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Gary Mabbutt has exclusively told Football FanCast that he believes Tottenham’s season could still be a successful one.

Despite losing the north London derby to Arsenal and then crashing out of the Europa League following an embarrassing exit to Dinamo Zagreb three days later, Jose Mourinho’s team are just three points off the Champions League places and have a Carabao Cup final against Manchester City next month.

That three-point gap from fourth-placed Chelsea came courtesy of a comfortable win over Aston Villa on Sunday, which ended a wretched week for Tottenham on a high.

Following those two poor results, Mourinho has come under some serious flack, although it might still turn out to be an excellent season for his team – with Spurs just 90 minutes away from ending their 13-year wait for trophy.

And Mabbutt, who won tasted FA Cup and UEFA Cup glory during his playing days at White Hart Lane, is optimistic about the remainder of the campaign.

He told Football FanCast:

“In the league we have won four out of our last five games, that’s a pretty good run. Yes, it was disappointing going out to Zagreb in the Europa League, but we are sixth in the table. Everyone seems to be throwing away points left right and centre, it’s a bizarre situation. 

“But there is an opportunity there for us to finish the season in a top-four place, and of course we are in the Carabao Cup final.

“So at the end of the season after the setbacks we have had, suddenly the team and the manager could come out with silverware in the trophy cabinet and a top-four finish, which is still more than possible.”

It’s such a strange situation for Tottenham present. Whilst it currently appears all doom and gloom following the Zagreb result, finishing in the top-four and winning a trophy would represent their best season for many a year.

Many Wolves fans reacted in their droves to a report that concerned defender Max Kilman.

Football Insider revealed on Tuesday that the Black County club are considering selling Kilman despite the fact he just signed a new five-year contract at Molineux in October, leading one fan to call it a ‘ludicrous decision’.

Kilman has been a bit-part figure in Nuno Espirito Santo’s side during the 2020/21 campaign, providing one assist, averaging 1.3 tackles and 2.2 clearances per game (Whoscored).

This tops any other Wolves player that has featured in a similar amount of games or less – including Romain Saiss who has been lauded by segments of the Molineux faithful this season. Indeed, the youngster had an impressive stint when he first broke into the side early in the season, showing the type of potential that earned him his bumper contract.

Because of this, supporters were against the idea of Kilman being offloaded with some suggesting that the Englishman has been their best defender so far.

Kilman report didn’t amuse these fans

“What message does this send to our academy..and players out on loan. Nuno always said He likes to improve players. Kilman is definitely a rough diamond”

Credit: @StPaul197173

“This better be a joke. Easily our best defender this season. What a ludicrous decision this would be.”

Credit: @TonyWilde99

“Madness.”

Credit: @IrishWolvesFans

“Would not like this at all definitely think he is first choice but Is unlucky right now he should be given more games to show his talent”

Credit: @AltonDills

“Hope this isn’t true, never felt like the right move when Bennett left, he’s developing and if not a starter each week a great back up option when we have injuries/suspensions”

Credit: @Ry4nH07

“Don’t think that’s a good idea great player Kilman”

Credit: @bashagas

In other news, Wolves star who is ‘hard to stop’ on brink of setback amid exit rumours – Report.

Carlo Ancelotti is set for an anxious wait as Jordan Pickford will undergo scans on Monday to assess a potential rib injury ahead of Everton’s FA Cup quarter-final tie with Manchester City.

That’s according to the Liverpool Echo (14/3, 15:09), who quote Ancelotti as noting that the England goalkeeper aggravated a previous issue during Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Burnley.

Pickford was sidelined for three Premier League fixtures and last month’s FA Cup fifth round win over Tottenham Hotspur after sustaining abdominal damage in a collision with the post in January’s 2-0 loss to Newcastle United.

Pickford returned to action to guard Everton’s goal in last month’s 3-1 defeat to Pep Guardiola’s Sky Blues, before keeping clean sheets against Liverpool, Southampton and West Bromwich Albion.

Saturday’s outing at home to Burnley marked Pickford’s 23rd appearance of the Premier League season and 25th in all competitions, but it lasted just 43 minutes before he was forced off and replaced by academy goalkeeper Joao Virginia, who came on for his top-flight debut.

Ancelotti hopes that Pickford will be able to make a quick recovery from the recurrence of his previous rib injury, but cannot yet put a timeframe on his potential return.

“We don’t know. He has exactly the same problem as the month when he was out for two or three games,” the Italian said. “He has a scan on Monday, and we will see after the scan.

“I hope that Jordan can recover soon but we have to see, we have to check.

“It is not going to be a big, big problem because it is the same problem [as before]. It is true he was out for two to three games, but I hope he can recover soon.”

Pickford appeared to aggravate his rib injury midway through the first half of Saturday’s loss to Burnley after diving towards Johann Berg Gudmundsson’s shot, but initially played on, despite looking uncomfortable and in pain.

Though the £23.5m-rated shot-stopper could only continue for a quarter of an hour before being replaced by Virginia, with AS Roma loanee Robin Olsen not in the matchday squad as the Sweden international remains sidelined through injury.

Olsen has not featured in one of Ancelotti’s team sheets since the Merseyside derby when he watched the Toffees’ 2-0 win from the bench, sitting out the following four Premier League games.

Pickford now joining the 31-year-old in the treatment room will surely leave Ancelotti facing an anxious wait for the results of his scans, with Virginia otherwise the Italian tactician’s sole option to feature between the sticks in Saturday’s FA Cup quarter-final with Man City.

Virginia had only played once in the Everton first-team, during a Carabao Cup tie with Salford City before making his top-flight debut over the weekend after an intended season-long loan spell with Championship side Reading last term.

The 21-year-old opened the first two games of the 2019/20 campaign, but would only play a further 90 minutes in the EFL Cup before returning to Goodison Park early last January.

Some Royals supporters shared on social media that they believed it was the right decision to cut short Virginia’s loan spell as he was far from ready for senior action, whilst his move to the Madejski Stadium was described as a ‘disastrous spell’ by Berkshire Live.

Ancelotti will no doubt be eager to avoid throwing Virginia in at the deep end against City, with him having only kept two clean sheets in six games with the Toffees’ Under 23s this season, making a positive update on Pickford’s injury very much needed.

AND in other news, a £15k-p/w Everton dud who gives “absolutely nothing” has been tipped to seal a summer transfer…

Celtic continue to have their hat thrown into the ring as talks of new recruits swirl around the January transfer market. One of their latest links sees them in the running for Preston North End midfielder Ben Pearson as Neil Lennon hopes to bolster his options in the middle of the park.

The Hoops have severely lacked creativity this half of the season and as a result, have been knocked off their perch atop of the Premiership table. Runaway leaders Rangers now dominate the stats and have forced a mammoth 20-point gap between them and the reigning champions.

Additionally, with the likes of Mohamed Elyounoussi only on loan from Southampton and Odsonne Edouard linked to a move away, now is the time for Nick Hammond to prioritise new creative signings.

Would Ben Pearson fit in at Celtic?

Although Pearson isn’t always directly involved in the goals Preston score, he has shown promising statistics in the engine room. According to Sofascore, the 26-year-old’s main strength is his positioning, which will help keep Celtic tight and compact in the heart of the squad.

Pearson also averaged an 88% passing accuracy in his last three appearances, more than Scott Brown’s more disappointing 72%. Indeed, the PNE man has actually been tipped as a candidate to succeed the Hoops captain, who is nearing the end of his current Celtic tenure.

Speaking to Football Insider, Noel Whelan admitted that he could be the right person to replace the ageing skipper.

“Watch this space because he [Pearson] has been linked with Celtic,” the pundit said. “If there is an imminent move on the cards it is going to happen this week or next, that is for sure.”

Pearson is currently valued at £1.4million, which wouldn’t require Peter Lawwell to break the bank in order to sign him. Neil Lennon could work his magic on the midfielder and turn him into real Celtic talisman. He has already shown he can develop players like David Turnbull and Ismaila Soro, so Pearson could be an exciting new asset for this struggling Glaswegian side.

In other news, Celtic must avoid making any further moves to sign Tom Ince…

Many Liverpool fans went wild as transfer expert Fabrizio Romano dropped a subtle hint regarding the Reds’ pursuit for Sporting Braga defender David Carmo.

Anfield Watch shared the news that Jurgen Klopp’s side were showing late interest in the 21-year-old, which was initially provided by Romano earlier on Monday, to which he responded with a cheeky winking emoji.

Carmo has made 36 appearances for the Liga NOS side since breaking into the first-team and picked up seven caps for Portugal at U20-level.

It is no secret that Liverpool have been hunting for fresh faces at the back after their injury crisis which has ruled out all four of their defensive options.

Unsurprisingly, supporters went crazy on social media following Romano’s subtle hint and made their feelings clear on social media, even despite a reported deal to sign Ozan Kabak from Schalke.

Fans go wild over Carmo links

“HE’S DONE IT AGAIN”

Credit: @WacobEdition1

“WE ARE A SERIOUS CLUB FOR ONCE”

Credit: @Origilist

“ROMANO WHAT A BEAUTY”

Credit: @lfcaxchie

“What is going on. Michael Edwards is doing something special.”

Credit: @ColossusofA

“CORNER TAKEN QUICKLY….”

Credit: @Blaen_17

“Seeeriously!!!!”

Credit: @bostameb

In other news, James Pearce says Liverpool move for centre-back is completely off.

Leeds United will return to the Premier League action tomorrow when they play host to Burnley at Elland Road. The Whites are ahead of this weekend’s opponents by four points as they currently sit in a respectable 14th place in the table.

Considering their injury-stricken squad, Leeds have been doing well to sink their claws into their returning Premier League season. Slipping back down into the Championship is not something that Marcelo Bielsa and co will not be prepared to endure.

As it stands, they look like they will comfortably survive the drop at the end of the term, but the boss must adapt to these crippling injuries.

The Whites could be without three of their senior centre-back options as Robin Koch and captain Liam Cooper are out injured, while it is still unclear whether Bielsa will risk Diego Llorente. The Argentine has been using the versatile Luke Ayling in the centre of the defence as opposed to his natural position at right-back. However, this isn’t a tactic the Argentinian should be using too often. He has Pascal Struijk at his disposal as well as young Oliver Casey.

But whoever he chooses to deploy on Sunday, they must be up to the task of neutralising Burnley’s attack. Whilst they may not be the most clinical side in the league, the threat of Chris Wood is very real.

Another man Leeds must be watchful of is his strike partner Ashley Barnes. The 31-year-old was a thorn in the side of Wolves last time out, scoring his side’s second goal and towering above the defence by winning 11 out of his 16 duels, as per Sofascore.

This may be his only goal of the season so far but he has been described as a “hungry” attacker who has been working hard recently to bounce back from injury. Leeds can’t afford to underestimate his influence in front of goal, especially with a weakened backline.

In other news, Orta must work his magic on reuniting Bamford and Adama Traore…

Many Wolves fans have been talking about the news linking them with a move for Douglas Costa.

Italian outlet Gazzetta dello Sport have recently reported that Juventus could be ready to cut short Douglas Costa’s ongoing loan spell at Bayern Munich. And there is a chance of the Brazilian heading to the Premier League or La Liga once his temporary stint at Bayern is cut short.

The report mentions interest from Manchester United, but Wolves are also said to be interested in the Brazilian winger. It credits Wolves with a previous interest in the former Shakhtar Donetsk man and talks about their interest in signing him this month.

In the Bundesliga, Costa has played only 281 minutes of league football for Bayern. While he did play six Champions League games for them, he got only 226 minutes of action in the competition. He has contributed to three goals in all competitions for the reigning European champions (as per Transfermarkt). He is currently valued at £18.00m.

As things stand, Wolves have only three out-and-out wingers – Pedro Neto, Daniel Podence and Adama Traore. So they might need some extra players for that position, with Diogo Jota having left already.

The update about Douglas Costa was relayed on Twitter by Talking Wolves and it drew the attention of many fans, with multiple supporters having simply one word to respond: “Please.”

What did Wolves fans make of the links with Douglas Costa?

“Got more chance of Jeff shi knocking on my door and wanting a cuppa than this happening.”

Credit: @brutaljimbo

“He might have come to us when we were challenging for champions league but ain’t no chance he coming now.”

Credit: @Brittain112″He ain’t coming to us while we’re in this mess.”Credit: @MichaelrlLucas”I’d take anyone.”Credit: @wwfc2020″Please.”

Credit: @LukeBasy

“Please.”

Credit: @adenwwfc_ In other news, Wolves have rejected a move for a young defender – read more here.

Phil Parkinson must avoid the potential of making a “radical” decision over his Sunderland attack, having grown alarmed at the Black Cats’ low ratio of shots on target in League One this term.

What’s the word?

Parkinson has challenged his Sunderland offence to step up and make their shots count, with the North East giants growing prone to wasting their chances in front of the net this season.

The Black Cats boss has addressed his side’s unwanted record ahead of facing Doncaster Rovers on Saturday, looking to avoid a third defeat of the campaign following last weekend’s 2-1 humbling at home to MK Dons.

The result left Sunderland outside of the Play-Off positions on goal difference to promotion rivals Portsmouth, but would have sat inside the top-two had they not struck five of their 13 efforts off target and seen three blocked against Russell Martin’s side.

Parkinson is pleased with the way Sunderland are attacking games to create a strong volume of chances, yet is growing conscious that they cannot persist in the same manner with top-scorer Charlie Wyke (4) the only striker to have scored with Danny Graham, Aiden O’Brien and Will Grigg all yet to get off the mark.

“It’s important that we don’t make radical changes for the sake of it, but the key part of our play that hasn’t hit the heights where it needs to be is the percentage of shots on target,” said Parkinson, via quotes by the Chronicle.

“To get to where we want to be, we know that has to improve and we have put a challenge to the lads this week in terms of telling them what we need to do and what we are going to do on the training ground to improve it.

“We went through all the stats with the lads this week, and in most of the categories you need to be at the top, we were there – shots against, clean sheets, crosses in the box, quality [of the] crosses, chances created, expected goals.

“But the one category that we fall short in is the percentage of our shots that are on target, and we rank 17th in that. Expected goals is not the most important thing, but it is still important because it tells you the quality of the chances you are creating, and we are at the top of the rankings in League One by that measure.”

Must avoid “radical” decision

While Parkinson is hoping he can avoid making any radical changes to his system, the Sunderland boss should be glad to see the Black Cats are ranking highly for expected goals despite their wayward shooting as it proves that the Stadium of Light natives are creating the right sort of chances compared to their rivals.

What Parkinson needs is to see his squad take those chances, with O’Brien at fault for missing the highest number of big chances (4) in League One by a Sunderland player this term, ahead of Graham (3), Wyke (2) and a group of five players all on one, per SofaScore.

Seeing Wyke (10), Josh Scowen (10), Chris Maguire (9) and O’Brien (8) direct fewer chances off target will also come as a great deal of relief, as Wyke is the only Black Cats player to have directed double-figure efforts on target (10) ahead of Lyndon Gooch (6) and Max Power (5) thus far.

If Sunderland can keep creating the same volume of chances they are currently averaging – 14.4 per game, the second-most behind Portsmouth (14.7) – then Parkinson will be able to avoid any radical decisions, providing they better their mere 4.3 efforts on target a game – the ninth-best record and less than relegation-threatened Oxford (4.4), per WhoScored.

AND in other news, Stewart Donald can deliver Sunderland fans a parting gift by retaining a sought-after teen sensation.

Steven Gerrard must bite the bullet and put the pressure on Ross Wilson to cash in on Glasgow Rangers outcast Jordan Jones in January.

What’s the word?

Jones joined Rangers in 2019 on a free transfer after he agreed a four-year pre-contract deal from Kilmarnock, with the winger saying: “I’ve waited for this moment for a long time and today is a dream come true!”

The Gers had originally tried to sign him a year prior to his move but to no avail, until he reached an agreement with the 54-time Scottish champions which has seen him earn wages worth £9,100-per-week per the terms of his contract, that means he earns more than first-team regular starter Glen Kamara, despite the fact he has made less than half of his appearances so far this season.

Gerrard has insisted Jones can still play a big part in the light blue jersey after a difficult debut campaign.

However, the Northern Ireland international has largely failed to live up to these lofty expectations, with just one goal and two assists in his past 19 appearances for the club in all competitions, via Transfermarkt.

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, former Aberdeen and Leeds United striker Noel Whelan believes Jones and his colleague George Edmundson are heading for the exit after breaching COVID rules, with the winter transfer market set to open in just under a month’s time.

He said: “You cannot change Gerrard’s mind now. I think they will go in January.

“If you do not meet the criteria and the standards required to be a regular in the first team then, unfortunately you need to look somewhere else.”

Get him gone, Gers!

Jones had been named in the squad for three of their first eight fixtures across all competitions, but is yet to feature for the first team since the 2-0 win over Livingston in the Scottish Premiership.

In fact, his chances have been few and far between under Gerrard even prior to his latest transgression, as the Ibrox boss has only deemed it necessary to start him just twice in the top flight, whilst he was axed from the Europa League squad to make room for new summer recruit Bongani Zungu.

Both of his starts came against lower-level opposition in Motherwell and Premiership strugglers Ross County respectively as Rangers ran out the winners on both occasions before he was left on the bench as an unused substitute during the first Old Firm derby of the season.

Gerrard may have already decided against giving Jones another chance anyway as Kemar Roofe has made a home for himself on the right wing, with 8 goals and an assist in his past 14 games in all competitions, via Transfermarkt.

Roofe’s emergence on the right wing coupled with Ianis Hagi’s breakthrough campaign last season must surely prove to be the final straw in deciding his fate, as Gerrard simply cannot afford to put his faith in the Northern Irishman anymore.

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers chief Ross Wilson must deliver Billy Gilmour or face consequences…

Steven Gerrard must trust Glasgow Rangers left-back Calvin Bassey to fill the void left by Borna Barisic’s potential injury, when the Light Blues face Livingston at Ibrox in their first game in the Scottish Premiership since the Old Firm derby.

Gerrard’s side suffered an injury blow as Barisic limped off in the 2-0 win over Standard Liege in the Europa League just before the break. He got up gingerly to his feet and managed to walk to the sidelines, but he appeared to be suffering some discomfort.

Barisic has become a mainstay in the first team ever since he arrived at the Ibrox outfit, with the left-footed defender making 10 appearances in the Scottish Premiership this season. The Rangers boss’ trust has been repaid as the Croatia international has scored a goal and supplied four assists so far, via Transfermarkt.  And Gerrard confirmed he is a doubt for the clash with Livingston.

He said: “My only concern at the moment is Barisic. I’d say he’s a doubt right now. We’re going to image him as a precaution this afternoon. It’s not a big problem. There’s a chance he could pull through but we’ll check it out this afternoon.”

If the rumours are true and Gerrard is forced to ring a change, the Liverpool legend must look to hand Bassey his first start for the club since the 5-1 win over Motherwell last month, having been impressed by his “outstanding” performance against Standard Liege on Thursday night.

Bassey has shown he is hungry to learn and develop as a player, which is something that hasn’t gone unnoticed by Gerrard, who admitted the 20-year-old has given him a lot to think about for the weeks ahead.

“I thought he was outstanding. For someone who has very little experience. To come into a game of that level and perform like he did. I’m really proud of his performance,” Gerrard said, via Glasgow Live.

“Fantastic kid. A kid who wants to learn, who wants to grow and evolve. In time we’re confident we can help polish him up and make him even better than he is.

“He’s got really interesting attributes right now and he showed them last night which was fantastic to see.

“He’s in a real good place and he’s ready. That’s the key thing. Every time he’s been called upon since he walked in he’s been ready and he’s produced.”

Gerrard has lots of reasons why fans should be excited by Bassey’s performances in the domestic and European competitions. Per SofaScore, he has averaged 1.5 tackles per game in the Scottish Premiership this season so far. By contrast, Barisic is only managed 0.8 tackles per game in the Scottish top flight, via SofaScore.

SofaScore also gave Bassey a high grade of 7 for his efforts against Standard Liege – he made two tackles, one clearance and one interception, whilst he also won five out of his seven duels and wasn’t dribbled past at all – a measure of his defensive strength.

Despite his young age, the Englishman is already showing glimpses of his obvious potential, which is exactly what his former teammate at Leicester City, James Maddison, was talking about when he first moved to Ibrox in the summer. The England international wished him good luck on his official Instagram post and described him as “some player.”

Now, he just needs to be playing regularly in order to continue his development. What better way to show what you can do than by stepping in for Barisic against Livingston?

AND in other news, Glasgow Rangers striker Kemar Roofe steals the show against Standard Liege…