Tottenham head coach Ange Postecoglou has been dealt another injury blow after he confirmed Cristian Romero will miss the next four to five weeks with a hamstring strain.
Romero only returned from a three-match suspension at the beginning of December but is now set for another spell on the sidelines.
The Argentina international sustained the injury during last weekend’s 2-1 victory against Everton and a scan this week has revealed a hamstring strain.
Speaking ahead of Thursday’s trip to Brighton, Postecoglou said: “Not so great with Romero.
“He had a scan the other day and has got a hamstring strain. We are looking at probably four or five weeks for him.
“Disappointing to lose him, for sure. We obviously missed him with the suspension and now we’ve just got him back and he steadied things up.
“Now he will be missing again for quite a chunk of time.”
Romero’s previous absence was compounded by centre-back partner Micky van de Ven being out with a hamstring injury.
Summer signing Van de Ven sustained the issue in the 4-1 loss to Chelsea in November, but is close to a return and revealed at the PDC World Darts Championship last week that he could be back training in two weeks.
Postecoglou was cautious with a timeline, although admitted the trip to Manchester United on January 14 could be a comeback date for Van de Ven.
“He is getting closer,” Postecoglou confirmed.
“We will see him some time in January. I don’t think Burnley but Man United on the 14th potentially
“I don’t look at comeback dates until I see them training with us and he hasn’t been part of the group.
“He is not due to be part of the group this week so we’ll see how he is going at the end of this week. Once they start training with the group, that’s when we start thinking about if they are available.
“He is at the tail end of it, for sure and at some point, middle of January he could be available but how we use him after such a long absence will be depending on where he is at.”
Antoine Griezmann has said Atletico Madrid “will be almost 100 per cent” the last club he plays for in Europe.
The 32-year-old France forward, in his second spell with Los Colchoneros, is enjoying a stellar season in LaLiga, ending the year as leading scorer (21) and assist-maker (16).
He also became Atletico’s joint all-time leading scorer earlier this month when equalling Luis Aragones’ record of 173 goals in the recent 3-3 draw with Getafe.
Griezmann, who has already revealed he wants to sign a new deal with Atletico, told Spanish sports newspaper AS: “Yes, that’s what I said. I know the club is in favour of being able to make an effort and we will talk about it.
“Beyond Europe, what I would like later is the MLS (Major League Soccer), I’ve always recognised that.
“But Atletico will be almost 100 per cent my last club in Europe. It’s where I want to be, where I look the happiest and here I am at home.”
Griezmann said he only recently became aware how close he was to Aragones’ goal-scoring record.
“I haven’t been thinking about it,” he said. “In the summer, when I found out that I was 16 goals behind, maybe yes.
“I thought that if I had a good season I could do it, but I didn’t see myself getting it in December. When you have something in your head you get closer to the box, to the opponent’s goal and you want to score goals.
“I still don’t think about it much. I don’t want to spoil things either, but it will be something inexplicable about emotions and everything. I’d rather that day come and (then) enjoy it to the fullest.”
Griezmann became the sixth most expensive player in history at the time when he left Atletico to join Barcelona for £107million in 2019.
Los Colchoneros re-signed him on a contract until 2026 in October 2022, having initially returned to the Madrid club on a two-year loan deal at the start of the 2021-22 season.
Eddie Howe has warned his Newcastle players that no-one is guaranteed a place in his team as he attempts to turn around an alarming slump in form.
Boxing Day’s humbling 3-1 home defeat by Nottingham Forest was the Magpies’ sixth in seven games in all competitions, a run during which their first Champions League adventure in two decades has drawn to a close and hopes of a second successive Carabao Cup final appearance have gone up in smoke.
Head coach Howe hopes to have more of his injured troops back to assist those who have been wearied by a schedule which brought 10 games in 30 days during December and he will have no qualms about shaking things up, with the January transfer window also just days away.
He said: “I’ll be prepared to make any change that I think can benefit either the performance or the result and of course players are accountable for what they deliver.
“No amount of credit in the bank is big enough, you have to earn everything you get from the game. I’m a firm believer in that, so players know they have to perform and we have to change our short-term form for sure.”
Tuesday’s defeat, which ended a run of seven consecutive Premier League wins at St James’ Park, was all the more painful in that it arrived three days after a 1-0 reverse at Luton and courtesy of a rare hat-trick from former Newcastle striker Chris Wood.
More worryingly, it further damaged the prospects of repeating last season’s top-four Premier League finish and the rewards it would bring, and with fixtures against high-flying Liverpool, Manchester City and Aston Villa to come either side of an FA Cup trip to Sunderland, alarm bells are ringing in some quarters.
Howe, who has presided over a remarkable rise on Tyneside since taking up the reins in November 2021, remains calm and retains the support of the club’s Saudi-backed hierarchy, and his response will be to attempt to address his team’s ongoing issues on the training pitch, something for which he has had precious little time in recent weeks.
He said: “The difficulty for the players that have played the majority of the minutes in recent weeks has been they just haven’t been on the grass.
“They have been in between games, of course, resting and then building up for another game three days later, and possibly we’ve suffered from not having that training ground time.
“That’s the schedule, we knew that that was going to be the case, but I just think that our inability to rotate the team has maybe caught up with us in that respect.”
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A maiden victory for new Forest boss Nuno Espirito Santo extended his record against Newcastle from his days at Wolves and Tottenham to eight games without defeat.
He said: “I didn’t realise that. But more than my individual situation, today was a huge, huge, huge moment for us because I’ve just been told at St James’ Park for the last two seasons who were the teams that achieved good results here, and there are not too many so Forest did very well.”
Erik ten Hag hopes the return of key players in the coming weeks can help Manchester United deliver consistency after Tuesday’s stunning come-from-behind 3-2 win over Aston Villa promised to kick-start a new era at Old Trafford.
All the familiar problems that had seen Ten Hag’s side go four games without a win or a goal were on show in a poor first half as Villa were too easily able to score twice in the space of six minutes through John McGinn’s unchallenged free-kick and an unmarked Leander Dendoncker.
But United rallied in the second half with Alejandro Garnacho scoring twice before Rasmus Hojlund’s long-awaited first Premier League goal delivered a victory which, for all their problems, lifted United up to sixth two days after news of Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s forthcoming investment was confirmed.
It was only United’s second win in seven games during December, but they have been without a list of players including Lisandro Martinez, Casemiro, Mason Mount and Tyrell Malacia, all due back in January along with Victor Lindelof, and Ten Hag is looking forward to their return.
“So often we have to change the team,” he said. “You don’t get the routines. We know football is about solid performance and consistency and we know we have to make a step there, but I’m sure when we have more players available in the key positions we will get more consistency.”
Marcus Rashford made his first start since December 2, having initially lost his place to the in-form Garnacho before illness delayed his return. The England forward looked bright, forcing saves from Emi Martinez before setting up the first of Garnacho’s goals.
“I think he played very good,” Ten Hag said. “He was ill and also he had one or two games where we preferred to play Garnacho on the left side but he deserved it. There is internal competition.
“(On Tuesday) we played Alejandro on the right, that can be a solution, it can be fluid, but Rashford can also play on the right side.”
INEOS director of sport Sir Dave Brailsford was watching from the director’s box as Ratcliffe prepares to take control of footballing operations under the terms of his investment, and the win eased some of the growing pressure on Ten Hag.
Ratcliffe’s investment remains subject to Premier League ratification, but documents published by the New York Stock Exchange show INEOS’ influence will be felt immediately.
United must consult INEOS over any major sporting decision made during the ratification process, including player signings or if they wanted to dismiss figures including Ten Hag or director of football John Murtough.
Ratification is expected to take four to six weeks, a period covering most or all of the January transfer window.
United had trudged off to the sound of boos at half-time but the full-time whistle was greeted with a huge roar after a stirring second-half performance.
There were very different emotions for Villa, who were on course to end the night level on points with leaders Liverpool before it all unravelled in the second half.
Unai Emery’s side blew the chance to be top at Christmas when they were held by lowly Sheffield United on Friday, and this was another set-back as they try to cling to the momentum they have built in a superb first half of the campaign.
“Move on, be demanding,” Emery said. “I told the players that the first part of the season was fantastic but I want more. If they want more we have to work hard to get it.
“My mentality now is to focus on Saturday (at home to Burnley) and prepare the match as well as possible. We want to be better tomorrow than today.”
Anyone found guilty of racially abusing Luton’s Carlton Morris must face “the strongest possible consequences”, Kick It Out has said.
The 28-year-old striker complained about a comment made by the home crowd late on in the Hatters’ Premier League match against Sheffield United at Bramall Lane.
Luton boss Rob Edwards confirmed after his side’s 3-2 win that the matter had been reported to the police.
Kick It Out issued a statement on Wednesday morning which read: “We send our full support to Carlton Morris. It’s shameful that once again a player should be subjected to alleged racism while doing their job.
“Morris should be praised for how he handled the situation, and we commend the clubs, police and officials for their swift approach. But it should never have to come to this.
“Those who think this vile behaviour towards players is acceptable need to face the strongest possible consequences.”
Officials at Wetherby have been left with no option but to abandon the second day of the track’s William Hill Yorkshire Christmas Meeting due to a waterlogged track.
The West Yorkshire circuit played host to its traditional Boxing Day fixture on Tuesday, with the Venetia Williams-trained Fontaine Collonges taking the featured Rowland Meyrick Handicap Chase.
Another seven-race card was due to take place on Wednesday, with the William Hill Castleford Chase the main event, but significant rainfall overnight has left standing water on parts of the track and clerk of the course Jonjo Sanderson has been forced to draw stumps.
He said: “The forecasters said we’d get 20 millimetres (of rain) in a 12 to 15 hour period from around 3am to 3pm or 4pm this afternoon, but when I got here just after 6am we’d had nine millimetres and that’s already doubled in the next three hours.
“It’s just the volume of rain we’ve had in that timeframe really and we’ve got another 10 millimetres still to come according to the forecast.
“There isn’t a fence down the back straight we could jump due to the ground being saturated and areas of false ground.”
Leicester’s meeting on Thursday is also under threat, with a precautionary inspection announced for 3.45pm this afternoon due to a “forecast of continuous rain on Wednesday”.
The chase races at Uttoxeter on New Year’s Eve have already been called off, meaning the Staffordshire venue will now stage an all hurdle and bumper card.
Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo is confident the forward line will step up to cover for the pending absence of Mohamed Salah.
Darwin Nunez ended a run of 12 matches without a goal, while Diogo Jota came off the bench to score after a month out injured in Tuesday’s 2-0 Premier League win over Burnley which took Jurgen Klopp’s side top of the table.
Salah has one more game – at home to Newcastle on Sunday – before he departs for the African Nations Cup with Egypt and the 16-goal winger is likely to be away for a month.
Therefore, Jota’s timely return boosts the numbers up top, while Nunez’s confidence has been lifted by his first Premier League goal since October.
Gakpo himself has seven for the season, the latest coming in last week’s Carabao Cup romp against West Ham after he was denied a goal at Turf Moor when referee Paul Tierney adjudged Nunez to have committed a foul in the build-up, and he believes they have enough firepower to see them through in Salah’s absence.
“For every attacking player who didn’t score for a few games, it’s always nice to get back on the scoresheet and Darwin did it with a very good goal,” said Gakpo.
“For Diogo as well. When you are injured and you come back and score that’s always nice and good for the confidence. So really happy.
“Mo is gone after the Newcastle game so we need the goals. Of course, I think I can contribute even more.”
Liverpool captain Virgil Van Dijk is also of the opinion they can handle Salah’s expected lengthy absence despite the Egypt international being their main threat for so many seasons.
“It’s always important for the guys up front to score goals. I am delighted for Darwin. Diogo, it’s the same story. It’s good to see the boys back on the scoresheet,” said the Netherlands defender.
“I also want to say that Cody was outstanding, in the first half especially. It’s good to see. Everyone has to keep pushing each other. That’s the only way we can get better.
“Others have to step up anyway. We have to deal with losing Mo and we have the players up front who can make the difference. Let’s see how we deal with it.”
Liverpool’s return to the Premier League summit probably has more significance to the outside world than it does within the squad, who are refusing to look beyond their next game.
“The table is not looking in a bad place but we have to take it one game at a time, don’t let our heads go everywhere all over the place, just stay focused and keep doing what we are doing now and even improve more,” added Gakpo, who is enjoying his first taste of the English festive programme.
“It’s the first time I played with this intensity – a lot of games in a few days – and it’s nice as if you play a good game you can play again and if you play a not-so-good game, you can make it good in the next game as it’s coming nice and quick,” he added.
“Everybody wants the three points – also the opponents – so you have to work really hard every game and you have to be able to win games different ways.”
What the papers say
Dominic Solanke has emerged as a potential solution to Tottenham’s hunt for a striker. The Sun reports Spurs are watching the Bournemouth forward, 26, ahead of a summer signing.
Tottenham are also being linked with Belgium midfielder Arther Vermeeren, 18. According to The Sun, Spurs are willing to pay Royal Antwerp £25million in January with an agreement to loan him back for the rest of the season.
Jesse Lingard’s search for a new club has reached Lille, according to the Daily Mirror. But the 31-year-old former Manchester United midfielder, a free agent, could be restricted by a limit on French clubs signing players from outside the EU.
Manchester United are being linked with a move for Dutch striker Joshua Zirkzee, reports the Metro via Sport1. The 22-year-old, who is valued at £26m million, has scored seven goals in 17 games for Serie A side Bologna.
Social media round-up Players to watch
Raphael Varane: The former France defender, 30, is keen on a return to his first club Lens, according to L’Equipe in France.
Goncalo Inacio: Arsenal lead the race for the Sporting defender, 22, but Liverpool are also interested, reports Portuguese outleft A Bola.
Liverpool struck a world-record deal to sign defender Virgil van Dijk from Southampton on this day six years ago.
It was announced on December 27, 2017 that the sought-after Dutchman would move to Anfield on January 1 in a transfer understood to be worth £75million, the highest price ever paid for a defender at that time.
A Southampton statement read: “Southampton Football Club can confirm it has reached an agreement with Liverpool over the transfer of Virgil van Dijk.
“Southampton have agreed a fee that will set a new world-record for a defender. The club wishes Virgil well in his future when the deal is completed on January 1, 2018.”
Van Dijk had handed in a transfer request during the summer of 2017 when trying to push through the move.
Following the announcement of Liverpool’s deal, the then 26-year-old wrote on Twitter: “Delighted and honoured to have agreed to become a Liverpool FC player. Today is a proud day for me and my family as I join one of the biggest clubs in world football.
“I can’t wait to pull on the famous red shirt for the first time in front of the Kop and will give everything I have to try and help this great club achieve something special in the years to come.”
Van Dijk made his Liverpool debut against Everton on January 5, 2018 in the third round of the FA Cup and scored the winning goal.
The 32-year-old has been regarded as one of the best players in the world over the past five years and played a key role in helping the Reds win several major trophies, including the Champions League and Premier League.
Manchester United set a new record for a fee paid for a defender when they recruited Harry Maguire from Leicester for £80m in 2019.
The Detroit Pistons etched their name into the history books Tuesday, setting the NBA single-season record with their 27th straight loss, 118-112 to the Brooklyn Nets.
Cam Johnson scored 24 points and Mikal Bridges added 21 for the Nets, who handed the Pistons their 26th consecutive loss on Saturday.
Cade Cunningham poured in 37 of his 41 points in the second half and shot 15 of 21, but Detroit broke a tie with the 2010-11 Cleveland Cavaliers and 2013-14 Philadelphia 76ers. The 76ers hold the overall mark at 28 straight losses, a skid that started in 2014-15 and carried over into 2015-16.
The Pistons’ next chance to end the streak is Thursday at league-leading Boston.
Cunnigham made a pair of layups to draw the Pistons within 112-110 with less than a minute remaining, but Dorian Finney-Smith sank a baseline 3-point to put the Nets up 115-110 with 38 seconds left.
Alec Burks then missed a 3-pointer and Bridges hit two free throws for a 117-110 advantage.
Grizzlies win in OT, improve to 4-0 since Morant’s return
Ja Morant scored 31 points and the Memphis Grizzlies rallied for a 116-115 win in overtime against the New Orleans Pelicans to improve to 4-0 since he made his season debut a week earlier.
Desmond Bane scored 27 points, including a key 3-pointer in the final minute of regulation and the clinching free throw with 4 seconds left in overtime.
Jaren Jackson Jr. added 19 points, redeeming his missed free throw at the end of regulation with a pair of baskets late in OT that gave Memphis the lead for good.
Morant has averaged 28.8 points in four games since he returned from his 25-game NBA suspension after the Grizzlies were 6-19 in his absence.
Zion Williamson had 23 points and 11 rebounds for the Pelicans, who also lost a double-digit, second-half lead to Memphis in the previous meeting.
Kings’ Fox scores 43 in loss to Trail Blazers
De’Aaron Fox had 43 points but it wasn’t enough as Anfernee Simons scored 29 to lift the Portland Trail Blazers to a 130-113 win over the Sacramento Kings.
Duop Reath added a career-high 25 points and grabbed nine rebounds off the bench for the Blazers, who got 19 points from Malcolm Brogdon and 17 and 11 assists from rookie Scoot Henderson.
Fox was 16 of 26 from the field and 7 of 15 from long range while adding eight rebounds and four assists. Domantas Sabonis scored 34 points, but no other Sacramento player was in double figures.
Teenage sensation Luke Littler resumes his incredible assault on the World Championship on Wednesday.
The 16-year-old took the tournament by storm before Christmas by winning his first two matches and he headlines a spectacular evening session on its resumption, with defending champion Michael Smith and Michael van Gerwen also on the bill.
Here, the PA news agency takes a look at what to look out for in the second half of the competition.
Can Littler be the big man?
Outside the darting world, no one had heard of Luke Littler until last week when the teenager burst onto the scene by winning his first two matches at Alexandra Palace. Now, everyone is sitting up and taking notice as he dreams of World Championship glory. Matt Campbell stands between him and a spot in the last 16, but it will be no gimme for Littler on Wednesday night. Campbell beat James Wade in the second round, but has been home to Canada over Christmas, so his travelling may play a factor.
Will Smith hit the double?
This time last year Michael Smith was gearing up to win his maiden world title, triumphing in that memorable final against Michael van Gerwen where he hit a nine-dart finish in the greatest leg in the history of the sport. Things have not gone so well since that magical night at Ally Pally, and he has failed to win any major tournaments in 2023, but Smith has all eyes on winning a second successive crown. He opened the tournament way back on December 15 and should have no problems getting past Madars Razma. Expect him to click through the gears as the business end of the tournament approaches.
Barney’s silver anniversary
It is 25 years since Raymond van Barneveld claimed his first world title, winning the BDO crown in 1998. He won another three at Lakeside before switching to the PDC and winning another, while also kicking off an enduring rivalry with Phil Taylor which dominated the sport. The 56-year-old, who came out of retirement two years ago, has set his sights on marking the 25th anniversary of that first title with another at Alexandra Palace. A spectacular quarter-final with Littler looms in a potential match that would get the tastebuds tingling.
Van Gerwen aiming to end the drought
When Michael van Gerwen won the World Championship for a third time in six years in 2019, it looked like he would dominate the sport for years to come. But that turned out to be the end of a golden period as he has not won it since as other contenders have come up on the rails. The Dutchman usually remains the man to beat, having lost in two finals since then, while Covid-19 ruined his 2022 campaign. The four-year drought hurts Van Gerwen, who still considers himself the best player and will be desperate to get his hands back on the Sid Waddell Trophy.
Price is right?
Gerwyn Price must have been a tad wary about returning to Ally Pally after how his last visit ended. The Welshman lost in the quarter-finals after a particularly vociferous crowd made his life so difficult that he resorted to wearing ear defenders midway through the match. Price got a much more favourable reaction in his opening match before Christmas, and he will be dreaming of getting the chance to reign supreme in front of fans at the Palace after his 2021 title was played behind closed doors.
The Detroit Pistons broke the record for the longest losing run in an NBA season as they fell to a 27th straight defeat against the Brooklyn Nets.
Having won two of their first three matches this season, the Pistons continued their losing run on Boxing Day as they went down 118-112.
They will match the overall record of 28 defeats – set by the Philadelphia 76ers across two seasons in 2015 – if they lose at the Boston Celtics, who have the NBA’s best record, on Thursday.
Beleagured Pistons fans, who have repeatedly called on owner Tom Gores to sell the team, were given hope of ending the run as they opened a 14-point lead in the first quarter.
Having surrendered that advantage to trail 61-54 at half-time, they hit back to lead 97-92 in the fourth quarter as Cade Cunningham scored 41 points.
Thirteen straight points from the Nets swung the game their way and secured the Pistons an unwanted place in the record books.
A facile victory to open his account on December 17, was a clear indicator of Intrestntimesahead’s immense potential, and so it came as no surprise that the Jason DaCosta-trained charge left rivals in his wake to top the Supreme Ventures Limited (SVL)-sponsored Jamaica Two-year-old stakes over a mile (1,600 metres) at Caymanas Park on Tuesday.
Piloted by the bustling Phillip Parchment, Intrestntimesahead romped the 10-horse Futurity contest –in which he was one of only two colts in the field–by three lengths and pocketed the $4 million purse for his connections.
Sent off at odds of 9-1, Intrestntimesahead, running from the number six draw, was held off the pace in fifth by Parchment, as stablemate Banadura (Robert Halledeen) dominated proceedings, with Matuso (Raddesh Roman) for company down the backstretch.
Comehometome (Reyan Lewis), and Run Julie Run (Omar Walker) were also in touching distance, as the leaders approached the half-mile mark, and it was at that point that Parchment got Intrestntimesahead into his running.
When they left there and headed towards the stretch run, Run Julie Run took aim at Banadura, and easily swept by the longtime leader as they straightened, but by then, Intrestntimesahead, had hit top stride and burst through on the rails.
From there, the writing was on the walls, as the Bold Conquest -My Friend Lucy charge, owned by Elizabeth DaCosta, covered the distance in a 1:39.2, behind splits of 24.0, 46.3 and 1:13.1.
Run Julie Run stayed on for second, with Fastnfuriouslinks (Javaniel Patterson) and Buttercup (Tevin Foster) completing the frame.
Meanwhile, veteran rider Oneil Mullings topped his peers with winners on the 10-race Boxing Day card. Mullings won the first and eighth events aboard Lion Talk for trainer Ryan Williams and Ricardo Brown’s City Hawk.
Erik ten Hag expects Rasmus Hojlund to keep scoring after Manchester United’s £72million man finally broke his Premier League duck to seal a stunning 3-2 comeback win over Aston Villa.
United looked destined for a 14th defeat of the season in all competitions when Aston Villa scored twice in the space of six first-half minutes through John McGinn and Leander Dendoncker to take a 2-0 lead in at half-time as boos rang around Old Trafford at the break.
But with INEOS director of sport Sir Dave Brailsford watching on after Sir Jim Ratcliffe’s minority stake-holding was confirmed, United rallied in the second half with Alejandro Garnacho scoring twice before Hojlund won it in the 82nd minute.
Although the summer signing from Atalanta finished as United’s top-scorer in their short-lived Champions League campaign, he had failed to find the net in 16 matches in domestic competition, but made no mistake when McGinn could only flick the ball into his path eight minutes from time.
“Of course I’ve had several talks with him and every time I’ve pointed out he has scored for Denmark a lot, he has scored in the Champions League, he has demonstrated his ability so you can do it, believe,” Ten Hag said of the 20-year-old Dane.
“I’m sure now he has the first goal he will score more…
“When a striker doesn’t score it’s a problem but he has a strong character, he is so solid, determined. He has a big personality. I think this is what a striker needs. When you keep investing, the goals will come.”
Brailsford’s presence came two days after Ratcliffe’s purchase of a 25 per cent stake in the club – which will come with control of footballing operations – was announced subject to ratification by the Premier League.
The former British Cycling boss would have been worried by how easily Villa scored their goals. McGinn’s free-kick from wide bounced through a crowded box before Dendoncker was left almost unmarked to flick home from a corner.
But asked if Brailsford had seen both the best and worst of his United side, Ten Hag said: “It wasn’t the worst. I think already in the first half we played solidly. It was a little bit slopping to give two goals away but after we changed the pressing slightly and we kept going.
“Already we created chances in the first half, we kept believing in ourselves and that is what I demand. I said at half-time, keep believing and we will win this game.”
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