Will we have more twists and turns in EPL title run-in?

Last weekend saw an astonishing turn of events in the Premier League title race.

No one expected both Arsenal and Liverpool to lose at home. It was Liverpool’s first defeat since February and their first loss at Anfield since October 2022.

Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola must have thought Christmas had arrived all over again. To quote that old cliché, the title is now City’s to lose but with several games left, there could be some twists and turns. 

Opponents have worked out how to play Spurs

Like so many others, I have admired Tottenham’s style of attacking football this season under Ange Postecoglou.

The problem is that many opponents have worked out how to beat them and none more so than Newcastle, who tore Spur’s Plan A game apart in beating them 4-0.

Eddie Howe had done his homework and his midweek training briefings concentrated on breaking down Tottenham’s high playing line and Anthony Gordon, Harvey Barnes and Alexander Isak simply dismantled Tottenham’s midfield and defence.

Why Postecoglou didn’t recognise what was happening and dropped his forward line back and deeper I cannot imagine.

The Australian coach has been praised all season but this lack of ability to change things mid-match is worrying.

Captain Son Heung-Min looked frustrated and annoyed as he was replaced in the 56th minute against Newcastle. Many see him as Tottenham’s shining light but like his close associate and friend Harry Kane, Sonny has won nothing at Spurs in terms of silverware.

Moving on is in his thoughts but he is also a loyal servant like Kane but many think he has remained at the club too long. There will be a long queue for his services if he decides to leave.

Tottenham’s defence needs to be stronger. Micky van de Ven, Destiny Udogie and Pedro Porro were unable to handle Gordon and Isak.

At times, Postecoglou held his head in his hands and he knows the honeymoon period of his first 10 unbeaten matches has long gone and reality has kicked in again at White Hart Lane. It’s that old ‘Spursy’ feeling coming back. 

Amorim says don’t ask me about Liverpool

Jurgen Klopp is limping to a finale with his tired Liverpool team. However, the bookies favourite to replace him, Ruben Amorim, says he is fed up with all the speculation regarding him taking over at Anfield.

To set the record straight, Amorim says he has not even spoken to the club regarding the job, which becomes available in July.

The 39-year-old boss of Sporting Lisbon is widely regarded as one of the most promising young managers in Europe along with Xabi Alonso, who has rejected the job for the time being.

Amorim said he could not ‘guarantee’ if he will be at Sporting next season which many took to mean he is heading for Liverpool.

To dampen the flames, he told us: “I did not meet Liverpool for any interview or even discussion. There is no agreement. I am Sporting’s manager and I want to win here and I didn’t meet any club. Nothing has been agreed. Stop with this story. This is the last time I will speak about my future.”

Now you know. 

Newcastle’s final games are all “winnable”

Defender Dan Burn has spoken about his belief that Newcastle can still win a place in the Champions League next season. Eddie Howe’s men are 10 points behind Tottenham with six games to play.

As Burn said: “Newcastle’s run in games are all winnable”…Crystal Palace, Burnley, Man United, Brentford, Sheffield United and Brighton.

Tottenham, on the other hand, have a very challenging run-in…Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Man City. The Baggies captain said: “We have momentum going into the last bit and we intend to catch Tottenham.” 

Two players Arsenal look to replace

An angry and frustrated Mikel Arteta blamed much of Arsenal’s 2-0 home defeat to Aston Villa on Gabriel Jesus and Oleksandr Zinchenko. He didn’t openly criticise them in front of the TV cameras or the press briefing but that is what he was thinking.

Both players joined from Manchester City and have played regularly. However, Jesus has scored only one goal this year and Zinchenko, for all his ability, constantly makes mistakes which leave his midfield in chaos as they try to retrieve a losing position.

Both players were left out of the Arsenal starting line-up at Bayern Munich this week. Kai Havertz has proved to be a step up this season and has shielded much of Jesus’ mistimed attempts at goal and Jorginho is a better player than Zinchenko but is constantly a non-starter.

A repeat of last season’s run-in collapse is in the mind of every Arsenal supporter and, if it is not too late, word is that Arteta has to address replacing these two players and possibly letting them go at the end of the season. 

Brentford drop price for Toney

Brentford have decided they will definitely lose their talisman striker Ivan Toney at the end of the season but have considerably dropped their £100m valuation.

The 28-year-old is entering the final 12 months of his contract and is free to leave in 2025. The club have decided that given Toney is determined to move to a bigger club, they must get some money for him and are now quoting £30-£40m.

The Bees are confident both Ben Mee and Josh Dasilva will sign contract extensions to keep them at the club beyond the summer.

Dasilva and Mee are recovering from long-term injuries and will be offered short-term contracts ahead of next season.

Mee has been forced to use crutches since suffering an ankle fracture in February. Dasilva returned from a hamstring injury in February but suffered a serious knee ligament problem which required surgery.

The Bees intend to be active in the transfer market this summer and Club Brugge striker Igor Thiago is joining to replace Toney for £30m. On-loan keeper David Raya will join Arsenal on a permanent deal at the end of the season. 

Bradley out for Liverpool

Liverpool need all the luck and ambition if they are going to put in a late challenge for the PL title. However, they will have to do it without Conor Bradley.

The fullback, who has impressed covering for Trent Alexander-Arnold, damaged his ankle ligaments in the shock 1-0 defeat to Crystal Palace. The 20-year-old Northern Ireland defender will be missing from games against Fulham, Everton and West Ham.

 Anthony on road to recovery

After withdrawing from Saturday’s 2-2 draw with Bournemouth, Man United attacking winger Anthony sent us pictures of him in an ice bath and said all was going well with his recovery.

The Brazilian’s form had been improving before the setback with a goal against Liverpool in the FA Cup followed by a wonderful centred pass assist for Alejandro Garnacho to score.

Anthony’s future at the club is still under review with the new management likely to make big changes in the summer. He has failed to live up to his £85m signing fee and has not scored in the league for a year.

His stay at Old Trafford is likely to be influenced by what happens to Erik Ten Hag in the summer. 

Picture looks even more bleak for Ten Hag

The one thing a coach does not do is avoid answering a question from the media by walking out of the post-game press briefing.

That is exactly what Manchester United boss Erik Ten Hag did after being asked what would happen if the club ended up lower than seventh.

The question annoyed him and he left. He is described around Old Trafford as a dead man walking and the pressure has finally got to him. Champions League qualification has surely gone although he still believes it is possible…no one else at the club shares his view.

Chelsea and Newcastle have improved and even United’s Europa spot is under threat. The club has fewer points at this stage of the season than it had accumulated when David Moyes was sacked as manager.

Ten Hag keeps blaming his injury list and yet other teams, such as Bournemouth — who drew last Saturday with a weakened team— have had bad injuries and come through a difficult re-organisation.

Heaping blame for poor results on having players out injured undermines the confidence of those trying to play for the pride of the badge.

Ten Hag should attempt to end the season quietly and without friction in his camp.

However, following the public fallout with Jadon Sancho, he risks another major row.

Many supporters posted on X that Alejandro Garnacho had been thrown under a bus after being hooked off at halftime against Bournemouth. He had given the ball away which led to Bournemouth’s opening goal.

Fans criticised Ten Hag and not Garnacho. The striker liked the posts on social media after the coach had called the striker “erratic in possession.”  

Howe changes his mind about bad luck

Newcastle boss Eddie Howe has always said he believes a coach makes his luck. However, he believes the Black & Whites have been hit by extraordinary circumstances with his current crop of injured players.

Newcastle captain Jamaal Lascelles is the latest victim. He will undergo knee surgery to repair a torn anterior cruciate ligament.

Howe said: “We play high-intensity football and a very physical game. Naturally, if we played a different way and less physically, the cost to our players would be less.

"The speed of the game is getting quicker, week after week. But when you look at some of the injuries this year, you have to believe that many are just bad luck.”

Newcastle are determined to hold on to Alexander Isak, who is creating a lot of interest around Europe after scoring 19 goals in 30 matches. 

Just for the record, Newcastle medics were heavily criticised for not authorising defender Sven Botman to have a hamstring operation earlier in the season.

However, I can reveal that the blame does not rest with the medics. It's the player who insisted he would not have surgery, saying he felt able to play. He will now be out for the rest of the season.