As reported by The Daily Mail, Southampton are set to up their interest in Napoli striker Manolo Gabbiadini after having an initial bid rejected.

What’s the word?

The Mail say that Claude Puel’s side initially tabled a £13m bid for the Italian but are set to return with a fresh £14m offer to test Napoli’s resolve.

The paper also reports that the Serie A are hoping to hold out for £18m before letting their attacking star leave the club.

With West Bromwich Albion and Everton also interested in his services, Saints may have to spend big to land their man.

Who is Gabbiadini?

Manolo Gabbiadini is in his third season at Napoli and isn’t finding first-team football a guarantee, starting just seven league games this campaign. He has featured in the Champions League this season, netting in Napoli’s 3-2 loss to Besiktas.

In a division notorious for tight games that are defined by defensive play, Gabbiadini has managed to score 24 goals in 76 appearances for Napoli during the three-year spell. Previously he starred for Sampdoria and has also made six outings for the Italian national side.

At 6ft. 2″, he certainly has the physical presence to make an impact on the Premier League and is known for his heading ability and hold-up play, alongside his eye for goal.

Only Hull, Sunderland and Middlesbrough have scored less goals this season than Southampton and a reported £14m move for Gabbiadini represents good value for a player who has Champions League experience and international caps for Italy. At 25, he’s a striker who is coming into his prime and could solve the Saints’ striking woes.

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Football does not get much better than Manchester United versus Liverpool. Up there with El Clasico as one of the greatest footballing rivalries, the North-West of England will be at loggerheads on Sunday afternoon.

This season is rare, too, in the fact that both clubs are genuinely competing near the top of the Premier League table. The rivalry is more than a historical, local joust this year – it is potentially significant for the top six.

Jurgen Klopp and Jose Mourinho just add to the intensity of this fixture as well. Two men adored by their respective fan bases will lead their teams into this match with no interest in anything other than three points. Mourinho will unquestionably be the cagier of the two, but he will be well aware that he cannot afford to concede any more ground to the top four.

Manchester United’s recent form makes them an even greater threat, however. Klopp must be wary ahead of this game, particularly considering his side’s defensive frailties, and here are THREE things he must consider ahead of the Sunday showdown…

Record-breaking Problems

Paul Pogba will continue to have his critics, but the world record summer signing for Manchester United has lived up to the billing of late. His performances have controlled the game, created chances and enabled Jose Mourinho to balance his midfield. Aided by the excellence of Juan Mata and Henrikh Mkhitaryan, Pogba is the player Liverpool must stop.

Whether this goes as far as to man mark him in possession or to force him to carry the ball more regularly, Klopp must set up a specific plan to deal with his substantial threat.

Easy does it

Philippe Coutinho is expected to return to Liverpool’s XI for this significant Sunday clash after a long injury lay-off. Despite some excellent performances without their superstar Brazilian in the side, Liverpool have missed his moments of magic.

While it is hard to resist putting him straight into the team, Klopp must be 100% certain that there are no risks being taken with his longer term fitness. As important as this game is to Liverpool’s season, losing Coutinho for another period would be far more detrimental than defeat.

Dropping Behind

Liverpool’s pressing approach means they will always adopt a high defensive line. Trying to compress the middle of the pitch, Klopp’s team aim to win the ball back in dangerous areas up the field and spring rapid transitional attacks.

The trouble with this, however, is when a direct ball is played through the midfield press. Space is then found behind the Liverpool defence and quick runners have often ended up through on goal with a simple run down the channels as a result.

In Anthony Martial, Manchester United have one of the league’s quickest wingers. Not only electric over the ground, Martial is a cool finisher and he is a particular threat. Liverpool’s pressing must be perfect to avoid the initial direct ball into Ibrahimovic, who could carve their defence apart with a simple pass behind them.

If Arsenal fans did not already know how vital Alexis Sanchez is to their attack, perhaps this statistic will convince them.Squawka has revealed that the Chile international is the second-highest away-match scorer in Europe’s top five leagues.

As the tweet shows, only Paris Saint-Germain star Edinson Cavani has netted more goals on the road than Sanchez.

The Arsenal star has found the back of the net 11 times on away soil in the Premier League this season, while Cavani has one more goal to his name.

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Interestingly, Sanchez has a better away record than five-time Ballon d’Or winner Lionel Messi, who is joint third on the list alongside Alexandre Lacazette with 10 strikes.

Arsenal fans will be happy to see these stats, but it could also make them that much more desperate for the club to tie him down to a new deal.

Sanchez, whose current contract expires at the end of next season, has been in talks with the North London outfit for months, but a deal is yet to be reached over fresh terms.

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The FA Cup returns this weekend as sixteen clubs duke it out for a place in the quarter-finals of the competition. With just two of the eight Premier League clubs fortunate enough to be at home for the ties, the potential for upsets is massive.

One such team hoping to provide a cup shock is Fulham, who host Mauricio Pochettino’s Spurs side at Craven Cottage on Sunday afternoon.

The Cottagers are enjoying a decent season, much improved from the last campaign, and currently still have a chance of reaching the Championship play-offs.

They’re definitely a danger to a Spurs side coming off the back of a demoralising defeat at Anfield and a shock loss in the UEFA Europa League on Thursday.

In the last round of the FA Cup, Pochettino’s men struggled to see off lowly Wycombe Wanderers at White Hart Lane. So Fulham, who defeated Premier League Hull 4-1, will fancy their chances again in front of a hopeful home crowd.

Here are THREE Fulham danger men that could dump Spurs out of the competition…

Tom Cairney

Tom Cairney is enjoying a fantastic season at Craven Cottage and has been one of the side’s most consistent performers in 2016/17.

The attacking midfielder has four assists and a goal in his last ten appearances and was a key part of their impressive 4-1 over Hull in the last round. Overall, he’s scored six and assisted six in 33 appearances, which isn’t a bad return at all for a midfielder.

His passing ability and threat from set-pieces could provide a headache for Mauricio Pochettino and special attention will have to be paid to the 26-year-old or they run the risk of being punished.

Having one of the best seasons of his career so far, if Fulham are to get anything at all from the match, he’ll likely be at the heart of it.

Stefan Johansen

A summer signing from Celtic last year, Stefan Johansen hasn’t wasted any time in settling into life in London. Like Tom Cairney, he provides a significant threat from midfield and has the ability to pierce through the Spurs defence. His eight goals and six assists, primarily from a defensive midfield position, attest to that.

Although he eventually lost his way at Celtic, he was once their star man and won Player of the Year awards ahead of the likes of Virgil van Dijk in Scotland in 2015.

With 33 caps for Norway, he’s well used to playing against elite defences and can certainly give Pochettino’s side a run for their money on Sunday.

He’s been a key performer in this season’s FA Cup too, scoring in the Third and Fourth Rounds against Cardiff City and Hull City. One to watch certainly.

Sone Aluko

If those threats through the central area aren’t enough for Spurs, Fulham also boast potential match-winners on the flank too, most notably tricky winger Sone Aluko.

The skillful 27-year-old has directly contributed to ten goals for the Cottagers this season and netted in the last round against Hull, scoring the vital opening goal.

He can be deployed on the left but primarily plays on the right-hand side. If playing in a right wing role on Sunday, he could be going up against Ben Davies, who looked decidedly ropey at Anfield last weekend.

That could prove to be one of the key duels of the entire match; if Davies can’t get a handle on Aluko then he has a great chance of doing some damage behind the Spurs defensive line.

Eden Hazard is so confident in Chelsea’s form this season that he believes opposing teams accept defeat before they even step onto the pitch.

The Belgian playmaker is referring to the threat the Blues have posed at Stamford Bridge.

Antonio Conte’s team have lost just once at home this season and that was a 2-1 defeat to Liverpool on September 16.

In their last 11 fixtures in all competitions at the Bridge, Chelsea have won all of them – the most recent being a 3-1 triumph over Arsenal.

The West London team have looked like a completely different team compared to last season when they picked up just five victories at home in the Premier League.

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Everything is running smoothly for Hazard and his teammates at the moment as they have a comfortable eight-point lead at the top of the table.

Conte’s men have the third-best attack in the division on 52 goals, two fewer than Arsenal and Liverpool, but they have the best defensive record having conceded 18 goals in 25 matches and kept 14 clean sheets.

Hazard believes that opponents arrive at Stamford Bridge with plenty of fear, suggesting that Chelsea have won the psychological battle before the game begins.

In an interview with the London Evening Standard the Belgian said:

“It’s difficult for the opponent to come here and win games. Do I get that feeling that some teams are beaten before kick-off? Yes. We are playing better than last season.

“It’s a little like two years ago when we won the League. I remember the second part of the season back then: sometimes the team didn’t play well, but we always scored at least one goal and Thibaut Courtois would make at least one good save, like against Arsenal. We are in full confidence here on this pitch. You know the fans bring everything, they support us.”

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The FA Cup looks to be the competition that could define Spurs’ season. Although the Premier League title remains a mathematical possibility, a ten-point gap with eleven games to go is perhaps too vast, especially with Chelsea in strong form, while the European adventure ended in Europa League defeat at the hands of Gent after Champions League group stage elimination.

Although finishing in the top four is, perhaps, the big thing for the London club, lifting a trophy could be useful for this emerging group of players and may just be the next step in breeding a winning mentality at the club.

Millwall await in the FA Cup quarter-finals at White Hart Lane, and with the League One club much weaker, on paper, than Spurs, this game should be one the home side come out victorious from.

With this in mind, we asked Lilywhites fans if they want to see Mauricio Pochettino rotate his XI for the match and a significant 67% believe he should risk it…

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Tottenham Hotspur booked their place in the semi-finals of the FA Cup in style with a stomping win over Millwall at White Hart Lane on Sunday.The goals came via Christian Eriksen, Dele Alli, Vincent Janssen and a Son Heung-Min hat-trick that delighted supporters.Spurs were in imperious form throughout, netting the opener just past the half hour mark and never looking like relinquishing that lead at all.It’ll be a performance of great disappointment for Millwall who must have been hoping to match the spirited displays of the likes of Wycombe Wanderers who gave Spurs a bit of a game at the Lane in this competition earlier this year.The showing was so good from Mauricio Pochettino’s that it resulted in Spurs’ biggest result in the FA Cup for 44 years, as shown by Opta.

Spurs now go into a star studded draw for the semi-finals that also include Man City, Arsenal and one of either Chelsea or Manchester United.

It’ll be a tough ask to lift the trophy but Spurs look as good as anyone this season and supporters must be dreaming of their first major honour in decades.

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“I am happy in London and I hope to finish my contract.

“I like to stay in a city and in a team, but in a team that is a winner, that has a winning mentality.

“I’m 28-years-old, I still have a lot ahead of me. I am a player that takes great care of myself.”

Alexis Sanchez’s explosive interview with El Grafico back in his Chilean homeland can be construed one of two ways. 1) The attacker is telling Arsenal to buck their ideas up in order to keep him around. 2) He’s sending a message that he wants to relocate to a winning team in London.

If he means the latter – the Gunners have won just two major trophies since their 2003/04 Premier League title success – the door has well and truly been opened for Chelsea to make their move this summer. Indeed, The Guardian have already revealed that Sanchez is Antonio Conte’s major transfer target for the coming off-season and subsequent reports from the Mirror have hinted that £50m will be enough to get a deal done, so all that was seemingly left was the player’s willingness to move from the north to the west of England’s capital city, which he has, very nearly, given.

Chelsea, as we know, are a winning team. The Blues, barring a dramatic late collapse, will claim their fourth Premier League title this season and have held silverware aloft with regularity since Roman Abramovich changed the whole landscape of the club, and the game in this country, with his 2003 take-over. Like or loath the Stamford Bridge club, they know how to get things done on the pitch, so being in blue rather than red will boost Sanchez’s own chances of satisfying his burning desire to win.

But this move is a two-way street of a transfer, with Chelsea needing Sanchez as much as he needs them. 2017/18 should offer them the chance to become the first team to successfully defend a Premier League title since Manchester United managed their third success on the bounce in 2008/09. Given that this very feat had been accomplished on six occasions since the 1992/93 inception of the Premier League, it shows that nowadays achieving back-to-back successes has got a whole lot harder.

Why is this? There are a myriad of reasons, one being the sheer level of competition at the top end of the table. Sir Alex Ferguson, a man who knows a fair bit about winning league titles, claimed it was getting “harder” to top the table back in 2012, and that was before the top four became the top six it is this season. Five very good sides will miss out on the biggest prize this term, while two will not even make it into the Champions League on finishing position alone, which is a far cry from the days of Everton reaching the qualifiers via breaking into the top quartet in 2004/05 with an ageing Duncan Ferguson making 35 appearances along the way.

Alongside, and as a result of, this, the sheer effort and emotion that goes into getting over the line appears to be more draining than ever. Chelsea know this better than most after Jose Mourinho’s 2014/15 success, which was followed by the Portuguese’s sacking just a few months into the following campaign. Other league-winning managers such as Roberto Mancini, Claudio Ranieri and Carlo Ancelotti have been dismissed from posts relatively soon after tasting success, too, while David Moyes lasted less than a season at Man United following their most recent league win in 2012/13.

But, where does Sanchez come into this? Well, as we all know, the forward is a fierce competitor and a born winner. His frustration when Arsenal have underperformed has been there for all to see since his 2014 arrival from Barcelona, where he was a La Liga and Copa del Rey champion, while his winning mentality stretches through his career with Chile (two Copa America’s in a competitive CONMEBOL region) and his time with Colo-Colo in his homeland, as well as River Plate in Argentina. This injection of determination might be just what is needed to lift a Chelsea team that’s shown in the past it can succumb to ‘second season syndrome’, while Sanchez’s quality (his stats for this season are above) will be a shot in the arm for the entire squad – top players want to play with top players, after all.

Put this alongside a front three of, potentially, Eden Hazard, Diego Costa and Sanchez and Chelsea suddenly look like not just one of the most fearsome teams in England, but the entire continent, which, allied to having a wily, experienced manager like Antonio Conte, is almost a guarantee for success.

There appears to be a recipe for Chelsea to end the back-to-back league failure record of the past seven seasons, and the secret ingredient may be a dash of Chile…

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It seems as though plenty of Chelsea fans have given up on their striker Diego Costa, who has not scored a Premier League goal since March 6.

The Spain international was named in the starting XI for Wednesday night’s clash against Manchester City at Stamford Bridge, but he failed to impress a lot of supporters.

There is also danger that the 28-year-old could face retrospective action after appearing to kick out at City captain Vincent Kompany in the 70th minute of the clash.

Referee Mike Dean appeared to miss the incident, and if he does not mention it in his post-match report, the Football Association may step in.

The game itself went to plan for Chelsea as Eden Hazard scored twice, and even though Sergio Aguero got on the scoresheet, he was unable to inspire a comeback for City as they went on to lose 2-1.

While fans were happy with the result, some took to Twitter to air their frustration with Costa.

A handful of supporters are so disappointed with the striker’s recent displays that they want the club to sell him in the summer.

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The nominees for the PFA Player of the Year were announced last week, with Dele Alli a surprise exclusion from the nominees.

Chelsea duo N’Golo Kante and Eden Hazard, Alexis Sanchez, Harry Kane, Zlatan Ibrahimovic and current Premier League top scorer Romelu Lukaku make up the six man shortlist for the coveted award.

While Alli – who has scored 20 goals for second placed Spurs this season – was omitted as a contender for the prize, the England international was still nominated for the PFA Young Player of the Year.

France international N’Golo Kante is favourite the take the crown as the league’s finest, with the former Caen midfielder on course to win his second consecutive Premier League title having won the league in extraordinary fashion with Leicester City last season . If the Blues were to win the league, Kante would become the only player in Premier League history to win the title in consecutive years with different clubs.

A case for each of the six nominees can be made however, with each of them having fantastic seasons for their respective clubs.

But who do you think should take home the award? Have your say below…