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As Antonio Conte seemingly edges closer to an early exit from N17, it does appear that Tottenham Hotspur could make a move to re-appoint former boss Mauricio Pochettino, with the beloved Argentine having been without a club since being sacked by Paris Saint-Germain last summer.

While there are said to be doubts among members of the Spurs hierarchy with regard to bringing back the 51-year-old, the out-of-work boss is clearly under consideration at present, having previously left the club back in 2019 – just a matter of months after guiding the north Londoners to the Champions League final.

As journalist Shaun Custis told talkSPORT, the one-time Espanyol head coach is believed to be "pushing like mad" to make a return to his former employers, having even reportedly made contact with members of the Tottenham squad in recent times – as per Sky Sports.

The experienced ace would no doubt be hoping to rejuvenate the fortunes of a team who are currently scrapping for a top-four berth, having also been unsuccessful in their attempts to claim long-awaited silverware.

Pochettino's arrival could also, however, help to improve the fortunes of those individuals who have been rather underwhelming this season, with the previously relentless Heung-min Son one such figure who does appear in need of a revival.

Would Pochettino's return benefit Spurs?

It was, of course, Pochettino who was in charge when the South Korea international was signed from Bayer Leverkusen for a fee of just £18m back in 2015, with that relative bargain capture going on to prove a real masterstroke, with the wide man having regularly delivered the goods over the years.

The fleet-footed forward notably scored 75 goals and provided 39 assists in 203 games under the tutelage of the one-time Southampton boss, having also been hailed for his all-round impact by the former Argentina international in 2019:

"He works so hard, always pushing, never gives up. He tries, tries, tries. He’s like this in his effort with and without the ball, he's very regular and consistent and that is most important."

Also lauded as "one of the best offensive players in the world" by his former boss, Son would likely benefit from a potential reunion should Pochettino return any time soon, with the 30-year-old having endured a "dreadfully disappointing" campaign to date, as Sky Sports' lead commentator Rob Hawthorne noted during the defeat to Aston Villa on New Year's Day.

The previously prolific menace – who scored 23 league goals last season to finish as the division's joint-top scorer – has been a shadow of his former self this time around, having racked up just six goals in 26 league games to date – with three of those coming against Leicester City back in September.

For whatever reason – be it Conte's potentially pragmatic style of play – the 108-cap dynamo has simply not been able to hit his usual heights this season, with the hope being that a change in the dugout could be just what is needed to spark the struggling dud back into life.

Bringing in a figure whom Son clearly knows such as Pochettino – who has been lauded as an "excellent manager" by Manchester City boss, Pep Guardiola – could well be the best remedy for lifting the 6-foot sensation from his current slump.

Tottenham Hotspur will head to the south coast this afternoon for their Premier League clash with Southampton and Antonio Conte will be hoping that the winning confidence shown against Nottingham Forest can shine through away from home.

The Lilywhites are currently fourth in the top flight table with Newcastle United just one point behind following their victory over Forest last night, so another three points collected today will be crucial to keep good distance between themselves and their rivals for the last Champions League qualification spot.

Southampton have only won two of their 10 Premier League home games against Spurs since they were promoted to the top flight and haven't beaten the side at Sy Mary's since January 2020, so today's meeting should put the visitors in a good position to chalk up another win.

Conte will still be without a number of his key players going into the game with Hugo Lloris, Yves Bissouma, Rodrigo Bentancur and Ryan Sessegnon still unavailable for selection due to various ongoing injury issues.

However, the Spurs boss has been given a boost with Emerson Royal returning to training earlier this week following a knee injury and he could be the secret weapon needed to snatch another victory.

Will Emerson Royal start vs Southampton?

There is no doubt that Emerson has struggled to hit the high expectations set since joining the club back in 2021 from Barcelona and the arrival of Pedro Porro on loan in January has provided tight competition for the right-back position in north London this season.

However, the Brazilian 24-year-old has had a few moments of magic over the campaign so far scoring twice in his last seven league outings with a goal against Manchester City and more recently in the victory over West Ham United.

Over 21 league appearances, the £40k-per-week ace – hailed “important” by assistant manager Cristian Stellini – has scored two goals, registered one assist and successfully completed 68% of his dribbles, as well as averaging 51.9 touches, two tackles, 2.3 clearances and 4.7 duels won per game.

In fact, Emerson’s only assist this season came in the opening game of the season at home in a 4-1 victory over the Saints – so there’s no reason why Emerson can’t terrify his opponents again this afternoon.

With that being said, the opportunity to either start or bring Emerson on from the bench will be a big boost for Spurs and will give Conte more depth to the attacking threat inflicted on Ruben Selles’ side.

Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte has heaped praise on Hugo Lloris stand-in Fraser Forster, calling him ‘fantastic’ and ‘reliable’.

The Lowdown: Forster called…

The former Celtic star, signed on a free transfer from Southampton last summer, has been forced to stand-in for the injured Lloris recently.

The France international suffered a knee problem last month, ruling him out of action for around six to eight weeks and forcing Spurs to cope without one of their figureheads.

Lloris has been out of form this Premier League season but his presence as a veteran with real experience is invaluable, making Forster’s job to replace the 36-year-old a great one.

The Englishman, however, appears to have earned the respect of Conte for his temporary job as Spurs’ number one.

The Latest: Conte praises Forster…

Speaking to the media on Thursday, via reporter Alasdair Gold, Conte heaped praised on Forster for his reliability – calling him a ‘fantastic signing’ for the club.

The Italian stated:

“For sure Fraser is playing very well. He’s showing to be a reliable player. He’s showing to be a really good guy.

“I remembered him well from in the Champions League when we played Celtic with Juventus. He impressed me and the way to be a keeper.

“At the same time, He’s a really good person, a positive person for this dressing room. I think it was a fantastic signing for the club and he’s showing he deserves credit.

“For sure Hugo is our keeper but before to come back he has to stay well. We won’t force the situation because he needs to be right and Fraser deserves credit. We are really happy with Fraser but when Hugo will be ready he is our first choice.”

The Verdict: Great player…

The 6 foot 6 keeper has been a brilliant stand-in for Lloris, but ahead of this summer, Spurs still need to contemplate the Frenchman’s long-term replacement.

It is believed that Spurs are looking for an heir with the north Londoners targeting Illan Meslier and Robert Sanchez from the English top flight.

Elsewhere, the Lilywhites have also been looking at Diogo Costa from FC Porto and Mike Maignan from AC Milan – so the club aren’t exactly short of options.

Whoever they opt to make their top target, it is perhaps one of sporting director Fabio Paratici’s most crucial decisions of the summer window, if he is in fact there for that long amid Juve’s financial scandal.

Manchester United brushed aside their 7-0 humiliation against Liverpool by taking charge of their Europa League last 16 first-leg clash against Real Betis, defeating the La Liga side 4-1 at Old Trafford.

Erik ten Hag must be praised for bouncing back from their Anfield disappointment and the result certainly sets them up well for the second leg.

Before that, however, there is a Premier League tie against Southampton to negotiate and with the Saints fighting to retain their top-flight status, it could be a tricky tie for United.

There will likely be some changes for the match, with a few of the side underperforming against Betis and with the club still in three competitions, Ten Hag must rotate his squad.

One such player was Fred, and he should be ditched against the south coast side this afternoon.

Will Fred start for Manchester United against Southampton?

His performance against Betis wasn’t his finest in a United shirt. The Brazilian midfielder received a Sofascore rating of 6.4/10, which ranked him as the worst player on the pitch for the Red Devis on the night.

He completed just 26 passes, had one shot, failed with both his dribble attempts, and lost ten duels during the tie and it is a surprise United still won as convincingly as they did so while he was clearly a passenger in the middle of the park.

The dud hasn’t exactly displayed his true talent in the Premier League either this term as the Brazil international has struggled for form in the division.

The £120k-per-week player ranks outside the top ten when it comes to overall Sofascore rating in the league this season (11th) while the lightweight also ranks out with the top ten for accurate passes (15th), interceptions (11th), and shots on target per match (13th), which suggests that he has underperformed since ten Hag took charge.

Following his poor display against Leicester City – in which Gary Neville dubbed him “sloppy” during Sky’s live broadcast – last month, Manchester Evening News writer Samuel Luckhurst described it as “another nightmare” performance and it would be no surprise if the Dutchman drops him to the bench today.

Having just turned 30 at the start of the month, you have to wonder, how long does he have left at United if the midfielder continues to produce disappointing performances on a weekly basis?

Arsenal have made contact to bring Real Madrid forward Marco Asensio to the Premier League, according to reports.

The Lowdown: Arteta’s an admirer

The Spaniard will be out of contract at the Bernabeu at the end of the season and looks set to move onto new pastures having not been offered or signed a new deal.

Carlo Ancelotti’s winger is reportedly ‘very angry’ with his lack of game time having made just seven starts in La Liga this season so is considering his options elsewhere.

The Mirror report that Mikel Arteta is an admirer of the 27-year-old, whose agents are claimed to have flown to London in February to get a feel for which clubs might be interested.

The Latest: Arsenal make Asensio contact

According to Spanish outlet Sport (via Sport Witness), Arsenal and AC Milan have ‘spoken’ to Asensio’s camp and would be ‘willing to bid’ for him this summer, with Barcelona also in the mix.

The Gunners are ‘keeping close tabs’ on their target but are set to face stiff competition in the race for his signature.

The Verdict: Absolute bargain

Asensio has been dubbed a ‘magical’ player by his former teammate Casemiro and Arsenal landing him on a free transfer would be a steal.

The Palma native has posted 119 goal contributions in 359 career appearances and would offer excellent versatility with his ability to operate in six different positions across the field.

Madrid’s attacker also knows what it takes to be successful having won 16 trophies during his time at the club, so his winning mentality would match that of the current young and ambitious squad in N7.

Finally, Asensio actually shares the same agent as Fabio Vieira so this could potentially give the Gunners an advantage in their bid to entice him to the Emirates Stadium.

The Athletic’s Rangers correspondent Jordan Campbell has shared an update on Borna Barisic and his current situation at Ibrox after it was reported that he was attracting interest from abroad.

What’s the news?

In a recent post on Twitter, the journalist revealed that the 29-year-old is attracting interest from clubs on the continent, with the potential of significant wages being offered to the defender.

Campbell tweeted: “European teams interested in Borna Barisic, including Trabzonspor, which Turkish media have reported. The 29yo Croatian int still has two years on his deal. Big wages will be on offer but Rangers will demand a substantial fee if he is to leave. No club-to-club contact so far.”

The journalist then followed up with another tweet on the situation, stating: “This is not to say that Barisic will definitely leave this summer. It’s a possibility if the right bid comes in and it’s the right challenge for him but that’s probably unlikely to be Turkey right now.”

Fans will be livid

Rangers signed the defender from NK Osijek in 2018 on a four-year deal worth a reported £2.2m. Since then, the Croatian has gone on to make 155 appearances for the Light Blues across all competitions, scoring seven goals and delivering an impressive 35 assists along the way.

Despite only playing 23 league games this season, the 29-year-old still posted the second-highest number of crosses (158) and won the third-highest number of tackles (33) out of anyone in Rangers’ squad. This highlights just how important a figure he is for Giovanni van Bronckhorst’s team in an attacking and defensive sense and why he’d be a big miss for them if he were to leave this summer.

With fellow Rangers defender Calvin Bassey also being linked with a move away from Ibrox this summer, having him and Barisic both potentially waving goodbye to the club in the same transfer window would surely have lots of supporters fuming.

Even though Campbell said that the Gers would consider selling the Croatian if a significant offer comes in, we feel that they shouldn’t let him leave this summer unless they have a suitable replacement for him to come straight into Ibrox.

In other news: Rangers now plotting bid for “clinical” £5.4m-rated sensation, he’d be a dream for Van Bronckhorst

Manchester United have reportedly made contact with Valencia goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili ahead of a potential move.

The Lowdown: Mamardashvili profiled

Mamardashvili stands at 6 foot 4 and only made a permanent move to Valencia back in January. He signed from Georgian side Dinamo Tbilisi in a deal worth just £765,000.

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Since then, the 21-year-old has gone on to make 21 appearances for the Spanish side, keeping nine clean sheets and conceding 22 times.

The Georgia international only penned a deal through to 2024 with Valencia and reportedly has a release clause set at €20m (£17m).

The Latest: United phone call

Sports Witness relayed an update from Spanish outlet AS regarding Mamardashvili on Wednesday.

They claimed that Valencia are already working on extending the goalkeeper’s contract which would raise his release clause from €20m (£17m) to €30m (£25.5m).

The report name-checks United with an interest in Mamardashvili, who has now ‘received a call’ from the Red Devils, presumably chief executive Richard Arnold, over a possible move.

The Verdict: Henderson replacement?

It looks as if Dean Henderson could be on his way out of Old Trafford, with a move to Newcastle thought to be close.

Therefore, should the 25-year-old leave this summer, Erik ten Hag could be left with just Tom Heaton as back up to David de Gea.

On that basis, activating Mamardashvili’s £17m release clause could be an extremely smart move to provide competition to De Gea and in the long run.

The Spaniard will turn 32 in November, so United may soon have to think about his long-term replacement, and that could be Mamardashvili, providing he is willing to play second choice to begin with under Ten Hag.

In other news: Fabrizio Romano reveals Man Utd & Ten Hag eyeing another Dutch gem along with De Jong and Timber. 

Tottenham have been boosted in their quest to sign Ivan Perisic, with Inter Milan chief Giuseppe Marotta admitting he is heading to the Premier League.

The Lowdown: Perisic strongly linked with move

Antonio Conte has plenty of money to spend after Spurs’ Champions League qualification, with a number of new signings expected in the summer.

Perisic is the player most strongly linked with a move to north London, as he looks for a new challenge away from Inter ahead of next season.

It looks increasingly likely that the winger will be heading to Spurs – Fabrizio Romano has already given his trademark ‘here we go’ – and a fresh update has further suggested that that will be the case.

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The Latest: Inter chief admits defeat

Speaking to TuttoMercatoWeb [via Sport Witness], Marotta confirmed that Perisic is heading to north London and Inter are already seeking replacements:

“There is regret, but he wanted to try a new experience in the Premier League. We weren’t in a position to present better offers, his choice was simply based on a different future than the current one.

“Maximum respect for this and also a big thank you. We will find the right replacement and, in any case, we have already taken Robin Gosens.”

The Verdict: Surely a matter of time?

This update surely means that Perisic is a Spurs player incoming and it has the potential to be a very exciting signing this summer.

The Croatian legend has been hailed as ‘fantastic’ by Jose Mourinho and has a mammoth 113 caps for his country, highlighting his pedigree as a footballer.

At 33, Perisic may not be coming in as a guaranteed starter every week but he could be a great squad player, giving Conte more options in the final third and at wing-back.

In other news, a journalist has dropped a Tottenham transfer claim. Read more here.

Everton journalist Chris Smith has revealed that the Goodison Park club are now ‘willing to entertain offers’ for as many as seven players this summer.

The Lowdown: Disappointing season

Despite surviving relegation from the Premier League, it was ultimately a disappointing season for the Merseysiders, who will not want to find themselves in the same position next year.

There will inevitably be question marks over some members of the squad, while Frank Lampard will now want to put his own stamp on it, given the funds that he’ll have available to spend.

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The Latest: Seven players axed?

Taking to Twitter, 90min reporter Smith has revealed that up to seven players from the first-team squad could now be axed by Everton, although not all of them will end up leaving.

He outlined: “Allan, Michael Keane, Andre Gomes, Tom Davies, Jean-Philippe Gbamin, Andros Townsend and Salomon Rondon are all players #Everton are willing to entertain offers for this summer, I’m told per source. Obviously not all will go as squad depth is needed.”

The Verdict: Overhaul needed

Ultimately, Everton’s squad needs a major overhaul after ending up in a relegation battle, and getting rid of some of the fringe players would help in that regard.

Of the seven players mentioned by Smith, only Keane and Townsend feature in the Toffees’ 10 best performers in the 2021/22 Premier League as per WhoScored, despite the ex-Burnley defender frequently being criticised for some of his performances.

Nonetheless, selling even a few of those will help to raise vital funds for Lampard to go out and strengthen in other areas of the pitch, which the Blues will certainly need to do in order to help climb up the table next season.

In other news, find out who EFC are now ‘at the front of the queue’ to sign here!

Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Alasdair Gold of football.london has now shared a ‘big’ transfer update involving Man City star Gabriel Jesus.

The Lowdown: Conte eyes new striker…

Spurs boss Antonio Conte, currently relying on Harry Kane as his only world class out-and-out striker option, is looking to fix that hole in the Lilywhites squad.

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The Times say a new forward is on the agenda at Hotspur Way as Conte eyes at least six major summer signings – with there being no shortage of links to Europe’s finest.

The Premier League top-four chasers have even been linked with the likes of Victor Osimhen (Napoli) and Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan) despite their potentially marquee price tags.

Conte and transfer chief Fabio Paratici have seemingly drawn up a list of prestigious targets for the forward area as news now surfaces involving Man City striker Jesus.

The Latest: Gold shares ‘big’ update involving Jesus…

The ever-reliable Gold, sharing a ‘big’ update on Tottenham’s transfer activity in the last 48 hours, now claims Conte and the club are ‘admire’ City’s bright attacker who has shone under Pep Guardiola recently (football.london).

Indeed, as the Lilywhites eye a possible move for Jesus, football.london also claim that he is ‘expected to leave’ the English champions this summer.

The Verdict: Make a move?

ESPN recently claimed City have slapped a £55 million price tag on the Brazil international’s head,  an arguable bargain fee given his obvious ability and age.

Still with plenty of years ahead in his career, Jesus has been on fire in recent weeks, racking up six goals and one assist in his last six league starts for Guardiola’s title-chasers.

Over 158 top flight appearances, the 25-year-old’s 58 goals and 32 assists back how he’s already proven in England with pundit Steve McManaman even raving over the ‘superstar’ for his recent Sky Blue form.

Taking all of this into account, it’s little wonder Conte and co have taken an interest.

In other news: Paratici now eyeing ‘world class’ player move tipped to ‘excite’ Spurs supporters! Find out more here.