Jose Mourinho's bizarre post-match war of words with Ole Gunnar Solskjaer has taken an amusing turn as the Manchester United manager's son chimed in, insisting he "always" gets fed despite his father's parenting being called into question on Sunday.
A gripping duel between Tottenham and United at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium was followed by some similarly entertaining sniping between the two managers.
Solskjaer, who had seen his side emerge 3-1 winners, was left infuriated by United having a first-half Edinson Cavani goal disallowed as a result of Scott McTominay catching Son Heung-min in the face with a flick of the arm in the build-up.
The Norwegian was scathing of Son's reaction in his post-match interview with Sky Sports, saying: "If my son stays down like this for three minutes and he gets 10 of his mates around him… if he gets that in the face from one of his other mates and he needs 10 mates to help him up, he won't get any food."
Mourinho unsurprisingly took issue with the comment, firstly snapping at reporters for them not asking Solskjaer about his words, then taking a pop at his counterpart's parenting techniques.
"In relation to that, I just want to say, Sonny is very lucky that his father is a better person than Ole, because I think a father – I am a father – you have always to feed your kids, it doesn't matter what they do," Mourinho said.
Noah Solskjaer, the United manager's eldest son, took the opportunity to address the comments of the two squabbling fathers and was quick to put at ease the minds of anyone actually concerned about him not getting any food.
The Kristiansund player, 20, told Tidens Krav: "I laughed a lot on Sunday as well. Max [Williamsen, a team-mate] asked me if I had been given food when he met me before training.
"I always get fed, I can assure everyone about that. Mourinho probably just wanted to take the focus away from the fact they had lost."
Nevertheless, being threatened with a lack of food may not even be necessary for Noah – "I've never been lying down the way Son did," he added.
Postecoglou reminiscent of Pochettino, says former Tottenham defender Dawson
Ange Postecoglou is a coach in the same style as Mauricio Pochettino so says Michael Dawson, who is excited by the Australian's appointment at Tottenham.
Tottenham's long search for a new coach took them to Celtic's door, and Postecoglou this week signed a four-year contract.
That came on the back of the former Australia coach leading the Hoops to the treble in Scotland in 2022-23.
And former Spurs defender Dawson thinks Postecoglou will end up being an ideal fit.
Speaking to Stats Perform at an exclusive launch event for Club and Nike Members held at Alexandra Palace, Dawson said: "I think it's a really positive appointment with Ange Postecoglou.
"What he did at Celtic, but not just there. I think what he did in Australia and then Japan, people were wondering, how would he actually settle in [at Celtic], how would his style of playing get implemented.
"He's certainly done that Celtic. So now he has to come to our club and do the same. I do believe it's a lot harder because the Premier League, in my opinion, is the best league in the world.
"But he's done in Scotland and now he'll want to come and come to England and do it again at a massive football club. I'm sure he's delighted to get the opportunity to work in the Premier League, and at Spurs and work with a group of young players that are in the building and try and improve them like he certainly did at Celtic."
Indeed, Dawson believes the 57-year-old's approach will be similar to that of Pochettino, who led Spurs to multiple top four finishes and a Champions League final during his stint in charge.
"Daniel [Levy's] gone out and made the manager clear that he wanted to play an attacking style of football," said Dawson.
"I looked at 2014, when I was at the club when Pochettino came through the door. You try and implement your style of what you want with a group of players then try and get the best out of that players and the right personnel to play in the right formation.
"[Postecoglou] plays with a 4-3-3 and with his fullbacks inverted, and they overload the midfield. Players will be on holiday and go away on international duty, but certainly when the first day of pre-season comes he'll be trying to get the message across."
Spurs finished eighth and failed to qualify for a European competition, and Dawson knows they must be targeting much better.
"I look at the Spurs team and the players that we've got at the top of the field with Harry Kane, one of the best strikers in the world," he added.
"He's done it for many years and he will keep doing it. He's an absolute genius, world-class, Spurs' all-time goalscorer, England's all-time goalscorer and he will keep doing that because he's relentless.
"Son [Heung-min], [Dejan] Kulusevski, Richarlison; it's now about getting the best out of these players to try and get us back to where I believe we should be and that's in the Champions League.
"There's no there's no hiding, it was a disappointing season. We looked at 12 months ago when we ended the last two games by beating Arsenal and finishing in the Champions League, it was great. This year we've come up short. The players know that and now you always get another chance."
Expanded competitions threaten well-being of ‘pushed to limit’ players – report
The expanded Champions League and Club World Cup pose a threat to the well-being of players who are already being “pushed to the limit” in the current calendar, according to a new report.
The men’s Player Workload Monitoring (PWM) report for the 2022-23 season from world players’ union FIFPRO has projected that changes to both competitions from the 2024-25 season could lead to an 11 per cent increase in the number of matches top players are involved in.
It looked at the example of Liverpool and Portugal forward Diogo Jota, whose 64 games for club and country in 2021-22 could rise to 72 in 2024-25.
The new 36-team Champions League would involve a team playing up to 17 matches from the league phase through to the final – four more than the current 13.
The new 32-team Club World Cup, due to be played every four years from the summer of 2025 onwards, could involve seven extra matches for the teams reaching the final.
The tournament has the backing of the European Club Association, but the World Leagues Forum – currently chaired by Premier League chief executive Richard Masters – is opposed to the plans.
The PWM report said: “The Club World Cup is expected to take place in June-July, which is just after the end of the long club season for the majority of participants.
“This will undoubtedly further decrease the off-season rest period for many players and raise concerns about their ability to fully recover in time for the new season. In addition, high travel load will also be associated to the tournament.
“The reforms of the two major tournaments will ultimately increase the number of games played by top players who could conceivably feature in both.
“This poses a threat to the well-being of players who are already pushed to their limit with the current international match calendar.”
The report found Manchester United and Portugal midfielder Bruno Fernandes played 74 per cent of his matches ‘back to back’ – without a gap of at least five days in between, including 20 consecutive back-to-back matches.
Chelsea’s January recruit Enzo Fernandez played 70 per cent of his matches back to back.
That was despite the midfielder having no off-season rest at all last summer, having played a first friendly for Benfica just eight days after competing in the Copa Libertadores for Argentinian club River Plate.
He also only had a nine-day break between featuring in the World Cup final for Argentina and reporting back for club duty.
The report also compared the workload of young players from the current generation to their predecessors.
It found England midfielder Jude Bellingham has already played 14,445 minutes in his professional career before the age of 20, while Wayne Rooney had only played 10,989 minutes before his 20th birthday.
FIFA and Budweiser agree new deal despite alcohol ban at World Cup in Qatar
FIFA has struck a new deal with Budweiser despite banning the product from sale at World Cup venues in Qatar last year.
The new agreement with ABInBev, the company which owns the brand, makes the product the official beer of this summer’s Women’s World Cup and the men’s World Cup in 2026.
FIFA pulled plans to sell Budweiser, except for the alcohol-free Bud Zero, within stadium perimeters in Qatar on the eve of the finals last November. It was reported at the time that FIFA had come under pressure from Qatar’s royal family, in a country where the consumption and purchase of alcohol is severely restricted.
A tweet from Budweiser at the time of FIFA’s decision, which was quickly deleted, read: “Well, this is awkward.”
It was reported last year that the company would seek a reduction of around £38million on its next deal in light of the move.
FIFA president Gianni Infantino said on the eve of the World Cup last year: “Partners are partners in good and bad times, in difficult and easy times.
“When times are more tense, the partnership gets stronger. I am very grateful
to Budweiser for the co-operation we have had in the last years, and last couple of weeks.”
The company took the decision to ship the beer it was unable to sell in Qatar to the winning country.
Marcel Marcondes, chief marketing officer at ABInBev, commenting on the new deal, said: “Cheering and celebrating over a beer is a part of the experience for billions of football fans.
“We’re proud to continue offering new, meaningful ways to engage with fans and give unrivalled, immersive experiences that connect them to the sport that they love.”
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