The English Football Thread

[Special Juan 28,870]

Spurs have sacked Tudor.

[Fulham Broadway 17,810]

They'll probably try and get Christian Gross back/ missing piece of the jigsaw

[Vesper 31,180]

Michael Carrick now looks firmly on course to land the Manchester United job permanently after impressing during his spell as interim manager. (TEAMtalk)

• Manchester United legend David Beckham has endorsed Michael Carrick for the manager’s job. (talkSPORT)

• Casemiro on his future: “I am still enjoying it a lot (in Manchester). I believe the announcement is now done. It is huge, the affection that the fans have shown towards me. But I do really believe the decision is made and done. I am enjoying myself right now. I believe it will be some difficult (emotional) moments, these (final) games at Manchester United.” (The Athletic)

[Vesper 31,180]

Igor Tudor may have won over Tottenham fans with final gesture

https://www.caughtoffside.com/2026/03/29/tottenham-igor-tudor-leaves-mutual-agreement/

Tottenham have officially confirmed that head coach Igor Tudor has left the club by mutual agreement, ending a disastrous 44-day tenure that has pushed the North London giants to the brink of relegation.

The announcement, made on Sunday evening, also confirmed the departures of goalkeeping coach Tomislav Rogic and physical coach Riccardo Ragnacci.

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Tudor’s brief reign will go down as one of the most difficult periods in the club’s modern history.

Tasked with steadying the ship after replacing Thomas Frank in February, the Croatian managed to win just one of his seven games in charge, a 3-2 Champions League victory over Atlético Madrid that was ultimately insufficient to prevent a 5-7 aggregate exit.

 

According to talkSPORT’s Chief Football Correspondent Alex Crook, the parting of ways was exceptionally clean from a financial perspective.

As per the journalist, Tudor has agreed to walk away from Tottenham without a termination payoff.

The decision to waive a severance package suggests a mutual recognition that the appointment simply hadn’t worked.

Under Tudor, Spurs failed to win any of their five Premier League fixtures, picking up just a single point in a -1-1 draw against Liverpool while conceding 20 goals across all competitions.

While the results on the pitch were undeniably poor, the sudden nature of the decision has also been linked to a significant personal tragedy.

Tudor reportedly learned of the passing of his father, Mario, immediately following the humiliating 3-0 home defeat to Nottingham Forest on March 22.

The club’s official statement noted the “bereavement that Igor has recently suffered,” sending their support to him and his family.

The loss of his father, coupled with the “toxic” atmosphere following the Forest debacle, is believed to have been a major factor in Tudor’s desire to step away during the international break.

What’s next for Tottenham?

With only seven games remaining, each game is a cup final for the club as they sit just one point above the relegation zone in 17th place.

Tottenham now face an emergency search for a new manager. Firefighter manager Sean Dyche has already revealed that there have been no talks with Spurs as yet.

Others linked with the role include former Brighton boss Roberto De Zerbi, with the club strongly interested in him.

 

[Vytis33 1,408]

 

[Fulham Broadway 17,810]

Sp*rs and De Zerbi  - polish, you, turd, can't, a

[Special Juan 28,870]

Spurs are up in arms about appointing De Zerbi, broken before it starts

Next game...Sunderland away....wow

[Vesper 31,180]

Tottenham Supporters' Trust cites Roberto De Zerbi's 'deeply offensive' comments on Mason Greenwood as cause for 'serious concern' after appointment of ex-Marseille boss

The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust has expressed "serious and far-reaching concerns" following the appointment of Roberto De Zerbi, citing his previous vocal support for Mason Greenwood at Marseille. This controversy arrives at a delicate moment for the north London club as they struggle to maintain unity while battling against a potential Premier League relegation.

https://www.goal.com/en-ca/lists/tottenham-supporters-trust-cites-roberto-de-zerbi-comments-mason-greenwood-serious-concern-appointment-ex-marseille-boss/bltad2c049cc87b7ea1

Managerial arrival sparks friction

De Zerbi’s arrival on a five-year contract has been overshadowed by his past association with Greenwood in Ligue 1. The Tottenham Supporters’ Trust, alongside groups like Proud Lilywhites and Women of the Lane, had voiced their opposition to the appointment before it was finalised on Tuesday. Fans are particularly aggrieved by the timing, arguing that the manager's history risks fracturing the fanbase while the team sits in a precarious position near the bottom of the table.

Trust demands values reaffirmation

The Supporters' Trust released an extensive statement outlining their opposition to the Italian's hiring, noting the conflict between his past remarks and the club's supposed identity. They stated: "While we recognise the limited pool of managers with recent Premier League experience, and the need to act with urgency as Spurs face the prospect of relegation, this appointment raises serious and far-reaching concerns, and many fans have been in touch with us to urge us to communicate the strength of feeling. De Zerbi’s comments about Mason Greenwood were unnecessary, ill-judged, and deeply offensive to a significant number of supporters and, without doubt, will have left victims of male violence alarmed."

A divided fanbase in crisis

The controversy stems from De Zerbi’s time at Marseille, where he defended Greenwood as a "good person" despite the player's previous legal history. Greenwood was charged in 2022 with attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The Crown Prosecution Service dropped the case in February 2023 after the withdrawal of key witnesses. Greenwood had denied the charges.

Highlighting the impact of De Zerbi's arrival on club culture, the Trust added: "We believe these statements, left unchecked, will create a divide among supporters at a time when we all need to be pulling together to back the team. Fans are rallying behind the ‘All Together, Always’ initiative, and this appointment places heavy strain on that unity. If those remarks reflect his genuine views, they cast a troubling shadow over the values of the club we love.

"With this appointment, communications from the club and from Mr De Zerbi must clearly and unequivocally reaffirm these values. Furthermore, those words must be backed by meaningful action, including visible and sustained support for women’s charities and organisations working to combat violence against women."

[Vesper 31,180]

Phil Foden may not make World Cup squad, hints Thomas Tuchel

England head coach says playmaker failed to make impact in friendlies against Uruguay and Japan and sees ‘clear’ signs of fatigue elsewhere in squad

https://www.thetimes.com/sport/football/world-cup/article/thomas-tuchel-phil-foden-world-cup-england-tl8mvsppp

Thomas Tuchel has cast Phil Foden’s participation at the World Cup into doubt as he accepted that the Manchester City attacking midfielder is struggling to show his quality on the pitch.

Foden, 25, started both of England’s final warm-up matches — the first against Uruguay as a No10, and the second against Japan, as a false nine — and took one shot, without much more of note.

“He tried everything,” Tuchel said when asked whether Foden had taken his chance to force his way into his plans. “I would say he was excellent in camp but, yeah, he struggles to show it on the pitch.

“Obviously, he didn’t have a lot of minutes for City recently. Then he came to camp with the brightest smile and was so good in training and I thought he would just surprise us and play with the same verve and excitement but, yeah, he struggles to have the full impact.”

Tuchel considers Morgan Rogers and Jude Bellingham in competition for the No10 position, while Harry Kane, the England captain and Bayern Munich forward, is the first-choice striker. The England manager touted the idea of Foden being potential cover for Kane on a few occasions, but Foden’s case appears weakened by his performance against Japan.

Asked if he would consider taking a player to the World Cup who was struggling to perform, Tuchel said: “I can. The question would be if we will.”

When subsequently questioned whether this would make Foden a doubt to travel this summer, Tuchel said: “Well, it’s not a guarantee that he would come.”

Foden has played 49 times for England, scoring four goals and creating nine. Until England’s 2-0 win over Serbia in November, he had played 18 matches without producing a goal contribution. Once one of the most hotly tipped players in the academy system and England’s pathway, Foden’s international career has not matched the lofty expectations of being the most technically proficient player of his generation.

The City player was not selected for Tuchel’s squads in June, September and October 2025, but earned a November recall after a patch of strong domestic form, which has since waned.

Foden has developed into more of a goal-scoring midfielder than a creative one across his time in the City first team, but after strong seasons between 2020-21 and 2023-24 (Foden scored 19 league goals and produced eight assists in the latter, when he was named the FWA’s player of the season) he has struggled for consistency.

At Euro 2024, Gareth Southgate attempted to find space for Foden in his starting XI, playing him on the wing and then as a No10, but the tactical tweaks did not resolve his ineffectiveness.

While Foden was not the only player to struggle to exert their usual influence, the likes of Kane, Bellingham, Bukayo Saka and Cole Palmer still managed to score or create decisive goals.

Having won all their World Cup qualifying matches in the September, October and November international breaks without conceding a goal, England lost to Japan. This was their first defeat since losing to Senegal in June, an international camp in which Tuchel was displeased with the social dynamic and inter-squad competitiveness. Asked whether this March camp shared any parallels, Tuchel said: “Yeah, a little bit.”

The England head coach accepted that he “saw fatigue, clearly”, from his players, some of whom, such as Elliot Anderson, are on course to record career-high seasons in terms of minutes played, even before the World Cup begins.

Tuchel is hoping that a laidback pre-tournament camp in Florida, where England will play two warm-up matches against New Zealand and Costa Rica, will give those players the opportunity to recharge their batteries, before their group L opener against Croatia on June 17. England’s other group games are against Ghana on June 23 and Panama on June 27.

“They will get a week off, the guys who are not involved in the Champions League final,” Tuchel said. There are several players who could feature in the Champions League final: Arsenal’s Saka, Declan Rice, Noni Madueke and Ben White; Barcelona’s Marcus Rashford; Bellingham at Real Madrid; and Bayern’s Kane.

“And then we will go very early to the US, earlier than maybe other teams,” Tuchel said. “We will go there to prepare for the heat and humidity. We will have an early camp that allows for a good mix between free time and also family/friends time, and football, [as] to arrive with excitement when the tournament starts.

“This year the season is a long, long one for the players, because some of them come from the Club World Cup [last summer], and it will not end at the end of May. It will end, hopefully, in the middle of July. We will take this into account.”

[Vesper 31,180]

Alexander Isak set for return to Liverpool first-team training this week

Sweden striker has been unavailable after fracturing his fibula in December, but will join his team-mates on Thursday and could make the bench this weekend

https://www.thetimes.com/sport/football/article/alexander-isak-return-liverpool-injury-news-fjtwc3q0j

Alexander Isak will return to first-team training with Liverpool on Thursday for the first time in four months to give head coach Arne Slot a timely boost.

The striker has been absent since suffering a serious ankle injury, which included a fractured fibula, when scoring in a victory against Tottenham Hotspur in December, but is now ready to take a significant step forwards in his rehabilitation. 

Isak’s assimilation since his £125million move from Newcastle United last summer has been complicated by a number of factors, including a previous injury lay-off, but his involvement in the final leg of the season could prove important for Liverpool. 

Sweden’s qualification for the World Cup finals after their 3-2 play-off win against Poland also serves as further motivation for Isak, 26, to end a difficult campaign strongly. 

“I think Alex is in a really good place because Sweden qualified for the World Cup, and apart from that he’s going to train with the group again for the first time,” Slot, the Liverpool head coach, said. “If you’ve worked so hard for three, four months or something like that, and then to return to team training, that’s very nice for everyone. So Alex is, in that sense, in a good place. 

“Of course it’s only his first session, after three or four months [out], but it’s good to have him back because we all know who we signed, and we’ve signed an incredible striker. 

“So to have him again, in a team that’s usually generating quite a lot chances, is very helpful for us.”

There is the possibility that Isak could be on the substitutes’ bench for the FA Cup tie against Manchester City on Saturday, or against Paris Saint-Germain in the Champions League next Wednesday.

Slot confirmed Alisson, Liverpool’s goalkeeper, is not fit to return, while Jeremie Frimpong was due to undergo a scan on Wednesday after coming off after 13 minutes of a second-half substitute appearance for the Netherlands against Ecuador on Tuesday. 

Mohamed Salah is also due to return against City having missed the loss to Brighton & Hove Albion immediately before the international break with a minor groin issue. Slot has said the forward can end his Liverpool career on a high by further cementing his legendary status at Anfield.

Salah announced last week that he had reached an agreement with the club to end his contract a year earlier than planned and leave on a free transfer in the summer. Salah’s demotion to the substitutes’ bench in December prompted an incendiary outburst against Slot, in which he said their relationship had disintegrated.

However, Slot paid tribute to the Egyptian yesterday, and said he hopes Salah — who has scored 255 goals for Liverpool since 2017 and won two Premier League titles and the Champions League — can finish in a manner befitting that contribution.

“Hopefully he can make his legacy even more special in the upcoming weeks and months where we still play for something special,” Slot told Liverpool’s website. “But he will always leave this club as a legend.

“Scoring goals, having his assists. As a fan I watched him, and that front three with Sadio Mané and Bobby Firmino — everybody is still talking about that, and rightly so.

“And then when I started working with him, I don’t know if it was his best season in terms of numbers, but it was an impressive season because he had the most goals and the most assists and I don’t know if that has happened much with him, let alone with any player in the Premier League.

“He will definitely leave as a legend of this club.”

While there was a growing expectation that Salah would depart in the summer, the timing of the announcement was greeted with surprise. Slot, of course, was aware of the situation and hailed the attacker’s desire and appetite to always try and make a difference. 

“I knew, so it wasn’t new news to me,” Slot added. “But I think it was very good to hear and see all the reactions of his team-mates, but also from everywhere around the world, for what he has done for this football club and for football in general.

“I’ve mainly seen this as a fan, so watching football, seeing him playing at Liverpool, doing all these special things that he’s done for this club. Then I started working with him, and already the first day I was impressed by his professionalism because, as with any season, it starts with a test that shows how much they did in the off-season, and he beat all of them. 

“He was the fittest player that came back, and I think that’s the ideal situation that you want as a manager: that your star player comes back as fit as he did.

“He had nothing to prove, but for himself he had a lot to prove because Mo always thinks he has to prove something every three days. That hunger never stops and that is something that I find most special about him.”

[Vesper 31,180]

Aston Villa Eyeing Move to Sign ‘Machine’ Serie A Midfielder Mandela Keita for Unai Emery

https://www.givemesport.com/aston-villa-eyeing-mandela-keita-parma-summer-transfer/

Aston Villa are closely monitoring Parma midfielder Mandela Keita ahead of the summer, according to reports in Italy.

The West Midlands club are believed to be among a host of sides keeping tabs on the 23-year-old Belgium international, along with fellow Premier League clubs Tottenham and Brighton.

Serie A side Bologna are also interested in Keita and reportedly view him as a replacement for Swiss midfielder Remo Freuler, whose contract is expiring at the end of the season.

Any deal for Keita is unlikely to come cheaply, with Parma looking to generate a substantial profit on the Belgian, who joined the club in 2024 for around €12m.

According to La Gazzetta dello Sport, via TuttoBolognaWeb, Keita has no shortage of suitors in England amid his impressive development at Parma.

The 23-year-old midfielder has been a key player for the Serie A outfit this season, starting 28 of 30 games and registering one assist in over 2,300 minutes of action.

Keita developed at OH Leuven’s academy before making a move to fellow Belgian club Royal Antwerp in 2023, where he spent almost 18 months on loan.

The 23-year-old, praised as a ‘possession-winning machine’, saw his move to Antwerp made permanent in the summer of 2024 but ended up joining Parma two months later.

During his time at Antwerp, Keita made his Champions League debut in the 2023-24 campaign and was part of the squad that surprisingly beat Barcelona 3-2 in the group stage.

Keita won his only senior cap for Belgium in October 2023, when he came off the bench in the 3-2 win over Austria. The 23-year-old received his last national call-up in June 2024.

[Laylabelle 9,754]

Naww another win for Coventry another step closer

[NikkiCFC 8,529]

11 hours ago, Laylabelle said:

Naww another win for Coventry another step closer

Nice to see new teams for a change. 

Coventry last time in the PL 00/01

Millwall 89/90

Middlesbrough would be back after 10 years. 

And still solid chance for Wrexham which would be amazing with 4th promotion in a row. 

[Fulham Broadway 17,810]

Reasons to be Cheerful 1,2,3 

Victims 3 down

[Fulham Broadway 17,810]

4 now 

[Fulham Broadway 17,810]

Haalands 28th hatrick

[Fulham Broadway 17,810]

Leaverpool - fans streamimg out after 58 minutes

[Pizy 19,379]

What a signing Semenyo has been for City, btw. Due to his wage demands we never had a chance despite us showing late interest in him and tbf, he was never going to come here in our current state. But his profile is the exact type we need to be going for this summer. Someone already established and in their mid twenties.

He has hit the ground running the moment he stepped into a City shirt which is precisely what we desperately need.

[Fulham Broadway 17,810]

Probably score 4 against us on Sunday

[Laylabelle 9,754]

1 hour ago, Fulham Broadway said:

Probably score 4 against us on Sunday

5...or somehow we'll get a point because weird have things happen. However these days less weird more predictable