Times are tough for Tammy Abraham at Chelsea. Left on the bench against Atletico Madrid in the Champions League, he did not even make the squad to face Manchester United last weekend. Manager Thomas Tuchel has told Tammy that he faces a “difficult” period because of the form of Olivier Giroud. Tuchel told us on Monday, “We have 21 strong players and only 18 possible so hard decisions. It’s my job to take hard decisions and this is the decision for 18 guys and Tammy was not with the group. At the moment he is struggling with my decision. It is about judging the alternatives that we have and we opted for Olivier to begin and Timo (Werner) on the bench. We have Kai (Havertz) who can play as a No9. It’s not Tammy’s fault, it is just the way things are at the moment. I gave him some advice and he has to train well, be in a good mood and accept that he is a striker for Chelsea in the highest competition in Europe. Another difficult decision for me was Billy Gilmour. He played well in the cup and he was very, very strong in training. It was a hard decision not to include him either.”
Bale’s great form signals permanent move back to Spurs
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Gareth Bale has shown what he can do when given a decent run in Spur’s starting line-up. Everyone is currently talking about Bale instead of the dynamic duo Son and Kane. Real Madrid have taken note of his return to form and I have learned that they have contacted Tottenham to see if there is a way forward for the Premier League side to permanently sign him at the end of this season’s loan period. In July Bale still has one year left on his contract with the Spanish giants. There is no way back for him at Real because of his toxic relationship with manager Zinedine Zidan and Real are also in financial difficulties because of Covid. Gareth’s £600k a week wages means they have little or no room for any investment. Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is a clever businessman and he can spot a good deal and he will be looking to sign Gareth for a bargain price which Real probably cannot afford to ignore.
Kane wants trophies and he wants them now
Harry Kane has piled the pressure on Jose Mourinho to win trophies this season. Otherwise, he has told close friends, he is considering leaving Spurs this summer. Approaching his 28th birthday, his financial future is assured. However, besides money every player wants to retire from the game with silverware to celebrate their achievements. Kane is no different and he feels it is now or never. He has spent too many years at Tottenham with nothing to show for his efforts. Spurs are in the final stages of the Europa League however their chances of reaching a top four place and qualification for next season’s Champions League look bleak. Chairman Daniel Levy has also told Mourinho that he was brought in to win trophies. Failure to do that saw Mauricio Pochettino leave the club a few months ago and Mourinho will be treated no differently if he doesn’t succeed.
Leicester disastrous injury list
Last season, after a brilliant campaign, Leicester narrowly missed out on Champions League football because they did not secure a top four place. Brendan Rodgers is tearing his hair out this time around as he faces a similar scenario. Leicester’s mounting injury problem is causing them considerable anxiety. Last weekend they were without Wesley Fofana, James Maddison and James Justin. Now Harvey Barnes, who is knocking on England’s door, and influential defender Jonny Evans have both joined the long injury list. Barnes could even be out until the end of the season as Rodgers explained that a piece of bone has become dislodged in his knee and he was operated on this week. Emile Smith Rowe also has a recurrence of his hip injury.
Giroud still wanted by Chelsea
Chelsea tell me that manager Thomas Tuchel has privately told Olivier Giroud that when his contract ends this summer he would like the French striker to stay with the club. Olivier was widely expected to leave however with 10 goals in all competitions this season, he is the club’s equal second highest scorer despite his match time being limited. Tuchel said he regards Giroud as a key player within the squad and commented “No firm deal has been offered to Olivier yet but I am super happy he is here.”
City yet to offer Aguero new contract
Pep Guardiola is keeping the future of Sergio Aguero a close secret. The striker is in the final few months of his current contract but so far City have failed to offer him new terms or even say if they want him to stay. Aguero is a firm favourite with City fans worldwide and he is the club’s all-time record goal scorer with 256 strikes to his credit. However, Guardiola is wary of making a decision because he says Sergio has played very little this season because of injury and that is not good for a club trying to win back their title. However, Pep said this week, “Sergio has played only two or three games and then got injured again. But I always think we need him in this part of the season. Some games will be tight and we’ll need guys who can score. The best guy in those terms is him.”
Willian shows his class
I am a great fan of Arsenal’s Brazilian midfielder Willian. For me, he has been one of the most outstanding players of the past eight years in the Premier League. However, things have not gone well for him at Arsenal since his move from Chelsea and he has spent several matches on the bench. Last weekend against Leicester he showed what a top quality player he is. His pass and move technique payed dividends and he controlled the midfield. After the game manager Mikel Arteta was full of praise for Willian and he can look forward to a lot more games after that display.
Brighton just can’t score goals
Brighton are losing points in almost every game at the moment. I tackled them about this early in the week and they recognise that despite creating a lot of chances they are just not converting them into goals. The problem is that they do not have one single striker who is scoring at the moment. Neal Maupay, prolific at Brentford, is having a goal drought, not having scored in his last eight games. Brighton recognise that their midfield are not scoring either and their centre-half, Lewis Dunk, is their second highest top scorer which is a crazy situation. If Brighton are to avoid the drop there has to be a lot of improvement with goals their top priority.
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