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Bramley Moore looms large for those of an Everton persuasion. In fact, David Moyes will lead his troops out just twice more before hallowed Goodison Park will be consigned to history.

Time was when Everton would fail to mark this new era with impactful activity on the transfer front, in the planning room. But this is an exciting new project on Merseyside and Moyes is back to front it.

While the Scottish tactician will expect powers to bring in a wealth of fresh quality this summer, he will of course need to part with a few of the rusted-over parts of the Toffees make-up.

And he won’t be afraid to do it.

Why Moyes will get rid of Everton's deadwood

Everton have no less than 15 players reaching the conclusion of their contracts this summer – some are out on loan or indeed are reaching the end of their loan stints at Goodison Park.

Abdoulaye Doucoure, for example, is expected to leave. Sure, he scored the winning goal at the City Ground last weekend, but the 32-year-old isn’t popping up with such moments with the frequency to justify his £130k-per-week salary, the loftiest at the club.

Moyes isn’t afraid to cut ties with his higher-profile stars, something he’s going to need to enact with another member of the squad, a player shaping up to be the 61-year-old’s next version of James Beattie.

Beattie spent two-and-a-half seasons under Moyes’ management at Everton, signed from Southampton for £6m in January 2005 after rejecting a move to Aston Villa.

Beattie was a talented centre-forward, hard to handle and powerful in the final third. He likely didn’t make too many friends with opposing defenders. He also didn’t make a friend out of Moyes, it would appear…

Across 85 appearances for the Merseysiders, Beattie only managed to score 15 goals, interestingly with 11 of them posted across the 2005/06 season before he provided a woeful product on his final term as a Toffee.

A five-cap England international, Beattie moved on to Sheffield United in 2007, the Blades breaking their transfer record and paying £4m for a player who had fallen by the wayside at Everton.

In fact, Moyes and his number nine had come to blows on numerous occasions, having to discipline his man after a headbutt on William Gallas in 2005 and Beattie later suggesting Everton didn’t treat him with respect while he played there.

His talent and focal presence got him far, but Moyes showed that he’s willing to make a tough decision for his team, and he’s going to have to make a similar one in the weeks ahead, with Everton needing to part ways with their new version of Beattie.

Moyes' new James Beattie

While he’s served at the club for a long time, Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s best days appear to be long past, with The Athletic’s Paddy Boyland noting he has been “struggling” through the 2024/25 season.

Out of contract at the end of the season, Calvert-Lewin – who the Toffees signed from Sheffield United in 2016 – has toiled through what looks to be his final campaign as an Everton player, with a cruel injury picked up in January stunting any budding rebirth hinted at after Moyes’ return.

Still out of action, the 27-year-old surely needs to be axed this summer, with his inconsistencies and past successes suggesting that he is in a similar boat to Beattie way back when, albeit the older man being actively shoved out to sign for the Blades.

Calvert-Lewin – Scoring Stats in Premier League (past 3 seasons)

Season

Apps

Goals

xG (+/-)

24/25

22

3

6.11 (-3.11)

23/24

32

7

12.93 (-5.93)

22/23

17

2

5.84 (-3.84)

Data via Sofascore

Though DCL doesn’t share Beattie’s supposedly volatile temperment, he has been chained down by injuries and consequent issues, with his wasteful finishing and heavy wage rubber-stamping the expected decision to cut ties.

Calvert-Lewin has given Goodison Park so many fond memories. In his pomp, the long-discarded England international was among the most dangerous strikers in the Premier League, leading talent scout Jacek Kulig to remark in 2020 that “Carlo Ancelotti created a monster.”

But the truth is Calvert-Lewin’s finest days are behind him, at least in Evertonian Blue. With Beto looking like twice the player he was since Moyes came along and funding being handed ahead of the summer window, parting with the striker is sure to be the right decision.

Moyes proved before, with Beattie, that he’s not afraid to make a cut for the greater good of the team, and he must maintain this approach now.

Related He won't start again: Everton's £40k-p/w star looks finished under Moyes

Everton are undergoing a series of changes with David Moyes back at the wheel.

Posts ByAngus Sinclair Apr 15, 2025

Our correspondent hands out his awards for the tournament – to Gulbadin Naib, the ICC’s fixtures planners, and others

Alan Gardner03-Jul-2024After a glorious month of scrappy batting and occasional upsets on the sticky wickets of cricket’s wild western frontiers, the T20 World Cup finished in the most beautiful way possible – with a win for the sponsors, TV broadcasters and marketing guys (and 1.4bn Indians, of course). Truly, the romance of it all was something to behold.Anyway, now the applause has died down and the winners have stopped posing for pictures with Jay Shah, it’s time to come together for the serious business of handing out the Light Roller’s awards.Best laid plans
Pakistan went into the World Cup having prepared meticulously. They had played more T20Is in 2024 than any of the other teams involved. They had coaxed Mohammad Amir and Imad Wasim out of retirement – adding to their formidable knowledge bank of conditions from their time at the CPL. Sure, they had a new coach taking charge a few days from the start of the tournament, but this is Pakistan, right? Things should be a little crazy.Then they dropped their bundle against USA and not even could save them. Never mind all that CPL knowhow, they never even made it to the Caribbean.Pluckiest underdogs
Puff out your chest, put on your angriest face and scream into the sky: “USA! USA! USA!” In another magical moment for the sponsors, TV broadcasters and marketing guys, the inspired collection of cricketing waifs and strays bona fide stars-and-stripes heroes who represent the world’s biggest economy snuck through to the Super Eight thanks to memorable wins over Canada and Pakistan, with a little helping hand from the Florida weather. The ICC’s American dream – i.e. cash, and big piles of it – remains alive and well.Related

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Afghanistan's World Cup success isn't a surprise

Rohit and five other Indians headline ESPNcricinfo's team of the T20 World Cup

Luckiest overdogs
Talking of feel-good stories… India broke their 13-year drought at World Cups, after which Rohit Sharma planted a weirdly undersized flagpole on the Kensington Oval outfield. All it took, after several near-misses, was the right combination of coach, captain and mindset. Okay, and a schedule where all their games started at the same time didn’t hurt. Yep, and playing their first three fixtures at the same venue (having had a warm-up match there, too). And sure, knowing where their semi-final would be several months in advance. That might have been a teensy bit useful.But still, Goliath smashed each and every David put in his path, no question about it. What’s that? No, we don’t have any more angles on the SKY catch, sorry.Best element
No sport loves its conditions more than cricket – be that the effect of rain, cloud cover or sun (which it’s possible to have too much of). But you didn’t need to tune in for long to observe which meteorological phenomenon was the star of the show in the Caribbean. What direction were the crosswinds coming from? How strong was the gale? Could either team use it to their advantage? England seemingly hired Kieron Pollard explicitly to tell them which way the wind was blowing – not that it helped them as they dropped their title for the second World Cup running.Growing-the-game-(sort-of) award
Jomboy was on commentary. Drake was posting about his bets (on India, obviously). Chuck from Boynton Beach was getting involved. The West Indies as a whole felt reinvigorated by the efforts of Rovman Powell’s charismatic team, though they only went as far in the tournament as Team USA. Which doesn’t make up for the fact that attendances were seemingly affected by the ICC’s own price-gouging (particularly in New York), and the early start times to cater for TV audiences in the subcontinent. As they don’t quite say on Mandalore: “This is the cricket way.”Gulbadin Naib: the hamstring pop heard around the world•ICC/Getty ImagesStar allrounder
Hardik Pandya was good, Andre Russell had his moments. But really, who could top the efforts of USA No. 11 Saurabh Netravalkar, the Super Over superstar of the win over Pakistan? Sure, he batted twice in the tournament and made zero runs. But this guy not only does a tidy job with his left-arm swing opening the bowling, he’s a qualified computer engineer who can play the ukulele and also belt out a tune. Could do with working on his catching, though.Best theatrical performance
Afghanistan’s final Super Eight encounter with Bangladesh contained more tension and drama than an episode of . Rashid Khan chewing out team-mate Karim Janat for declining a second run was pure Hollywood star-vehicle material, while the regular rain interruptions kept the plot twisting and turning until the end. But the Oscar, of course, has to go to Gulbadin Naib, whose sudden attack of cramp just before the rain started to fall harked back to Charlie Chaplin, Buster Keaton and the golden age of silent movies. Was he following team orders? Was there a shooter on the grassy knoll? Perhaps we’ll never know.Life-comes-at-you-fast award
One week you’re openly musing about the possibility of helping to engineer your oldest rival’s exit from the tournament by rigging the net run rate in your group – and shame on you, desperate scoundrels of the media, for faithfully transcribing the words as they came out of Josh Hazlewood’s mouth – the next you’re pinning your hopes on Bangladesh doing you an NRR favour in the final game of the Super Eight. Advance Australia fair? Not this time.Undisputed champions in their field
Did you see it coming? Perhaps you imagined that a run of eight wins in a row, several of them by close margins, had put an end to the curse. Perhaps facing the might of India in the final would free them up, giving a free pass to have a crack and damn the consequences. Perhaps you thought they were safe, thanks to the Heinrich Manoeuvre… But never mind the c-word, character is destiny and South Africa know things that we don’t. Like how to stuff a requirement of 30 from 30 balls with six wickets in hand.

Unlike before, they have power-hitters in the middle order, but they aren’t getting much of a chance to show what they can do

Danyal Rasool02-Sep-20222:34

Mickey Arthur on what Pakistan have learnt so far at the Asia Cup

Pakistan scored 193, a total well above par on a slow Sharjah surface, against Hong Kong on Friday night.Normal service resumed as far as Mohammad Rizwan was concerned. He batted through despite struggling in the heat, scoring an unbeaten 78 off 57. The platform he and Fakhar Zaman (53 in 41) set meant Khushdil Shah could play with complete abandon, bludgeoning four sixes off the last four balls he faced in a 29-run over, propelling Pakistan to what was effectively an unassilable total. The bowlers followed up with fearsome ruthlessness, Mohammad Nawaz and Shadab Khan taking seven wickets between them for 13 runs as Hong Kong were skittled for 38. It was the lowest score against Pakistan in a T20I, and the 155-run win the biggest in Pakistani T20I history.Related

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• Unbeaten India slight favourites in Round 2 against Pakistan

• Arthur: Open with Fakhar, send Babar or Rizwan at No. 3

• Pakistan's strength is also their weakness in T20Is

Everything went perfectly to plan.And yet, the most exciting facet of the Pakistan performance wasn’t what they did, but what they showed they were capable of. This was Pakistan’s first T20I win this year. Incredible, but even more incredibly, this was only their third T20I in 2022.There’s little evidence much has changed since their entertaining run to the semi-finals at last year’s T20 World Cup. With the next edition of that tournament just six weeks away, Pakistan look set to rock up in Australia as a side almost identical to the one that played the previous T20 World Cup. And not just in terms of personnel, but also in approach.That has its advantages, particularly against sides that don’t have the gifts Pakistan do in terms of batting or bowling. Like Hong Kong. But even as they bask in the joy of this crushing, record-breaking win, it doesn’t take any deep analysis to work out the areas of their game more accomplished sides will look to exploit.In this game, Pakistan’s No. 4, Khushdil, came out only after 16.1 overs. Since the start of last year’s World Cup, the top three have faced an average of 87 balls per innings – on Friday, they faced 106. They make most of the runs, as you might well expect – only 35 of Pakistan’s 193 runs came off a bat that didn’t belong to a top three batter. Their combined strike rate, though, was 132.07, while Khushdil, the only one outside the top three to face any deliveries at all, soared above at 233.33.This was a typical Pakistan T20I innings. The top three have, since the start of the last World Cup, the largest negative variance between balls faced and runs scored, while the middle order has the highest strike rate in the world. The most productive players in the side, in other words, face fewer deliveries than their counterparts from any other side. By definition, that means Pakistan are leaving runs out there.5:17

Why are Asian batters struggling against spin in T20 cricket?

That might be a criticism, but it would be remarkable if no one in the Pakistan camp sees this as a massive opportunity. With the Hong Kong bowlers there for the taking at the death, Pakistan’s most potent six-hitter had the chance to face just 15 deliveries, while the similarly prolific Iftikhar Ahmed, Shadab Khan and Asif Ali didn’t get a look-in at all. Khushdil struck five sixes off the 15 balls he faced; the 106 balls the other three faced yielded just three. At the halfway mark, Pakistan had scored 64 for 1, with six fours and no sixes.For the longest time, Pakistan’s greatest T20 problem was the dearth of power hitting in their setup. The absence of personnel is something no coach, no data, no pep talk, can really overcome. But that problem has now long been put to bed, and the only shackles on this Pakistan batting line-up are self-imposed.You learn more from your losses than from your wins, but if that were true, Pakistan might have rectified the issue following the inquest after the semi-final defeat to Australia at last year’s T20 World Cup.Now, with two days to go before they face India in the Super Four, Babar Azam’s men have the opportunity to learn the same lesson, this time following a comprehensively glorious win.That Pakistan don’t have enough runs in their batting line-up is a myth. They do. They’re just not scoring them. For Pakistan, and their supporters, what could be more exhilarating than that?

On a slow, grippy pitch where every other batsman struggled for fluency, he smashed 73 not out off 33 balls

Karthik Krishnaswamy13-Oct-20203:09

Ian Bishop: Players like AB de Villiers cannot be judged by normal people’s standards

Genius is hard to describe. AB de Villiers scored an unbeaten 73 off 33 balls on Monday night against the Kolkata Knight Riders, on a pitch where everyone else made 218 off 207, and while that’s obviously extraordinary, it didn’t extraordinary.Or let’s put it this way. It didn’t look extraordinary.It looked like any other extraordinary T20 innings de Villiers has played. He didn’t stand differently at the crease, or grip his bat differently, or play any shots you haven’t seen before. There were no new tactics devised on the spur of the moment to combat a slow and grippy pitch where every other batsman struggled for fluency. It was just AB de Villiers batting like AB de Villiers.It was the kind of innings that makes you reach for supernatural explanations. Virat Kohli faced 28 balls in the same innings and hit just one boundary, off his outside edge. He watched all of de Villiers’ innings from the other end, and at the presentation ceremony called him “superhuman”. He spoke of the “zing” in de Villiers’ eyes. de Villiers himself said he’d felt an “energy” when he’d got on the bus to the stadium, and felt “a bit of light out of my eye”.ALSO READ: Kohli praises bowlers after de Villiers’ masterclassThere were certainly moments during de Villiers’ innings when a ghostly light seemed to shine from his eyes. Something not quite of this world seemed to take place, for instance, when he drove the third ball of his innings straight back down the pitch. The ball hit the stumps at the other end, deflected by some 45 degrees, beat mid-off’s dive to his left, and kept running away from that fielder even as he sprang up and gave chase, seeming to accelerate as it approached the boundary as if the laws of physics had been briefly suspended.As remarkable as the innings was, though, we know it was bat and ball and flesh and blood, and it was all explicable in some way. Kohli got to the essence of it.”I just have to say that a lot of people can do what you’ve seen in the other games, but on a pitch like that, to bat like that, I think it’s only AB who can do that, just because of the way he sets up and he’s so still when he’s seeing the ball clearly and he’s so dangerous, because he can wait for the slower balls and deposit them out of the stadium, so it was a special knock,” Kohli said.Still.That word gets to the heart of what makes de Villiers so good. This was a pitch so slow that de Villiers didn’t once dip into his considerable repertoire behind the wicket, and he consequently did not move around the crease as extravagantly as he often does. But even when he moves all over the place, he’s perfectly still at the moment when the ball leaves the bowler’s hand.The quickest feet in the business, and the stillest head.Sometimes, the moments that best illustrate what makes someone like de Villiers tick are those rare moments when something goes wrong, when the finely tuned inner machinery of his game misses a beat.Take the second ball of the 16th over, a slower offcutter from Kamlesh Nagarkoti, clocking 112.1kph. It was the kind of delivery that had frequently wrenched batsmen out of shape throughout the Royal Challengers Bangalore innings, up to that point, and it wrenched de Villiers – batting on 10 off 10 – out of shape too. He swung too early at it, missed, and ended up getting hit on the thigh pad.AB de Villiers smacks one through the leg side•BCCIIt was an illustration of everything that usually never happens when de Villiers bats – a loose, imprecise swing with bat reaching out too far in front of his body, causing a loss of balance that tips his head to the off side at a most un-de-Villiers-like angle.When everything is working well, de Villiers’ bat-swing is like a golf swing. He mentions this in this video, where he explains what he calls his “box theory”.”I always talk about a little box that’s around me,” he says. “I don’t want any part of my bat, feet, head, nothing, to leave this box. Everything must happen in this box, because that’s where I have all my power, right here, in this box, everything to be played right here.”In golf, they talk about a compact golf swing. You’ve got to feel like you’re almost swinging in a box, and it’s the same with my batting.”ALSO READ: Talking Points: How did spinners do so well in Sharjah?de Villiers had reached out of that box against that Nagarkoti slower ball. But that’s what good slower balls can force batsmen to do on sluggish pitches, offering them no pace and asking them to manufacture all the power themselves.Where other batsmen might look for other ways to compensate for that lack of pace – by batting out of their crease, perhaps, to meet the ball earlier – de Villiers simply went back into his box, stretching, by a fraction of a second, that moment of stillness that defines him.It sounds simple when you read it, but it surely isn’t. You’re working against your muscle memory, which has been honed over tens of thousands of balls on mostly quicker pitches, and while every innings involves a recalibration of muscle memory – it’s what “getting your eye in” essentially means – it takes a freakish level of ability to do it in the space of 11 balls on a pitch like this one in Sharjah.Watch the next two balls that follow the ball that beats de Villiers. They’re slower offcutters too, delivered at similar speeds (116.6kph and 114.8kph), but de Villiers holds his shape for longer against them. It’s often said that the best batsmen have more time to play their shots; against these two deliveries, de Villiers is poised and waiting for what seems an eternity.His back foot has stepped across to off stump in his trigger movement, and his wrists are cocked, holding his bat up just above the flap of his right pad. His head, having dipped slightly at release, is still, eyes perfectly level. Everything, in that moment that stretches and stretches, is still, as he waits for the ball to enter his box.In his box, out of the park. The first one’s just a touch short, and he opens up and swats it over midwicket. It goes over the stadium roof and into the speeding traffic. The next one’s full, angling into leg stump, and he clears his front leg and unleashes that golf swing, his bat finishing over his left shoulder as the ball clears another roof, beyond long-on this time. One more dent in one more car.It looks absurdly simple. You tell yourself, hey, those slower balls are getting predictable now. Perhaps the lengths are wrong. But de Villiers keeps doing it, over and over, while at the other end, and at other times in this game, other batsmen, fine batsmen, struggle. Look closer, then. Maybe there is a light shining out of his eye.

A series against India could be memorable for a power-packed middle order, two returning quicks, and a windfall for the board

Firdose Moonda07-Nov-2024South Africa’s fairly short but full home international summer starts this week with a four-match T20I series against India, which has at least two strong but incorrect narratives around it.The first is the most obvious: that this is a rematch of the World Cup final, and South Africa have the opportunity to exact revenge. Yawn. A bilateral series with a slightly different squad will never have the same significance as a World Cup final, so before you even start entertaining thoughts of that, stop. What happened in June, happened and India are world champions. That means South Africa know the magnitude of their task.Related

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The second is that this will provide preparation for the 2026 T20 World Cup, which is 15 months away. As South Africa themselves proved after being blanked 3-0 by West Indies either side of this year’s World Cup, form doesn’t count for that much at a big tournament. It’s more about momentum and luck. So scratch that too and simply enjoy this for what it is: cricket for cricket’s sake and, at best, a chance to deepen talent pools.These are some of the things South Africa will be looking for in the series.The return of middle-order muscleHeinrich Klaasen and David Miller are both playing their first internationals since the T20 World Cup and will bring much-needed stability to South Africa’s line-up. In their absence, across five T20Is, South Africa found themselves on scores like 42 for 5 against West Indies and lost 9 for 61 against Ireland. They also did not manage to find a consistent big hitter at Nos.5 or 6. They did, however, see an uptick in performance from Tristan Stubbs, who scored his second half-century in the format, and first since the first time he batted in a T20I game in 2022. Now imagine all three of them in form. With a middle order of Stubbs, Klaasen and Miller, the big hits may be even bigger.What did Jansen and Coetzee gain from their conditioning break?The series will mark the international comebacks of the first two players to be put on extended leave by Cricket South Africa (CSA), which has recognised the need for players to work on their conditioning without match-day pressures. Marco Jansen and Gerald Coetzee had shoulder and hip problems to fix but also spent time on their fitness, and the results, according to captain Aiden Markram, could be dangerous for opposition batters.”It’s been exciting to see lots of energy, pace on the ball, and they are hitting the bat really hard, if I’m speaking from a batter that’s facing them point of view,” Markram said. “They just look really excited to get back on the park and I’m sure they’ll bring lots of energy and excitement.”Gerald Coetzee is back after a conditioning break•ICC/Getty ImagesMihlali Mpongwana and/or Andile Simelane to debut – but are the only ones not auditioningThe two uncapped allrounders in the squad have been around the national team over the last few months and may get a game, but ironically, they’re not the ones with a side-point to prove. That’s every other member of the South Africa squad, who, apart from Klaasen who was retained from Sunrisers Hyderabad, will be at the IPL auction.The fact that they are playing against the IPL host country means South Africa’s players have the perfect opportunity to put their names up in lights and catch the franchise owners’ eyes, and they know it. “We’re fortunate that we’re playing a series against them pretty much just before the auction happens,” Markram said. “That would be the bonus of doing well, firstly, collectively and then for the individuals that put their hands up. I don’t think it’s your motivation to do well. I think it’s the bonus that potentially could follow.”Nqaba Peter and the spin succession plan In what has been a breakthrough year for legspinner Nqaba Peter, he now has the opportunity to establish himself as a regular in the national T20I side. Peter has been preferred over left-arm spinner Bjorn Fortuin and wristspinner Tabraiz Shamsi for this series, which provides some indication of CSA’s future planning, especially for a World Cup in the subcontinent. Shamsi opted out of a national contract last month but remains available for selection and white-ball coach Rob Walter explained his absence as part of a plan to see what other, lesser known players can offer. “Giving Nqaba Peter an opportunity to play was a priority,” Walter said.Expect to see Markram turning his own arm over as well as South Africa seek out as many bowling options as possible.Millions in broadcast fees And now to the main reason for this series taking place: CSA’s bank balance. Without being too crude about it, it cannot be ignored that the fees from hosting India are significant and believed to be around R150 million (USD 8.5 million) for a T20I match. That’s a much higher amount than the profits from CSA’s shareholding of the SA20, which is the next biggest money-maker and brought in R54 million last year (USD 3.02 million). In an otherwise loss-making season – South Africa host Sri Lanka and Pakistan, both of whom do not command massive revenues – should ensure CSA have a third successive profitable year.The benefits down the chain are also apparent. Johannesburg’s Wanderers Stadium, which does not host a Test for the second summer in succession, has one of the four fixtures. The other three are in Durban, Gqeberha and Centurion, and big crowds are expected at all four venues. While this doesn’t spread the game to some of the country’s other stadia, it ensures four of the big five (Newlands doesn’t get a game this time), have the highest-profile games.

The Boston Red Sox have finished at or below .500 in each of the last three seasons and the 2025 campaign isn't shaping up to be very different.

The Sox currently sit at 28-31 after snapping a five-game losing streak on Friday night and the ever-demanding Boston fans have grown restless with the team's direction. Calls from the fanbase to make a big change have grown loud in recent weeks and Alex Cora's job status is often at the center of the discussion. Speculation about whether the franchise would move on from Cora reached a fever pitch earlier this week when longtime Boston Globe columnist Dan Shaungessy asked the manager outright if he's worried about getting fired.

On Saturday, Red Sox chief baseball officer Craig Breslow met with the media and was also asked about Cora's status. He gave an emphatic response that should shut down chatter about the possible change.

"We have a lot of confidence in Alex's ability to lead this group," Breslow said, via MLB.com reporter Ian Browne. "That doesn't mean that we don't have conversations every day about what we might be missing or what more we can do, but we obviously made a commitment to Alex. We're going to see that through. And right now, it's about making sure that we're doing everything we can to enable the 26 guys on our roster to help us win as many games as possible."

Cora was hired by the Red Sox in 2018 and immediately helped lead a dominant roster to 108 wins and a World Series victory. The good times of that season didn't carry over, though. Boston fell to just over .500 in 2019 before Cora was suspended in 2020 for his role in the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal. The team and Cora bounced back in 2021 with 92 wins and a playoff berth but missed the postseason in each of the last three seasons.

The track the Red Sox are on this year indicates another year of no postseason baseball at Fenway Park. But Cora, who signed an extension last summer, clearly has the support of the front office.

Thomas Frank is not concerned about losing his job at Tottenham, expressing unwavering confidence that the club’s "intelligent" owners will remain patient amid the team's dismal run of form. The Spurs manager cut a composed figure in the wake of Saturday’s 2-1 defeat to Fulham, even as frustration inside the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium boiled over and supporters turned on goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario.

Vicario booed after crucial error sparks fury

Fans lost their cool following a calamitous mistake by Vicario that led to Fulham's second goal. As Frank’s side struggled to recover from recent defeats to Arsenal and Paris Saint-Germain, they were stunned by two goals in a breathless opening six minutes that silenced the home crowd and turned nervousness into hostility. Kenny Tete’s early strike put Marco Silva’s team ahead after just four minutes. Moments later, Spurs were rocked again. Vicario raced off his line to close down Raul Jimenez, yet his attempt to control the ball with his weaker left foot went horribly wrong. His scuffed clearance rolled straight to Josh King, who calmly squared the ball for Harry Wilson to curl into an empty net. Vicario’s error became the focal point for simmering anger, with pockets of supporters jeering the Italian every time he touched the ball. Frank, visibly annoyed by the treatment of his goalkeeper, later described those leading the booing as "not true fans," arguing that loyalty matters most during moments of adversity.

AdvertisementGetty/GOALFrank remains confident despite slippery form

Saturday’s defeat added to an increasingly grim home record for Tottenham this season. Spurs have also suffered losses at their own stadium to Bournemouth, Aston Villa and Chelsea. Draws against Wolves and Manchester United have compounded the sense of crisis, leaving Frank’s men searching for answers in a stretch of the season that is becoming more punishing with each passing week.

The sense of a team stuck in reverse has been exacerbated by November’s torrid sequence, in which Tottenham lost four matches and claimed a solitary draw from their five domestic fixtures. Their only moment of respite came in the Champions League, where a hard-fought win over Copenhagen briefly lifted the mood before the subsequent dip washed away any lingering optimism.

Nonetheless, Frank believes that he still enjoys the backing of the ownership group, led by chief executive Vinai Venkatesham. 

"It seems like they’re good guys, intelligent people," Frank said. "They know how to run businesses and are learning about football, learning more now they’ve become owners.

"When we’re dealing with intelligent people they can see every successful dynasty, every successful club has taken time. Yes, you have one where you maybe win one year or the second year, but you can’t sustain it if you don’t build something sustainable."

Frank challenges narrative of losing support

When asked about whether he has lost the fans, Frank pushed back against the idea that supporter confidence has evaporated entirely. He questioned the premise itself, wondering aloud what proportion of the fanbase such claims even refer to and insisting that football crowds are never monolithic in their opinions.

"I’m pretty sure every fan wants to win and wants to support," he said. "If you’re not going to plan, then maybe some get more frustrated than others. There’s always some that shout louder than others. When you say you lose the fans, how many is that? Five per cent, 10%, 15%, 20%? How much is it? I don’t know. We would like to get all 100% on board."

Frank also addressed comments made by defender Pedro Porro on social media following the Fulham defeat. The Spurs full-back had publicly expressed his frustration at the abuse directed toward teammates, and Frank backed the player’s right to speak his mind. He noted: "The players, they are individual people that can have their own opinions. What he put out there was fair in every aspect."

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Getty Images SportPivotal festive period for Frank & Spurs

There is an acknowledgement that December could determine the trajectory of Spurs’ season. A demanding run of fixtures looms, with clashes against Newcastle, Liverpool and Crystal Palace approaching rapidly. Positive results would ease scrutiny on Frank and restore belief among players whose confidence has taken visible blows in recent weeks.

A taint on Liverpool’s season has become turmoil. One loss became two became three. Now, Arne Slot’s champions are in dire straits, having lost five of their past six games in the Premier League.

This is a crisis, of course, with the Reds such a far cry from last season’s quality that not even an echo of that thrilling form can be found in this current crop. But then the season is still young, and there is a good chance that Slot, hailed as a “genius” and a “football scientist” by journalist Marcel van der Kraan last year, will find a solution.

But that solution needs to come quickly, with the expensive new signings all flattering to deceive, bar Hugo Ekitike and perhaps goalkeeper Giorgi Mamardashvili, solid if unspectacular in recent weeks as Alisson recovers from injury.

There was always going to be a period of integration, but this has gone beyond that. And, sadly, it feels like the Anfield side are missing Trent Alexander-Arnold.

Why Liverpool miss Alexander-Arnold

Not for a long time have Liverpool seen a star depart in such bitter circumstances. Alexander-Arnold was the hometown poster boy, instrumental in so much success under Jurgen Klopp’s wing.

But the whispers of his departure had started long before he left for Real Madrid at the end of the 2024/25 campaign, his contract about to expire and Real Madrid paying an £8m premium to free him early and add him to the Club World Cup squad over the pond.

Booed by segments at Anfield after the confirmation of his switch to Spain, Alexander-Arnold is no longer considered Merseyside’s Gerrard-esque superstar, even if he leaves a glittering legacy at his boyhood club.

But away from the emotion, Liverpool have missed their one-of-a-kind defender’s creativity. Jamie Carragher once said Trent’s range of passing was like “having Kevin De Bruyne playing at right-back”, with vision and accuracy on the ball that most could only dream of.

Indeed, no defender in the Premier League has racked up more assists than the 26-year-old, and with him having played fewer matches than all just below him.

As the English top flight undergoes something of a cultural and tactical shift, with long throws and low blocks and direct play all the rage once more, Slot’s Liverpool have toiled away and fallen by the wayside.

Trent’s passing would be quite the tonic right now. As per FBref, the Three Lions man ranks among the top 1% of positional peers across Europe’s top five leagues over the past year for passes attempted and progressive passes, the top 5% for shot-creating actions and the top 8% for assists made per 90.

But there’s no use crying over spilt milk – or sold starboys, for that matter. Slot needs to find a solution, and he might just have one in another city-born talent.

Liverpool's new version of Alexander-Arnold

Liverpool have signed a new creative superstar in Florian Wirtz. The German hasn’t clicked yet, but his generational quality suggests there is a propitious future awaiting the attacking midfielder.

However, Wirtz isn’t the player in question here. Instead, Curtis Jones is quietly producing progressive playmaking performances under Slot’s management and must now be utilised in a more important role to help turn the tide that has swept the club’s title ambitions away over the past few months.

Jones is Liverpool’s leading academy graduate now that Alexander-Arnold has up and left. The versatile centre-midfielder has racked up 193 appearances for his boyhood club, scoring 19 goals and providing 23 assists.

He never quite nailed down a role of significance in Klopp’s team, and while he played his part for Slot last year, Jones has been somewhat on the backbench since the summer, certainly in the Premier League.

In any case, Jones spoke at the start of the Dutch coach’s tenure of his admiration and excitement, feeling his ball-playing skill lends itself to success in Slot’s system.

With Liverpool struggling for control and focused creativity, might Jones be the answer? From limited match action this term, he has proven himself an interesting solution and must be handed a string of starts, especially with Alexis Mac Allister having drifted so far from his usual level.

There’s no question that Jones has become more progressive with his passing since Slot replaced Klopp. In fact, DataMB revealed earlier this week that the England international’s 17.82 progressive passes per game this season trumps every other Premier League midfielder, and that having recorded the highest pass completion rate (91.01%) besides.

He’s only started two league matches this season, featuring nine times in total, but the 24-year-old has also won 65% of his ground duels, as per Sofascore.

It’s no wonder that one Premier League analyst hailed him as “one of the most underrated players in England”, not necessarily the flashiest, but an industrious and dynamic player who is now adding layers.

This has always been Jones’ skillset, but now, he is starting to evolve into a forward-thinking player, shaking off that ‘conservative’ tag. Sideways passes and a play-it-safe attitude have been, unfairly, regular criticisms of his game.

Liverpool need to see positive change over the coming weeks. Eighth in the Premier League and struggling for any semblance of fluency and confidence, Jones could provide a shrewd answer, combining with those around him, shoring up the defence and rethreading the attacking patterns that have frayed and split this year.

The new Diaz: Liverpool preparing club-record bid for "magical" Salah heir

Liverpool are facing the truth that they will need to start drawing plans to replace the great Mohamed Salah on the right wing.

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By
Angus Sinclair

Nov 15, 2025

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Former Liverpool player Jermaine Pennant has defended Trent Alexander-Arnold's move to Real Madrid, stating fans "don't understand" why he left after he received a hostile reception at Anfield. The ex-Liverpool star backed the defender to overcome a difficult start, where he has been hampered by injury, and show his "best" form for the Spanish giants.

Pennant defends Trent

Pennant, who played for the Anfield club between 2006 and 2008, weighed in after the 27-year-old received a hostile reception upon his first time back to Merseyside with his new club.

Alexander-Arnold joined the 15-time Champions League winners in June  as Madrid paid a €10 million fee to secure his services early, allowing him to feature in the Club World Cup, shortly before his contract came to an end.

The decision by the Liverpool native to end his 20-year association with his boyhood club angered a significant portion of the fanbase, culminating in a difficult return in this week's Champions League group stage fixture.

Any hope of a warm welcome for the former Liverpool vice-captain was quickly extinguished on Tuesday night. As Alexander-Arnold's name was read out over the Anfield tannoy, a chorus of whistles and boos rang out from the home supporters. The England international, who was named on the bench by manager Xabi Alonso for the clash, was spotted laughing and smirking with teammates during the warm-up, seemingly unfazed by the disapproval.

The night ended in further disappointment for the right-back, as he came off the bench in the 82nd minute but could not save Madrid from a 1-0 defeat to Arne Slot's side.

AdvertisementGetty Images SportPennant: 'Fans feel he has abandoned the club'

Pennant, speaking to , offered an explanation for the vitriolic response from the Liverpool supporters, putting it down to their intense connection with the club.

“It’s difficult because Liverpool fans are so passionate. Obviously, they didn’t like that he left," Pennant said. “The fans don't understand. They think he should stay at Liverpool because it's more than a club, it's a family. They feel he has abandoned the club, the city, and the fans. I understand why the fans are upset. Nobody wants to see a great player leave their club, especially when he's been there so long."

Ex-Red defends 'irresistible' Real Madrid offer

Despite understanding the fans' frustration, Pennant strongly defended the player's right to seek a new challenge, highlighting his extensive service and achievements at Anfield, which include two Premier League titles and a Champions League trophy.

“The other side of the coin is that he was a great servant of Liverpool," Pennant argued. "He’d been at the club since he was very young and rose through the ranks to win everything with them. Would they have had the same success without him?

"He was a great player, but there comes a time in a player’s career when they want to try something different, and the opportunity to play for a club like Real Madrid isn’t something that’s available to most players and is very difficult to turn down.”

Pennant added that while he appreciates the fans' emotional reaction, he also acknowledges that some supporters will be grateful for Alexander-Arnold's contributions.

"On the other hand, I appreciate that some fans are thanking him for what he's done and wishing him all the best at Real Madrid.”

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Slow start and injury woes plague Madrid move

Alexander-Arnold's adaptation to life in the Spanish capital has been difficult. His tenure began with "less-than-stellar" performances during the Club World Cup, and his progress was significantly hampered by a hamstring injury sustained in September.

That injury has severely limited his involvement in the 2025-2026 season. The right-back, who wears the number 12 shirt for Los Blancos, has played just 151 minutes across four La Liga appearances and a mere 14 minutes over two Champions League matches.

Despite the slow start, Pennant is convinced that Alexander-Arnold will eventually prove his quality at the Santiago Bernabeu. He compared the defender's struggles to those of other major Premier League talents adapting to new environments.

“We've seen how difficult it is for great players to adapt to new clubs. It's happening right now with Alexander Isak and Florian Wirtz at Liverpool," Pennant added.

“Going to a new team can be difficult, and most players need time to adapt, especially when they've moved to a foreign country and are trying to learn a new language. It's out of his comfort zone, and everything he was used to in Liverpool, where he'd spent his whole life… is different.

"It will take time for him to adjust to his new surroundings and make Madrid his home. Once he's done that, we'll see the best of Trent."