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Tottenham Hotspur have now internally “discussed” appointing a former Premier League manager as a replacement for Ange Postecoglou this summer, according to reporter Ben Jacobs.

Levy set to make decision on Ange's future this week

There have been conflicting reports about Ange’s future as Tottenham boss, but Sky Sports News have now clarified that a decision is likely to be made at some point this week, when chairman Daniel Levy returns from his holiday.

Levy has a very difficult decision on his hands, as there are differing opinions as to whether the Europa League victory sufficiently papers over the cracks of Spurs’ performances in the Premier League, with Ange’s side finishing in just 17th place after a dismal campaign.

While a final decision is yet to be made, the north Londoners have already started to identify potential replacements for Ange, having held direct talks with Brentford boss Thomas Frank, and internal discussions have now taken place over a move for a different manager.

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ByDominic Lund Jun 2, 2025

That is according to Jacobs, who recently told GiveMeSport that Roberto De Zerbi has now become a potential option for Tottenham, saying: “Levy will also know having Champions League football next season makes Spurs an attractive prospect to managerial candidates.

“Andoni Iraola and Marco Silva have definitely come under consideration, but Bournemouth expect the former to stay. And Silva has said publicly he plans to remain at Fulham.

“I would keep an eye on Thomas Frank if a change is made. Roberto De Zerbi has also been discussed, but Marseille also got Champions League under him this season.”

"Genius" De Zerbi impressing in Ligue 1

After making the decision to leave Brighton & Hove Albion at the end of the 2023-24 campaign, the Italian manager has gone on to impress in Ligue 1, leading Marseille to a second-placed finish and securing qualification for the Champions League.

As such, the 45-year-old, who prefers to use a 4-2-3-1 formation, could be tempted to remain at the French club for at least another year, but if he does become an option for Tottenham, there are plenty of signs that he could be a solid replacement for Ange.

Statman Dave was left particularly impressed by the former Brighton boss during his time in the Premier League, describing him as a “genius”, and he managed to lead the Seagulls to sixth place in the 2022-23 season, securing Europa League football in the process.

De Zerbi’s Premier League experience could serve him well in the Tottenham hot seat, but many will feel that Ange has earned one last chance in the job, having led his side to Europa League glory despite suffering numerous injury setbacks in a difficult campaign.

Chelsea are now preparing a £21m offer for a “dominant” defender, having been in regular contact over a deal, according to a report.

Blues set sights on new centre-back

The Blues are looking to bolster their defensive options this summer, and AFC Bournemouth’s Dean Huijsen has emerged as one of their key targets, although it may be difficult to win the race for the Spaniard, with a number of Premier League clubs in the race.

As such, the aforementioned report states the west Londoners could look to bring Marc Guehi back to Stamford Bridge, and a £40m move is being plotted, with the Englishman potentially in line to join for a cut-price fee, given that his contract expires in 2026.

There is no shortage of options from within the Premier League, with Nottingham Forest’s Murillo also being identified as a target, although the Brazilian will not come cheap, with a £80m asking price being touted.

He's better than Hato: Chelsea in the running to sign £68m "elite talent"

Chelsea could shift their focus away from signing Jorrel Hato if they can land this defensive titan instead.

ByKelan Sarson May 5, 2025

Not only are Enzo Maresca’s side considering moves for some of the Premier League’s top defenders, but they are also making moves to sign a young centre-back from La Liga.

That is according to a report from Spain, which states Chelsea are now preparing a €25m (£21m) opening offer for Valencia defender Cristhian Mosquera, who has been one of the revelations in La Liga this season.

Mosquera has been a key player for Valencia, and his impressive performances have led the Blues to make regular contact, with several other unnamed European clubs also expressing an interest.

There is a feeling that the 20-year-old could be allowed to leave this summer, given that his contract is set to expire in 2026, and there is a feeling that a bid of around £21m could be enough to get a deal over the line.

"Dominant" Mosquera impressing in La Liga

The Spanish youngster has managed to establish himself as a key player for Valencia this season, featuring 33 times in La Liga, and his performances have caught the eye of football scout Ben Mattinson, who believes he is underappreciated.

Mattinson points out that the Valencia ace is comfortable in possession, which is exemplified by the fact that he ranks in the 87th percentile for his pass completion rate per 90 over the past year, when compared to other centre-backs.

Of course, in a Maresca system it is important for every player to have quality on the ball, so Mosquera could be a perfect fit, and the proposed £21m fee should be no problem for a club of Chelsea’s stature.

Liverpool centre-back Virgil van Dijk has been vital to their success over the last few years, cementing himself as one of the best defenders in world football.

The Dutchman, who’s out of contract at the end of the season, has won five major honours during his time at Anfield, including a Premier League and Champions League triumph.

The 33-year-old will go down in club history for his showings in Merseyside, making over 300 appearances for the first team, with many hoping he can add to his tally next season – but the hierarchy will need to sort his contract scenario out as soon as possible.

Whilst the £75m forked out for his signature back in January 2018 may have appeared to be a mammoth sum, he’s been worth every penny, catapulting the Reds to their various levels of success.

His big-money move is one of the biggest deals in the club’s history, but they could be about to land a move just as impressive in the summer, massively strengthening Arne Slot’s first-team squad in the process.

Liverpool preparing £115m bid for Premier League star

According to one Spanish outlet, Liverpool are preparing a £115m bid to land Newcastle United striker Alexander Isak this summer, but face huge interest from elsewhere.

Arsenal and Chelsea have also been credited with an interest in recent times, with the Magpies massively reluctant to offload their key man this summer.

The Swede has thrived this campaign, notching 24 goals in 34 appearances across all competitions, including in the Carabao Cup final against Slot’s side – denying him his first trophy since taking the reins.

The report states that Eddie Howe’s side do not want to sell their star man this window, but understand the Reds’ interest is serious, with the 25-year-old potentially able to leave should they fail to achieve Champions League qualification.

Whilst it would be a club-record transfer, matching the English record in the process, a move for Isak would massively improve the current attacking department, making Slot’s side an even bigger threat in 2025/26.

How Isak compares to Liverpool’s current striker options

Darwin Núñez and Diogo Jota have often shared the responsibility of leading the line for Liverpool in 2024/25, but have often struggled during key moments.

The Portuguese striker may have notched the winning goal in the Merseyside derby last week, but has failed to deliver on a consistent basis, only scoring nine goals across his 31 appearances in all competitions.

As for Nunez, he’s also been a disappointment this campaign, evidently not being the man to take the Reds to the next level under the guidance of the Dutchman.

His tally of seven goals in his 42 appearances throughout this season, works out to just one in every 4.5 outings – a record simply not good enough if the club are to continue their dominance in the Premier League.

Such form could see Slot turn to Isak in the summer window, with the 25-year-old massively outperforming the aforementioned pair this year – highlighting the elite-level talent he possesses.

The Swede, who’s been labelled “the best striker in the world” by one analyst, has massively outscored the pair, offering another dimension to the club’s forward line.

He’s also managed to complete more take-ons and also completed more passes he’s attempted, offering an all-round number nine, something which the Reds have desperately lacked in recent years.

Games played

26

20

25

Goals & assists

25

9

7

Shot-on-target accuracy

46%

30%

39%

Pass accuracy

74%

70%

71%

Shot-creating actions

3.3

3

2.2

Take-on success

49%

39%

38%

Progressive passes

2.8

2.6

2

Whilst the touted fee would be a mammoth investment from the hierarchy, it would be a deal that would be worth every penny – taking the side to new heights under Slot.

Although competition will be high for his signature this summer, the club’s current league standing and European qualification could give them the edge in the race – making him the biggest deal since Van Dijk and arguably the most important for their ambitions of reaching the next level.

Liverpool must boldly sell "priceless" star earning more than Diaz & Jones

Liverpool, heading for the Premier League title, are set for a summer of change.

ByAngus Sinclair Apr 5, 2025

The cricketing world congratulated Afghanistan on their first ever win over Australia

ESPNcricinfo staff23-Jun-2024

This is big… @ACBofficials topple Australia for the very first time!
Hats off to @rashidkhan_19 and his team of true fighters. #T20WorldCup

— Tom Moody (@TomMoodyCricket) June 23, 2024

Bowlers tighten up at crucial moment to allow one final Bazball blast for the summer

Vithushan Ehantharajah11-Sep-2022As Zak Crawley timed and Alex Lees thudded their way to 97 for no loss, charging towards a series-winning target of 130 like revellers chasing a night bus, there was sense we were getting the ending we deserved. Here were two players, limited in their own ways but ever-willing, who haven’t quite found their comfort zone but, as they did in the chase against India at Edgbaston earlier this summer, embraced the fact comfort was not their thing and eased those closest to them.It felt emblematic of this absurd three-match Test series, right down to the fact 33 were needed when they went off for bad light to give us another day of it all. It’s been an awkward, low-quality affair, but entertaining in bursts, providing this three-Test series with a winner inside just nine days. The good kind of bad, like sniffing a permanent marker, battered haggis, or “London Bridge” by Fergie.Indeed day four of this third Test as a whole felt like a microcosm of what has been: an absurd tangle of good bowling spells in favourable conditions and some shambolic batting on both sides. England kicked off losing the final three wickets of their first innings in the space of 16 balls, before all 10 in South Africa’s second effort fell in 56.2 overs. And while on the one hand you could commend the hosts for not adding to that tally, it’s worth remembering Lees was dropped off the very first ball of the chase and was almost run out off the eighth. Crawley, immaculate otherwise, was dropped at midwicket on 51, then edged between wicketkeeper and first slip.South Africa have managed just one half-century between them, to England’s two centuries (Ben Stokes and Ben Foakes) and three fifties (both from Ollie Pope before Crawley’s effort) at the time of writing. Marco Jansen, who inexplicably missed the second Test, has the highest batting average for the Proteas at 27.33, which is more than twice as high as Joe Root’s – yes him – a dismal 11.50 from four innings. England as a whole only had four averages above 20 (Foakes 44.33, Pope 42.00, Stokes 37.25 and Jonny Bairstow 22.33) coming into this final innings. Lees and Crawley could join them if they finish the job on Monday.Related

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Given some of the shots we’ve seen this summer – good, bad and plenty ugly – it is clear the messaging from Stokes and the reinforcement from Brendon McCullum has encouraged free-wheeling and, ultimately, to embrace a little immaturity. While the latter has understandably irked traditionalists, perhaps they might find comfort in the fact that rarely has England’s bowling been as mature and responsible as it is right now. And it was because of their work after lunch that Monday’s return will be a short and sweet finale after a rewarding summer of graft.All 10 South Africa dismissals on Sunday came within 111 runs, but the 58 that came first appropriately sets the scene. It took Dean Elgar and Sarel Erwee just 8.5 overs to wipe off a first innings deficit of 40, with gorgeous sunshine illuminating some risk-free strokeplay and guides through the slips, aided by some manageable lengths. CricViz recorded that 33% of England’s deliveries were fuller than 6m from the stumps in the first innings, yet only 19% were in that range in the first 11 overs of the second.By lunch, the only victim was Erwee, finally brought uncomfortably forward by Stokes’ third delivery of the innings (and the match). South Africa went into the break with a lead of 30, nine wickets in hand and plenty more of the game on their plates than they had 24 hours ago.And then came the shift. Suddenly, everything was a little tighter. Those loose deliveries that gave the openers and No. 3 Keegan Petersen enough satisfaction to tick along were nowhere to be seen. “After lunch we had real intent,” Stuart Broad said. It showed.Everything seemed a little bit smarter, too, and all without the ball in hand that little more switched on. Broad dug deep to create some drama to such an extent that Elgar didn’t think to review an lbw against him that was sliding down. Even to the batter, it just felt right. Pope took a sharp catch to his left at fourth slip to remove Petersen. Suddenly, the runs stopped – typified by Khaya Zondo taking 23 deliveries to get off the mark – as England sped the game up for their own ends.Wiaan Mulder, survival on his mind for his 69 minutes at the crease, was undone with extra bounce from his 52nd and final delivery, as Ollie Robinson registered his first of the innings and 50 dismissals in just his 11th Test. No. 51 came when a little less bounce did for Zondo, who swayed into a leg-before dismissal.Ollie Robinson roars after a review went his way•AFP/Getty ImagesThen of course, there was the obligatory monster spell from Stokes, with two wickets in 11 overs split over tea. The first took them to the interval – bowling Marco Jansen an over after he had him caught (Pope again) off a no-ball – the second arriving two deliveries after the break when he completed his over with Kagiso Rabada’s tame guide to Harry Brook in the cordon.With that, England had taken back control Broad and James Anderson reclaimed it beyond doubt with the final dismissal to leave South Africa bereft and all out on 169.”That was the best we’ve bowled as a unit all summer,” Broad said, 3 for 45 in his back pocket that not only has him as the leading wicket-taker in the series (14) and the summer (27) but has also moved him three above Glenn McGrath and into fifth on the all-time list with 566 dismissals.Perhaps Broad, at 36, might embody all that is working in the field under Stokes and McCullum. It begins, in some ways, with the parking of any egos and the desire to do right by the team which he embraced when giving up the new ball to Robinson. And it extends with the way he feels rejuvenated by the field settings which are almost exclusively catchers rather than sweepers. As chaotic as the batting can seem, the bowling plans are akin to blinking contests. England have won most of them this summer.”Baz’s mindset is you take the scoreboard completely out of the equation at all times so not worrying about economy rate, your mindset is always how am I getting wickets in this over? Which sounds quite a basic obvious thing, but I’ve played under a lot of really good captains who were very much all about economy rates.”So Straussy’s [Andrew Strauss] number one rule was you had to go at under three an over to build pressure and create pressure and wickets in that way. And that worked and we were really successful doing that. But people like Steven Finn probably didn’t play as much Test cricket as they could have done because of that philosophy, whereas this mindset is every over you start, ‘How are you getting the batter out what’s your way of getting a wicket’, so that’s been quite refreshing.”The rejuvenation in Broad’s voice is clear. Though he is expected to miss the Pakistan series ahead of the birth of his first child, he seems pretty certain he will carry on through to the Ashes next summer. The credit, he believes, should go to the two in charge. It is “fresh”, “invigorating” and “sort of no consequences, trying to play on the front foot the whole time”. Everything we identify Broad with, basically.A music journalist once wrote the difference between Busted and Blink 182 was that one were a group of teenagers pretending to be musicians and the other was a group of musicians pretending to be teenagers. You don’t need to squint too hard at the names on the batting cards of England and South Africa to figure out which of these line-ups should know better and which are still trying to find out.But there can be no doubt ahead of a final dash to dot the ‘i’s and cross the ‘t’s for a sixth Test win of the summer that the reason England’s pop-punk brand of cricket has been so successful is the exemplary fundamentals and educated approach of their bowlers. A group of right-armers once criticised for being too samey are now one of the same: relentless, incisive and enjoying their cricket like never before.