Parth Jindal’s request came after the IPL relocated the May 23 match between RCB and SRH from Bengaluru to Lucknow because of “unfavourable weather conditions”

Nagraj Gollapudi21-May-2025Looking at the possibility of a washout, or serious interruptions, in the high-stakes IPL 2025 contest between Mumbai Indians (MI) and Delhi Capitals (DC) on Wednesday night in Mumbai, DC co-owner Parth Jindal has requested the IPL to move the match to another city.If MI win on Wednesday, they are through to the playoffs; if DC win, neither team is through, and the fight for that final playoffs spot goes into their final league games – both of them have a game against Punjab Kings (PBKS) left after this one. In an email, accessed by ESPNcricinfo, to the IPL on Tuesday, Jindal pointed out that the “virtual quarter final is also expected to be washed out”.In case of a washout, the teams will split points, taking MI to 15 and DC to 14 ahead of their final fixtures.On Tuesday, the Indian met department issued a yellow alert (the second of four levels) for Mumbai for the next four days.Jindal’s plea came after the IPL on Tuesday “relocated” the May 23 match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) to Lucknow because of “unfavourable weather conditions” in Bengaluru.Jindal said it would be “consistent” then to move the MI-DC match, too.”The forecast in Mumbai is for heavy rains and there is a strong likelihood that the game will be washed out,” he wrote. “Just as the game between RCB vs SRH has been moved out of Bengaluru in the quest for consistency and in the interest of the league it is my request that tomorrow’s game also be moved to a different location as we have known for the better part of 6 days that the forecast for 21st in Mumbai is for heavy showers.”The development came close on the heels of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) chief executive Venky Mysore writing to the IPL to say that the defending champions were “aggrieved” that the new rain rule – an additional 120 minutes to complete games in case of rain – hadn’t been in place at the time of the restart of the IPL. On May 17, in the first game after the IPL resumed, the RCB vs KKR game in Bengaluru was washed out, ending KKR’s chances of making the playoffs.

تمكن فريق وادي دجلة من تحقيق الفوز على نظيره فريق الاتحاد السكندري، ضمن منافسات الدوري المصري الممتاز. 

وواجه فريق وادي دجلة نظيره فريق الاتحاد السكندري، في تمام الساعة السابعة مساء بتوقيت القاهرة على ملعب الإسكندرية، ضمن مباريات الجولة الـ11 من بطولة الدوري الممتاز. 

طالع.. مواعيد مباريات اليوم الاثنين 27-10-2025 والقنوات الناقلة.. الاتحاد السكندري ضد دجلة والباطن يصطدم بالأهلي

ونجح فريق وادي دجلة، في الفوز على فريق الاتحاد السكندري، بثنائية مقابل هدف، حيث أحرز محمود دياسطي الهدف الأول لصالح وادي دجلة في الدقيقة 27 من الشوط الأول بعد جملة منظمة من لاعبي الغزلان. 

وفي الدقيقة 66 من عمر الشوط الثاني، عادل فريق الاتحاد السكندري النتيجة عن طريق اللاعب إسلام سمير، بعد تسديدة من على منطقة الجزاء تسكن شباك وادي دجلة. 

وفي الدقيقة 83، عاد فريق وادي دجلة وتقدم مرة أخرى بالهدف الثاني عن طريق اللاعب زياد زيزو، بعد تسديدة رائعة من داخل منطقة الجزاء. 

وبهذه النتيجة رفع فريق وادي دجلة رصيده إلى 19 نقطة يحتل بهم المركز الرابع في جدول ترتيب الدوري الممتاز، بينما توقف رصيد الاتحاد السكندري عند 8 نقاط في المرز التاسع عشر في جدول الدوري.  أهداف مباراة الاتحاد السكندري ووادي دجلة

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has discovered when he could welcome back a highly-rated player who’s suffered an injury blow.

Arsenal edge past Olympiacos with West Ham up next

The Gunners edged past Greek Super League champions Olympiacos in midweek thanks to goals from Gabriel Martinelli and Bukayo Saka, with Arsenal maintaining their 100 per cent start in Europe.

Martinelli opened the scoring in the 12th minute with a simple tap in after Viktor Gyökeres’ shot struck the post and rolled kindly into the Brazilian’s path. However, while you might’ve expected the floodgates to open thereafter, it ended up being a tense evening for Arteta’s side — who squandered numerous opportunities to extend their lead.

Arsenal 2-0 Olympiacos – Champions League – best performers

Match Rating

Martin Odegaard

8.1

Myles Lewis-Skelly

7.9

David Raya

7.6

Mikel Merino

7.4

Chiquinho

7.4

via WhoScored

David Raya was also forced into a spectacular one-handed save to deny an equaliser from ex-Wolves forward Daniel Podence. The Portuguese winger caught a low cross perfectly on the volley from eight yards, only for Raya to instinctively fling himself to his left and divert the ball over the crossbar with an outstretched hand.

Leandro Trossard and captain Martin Odegaard, who was praised for his excellent display against Olympiacos, also missed chances to double Arsenal’s advantage before Saka finally put the game beyond doubt in added time.

Arteta initially rested Saka for tonight, perhaps in an effort to manage his fitness with the England international coming back from a hamstring problem, but his late inclusion turned out to be vital.

We’re certain to see much more of Saka given summer signing Noni Madueke is out for several weeks with a knee injury, giving Arteta precious few alternatives, with the forward joining Gabriel Jesus, Kai Havertz and Piero Hincapie on the treatment table.

Arteta was also dealt a scare when Gabriel Magalhaes was forced off for Cristhian Mosquera, receiving treatment on the pitch, but Arsenal’s boss has since given a reassuring update.

With Arteta appearing hopeful that Gabriel will be available for Arsenal’s crunch Premier League clash against Nuno Espírito Santo’s West Ham this weekend, their last match before the international break, things are a bit more uncertain with Hincapie.

The Ecuador international suffered an injury blow to his groin recently and has been unable to feature — playing just one minute since joining the club on loan from Bayer Leverkusen in the summer.

Hincapie is still waiting to make his Premier League debut for Arsenal, with a timeline on the defender’s return to action now emerging.

Piero Hincapie targeting October return for Arsenal

According to insider ‘HandOfArsenal’ on X, the 23-year-old is hoping to return to the fold this month, if all goes to plan, though a specific date hasn’t been specified just yet.

The versatile defender is currently on a season-long trial at the Emirates, as he looks to show sporting director Andrea Berta that Arsenal should trigger the £45 million buy option in his contract.

Hincapie was a regular under Xabi Alonso during Leverkusen’s historic 2024 double-winning season, where they went the entire domestic campaign unbeaten, and was among the club’s key starters last season — making 45 appearances in all competitions.

The South American, dubbed an “absolute beast” by members of the media, played at centre-back, left-back and even left-midfield on two occasions last term — and it will be interesting to see how he fits into Arteta’s plans moving forward.

Arsenal already have a stacked defence and Mosquera has been particularly impressive as a new recruit, so Hincapie is facing a battle to get in the side.

Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall has described his fifth yellow card of the season as “mind boggling”.

The Everton midfielder will miss Sunday’s Premier League clash with Crystal Palace after reaching the threshold for a one-game suspension after only six Premier League matches.

Dewsbury-Hall’s latest yellow card came in Monday night’s 1-1 draw against West Ham for a challenge on Kyle Walker-Peters where he appeared to clearly get the ball. Writing on X, the 27-year-old said:

“Forgive me if I’m wrong, and I might be, but some of these decisions are so hard to take. Mind boggling.”

Everton 1-1 West Ham

6.43

Liverpool 2-1 Everton

6.86

Everton 0-0 Aston Villa

6.72

Everton 2-0 Brighton

6.75

Leeds 1-0 Everton

6.77

Dewsbury-Hall has impressed for the Toffees since making the move from Chelsea this summer, scoring his first goal against Wolves last month. Everton boss David Moyes agreed with the midfielder’s assessment, saying:

“Relax, rejuvenate, get a massage, and be in a great mindspace.”That is Shreyas Iyer’s agenda ahead of Tuesday’s IPL 2025 final, where he’ll have the chance to win a second straight title as captain, this time with Punjab Kings (PBKS), following his success with Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) last year.Iyer played a truly special innings to get there. His unbeaten 41-ball 87 in Qualifier 2 against Mumbai Indians (MI) took PBKS to their second IPL final, their last one coming way back in 2014. Iyer’s knock contained eight sixes, including four in what became the match’s final over as PBKS won with six balls to spare.Related

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Iyer was a picture of composure as he struck the winning runs, even as his team-mates rushed onto the field to celebrate.”I don’t know, to be honest,” he said of his demeanour. “I love big occasions. I say to myself and my colleagues, the bigger the occasion, the calmer you are, and you’ll get the best results. Today I was focusing on my breathing rather than sweating it out.”Iyer also spoke of an attitude shift in the PBKS camp since their defeat to Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in Qualifier 1 three nights ago. He said he had underlined to the team that one bad game wasn’t going to define their season. Having thrown the “hiccup” against RCB “in the bin”, they wanted to show “intent and positivity” going into a knockout clash against MI.”All the players need to be assertive,” he said. “Show intent from ball one. We weren’t able to capitalise on the start, but the intent was stupendous. Even for me, when I went out there, I had to take some time, but the batsman at the other end [Josh Inglis], he was striking pretty well. I know the more time I spend on the field, the better I play and my vision also gets better.”‘Today I was focusing on my breathing rather than sweating it out’•Associated Press

Iyer’s handling of a group of hugely talented uncapped Indian players at PBKS has come in for widespread praise. Among this group is Nehal Wadhera, who made crucial 29-ball 48 during an 84-run stand off just 47 balls with his captain.”I just let them be, don’t ask too much of them,” Iyer said. “I love the fearless nature we bring to the table, the ideas they share. Talk to any of them and they’ll have a fair set of ideas on how to play a situation. Even if they haven’t got that much experience, I feel they have that brave nature, and in such big occasions, it’s important they need to gain more experience.”Asked to jog back to auction day and the prospect of going to a new team, Iyer revealed he wasn’t focused as much on going to a particular team as he was on playing in a “good environment”, which he said he got at PBKS this year.”I am very comfortable around the management and everyone around me and the environment is very positive,” he said. “I am just staying in the moment, cherish the situation. I want to go to the dressing room and celebrate with team-mates about getting into the final. But in my mind the job is only half-done, so I don’t want to think too much about the final.”

For the first time in their history, Mumbai couldn’t defend a total in excess of 200

Alagappan Muthu01-Jun-20253:14

Rapid Fire review – Shreyas Iyer’s hat-trick of sixes turned the match

The Jasprit Bumrah yorker isn’t invincible. Not even when it starts to tail. Shreyas Iyer met it with extraordinary coolness and an open face of the bat to find a boundary. It gave him the 61st run of an enormously impressive innings and reinforced a feeling of helplessness on Mumbai Indians (MI). They were staring into the eyes of the man who was single-handedly beating them. The five-time champions came up short, and for the first time, couldn’t defend a total in excess of 200. This means IPL 2025 will mark the arrival of a new power. Punjab Kings (PBKS) or Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).Shreyas=KohliThere is something extra special about batters who do their best work in a chase. Even now, when the accepted wisdom is to know what your target is, the prospect of a batter playing like he owns every little blade of grass that surrounds him is the stuff of dreams. Shreyas had his eyes wide open. This was real. This was class.Related

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He arrived at the crease in the last over of the powerplay and knew he couldn’t take his time. The second ball went for four. He never looked flustered, even when PBKS needed two runs a ball for the last eight overs. He launched Reece Topley for a hat-trick of sixes in the 13th over. Those three hits doubled PBKS’ chances of victory. It was 25% coming into the over and 53% coming out of it.Standing deep in his crease, watching every ball right onto his bat, functioning sometimes on pure instinct. There was a four he got off Hardik Pandya where he seemed almost ready to leave the short ball only to ramp it as it passed him and get it over the keeper. There was a six that he got off Ashwani Kumar, he almost seemed to predict the bowler would go wide yorker to mitigate the damage of a free-hit ball and he shifted across his crease and scythed the ball over cover.His best shots, though, were those steers all along the ground to the backward-point boundary off the two best bowlers in the opposition – Trent Boult and Bumrah. That was when everybody at the ground knew the game was firmly in Iyer’s hand. That it had always been there. He was expressionless in victory. He knew it was his. He knew it was coming.2:31

‘Such a big over’ – Aaron on Inglis taking 20 off Bumrah in the fifth

The support actJosh Inglis produced a banger of an innings, one where he took Bumrah down for 20 runs in an over. Nehal Wadhera has had a campaign to remember. Batting at No. 5, he showed great steel and rode the kind of luck a batter at that position earns by being clear-headed. Wadhera could have been dismissed on 2 if Naman Dhir had not misjudged a catching opportunity on the midwicket boundary and came rushing in instead of holding his position. He enjoyed another life on 13 and made the most of it, the pick of his shots a straight six off Ashwani Kumar in the 16th over just before he was dismissed for 48 off 39.PBKS’ bowlers deserved credit as well. They understood that going into the pitch and taking pace off was a useful option. Kyle Jamieson took pace off once every 2.67 deliveries on average. He is a Test match bowler starting to find his way even when conditions aren’t in his favour. PBKS always found a way to come back just as MI were threatening to get away. A big powerplay was offset with a wicket in the seventh over. Fifty runs between overs nine and 12 was offset by the wickets of the set batters Suryakumar Yadav (44 off 26) and Tilak Varma (44 off 29) between overs 14 and 15. ESPNcricinfo’s Forecaster had MI looking good for 220 at the halfway stage. PBKS kept them to 203.Power to the maxA lot of teams this IPL have focused on not allowing an early wicket to disrupt the attempt to take advantage of the field restrictions. MI lost Rohit Sharma to the 14th ball of the innings. They attacked 11 of the next 22, with Jonny Bairstow leading the way even if on occasion he was beaten by slower balls into the wicket. MI collected 43 runs off overs three, five and six.1:26

Moody: Dhir should be batting ahead of Hardik

The SKY showSuryakumar arrived immediately after the powerplay. At that stage, PBKS were starting to string something together. They matched him up with Yuzvendra Chahal, whom he strikes at only 117 in the IPL. On Sunday, the MI lynchpin hammered the PBKS legspinner for 33 off 16 balls. That included three sixes – two majestic hits down the ground and one sweep shot that turned the bowler’s intentions to tie him down on leg stump into a real gimme. Over the course of his 44 off 26 balls, Suryakumar also took home a world record – the highest aggregate (717) in any T20 tournament by a non-opener, surpassing AB de Villiers (687 in IPL 2016).Tilak and Dhir’s high impactTilak came down the track and struck his second ball for a six. Later, he simply extended a defensive push and presented a high elbow and that was enough to send Vyshak Vijaykumar over the long-off boundary. His innings only had two fours and two sixes but he was striking at 152.Dhir was a lot more high-impact. He was 5 off 4 balls at the start of the 17th over. He took three boundaries off PBKS’ best death bowler, Arshdeep Singh, and never looked back. Arshdeep had to return for the 19th over and work with an over-rate penalty. He could only have four fielders on the boundary and Dhir exploited that handicap to score 37 off 18 with seven fours. At that point, it felt like anybody’s game. Except it wasn’t. It was Shreyas Iyer’s game. It was always Shreyas Iyer’s game.

Trent Alexander-Arnold's return to fitness could not have come at a more important time for Real Madrid, following the loss of Dani Carvajal to injury. It comes just a week before Los Blancos are due to face Liverpool in the Champions League at Anfield, only five months after Alexander-Arnold decided to end a 20-year association with his boyhood team.

Carvajal medical report revealed

On Tuesday, Real Madrid gave an official statement confirming that Carvajal has had knee surgery – he had earlier been "diagnosed with a loose joint in his right knee" following tests that had taken place on Monday. He didn't start El Clasico against Barcelona and felt discomfort after coming on.

"Our captain, Dani Carvajal, underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his right knee today," it read. "The operation was performed by Dr. Manuel Leyes under the supervision of Real Madrid's Medical Services. Carvajal will begin recovery work in the coming days."

While there is no timeframe from the club on his return, early estimates suggest the right-back could be sidelined for most of the rest of the calendar while he recovers. It suggests he could be back in action at some point in December, or perhaps even after Real Madrid are back from Spain's winter break in early January.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesBoost for Alexander-Arnold ahead of Anfield return

Alexander-Arnold was struck down by a hamstring injury just five minutes into last month's Champions League win over Marseille, but was back in the matchday squad for Sunday's Barcelona clash for the first time since then. He didn't get on the pitch, with Carvajal going on to grab headlines for the way he angrily confronted Lamine Yamal at the final whistle, accusing the teenager of running his mouth in the build-up. But it points to a return to fitness, at least, for someone who hasn't naturally flourished since joining the club in June.

The former Liverpool defender was forced to share game time with Carvajal prior to getting injured, getting the nod against Osasuna and Mallorca but having to make do with late substitute appearances when Madrid faced Real Oviedo and Real Sociedad. Marseille was the next match after Real Sociedad, so it made sense for Trent to return to Xabi Alonso's XI, only for him to get injured straightaway.

But with Carvajal competition for the place now not a factor for the foreseeable future, Alexander-Arnold suddenly has a great chance of starting against Liverpool. There is no other senior recognised right-back in the first-team squad, although midfielder Federico Valverde has often filled in when needed – as was the case against Barcelona – and would be an option if Alexander-Arnold is viewed to be short on match fitness.

Liverpool's poor form without homegrown right-back

For Real Madrid, this feels like a good time to play what was, on paper at the time the league phase draw was conducted, their hardest fixture. While Alonso's side have won five straight games across all competitions since a surprisingly heavy defeat to city rivals Atletico a month ago, Liverpool have five of their last six outings – including four in a row in the Premier League to slide down the table.

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AFPHostile reception for Alexander-Arnold

Whether he starts at Anfield or not, Alexander-Arnold could find himself in for a hostile reception from the fans who used to consider him one of their own. Trent's decision to run down his Liverpool contract, ensuring the Reds could only command a negligible transfer fee due to the uniqueness of the mini-transfer window before the summer's Club World Cup, did not sit well with supporters. Alexander-Arnold was audibly booed by some Liverpool fans in the final weeks of last season and openly accused of betraying the club with homemade signs displayed in the area around Anfield. When he did eventually reach his last game for Liverpool, Alexander-Arnold was more warmly received inside the stadium, but that feeling may not last if he is lining up for an opponent he seemingly considered to be a bigger club.

After Liverpool lost for the second time in the space of a few days courtesy of Galatasaray, Jamie Carragher has called for one of Arne Slot’s biggest stars to be dropped.

Slot "disappointed" again by Liverpool

After needing late goals in several of their opening games to salvage victory, something seemed off about the Premier League champions. They looked vulnerable and defeat seemed inevitable. The late goal simply wasn’t always going to arrive. And, as expected, Crystal Palace have since exposed that uncomfortable fact for Slot’s side.

The Eagles stole the late show from the Reds to hand them their first defeat at the weekend and Galatasaray have now followed suit to deal Slot back-to-back defeats for just the second time in his Liverpool career. For many, the decision to award Galatasaray a first-half penalty was contentious, but that shouldn’t have been that for Liverpool, who never truly reacted to going behind.

Having his say on his side’s defeat, Slot told reporters: “Again, disappointed. For me, this was a different performance on and off the ball [than Crystal Palace]. First half, we played quite well and had a big chance to go 1-0 up.

“It is difficult to compare this situation to before. We are sometimes a bit outsmarted in situations like this, and I cannot blame Dominik Szoboszlai for the situation. They make a 20% penalty a 100% penalty, which is very smart from them.”

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It doesn’t get any easier for the Reds, either. They travel to face Chelsea at Stamford Bridge on Saturday and club legend Carragher has already called on one player to be dropped against the Blues.

Carragher calls for Liverpool to drop Wirtz

In a brutal assessment, Carragher called for Liverpool to drop Florian Wirtz “right now” following another disappointing display from the £200,000-a-week German. The former Bayer Leverkusen star is without a goal or assist since the Community Shield and is struggling to get up to speed at Anfield.

Whether it’s been out wide or in midfield, it’s hard to argue with Carragher’s verdict. Something is wrong with this Liverpool side and it’s only natural that the blame goes the way of the £116m midfielder who hasn’t contributed since Wembley.

Slot certainly has a big decision to make. A few, in fact. As the Chelsea game approaches, Liverpool must lay down a marker as Premier League champions.

Celtic are currently back in training and preparing to return to action in the Scottish Premiership with a trip to face Dundee away from home on Sunday.

The Hoops beat Motherwell 3-2 at Parkhead before the international break, thanks to a last-gasp winner from Daizen Maeda, and will be hoping to follow that up with another victory.

However, Brendan Rodgers may have some injury issues to contend with ahead of selecting his starting line-up to chase the three points against Dundee.

The latest Celtic team news before Dundee

Starting with the positive news, Alistair Johnston has returned to first-team training this week for the first time since he suffered a hamstring injury in August.

He was initially ruled out until November, per the Daily Record, but the Canada international is now in line for an early return against Dundee on Sunday.

There was more positive news out of the camp earlier this week when Sebastian Tounekti played for Tunisia against Namibia, having missed his country’s first match through injury.

Whilst the Tunisian whiz, who scored his first goal for the club against Partick Thistle, may be available for selection, Celtic’s right-sided winger may not be.

Daizen Maeda had to withdraw from international duty with Japan due to a foot issue, not playing a single minute in either match, and his injury has left Rodgers concerned, per Football Insider, ahead of Sunday.

How Celtic could replace Daizen Maeda

Football FanCast recently suggested that unleashing 18-year-old winger Rhys Dargie could be one way for the Hoops to replace Maeda if he is unavailable for selection against Dundee, because the output from the manager’s other options has left a lot to be desired.

Output from Celtic RWs

25/26 season (all competitions)

Appearances

Goals + assists

Daizen Maeda (first-team)

13

3 + 2

Michel-Ange Balikwisha (first-team)

6

0 + 2

Hyun-jun Yang (first-team)

8

1 + 0

James Forrest (first-team)

12

0 + 0

Stats via Transfermarkt

As you can see in the table above, Michel-Ange Balikwisha, Hyun-jun Yang, and James Forrest have struggled to deliver consistent quality in the final third.

If Rodgers does not want to bring in Dargie, as he has not featured in a matchday squad for the first team, he could solve his Maeda problem by unleashing Callum Osmand for the first time.

The summer signing from Fulham has made the bench for the senior side on two occasions, both against Kairat in the Champions League, which shows that he is in the manager’s thoughts.

Osmand is a centre-forward by trade, but he has played on the right wing before, per Transfermarkt, scoring two goals in one game. He was also hailed as “lightning quick” by Fulham expert Jack Kelly, which suggests that he has the mobility and speed to play out wide.

Callum Osmand’s U18 & U21 form for Fulham

Season

Appearances

Goals

Assists

24/25

22

11

4

23/24

29

21

6

22/23

21

11

2

21/22

1

0

0

Total

73

43

12

Stats via Transfermarkt

The 19-year-old attacker’s form for Fulham at youth level, as shown in the table above, shows that he has the potential to deliver quality in the final third, particularly as a goalscorer, which is what the Hoops are lacking.

Maeda is Celtic’s top scoring winger, with three goals, which is why it would be a blow to lose him for any number of games through injury, but Osmand is a young talent who could ease that blow.

The Wales U17 international has scored two goals in three Challenge Cup games for Celtic, per Transfermarkt, which also shows that he has carried his goalscoring form over to Scotland.

This Sunday could be the perfect opportunity to provide him with a chance to impress on the right wing, even if it is not his preferred position, with a first-team debut for the Hoops, if Maeda is unavailable.

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Osmand may be a more viable short-term option for Rodgers than Dargie, who does look like an exciting prospect, because of his first-team involvement earlier this season.

Whether it is Dargie or Osmand, who could both be intriguing options to call upon on the right wing, Celtic may have to do something different on the right flank if Maeda is out, due to how underwhelming their senior alternatives have been.

Tottenham Hotspur are now battling north London rivals Arsenal for the signature of a young French defender who has a “rare quality”.

Spurs looking defensively solid since Frank's arrival

Despite leading Tottenham to Europa League glory, Ange Postecoglou received widespread criticism for his inability to make his side defensively sound, conceding a whopping 65 goals in the Premier League alone last season, which resulted in a 17th-place finish.

Since Thomas Frank’s arrival, however, Spurs have looked much more solid at the back, according to former midfielder Danny Murphy, who said: “He’s fixing the main problem that Tottenham had last year, which is why they finished 17th. They conceded so many goals and they were wide open.

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“He’s gone in there and gone, ‘We’re going to be better defensively, first and foremost, and we’ll sacrifice the looking great and creativity for a little while.”

It has been an impressive start to the season for Frank’s side, having collected 14 points from their opening seven games, and their improved defensive record suggests the Dane may not need to bolster his options at the back anytime soon.

However, according to a report from Caught Offside, Tottenham have now joined the race for a new centre-back, namely FC Nantes defender Tylel Tati, who is also being targeted by Arsenal, and a number of Europe’s top clubs.

Tati is a versatile player, also capable of slotting in at left-back and defensive midfield, and he has caught the eye of Barcelona, Manchester United and Liverpool, with scouts being sent to watch the 17-year-old in action.

Born in Paris’ eastern suburbs around 11km from the birthplace of current French sensation William Saliba, if the teenager is able to continue his current rate of development, there is a feeling he could be ready to move to a Champions League side in 2026.

Tati has one "rare quality" that sets him apart

The French youngster has emerged as a key first-team player for Nantes this season, which is no mean feat at just 17, and Stéphane Ziani, director of the training centre, believes the starlet has one key strength that sets him apart.

Ziani said: “Tylel has this rare quality of reading the game before the others. And he has a good head on his shoulders.”

Perhaps the youngster’s most impressive performance to date came in a 1-0 defeat against Strasbourg back in August, winning every duel he contested and making a number of other important defensive contributions.

Statistic

Number completed

Clearances

2

Tackles

3

Duels won

6 (6)

Tati is clearly a very talented young player, but signing a new centre-back should not be Tottenham’s priority heading into the January transfer window, given their improved defensive performances since Frank’s arrival.

Instead, it would be a smart move to bring in a new left-winger, having arguably failed to replace Son Heung-min, with AFC Bournemouth star Antoine Semenyo of interest, although it could take a club-record £75m offer to get a deal done.