Chelsea head coach Thomas Tuchel has downplayed suggestions by strikerRomelu Lukaku in two separate interviews that he is unhappy with his part in the coach’s plans. But he admitted that reports of the player’s comments have created “unhelpful noise”.
The Belgium forward, who joined Chelsea last summer from Internazionale for £97.5million, told Sky Sport Italy in an interview that took place three weeks ago but surfaced this week: “I’m not happy with the situation at Chelsea. Tuchel has chosen to play with another system.”
Reports since then in Italy have even claimed that Chelsea could sell the player in the forthcoming transfer window. Lukaku also said after the 3-1 victory away to Aston Villa last weekend that he had spoken to Tuchel and “I told him [Tuchel] that I am multi-dimensional. It is about having clarity.”
Tuchel could have done without any added controversy ahead of the match against Liverpool at Stamford Bridge, which will no doubt be widely regarded as an eliminator for the unofficial role of closest pursuers to Manchester City.
But the German pointed in rebuttal to the key part that Lukaku has played in Chelsea’s past two games, when he scored on his return to the team after illness as a substitute at Villa Park and again on Wednesday when he started the 1-1 draw at home to Brighton. And he insisted that the player had not expressed any unhappiness to him.
“We don’t like it because it brings noise that we do not need, it is not helpful,” Tuchel said. “But we don’t want to make more of it than it is. I don’t feel him unhappy, the exact opposite, that is why it is a surprise.
“If it’s an interview from an important player, I understand the process. That’s why it’s a lot of noise, not only a little bit. But we can take the time to try to understand what’s going on because it does not reflect his daily behaviour here. We will do it openly, as I think the relationship has always been.”
On the substance of the various reported claims by Lukau, Tuchel added: “He said we changed the system, but if you do the work you will find not a lot of system changes, if you find any.
“[Selling Lukaku] is clearly not my object and I will not comment at all. On the second point, the suggestion [after the Villa game] comes that the chat was that he was unhappy about how we used him – and that was not the chat. I have chats with a lot of players, how we want them to be in position, where they should be. This is an absolutely super-normal chat and we have it with Romelu.
“We have a [media] discussion now where it seems that we benched him because other players suited better our style of playing. But Romelu played when he came, then he got injured, then he caught Covid. And when he came back from Covid he played with no training at Villa and further with no training here [against Brighton].
“That’s why I’m surprised and I don’t enter in these discussions ending like ‘There’s something going on.’ Because there’s absolutely zero ‘going on’. I don’t need to understand why he did it, and I do not have to. I don’t have a reason, and I don’t go into chats and think ‘Did he mean it another way?’ We have zero problem.
“Okay, he gave an interview, so maybe he has a problem and he needs to speak up. I don’t have one.”
Asked about possible repercussions on squad harmony, Tuchel said: “It’s not necessary to have harmony and love each other. It can be good to be on the edge.”
The best way forward for Lukaku, he added, was “training, training, playing, training, playing, training, sleeping, eating good, training, playing, drinking a lot of water, sleep, train – and don’t give interviews.”
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18 games off, treatment tables full of injured players and a Covid civil war that has pitched managers against each other and ignited debate about whether the Premier League festive fixtures are a relic from a bygone era.
That we’ve emerged from a period of unprecedented pressure on the sport with fans still in grounds feels fairly miraculous. But surely the Premier League and its main players need to reflect on the chaotic nature of the last three weeks and learn a few lessons moving forward?
Jurgen Klopp and Thomas Tuchel led the way in condemning a fixture schedule which even their most partisan opponents would have to admit stretches players and squads to breaking point.
It seemed like much of their ire was aimed at the Premier League itself but the authorities were a convenient, faceless scapegoat for the complaints. The real issue is that the clubs benefit so much from a TV deal that requires fixtures to be played so frequently over Christmas.
Amazon pays the best part of £90million for its fixture package, lured partly by the captive festive audience they are playing to in the games scheduled between Christmas and New Year. Sky and BT have hoovered up Boxing Day and New Year so what gives?
If clubs, managers and players want to start eating into the lucrative Christmas schedule then they’re going to have to accept the hit on their bottom line. And last time we looked, there wasn’t much appetite for that.
This is Tuchel’s first experience of England’s unique approach to Christmas football and he seems almost disbelieving of the demands made of his players and support staff. But the substance of his complaints seem to ignore the bigger picture of just how reliant the Premier League is on broadcaster cash which has turned it into a European powerhouse.
If those complaints ring hollow, the Premier League hasn’t helped itself by shrouding the decision-making process behind postponements in a level of uncertainty that doesn’t need to be there.
The rule is clear: any team with 13 fit outfield players is obliged to play. If there are fewer than that, they can request a postponement.
But the regulation needs refinement: anecdotally I’ve heard clubs complaining that support staff should count among that number, while for some clubs players who are testing negative for Covid but forced to isolate because they are not vaccinated are included in the list of unavailable players. Towards the end of the fixture programme injuries have been a bigger issue than Covid for many clubs in asking for postponements – but since when did clubs get mitigation for injury crises?
Premier League clubs all have under-23 teams that compete regularly – why can players not be drafted into first team action if they’re short? Some have taken those steps – think Leeds bringing 15-year-old Archie Gray into their squad – while others have simply named fewer substitutes.
It makes the whole thing seem a mess when what should be happening is clubs forced to make public the list of available players they have so that any complaints of bias can be headed off at the pass.
Clubs point out medical confidentiality binds them when it comes to Covid but illnesses used to be made public when managers ran down the list of players out of matches. The second guessing of who has what seems much worse.
A dose of transparency would be the antidote to the festive mess – put the facts out there and let fans judge for themselves. It is not as if the Premier League hasn’t tried to do its best on occasions.
After Brentford’s game against Manchester United was called off at midnight in mid-December, the league defended a decision which left fans frustrated by pointing out that PCR tests were being analysed and a board meeting was called in the small hours to make the call as early as possible so plans could be changed.
The point here was that the league was trying to think of fans in their decision-making process. And after the farce of matches being called off a few hours before kick-off, there has been care taken to make calls earlier for the benefit of supporters. It feels like the process has been refined, just as we asked for it to be.
But looking at the league table and the accusations being levelled at clubs and managers, it’s difficult not to think the Premier League’s integrity has taken a knock as we depart the supposed season of goodwill.
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How do you explain the frustration with Tanguy Ndombele since he arrived at Tottenham two years ago? Moussa Sissoko is a good place to start.
In August, the Watford midfielder returned to north London just days after ending his five-year association with Spurs. And in the second half, when he sent one of his classic long-range attempts hurtling into the north stand, his efforts were greeted with rapturous cheers from the home supporters.
What transformed Sissoko into an (admittedly ironic) cult hero was precisely that – his effort. Spurs have long required a midfielder who is industrious, but is also capable of unmatched vision, and what he may have lacked in the latter, he made up for in the first department.
Which brings us back to Ndombele. Though he plays a different role from Sissoko, the £63m signing has now played under four permanent managers, several of whom have questioned his contribution. After one underwhelming performance against Burnley in 2020, that famous motivator Jose Mourinho surmised that Spurs “didn’t have a midfield”, adding: “I know adapting to the Premier League is difficult, but he [Ndombele] has had enough time and a player of his potential has to give us more than he is giving us.”
Antonio Conte was more tactical in his put-downs, when asked ahead of Saturday’s trip to Watford what part Ndombele had to play within the squad. “He is a midfielder” was his response. The only kind way of looking at that answer is that he misinterpreted the question, but the numbers tell their own story.
Since Conte’s arrival, Ndombele has been an unused substitute five times. He has only started two games – and has been taken off in both. One was the shock defeat to NS Mura, the other the 2-2 draw with Liverpool in which Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg was not fit to start. The Frenchman has made three further appearances from the bench.
That apparent struggle to complete 90 minutes, which has been an issue since he was first signed under Mauricio Pochettino, has to influence any decision Spurs make on his future as the January transfer window opens.
Conte has made it clear that Hojbjerg and Oliver Skipp are his preferred two in midfield. Ndombele, meanwhile, has previously made it clear that he has struggled to settle – the Tottenham Hotspur: All or Nothing documentary showed him voicing his unhappiness in a conversation with chairman Daniel Levy.
Ndombele’s Spurs career by numbers
Games: 86
Games missed(injury/illness): 17
Goals: 10
Assists: 8
It is hard to see how those two views are reconciled, especially when Harry Winks is brought into the equation. “I find players that are reliable,” Conte said, in praise of the England international. “And then I can count on them.” He would not be drawn on counting on Ndombele, of whom he only said it was “not right” to guarantee that he’d be staying on past January.
If Spurs cut their losses, they’ll be left with a few sparkling memories: that ingenious flicked goal against Sheffield United, his extraordinary flourishes of skill against Chelsea and a goal on a debut against Aston Villa which promised so much.
There is an argument that aside from Harry Kane and the Dele Alli of old, Ndombele is the most naturally gifted player at the club. Yet the highlights reel is short, and the number of games he has changed has been considerably fewer.
Take, for instance, in the final days of Pochettino, it was put to him that Ndombele had made a big difference in a 2-1 defeat to Liverpool. “Big difference?” he replied. “Doing what?”
And that, regardless of raw skill, is how players are ultimately judged.
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Manchester United proved to Gary Neville on Thursday that they’re perhaps not the team of “whingebags” he accused them of being earlier this week.
Neville criticised Ralf Rangnick’s men for their lacklustre performance in the 1-1 draw at Newcastle on Monday – a point they arguably didn’t deserve as Edinson Cavani came to the rescue late on.
It led the ex-defender to brand them “a bunch of whingebags”, adding: “Watch them on that pitch. I’ll not go into names, but they’re whinging at each other, arms up in the air complaining about everything. Honestly, they were absolutely shocking in that first half.”
Body language has not exactly been positive at Old Trafford this season. The club has already gone through one manager in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer, who lost the support of his players long before that of the fans, and finger pointing has become the norm when mistake after mistake costs the Red Devils precious points.
Thursday’s clash with Burnley was always going to be a test of Neville’s whingebag theory. A chilly midweek evening in the rain against a Sean Dyche team that had avoided defeat in four of their last five visits to Old Trafford.
But thankfully for Rangnick, United looked much more like a side boasting the swagger onlooking birthday boy Sir Alex Ferguson was accustomed to a decade ago.
Yes, the 3-1 result wasn’t perfect. An Eric Bailly mistake late in the first half gifted veteran Aaron Lennon a consolation goal, although the hosts were already three up at that point. A couple of moans came from the defence, David de Gea looked despondent yet again, but it was by no means an inquest.
Indeed, this United team doesn’t really do inquests. Whereas in Ferguson’s heyday conceding even a corner would lead to Peter Schmeichel chastising his defenders, or a stray pass would have Roy Keane eyeballing his team-mates, these days United are a nice, quiet bunch when it comes to disagreements.
And that’s all good and well when errors – such as Bailly’s – result in nothing more than an extra clip for a gaffes showreel. But when it comes in major games at the business end of the season, that’s a problem where the weakness in this team becomes exposed.
Of course, on an evening where three goals come as simply as they did in the first half there’s no real cause to complain. Cavani celebrated Scott McTominay’s early strike with more exuberance than just about anyone, Jadon Sancho calmly stroked home a second (off Ben Mee’s boot) and Cristiano Ronaldo was all cheek when he practically back-heeled in the third. This was the swagger United have been missing.
And then came Lennon’s strike, a few boos from the crowd, and a reminder that United are fallible.
McTominay displayed a great attitude across the 90 minutes (Photo: AP)
The second half offered little in terms of end-to-end entertainment, but United were by no means totally comfortable as Lennon proved a nuisance, evading Nemanja Matic’s radar to run at an exposed defence.
Both Cavani and Luke Shaw had chances to extend the hosts’ lead but fluffed their lines, while a final error from Aaron Wan-Bissaka gifted Burnley a corner. There were grumbles in the stands but, again, no inquest from his goalkeeper or team-mates.
This sort of niceness is fine against a depleted Burnley. But classier, more clinical sides could bring the whingebags back out of United.
David De Gea – 5/10 – Had a quiet night and was typically reluctant to aim any sort of ire at his defenders when balls into the box found their way to Chris Wood. Barely seemed to realise Lennon had scored
Luke Shaw – 8/10 – Enjoyed a healthy repartee with the referee and was always seeking to push forward. Hit the side netting during an individual first-half surge
Harry Maguire – 6/10 – Wasn’t tested too much on an evening where McTominay helped fight off Wood’s presence, but didn’t seem confident closing down Lennon for Burnley’s goal. Would have been challenged more had Burnley been at full strength
Eric Bailly – 7/10 – Looked composed without being particularly threatened until his mistake led to Burnley’s consolation. Came off injured
Aaron Wan-Bissaka – 6/10 – Positionally flighty against Johann Berg Gudmundsson but grew into the game. A blank canvass in terms of his body language displaying any sort of emotion. Ice cool but not absent
Nemanja Matic – 6/10 – Appeared off the boil at times and struggled to impose his physicality on the game. Thankfully didn’t resort to moaning
Scott McTominay – 8/10 – Celebrated his early goal with gusto, seeming to revel in the importance of the moment only after realising he had actually executed his strike to perfection. Didn’t stop running all evening
Mason Greenwood – 7/10 – The more energetic of United’s two wingers but by no means took control of the game. Forward thinking and diligent
Jadon Sancho – 7/10 – Had a quiet evening until being set through by kingmaker Shaw and slotting into the net. A meek celebration probably accepting that Mee will be credited with a fifth Premier League own goal
Cristiano Ronaldo – 8/10 – Peacocked around with his usual swagger and scored with the outside of his right boot. Reacted to missing two first-half chances as though they would be his sole opportunities of the night. Aggressive annoyance with himself for not meeting the standards he sets fuelled him on until he scored
Edinson Cavani – 9/10 – Celebrated McTominay’s goal in front of the Stretford End more vigorously than the goalscorer himself. A harrying nuisance for the Clarets defence all evening, was willing to drop back, hassle and hold the ball up. Had words with Dyche after getting caught by a stray Mee arm. Man of the match
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Man United 3-1 Burnley(McTominay ‘8, Mee OG ’27, Ronaldo ’35, Lennon ’38)
The pre-match birthday celebrations for Sir Alex Ferguson may have been a painful reminder of fading glory for Manchester United but at least Ralf Rangnick avoided disaster on this occasion.
The German manager, the fifth to have held the job since Ferguson’s retirement in 2013, saw efforts from Scott McTominay, Jadon Sancho – who forced Ben Mee into conceding an own goal – and Cristiano Ronaldo clinch victory.
It means that United missed out on the unwanted record of finishing a calendar year outside English football’s top six for the first time in three decades – a fitting gift to Fergie, to go with the giant banner fans unfurled before kick-off to celebrate his 80th birthday on Friday.
But while it extended Rangnick’s reign to five games unbeaten, against a weakened and struggling Burnley side, this was far from Ferguson-era vintage from United.
Both teams had started brightly but the key moments of the opening eight minutes both featured errors from Ronaldo – and the second of them led to United’s opener.
The Portuguese forward miscontrolled Mason Greenwood’s intelligent pass back from the by-line, attempting to switch the ball onto his left foot and nudging it straight to McTominay.
The midfielder made the most of his good fortune, burying an unstoppable shot past Wayne Hennessey from the edge of the area.
The eighth minute opener came shortly after Ronaldo had missed a glorious opening, played clean through on goal by Luke Shaw but able only to scoop the ball over from 15 yards.
They were rare examples of Ronaldo displaying poor technique but, to Rangnick’s relief, at least his side was ahead.
And after 26 minutes, the outcome looked settled when Sancho doubled the lead after more good work down the left by Shaw.
He allowed the England winger to cut into the area and shoot past James Tarkowski and into the far corner via a kind deflection off Ben Mee.
The goals kept coming, with Ronaldo ending a frustrating first half with United’s third after 35 minutes following a brilliant McTominay strike which Hennessy touched onto his post. Ronaldo was well positioned to flick the rebound into the open net from six yards.
Rangnick made six changes from the team that was so uninspired in drawing at Newcastle at the start of the week but early signs were not promising.
After just three minutes, Matt Lowton curled over a superb right-wing cross and the unmarked Chris Wood should have done better with a diving header that was yards wide.
As United sought a second, Shaw livened the crowd with a slaloming run upfield and a powerful shot that hit the side-netting.
And Ronaldo missed another good opening before his goal, played through by McTominay but hesitating and allowing Lowton to block his attempt.
But this is still a United undergoing a major crisis in confidence and identity – especially in defence – and that was not helped when a mistake by Eric Bailly gifted the ball to Aaron Lennon in midfield after 38 minutes.
The veteran forward advanced, with Harry Maguire backing off, and placed a perfect finish past the defender and into the far corner of the United net.
Ronaldo maintained his threat soon after the restart, heading wide from an excellent Greenwood delivery while Edinson Cavani set up a shot for Greenwood who drew a fine parry out of Hennessey.
Burnley threatened sporadically, but the excellent McTominay almost scored again, this time from a good 25 yards out, with a precise effort which Hennessey did well to tip over.
Against a backdrop bedecked with his Chelsea number nine shirt, it was an odd setting for Romelu Lukaku, four months on from his Inter departure, to be sitting down with Sky Italy to reminisce about the bond he once shared with half of the San Siro faithful.
There is no immediate cause for concern. The £97.5m striker – even amidst the profligacy of the Abramovich era, a club record fee – is not going to pack up and leave half a season into his second coming at Stamford Bridge.
What his sudden expressions of discontent – his revelation that he is “not happy with the situation”, specifically that “the coach has chosen to play with another system” – have done is set alarm bells ringing at the very moment in which Thomas Tuchel had subtlety called for unity.
Tuchel’s own volatile interview on Wednesday evening after the 1-1 draw with Brighton, in which he claimed it would be “stupid” even to consider Chelsea part of the title race, may have been an attempt at creating a siege mentality. “Everything is against us.”
That ought not to have been a cue for his talisman, man of the match upon his return against Aston Villa and needed more than ever with Thiago Silva, Reece James, Ben Chilwell all absent, to embark on a thinly-veiled attempt at player power. In fact, Lukaku had already done the interview days earlier, but the damage is belated.
“I think the coach has chosen to play with another system, I just have to not give up and continue to work and be a professional,” he said. “I am not happy with the situation, but I am a worker and I must not give up.” Full marks for attitude there.
Then came the suggestions that a return to Inter might one day be on the cards.
“I don’t think any of it should have happened the way it did,” he added. “The way I left Inter and the way I communicated with the Inter fans. I’m annoyed about that because it’s not the right time now but it wasn’t the right time when I left either.
“I always said that I love Inter and I’ll play for them again. I really hope so. I fell in love with Italy.” Full marks for an undying respect too – if you’re an Inter fan, anyway.
What seems to have irked Lukaku is a system in which his role has never been clearly defined. The Belgian has been both lone front man and part of an out-of-sorts duo alongside Timo Werner.
The most common has seen him flanked by two midfielders in behind him – typically Mason Mount and one other.
For all Tuchel’s willingness to experiment, his tactical approach has not exactly been revolutionised as he approaches his one-year anniversary in west London. It can hardly have come as a shock to Lukaku, but at a time when his manager is craving leadership from his senior players, calling on them to deliver more and more in the most pressing of circumstances, his words could not have been more ill-timed.
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It’s set to be a case of a New Year, but the same Covid chaos in the Football League with a mounting number of fixtures being postponed.
On Boxing Day, in the top four flights there were a total of 25 games called off – and that doesn’t include games from those sides who had requests not to play rejected.
Both the Premier League and English Football League (EFL) have reiterated their desire to continue the schedule unabated and have effectively ruled out a “firebreak”.
However, there are already six games that will not go ahead as planned on New Year’s Day, with another two postponements across 2-3 January.
On Thursday, it emerged that EFL players would no longer undergo Covid tests on matchdays, in order to prevent late cancellations and lessen the impact on travelling fans.
There are still plenty of games being affected beforehand, though, with Swansea’s Championship clash against Fulham on 3 January the latest. The Swans confirmed there were “a considerable number of positive Covid-19 cases within the playing squad.”
In a statement, Swansea added: “The club has worked hard to try and ensure it would be able to fulfil the fixture, however, the amount of positive cases means the club do not have a sufficient amount of players available for selection.”
Fleetwood are among the worst-hit clubs after they were unable to field a team for two successive matches against Wigan and Sunderland.
As it stands, one Premier League match over the New Year round of fixtures has been postponed, with Leicester confirming their clash with Norwich has been chalked off the weekend schedule.
“The Premier League Board confirmed the decision after meeting on Thursday 30 December, with the fixture, which was due to get underway at 3pm on Saturday, now to be rearranged after Norwich City confirmed it has an insufficient number of First Team players available to fulfil the match,” Leicester said in a statement.
Since 16 December, there has been just one day of top-flight football in which there haven’t been any postponements.
That has also led to a huge discrepancy between the number of games played by each team. Manchester City and Chelsea have both played 20, while ahead of their Thursday night game against Manchester United, Burnley had completed just 15 fixtures – with the Clarets also having their home game against Spurs abandoned before kick-off due to snow.
Here are all the games postponed so far across the New Year period.
Premier League
1 January – Leicester vs Norwich
Championship
1 January – Coventry City vs Luton Town
3 January – Swansea City vs Fulham
League One
1 January – Ipswich Town vs Lincoln City
1 January – Plymouth Argyle vs AFC Wimbledon
1 January – Wigan Athletic vs Accrington Stanley
2 January – Sunderland vs Fleetwood
League Two
1 January – Rochdale vs Mansfield Town
1 January Salford City vs Tranmere Rovers
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For many, Thomas Tuchel’s complaints about Chelsea’s growing list of injuries contained a glaring omission.
After his side dropped two more points at home to Brighton, he insisted the very notion that the European champions might be expected to compete in a title race with Liverpool and Manchester City, given their current circumstances, was “stupid”.
Of the starting XI held to a 1-1 draw at Stamford Bridge on Wednesday, six also began the Champions League final back in May. Among the others are a £58m forward (Christian Pulisic) and a newly-acquired £97.5m striker (Romelu Lukaku).
That is not to say that Chelsea haven’t been dealt a poor hand. Their injury crisis worsened as Reece James and Andreas Christensen limped off, joining Thiago Silva, Timo Werner and Ben Chilwell in the list of likely absentees for the Liverpool game on 2 January.
Then there are the inevitable Covid cases: Lukaku, Callum Hudson-Odoi, Timo Werner and Chilwell all tested positive on 16 December ahead of the draw with Everton. Two days later, with six confirmed cases, Chelsea had their request to postpone an away match at Wolves rejected by the Premier League.
If the season is to proceed as planned, as the Premier League insist it must, thresholds will probably need to be introduced. Rather than deciding postponements on a case-by-case basis, the governing body could opt for greater transparency. How many players have Covid? Who has Covid and who is just injured? Could clubs still field a squad featuring U23s and reasonably be expected to compete?
Tuchel has argued that there is a bigger picture here. N’Golo Kante has been required to play more minutes than has been medically advised, and risking further injury in doing so.
Without clear regulations on what constitutes a club being unable to field a squad, uncertainty breeds. Did it make sense that Crystal Palace asked not to play Tottenham on Boxing Day, only to make one change from their previous starting XI and field, for the most part, their strongest side? Why were Newcastle playing Manchester United on Monday evening if by Tuesday they were to announce that they would not be able to fulfil their Thursday night trip to Everton.
Tuchel is not alone in having to ride the wave of uncertainty, but he is in the unenviable position of facing Liverpool next.
“We have seven Covid cases,” he said after the Brighton game. “We have five or six players out for six or more weeks. How should we compete in a title race? Everyone else who has a full squad, everybody in training has the full power to come through this league.
“We would be stupid to think we can do it out of Covid and injuries. Just play and everybody would be stupid to do it without 23 fit players.”
Here’s what we know about Chelsea’s confirmed injuries and Covid cases – as well as their expected return dates.
Chelsea’s injury list
Ben Chilwell
Chilwell is not expected to play again this season after rupturing his cruciate ligament but he confirmed on Twitter that he has successfully completed surgery. “Just wanted to let everyone know that the operation yesterday was successful,” he wrote. |I feel very positive and motivated to work like a beast to get back on the pitch with my boys soon and help this great club win more trophies.”
Reece James
James appeared to be clutching his hamstring as he left the field with less than half an hour on the clock against Brighton, replaced by Marcos Alonso. Chelsea are awaiting scans to determine the severity of his injury.
Andreas Christensen
Christensen, like James, had to be taken off against the Seagulls despite battling on until half-time. Tuchel confirmed he had suffered a back injury.
Thiago Silva
Christensen’s setback was particularly alarming with Silva already out with a hamstring problem sustained in the 3-1 win over Aston Villa on Boxing Day.
Ruben Loftus-Cheek
Loftus-Cheek has missed the last two games due to Covid but will have finished his isolation period two days before the Liverpool game.
Timo Werner
Werner is another player confirmed to have tested positive on 15 December and has now missed five games, though that has been mitigated somewhat by the return of Lukaku. Tuchel has said he is still “not good” and “not in training”.
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The January transfer window opens on Saturday with potential and prices sky high as clubs look towards a potentially transformative 31 days.
From speaking to executives, agents and intermediaries, here are the trends we expect over the next month.
Everyone wants to know what Newcastle will do
There is one club that comes up in every conversation with transfer insiders about what is going to happen in January – and they are the talk of scouts, agents, executives and rival club owners across the continent.
The Saudi-backed takeover of Newcastle United makes them the club to watch in January, with rivals eager to see what the theoretical riches the club has means in practice.
“Expect them to go very big if the conversations I’ve heard are correct,” one agent tells i.
Others say Newcastle have been walking away from deals where they have been quoted sizeable fees. One enquiry about a South American international playing in Europe saw a fee of more than £40m quoted – which prompted the Magpies to walk away. “We still don’t know exactly how much money they have to spend,” another intermediary says.
When the business plan was initially submitted to the Premier League, PIF were planning to bolster Newcastle’s transfer budget by £50m for each of the first five transfer windows (on top of TV money and player sales). That suggests that while a substantial investment is on the way, they will also need to box clever.
The club itself has projected a more realistic view in private, tempering expectations of major European stars coming to the club and instead pointing out that Newcastle need battle-hardened players ready to “plug in and play”.
“We know it’s important to get things done quickly,” an insider told i. “There has been a lot of work going on behind-the-scenes for weeks now.”
The added factor is a need to get across the idea to the plethora of middle men offering them players and deals that they won’t over pay, whatever funds they have. Minority owners Amanda Staveley, Jamie Reuben and Mehrdad Ghodoussi are at the forefront of deals – novices in this world but described as “sharp” by one deal-maker i spoke to – but how will the power-lines to PIF work?
Previously PIF have needed sign off and their “process-driven” approach has slowed some moves. The club need those processes to be smoother and more agile.
One thing every observer agrees on is that they will be expected to pay more than the “going rate” to bring in their players.
“Newcastle are in the relegation zone, they need to do something – which will probably be to flex their muscles in the transfer market – but every club in the world knows it,” Jeremy Steele, owner of Analytics FC, the football analytics powerhouse, tells i.
“So it’s almost like the Man City and Chelsea factor. They were paying over the odds for players to get themselves into a stronger position. There’s always been a Premier League premium, where clubs pay more if they’re English for good overseas players, but Newcastle can add their own premium to that now.”
Kieran Trippier is a big target for Newcastle United
A deal for Kieran Trippier is being worked on and i understands things are at an “advanced” stage. That would be a huge transfer for Newcastle to pull off, giving them momentum to work with for the rest of the month and an international calibre player to lure other targets.
Interestingly, insiders believe the deal will arrive with relegation clauses that would give Trippier (and his new club) an “out” at a certain price if relegation to the Championship occurs. The club might be forced to swallow more of those kind of clauses to get the moves they want done.
Manchester United could open up possibilities
Ralf Rangnick’s appointment opens up possibilities for the Red Devils, who made significant moves in the summer and who – according to one agent – will be “big players” in the winter trading period.
Outgoings may determine how they attack January but Rangnick is understood to want a defensive midfielder capable of shoring up his preferred system, which has – thus far – failed to spark.
Anthony Martial’s departure feels inevitable, even if it has to work for the Red Devils. Jesse Lingard and Dean Henderson are others to watch, although the former may end up remaining at Old Trafford through the window.
It’s understood the Manchester United board will “support” Rangnick in the transfer window: he has the benefit of years of extensive data-driven scouting of the European market. Bringing in the right type of player should not be a problem.
Will the Brexit impact finally kick in?
In a move that passed under-the-radar but will have significance, the Premier League decided to extend their work permit “exceptions panel” – which was due to end in the summer – into January.
Although internationals or players who play regularly in the big five leagues will get permits without much of a problem, Brexit rules have made it much harder to bring in European “bargains”.
The presence of the “exceptions panel” – which costs clubs £5,000 to convene but can get work permits for clubs outside of the strict rules – could be a lifeline for some deals. It is how Manchester United got a permit for Rangnick.
Brexit is having a big impact on scouting at the big clubs and those inside football expect significant shifts in where clubs look for signings. Keep your eyes on South America, says Steele.
“The biggest thing that I’m looking forward to seeing is how clubs deal with Brexit and the new GB regulations,” he said.
“Are the Premier League clubs agile enough to pivot to where the real opportunity lies: South America? I feel at the moment it will probably take another couple of seasons for them to get their seat and become powerhouses in that market but that is inevitable.”
Covid gives the Premier League added power
Premier League clubs will get their next tranche of TV revenue ahead of the January transfer window, which gives them a chance to flex their financial muscles in a market in which Covid has strengthened their hold on the market.
Players like Boubacar Kamara, Marseille’s talented defensive midfielder, is being actively hawked around Premier League clubs. Other clubs in Europe are engaging agencies to find buyers for their best players to pay the bills.
“The Premier League has been insulated a bit but I think there’s been an underestimation of quite how hard Covid has hit the rest of Europe,” Steele – who has extensive knowledge of European markets – said.
“Clubs are in trouble.”
The Ferran Torres deal to Barcelona indicated, though, that some will continue to take out loans and find a way – even if it looks implausible from the outside.
There are ‘deals to be done’
Most believe it will be a fairly quiet window in comparison to the pre-Covid era. But that doesn’t mean there won’t be moves made and agents are confident that it remains a buyers market for English clubs.
“I think it will be kind of quiet but there’ll be a few big transfers,” Steele said.
Loans, pre-contract deals and the European market open up “possibilities” for clubs agile enough to take them. And agents speak of Everton and West Ham as other clubs looking to be quick out of the blocks in January.
The bottom has fallen out of the market
“It’s a very strange market at the moment,” one executive told i. “A good proportion of players are still on pre-Covid contracts which have years to run.
“They know they won’t get anywhere near the money they’re on now so they’re sitting tight, even if it means not playing. And clubs can’t clear out their squad because of it.
“The market will naturally re-set but it’s going to take for the end of all of those contracts for it to happen.”
There is – one executive who spoke to i said – “zero money” in the EFL. This means no escape route for players out of favour, unless clubs heavily subsidise their wages or allow them to go out on loan.
With the exception of a few star men being heavily scouted in the Championship, don’t expect major movements in that division – with the exception of clubs still banking parachute money.
Top two won’t do much as they look to summer
One Premier League club executive reckoned his budget would be around £10-15million for the window and that’s probably fairly typical of the sort of deals most top flight clubs will be looking at.
January is notoriously a difficult market with higher prices and more resistance to selling best players because of the difficulty of sourcing replacements. Which is why Liverpool, renowned as one of the best recruiters in the business, tend to do their business in the summer.
Few expect the Reds or Manchester City to do anything, with all efforts going into the summer and “potential blockbusters” – to quote one agent – to come.
“Someone is going to sign Mbappe and someone is going to sign Erling Haaland,” said one executive. “The work going into those deals will be happening now – with clubs sourcing replacements too.”
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