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Eric Dier had one of his best games in a while in Tottenham Hotspur’s victory over Manchester City, journalist Alasdair Gold has claimed.

What’s the word?

Spurs produced a defensive masterclass to shut Man City out in North London, and Harry Kane’s early strike proved to be the difference.

A number of players including Emerson Royal and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg were outstanding, but Dier was also crucial in helping see out the victory.

Dier was awarded 9/10 by Gold in his player ratings for football.london, and was praised for the way in which he dealt with deadly striker Erling Haaland.

“Constantly pushing up the pitch and adding to the numbers in the middle. One of his best games in a while. Nothing got past him. It was the first time Haaland didn’t even have a single shot in a Premier League match.”

Rock in the middle

There was a nervous ending to the match as Spurs were reduced to ten men as Cristian Romero received a red card, but Dier’s commanding performance at the back helped them secure all three points.

The Englishman had come in for criticism at times this season, but looked back to his best as he kept Haaland quiet for the entire game.

Dier completed four long balls, won three aerial duels and made four clearances as per SofaScore, and looked assured in his defending as Spurs recorded their third clean sheet in a row in all competitions.

The 29-year-old has made 346 appearances for Spurs since his arrival in 2014, and his experience is now starting to prove vital in tough games, helping command his three-man defence to a convincing victory against the Champions.

West Brom are ‘interested’ in signing Chelsea attacking midfielder Omari Hutchinson before the January transfer window closes, according to journalist Simon Phillips.

The Lowdown: Hutchinson an impressive youngster

The 19-year-old is arguably one of the Blues’ most exciting young players currently, scoring six goals and registering nine assists in 18 appearances for the Under-21s.

Hutchinson is struggling to force his way into Graham Potter’s first-team plans, however, appearing just two times for the senior side to date.

It may be that a loan move this month is most beneficial to the Jamaican, although Chelsea are fast running out of time to move him on.

The Latest: West Brom eyeing late move

Speaking to Give Me Sport, Phillips claimed that West Brom are keen on signing Hutchinson before deadline day ends:

“So, there’s a late push from clubs to take Omari Hutchinson on loan from Chelsea in the final hours. They’re taking an interest now.

“Two strong clubs that are interested are West Brom and Watford. Both are keen to sort out a loan deal before the end of the window, so that’s another one that could develop in these final hours. Other clubs also interested.”

The Verdict: Good for squad depth

Granted, Hutchinson is a very unproven player at senior level, with those aforementioned couple of games for Chelsea his only taste of it, but he could still be an astute signing by the Baggies.

Carlos Corberan could feel that he can improve the teenager by handing him more playing time and the midfielder would add depth in attacking areas, having once been praised by none other than Pele as a 12-year-old.

Hutchinson has 24 goal involvements (11 goals and 13 assists) in 32 appearances in Premier League 2, highlighting his prowess at youth level, and he could be ready to take that next step and aid West Brom’s Championship promotion hopes.

Tottenham Hotspur cruised to a 3-0 victory today in the FA Cup, in what had the potential to be a truly tough fixture.

Preston North End were enjoying a run of three wins in their last four games in all competitions but knew that welcoming the Lilywhites would be a difficult task despite their patchy form.

Antonio Conte opted for an interesting lineup in which no recognised central striker featured, and as such, the goalscoring burden fell once more onto Heung-min Son.

The South Korean has struggled this campaign, and with just four goals in the Premier League, it marked a risky choice from the Italian to opt for him over the substitute Harry Kane.

However, he more than repaid that faith with a brilliant brace of the highest order.

Cutting in on his ‘weaker’ left foot, he unleashed two sumptuous strikes which found the opposite corners respectively to put the game beyond doubt. They craved his magic on a night where, despite boasting 69% of the ball, could only muster six shots on target.

Although he may earn the bulk of the plaudits for his offensive exploits, it cannot be understated just how solid Spurs were at the back too.

Much of that was down to the resurgent Japhet Tanganga, who Conte employed in a right centre-back role alongside Davinson Sanchez and Clement Lenglet.

Despite being a natural full-back, the 23-year-old enjoyed an accomplished performance which culminated in a 7.4 Sofascore rating; a number only bettered by Son out of anyone on the pitch.

The defender was instrumental in their build-up play, best showcased through his spectacular 103 touches and 88 passes attempted. What truly makes him stand out is that despite the quantity being so vast he still retained a 91% success rate, with one of those being a key pass too.

Journalist Kat Lucas put it best when she labelled Tanganga “very composed” in a post-match tweet.

However, he would pair this with a fine defensive work rate that really pulled his whole performance together. Making four clearances, he supplemented that with an additional two interceptions and one tackle (via Sofascore). He truly neutralised the attack of the hosts.

Son was admittedly superb tonight, and without him, their journey into the fifth round of the cup would have been far more arduous.

But the foundation for him to shine was built from the solidity and quality of Tanganga, which is why he deserves particular praise in maintaining their push for a trophy.

Newcastle United are back in action away to Southampton in the Carabao Cup semi-final this evening, with the Magpies hoping to move one step closer towards ending their lengthy barren run without silverware.

For all the importance of potentially finishing in the top four come the end of the season, manager Eddie Howe has previously insisted that it would be a “dream” to secure a major honour for the club, with such a triumph set to be just reward for what has been a remarkable turnaround in fortunes over the last 12 months or so.

The Tynesiders head into this first-leg encounter at St Mary’s following what was another frustrating stalemate away to Crystal Palace at the weekend, having now recorded a goalless draw in three of their last four Premier League games.

The solitary win in that run of games came at home to Fulham courtesy of a late winner from club-record signing, Alexander Isak, with the Sweden international having been gradually eased back into the action following his frustrating injury woes prior to the World Cup break.

While Howe will likely be fearful of risking losing the 23-year-old once again, it may well be time for the former Real Sociedad starlet to be handed the chance to impress from the start, with goals clearly having been in short supply of late.

Despite his limited involvement so far this term, the one-time Borussia Dortmund “monster” – as described by journalist Chuck Booth – has illustrated just why the northeast side were so keen to secure his signature this summer, having scored three goals in his five top-flight outings to date.

While the 6 foot 4 powerhouse was not able to add to his tally off the bench at Selhurst Park, the £120k-per-week gem did certainly make an impact in the closing stages, having guided a header straight into the arms of opposition goalkeeper, Vicente Guaita.

That brief cameo also saw Isak lay on one key pass from his nine touches, with journalist Thomas Hammond subsequently stating that the Swede simply “has to start” against the Saints.

With the departure of Chris Wood to Nottingham Forest having limited Howe’s attacking options, it may well be wise to thrust Isak into the fray from the start in order to allow fellow forward Callum Wilson the chance of rest.

Alternatively, there could also be a benefit in playing the pair together in attack against Nathan Jones’ men, with Wilson having notably teed up his strike partner to help clinch victory against the Cottagers just over a week ago.

Whatever forward line the Newcastle boss does decide to deploy, it would seemingly be an astute move to have Isak at the forefront, with unleashing the rarely-seen asset potentially able to help terrorise the south coast side.

Alan Brazil has slammed the Everton fans live on TalkSPORT after the club’s board of directors were told to stay away from the last home game.

The Lowdown: Chaos engulfing Goodison Park

At the end of last season when Everton confirmed their safety in the Premier League there were scenes of relief and jubilation at Goodison Park which will have filled fans with hope and optimism that something similar wouldn’t happen again.

However, that was seemingly only to be a dream as Everton find themselves inside the bottom three and facing a real threat of relegation, especially given their worrying lack of transfer activity.

It’s not just on the pitch that thing are going wrong for Everton though as last week their board of directors were urged to stay away from the ground due to threats to their safety, which was soon followed by claims of Denise Barrett-Baxendale having been put in a headlock when leaving the director’s box, although this is yet to be proven.

The Latest: Everton are in a huge mess

Despite those claims not being proved true, Brazil still didn’t hold back as he slammed the Evertonians for putting the board of directors’ safety at threat and not allowing them to attend a game.

He said: (0:00) “I understand the fans’ passion that Frank was relating to there but I’m sorry, this has gone too far when directors and don’t get me wrong we’ve got so many foreign directors now, when they feel it’s not safe to attend a football club they might as well walk away and say I’m out, I’m selling the share. That is a disgrace.”

The Verdict: Moshiri must get the club in order

Evertonians have every right to be angry and fed up with what their club and board are serving up and have been doing for several years now as they have thrown away so much money on transfers over the last few seasons.

However, the fact that directors were advised to not attend games is certainly not on and the threat appeared to be real given what happened to the likes of Ellis Simms and Yerry Mina after the game when they were trying to leave Goodison Park.

It’s very bizarre for Brazil to have gone on national radio to kick Everton fans when they’re already down and struggling to get behind their club, manager and players and face dropping out of the Premier League for the first time in their history.

Tottenham sporting director Fabio Paratici has now personally made a proposal to sign Roma dynamo Nicolo Zaniolo, according to reports.

The Lowdown: Spurs eye attacker…

The Lilywhites and manager Antonio Conte reportedly want to sign a new attacker in January alongside the addition of right-wing-backs like the heavily-linked Pedro Porro.

Brighton winger Leandro Trossard, for example, has been of real interest to Spurs according to reliable outlets like Sky Sports – but it now appears Arsenal may have leaped ahead in the race for his signing.

However, the Seagulls forward isn’t the only attacking player who could come in to strengthen manager Conte’s options this month.

Roma forward Zaniolo has attracted interest from the north Londoners in recent seasons with Tottenham allegedly making a bid in the most recent summer window.

They have reportedly reignited their interest this month and Sky journalist Gianluca Di Marzio has an update for supporters.

The Latest: Paratici personally makes Zaniolo offer…

Writing via his website, the Sky Sports international reporter claims Spurs are well and truly in the hunt for Jose Mourinho’s gem.

Di Marzio states that Tottenham sporting director Paratici has personally ‘proposed’ a loan deal with the obligation to buy.

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The obligation would be upon the ‘occurrence’ of various conditions but some good news for Spurs is that Roma chiefs have apparently gave the ‘OK’ for Zaniolo to seek a move away before the deadline.

The Verdict: Get it done?

The 6 foot 3 attacker arguably has the physical presence to compete in a demanding Premier League division but Zaniolo’s injury history could be a concern in this regard.

His contract expires in 2024, potentially prompting Roma to green-light an exit for the player this month, and this aspect could hand Paratici and Spurs a strong hand in negotiations.

In terms of quality, the 23-year-old has just one goal in 13 Serie A appearances but has attracted more fouls per 90 than anyone in Mourinho’s side.

As well as this, Zaniolo has averaged their joint-second highest rate of shots at goal per 90 (WhoScored) – indicating he can be a real threat when at his very best.

Called a ‘prominent’ player by former Liverpool midfielder Momo Sissoko, there are both strengths and weaknesses to the Italian’s current game – but a loan deal could come as fairly low risk on Spurs’ part.

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery has already moved to strengthen his charges with the signing of Spanish defender, Alex Moreno, with the 29-year-old having been snapped up on a £13m deal from Real Betis.

The former Villarreal head coach is no doubt seeking to put his stamp on the current squad at Villa Park, with there seemingly a potential for more new faces to arrive this month.

According to a recent report from the Daily Mail, one player whom Emery is seemingly keen on signing is Udinese star, Gerard Deulofeu, with the fleet-footed winger having previously worked under his compatriot at Sevilla.

The former Watford man –  who made the move to Italy on an initial loan deal back in 2020 – could well be an attainable target with just 18 months remaining on his existing deal, having previously been valued at around £17m during the summer, as per the report.

Journalist Ryan Taylor – speaking to GIVEMESPORT – has now provided an update regarding a potential move for the 28-year-old, with the transfer insider stating that the 5 foot 10 dynamo is a player that Villa are tracking.

Taylor revealed: “Gerard Deulofeu is definitely one where there is interest. He’s done it in the Premier League before with Everton and Watford.

“Although he seems to bounce around clubs, I think Deulofeu is a player that is always going to have that quality. He’s a very direct winger with a decent end product.”

The one-time Barcelona man has warranted such interest as a result of his sparkling form in Serie A so far this season, having scored twice and registered six assists in the Italian top flight so far this term.

That follows his haul of 13 goals and five assists in the league last term, with the £22k-per-week playmaker having thrived since moving away from Vicarage Road just over two years ago.

Bringing such a “quality” asset into the fold – as lauded by former boss Javi Gracia – could well help Emery to find the Villans’ successor to Jack Grealish, with the England international having left a notable void following his £100m exit to Manchester City back in 2021.

The Birmingham-born hero had provided 75 goal contributions in 213 games for the Midlands outfit in all competitions after rising through the youth ranks, notably chipping in with 18 goal involvements in the Premier League during his final season at the club.

The 27-year-old had emerged as something of a talisman prior to his departure, proving truly influential with his creativity from his left-wing berth, having been lauded for such talents by Italian icon Gianfranco Zola, who previously stated:

“He always creates something important and, again, he never flinches. He always wants the ball and creates. These are qualities that will make him even more outstanding.”

Such traits could well be attributed to the aforementioned Deulofeu, with the former Everton menace also having that ability to create something out of nothing, notably earning praise from BBC Sport’s Phil McNulty for his “genius” goal in the FA Cup semi-final win over Wolverhampton Wanderers back in 2019.

Although currently thriving in a more central role, like the City man the Spaniard has typically done much of his damage throughout his career off the flanks, with the hope being he can replicate such impact amid his potential return to England.

To be able to secure a Grealish-esque talent in the coming weeks would surely represent a truly astute piece of business for Villa and for Emery.

BBC pundit Chris Sutton has questioned Aston Villa manager Unai Emery for his team selection following the club’s shock recent defeat.

What’s the latest?

Over the past weekend, in the third round of the FA Cup, the Villans were dumped out of the tournament losing 2-1 at home to League Two side Stevenage.

Indeed, things looked to be going to plan when Morgan Sanson gave Villa a first-half lead. However, Leander Dendoncker was then shown a straight red card late on as Jamie Reid equalised from the resulting penalty before Dean Campbell scored a 90th-minute winner.

While speaking about the result on BBC Radio Show 606, Sutton questioned Emery for his team lineup and said it was a ‘damaging’ loss for the new manager.

He explained: “Were you happy about the change of personnel? I mean, Villa weren’t the only team to do it but, I don’t know, it always disappoints me, that.

“I mean, Villa haven’t been flying this season, of course. Unai Emery [now] in the door. But this is a damaging defeat for him, isn’t it?”

Big mistake?

Emery has done fairly well since taking over at Aston Villa shortly before the break for the winter World Cup. Indeed, he has managed the club for five Premier League games, winning three, drawing one and losing one.

However, tasting defeat in the FA Cup to League Two opposition certainly will not help win over any supporters who were on the fence about his appointment.

In his starting team, the Spaniard opted to start backup players such as Robin Olson, Calum Chambers, Jan Bednarek and Morgan Sanson. While the likes of Emi Martinez, Tyrone Mings, and Ollie Watkins were all benched.

Clearly, he underestimated Stevenage and his plan to rotate the team backfired. Villa last won the FA Cup in 1957 and they’ll have to wait another year now before they can challenge for the title again.

Tottenham Hotspur wouldn’t have a problem convincing Kyle Walker-Peters to re-join, according to Pete O’Rourke.

The Lowdown: Spurs struggles

Tottenham may move to re-sign their former academy graduate Walker-Peters with their terrible defensive form potentially looking to be resurrected in the January window.

Antonio Conte’s side slumped to a 2-0 defeat against Aston Villa in the Premier League on Sunday night, the tenth game in a row they’ve conceded the first goal.

Unlike their previous encounter against Brentford, they were unable to overturn this two-goal deficit and failed to reclaim a top-four place after Manchester United leapfrogged them on Saturday.

The Latest: Walker-Peters touted

One glaring area for improvement at Spurs is the right wing-back role with Djed Spence a completely forgotten man with only four league appearances all season and Emerson Royal and Matt Doherty flattering to deceive.

The Athletic reported that the Southampton right-back would be a realistic signing, with O’Rourke telling GiveMeSport that he’d be ready to return.

“Southampton look like they’re in a real relegation dogfight now, so I think if Spurs did come calling for Kyle Walker-Peters, even though he’s already left the club once, he would find it hard to turn down the opportunity to return to the club.”

The Verdict: Get him in

Walker-Peters left Spurs on an initial loan deal that soon became a £12m permanent move with the Lilywhites bringing Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg the other way.

After being stuck behind both Serge Aurier and Kieran Trippier whilst in North London, the 25-year-old has flourished on the south coast with him by far one of their best players as he was rewarded with his maiden England caps last season.

With the Saints embroiled in a relegation scrap, KWP would prove an interested and smart acquisition back at Spurs with him in the top 3% for dribbles completed amongst full-backs (via FBref), proving his attacking prowess in that role.

Liverpool transfer target and 2022 World Cup sensation Sofyan Amrabat has been favourably compared to Javier Mascherano by journalist Pete O’Rourke, with Jurgen Klopp reportedly mulling over a winter move.

What’s the word?

According to Corriere dello Sport (via the Liverpool Echo), the Reds’ German manager is striving to drive a deal over the line this winter, with Moroccan phenom Amrabat at the heart of the attention.

Fiorentina would reportedly be resigned to consider a bid in the region of €40m (£35m), and Klopp must act swiftly and test the Italian outfit’s resolve if he is to stabilise the ship and set Liverpool on course for success during the business end of the season.

According to O’Rourke, who was speaking to Football FanCast, Amrabat could even be like a former Red, with Liverpool wise to try and sign such a player as the club languish in sixth place, seven points off Manchester United in the top four.

The transfer insider said: “He can be better than Mascherano in possession which would be a big bonus for Liverpool as well and if he’s half as good as Mascherano I’m sure Liverpool fans would be more than happy to have him at Anfield.”

A monster signing on the way?

Liverpool’s desperation in the pursuit of fresh faces in midfield has become all the more apparent this term, with a stark decline in form and fluidity following a previous year that clinched a domestic double in the FA Cup and Carabao Cup and a 92-point Premier League finish.

The 26-year-old Amrabat could prove to be the glittering gem to serve as a central focal point in righting the wrongs and oozing assurance and quality from the middle, weaving a layer of undeniable excellence into the fold.

The Liverpool faithful will know all about the ball-playing mastery and defensive resilience of Mascherano, with the phenom having plied his trade at Anfield during his playing career, signing from West Ham United in an initial loan deal in 2007.

Mascherano, who was once heralded as a “phenomenon” by compatriot Pablo Zabaleta, played across five seasons for Liverpool before earning a £22m move to FC Barcelona, and his versatility as a holding midfielder and defender earned him lavish praise for his dynamism and effectiveness

A notable maestro with the ball at his feet, completing 88.5% of passes throughout his career post-2008, the Argentine took control of matches and utilised his footballing intellect to pick precise, positive passes.

Amrabat can adopt this mantle, and O’Rourke’s praise over his aptitude in possession is bolstered by the statistics; as per FBref, the “monster”, as hailed by journalist Carlo Garganese, ranks within the top 5% for pass completion and the top 3% for progressive passes when compared to midfielders over the past year.

And, as per Sofascore, his exploits with Morocco in Qatar – an 85% passing accuracy, 2.3 tackles and 1.4 clearances per outing – were a pivotal factor behind his nation’s historic surge to the semi-finals of the competition, ultimately finishing fourth.

With Liverpool indeed requiring a signing with world-class credentials to bolster the middle of the park, Amrabat might be the man; fleet-footed, pin-point, and robust, he could be Klopp’s saving grace, a monster in the middle of the park, as the battle to secure that coveted Champions League spot intensifies.