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A fresh claim on Graham Potter to Spurs has emerged this week…

What’s the word?

The Brighton manager sits high on technical director Steve Hitchen’s shortlist, according to the Daily Mail, who also claimed that he has other admirers within the Lilywhites’ hierarchy.

Ever-reliable football.london journalist Alasdair Gold added fuel to the fire on Thursday afternoon with an intriguing bit of information as he tweeted: “Told a number of the Spurs players had a lasting impression left on them by the style of Brighton’s play and would be happy if Graham Potter was pursued to become the club’s next manager.”

He also suggested that the 45-year-old has caught the eye of the club’s decision-makers with his brand of football, which would correlate well with the report from the Daily Mail.

Pochettino 2.0

It’s thought that Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy wants his next appointment to be ‘attack-minded’ with a strong focus on developing young players – i.e. not too dissimilar to Mauricio Pochettino, as per The Guardian.

This has been reinforced by The Athletic’s Jack Pitt-Brooke, who claimed that Spurs are looking for a “Pochettino-style coach”, and that’s where Potter fits the bill.

The Argentine was poached from a smaller Premier League club in Southampton but was known for his high-pressing tactics, a similar system and train of thought to the former Swansea man on the south coast.

Whilst Brighton’s results have been underwhelming and rather disappointing – only the bottom three have won fewer games – their performances have been worthy of better returns.

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As outlined by The Athletic, Potter rates out as one of the best coaches in the top-flight, scoring 97 out of 100 for their coaching performance ranking system. He favours a possession-based system with plenty of build-up play and focus on dominating the final third through an overload on the wings and an intense press.

Potter has also trusted his youth, meeting another one of Spurs’ mooted criteria. Brighton have the fourth-youngest weighted average age (minutes played multiplied by age for all players) at 26.

Sat in 14th place, the Seagulls also have the best defensive record of any team 11th or below and have only conceded one goal more than Spurs this season – given that defensive mistakes have been a recurring theme, that’s quite impressive.

Back in January, Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola was left blown away by Potter and his side. The Spaniard dubbed him “the best English manager right now” and claimed: “You have to be a top side to play that way. As a spectator, I like to watch these teams. I like watching Brighton play. I recognise it. When I was a football player, I would love to play in this team.”

There’s no denying that Potter would be a massive gamble but the same would’ve been said about Pochettino swapping the comfort of St Mary’s for a team competing in Europe.

The 45-year-old is perhaps as close to Pochettino 2.0 as Levy is going to get, so if that’s the criteria, then he has to be considered.

AND in other news, Levy could deal Spurs a terrifying blow by hiring “stubborn” 62 y/o who has “no plan B”…

The SuperSport United captain was the African side's best player as the team was hammered 5-0 by Les Bleus in a friendly match on Tuesday night

GOAL runs the rule over the individual performances of Bafana Bafana players.

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  Ronwen Williams – 7/10

  It could have been worse for Bafana if it wasn't for Williams.
  The two-time PSL Goalkeeper of the Season made many saves to deny brace-hero Kylian Mbappe, Olivier Giroud and Lucas Digne throughout the game.
  He also came close to saving Mbappe's penalty on a night in which he was let down by his defence.

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  Nyiko Mobbie – 4.5/10

  Struggled against an excellent France side.

  The hosts exposed Mobbie's frailties far too easily and he made one promising overlapping run, but his poor cross was easily gathered by keeper Mike Maignan.

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  Lyle Lakay – 4/10

  Antoine Griezmann got the better of him on the night.

  Lakay was outsmarted by the Atletico Madrid star who cut inside from Bafana's left flank and provided two assists while the Bafana full-back didn't offer much going forward.

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  Nkosinathi Sibisi – 5/10

  Surprisingly started ahead of Rushine De Reuck.
  Sibisi had his moments in bits and parts, making a few crucial clearances and tackles, but alas, it was nowhere near enough against the ruthless Europeans.

Republic of Ireland legend Ray Houghton enjoyed a glittering international career, with his two greatest moments on that stage coming as he scored the decisive goal in the 1-0 win against England at the 1988 European Championships, before a repeat of the same situation and scoreline against Italy at the 1994 World Cup in America.

The midfielder was also a big part of the famous successful Liverpool team from the late 1980s and early 90s, winning the First Division and the FA Cup twice each between 1988 and 1992, before moving onto Aston Villa and lifting the League Cup in 1994.

Now retired, Houghton is set to swap the hallowed turf for a fishing rod to take part in an exciting new fishing programme called Angling Outlaws, which is to be shown on BT Sport next year.

We spoke exclusively to the football legend about a number of different subjects within the beautiful game…

What are your thoughts on the Celtic managerial situation?

“I think at the moment they’re probably doing their due diligence, which is probably the right thing to do, make sure you get the right person in because Rangers have already won the title. And I think people are getting a little bit panicky, because the Celtic fans want to see big names wanting to come to their club.

“I’m a Celtic fan. I grew up a Celtic fan. I don’t look at it as much as I once did. But yeah, there’s no doubt, you know, with Rangers doing as well as they are and Steven Gerrard, a big name in charge, Celtic feel that they could do likewise. And there’s been quite some names in the frame, Thierry Henry, Roy Keane, you know, amongst others. So, it will be interesting to see who they go for.”

Is Eddie Howe a big enough name?

“Yeah, I think so. Yeah, I think in many respects, as I said earlier, it’s about reinventing yourself, it may be a good place for Eddie. Just to go and because your only real opposition is Rangers, you get into Europe and you’ve done well, you know, the fans will enjoy that give a decent run.

“But your main priority is to finish first in the league. And they just need someone to take them forward again, hopefully the owners invest money in the club. I think that’s one of the stipulations that a big manager coming in would have, they’ve got you have the finances to take the club forward.”

Who’s going to replace Jose Mourinho at Tottenham?

“I really don’t know. They’ve had Pochettino who got them to a Champions League Final – the only time they’ve ever been in the Champions League Final. Tottenham is a huge job, it’s a massive club, they’ve got a fantastic stadium, they’ve got training facilities to die for, but I just don’t see them getting the funds and I don’t know if the owner Joe Lewis puts in anywhere near what other clubs do, or he’s prepared to go into debt or get loans to bring in players.

“There’s no doubt Pochettino and Mourinho are massive names, and whether they can have that calibre of manager again if the finances aren’t there, I don’t know. It’ll be interesting to see who Daniel Levy, who looks like he’s the main man at the club when it comes to the appointments, has got in mind. He thought Mourinho with his CV was going to be the game changer as far as bringing trophies to the club, and that didn’t happen.”

Could you see Steven Gerrard becoming the next Tottenham manager?

“Well, I think with Steven he’s learning. Look what happened to Frank Lampard. Frank went to Derby and had a good season. And then suddenly, the Chelsea job came up, and of course, he’s going to jump at it. You know, you might not get that offered that again. Was it too early?

“So, with Steve, he probably feels he’s still got a little bit of work to do in the managerial side. Every year he’s doing work as a manager, he’s learning about players and with all due respect to Rangers and the players that they’ve got, going to Spurs or Liverpool is a whole new level of expectation.”

Would you see David Moyes getting the Spurs job?

“If it was purely just only football that might be the case. But don’t forget David Moyes was at West Ham when they let him go. So, loyalty works two ways. The club weren’t very loyal to him, were they?”

Do Liverpool need to freshen up their front three?

“I think there were rumours of going after Werner before he went to Chelsea, but there are not an awful lot of strikers around. Harry Kane would be great because he’s like your finished article up front. I don’t know what the finances are like, all I know is that over the last few years recruitments been very good.

“Last season it’s really slowed, we brought in the lad from Preston was in for £400,000, we brought we brought in the other centre-back for Germany – that’s not Liverpool’s way. They buy the best. They did that with Salah, Mane, Allison, and Van Dijk.”

Ray Houghton will be joining Paul Parker, Tony Gale and Frank McAvennie on BT Sport’s Angling Outlaws, next summer.

With the help of Outlaw Pro, the four former pros will be trying their hand at fishing, with the quadruplet facing off at the end of the six-part series to see who knows their slide tackles from their tackle boxes.

With games suspended, now is the time to catch up on some reading about the beautiful game

The coronavirus pandemic is set to stop most football competitions around the world for the foreseeable future leaving many fans with time to kill. 

Books are an ideal escape at times like this and thankfully there are many great reads on the world game available. 

From insightful autobiographies to intelligent dissections of the game, now is the time to get to know the sport you'd usually just watch on a deeper level. 

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  The Miracle of Castel di Sangro

  An incredible true story of an American who embraces life in Italy with a newly promoted Serie B side. 

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  Cantona: The Rebel Who Would Be King

  For a man of few words, this detailed biography manages to fill the substantial gaps when it comes to trying to understand the puzzle that is Eric Cantona. 

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  A Life Too Short

  A sad but important look at the life of German goalkeeper Robert Enke, who tragically took his own life at the age of just 32. 

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  The Damned Utd

  A fictional but nonetheless fantastic biography told from the perspective of Brian Clough as he attempts to take over from bitter rival Don Revie at Leeds United in 1974. 

With the draw for the Champions League group stage taking place on Thursday, Goal lists some top under-23 talents to watch this season

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  Dani Ceballos (Real Madrid)

  "The coach's confidence is paramount to playing well," Dani Ceballos told earlier this month. "[Julen] Lopetegui has given me that confidence."

  The implication was obvious: Ceballos had never felt fully trusted by former Blancos boss Zinedine Zidane, who used the midfielder just 12 times in La Liga last season.

  The 22-year-old Spaniard still has Luka Modric, Casemiro and Toni Kroos ahead of him in the pecking order but with Mateo Kovacic now gone, Ceballos is expected to see far more game time in 2018-19.

  If he truly does have his self-belief back, we should see the former Betis star reproduce the kind of magic that lit up the Under-21 European Championships last year.

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  Frenkie de Jong (Ajax)

  Ajax are back in the Champions League group stage for the first time since 2014-15 but not everyone was happy to see the Dutch outfit prevail in their play-off tie with Dynamo Kyiv.

  Indeed, the Amsterdam outfit's qualification scuppered Barcelona's hopes of signing Frenkie de Jong before the close of the summer transfer window on Friday. 

  The Blaugrana had made the 21-year-old, who has just been called up by the Netherlands national team, their primary midfield target but he has now confirmed that he is staying at Ajax.

  "Maybe someday I'll join Barcelona, but not this season," he told . "I think it will be a good year for Ajax. Now we're about to find out what we're capable of."

  We're also about to find out exactly what De Jong is capable of.

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  Phil Foden (Manchester City)

  On May 13, the then 17-year-old Phil Foden became the youngest ever recipient of a Premier League winners' medal, after making five appearances during Manchester City's title procession. 

  The classy and versatile midfielder is now set to play an even bigger role in his club's bid to hold on to their crown. As coach Pep Guardiola enthused, "He was ready [for the first team] last year but now he is one year more mature."

  His composed performance in the season-opening Community Shield win over Chelsea certainly belied his tender age, with Foden creating the game's opening goal, for Sergio Aguero. 

  Nailing down a regular berth in the City starting 11 is an unenviable task but Guardiola has the utmost faith in Foden, who last season became the youngest Englishman ever to start a Champions League match.

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  ​Willem Geubbels (Monaco)

  Rarely can such fuss have been made over a player to have featured so little at senior level.

  Willem Geubbels only saw 87 minutes of game time for Lyon last season but, in doing so, the 16-year-old forward became the first player born in the 21st century to appear in Ligue 1, and the Europa League.

  Monaco certainly liked what they saw, as this summer they paid €20 million (£18m/$23m) to beat some of Europe’s biggest clubs to the signature of the France Under-18 international.

  Geubbels will be used sparingly but Monaco are quietly confident that they have got another Kylian Mbappe on their hands.

Aston Villa have been urged to make a summer transfer move for Wolves star Adama Traore.

What’s the story?

Reports in recent days and weeks have suggested that Nuno Espirito Santo’s side are willing to let the Spain international go in the summer for around the £30m mark, and former Premier League goalkeeper Paddy Kenny has called on Villa to go after him.

He told Football Insider: “It could be a possibility at that price. If I was Aston Villa, I’d be looking at someone like him. He set the goal up at the weekend against Sheffield United. He’s got pace and power.

“He might not be as effective this season as he was last year but maybe he can freshen up, go to a new club and be a top signing. He’s an absolute handful. You wouldn’t want to be coming up against him every week, especially if you get in a foot race against him.”

Bargain deal for Lange

Considering there were suggestions that Wolves were demanding a whopping fee of around £70m to let Traore go last summer, for his price to be slashed by more than half, surely gives Villa the perfect chance to nab an absolute bargain.

Johan Lange will be keen to ensure that he makes the kind of signings that genuinely strengthens Dean Smith’s side, and given the injury troubles of Trezeguet, and the inconsistency of Bertrand Traore – he’s scored just one goal in his last 13 Premier League games – a move for a Premier League-proven winger like Traore would do just that.

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Wolves’ own Traore has been terrifying Premier League defences for a few seasons now, with his “pace and power” as Kenny says being a real weapon for Nuno’s side.

The £100k-a-week earning powerhouse may just need a change in scenery to help him get back on track, and while Villa wouldn’t exactly be a fresh start given his previous time at the club, it could be the kind of move that revitalises him.

Meanwhile, Villa have been handed a major boost over this forgotten man…

Kevin Campbell has claimed that he does not think that Jesse Lingard will be at West Ham United next season.

Speaking to Football Insider, the former Arsenal, Everton and West Brom striker believes that the East London club will struggle to sign him on a permanent deal from Manchester United in the summer transfer window:

“I think West Ham will struggle to sign him in the summer.

“At the end of the day, he is a United player. It is not as if he has never performed for Manchester United before.

“There is nothing worse than sending someone out to go and get some game time and the next thing you know he is ripping it to pieces. Ole Gunnar Solskjaer will be thinking, ‘He could be doing that for us.’ 

“West Ham are benefitting now but I cannot see him being there next season.”

West Ham must sign Lingard

David Moyes’ team need to do all that they can to try and sign Lingard permanently at the end of his loan spell from the Red Devils.

The England international has been nothing short of a revelation at the London Stadium, scoring no fewer than six goals and making a further four assists in just eight games in total in the Premier League so far in the 2020/21 term (Transfermarkt), which also earned him a recall into the Three Lions squad by Gareth Southgate for their 20222 FIFA World Cup qualifiers.

Former Irons striker and pundit Ian Wright described (Premier League Productions via HITC) him as both ‘devastating’ and a ‘danger’ after he helped them win 2-0 against Leeds United in the top flight in March, and it is clear that the 28-year-old still has a lot left to offer in a Claret and Blue shirt.

In other news, find out who WHUFC fans want to sign as a potential ‘Noble replacement’ here!

Celtic’s hunt for a new manager at Parkhead has really gathered pace over the last week or so. After suffering setbacks in their quest to appoint Chris Wilder and Jesse Marsch, they have identified a new man to lead the Bhoys forward.

That happens to be one of their former employers; Roy Keane.

The Manchester United legend finished his playing career in Glasgow and is now being viewed by Dermot Desmond as the man to lead Celtic’s new era.

According to reports, discussions have taken place over the role with an interview even occurring.

If he does indeed come to Scotland, how could his starting XI look next season?

This could be a significant summer of change for Celtic, both among the football hierarchy and with the playing squad.

Part of that could see Kristoffer Ajer and Odsonne Edouard leave. The former has been linked with a move to AC Milan while the latter continues to be touted with a switch to the English Premier League.

Liverpool have recently been linked with his services in a deal that could see Divock Origi go in the opposite direction. As a result, he is the first notable inclusion in Keane’s starting XI.

As many as seven new signings come into the team with another difference in the Celtic attack. Ryan Christie is axed from the starting XI after his disappointing campaign, scoring just five goals. Thus, Siriki Dembele starts on the wing. He has recently been touted with a move from Peterborough on a free transfer.

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Liam Shaw, who has agreed a pre-contract, replaces Scott Brown in the middle of the park alongside Callum McGregor.

The majority of changes come in defence, an area where Celtic have often been found wanting this term. They’ve shipped 14 more goals than Rangers in the league while there’s the threat Ajer could leave.

With that in mind, Declan Gallagher comes in at centre-back. He’s regularly been tipped to make a switch to Parkhead from Motherwell.

There is no permanent move for Jonjoe Kenny at right-back so Dutch target Milan van Ewijk starts at right-back. There is a further change on the opposite side too.

Diego Laxalt is due to head back to Milan following the conclusion of his loan spell, so Romain Perraud could be signed from Brest. He nearly joined Celtic in 2019 and is now being eyed up by the Hoops hierarchy once again.

The final change is in goal where David Marshall returns to Glasgow. He is another to be tipped with a move in recent weeks.

AND in other news, Celtic could finally axe Christie by signing “outstanding” beast with 28 assists…

Liverpool are reportedly set to make Wolverhampton Wanderers’ Adama Traore their first signing ahead of the 2021/22 season.

According to reports in Spain, the Reds have agreed a deal with the Midlands outfit in a switch that would see the winger become the second player to switch Molineux for Anfield in as many years, following the transfer of Diogo Jota.

Whilst the Portuguese has been a success story with the reigning Premier League champions, signing Traore would be a huge mistake by Michael Edwards as Liverpool aim to re-establish themselves at the top.

The £31.5m-rated wideman is of course a talented player but his productivity is simply not enough to justify a big-money swoop.

In five seasons of Premier League action, Traore has only managed to accumulate five goals and 14 assists, with the vast majority of those contributions coming in his fantastic 2019/20 campaign.

The five-time Spanish international’s statistics have nose-dived since then though, having only supplied a solitary assist for Nuno Espirito Santo’s men throughout the current season.

When comparing Traore with his former teammate, Jota, during 2020/21, it is the Liverpool man who continues to come out on top.

According to WhoScored, the Portuguese ace produces more shots and passes, whilst getting dispossessed much less frequently.

Considering he would also have competition from the likes of first choices Sadio Mane and Mo Salah, as well as Jota, Xherdan Shaqiri, Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain and the returning Takumi Minamino for a starting berth out-wide, it is hard to envisage Traore making a significant impact on Merseyside.

Whilst Klopp might be keen to strengthen his options out wide with the “unplayable” Wolves man, Traore does not look like the correct solution.

Should they have agreed to a deal already, as reported, Edwards should do everything he can to back out as quickly as possible.

AND in more news, Liverpool should increase their bid for a Serie A starlet…

Andre Gomes badly let Carlo Ancelotti down as Everton lost 2-0 at Chelsea on Monday night, having produced a passive performance at Stamford Bridge.

The Portuguese maestro retained his role in the Toffees’ engine room for a fourth successive Premier League match, having now failed to start just one of his side’s last eight.

But Ancelotti failed to see that faith repaid with a promising performance in south west London, as Thomas Tuchel’s Blues were easily able to bypass Gomes on route to a comfortable victory.

Chelsea took the lead on the half-hour mark when Kai Havertz’s shot was turned in for an own goal by Ben Godfrey, who could do little about the German’s attempt other than leave goalkeeper Jordan Pickford helpless.

Havertz later won his side a penalty, converted by Jorginho, in the second period after being brought down by Pickford, to seal a 2-0 win and maintain Tuchel’s unbeaten reign as Chelsea boss after eight wins and three draws in all competitions.

Gomes would remain on the field for a further 11 minutes after Jorginho’s strike beat Pickford before Ancelotti would replace the £18m-rated midfielder with Bernard, after he failed to offer much quality on the Stamford Bridge pitch.

The 27-year-old covered a vast area of the ground with his 47 touches taken across the middle third, per SofaScore, but he could not make his presence count despite boasting the Toffees’ only on-target effort of the night.

Gomes tried his luck from 25-yards out in first-half stoppage-time, although his low attempt on goal was easily saved by Edouard Mendy as he achieved his 13th clean sheet in 23 Premier League outings since a £22m move from Ligue 1 side Stade Rennais in September.

The result saw Chelsea stretch their lead over Everton in the race for Champions League qualification to four points, albeit having played a game more. The Goodison Park natives also slipped behind West Ham United, after the Irons beat Leeds later on Monday night.

Despite boasting his side’s only on-target effort with his only shot of the game, Ancelotti will have been disappointed with how poorly Gomes performed his defensive duties at Chelsea having struggled to cope with the man-marking system the Italian tactician initially utilised.

Gomes was a bystander whenever the hosts were in possession and rarely managed to take the ball from a Blues player, with the ex-FC Barcelona midfielder dribbled past six times – Allan (3) was beaten on the ground the second-most times by any player, per WhoScored.

Being dribbled past so frequently further saw that Gomes could only register a 14% tackle success rate, thanks to winning possession once, while also offering one interception but no clearances.

The 29-cap international is not generally a defensive powerhouse but has averaged 1.5 successful tackles a game in the Premier League this season, while being dribbled past just 1.6 times, making 0.4 interceptions and 0.5 clearances.

His struggles on the ground additionally ensured that Gomes lost 11 of his 14 ground duels – Richarlison lost the second-most by an Everton player with success in only five of his 10 contests, per SofaScore. Gomes averages 3.4 challenges won with a 40% success rate.

Altogether, Gomes’ performance meant he earned SofaScore’s worst match rating for a player who featured for either side at 5.9 out of 10 – the sixth time this season that he has scored below a base 6/10.

The Liverpool Echo also graded Gomes at 5/10, the same as Alex Iwobi but noted how the ex-Arsenal winger ‘couldn’t effectively get himself into the game’ while the Portuguese playmaker briefly improved after the break.

Yet Gomes was worse than Iwobi throughout the match and will have left Ancelotti wondering if he should start when Everton host Burnley on Saturday.

AND in other news, Carlo Ancelotti can delight an unsettled Everton ace with a summer swoop for his £13.5m-rated ex-teammate…