Everton manager Sean Dyche has paid tribute to Bill Kenwright, who died on Monday at the age of 78, calling the late chairman “an amazing servant” to the club.

On Wednesday morning, Dyche and club captain Seamus Coleman laid flowers at the statue of Dixie Dean outside Goodison Park, where the Everton squad were holding a training session.

All players and staff observed a minute’s silence before the session and Kenwright’s image was shown on the stadium’s screens.

Everton announced on Tuesday that Kenwright had died following a battle with cancer.

In a statement on the club website, Dyche said: “His influence in bringing me to Everton in the first place was important and I have nothing but gratitude and respect for his unwavering support of myself, the staff and our players.

“It was a pleasure to share the moment of reaching our objective last season with him – a moment I know he felt so strongly about after such an arduous season, on and off the pitch…

“He was an incredible professional, in terms of what he did with Everton and also what he achieved in the theatre industry. Spending time with him and learning about his family, you couldn’t help but be taken by his passion.”

Dyche was told of the news midway through Tuesday’s training and called an immediate halt to the session as players and staff paid their respects.

Kenwright, who succeeded Sir Phillip Carter as chairman in 2004 after first joining the board at Goodison Park in 1989, had a cancerous tumour removed from his liver in August.

Liverpool-born Kenwright was a successful theatre and film producer when asked to join the Everton board in 1989.

He bought a majority 68 per cent stake in the club in 1999 and became deputy chairman before replacing Carter in his current role.

Dyche added: “Beyond his deep love of his family, one of those big passions, of course, was football – the game as a whole, as well as his obvious lasting love of Everton football club.

“His story – a boyhood supporter who went on to become chairman – is something so rare in the modern game, especially at the top level.

“He always believed in Everton and stood by the club, even in the toughest times. He was steadfast until the very end.

“Like so many who knew him, my heart and my thoughts are with his family at this extremely sad time.”

Everton boss Sean Dyche and captain Seamus Coleman have paid tribute to chairman Bill Kenwright.

The pair laid flowers at the Dixie Dean statue outside Goodison Park on Tuesday morning.

Kenwright died at the age of 78 following a battle with cancer, the club announced on Monday.

Kenwright, who succeeded Sir Phillip Carter as chairman in 2004 after first joining the board at Goodison Park in 1989, had a cancerous tumour removed from his liver in August.

Liverpool-born Kenwright was a successful theatre and film producer when asked to join the Everton board in 1989.

He bought a majority 68 per cent stake in the club in 1999 and became deputy chairman before replacing Carter in his current role.

What the papers say

Newcastle could be set to revisit their interest in Manchester City midfielder Kalvin Phillips. According to the i, the 27-year-old could be brought in as short-term cover for Sandro Tonali, who is facing a ban following investigations into alleged betting offences.

The Liverpool Echo reports the Reds are among several Premier League clubs interested in Athletic Bilbao winger Nico Williams. Citing website 90min, the paper says Liverpool, along with Arsenal, Tottenham and Aston Villa, are all keeping tabs on the 21-year-old.

And the Birmingham Mail says Aston Villa and West Ham have been told by Real Madrid that the price tag for in-demand midfielder Brahim Diaz is about £17.8million.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Jamal Musiala: The Bayern Munich winger is weighing a move to Manchester City or Real Madrid, according to Sky Sports Deutchland.

Jack Clarke: The Sunderland Echo says Sunderland are keen to ward off interest from Burnley by tying down the 22-year-old winger to a new contract.

Bill Kenwright would proudly regale anyone who cared to listen about his tales from the Boys’ Pen at Goodison Park, how he took two buses and a tram to watch his hero Dave Hickson, of eating soggy meat pies.

And, even though he graduated from the terraces to the boardroom, he never lost his love for the club. He was a chairman who remained a fan at heart.

It was, however, a stick used to beat him with when money became the driving force in football and the Toffees fell behind the Premier League’s big guns.

Nevertheless, his death at the age of 78 after suffering from cancer will be felt keenly by all associated with Everton.

Born on September 4, 1945 in Liverpool, the son of a bricklayer-turned-builder, his own journey was something considerably more dramatic – quite literally.

He took his inspiration from boyhood hero Hickson, saying: “I found a sort of guide – he taught me how to dare.

“From my family, I had real protection and comfort and, in mum, a spirit that said I could do anything I wanted to.”

His mother, Hope, who died in 2012 aged 93, remained a huge influence on his life and was famously dragged into Manchester United’s negotiations to sign young academy protege Wayne Rooney.

United’s then-manager Sir Alex Ferguson, recalling the talks in his autobiography, wrote: “Bill Kenwright gets on his phone and he hands it to me and says, ‘It’s my mother, she wants to talk to you’. She said: ‘Don’t you dare steal my boy!’.”

Theatre and acting was Kenwright’s second love and he was on stage at the Liverpool Playhouse by the age of 12, attending the Liverpool Institute high school at the same time as Paul McCartney and George Harrison and touring local pubs and clubs with his RnB band, The Chevrolets.

A romantic gamble got him his break as a professional actor as he arrived in Manchester to attend university but instead made a late decision to head to Granada Studios, where a successful walk-in audition set him on the path to becoming a theatre impresario and film producer via a role in Coronation Street as Gordon Clegg.

He went on to work with Tim Rice and Sir Andrew Lloyd Webber on Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat, Jesus Christ Superstar and Evita and produced the hit West End show Blood Brothers.

But Everton still pulled at his heartstrings and, after joining the board in 1989, he rose to deputy chairman when he launched a successful takeover with a £20m bid to buy a 68 per cent majority share of the club from Peter Johnson in 1999.

“I couldn’t think of anyone else who should be taking over the club apart from me,” Kenwright, who became chairman in 2004, said at the time of the takeover.

“More than anything else I’m a fan. I know more than most people what the guy on the terraces and in the directors’ box would want to see.”

With David Moyes at the helm for 11 years, Kenwright oversaw something of a resurgence, but the arrival of billionaire owners changed the face of football and he realised he could not compete as the criticism of his reign began to grow.

“A football club is a trophy asset and you buy a football club not to make money, believe me, I am living proof of that. There’s not huge money in the world,” he explained.

He eventually secured billionaire businessman Farhad Moshiri as major shareholder, a bitter-sweet moment as it meant relinquishing power for his beloved club to move forward.

Persuading Moshiri to install Sam Allardyce as manager after sacking Ronald Koeman was Kenwright’s final major, albeit unpopular, decision, but his role as chairman meant he continued to be a regular in the directors’ box at Goodison.

As the club’s fortunes failed to align with their new-found finances, supporter protests started to increase, with Kenwright facing accusations of overseeing two decades of underachievement and decay.

Despite his attempts to engage with fans, the relationship was never the same and in January he was, along with three directors, prevented from attending matches at Goodison because of fan opposition that entailed “threats to safety and security”.

Kenwright is survived by partner Jenny Seagrove and daughter Lucy Kenwright.

Everton chairman Bill Kenwright has died at the age of 78 following his battle with cancer, the club have announced.

Kenwright, who succeeded Sir Phillip Carter as chairman in 2004 after first joining the board at Goodison Park in 1989, had a cancerous tumour removed from his liver in August.

A statement on the club’s website said: “Everton Football Club is in mourning following the death of Chairman Bill Kenwright CBE, who passed away peacefully last night aged 78, surrounded by his family and loved ones…

“The club has lost a chairman, a leader, a friend, and an inspiration. The thoughts and prayers of everyone at Everton are with his partner Jenny Seagrove, his daughter Lucy Kenwright, grandchildren and everybody who knew and loved him.”

Everton announced earlier this month that the surgery had been “completely successful”, but complications meant Kenwright needed a lengthy stay in an intensive care unit before continuing his recovery at home.

Liverpool-born Kenwright was a successful theatre and film producer when asked to join the Everton board in 1989.

He bought a majority 68 per cent stake in the club in 1999 and became deputy chairman before replacing Carter in his current role.

In June this year, Everton owner Farhad Moshiri announced he had asked Kenwright to remain as chairman and help the club through a “period of transition”.

Kenwright had come under pressure from a section of fans who protested at how the club was being run.

It was announced last month that a deal to sell the club to American investment firm 777 Partners had been agreed.

The prospective new owners insisted last week that the takeover bid was still on track after it was reported they had failed to supply information to the Financial Conduct Authority (FCA) and said the process was ongoing.

Tottenham are enjoying their best start to an English top-flight season since 1960-61, following Monday’s 2-0 win over Fulham.

Ange Postecoglou’s side are unbeaten in nine matches and sit two points clear of Manchester City and Arsenal at the top of the Premier League.

Here, the PA news agency looks at the data behind Spurs’ strong start.

Dare to dream

Tottenham’s return of 23 points from their opening nine matches is the second highest in their top-flight history (all records calculated with three points being awarded for a win).

Only the 1960-61 double-winning side had a superior record at the same stage, having taken maximum points on their way to 11 victories from their first 11 games under Bill Nicholson.

Three other Spurs teams have gone unbeaten over the same period, with each of the 1959-60, 1990-91 and 2016-17 sides recording five wins and four draws in their first nine fixtures.

Tottenham ended as runners-up in the latter campaign – their highest Premier League finish to date – but they never topped the table ahead of champions Leicester.

Having already reached the summit during the recent international break, a win against Crystal Palace on Friday would see Postecoglou’s men set a new club record for most days spent at the top of the Premier League in a single season, which currently stands at 23 in 2020-21.

Ange-ball

As well as putting together a promising set of early results, Postecoglou has overseen a remarkable transformation in Tottenham’s playing style.

Spurs rank top of the Premier League for shots fired at their opponents’ goal this season, having racked up a total of 168 at an average of 18.7 per game.

They were seventh according to the same metric in 2022-23, with an average of 13.6 efforts per match.

Tottenham have also improved defensively after conceding 63 goals last season – their highest tally in a 38-game Premier League campaign.

Postecoglou’s side have faced an average of 12.4 shots per game compared with 13.6 last term.

Goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario has outperformed his predecessor Hugo Lloris, with a save rate of 84.2 per cent – the best in the Premier League – compared with the Frenchman’s 67.5 per cent in 2022-23.

Son steps up

Tottenham’s unbeaten run is all the more impressive given the departure of Harry Kane to Bayern Munich on the eve of the campaign.

The club’s all-time record scorer netted 30 Premier League goals last season, which accounted for 42.9 per cent of the team’s total (70).

This was the highest percentage of any player in the division, ahead of Erling Haaland who scored 38.3 per cent of Manchester City’s tally (36 out of 94).

Tottenham’s over-reliance on Kane in 2022-23 coincided with a dip in the form of Son Heung-min, who endured his worst scoring campaign in a Spurs shirt.

However, the South Korean has rediscovered his best under Postecoglou, with seven goals in nine appearances so far at an average of 0.89 per 90 minutes.

That is up from 0.31 per 90 last season and 0.69 in 2021-22 – the season in which he scored 23 goals and shared the Golden Boot with Liverpool’s Mohamed Salah.

What the papers say

Aaron Ramsdale has emerged as a transfer target for Chelsea after losing his first-team spot at Arsenal to David Raya. According to The Sun, Bayern Munich are also looking at the 25-year-old England goalkeeper.

Chelsea and Manchester City are both keen on Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni, 24, according to the Daily Mirror via Calciomercato. The Italian giants are likely to want more than £60million for the Italy international.

Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola could reportedly be the first managerial casualty of the Premier League season. The Sun reports he faces talks with the club this week after taking just three points from the opening nine league games.

Manchester United assistant manager Mitchell Van Der Gaag does not appear to be going anywhere, despite interest from Ajax. The Daily Mail reports that the Dutch giants are unlikely to secure a return to the club after manager Maurice Steijn’s departure.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Douglas Luiz: Arsenal remain keen on Aston Villa’s Brazil international midfielder, 25, after having previous approaches turned down, according to 90Min.

Nicolas Gonzalez: Several Premier League clubs are watching the Fiorentina and Argentina winger, 25, writes La Gazzetta dello Sport.

Erik ten Hag believes Sir Bobby Charlton will always remain an inspiration to Manchester United as they prepare for their first home game since the World Cup-winner died on Saturday.

Tributes to Charlton, who was 86, will take place before Tuesday’s Champions League fixture against Copenhagen, in the form of a minute’s silence, a wreath being placed on Charlton’s seat in the directors’ box and players and club staff wearing black armbands.

Charlton will also be remembered in the official programme for both the Copenhagen match and Sunday’s derby against Manchester City. There will be a minute’s applause prior to the City match as well as expressions of remembrance via flags and banners in the stadium.

Fans have already been flocking to Old Trafford to leave flowers, scarves and messages around the statue of Charlton, Denis Law and George Best – the ‘United Trinity’ – which is located outside the ground.

And when asked if Charlton would be an inspiration for his side not only on Tuesday but beyond, Ten Hag pointed to the statue.

“He is in front of Old Trafford,” Ten Hag said. “With Denis Law and George Best. He is always with us. They are always a huge inspiration for us, every day, and in every game.”

Ten Hag cited Charlton as an inspiration for his players in Saturday’s 2-1 win away to Sheffield United, secured by Diogo Dalot’s winner, but a match at Old Trafford will be an opportunity for the entire club to pay tribute on and off the pitch.

Ten Hag wants to mark the occasion with a victory, something United badly need in the Champions League after opening their Group A campaign with defeats against Bayern Munich and Galatasaray, while they have stuttered in the Premier League too.

“First we want to win as a tribute to Sir Bobby Charlton, but also you want always to do that in a certain way and that is what we are aiming for,” Ten Hag added. “It is not always possible in football, sometimes you don’t play that well but you have to find a way to win.

“I was happy on Saturday that we could show tribute with a win but also with the way we scored that second goal.”

Although they ground out the victory, United were again far from their best in Saturday’s win over the Blades, with social media full of grumbling from fans amid a pedestrian start to the campaign.

But Ten Hag said he continues to feel the firm backing of the supporters inside Old Trafford, and expects a special atmosphere on Tuesday night.

“It’s always special every night at Old Trafford, the fans are always so behind us,” the Dutchman said.

“I remember the last game, the home game against Brentford, even when the game is not going in our direction they stayed behind us in difficult moments and moments of adversity around Manchester United the fans are still with us and we are with the fans, we are fighting together.

“Definitely tomorrow after the passing away of Sir Bobby Charlton, their hero, their legend, their giant, I’m sure there will be an even more emotional evening tomorrow.”

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou credited his side’s 2-0 win over Fulham to their “outstanding” pressing after they returned to the top of the Premier League.

Goals from Son Heung-min and James Maddison confirmed the three points for the hosts at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Postecoglou also praised the contribution of Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, who started in place of the suspended Yves Bissouma.

“I thought our pressing was outstanding the whole game and maybe in the first half we could have got one or two more to put the game to bed,” Postecoglou said.

“I thought Pierre was good and he’s been good in every game he’s played for us and he’s been put in some difficult situations and handled them well, he’s very experienced.

“I thought in the first half in particular we stayed calm on the ball and had some good tempo. Like I said I thought our pressing was outstanding all game and I thought he was a big part of that.

“He made interceptions for both goals and yeah it was important to have him in there, his experience coming in because Bissouma has been very important for us and in such a crucial role but I thought he was excellent.”

Spurs took their foot off the gas after their second goal, which invited pressure from Fulham, who had their chances to score late on.

And the former Australia manager was “disappointed” with his side’s second-half efforts.

He added: “I’m really disappointed with the second half, we were nowhere near the levels we have been all year and we have got to make sure we stay disciplined in our approach because the keeper made a couple of great saves to keep the clean sheet and within the context we should have had a much better control of the game.

“I’m not trying to make a point, it’s just what I saw. I thought we were really wasteful with the ball in the second half. We took some liberties with taking extra touches.

“I’ve been around long enough to know if you try to take liberties, you’ll get dragged down pretty quickly.

“I’m not going to let the fact that we’ve won the game disguise the opportunity there for us to improve.

“In the second half, with the ball we weren’t anywhere near the levels we’ve already shown this year and there was no real reason for it. It wasn’t as if the opposition did anything different. It was more self-inflicted.

“My role in that was to give feedback to the players. That’s what they want. They want to get better, they want to improve, I’ve got some stuff there to show them.”

Centre-back Calvin Bassey gave the ball away in the 54th minute and Tottenham punished the mistake through Maddison, doubling his side’s lead.

And Marco Silva admitted he was disappointed with the manner in which Fulham conceded the second goal.

He said: “We were punished by the mistakes that we made.

“What disappointed me was the second goal. At half-time we spoke and we conceded a similar goal in the second half. We were punished again with the same type of goal.”

Goals from key duo Son Heung-min and James Maddison sent Tottenham back to the Premier League summit with a professional 2-0 win over Fulham.

Spurs had claimed top spot before the international break, but watched rivals Arsenal, Manchester City and Liverpool all leapfrog them across the weekend to raise the stakes of Monday’s London derby.

Fulham proved no match for Ange Postecoglou’s resurgent team and after Son grabbed his seventh goal of an impressive season in the 36th minute, he turned provider after half-time with an assist for partner in crime Maddison.

It was the latest example of the pair combining and a further nod to the present with Son’s once-famed partnership with Harry Kane, now of Bayern Munich, fast becoming a distant memory.

Next up for Postecoglou’s pace-setters is a trip to Crystal Palace on Friday where they could extend their lead at the top to five points with another win.

This was Spurs’ first home match since the Israel-Hamas conflict started and a moment’s silence occurred before kick-off for the innocent civilians killed, during which several Israeli flags were held up by supporters in different areas of the stadium.

Tottenham were without the suspended Yves Bissouma, which meant Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg earned his second start of the season.

Hojbjerg’s other start was the Carabao Cup shoot-out defeat to Fulham in August, but the hosts quickly set about correcting the only blot on Postecoglou’s near-perfect copybook in N17.

Visiting goalkeeper Bernd Leno was alert in the second minute to deny Son after a trademark Maddison through ball before Micky van de Ven hooked over from a free-kick soon after.

While Spurs’ ascent to first had seen them score 18 times in eight matches, they had also tightened up defensively and summer recruit Guglielmo Vicario demonstrated his class with a crucial stop in the 11th minute.

A corner from Andreas Pereira picked out Joao Palhinha, but his towering header was brilliantly tipped away by Vicario’s left glove.

One-time Tottenham loanee Carlos Vinicius sent a header wide not long after before Postecoglou’s men started to turn the screw.

Richarlison curled wide from 20 yards following a lightning-quick counter-attack, but the breakthrough did arrive in the 36th minute through Son’s seventh goal of the season.

Van de Ven was first to the loose ball after a poor Calvin Bassey pass and touched into Richarlison, who recycled into Son’s path and Spurs’ number seven turned away from Tim Ream before he produced a sumptuous finish into the top corner.

It was a deserved opener and it could have been 2-0 moments later with Bassey first heading away with Son ready to pounce before the Tottenham captain back-heeled to Destiny Udogie, but his shot was blocked.

There was still time for another opening when Cristian Romero played in Dejan Kulusevski, although the Swedish attacker tried to tee up Richarlison when the goal was at his mercy and Fulham survived.

Fulham boss Marco Silva made a double substitution at the break with Raul Jimenez and Alex Iwobi introduced, but the second for Spurs arrived in the 54th minute.

It was a carbon copy of the opener with Bassey’s pass out from the back intercepted by the excellent Hojbjerg and Son played through to Maddison, who coolly angled beyond Leno for his third goal of the term.

With the result almost already assured, Udogie and Pape Sarr did limp off in a concern for Postecoglou before Maddison almost made it 3-0.

Maddison led the press brilliantly and forced another error from Bassey by winning back possession, but Ream came across to block his effort.

And another strong stop by Vicario from Jimenez late on secured a fourth clean sheet this season for the early leaders.

Former Liverpool captain Sami Hyypia believes Virgil van Dijk will prove this season he is once again the best centre-back in the Premier League.

The Netherlands international has faced questions about whether can rediscover the form which arguably made him the world’s top defender prior to a knee ligament injury in October 2020.

However, there are signs the current Reds skipper is edging closer to his best with his commanding performance in the weekend’s Merseyside derby win over Everton another indicator of a return to his previous high level.

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“He is one of the best in the business in the world,” Hyypia told the PA news agency at a Nike Game On initiative which, in conjunction with the LFC Foundation, has provided more than 8,000 local schoolchildren with access to a range of sports.

“I think he has raised the standard with everyone expecting him to play at that level every time and that is very difficult.

“But he is doing well, he is a big part of our team and a big leader of the team so I think we all need to be patient and his best is coming.

“I think this season he has shown in some games he is still at the level and I have no doubts he will be the best centre-back in the league this season.”

Despite their good start to the season there has been scrutiny on Liverpool’s defence, with right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold now operating in a hybrid midfield playmaker role in possession and opponents seeking to exploit the space in behind.

The focus is likely to intensify following the news left-back Andy Robertson will be sidelined for three months after shoulder surgery, with Kostas Tsimikas having to deputise.

But Hyypia has faith in both Liverpool’s full-backs, adding: “Trent is like a midfield player. He can pass short and long and has the vision to see the passes.

“I think this role suits him well and when he is in the midfield position he doesn’t have that big distance to go back defending when we lose the ball.”

On Tsimikas, the former Finland international said: “I think he will get a lot of responsibility now and he has his chance to show what kind of player he is.

“Hopefully he is courageous and takes his chance. If that is not going to work then Jurgen (Klopp) needs to think of something else to solve the problem but I have confidence in Tsimikas that he can do the job.”

Having come through a testing set of fixtures Liverpool sit third in the table, a point behind leaders Manchester City. With games to come against Nottingham Forest, Bournemouth and Luton – all teams in the bottom six – and Brentford before a late November trip to the Etihad Stadium, Hyypia believes the platform has been laid for another title challenge.

“The ambition is to win the league,” he said.

“As long as we are competing until May to be the champions I think we can say we will have had a successful season.

“The top four is always the minimum target to reach but everyone wants success and some trophies this season.

“It would be foolish to look at what the others are doing. We just concentrate on what we are doing and do what we do best and then we see what the result is.”

The first three years of Game On programme, funded by Nike and delivered by the LFC Foundation, has engaged more than 8,000 children – including 950-plus disabled and 1,000-plus ethnically-diverse participants – aged between seven and 12 and 46 grassroots sports clubs with coaching delivered in 15 different sports.

“Game On is about using the power of sport, Nike and Liverpool to engage local young people in sport – unusually for us not football,” said LFC Foundation chief executive Matt Parish.

What the papers say

Dominic Calvert-Lewin has become the latest Premier League star to attract the attention of Saudi Arabia. According to The Sun, the Everton and England striker, 26, will be offered a lucrative deal by Steven Gerrard’s Al-Ettifaq.

Bayern Munich are keeping an eye on Chelsea defender Trevoh Chalobah, 24, reports the Daily Mirror. The centre-back is out of favour at Stamford Bridge under Mauricio Pochettino.

Luton will have to find at least £5.5 million to land Ecuadorian midfielder Oscar Zambrano, according to The Sun. The 19-year-old’s club LDU Quito are holding out for the best offer.

Sandro Tonali’s lawyers are meeting with prosecutors in Rome this week in a bid to halve the Newcastle United midfielder’s ban for gambling. According to the Daily Mirror, via Gazzetta dello Sport, Tonali’s co-operation could see any ban cut from a potential three years.

Social media round-upPlayers to watch

Kalvin Phillips: Manchester City are expected to sanction a January exit for the England midfielder, 27.

Lucas Paqueta: West Ham’s Brazilian midfielder, 26, remains a target for Manchester City.

Mauricio Pochettino called on his players to make better decisions to see games out after they let slip a two-goal lead in the final 13 minutes to draw 2-2 with Arsenal on Saturday.

Chelsea had been comfortably the better side against last season’s Premier League runners-up when goalkeeper Robert Sanchez gave the ball to Declan Rice with a careless pass in the 77th minute, allowing the Arsenal midfielder to cut the deficit to 2-1.

Substitute Leandro Trossard netted with six minutes to play to snatch the visitors a point, robbing Pochettino’s side of a third straight league win.

Earlier Cole Palmer, from the penalty spot, and Mykhailo Mudryk had handed Chelsea a commanding lead for which they were good value entering the closing stages.

Their recent good run has come despite still having a number of players out injured, including captain Reece James who was fit only for a late cameo at Stamford Bridge, and fellow England full-back Ben Chilwell.

Afterwards, the manager challenged his team to uphold the standards they had shown in stymying Arsenal’s threat for much of the game if they are to continue their recent uptick in form.

“We need to take the positives from 77 minutes,” said Pochettino. “If not, you need to ask (every) other coach how they concede two goals. That is football.

“We were facing a team that last season were close to winning the league, then they invested to make stronger their squad.

“We’re at the beginning of our project, that’s why we need to take positive things because I think we played really well. After 77 minutes we were better and didn’t concede too many chances. That is credit to the team.

“You need to remember, when you see Arsenal’s squad, if you see 25 available players you still pick the same team that Arteta picked today. But for us, too many circumstances where we don’t have the possibility to have all the squad available. That’s another thing you need to put in your analysis.

“One criticism of us was maybe at 2-0 on 77 minutes to take better decisions in these situations, to not concede in the way that we conceded. That gave confidence and belief to the opponents to say ‘come on, go, it’s possible’.”

Chelsea started with Enzo Fernandez and Moises Caicedo in midfield with the pair having turned out for their respective national teams, Argentina and Ecuador, in South America on Tuesday night, the equivalent of Wednesday morning British Summer Time.

Pochettino added: “Caicedo and Enzo arrived after two games in South America. They were not fresh, but they’re important players for us. We have a week to work and they’re going to be better and the team is going to improve.

“It’s really tough to arrive with jet lag, but I think in a week to recover and train they will be at their best.”

Pep Guardiola has admitted the demands of winning the treble did take a toll on his Manchester City players.

City were knocked out of the Carabao Cup and suffered rare back-to-back Premier League defeats prior to the recent international break.

They got back to winning ways with a hard-fought 2-1 win over Brighton on Saturday but Guardiola concedes there has been a natural drop in intensity after the remarkable end to last season.

The City manager said: “The treble had an influence on all of us, me included.

“So now we need to be there, close, month by month, to arrive in the final decision moments at the end of the season close to the opponents to try it again.

“I said many times, no-one has won four (Premier Leagues) in a row, never ever. That shows how difficult it is, but now it’s important to be there, especially in the Champions League, qualify for the next round in this period and after we can just focus on the Premier League. That is the target.”

City’s success has also brought increased expectations, particularly on Erling Haaland, who scored a remarkable 52 goals in an outstanding first season at the club last term.

By his extraordinary standards, the Norwegian’s recent three-game run without a goal constituted a barren spell but he ended that ‘drought’ with a clinical strike against the Seagulls.

“Yes the expectations are so high but he’s handled it really well,” said Guardiola. “He knows he could have scored even more goals in the nine Premier League games we have played.”

Guardiola rested goalkeeper Ederson at the weekend following the Brazilian’s exertions during the international break. Stefan Ortega took his place.

Guardiola said: “It was just for the fact that the travel from Brazil, it’s a long time. Of course it’s happened many times but he played two games there and he was so so tired.

“Normally I like to play Ortega in the Carabao Cup and the FA Cup but we are out of the Carabao Cup, and sometimes it’s good for Eddy to rest a bit and refresh the mind.”

Ortega was pleased to get the opportunity and hopes there will be plenty more.

The German said: “I was excited when Pep told me that I was starting. I’m always waiting to get a chance to get a bit more game time.

“Eddy is playing really well this season, he started really good, but I try to keep pushing him every day in training sessions.

“I think I deserved to start. I’m ambitious so of course I’m not happy to sit on the bench, but we are in a team.

“Sometimes it is tough but this is my job – to be there when the team needs me and to keep pushing Eddy every day.”

Aston Villa boss Unai Emery played down his side’s Champions League credentials despite thrashing West Ham.

Villa are just two points off Premier League pacesetters Manchester City and Arsenal following Sunday’s 4-1 win.

Douglas Luiz’s double and clinical finishes from Ollie Watkins and Leon Bailey ended Villa’s Hammers hoodoo, for their first victory over West Ham since 2015.

They returned to fifth spot, just a point adrift of the top four, with games against Luton, Nottingham Forest and Fulham coming up next.

“There are seven teams contending. We are after seven teams; Man City, Man United, Liverpool, Tottenham, Arsenal, Chelsea and Newcastle,” said Emery, with fifth potentially offering a Champions League place this term.

“Dream, always. My dream is to win the Champions League but now we are fifth and we are going to face each match trying to get a good performance.

“It’s 38 matches and we lost at Newcastle, we lost at Liverpool. They are matches we are not going to play again.

“I prefer to speak about the matches we won but I have to speak about the matches we lost. This is the balance. We have to be very demanding.

“In the table West Ham were two points behind us and the level we have now, they have as well. It was very important.

“The process is going in the right way, it’s going to be difficult. In the end we won 4-1.”

Luiz had already tested Alphonse Areola from distance before opening the scoring after half an hour, firing in from the edge of the box after good work by Nicolo Zaniolo and Watkins.

Six minutes after the break Villa were gifted a second when Lucas Paqueta sold Edson Alvarez short and he brought down Ezri Konsa for Luiz to convert from the spot.

But Jarrod Bowen grabbed a lifeline for the Hammers soon after when his shot hit Pau Torres to creep into the corner.

The visitors sensed a recovery, Matty Cash heading over Nayef Aguerd’s shot, but with 16 minutes left Watkins ended any ideas of a comeback. He latched onto John McGinn’s long ball, skipped past Kurt Zouma and lashed into the roof of the net.

There was still time for Bailey to get in on the act in the final minute, beating Areola from six yards after giving Aguerd the slip.

It was just West Ham’s third league defeat of the season, leaving manager David Moyes frustrated.

“I’m not having my teams losing four goals as soft as we did today. There were things which I can say we did quite well but I didn’t think we were hard enough to play against,” said Moyes, whose side are now ninth.

“Today wasn’t so good. More importantly nearly every ball we played around the box was the wrong decision and it led to us hardly creating enough opportunity to score.

“The lads kept on fighting and it looked like we were the team in ascendancy at 2-1 but they punished us really quickly and that took the game beyond our reach.

“Villa are probably just behind the top three or four in the Premier League and today was a challenge to see what level we were at and I thought we fell below that.

“It was a very close first half, we missed opportunities to score. We had opportunities to make chances to score and that was the bit bugging me at half-time.”