Ange Postecoglou believes an alignment between all the key figures at Tottenham has allowed them to move quickly in the January transfer window.

Postecoglou repeatedly made clear his desire to bring in a centre-back early and Spurs completed the signing of Radu Dragusin from Genoa on Thursday, with Djed Spence heading on loan in the other direction.

It capped a busy week for Tottenham after they secured the loan addition of Timo Werner from RB Leipzig on Tuesday and allowed Eric Dier to depart after 10 seasons to join Bayern Munich.

Spurs’ quick work is a big shift in strategy after previously waiting until the end of the month to secure signings and Postecoglou paid tribute to chairman Daniel Levy, technical director Johan Lange and chief football officer Scott Munn.

“It’s easier said than done because while we might have a desire to do things early, you’ve got to have all parties agreeing to that and it’s not easy to do, especially in January,” Postecoglou said ahead of Sunday’s trip to Manchester United.

“The key thing for us was from the chairman to Johan and his team and Scott, we were all very aligned in what we wanted and we got our targets early.

“It was pretty clear what we wanted to do and if it didn’t happen, then we’ve moved on. But I think the fact that we were all pretty aligned on what our objectives were allowed us to be sitting here now with two players in – not so much for Sunday, but we know we’ve got a two-week break which means we get at least a couple of weeks to get the lads up to speed.

“We had some pretty clear objectives. If there’s an opportunity for us to get better, we’ll take it, but what we were trying to achieve going into it, I’m really pleased we’ve got two players in who I think will play a really important part for us.”

Postecoglou has continued to reshape the squad this month with former captain Hugo Lloris joining Los Angeles FC and Dier ending his nine-and-a-half-years at Tottenham to join Bayern.

“The club made a conscious decision to change the way we went about things and for that to happen you need change in personnel,” the Australian reflected.

“Hugo left and Eric moves on to another chapter in his career, he’s another one who has had a fantastic career here at Tottenham.

“Eric’s left his mark, he was part of a very very good side who made many great memories for our supporters here and he certainly leaves his mark here at Tottenham.

“He moves to another big club and hopefully has success in the rest of his career.

“For us, it’s a constant evolution of traying to inch forward to becoming the team we want to be.”

Postecoglou expects Dragusin to be involved at Old Trafford despite still waiting for his work permit and Micky van de Ven is fit enough to start.

Cristian Romero has also returned to training and could feature against United, but Giovani Lo Celso and Ben Davies are both out.

Lo Celso’s absence could earn Werner his full debut.

Erling Haaland is still out but Kevin De Bruyne is ready to start for Manchester City at Newcastle on Saturday, manager Pep Guardiola has said.

Striker Haaland is still troubled by the foot injury that has sidelined him since early December.

The Premier League champions, however, are boosted by De Bruyne’s progress after the playmaker’s return from a lengthy lay-off as a second-half substitute in last weekend’s FA Cup victory over Huddersfield.

City also expect midfielder Jack Grealish to be available after illness, but defender John Stones is not yet ready to return from an ankle injury.

City manager Guardiola said at a press conference: “Jack has been sick. Hopefully today he’s back. Erling is out and John is out.”

De Bruyne said last week he expected to be on the bench at Newcastle, but asked if he could start, Guardiola said: “Yes. What I saw yesterday he looks really good and dynamic.

“The minutes he played were really good, better than the training sessions before the Huddersfield game when he was a little bit not what he is.

“But that’s normal when you come from five months of injury. He had highs and lows in the training sessions, but that is completely normal. The important thing is he is getting better.”

Erik ten Hag wished Jadon Sancho luck at Borussia Dortmund but would not be drawn on the winger’s long-term future following the Manchester United misfit’s temporary return to his former club.

The 23-year-old left the Bundesliga side for Old Trafford to much fanfare in 2021, joining in a £73million deal after a long, well-documented pursuit of the England international.

But Sancho has struggled to live up to the hype and been banished since claiming he had been made a “scapegoat” after Ten Hag said he did not reach the “level” required to be involved in their squad at Arsenal.

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The winger has been training away from the main group since September and has now returned to Dortmund on loan for the remainder of the season without an option to buy, saying it felt like he was “coming home”.

“I hope he’s doing well, so I wish him the best of luck,” Ten Hag said. “That’s it. I hope he’s doing well and he will be a success.”

The Dutchman has been reluctant to speak about Sancho during his four-month absence and quickly shut down further talk about the United man.

Asked what Sancho has to do at Dortmund in order to get back in the United team, he replied curtly: “No, I already replied. I think it’s enough.”

Sancho followed Donny van de Beek in leaving on loan, with other peripheral players likely to follow as United’s injury issues begin to ease.

The Red Devils have been beset by problems this term, but they are easing ahead of Sunday’s Premier League clash against Tottenham.

Lisandro Martinez could be involved for the first time since injuring a foot in September, while Casemiro has been out with a hamstring complaint picked up in October.

“We have had a lot of injuries,” Ten Hag said.

“This week in training, so the last couple of days, Licha Martinez training, Casemiro training, Luke Shaw training, so there are players returning. They are coming in for selection for Sunday.

“(Christian) Eriksen was ill in the week, he will return. Antony will return. Amad (Diallo) will return.

“We have more choices in this moment in the squad to put out a starting XI and to create a bench that is stronger.”

Ten Hag’s options are improving and the United boss will be hoping that is matched by an upturn in players’ form.

Antony has been particularly underwhelming after joining from Ajax for 100million euros (£84.8m) in 2022, with a slow first season following by a poor second campaign.

The Brazil international was given a leave of absence in September to deal with allegations of abuse against him that the winger has always strongly denied.

Police inquiries in Brazil and the UK are ongoing and Ten Hag believes off-field issues have had “an impact on him”.

“I can explain (his struggles),” Ten Hag, who worked with Antony at Ajax, said. “I think it’s very simple.

“I think his off-field issues stop him playing. I think first year was OK and I think in the pre-season he was very OK. First four games were very good.

“He was out and then he came back. He didn’t deliver the performance we should expect from him and he can do so much better.

“You mention Ajax, also I look back there so his effectiveness, his end product was very high there and also in the Champions League very high.

“So, I am sure he’s capable of doing this.”

Eddie Howe has admitted Newcastle have few friends as they attempt to bolster their squad in January against the background of stringent spending limits in the wake of their £400million spree.

The Magpies’ latest financial figures for the year ended June 30, 2023 were published on Thursday and revealed a loss after tax of £73.4million, prompting chief executive Darren Eales to reveal they may have to sell before they can further strengthen their squad.

Howe has been linked with a January move for Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke, but the 46-year-old insisted such a deal was currently beyond his pocket.

He said: “(It’s) a frustrating story for me because yes, I love Dominic Solanke – I signed him and I rate him very, very highly.

“But we have not made an enquiry for him and we don’t have the ability to sign a player of that level.”

Howe’s squad has been decimated by injuries and Sandro Tonali’s 10-month suspension, and Newcastle will go into Saturday’s Premier League clash with Manchester City with 10 players unavailable and latest addition Joelinton facing a minimum of six weeks on the sidelines.

The Brazilian’s misfortune – he has a thigh tendon issue – exacerbates the club’s problems in midfield, which had already prompted an interest in a temporary, but so far unrequited, move for City’s Kalvin Phillips, although even that is proving problematic.

Howe said: “I’m not sure there’s many clubs out there that are willing to help us currently.

“To agree a loan deal, you need the club to agree to that deal, so we’re in that moment where I’m not sure we have many friends in the market.”

Asked if loan signings were a possibility, he added: “We’re not shutting the door on everything, but certainly as I sit here now, no, we’re not going to bring anyone in. But that may change as the window unfolds.”

Newcastle’s predicament may attract little sympathy with their Saudi-backed owners having invested heavily to recruit the likes of Kieran Trippier, Sven Botman, Bruno Guimaraes and Alexander Isak since completing their takeover in October 2021, and Eales’ admission that players may have to be sold contradicts the narrative which has surrounded the club since.

Howe, who insisted the Magpies do not want to sell their better players, said: “There was this perception when the owners took over that we were the richest club in the world. The reality is that’s not really important when talking about FFP.

“That’s irrelevant. We are where we are based on income and we have to improve those revenue streams.

“Selling players is part of every football club’s DNA now. It has to be with Financial Fair Play rules because we have to generate more income and to sign players, we may have to sell players.

“It doesn’t necessarily mean star players – whatever you mean by that term – but certainly selling players will be something this club will do now for the foreseeable future.”

Meanwhile, Howe expressed sympathy for the club’s travelling fans after their FA Cup fourth-round trip to Fulham was scheduled for 7pm on Saturday, January 27, when the last train back to the city leaves at around 9pm.

He said: “I do have sympathy for them. We’re all at the mercy of the TV companies and when they want to schedule games, and I don’t think enough consideration is given to the supporters and what they have to do to get to and from the games.”

Sergio Aguero became the Premier League’s leading foreign goalscorer by hitting a hat-trick in Manchester City’s 6-1 thrashing of Aston Villa on this day in 2020.

The Argentina striker surpassed Frenchman Thierry Henry as the competition’s top overseas marksman at Villa Park after taking his tally to 177 goals in 255 matches.

Aguero also claimed the record of the most hat-tricks in the league’s history, with his 12th treble seeing him move past former Blackburn and Newcastle striker Alan Shearer.

“I’m so happy for the record,” said the then 31-year-old, who joined City from Atletico Madrid in 2011.

“But I thank my team-mates because they helped me this year. I’m so happy.

“I want to keep scoring more goals, but it all depends on my team-mates. If they pass to me, then it’s fine.”

Aguero went on to score 184 Premier League goals for City, placing him fifth on the all-time list, before moving to Barcelona in 2021.

He held the record for the most Premier League goals scored for a single club until it was overtaken by former Tottenham captain Harry Kane.

City boss Pep Guardiola said of Aguero: “He will die scoring goals. He is one of the best, no doubt. The best is (Lionel) Messi but the rest? Sergio is absolutely one of them.

“It’s an honour to be here the day he achieved that.

“There are players through the incredible history of English football and he is one of them, he helps to make the Premier League and English football better.”

Tottenham have completed the signing of centre-back Radu Dragusin from Genoa in a move which has paved the way for Eric Dier to join Bayern Munich.

Romania international Dragusin has put pen to paper on a six-and-a-half-year deal at Spurs and is the club’s second addition of the January transfer window after Timo Werner’s arrival on loan on Tuesday.

A centre-back was always Ange Postecoglou’s number-one priority this month and Tottenham have secured the services of Dragusin in a deal that could rise to £25million, the PA news agency understands.

The 21-year-old has signed in time so that he could make his debut at Manchester United on Sunday and marks another shift in tactic by the club from their previously adopted transfer strategy.

Spurs have notoriously waited until the end of January to complete their winter business, signing both Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur on the final day of the window in 2022 and securing the services of Pedro Porro with minutes to spare last year.

Postecoglou publicly made clear his desire to sign another centre-back and to crucially bring in recruits early to enable them to get up to speed with his style of football as quickly as possible.

The Australian has got his wish, with Dragusin fitting the profile of player Tottenham are tracking under his stewardship.

Dragusin progressed through Juventus’ academy and made his debut as a substitute in December 2020, coming on against Dynamo Kyiv before being introduced for his Serie A bow in the same month away to Genoa with future team-mates Kulusevski and Bentancur on the pitch at the same time.

The following campaign brought loan spells with Sampdoria and Salernitana in Italy’s top flight, but it was a season-long loan at Genoa in 2022 which kickstarted his upward trajectory.

Dragusin starred for Genoa in their promotion back to Serie A, playing 38 times and scoring four goals before he made the move permanent in July.

Dragusin continued his excellent form but, after 22 appearances this term, he will now ply his trade in England.

Tottenham stepped up their pursuit of the centre-back last week, but had to battle late interest from Bayern Munich on Tuesday after they had finally reached an agreement with Genoa before Dragusin decided to move to the Premier League club on Wednesday.

He will provide much-needed depth in central defence alongside vice-captain Cristian Romero, summer recruit Micky van de Ven and Ben Davies.

Djed Spence, meanwhile, has headed in the other direction on loan for the rest of the season and Dragusin’s arrival has contributed to Dier’s exit.

Bayern registered an interest in Dier last week and, while they made a late bid to sign Dragusin, Spurs beating them to the Romanian’s signature resulted in Thomas Tuchel’s side being forced to pursue other targets.

Bundesliga champions Bayern pressed forward with plans to sign Dier and he completed a dream move to Germany on Thursday on an initial six-month deal, which can be extended by a further year.

Dier’s transfer to Bayern will boost his faint hopes of forcing his way back into Gareth Southgate’s England squad and allow him to link up with former team-mate Harry Kane, who completed a £100m switch to Munich in August.

Centre-back Dier leaves Tottenham after 10 seasons in north London and 365 appearances, having helped the club reach two League Cup finals and the Champions League final in 2019.

“This move is a dream come true for me, because as a child you want to play for a club like Bayern one day,” Dier told the official club website.

“Bayern is one of the biggest clubs in the world and has an incredible history. I want to help the team with my versatility in defence.

“I’m really looking forward to my new team-mates and the fans at the Allianz Arena, which in my eyes is one of the best stadiums in the world.”

Tottenham have completed the signing of centre-back Radu Dragusin from Genoa in a move which has paved the way for Eric Dier to join Bayern Munich.

Romania international Dragusin has put pen to paper on a six-and-a-half-year deal at Spurs and is the club’s second addition of the January transfer window after Timo Werner’s arrival on loan on Tuesday.

A centre-back was always Ange Postecoglou’s number-one priority this month and Tottenham have secured the services of Dragusin in a deal that could rise to £25million, the PA news agency understands.

The 21-year-old has signed in time so that he could make his debut at Manchester United on Sunday and marks another shift in tactic by the club from their previously adopted transfer strategy.

Spurs have notoriously waited until the end of January to complete their winter business, signing both Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur on the final day of the window in 2022 and securing the services of Pedro Porro with minutes to spare last year.

Postecoglou publicly made clear his desire to sign another centre-back and to crucially bring in recruits early to enable them to get up to speed with his style of football as quickly as possible.

The Australian has got his wish, with Dragusin fitting the profile of player Tottenham are tracking under his stewardship.

Dragusin progressed through Juventus’ academy and made his debut as a substitute in December 2020, coming on against Dynamo Kyiv before being introduced for his Serie A bow in the same month away to Genoa with future team-mates Kulusevski and Bentancur on the pitch at the same time.

The following campaign brought loan spells with Sampdoria and Salernitana in Italy’s top flight, but it was a season-long loan at Genoa in 2022 which kickstarted his upward trajectory.

Dragusin starred for Genoa in their promotion back to Serie A, playing 38 times and scoring four goals before he made the move permanent in July.

Dragusin continued his excellent form but, after 22 appearances this term, he will now ply his trade in England.

Tottenham stepped up their pursuit of the centre-back last week, but had to battle late interest from Bayern Munich on Tuesday after they had finally reached an agreement with Genoa before Dragusin decided to move to the Premier League club on Wednesday.

He will provide much-needed depth in central defence alongside vice-captain Cristian Romero, summer recruit Micky van de Ven and Ben Davies.

Djed Spence, meanwhile, has headed in the other direction on loan for the rest of the season and Dragusin’s arrival has contributed to Dier’s anticipated exit.

Bayern registered an interest in Dier last week and, while they made a late bid to sign Dragusin, Spurs beating them to the Romanian’s signature has resulted in Thomas Tuchel’s side being forced to pursue other targets.

Bundesliga champions Bayern pressed forward with plans to sign Dier and he was given permission to travel to Germany on Thursday morning for a medical after a 4million euros (£3,440,000) deal was struck between the two clubs, PA understands.

Dier’s imminent transfer to Bayern will boost his faint hopes of forcing his way back into Gareth Southgate’s England squad and allow him to link up with former team-mate Harry Kane, who completed a £100m switch to Munich in August.

Derek Adams has continued his Ross County squad overhaul by signing goalkeeper George Wickens on loan from Fulham and allowing  defender Ben Purrington to depart for Exeter City.

Wickens, 22, is yet to make a senior appearance for the west London club, although he got some experience of first-team football while on loan at National League side Wealdstone in the 2021-22 campaign.

The 6ft 5ins goalkeeper, who has represented England at under-18 level, will provide competition and cover for County number one Ross Laidlaw.

Left-back Purrington has moved to Sky Bet League One side Exeter for an undisclosed fee.

The 27-year-old joined the Staggies in July 2022 from Charlton and made
33 appearances, scoring twice.

Purrington is the fourth player to leave County this month, with Ben Paton departing upon expiry of his contract, Kyle Turner joining Raith Rovers on loan and Scott High returning to parent club Huddersfield.

The Staggies, who appointed Adams as manager in November, are currently 11th in the cinch Premiership and looking to ease their relegation concerns when the campaign resumes later this month following the winter break.

Chelsea have recalled David Fofana from his loan at Union Berlin.

The 21-year-old striker featured 17 times for the Bundesliga side including four matches in the club’s debut Champions League campaign, scoring twice in total.

Having arrived at Stamford Bridge for £10.9million from Norwegian outfit Molde in January 2023, he made three Premier League appearances under former boss Graham Potter last season before agreeing what was due to be a 12-month switch to Germany.

He returns early to west London with the club currently lacking in attacking options, with Nicolas Jackson away representing Senegal at the Africa Cup of Nations and Christopher Nkunku having missed the last two games with a hip injury.

Armando Broja has been the only recognised striker available to manager Mauricio Pochettino in recent weeks but has scored just twice this season since recovering from an ACL injury.

Union have endured a difficult campaign after finishing fourth last time, losing nine games in a row which led to the sacking of manager Urs Fischer in November.

They were eliminated in the group stages of the Champions League, collecting two points from their six games.

Meanwhile goalkeeper Jamie Cumming has joined League One promotion hopefuls Oxford on loan for the rest of the season.

The 24-year-old, who has not played a senior competitive game for the Blues, spent 2022-23 on loan at MK Dons where he won player of the year.

Chief executive Darren Eales has admitted even Newcastle could not resist a “£1billion” bid for one of their biggest names after reporting a loss of £73.4million.

The Magpies, who are 80 per cent owned by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, are considered one of the world’s richest football clubs, but like all their Premier League counterparts they have to operate within profit and sustainability rules.

Sporting director Dan Ashworth has insisted in the past that spending £200m a year on players – Amanda Staveley’s consortium has invested in excess of £400m in the squad since completing its takeover in October 2021 – is unsustainable, prompting speculation that the likes of Sven Botman, Bruno Guimaraes or Alexander Isak could be sold to fund future recruitment.

Asked about that possibility as he discussed the club’s financial figures for the year ending June 30, 2023, Eales said: “It’s difficult to hypothesise, but if we’re offered £1billion for one of those players, then no one could argue against that making sense.

“Any decision we make will always be against the backdrop of the medium to long-term benefit for the club. It’s difficult to say specifically on certain players, but I can say that, if we’re going to get to where we want to get to, at times it is necessary to trade your players.”

Newcastle’s rise since Staveley and her partners – the Ripon-based financier is understood to have reduced her 10 per cent personal stake in the club, but she and the Reuben Brothers still control the remaining 20 per cent of the shares between them – took charge at St James’ Park has been spectacular.

They inherited a side sitting in 19th place in the table and having appointed Eddie Howe as their new head coach, saw him guide them to safety in comfort by the end of the 2021-22 season, and then a fourth-placed finish and Champions League qualification 12 months later with a trip to the Carabao Cup final along the way.

The latest figures, which show a loss after tax of £73.4m, but also how the club have grown off the pitch – turnover increased by £70.3m (39 per cent) from £180m to £250.3m, while an operating loss of £26.4m was transformed into a profit of £20.1m.

However, increased player amortisation costs – the way transfer fees are spread across the length of contracts – rose to £89.3m, contributing to the overall deficit, but one which falls within permitted limits.

The documents also reveal the club have loaned Staveley more than £1.2m “in respect of certain legal fees” which are unspecified.

The results do not include projected revenue of at least £37m from the club’s involvement in this season’s Champions League, nor income from new sponsorship deals with Sela and Adidas, and efforts to increase commercial revenue are ongoing with an expansion of the stadium one possibility.

Eales said: “To put it into perspective, we want to be a top-six sustainable club and Tottenham’s latest accounts available, (total revenue) was £440m. We are at £250m, so there is a big step even to the lower end of the top six.

“We have also seen that Manchester City are £710m in revenue in their latest accounts. There is a long way to go in growing those revenues.”

Eales, who signalled the club’s intention to retain the services of Ashworth amid reported interest from Manchester United, indicated that significant investment during the “difficult” January transfer window is unlikely, but insisted there were no plans to loan players from the Saudi Arabian clubs in which PIF holds controlling interests.

He also confirmed Howe’s centrality to the project amid speculation over his future during a testing series of results as 2023 drew to a close.

Eales said: “There’s no doubt we have had that real progression on the pitch and Eddie is a huge, integral part of that. We hope he is going to be with us for many years to come.”

Manchester United misfit Jadon Sancho has returned to Borussia Dortmund on loan for the remainder of the season.

The 23-year-old winger claimed on social media in September that he had been made a “scapegoat” after boss Erik ten Hag said he did not reach the “level” required to be involved in their squad at Arsenal.

United later confirmed Sancho would train away from the first-team group “pending resolution of a squad discipline issue”, but a settlement between player and manager was never reached.

The England international has been banished for the past four months and will now look to kickstart his career in familiar surroundings, having returned to Dortmund on a temporary basis.

“When I walked into the changing room today, it felt like ‘coming home’,” said Sancho, who left the Bundesliga side for United in a £73million deal in 2021.

“I know the club inside out, I’ve always been very close to the fans here and I’ve never lost contact with the people in charge.

“I can’t wait to see my team-mates again, get out on the pitch, play football with a smile on my face, get assists, score goals and help the club qualify for the Champions League.”

The PA news agency understands Dortmund are contributing an initial 3.5million euros (£3m) to take Sancho on loan without an option to buy.

That figure could reach 7.5m euros (£6.5m) dependent on appearances and team success as Sancho looks to get his career back on track.

Sancho made the last of his 82 United appearances 141 days ago against Nottingham Forest – one of just three games he has played in this season.

Dortmund sporting director Sebastian Kehl said: “Jadon is an absolute difference-maker and I’m looking forward to seeing him in Black & Yellow again soon. He knows this city, Signal Iduna Park, our fans and our club.

“Even though he hasn’t played any competitive games in recent months, we’re sure that he’ll quickly settle back in with us, find his best form and help us to achieve our season objectives with his qualities.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp has been impressed with Darwin Nunez’s attitude as the striker’s near misses in front of goal continue.

The Uruguay international has scored just once in his last 16 club appearances but that barely tells the full story of the 24-year-old’s overall contribution.

Nunez helped turn around Wednesday’s Carabao Cup semi-final against Fulham with two assists to allow the Reds to take a 2-1 lead to Craven Cottage for the second leg, but he could also have had a hat-trick in the last 15 minutes after coming on as a substitute.

After the match even Klopp said he was at a loss to explain why the forward had not scored more, but praised his value to the team in other areas.

Nunez’s ninth and 10th assists of the season took him past Mohamed Salah and Trent Alexander-Arnold as Liverpool’s chief creator and an important part of that has been the South American’s better decision-making in the final third.

And he continues to be a Kop favourite despite his goal drought as fans appreciate the energy he brings and the disruption it causes for other players to benefit.

“I’m so happy about our crowd and how they take it; I am so happy about Darwin’s reaction and how he takes it,” said Klopp, who is content for the Uruguayan to contribute in other ways.

“He did it (provide an assist) for Curtis (Jones) against West Ham and now for Cody (Gakpo). Super-special.”

Nunez’s background numbers do not equate with his top line – goals scored – as he is averaging more shots per game (4.6) per 90 minutes than anyone else in the Premier League this season, but his return of five is well below his xG (expected goals) of 8.6.

He averages a goal or assist every 93 minutes and has 18 goal involvements in total, just one behind last season’s tally of 15 goals and four assists.

And his minutes per non-penalty goal contribution is bettered only by team-mate Diogo Jota (89.9 minutes) among all top-flight players.

Nunez has also contributed seven (three goals, four assists) of the 30 goal involvements by Liverpool substitutes in the current campaign which has played a huge part in Klopp’s side topping the Premier League in addition to fighting on three other fronts.

“It’s mentality. To turn around a game, first and foremost you need quality; to turn a game around you obviously need belief,” said Klopp of his team’s ability to pull off wins from unfavourable positions.

“We had that this season where we had to overcome real difficulties very early in the season and nobody knew how we would react on that because you cannot plan it, you cannot train, you just watch it.

What is equally impressive is Liverpool are managing to still get the results even with a long absentee list.

Salah and Wataru Endo are currently away at the Africa Cup of Nations and Asian Cup respectively, while Alexander-Arnold, Thiago Alcantara, Dominik Szoboszlai, Joel Matip, Andy Robertson, Kostas Tsimikas and Stefan Bajcetic are all recovering from injuries of varying length.

An 11-day break should help in getting some of those back, potentially Szoboszlai and Robertson with Alexander-Arnold soon after, but Klopp has been pleased with how they have coped.

“We don’t go for excuses but it is obvious you have to change,” he said.

“It’s not the problem that the players are not there, rather the problem is the patterns you develop over the weeks or months are not there. That’s more the problem.”

Tottenham centre-back Eric Dier will undergo a medical in Germany on Thursday ahead of completing a £4million euros move to Bayern Munich, the PA news agency understands.

Spurs have been willing to listen to offers for Dier since the summer and the defender has started only once under boss Ange Postecoglou this season.

Dier, who only had six months left on his current deal, will now leave England and embark on a new challenge alongside former team-mate Harry Kane at Munich.

Postecoglou made clear at the beginning of the campaign that Dier could leave Tottenham, but he remained following the summer transfer window and eventually made his first appearance in the 4-1 defeat to Chelsea in November.

He was handed a start in Spurs’ next fixture at Wolves, but has only made two substitute outings since and was absent from Friday’s 1-0 win over Burnley in the FA Cup.

Postecoglou insisted it was down to a minor injury, but Bayern had already registered an interest in Dier by that point and they have now reached an agreement with Tottenham over his signing.

Dier has now arrived in Munich for a medical and will leave Spurs just short of a decade’s service in N17.

It continues a busy week for Tottenham with Timo Werner joining on loan on Tuesday and Genoa centre-back Radu Dragusin expected to complete a move to the club on Thursday with Djed Spence heading in the other direction.

Nicolas Anelka joined Chelsea from Bolton on this day in 2008.

The France striker, then aged 28, completed a move to Avram Grant’s side for a fee of £15million.

The Blues had been looking for extra firepower to help them overcome the loss of Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou to Africa Cup of Nations duty.

“Chelsea are a big club. I have proved that I can score goals at the top level and I can do the same for Chelsea,” said the much-travelled Anelka, who counted Arsenal, Real Madrid, Paris St Germain, Liverpool and Manchester City among his former clubs.

“I want to tell the Chelsea fans that I see this as a great opportunity and an honour to play for Chelsea and I will not disappoint them.

“Chelsea is the team I really wanted to join and I hope this will be the last club that I play for.

“I am delighted everything has been sorted out. This was a fantastic opportunity that I couldn’t turn down.

“I am really looking forward to working with Avram and Chelsea’s style of football really suits my game.”

Anelka would go on to score 59 goals in 184 games for the Blues and his time at Stamford Bridge saw him win the Premier League and two FA Cups.

However, he saw his effort saved in the decisive spot-kick in the 2008 Champions League final penalty shootout defeat by Manchester United in Moscow.

Anelka left Chelsea in January 2012 when he moved to Chinese side Shanghai Shenhua and he had further spells at Juventus and West Brom before finishing his career with Indian club Mumbai City.

Nottingham Forest defender Harry Toffolo hopes his experiences coming through mental health problems and gambling can help others tackle their own issues.

In September 2023, Toffolo was handed a suspended five-month ban after admitting 375 breaches of FA betting rules and was also fined just under £21,000. The investigation related to his time as a young player at Norwich and took in loan spells at Swindon, Rotherham, Peterborough and Scunthorpe between 2014 and 2017.

According to an independent regulatory commission, Toffolo’s deteriorating mental health and belief his football career was over were “very substantial mitigation” for him breaching the FA’s betting rules at that time.

The commission found Toffolo began placing bets on football, as well as other sports, when he was 18 and stopped at 21, with stakes “generally small”. Those included two 25p wagers on himself to score in the 2015 League One play-off final at Wembley for Swindon, who lost 4-0 to Preston.

The 28-year-old told BBC Radio Nottingham of how he felt “mortified and ashamed” when he received an e-mail from the FA outlining the breaches, which saw him drop to the floor in a “full-on panic attack” as he “felt like I lost everything”.

Toffolo faced mental health struggles and loneliness during his spells away from Norwich, later moving to Millwall in 2018 and then Lincoln before joining Huddersfield during January 2020.

Having signed for Forest in July 2022, the defender helped them win promotion in the the Championship play-off final under former boss Steve Cooper and has since gone on to play regular Premier League football.

Toffolo is now an ambassador of Tricky to Talk, which is a club community trust programme aimed at getting people to speak openly about their mental health.

“Some people might get down by it (the FA’s disciplinary process), but I feel like I have more energy from it,” Toffolo said in an interview with BBC East Midlands Today.

“I feel strong, but I also feel a sense of responsibility now to try help and hope it never happens again to anybody else.

“It’s now down to me as a person to say ‘what can I do to help, how can I protect my children from putting them in this position?’. I feel inspired by it.

“Every day for five months, it was just about getting through them one by one.

“I got through it and my career has never been at such a high than it has been in the past two or three months.

“I feel the most complete I have ever felt in my life at this moment in time, on the basis that I feel I have almost nothing to lose because I thought I had lost everything.

“I feel extremely humbled that I have the opportunity to keep playing.

“I just go out there and I fight for the fans and fight for my family because I’m sitting here now and I’m extremely grateful to even have this opportunity to talk about it.”