news that he has signed a new 5-year contract, it does look possible that Pochettino is showing his faith in the player and rewarding him for his fine form towards the end of the season.

But surely Pochettino will at least want to sign a player to offer some competition to Trippier. Nice full back Ricardo Pereira has been the most strongly linked lately, with the Portuguese defender appearing to be priced relatively modestly at £22million.

The young right back has been very impressive for Nice and helped them in their title challenge last season. He’s been capped twice for Portugal’s senior side, but after his impressive campaign in Ligue 1 he is expected to become a regular in the national team.

But despite these links, other reports have suggested that Tottenham are not pursuing Pereira, this just adds more fuel to the fire that suggests Spurs are looking to simply promote Trippier as Walker’s replacement.

On signing the new deal, Trippier said:

“I’m delighted with the news with my new deal. It’s a great achievement for myself and I’m just delighted to get it signed,” Trippier told the club’s website.

“I always believed that I can play at the top level and like I say I’ve been working hard, even when I’ve not been playing I’ve been keeping my head down and games and been working hard for my opportunities.

It goes without saying that Trippier signing a new deal is a positive thing, but would you be happy if Tottenham fail to sign a first team player to replace Walker and simply promote Trippier to a starting berth permanently? We’d love to hear your thoughts in the comments section below.

Following suggestions that Eric Dier was keen to force through a move to Manchester United this summer, social media opinion was predictably split on the matter. Spurs fans were either fiercely against the notion that such a key player could be sold to Premier League rivals; or, they simply felt that a reported fee of £50m was too good to refuse.

“England midfielder Eric Dier” (CC BY 2.0) by Ben Sutherland

Depending on your point of view, Dier was either the most versatile player at Tottenham or the third best defensive midfielder in the squad and, therefore, surplus to requirements. Some even suggested that the former Sporting Lisbon man was the heartbeat of the team and while that may be unfair on Christian Eriksen, Dier is clearly held in high regard by many Spurs fans.

While Tottenham remain quiet in terms of purchases, this situation will continue to grab the headlines, so would the club be right to flatly refuse any offer and can they keep the player at the club if his heart is really set on a move?

Title Chances

Tottenham finished third in 2015/16 and second the following season but can they go one better again and claim their first top-flight title in 57 years? Spurs are priced at 8/1 with Ladbrokes to take the Premier League trophy next season and that’s some way behind favourites Manchester City so it may be preferable to use free bet offers wherever possible.

However, there is a view that Tottenham can claim the crown in the coming seasons with two factors playing their part. Firstly, they may have to wait until their new stadium is ready as their temporary Wembley home hasn’t been a happy one and secondly, the club simply has to keep the current squad together.

Harry Kane, Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli are all key components who will be tough to replace, but can the same be said about Eric Dier? The argument promoting his versatility is certainly a valid one. The England international has settled into that midfield role but can also play at centre-half and right-back and the ability to cover would be vital if Kyle Walker and Kevin Wimmer are allowed to leave the club this summer.

The suggestion that Dier is the third best defensive midfielder at Spurs doesn’t necessarily hold up when you consider that he played 36 out of a possible 38 league games last season. The facts all point to a key player for Spurs moving forward but if anything is certain, this story isn’t going to disappear just yet.

The Kyle Walker to Manchester City transfer saga has been going on for a while. Tottenham Hotspur have placed a £50 million price tag on the England international defender, which City are refusing to meet.

The Citizens are willing to pay as much as £40 million in order to secure the services of Walker, who is one of the best right-backs in the Premier League. It seems that Spurs and City are at an impasse.

However, could Kelechi Iheanacho play a role in the transfer? Could City try to sweeten the deal with Tottenham over Walker by throwing in the 20-year-old forward? After all, Spurs are reportedly interested in the youngster.

Tottenham need to sign a striker in the summer transfer window. Harry Kane, who is the favourite to be the topscorer next season with Premier League betting odds of 3/1 according to bet365, is the first-choice striker for the North London outfit at the moment and will continue to be so, but the England international needs a back-up. Vincent Janssen is still at the club, but can manager Mauricio Pochettino trust him next season?

The 23-year-old Netherlands international striker endured a nightmare campaign in the Premier League last season. The former AZ star could score only two goals and provide just two assists in 27 league appearances for Spurs in 2016-17. If Kane suffers a long-term injury or has a dip in form in 2017-18, could Janssen step up?

It could be argued that Spurs should give Janssen another season to show what he is capable of, and the Dutchman is still quite young and is developing. However, it would be wise of Tottenham manager Pochettino to recruit another striker and provide extra competition for that position.

Iheanacho is a hugely talented forward with a lot of potential, and he has experience of playing in the Premier League. The 20-year-old may be behind Sergio Aguero and Gabriel Jesus in the pecking order at City, but there can be no doubt that the Nigeria international forward is a very good footballer.

The Nigerian was able to make only five starts in the Premier League for City last season, but the 20-year-old still scored four goals and provided three assists. During the 2015-16 campaign, the youngster scored eight goals and created 14 chances in 26 league appearances.

It is only a matter of time before Walker leaves for City, and it would not help Tottenham to drag the transfer saga on any longer. Spurs should be open to the idea of including Iheanacho in the deal for the 27-year-old former Sheffield United right-back. If the Citizens offer £30m and Iheanacho in the deal to sign Walker, then Tottenham should accept it. In fact, Spurs should actually propose the idea themselves.

Spurs are a massive and ambitious club, and have made huge progress over the past three seasons. Just like in 2016-17, Tottenham will be aiming to challenge for the Premier League title in 2017-18. It would not be too tough for Spurs to convince Iheanacho to make the switch, as he would be aware of how good manager Pochettino is with young players and how much he can develop them.

Tottenham surpassed expectations in the 2016/17 season, but they still fell short of winning silverware, something that for all of the positives Pochettino has brought, he is yet to deliver. This summer, with their rivals spending big around them, Tottenham need to ensure they too are active in the market and bring in some top quality to supplement their squad.

In this article I take a look at how the team could like up in a 3-4-3 formation…

GK – Hugo Lloris

Lloris is a very important part of this team and it is pivotal to the future of the club that he stays around. He is a leader and a top quality player. Hopefully, his recent blunder for France will have done enough to deter some of the big boys coming in with a bid! But Lloris has been a great servant for the club so far, and the truth is if Spurs do not start to win trophies soon, his head is likely to be turned. Tottenham need to bring in some more world class players around Lloris to show the club can match the player’s ambition…

Tottenham finished the season strong and now it seems they are ready to re-invest in the squad as they look to strengthen their options with the club now surely targeting an improved showing in both the Premier League and the Champions League. Pochettino has improved the Tottenham players performances, but it is clear that the squad still lacks some quality that will enable them to win major trophies.

According to the press, Tottenham are already in talks to make several signings this summer, in this article I take a look at three of the strongest linked…

1 – Mamadou Sakho

The Daily Star are one of a number of outlets to suggest that Tottenham have made an approach to sign Liverpool defender Mamadou Sakho. Sakho has played most recently for Crystal Palace on loan, and the Frenchman helped turn Sam Allardyce’s side from relegation favourites to comfortable survival. Sakho has clearly never had the best relationship with Liverpool boss Jurgen Klopp and should a suitable offer arrive you would expect Klopp to approve his sale, even if it were to be to another top team like Spurs. Sakho’s form since Christmas has been very good and may have inflated his price tag far beyond what it would have been this time last summer. In my opinion, Sakho is not an improvement on Tottenham’s Belgian pair, but it is possible that Alderweireld could be off in the summer – so Pochettino could be looking for a new partner for Vertonghen. Hopefully, both the Belgian’s stick around and Sakho is viewed as a fringe player to add depth to the squad, or even start when Pochettino opts for 3 at the back.

Going into the final match of last season Tottenham Hotspur were in prime position to finish the campaign as league runners-up behind champions Leicester City, but perhaps more importantly to top North London rivals Arsenal for the first time in 21 years.

However, a 5-1 mauling by already-relegated Newcastle at St. James’ Park put paid to that long-awaited dream as the Gunners pipped them to clinch a second-placed finish at the death. Gooners fans got to celebrate their so-called St. Totteringham’s Day once again to the despair of Spurs supporters the world over.

Almost 12 months on, however, and with Spurs still challenging for the title, the chances of Arsenal supporters being able to laud it over their fierce rivals once again are almost certainly dead in the water; Arsène Wenger’s men are currently trailing Mauricio Pochettino’s by a massive 14 points with just a handful of matches left to play.

This coming Sunday marks a huge day for both clubs. Spurs, currently trailing league leaders Chelsea by just four points, will welcome Arsenal to White Hart Lane, who for the first time in Wenger’s tenure look increasingly likely to miss out on a top-four finish and with it Champions League qualification. A win for both teams is vital.

It is the business end of the season without doubt, and Spurs will enter the match as hot favourites to continue their title challenge. However, derby day didn’t always represent such gleeful anticipation for fans of Tottenham. Indeed, after goals from Steffen Iversen and Tim Sherwood sealed a first derby defeat for Wenger at White Hart Lane back in November 1999, the Lilywhites faithful would have to wait more than a decade and no less than 20 derbies to savour the sweet taste of victory once again when Danny Rose and Gareth Bale ended the hapless run at the Lane in April 2010.

During that decade of torture, Spurs supporters witnessed the comings and goings of no less than six permanent managers with just the 2008 League Cup to show for their team’s efforts. Across the North London divide, however, Wenger together with his Invincibles, added two Premier League titles, three FA Cups and a Champions League runners-up medal to the league and cup double the team won in 1997-98 during Tottenham’s impasse in victories between George Graham’s team of 1999 and Harry Redknapp’s class of 2010.

How times have changed though. Although the Gooners have continued to qualify for the Champions League every season since and have added a further two FA Cups to increase their record to 12, Spurs have finally started to achieve consistently in the league and last season’s ultimately disappointing third-place finish was the first time the club finished a campaign in the top-three since the 1989-90 season under Terry Venables.

Since ending their derby-day hoodoo in 2010, Spurs have gone on to record four further victories against the old enemy, three of them coming at White Hart Lane, while five draws have been shared and four losses encountered with only one occurring at the Lane back in March 2014.

While Spurs are on an undeniable upward trajectory with the manager’s, players and supporters eyes fixed firmly upon ending their 57-year wait for the top prize (the club are now a very tempting 5/1 looking at the latest Premier League betting odds), the poor Gooners look to be on the slide with Wenger’s future coming under increasing scrutiny from the club’s unhappy supporters and numerous members of the media world.

Wenger may have bought himself time with a semi-final win over Manchester City at Wembley last weekend to setup an FA Cup final with Chelsea, but for the first time since arriving 21 years ago, Arsenal look set to miss out on a top-four finish, and with it Champions League football next term.

Comparing the two teams, it’s difficult to pick an Arsenal player who would currently make a combined XI of the two teams. Tottenham’s fluidity in attack and steeliness in defence offers few cracks requiring surgery. The one player you could argue would make it into the Spurs line-up would be Alexis Sánchez but other possibles like Héctor Bellerín and Petr Čech are certainly no stronger than their Tottenham counterparts Kyle Walker and Hugo Lloris. Even an on-song Mesut Özil would struggle to oust in-form duo Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen on current form.

Spurs fans will love nothing more than dining at European football’s top table next season while their biggest rivals may have to make do with trips to the back of beyond in UEFA’s bridesmaid competition, the Europa League. Usurping their rivals has been a long time coming and Spurs fans will understandably milk every drop, especially if they can defy the odds to emulate the class of 1961 in winning the title. And at the rate at which they are improving they may even need to devise a name of their own to replace St. Totteringham’s Day in the near future. Wouldn’t that add insult to injury? Not half!

Tottenham appear to be on their way to their best ever season in the Premier League – but they need to build on this season’s performance by adding more depth to the squad and more quality to the lineup. Here’s a look at 3 Premier League players they have been strongly linked with and should look to sign in the summer.

1 – Wilfried Zaha

Pochettino reportedly wanted to bring Zaha to the club in the summer, with a £25million bid said to have been rejected on deadline day. Many fans questioned why Tottenham were interested at that price. This season we’ve seen exactly why. He’s a player that hasn’t been given the praise he has deserved in my opinion. Few players can boast sich an impressive record, with 6 goals and 7 assists in 26 Premier League appearances. All this for a team that have seriously struggled all season. Some may point to his failed time at United as an example that he cannot make it at a top club, but he has matured and developed at Palace and in my opinion, is now ready to play for a top club again.

Tottenham’s European campaign showed how poor some of their attacking squad options are – Zaha would give the team something fresh in attacking areas.

It’s been a consistent season from Tottenham and certainly one that has seen them surpass the expectations. Overall it’s not been great though, the disappointment in Europe was particularly poor – but there’s still time for this to be one of the clubs best in their history.

We caught up with Jonathan Lewis, spurs fan and tipster at FootballPredictions.com. According to Jonathan: “Tottenham face a massively tough task if they want to dethrone Chelsea from the top of the Premier League, but they do have to ensure that they finish the season as runners-up, and get to the final of the FA Cup, anything less would, in my opinion, make the season a poor one”

Tottenham are one club playing without pressure, surpassing expectations in their current league position, whilst the likes of Manchester United, Manchester City, Liverpool and Arsenal continue to underperform each week.

What Tottenham need to do is to show that they aren’t serial bottlers and they only way they can do that is by finishing the season strong. If the club manage to win the FA Cup and finish 2^nd in the league, the whole of Europe will take notice.

Tottenham have to ensure they go into the summer looking like a top European club. They need to make better signings than they have previously to help take the team to the next level – and the club will only attract world class players if they achieve something significant. Tottenham do not have the history of clubs like Manchester United to fall back on in transfer dealings. Tottenham also need to ensure star players like Harry Kane and Dele Alli want to stay at the club, with interest from the likes of Real Madrid being reported.

But the most important thing for Tottenham to do this summer is to keep Mauricio Pochettino at the club. The manager has done wonders with his team and is a tactical genius. With the likes of Barcelona on the hunt for a new manager, Pochettino could well be on the wishlist of some top clubs this summer and if Spurs lose him, they’d lose all the momentum the club has built up over the last few years. Wondering what Jonathan predicts for the upcoming fixtures of the Premier League? Check out his Premier League section on FootballPredictions.com for analysis and match previews.

Do you know what is the most-watched sports league in the world? The English Premier League, of course. Barca and Real often grab the spotlight, but the EPL is the most consistent source of entertainment for an audience that is estimated at almost 5 billion people.

And William Hill does make most of it. Bet on the EPL live! Click on the Sports tab and choose Football, you can’t miss it. Under Competitions, you’ll find what is still arguably the most famous league of them all: the English Premier League.

When you bet in-play, you can choose among more than 200 live markets for every match. Who will be the last goalscorer? Will anyone score in the first ten minutes? Who will be carded? Will there be a hat-trick? Will a team score in both halves? You name it, we have it. It’s a great way to showcase your knowledge about the more obscure corners of the Premier League.

It looks like Chelsea is set to win this year. In fact, all the odds are in their favour so much that it’s boring. That’s why we have the category called W/O Chelsea. Just imagine Chelsea disappeared in the Twilight Zone and make your pick. It is much more interesting when you have to decide between teams like Man City and Spurs, which have both had a great season. If you need more, there is also the Top 4 Finish category.

To Stay Up and Relegation are not the most glitzy category, but they may well be the most entertaining ones. The battles to stay in the Premier League have that tinge of desperation which is the necessary condition for a good thriller. Could it be that Leicester City, which won the most memorable title in League’s history last year, will end up being relegated? When there is more at stake, everyone risks more. Will you follow suit and make your biggest bet on an underdog?

Top Goalscorer could be the most attractive category, as you follow superstars on their bid for glory. Just like in the team category, there is a clear favourite: Harry Kane from Tottenham Hotspur. He finished†top scorer†of the 2015ñ16 season with 25 goals, and he looks set to repeat that feat. But Lukaku, Costa and Sanchez are nothing to sneeze at, either. Or you could just throw caution to the wind and bet on Benteke or Giroud, hoping for that hundred-to-one chance to come up.

A very simple and useful way to get informed is our Tip Advisor. Our users include veritable football encyclopedias, some of whom are kind enough to share their wisdom with others. It might be worth your while to look at their suggestions.

Betting on the English Premier League live is a great way to participate in the most prestigious competition on the planet. It would be a real pity to miss out on that, especially if a team or a player is close to your heart. Nothing hurts so much as lost opportunities, so don’t turn your back on them.

It was an afternoon to remember for Tottenham in the Premier League on Sunday as they romped to a convincing 4-0 win over Stoke City to keep them within reaching distance of table-topping Chelsea and distance themselves from Arsenal and the two Manchester clubs, who did not play this weekend.

Following the terrible result in midweek against Gent, Tottenham needed to bounce back to prevent their season from collapsing – and they did just that. A fast start saw Kane score a first half hat trick, before providing an assist to Dele Alli to net a 4th on the stroke of half-time.

1 – Harry Kane

Well, obviously. Kane was at his deadly best on Sunday afternoon, firing a fine first-half hat trick to give Spurs a comfortable win. Not only did he score 2 goals, but he also provided a nice assist for Dele Alli. We, as fans, cannot really ask for any more from Kane. He has a phenomenal record for a young man and for Tottenham to be successful they simply need to find another player capable of sharing the goals burden with him. Janssen really doesn’t offer anything at the moment, Pochettino needs to find a striker that can fire when Kane’s head is down.