All posts by hc12369.com

One win across their latest five Premier League games has ensured Tottenham Hotspur have failed to capitalise on the chaos surrounding many of their top-flight rivals, with Thomas Frank likely to come under fire himself if results do not start to improve.

A key crux of the issue remains the Dane’s often pragmatic approach, with the Lilywhites netting just three goals across those five outings, a far cry from the flawed, yet frenzied attacking play under Ange Postecoglou.

Last season’s top scorer, Brennan Johnson, has been sent packing to boot, even with the Wales star having still been the club’s third most prolific presence this term across all fronts, alongside Joao Palhinha (4), and behind Micky van de Ven (6) and Richarlison (8).

As that list indicated, Richarlison aside, Frank simply hasn’t got enough out of his forward line, while the continued absence of Dominic Solanke has hardly helped matters either.

In need then of further firepower, Spurs look to be making their move…

Spurs make enquiry over signing the new Solanke

It was only 18 months ago that Spurs dished out a club-record £65m fee to prise Solanke from Bournemouth, with the Englishman selected to be the belated replacement for Bayern-bound Harry Kane.

Seen just three times in action so far this term, however, the 28-year-old has sparked a real need for a genuine rival or replacement, with Porto’s Samu Aghehowa believed to be on Frank’s radar.

Away from the in-form Spaniard, TEAMtalk has also reported that Spurs are among the clubs in the mix of Wolverhampton Wanderers striker, Jorgen Strand Larsen, with the Premier League’s bottom club ready to cash in on the Norwegian this month.

As per the report, enquiries have been made by Nottingham Forest, although the north Londoners, alongside Everton, Crystal Palace and Fulham, appear to have done the same, with the quartet all said to be being ‘kept informed’ regarding his situation.

The 25-year-old was close to heading to Newcastle United over the summer, for a figure approaching £60m, although he could now be worth closer to £40m, as Wolves look to rake in almost double what they paid for him.

Why Strand Larsen could be another Solanke

It’s been a solid, albeit largely frustrating tale for Spurs’ leading man of late, with Solanke having scored 16 times in 48 games across all fronts, a record of a goal every three games.

Just nine of those came in the Premier League, however, with the one-time Chelsea and Liverpool forward failing to hit the heights of his 19-goal league haul the year prior for the Cherries – the standout season of his career to date.

There may be concerns that Spurs have snapped up something of a one-season wonder, considering the England international has scored just 38 goals in 163 top-flight games, with there a fear of a similar scenario occurring with regard to Strand Larsen.

Indeed, the Norwegian striker did dazzle for the Old Gold in 2024/25, after netting 14 league goals to steer the club to safety, although he has since scored just once in the league this time around, hence Wolves’ willingness to sell.

Looking further back, like Solanke, the towering marksman hasn’t exactly been prolific at his previous clubs, scoring just 18 in 74 games for Celta Vigo, while chalking up 27 in 71 for Groningen.

Spurs may well have been spoiled by the remarkably reliable heroics of Harry Kane, but after such high standards, they can’t expect any form of mediocrity or inconsistency.

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Solanke, unfortunately, is drifting into that type of territory, and on the evidence of his form at Molineux this season, so could Strand Larsen, with the pair having even been deemed statistically and stylistically similar players in the Premier League in 2024/25, as per FBref.

Larsen vs Solanke – 24/25 PL stats

Stat (*per game)

Larsen

Solanke

Games

35

27

Starts

30

25

Goals

14

9

Assists

4

3

Big chances missed

13

12

Mins per goal

186

245

Key passes*

0.6

0.5

Big chances created*

6

6

Total duels won*

33%

38%

Stats via Sofascore

Of course, as he did show last term, the Scandinavian star can be a real “nuisance” for top-flight opposition, as noted by the great Alan Shearer, but can Spurs really afford another expensive gamble?

Frank and co only have to look to the summer to see how spending big on a striker doesn’t translate to instant rewards, be it Alexander Isak, Benjamin Sesko or Viktor Gyokeres, with it perhaps just as important to enhance the creative supply line behind the attacking unit.

Indeed, for all Spurs’ centre-forward woes, maybe now is not the time to panic in the window – they can’t afford Solanke 2.0.

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Posts ByAngus Sinclair

Heading into the final 20 minutes of action at St James’ Park, it looked as if Newcastle United and Crystal Palace were destined to play out a drab 0-0 stalemate in the Premier League.

However, as has often been the case this season, Bruno Guimaraes delivered the goods for the Toon yet again when his team desperately needed a hero, with the talismanic Brazilian in the right place at the right time to nod home the opener.

Malick Thiaw then made sure of all three points when scrambling home the game-clincher from a late corner kick, as both Guimaraes and the Dusseldorf-born defender continue to have exceptional seasons on Tyneside.

But, it wasn’t all rosy for the hosts during the relatively straightforward 2-0 win, as some of Howe’s first team also struggled to get going against Oliver Glasner’s Eagles.

Newcastle's best and worst performers vs Palace

It would be wrong not to also mention Lewis Miley’s standout performance against Palace, before delving deeper into those who underperformed, with the teenage sensation rightly hailed as one of Howe’s “best performers” at the moment by journalist Martin Hardy, completing 100% of his passes at St James’ Park.

One of those passes would result in Guimaraes breaking the deadlock, and with nine duels also won, the 19-year-old will now want to nail down a starting spot in Howe’s main side, from a makeshift right-back position.

Yoane Wissa won’t feel so confident about his chances of remaining in the starting XI, however, with the ex-Brentford striker a quiet presence throughout, mustering up only one shot all afternoon, from a paltry 13 touches of the ball.

Moreover, Sandro Tonali’s noticeable drop in standards continued against Palace, with the Italian losing possession 13 times.

He also failed to be as energetic as a revitalised Joelinton in the middle of the park, who won a valiant eight duels himself. In contrast, Tonali only won four of his 12 attempted duels.

Podcast host Taylor Payne would even take to social media to call out Tonali’s “sloppy” approach on the ball, as a usual starter under Howe appears to be on ever-increasing shaky ground regarding his concrete spot.

He isn’t the only stalwart at St James’ Park becoming more fearful by the match for his long-term position in the starting ranks, however.

5/10 Newcastle star must be dropped

It’s been a sorry regression for Tonali in the first team over the past couple of matches, with his usual desire to win tackles bravely and pass the ball effortlessly not on show against Manchester United or Burnley, either.

Similarly, Jacob Murphy hasn’t quite been at his best for a while, now, having been in “the form of his life” earlier in the season in the words of Newcastle-based blog Mouth of the Tyne.

Looking back, this was slight hyperbole, but at the start of the campaign, Murphy was regularly in amongst the goals, with two goals and three assists coming his way during the early stages of the season.

Recently, though, the 30-year-old hasn’t looked up to speed with the rest of his teammates, as the Newcastle veteran’s goalless stretch in the side has now hit 12 straight clashes, after another unmemorable showing on Sunday.

Murphy’s performance in numbers

Minutes played

88

Goals scored

0

Assists

0

Touches

55

Shots

1

Offsides

2

Accurate passes

21/31 (68%)

Accurate crosses

3/9

Successful dribbles

1/3

Possession lost

20x

Total duels won

1/5

Stats by Sofascore

Worryingly, Murphy trudged off at the end of the 2-0 success with more offside calls going against him than shots registered at the opposition goal.

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To further add insult to injury, the 5-foot-10 attacker also gave away possession a costly 20 times, only completed one dribble, and won just one duel from five attempts, with Howe putting him out of his misery rather late into the contest, when Joe Willock was given a run-out.

Unsurprisingly, Murphy was on the receiving end of a low 5/10 post-match rating from Newcastle World’s Jordan Cronin, who simply stated that the ageing forward was “not at the races” for the majority of the match.

Against Leeds, Howe could test Anthony Elanga out on the right again, in place of the ex-Norwich City attacker, with Murphy going down as one rare low point from Newcastle’s second successive Premier League win.

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Posts ByKelan Sarson

Tottenham Hotspur are now preparing a winter move for an “impeccable” defender, amid doubts over Radu Dragusin’s future in north London.

Spurs looking to strengthen in defence with Frank under pressure

Tottenham have struggled to put together a consistent run in the Premier League, recently drawing 0-0 at Brentford, and there has been speculation over Thomas Frank’s future in north London, with Oliver Glasner, Marco Silva and Andoni Iraola being shortlisted last month.

The Dane has even admitted he hasn’t been enjoying his time in the Spurs dugout, saying: “When you need to ​put in a big, big shift and it’s not smooth, and it’s tough, it’s probably ‍difficult to enjoy it.

“If I run hard, I don’t enjoy that moment but I know I need ‍to keep my ‌head down and run hard to get through it. We are in a situation where you need to run hard, to stay in it.”

Frank’s defence hasn’t been the main issue, with the Lilywhites keeping clean sheets in their last two matches, but a lack of attacking quality has been a real problem, recording an xG of just 0.86 in the goalless draw against Brentford last time out.

However, there are now doubts over Dragusin’s future at Tottenham, with Crystal Palace making an approach to sign the Romanian, which means Frank may need to bring in another centre-back this month, and a move for Udinese’s Oumar Solet is now being prepared.

The speculation surrounding Dragusin’s future means Spurs are eager to strengthen at the back, and Solet, who is represented by the same agent as Brennan Johnson, has now emerged as a January transfer target.

However, there may be plenty of competition for the Frenchman’s signature, with Chelsea, Crystal Palace, West Ham United and Manchester United also being named as potential suitors.

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Posts 3 ByEmilio Galantini "Impeccable" Solet could be solid Dragusin replacement

Dragusin, who rakes in £85k-a-week has only just returned from a long injury lay-off, appearing for the first time since January 2025 in the 1-0 victory at Crystal Palace, but if Tottenham sanction the 23-year-old’s departure this month, the Udinese defender could be a solid replacement.

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Lauded as “impeccable” by Italian journalist Leonardo Bertozzi, the 25-year-old is strong at winning back possession, while he has also displayed an impressive ability to drive the ball up the pitch over the past year.

Oumar Solet’s key statistics

Average per 90 (past year)

Tackles

1.89 (80th percentile)

Progressive carries

1.38 (91st percentile)

Successful take-ons

1.13 (99th percentile)

The colossus, who stands at a towering 6 foot 4, also displayed his attacking quality when he scored his first Serie A goal back in March.

Solet is clearly a very well-rounded defender, capable of making an impact at both ends of the pitch, so Tottenham should look to get a deal done if Dragusin leaves this month.