Goalkeeper Keylor Navas looks to have played his final game for Nottingham Forest after being ruled out of Sunday’s Premier League curtain-closer at Crystal Palace.
Navas limped out of Saturday’s win over Arsenal, which secured Forest’s top-flight status, after landing heavily when collecting a ball in injury time.
He has not recovered in time to feature at Selhurst Park and with reports in France suggesting the Paris St. Germain loanee will not extend his stay at the club, his City Ground career could be over.
Brazilian duo Felipe and Danilo, who also came off against Arsenal, are also doubts.
“Keylor is out for the game,” boss Steve Cooper said. “He won’t feature. You saw him come off right at the end of the game with a groin injury.
“Felipe and Danilo both came off as well and are doubts for the game. We’ll see about them. We’ve still got a day or two until the game, so we’ll see how they are.”
Forest’s survival is a real success given their long stint outside of the Premier League and their unprecedent squad churn last season.
After enjoying the relief of staying up, Cooper is already turning his attention to the future.
“Initially it was relief and really positive emotions,” he said. “You could see the joy that it gave the supporters and everyone connected with the team.
“No one wants to be down at the bottom of the league, fighting to stay in it, but it happens, especially at a promoted team. We had been out of the league for a couple of decades.
“And the way we had to go about it from the day we got promoted to this day, there has been so much change at the club.
“There is a feeling of satisfaction that we’ve had to contend with so many things that haven’t happened before.
“The boys have managed to get over the line and they deserve so much credit for that. For me as the days have gone by it has really now turned into motivation about how we have to improve.
“We have a tough game at palace where we are really determined to finish off the season well.”
Thomas Frank admitted Ivan Toney made mistakes but questioned the Football Association’s decision to ban him from training for four months as part of his suspension for betting rule breaches.
Toney pleaded guilty to 232 breaches of the FA’s betting rules and has been banned from football for eight months and is not allowed to train with Brentford until half of the term has been served on September 17.
Frank jumped to Toney’s side as Brentford adjust to being without their 20-goal striker for the first half of the 2023-24 campaign.
The Brentford boss said: “Yes, Ivan did something wrong but what I don’t get at all is how can you not let him be involved in football at all for the first four months?
“What do you gain from that? If you want to rehabilitate people you give them education, you do something, and now he is left on his own.
“There’s no doubt for me that the first four months he could be involved in football, he should be forced to go into a hundred schools to tell them about his football and background, that’s how it should work, but I’m a football coach, what do I know?
“If I can’t speak to him, then they will have to ban me. If I am not allowed to speak to him on a support level there must be something wrong. I think you’re allowed to contact people even when they’re in prison aren’t you? So I think I’m allowed.”
Toney’s ban was reduced by the independent regulatory commission after he was diagnosed with a gambling addiction by a psychiatry expert.
In March Brentford were reported to be considering cutting ties with Hollywood Bets who have been their main kit sponsor since July 2021.
And Frank discussed the link between football and gambling sponsors and called for better ways to support players.
“I think it’s definitely something we need to look into,” Frank added.
“The cleaner the football industry could be, the better.
“Ivan has made some mistakes, now we need to get through that and we will support him. But there is no doubt that football and gambling’s relationship need to be reviewed and I think we can only look at ourselves first.
“We got a massive reminder (Toney ban), do we do enough to educate our players? I think that’s a big thing, I think the football authorities have a massive task to make sure we do this much better.”
Brentford host treble-chasing Manchester City at the Gtech Community Stadium on Sunday where a win depending on other results could see them qualify for the Europa Conference League – the Bees are ninth and trail seventh-placed Aston Villa by two points.
“I believe that anything can happen in football,” Frank said.
“I had a big belief before the season that we’ll do top 10, of course I didn’t know (that Brentford would be contending for Europe) but I am so pleased we are in the mix and have a chance. But we just need to beat the best team in the world.”
Motherwell manager Stuart Kettlewell fears Calum Butcher has been left with a “nasty” injury after falling foul of Livingston’s artificial surface.
Butcher went off with a foot injury during Wednesday’s 1-1 draw at the Tony Macaroni Arena and Motherwell are awaiting news on the extent of the damage.
Kettlewell said: “Calum went to plant his foot on the pitch. I’m not so sure that we would have had the issue if it was on that surface out there (Fir Park).
“It’s an awkward one, I don’t think there is much give in the artificial turf as we all know and he felt a pop in his foot. It was so innocuous in terms of putting your foot down.
“He has got a scan and we will find out the extent of that injury. We just hope the significance of the injury isn’t too bad.
“It’s a real frustration because he has been excellent for us, absolutely outstanding.
“We are disappointed but I would hope it’s not too long a period that he is out.
“It is a frustration when you see a centre-back going to jump for the ball and his foot sticks in the surface and he ends up with what looks like a pretty nasty injury.”
Kettlewell is also missing Dan Casey with an arm injury and Ricki Lamie following hernia surgery, but the central defensive injuries mean Shane Blaney got his first start under the manager at Livingston.
The Irishman sustained an injury in his third start under Steven Hammell and Motherwell’s form has meant he has needed to be patient.
The former Sligo Rovers defender is excited about playing a bigger part next season but wants to seal a seventh-placed finish when Motherwell host Dundee United in Sunday’s cinch Premiership finale.
Blaney said: “The injury came at a bad time for me personally. That’s football and I couldn’t get too down about it but it’s great to get back in and any time I have been called upon, it’s been brilliant.
“It was brilliant to get a start on Wednesday night.
“I feel like I get on very well with the manager and I really like working with him, he has been brilliant since he came in. His ideas and the way he wants to play football are brilliant and it’s right up my street.
“I am really looking forward to finishing off the season and in pre-season kicking on again.
“It was different coming at Christmas and a full pre-season is massive for any player, getting the build-up of games leading into the season. It is really exciting for me.
“I feel like I can definitely do very well here from everything I have seen.
“From being injured and being on the bench, I have seen the league now, which is a big thing. I have seen how it works, I have come into games, I have started games, I know I can do it here. I am really looking forward to next year.
“We want to finish strongly so we can build on that and head into this season and kick on again and keep this upward trajectory going.”
Malky Mackay is buoyed by the fighting spirit Ross County have shown in recent weeks as his team bid to complete their cinch Premiership survival mission this weekend.
The Staggies looked on course for automatic relegation when they languished four points adrift at the foot of the table after losing 6-1 at Hearts in their last pre-split fixture five weeks ago.
But they have bounced back strongly, collecting seven points from their last four games to jump ahead of Dundee United and ensure they cannot finish bottom of the league unless there is an eight-goal swing in the Tayside club’s favour.
County are currently 11th and in the relegation play-off spot, but a win away to 10th-placed Kilmarnock on Sunday will see them climb above Derek McInnes’s side and ensure they survive in the top flight for another year.
“I’ve got a team here that are fighting and working so hard, and that will stand us in good stead for Sunday,” said Staggies boss Mackay.
“We’re going down there and it will be a tough game, undoubtedly. I know Derek really well and both teams will be fighting for the win but we’ve put ourselves in a good spot to stay in this league.”
County showed their spirit in a dramatic showdown at home to St Johnstone on Wednesday when they roared back from 2-0 down to draw 3-3.
Mackay is hoping his team can reward their supporters with a special day to end the campaign at Rugby Park.
“The fans were fabulous the other night,” he said. “They’ve stuck with the team through thick and thin.
“They can see the team are fighting for the badge and that’s what counts most for our fans. I hope as many of them as possible go down to Kilmarnock to cheer us on.”
The Jockey Club has been granted a High Court injunction against Animal Rising protesters who plan to disrupt the Betfred Derby at Epsom next weekend.
The application was lodged by the Jockey Club, who own Epsom Downs alongside many other high-profile tracks, as they felt the organisation had made it “explicitly clear” that they intended to breach security at the Surrey racecourse to stage a disruptive protest.
Word of their plans came after disruption to the Grand National at Aintree in April, when the race was delayed by just over 10 minutes after demonstrators made their way onto the track and had to be removed by police.
Officials at the Jockey Club feared the Epsom protest would endanger participants, racegoers and horses – although they state they do not dismiss the right to peaceful protest and have offered Animal Rising an area near the entrance of the racecourse specifically for this purpose on Derby day, June 3.
The injunction granted by High Court judge Sir Anthony Mann prohibits individuals from entering onto the racetrack and carrying out other acts with the intention and/or effect of disrupting the races.
Such acts include intentionally causing objects to enter the racetrack, entering the parade ring, entering and/or remaining on the horses’ route to the parade ring and to the racetrack without authorisation, and intentionally endangering any person at Epsom Downs racecourse during the two-day Derby Festival.
Individuals acting in breach of the court order could be subject to proceedings for contempt of court, which may lead to a fine and/or imprisonment.
The Jockey Club’s chief executive, Nevin Truesdale, said: “Our number one priority will always be to ensure that the safety of all our equine and human participants and racegoers, officials and our own employees is not compromised.
“Animal Rising have repeatedly made it explicitly clear that they intend to break the law and disrupt The Derby Festival and that left us with no choice but to seek this injunction, having consulted with a number of stakeholders including Surrey Police.
“We will never tolerate a repeat of the illegal disruption we saw at Aintree on Grand National day and we welcome today’s High Court ruling, which provides us with an additional layer of security to combat the threat of such dangerous and reckless behaviour.
“We believe everyone should have the right to peaceful protest and have offered Animal Rising an area near the entrance of Epsom Downs racecourse to express their views in a law-abiding way. However, anyone who attempts to disrupt the race or compromise the safety of horses or humans will be dealt with robustly by our security teams and the police.
“As such I now urge Animal Rising to abandon any plans to breach security at The Derby Festival and respect the legitimate right of the thousands of people who will join us at Epsom Downs and the millions of people watching at home and around the world to enjoy the sport they love uninterrupted.”
Bournemouth head coach Gary O’Neil feels Sunday’s trip to relegation-battlers Everton can provide a marker as to just how his own squad will shape up for the challenges ahead next season.
The Cherries looked set to be fighting an uphill battle to retain their Premier League status when sitting in the bottom three at the beginning of April.
However, rookie boss O’Neil – who replaced Scott Parker following a 9-0 loss away to Liverpool at the end of August – masterminded an upturn in fortunes with a run of four wins from five games to pull clear of the relegation zone.
Although three straight losses followed a rousing 4-1 home victory over Leeds, other results have meant Bournemouth’s future was secure ahead of what is set to be a nerve-shredding final day of the survival battle.
Unlike Everton boss Sean Dyche – whose side sit 17th, two points clear of the dropzone – O’Neil can plan for next season again with certainty as he looks to keep his club moving forward.
“Everton will be direct and the atmosphere will be tough,” O’Neil said.
“But what a great opportunity for the players to go and show what a good side we are, to see how well we can stand up to the questions that are undoubtedly going to be asked of us.
“So (it is) a real good marker for me, with last game of the season, going into a summer break and then pre-season to just see where we are against what will be a real good test.”
O’Neil told a press conference: “I have not really been looking at any other part of the picture (in the league) other than our own.
“I am aware of the situation with Everton, involving Leeds and Leicester is something I am aware of because we were involved in it for a big part of the season, but up until this moment, it is just pure focus on us.
“We have been on 39 points for a while and have given our best in the last three games to add to that.
“We are just looking to go and be ourselves, to put in a good showing and finish the season on a high.”
Bournemouth will have midfielder Philip Billing available after back issue kept he Denmark midfielder out of last weekend’s home defeat by Manchester United.
Hamed Traore should also be in contention again following his foot problem, but midfielder Joe Rothwell’s thigh injury continues to be assessed.
“We have another training (session) to go. We will see how they come through, but hopefully (the squad will be) as close to full strength as possible,” O’Neil said.
Aryna Sabalenka could end the French Open as world number one but accepts she will begin it against a player who “hates” her.
The Belarusian won her first grand slam title at the Australian Open and has maintained the momentum, winning the Madrid Open earlier this month and closing the gap on Iga Swiatek at the top of the rankings.
Winning a second successive major crown would guarantee Sabalenka the number one spot for the first time but first up comes what will be an awkward encounter against Marta Kostyuk.
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Kostyuk has been the most outspoken Ukrainian player about the sport’s response to the invasion of her home country by Russia and believes Russian and Belarusian players should have been willing to condemn their nations’ actions.
She refuses to shake hands with players from the two countries at the end of matches, but Sabalenka insisted that will not bother her, saying: “I kind of can understand them.
“I imagine (if) they’re going to shake hands with Russians and Belarusians then they’re going to get so many messages from their home country. At the same time, I feel like sports shouldn’t be in politics.
“We’re just athletes. If they feel good with no shaking hands, I’m happy with that.
“I don’t want to waste my energy on this kind of stuff. It’s none of my business. So, if she hates me, OK. I can’t do anything about that.
“There is going to be people who love me, there is going to be people who hate me. If she hates me, I don’t feel anything like that to her.”
Sabalenka has won arguably the two best matches of the season, beating Elena Rybakina in the Australian Open final and Swiatek to triumph in Madrid.
Between them, Sabalenka, Swiatek and Rybakina have won seven of the biggest titles of the season so far and hold all four slam trophies, burying the narrative of instability at the top of the women’s game post-Serena Williams.
It would be a major surprise if the winner of the Coupe Suzanne Lenglen does not come from that trio and Swiatek, who cruised to her second Roland Garros title last year, said: “For sure it’s a totally different situation than last year.
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“It’s nice to have somebody constantly kind of watching you. We played so many matches against each other that tactically we know our games pretty well. But we also have to come up with some different solutions sometimes, which is pretty exciting, because I never had that yet in my career.
“I think this is what the big three (Roger Federer, Rafael Nadal and Novak Djokovic) had to do for sure when they played 30 matches against each other or even more.
“So I’m happy to learn some new stuff. And also we are all working really hard to play better and better. It is an extra motivation, for sure.”
Sabalenka will be trying to put thoughts of the number one ranking out of her mind and is enjoying the challenge of the three-way fight.
“I think it’s good for tennis to see the top players consistently doing well,” she said. “I think it’s pushing everybody to the next level and pushing everybody to do better and to play better.
“That’s how I was pushed by Iga last season. I think it’s good for people to watch these kind of matches and to see that top players are reaching the last stages of the tournament.”
Swiatek arrived in Paris under an injury cloud after suffering a thigh problem during her clash with Rybakina in Rome last week but she insisted she will be fit to face Cristina Bucsa in the first round.
“Luckily nothing serious happened, so I had couple of days off,” she said. “I’m still recovering from the thigh injury, but I’ll be good for my first round. That’s the most important thing for me.”
Ange Postecoglou claims the demands that come with being Celtic manager will ensure there is no time when the motivation dips.
Postecoglou has been installed as the favourite to take over as Tottenham manager with most bookmakers – alongside former Celtic boss Brendan Rodgers – after reported Spurs target Arne Slot pledged his future to Feyenoord.
Reports in England claim the former Australia head coach has become a primary target for the Premier League club but the situation is not new to Postecoglou after a season of speculation.
Speaking ahead of getting the cinch Premiership trophy after Saturday’s game against Aberdeen, Postecoglou said of the reports: “I’m aware of it because everyone keeps asking me about it.
“It’s happened in the past, I have been pretty clear it’s just not the way I think and work.
“My priority right now is just making sure we have a special day on Saturday and we have a cup final coming up in a week’s time.
“I’m not going to sit there and get distracted by things that are kind of fascinating for other people rather than myself.
“That’s where my focus is and where it will continue to be. We have had a fantastic season and we have an opportunity to make it a really special one.”
Celtic will win the treble if they beat Inverness in the Scottish Cup final but Postecoglou will quickly move on to the next challenge rather than thinking he has done it all.
“That doesn’t really change,” he said. “There is always stuff to achieve. As a football club we have the responsibility to deliver success and play football a certain way.
“Just because we won the double last year doesn’t mean we came into this year thinking, okay, we don’t have to be as strong. We had to be stronger.
“The challenge is always there, irrespective of what we have achieved so far.
“And if ever you kind of lose that focus then you probably find yourself out of a job because that’s the demands this football club places on the people who represent it.
“We have a chance to win a cup final and make it a special year and next year we all start on zero again and the opportunity is there to try and improve and be stronger for what’s ahead.”
Celtic have only taken one point from three games since clinching the title and Postecoglou is keen to ensure they put on a show before lifting silverware.
“It’s a special day, it makes it all real when you get that trophy and get the chance to lift it, you’re champions,” he said.
“We want to make it a great day in terms of enjoying every aspect of it including the game itself.
“The boys are determined to put on a good performance and hopefully make it a great afternoon.
“We have had a couple of poor performances and results and whilst there have been reasons for that, me being the person responsible for it by changing the team, it doesn’t mean the players aren’t disappointed that they haven’t been able to perform to the levels they want.
“Saturday is the last opportunity we get to do it in the league so we are going in there to play with the same sort of intensity and tempo that we usually do.”
Right-back Alistair Johnston is set for a comeback from injury but Aaron Mooy and Sead Haksabanovic will miss out.
On Johnston, who suffered a leg knock in the Scottish Cup semi-final against Rangers, Postecoglou said: “He is good to go. He will play on Saturday and if he gets through that then we will see for the cup final.
“Aaron Mooy is still struggling with a back complaint so he will miss out and is probably a doubt for cup the final.
“Sead, who came off the other night, is not as bad as we thought. He will miss Saturday but we think he has a good chance for the cup final which is good for him and good for the group.”
Pep Guardiola has said he is “not optimistic” the Vinicius Junior racism row that has erupted in Spain will drive a change of attitude in the country.
Real Madrid forward Vinicius was racially abused by fans during his side’s game at Valencia in LaLiga last week.
The affair has sparked a wave of criticism of Spanish football and the way it deals with such matters.
It is thought to be at least the 10th time Brazil international Vinicius has been racially abused this season alone.
Manchester City manager Guardiola, the former Barcelona boss, believes the Spanish game can learn from English football on the issue.
“They should,” he said. “Here they are so strict. They know what they have to do.
“Of course racism is a problem everywhere, not just in one specific place. Everywhere we have (people) thinking we are better than our neighbours, we are better than the other ones, for all generations everywhere.
“Our ancestors come from migrants, come from wars, come from dictatorships, you have to move from other countries, build families there and come back to where you’re born.
“The problem is that there is racism everywhere. Not just for gender but for colour, for attitudes. We believe that our language is better than the other one, our country is better than the other one.
“As much as you travel in other countries, you realise we are the same, with the same fears, with the same good things.
“We need to accept the diversity as a strength, like a human being – and still right now, we are far away from that.
“Hopefully it can be one step to getting better in Spain but I’m not optimistic. I know a little bit the country and I’m not really optimistic.
“There are a lot of black people stepping forward to defend what they should not (have to) defend. Hopefully justice can help to do it but in the same time is it going to change anything in Spain?”
Pep Guardiola is convinced his Manchester City players will be ready to make the most of their “once-in-a-lifetime” opportunity to win the treble.
Having wrapped up the Premier League title last weekend, City are now focusing on next month’s FA Cup and Champions League finals, in which they will face Manchester United and Inter Milan respectively.
First, City need to finish off their Premier League campaign, which they will do at Brentford on Sunday, before the players have two days off.
They will then return to training next week and give the two glamour ties full attention.
City manager Guardiola said: “Everybody knows what position we are in. It comes once in a lifetime, twice in a lifetime?
“Being champions in the Premier League three games before the end and to play two finals – that doesn’t come every season.
“Once we are there, first of all you have to relax and enjoy and do your best, but no-one can be sure we will be in that position again.
“They are ready. I see many details – how they come up on days off to make treatments, how many hours they stay to make the treatments, how players are individually concerned maybe they cannot play the FA Cup final and Champions League final.
“When you see that you don’t have to tell anything and do anything.
“We prepare for the finals like we prepare every single game. We are not going to change any routine.”
City have a number of fitness doubts ahead of the trip to the Gtech Community Stadium and Guardiola may be unwilling to take unnecessary risks given the magnitude of the games that follow.
Defender Nathan Ake is the chief concern with the hamstring injury that has kept him out of the last five games but John Stones and Phil Foden suffered knocks at Brighton in midweek.
They were both substituted as a precaution and will be assessed, as will the likes of Jack Grealish, Ruben Dias, Aymeric Laporte and Manuel Akanji, who were left out altogether.
“It’s getting better,” Guardiola said. “They’re training Saturday afternoon and we’ll decide how they are for the last game because we need to keep our rhythm as much as possible before the long weeks to prepare for the finals.
“No-one (is ruled out) but some of them are half-half. We will see.”
Guardiola, speaking at a press conference, stressed the importance of relaxing during the days off next week before the hard work begins.
He said: “In my experience the best way to play important finals is to be disconnected as much as possible.
“When I started, it was ‘I have to prepare the final. I have to make a lot of videos’. Now it’s completely the opposite.
“We need to disconnect. Even our physios and doctors and cooks, they work incredibly hard in this period. They don’t have time off. They need to disconnect.
“Go with your families. If the sun is shining, play golf, do whatever you want and (have) quality (rest) to prepare for the finals. Arrive in the best conditions for the finals.”
Guardiola is a keen golfer himself but says his time off will be about “family time, good restaurants”.
“My back doesn’t allow me,” he said when asked if he will be hitting the fairways.
Get Ahead stamped her class on the EBF British Stallion Studs Cecil Frail at Haydock.
Clive Cox’s filly was the 7-4 favourite to strike Listed gold for the first time, having finished third twice at this level last season and again on her reappearance at Bath last month.
She was unable to land a telling blow when sixth in the Group Three Palace House Stakes at Newmarket three weeks ago, but showed her true colours returning to a sounder surface on Merseyside.
The daughter of Showcasing, a half-sister to 2000 Guineas hero Chaldean, travelled strongly throughout the six-furlong contest in the hands of Richard Kingscote, who always appeared confident he had matters well in hand.
Once asked to extend, Get Ahead readily quickened up to grab the lead and she was ultimately good value for the official winning margin of a length and a quarter, with Kape Moss best of the rest in second.
Cox said: “I’m very pleased, she’s a really nice filly and she’s got a lot of speed, so I’m pleased she’s stretched out to the six furlongs well today.
“She’s coming on all the time and maturity has been the answer to her really. She’s a half-sister to Chaldean and it’s a privilege to train a filly with such a quality pedigree.”
When asked about future plans, the trainer added: “Now she’s won a Listed race, we can explore a bit higher. She’s always shown a lot of promise, but with maturity, especially for the fillies, when it’s working for you it’s extremely pleasing.
“We’ll try to stay on the right side of the fence now, she likes quicker ground and it was great that Haydock provided that today.”
Cox and Kingscote were completing a double on the card following the earlier success of Spirit Of The Bay in the curtain-raising Tyldeseley Handicap.
Steven Naismith feels it would be wrong to frame Saturday’s fourth-place shootout with city rivals Hibernian as make or break for his prospects of becoming Hearts manager on a permanent basis.
The 36-year-old has won two of his six matches in charge since replacing Robbie Neilson on an interim basis last month and has been unable to stop Aberdeen claiming third place in the cinch Premiership.
Naismith acknowledges “results have not been perfect” but he is adamant Hearts, who have been praised for their attacking intent in recent matches, are now “a much better team” than when he first took the reins.
A 2-1 win over Aberdeen last weekend followed by Wednesday’s 2-2 draw away to Rangers has helped strengthen his case in the eyes of many supporters.
Naismith feels his ability to lead Hearts forward in the longer-term should be of more relevance when deciding his fate than the result of Saturday’s derby, where a Hibs win would see them pip the Jambos to fourth place.
“I would be disappointed if it’s coming down to one game,” he said. “The whole thing’s been a process – not just on a Saturday, every day we train and work.
“The way I work, I’ve been very open with everybody and said: ‘Come and see what we do’, and if it works, it works. In some respects it might be coming across as that way (that the derby is make or break), but I’ve not seen it that way.
“I’ve seen it as taking over for this period of time and at the end of it I’ll reflect over what I thought went well, what didn’t go well, how well I’ve done, but that’s for after Saturday.
“I think over the course of the seven weeks, there will be moments where people will have been like: ‘He can do the job’, and there will be moments where people will go: ‘Nah, he’s not got enough experience’.
“That’s why I’m saying I don’t feel I will be judged on one game. It’s a big game because it’s a derby and we’re next to each other in the table but we’ve not been solely focusing on this game.
“We’ve been focusing on a plan to try and win games consistently and have something here that lasts, where we’re building something that doesn’t just give you short-term results.
“The club needs something bigger than that, and since I’ve come in and taken charge, that’s been at the forefront of my mind.”
Naismith, the former Kilmarnock, Rangers, Everton and Scotland attacker, first joined Hearts as a player more than five years ago and has remained at Tynecastle, more recently as a coach, ever since.
He feels his knowledge of the club will stand him in good stead if he is appointed Hearts’ permanent manager.
“I think it’s helped me in the seven weeks I’ve been in the role,” he said of his familiarity with Hearts. “I think it also helps me that I may be considered for the job longer term because I’ve got a real understanding of this club.
“I came here and in my first six-month loan spell, there was a lot I didn’t know about the club even though I’d been in Scottish football for 15 years, in terms of the demand, the size of the club, where the club’s ambitions were.
“I didn’t really know that from the outside but then you come in and very quickly you understand that, which then gets you an understanding that we need a certain type of player characteristic that can deal with the pressure.”
Ryan Mason insists the Tottenham job remains an attractive proposition despite another protracted search for the head coach role.
Spurs saw another contender to permanently replace Antonio Conte exit the running this week after Feyenoord boss Arne Slot committed his long-term future to the Eredivisie club before he signed a new deal on Friday.
Tottenham held an interest in Slot but no direct discussions with the 44-year-old took place, the PA news agency understands.
Other managers linked with the vacancy, such as Bayer Leverkusen head coach Xabi Alonso and Burnley boss Vincent Kompany, have also pledged their immediate futures to their current clubs, but acting head coach Mason is under no illusions the top job at Spurs remains desirable.
Asked if the Tottenham job was still an attractive proposition, Mason replied: “Absolutely, yes.
“It is Tottenham Hotspur, it is a big club. Not just for managers or coaches, but for staff members, for players.
“Anyone here should feel the privilege and honour to represent the badge. If they don’t, then they shouldn’t be here. It is as simple as that.”
When Conte left his position on March 26, Tottenham were firmly in the race for Champions League qualification but they travel to relegation-threatened Leeds on Sunday with only a faint chance of securing a place in the Europa Conference League.
Mason insisted that, while European football for next season is crucial, the most important task for the club is to put a plan in place.
“Obviously it has its implications and it’s not where the football club wants to be. We definitely want to be competing in Europe,” Spurs’ acting head coach stated.
“Any European competition is important for a club this size but at the same time the most important thing, regardless of whether we’re in or out of Europe, is that there is a plan and there is commitment from everyone to that going forward.”
During the last few weeks, Mason has repeatedly referenced the need for commitment at the club without going into specifics.
Even before Conte departed two months ago, the future of the Italian was uncertain with his deal set to expire this summer anyway.
Mason again refused to be drawn on whether any coaches, players or staff had lacked commitment this season, but admitted the squad had been affected by the turmoil off the pitch.
He added: “The results before he (Conte) left weren’t amazing. I don’t think results have dipped a huge amount.
“Obviously we were in a different position but I think you could feel it, you could feel it the weeks leading up to it there was uncertainty and it’s never great to have that uncertainty.
“We’ve probably been in that situation for the last eight weeks where there’s been a lot of uncertainty.
“That is why one of my main things when me and my team of people came in, I wanted to create a togetherness and make us feel part of something towards the end of the season.”
Dan Evans has criticised the state of British tennis and believes Emma Raducanu’s success has papered over the cracks.
There will only be three British players in the singles main draws at the French Open starting on Sunday and, for the first time since 2008, no women.
Of the 10 British players in qualifying, none made the final round, while 2021 US Open champion Raducanu joined Andy Murray in withdrawing having undergone surgery on both her wrists and one ankle.
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Speaking ahead of his first-round clash with Australia’s Thanasi Kokkinakis, Evans said: “They’ve been lucky that they had a grand slam champion and she’s a very good tennis player but the rankings don’t lie, do they?
“Men’s or women’s, the rankings don’t lie. Men’s, not many of us playing qualis, not many main draw. I don’t want to sound like a broken record. But there’s way further to go than just the top players. It’s from the bottom up.
“We’re in a massive, massive habit of sending people to college now. I don’t think that massively helps. It’ll be interesting. I think the grass last year really helped paper over some cracks as well. After the grass, there will be a bit of soul-searching I imagine, after their holidays.”
Evans has been a long-time critic of the domestic set-up and recently criticised some of his fellow British players for not competing enough and being willing to grind out life on the tour.
A late bloomer after serving a drugs ban and admitting to enjoying the party lifestyle too much, Evans knows well both the pitfalls and what it takes to achieve success.
The world number 24 said: “You’ve got to work hard. I know what it’s like to not work hard and what you get from that and I know what it’s like to work hard and get decent rewards.
“I’m not sitting here saying I know the answers. I have a fair idea of the answers and I would do it very differently to what’s happening now I think. There’s enough people playing junior tennis. We just don’t help them.”
Evans reserved his strongest ire for former Lawn Tennis Association performance director Simon Timson – now occupying the same role with Manchester City – who was the architect of a performance strategy that heavily funds a small number of players.
“It’s just heartbreaking that a guy next door to you is getting 70 grand or something, but you’re better than him,” said Evans. “But a guy with these stats is telling you, ‘No, no, he’s better’.
“You can look who has been on PSP (Pro Scholarship Programme, the highest level of support). It’s hardly flourishing reading is it? And that’s what I think we need to (do) – get a bigger pool and just pool it all in and get going. It’s simple maths. But Simon Timson, he was the mastermind of it all.
“I couldn’t give a s**t about it. Simon Timson sat next to me and told me, ‘In all due respect to James Ward and Heather Watson, I put you three in the same bracket. You are close to finishing your career.’ And I said, ‘Thanks man’. That was that meeting.
“And I seem to have done all right since that meeting. He sent me to a psychologist, that was about it. I told him that it was a stepping stone, the job, and that’s exactly what it was. He wouldn’t be there in three years and he wasn’t. He didn’t know what he was watching.”
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Evans is certainly an example of what can be achieved with hard work and the right attitude, and he will hope to continue his improvement on clay when he takes on Kokkinakis on Sunday.
The British number two has lost his last three matches but reached the semi-finals of clay tournaments in Marrakech and Barcelona.
He joked of his relationship with the surface: “We had a good week at the start, and then we’ve not been on talking terms really, sleeping in separate beds.
“No, it’s been good. I feel comfortable. I’ve been playing good. It’s probably helped having an Argentinian coach, little intricacies, which the British probably don’t know because they’re not so brought up on the clay.”
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