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During England's 1-0 loss to Brazil, Gareth Southgate handed debuts to three players and later presented them with commemorative caps.

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• Mainoo, Gordon and Konsa make England debut
• All three commemorated with special caps
• Will likely be involved in action against Belgium

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The three players who were handed their debuts were Newcastle United's Anthony Gordon, Aston Villa's Ezri Konsa and Manchester United's Kobbie Mainoo. The trio were handed the commemorative caps by the Three Lions boss which beared the numbers 1278, 1279 and 1280, marking the number of players to have represented the national team.

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  Out of the three debutants, Gordon was the only player to have started the game for the Three Lions and was substituted off in the 75th minute. Konsa came onto the playing field in the 20th minute, replacing the injured Kyle Walker. Finally, Mainoo came on 15 minutes from time, replacing Chelsea's Conor Gallagher in the middle of the field.

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• WHAT NEXT FOR THE DEBUTANTS?

  It is likely that Gordon and Konsa may get the full start in the nation's next friendly against Belgium on Tuesday, March 26. Mainoo on the other hand may be utilised as a substitute yet again unless Southgate feels particularly adventurous on the night.

Tottenham Hotspur have been heavily linked with a move for Al-Ittihad forward Jota, and a transfer insider has now shared the chances of him completing a loan move to the Premier League in January.

What happened to Jota in Saudi?

Over the summer, Jota completed his big switch from Celtic to Al-Ittihad, but he’s so far failed to make any kind of positive impression at his new club having started zero games and made just five substitute appearances in the Saudi Pro League (WhoScored – Jota statistics).

The Portugal international reportedly had a fallout with some of his teammates early on, which has resulted in his exclusion from the team, and the fact that he’s fallen out of favour has alerted Ange Postecoglou, who is looking to create a reunion with the left-winger.

Indeed, Spurs have been linked wirh a deal for Jota and he would apparently love to join, and with Rudy Galetti further since suggesting that the boss would be happy to replace Ivan Perisic and Manor Solomon to make room for his former star, this is definitely one to keep an eye on.

Jota to Spurs transfer update

Speaking to GiveMeSport to deliver a transfer update on Jota, Dean Jones claimed that Spurs have a good chance at wrapping up a deal for the attacker, even if it is only on a temporary basis.

"If it is possible on a loan deal, I think it's got more potential for Spurs because it really does feel like a no-brainer for Postecoglou, who has worked with him before and wants more players of that type around his frontline.

"Bringing in Jota on loan and then weighing up the purchases longer-term seems like something which probably makes more sense to me."

How many goals has Jota scored?

During his time at Celtic, Jota racked up 54 involvements, 28 goals and 26 assists, in 83 appearances (Transfermarkt – Jota statistics), so Postecoglou clearly knows how to utilise him to the best of his ability in the final third, therefore, it would be a massive coup if he could do the same at Tottenham.

The Lisbon native, who pockets £195k-per-week (Al-Ittihad salaries), also knows what it takes to compete and be successful having secured seven club trophies since the start of his career.

Celtic’s former “idol”, as hailed by football talent scout Jacek Kulig, is even a versatile operator having been deployed in six various positions over the pitch since the start of his career, including everywhere across the frontline and two roles in the midfield, so he really could make a huge difference in N17.

Barcelona want to cash in on Raphinha in the summer despite the winger scoring the winner against Las Palmas recently.

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• Barcelona could sell Raphinha in the summer
• Scored the winner against Las Palmas
• Third-highest Barcelona scorer in La Liga

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Brazilian's journey in the current season has been rocked by several injuries, yet remains the third-highest goalscorer for Barcelona in La Liga this year. His winner against Las Palmas on Saturday was the winger's fifth league goal and he is now just behind Robert Lewandowski (13) and Joao Felix (6).

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  THE EXPLANATION

  However, claims that the Catalan giants will consider selling the player if the right offer arrives in the upcoming summer transfer window. After Ousmane Dembele left for Paris Saint-Germain last summer, Raphinha was promoted as the first-choice right winger by Xavi. However, the Brazil international failed to live up to the expectations as time and again Lamine Yamal and Ferran Torres has taken his place in the Barcelona starting lineup.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  The reigning Spanish champions have to sell players in the upcoming window due to their financial constraints and would be willing to accept if the right offer is made for Raphinha, although it remains to be seen if the former Leeds United star agrees to move out of Camp Nou. Regardless, the club are understood to be willing to push him towards the exit door.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR BARCELONA?

  After a much-needed win in La Liga, Xavi's side will now shift their focus to Europe as they are set to face Paris Saint-Germain next in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash.

Spanish police have activated “all alert systems” amid supposed threat from ISIS to Champions League games such as Man City’s trip to Real Madrid.

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• Heightened security measures in place
• Quarter-finals taking place across Europe
• Safety of obvious concern to authorities

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Premier League title holders are due at Santiago Bernabeu on Tuesday. Arsenal will be in action at the same time, as they prepare to welcome Harry Kane and Bayern Munich to Emirates Stadium. Every effort is being made to ensure that those matches pass without incident.

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  In Spain, reports that more than 1,270 security personnel have been deployed to the nation’s capital. Those measures are being taken amid heightened threat from ISIS and potential attacks on prominent fixtures in elite European competition.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Head of The Ministry of the Interior, Fernando Grand-Marlaska, has said: “In terms of preventing the terrorist threat, the State Security Forces and Bodies have activated all their early warning and protection systems, as well as all their response mechanisms ready and willing.” More than 2,000 agents from the National Police and Civil Guard will be joined by members of the Municipal Police in helping to keep players, coaches and spectators safe.

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• UEFA ISSUE STATEMENT

  ISIS have allegedly threatened to attack at all four Champions League quarter-final ties, including Emirates Stadium ahead of Arsenal's meeting with Bayern Munich – as reports. European football's main governing body UEFA have reacted in an official statement, which reads: "UEFA is aware of alleged terrorist threats made towards this week’s UEFA Champions League matches & is closely liaising with the authorities at the respective venues. All matches are planned to go ahead as scheduled with appropriate security arrangements in place."

Despite the obvious heartbreak surrounding Harry Kane’s departure to Bayern Munich, the other attackers who stayed put at Tottenham have continued to perform to lessen the hurt caused by Kane’s exit.

Heung-Min Son continues to be a reliable source of goals for Spurs, the South Korean star netting eight goals from 11 games this season whilst new boy James Maddison has endeared himself to his new fanbase immediately with three goals already from attacking midfield.

Summer recruit Alejo Veliz is more of a long-term addition to the Spurs group, patience required with the 20-year-old striker who has only been afforded fleeting opportunities to impress since joining from his native Argentina.

Yet, Ange Postecoglou might not have needed to splash £13m on the 6 foot 1 youngster if he looked more inward before finalising this transfer – teenage starlet Jude Soonsup-Bell could have pushed on for a first-team berth, the 19-year-old exciting coaches at Spurs in the U21 age bracket.

Soonsup-Bell will work on his game further at youth level, whilst Veliz attempts to work his way up the ladder in north London in the senior set-up to challenge Richarlison to become the relied-upon back-up option.

Veliz’s numbers this season

Netting 11 goals in his final season with Argentine side CA Rosario Central – the club he called home during his formative years – Veliz is a promising young striker and one that Postecoglou was keen to add to his new group at Tottenham.

Substituted on versus Liverpool, Luton and Fulham with barely any minutes left on the clock – Veliz playing a combined two minutes of football at home to the Reds and away at Kenilworth Road versus the Hatters – Tottenham's number 36 is nowhere near being a first-team regular so early into his fledging Spurs career.

The 20-year-old has been utilised more often in the lower-ranked Cup competitions, notably in the EFL Trophy where Spurs often field an U21 majority starting eleven.

It was in this competition where Veliz would net his debut goal for Tottenham up against Peterborough United, heading home coolly on a foggy night in Cambridgeshire to open his account.

The youthful eleven would lose 3-1 on the night, but the Argentinian forward would have been pleased to get off the mark for his new employers irrespective of the full-time outcome.

Coincidentally, Soonsup-Bell also featured in this exact Cup clash but failed to make an impact despite a barnstorming few games at U21 level recently for the teenager.

Soonsup-Bell’s numbers this season

Originally beginning his football education at Chelsea, Soonsup-Bell would swap west London for North London in January this year.

Labelled as a “talented” striker by football transfer expert Fabrizio Romano when this move to Spurs was unveiled, the 19-year-old certainly hasn’t disappointed when pulling on the U21 jersey for Tottenham with Soonsup-Bell showing everyone his deadly goalscoring capabilities.

In his last two games in Premier League 2, Soonsup-Bell – who can operate down the right wing or as a centre-forward, has two goals and two assists to his name.

In total, Spurs’ number 52 has an astounding eight goals and four assists from just nine matches played – including two goals of his own versus Colchester United in the EFL Trophy, his first on the Essex coast a dazzling solo goal.

This means the 19-year-old is now tied with Son’s eight goals in the senior team, the 19-year-old highly thought of as a future prospect.

Tottenham will have to look after their starlet appropriately, in order to see Soonsup-Bell reach his full potential and blossom fully into a feared first-team attacker.

An injured Tottenham star is aiming to make his comeback sooner than expected as manager Ange Postecoglou deals with a host of absentees.

Postecoglou dealt Spurs injury blows

The north Londoners were on an imperious run of form before their 4-1 defeat to Chelsea 10 days ago. Postecoglou had enjoyed the best start made by any new manager in Premier League history, winning eight out of a possible 10 league games while remaining unbeaten.

However, their face off with ex-manager Mauricio Pochettino changed the entire dynamic of their early season, with star summer signings James Maddison and Micky van de Ven injured during their defeat to Chelsea at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Both are now expected to be out until 2024, while fellow stars Destiny Udogie and Cristian Romero picked up red cards.

Consecutive defeats have followed since, and it's clear that Postecoglou was seriously missing the aforementioned quartet during Tottenham's 2-1 defeat to Wolves last Saturday.

This has led to reports that Spurs will target a left-sided central defender in January, as van de Ven's injury has particularly exposed their lack of depth in defence. Chelsea's Trevoh Chalobah, Bournemouth defender Lloyd Kelly, Uruguay star Sebastian Caceres, Everton's Ben Godfrey and Crystal Palace ace Marc Guehi have all been linked with moves to Spurs as a result.

Both van de Ven and Maddison join Ryan Sessegnon, Manor Solomon, Richarlison, Alfie Whiteman and Ivan Perisic on the treatment table, with the latter expected to be out for the remainder of this Premier League season.

Perisic "aiming" to be back sooner than expected

The Croatia international sustained a complex ACL injury earlier in the season after being used regularly by Postecoglou, and his quality off the bench was proving a real asset at one point.

In what was described as a "big blow" by reporter Michael Bridge, losing Perisic came as some very bad news, with some believing he may have played his last game in a Spurs shirt.

The 34-year-old, though, has plans of his own – as relayed by football.london journalist Alasdair Gold. The reporter says that Perisic is aiming to be back before the end of the campaign in an effort to boost Postecoglou's chase for European football qualification.

Perisic impressed under Conte

The former Inter Milan star, if he can make an early return, would certainly provide the Spurs head coach with a quality option capable of playing an important role. Perisic's versatility is one big plus point, with his usefulness in the final third coming as another.

He registered more league assists than any other Tottenham player under former boss Antonio Conte last season, with the Italian calling him a "top player".

"It is very important we sign a player like Ivan Perisic because he can see the way to try to learn something from Ivan," said Conte on Perisic last summer (via The Boy Hotspur).

"We are talking about a real important player and top player. Sometimes it is good to bring a player in your team who is a bit over age but at the same time a good player with experience who can improve a young player in your squad.”

Cristiano Ronaldo and Georgina Rodriguez are enjoying more down time between Al-Nassr fixtures, with a clinch shared during a visit to “paradise”.

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• Portuguese superstar serving a ban
• Making the most of enforced break
• Will be back in action on May 1

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  The Portuguese superstar and his influencer partner continue to make the most of life in the Saudi Arabian sunshine. They are living the dream, with white sandy beaches and clear blue seas on their doorstep. Those surroundings allow for plenty of relaxing and unwinding to be taken in.

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  Ronaldo and Georgina have been soaking up the rays once again with no professional commitments to contend with at present. Al-Nassr claimed a 3-1 win over Al Feiha in the Pro League on Friday, with CR7 sitting that game out through suspension.

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  DID YOU KNOW?

  Ronaldo picked up a red card in Al-Nassr’s Super Cup semi-final defeat to Al-Hilal, meaning that he must serve a two-match ban. That means he will not be back in action until facing Al-Khaleej in the King Cup of Champions semi-finals on May 1 – allowing a “paradise” break to be enjoyed with Georgina.

TalkSPORT pundit and former Rangers manager Ally McCoist thinks Tottenham could make an "interesting signing" in January after what he's heard.

Spurs approach crucial January window

Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou will be growing very frustrated over his side's growing absentee list behind-the-scenes, with ten players now unavailable to play through suspension or injury.

Cristian Romero is ineligible, still serving his respective ban, while Postecoglou's crop of sidelined stars is growing by the week. James Maddison, Micky van de Ven, Richarlison, Ryan Sessegnon, Manor Solomon, Ashley Phillips, Pape Matar Sarr and Rodrigo Bentancur are all currently on the treatment table. The latter, who had only just returned from nine months out, is expected to be back out until February after an ankle ligament injury.

Spurs supporters will be ruing the reckless challenge from Aston Villa defender Matty Cash on Bentancur, with the Uruguayan's latest injury now adding to Postecoglou's growing list of problems.

Even before Bentancur's ankle problem, reports suggested Spurs were set to take to the January transfer market in an effort to solve Postecoglou's glaring lack of squad depth. Lead by new sporting director Johan Lange, the priorities for Tottenham are a new defender and winger, according to recent rumours.

Tottenham chasing Jota

Indeed, one of the most heavily-linked players of late has been former Celtic winger Jota. The Portuguese attacker could leave Saudi Arabia, where he now plays for Al-Ittihad, as Spurs eye a winter window move. According to The Times, Postecoglou is even personally keen on signing Jota.

This is after injuries to both Manor Solomon and Ivan Perisic, with Jota seen as someone who can come in and provide much-needed cover on the wings.

McCoist thinks Spurs will make "interesting" Jota move

Having starred under the Australian at Celtic, it will be intriguing to see if the 24-year-old could to do it in the Premier League. Speaking to talkSPORT this week (via TBR), former Gers boss turned pundit McCoist said he thinks Jota would be an "interesting" Spurs signing.

“Good player. Listen, I thought he was a terrific player, a real talent," said the Scotsman. “I’m not sure actually Celtic have replaced him, to be honest with you, but he’s obviously had his problems, he wasn’t in the team at all out there was he, he’s not been playing?

When asked if he is good enough to make the cut in England, McCoist replied: “Yes, and he looks like a Spurs player as well. He takes people on, he’s quite easy on the eye, he’ll score his fair share of goals. I think he’d be an interesting signing.”

The winger scored 11 goals and assisted 11 others in his final season at Celtic, which come as very impressive numbers. Jota has also been called an "exciting" player by former Spurs right-back Alan Hutton.

“Jota's that player fans want to see. He's exciting, he takes people on, he makes things happen, he scores goals and ticks all the boxes," said the pundit to Football Insider when commenting on his form in 2022.

Liverpool have reportedly agreed on a costly compensation fee for Arne Slot, as the Feyenoord boss prepares to join replace Jurgen Klopp this summer.

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• Slot set to replace Klopp in summer

• €9m fee reportedly agreed

• Final deal edging closer

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  With Klopp set to depart at the end of the season after eight years at Liverpool several candidates for the job have been floated, but Slot has emerged as the frontrunner with the deal on the verge of completion. Now has reported that the Reds will pay his current club a compensation fee of €9 million plus €2m in add-ons (£9.4m/$11.8m), which would make him the third most-expensive manager in the history of the Premier League.

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  Earlier this week, it was revealed that the move was edging closer and a substantial compensation fee was to be confirmed, with some reports suggesting that that sum would be significantly more than the €11m package agreed upon.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Slot's Feyenoord team have been an impressive outfit in recent seasons; as well as winning the 2022-23 Eredivisie title, he also guided the club to the Europa Conference League final in his first season and won the KNVB Cup a week ago.

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  WHAT NEXT FOR SLOT?

  PSV are on the brink of securing the 2023-24 Eredivisie title, but Slot's Feyenoord — their closest rivals by some distance — will need to keep the pressure on until the very end. Before turning his attention to the upcoming challenge at Anfield, the Dutch boss has three final league fixtures to navigate.

It's been reported that West Ham could consider making a "surprise" move by cashing in one of their senior squad members this January.

Hammers seal dramatic win 2-1 away to Burnley

This time last month, the pressure was seriously on manager David Moyes who had just come off the back of a dismal 1-0 defeat at home to struggling Everton. Since then, West Ham have won four out of their last five in all competitions, with impressive victories over the likes of Arsenal, Nottingham Forest, Olympiacos and the Clarets.

By all accounts, their latest Premier League three points was a real smash and grab. Promising young striker Divin Mubama, who is being offered a new West Ham contract, played a heavy hand in Dara O'Shea's own goal before Tomas Soucek's acrobatic volley sealed the game in added time.

However, Moyes, speaking after the contest, was adamant his side can play better. "We were really disappointed with our performance in the first-half. We needed to do better – we never played any forward ball or put them under any pressure," said Moyes on West Ham's win over Burnley (via BBC).

"Second-half we did. I thought we got into some areas, got some good chances, attempts at goal. In the end we nicked a win, in the Premier League that's the way it is. There's very little between a lot of the teams, even Burnley, and that's the way it is today.

"Getting back with a couple wins on the trot and a good win away from home – we want to play better but we're in a good league positions, still in the League Cup, top of our group in Europe. We musn't forget the good things we are doing as well."

With the January transfer window looming, there could be a chance to better West Ham's chances of more eye-catching performances with star signings. They're sorely lacking a proven goalscorer, for instance, and reports suggest technical director Steidten is desperate to sign a striker.

However, it is believed January funds are actually pretty limited (ExWHUemployee), so the club may well need to consider a sell-to-buy approach.

West Ham could sell Benrahma

According to a report by Football Insider and journalist Pete O'Rourke, winger Said Benrahma could be a candidate for the Irons chopping block.

Indeed, West Ham could consider selling Benrahma amid interest from Saudi Arabia, which O'Rourke claims would come as a "surprise" move given his starring role in the Europa Conference League last season.

The Algerian has started four of their 13 league games this term, though, and is believed to be eyeing more first team football for 2024. Benrahma has also been called a "wonderful, wonderful talent" by former striker Frank McAvennie, who told West Ham Zone that he was wrong to doubt the winger's signing back in 2020.

“At the time I thought it was stupid because there was a young player everyone was raving about in the exact same position, and they sold him and brought in Benrahma and I’m thinking really," said McAvennie.

“But he proved me wrong, he’s a great talent, a wonderful, wonderful talent. So it just shows you David Moyes knows what he’s doing.”