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With the race for the Championship's automatic promotion places hotting up, Leeds United have been dealt a significant concern going into a pivotal part of the season.

Leeds continue march towards promotion

After a shaky start to life back in the Championship, Leeds have brushed off the cobwebs of the early passages of the season and made quick work of their rise up the table. Part of the changing fortunes at Elland Road has been the attacking pedigree on show.

What happened to Hadi Sacko after departing Leeds United

The Whites reportedly splashed out £1.5m to sign him whilst in the Championship.

ByDan Emery Feb 27, 2024

The Whites are currently scoring an average of almost two goals per game, making a mockery of Championship defences in the process.

The cause of this free-scoring spell has been the myriad of different sources that the goals are coming from. Crysencio Summerville leads the pack for goals, hitting the back of the net on 15 different occasions this season however, a number of other individuals have chipped in during the campaign.

Crysencio Summerville

15

8

Wilfred Gnonto

7

2

Daniel James

12

7

Joel Piroe

11

2

Georginio Rutter

6

16

Patrick Bamford

7

1

If Leeds are to continue this surge towards a Premier League return, maintaining this form in front of goal will be paramount to their success. With this in mind, the Whites appear to have been hit with some bad news in their hunt for automatic promotion.

Phil Hay drops Leeds injury concern

As first reported on his X account, Leeds journalist Phil Hay has revealed that Georginio Rutter has withdrawn from the France Under 21's squad owing to a persistent injury issue.

Whilst the news of Rutter's injury will be disappointing for the Elland Road faithful, Hay quickly reassured fans that the Frenchman is expected to return to action within 10 days, possibly leaving him available for the Whites' next league game on Good Friday.

It appears that Rutter's absence is due to the 21-year-old undergoing minor hernia surgery, suggesting that the absence is down to a planned procedure rather than an unexpected injury.

Since struggling for form in the Premier League, Rutter has looked at home in the Championship, becoming one of Leeds' most important players this season. The forward's performances have caught the eye of Daniel Farke who was quick to heap praise on Rutter, telling the press:

“His talent and potential is outstanding, but lots of work is necessary. Sometimes chooses the harder option. We have worked on his effectiveness. Top level for goal involvement. Improve his ability to score more goals. He can be really, really special player in the future.“

Rutter, on £70,000-a-week, has since taken to Instagram to deliver an update to Leeds fans. The Frenchman's message conceded that he had struggled with this injury for a while and felt that the international break was the perfect opportunity to remedy the problem and ensure that he is fully fit for the remainder of the league season.

Arsenal are reportedly looking to sign Real Sociedad midfielder Mikel Merino with Mikel Arteta leading the charge personally.

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• Arsenal targeting Mikel Merino
• Arteta personally leading the charge
• Barcelona also targeting the midfielder

• Getty Images
  

  WHAT HAPPENED?

  Arsenal have been on the hunt for a new midfielder this summer and they are showing an interest in the highly-touted Spanish midfielder who has impressed over the last few seasons under Imanol Alguacil. As per Spanish outlet Sport, Arteta is personally making an effort to convince the midfielder to sign with the Gunners and also called the 28-year-old to convince him of Arsenal's 'big plans'.

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• (C)GettyImages
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Merino's current deal with La Real runs until the summer of 2025 and Arsenal believe they will be able to sign the midfielder for a reported fee of around €25 million (£21.4m/$26.8m). However, they will face some tough competition from Barcelona who are also looking for a similar profile as Arsenal as they look to rebuild under Hansi Flick.

• DID YOU KNOW?

  Merino spent the 2017/18 season at Newcastle United and featured in 24 matches in the Premier League for the Magpies before his eventual move to Real Sociedad.

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• WHAT NEXT FOR MERINO?

  The Real Sociedad man has been selected by Luis de la Fuente in his Spanish national team squad for the Euros and has featured in both of their games as a substitute. He will likely only decide on his future after the conclusion of the tournament.

UFC icon Conor McGregor has been blasted by fans for placing a huge bet on Cristiano Ronaldo to win the Golden Boot at Euro 2024.

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• McGregor bets on Ronaldo to win Golden Boot
• Portugal star fails to impress against Czechia
• Fans roast UFC icon on social media

• WHAT HAPPENED?

  McGregor has revealed on social media that he's put a hefty $60,000 (£51,000) wager on Ronaldo to finish Euro 2024 as the tournament's top scorer. The UFC star is set to win big if his bet comes in and he'll be hoping his good friend can do him a favour. The two superstars have been spotted together recently watchingAnthony Joshua's fight against Otto Wallin together and subsequently comparing watches in Saudi Arabia.

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• WHAT THE FANS ARE SAYING

  McGregor's bet hasn't impressed fans who were left underwhelmed by Ronaldo's performance in Portugal's 2-1 opening win over Czechia.

  Football fan Addiynwa responded on X with the post: "That’s like throwing money in the toilet."

  Another supporter artfrazer quipped: "You can say SIUUU later to that money."

  And paudwardle19 wrote: "What a waste of money! Won't get anywhere near top goalscorer."

  Meanwhile, X user Pauloo1021 had some advice for McGregor: "cash out brotha u can still get some of your money back."

  And Buddy_Pipps said simply: "Should have gone with Bellingham."

• Getty
  

  THE BIGGER PICTURE

  Ronaldo failed to score in Portugal's win, and was guilty of missing a couple of good opportunities, as substitute Francisco Conceicao emerged as the match-winner for Roberto Martinez's side. The 21-year-old struck in stoppage time to secure a 2-1 comeback win for Portugal and steal the show from his 39-year-old team-mate Ronaldo.

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• DID YOU KNOW?

  Ronaldo has become the only player to take part in six different European Championship finals after featuring in every edition since 2004.

Gareth Southgate will stick with Trent Alexander-Arnold and Phil Foden against Denmark despite criticism of their performances against Serbia.

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Southgate to back his starsAlexander-Arnold & Foden will keep their placesTrippier also fit to play the 90 minutesWHAT HAPPENED?

According to the Southgate is poised to maintain faith in his starting 11 from England’s Euro 2024 opener and keep Alexander-Arnold in a central midfield role and Foden on the left side of the attack against Denmark, as he prefers continuity over change just after one match in the tournament. Traditionally a right-back, Alexander-Arnold partnered with Declan Rice in the midfield against Serbia, but the Liverpool player failed to convince, which led to his substitution for Conor Gallagher in the second half.

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Foden, who also faced scrutiny following his performance against Serbia, is expected to get another opportunity to prove his doubters wrong. The Manchester City playmaker’s display was deemed underwhelming by some, yet Southgate is likely to persist with him, aiming to unlock his creative potential alongside Jude Bellingham in attack.

WHAT SOUTHGATE SAID

Speaking to , Southgate defended Foden and said: "I thought Phil did an incredible job for the team on Sunday. You know, sometimes the bits with the ball are obvious and they catch the eye, but the amount of ground he covered, the angles of pressing, the filling in for people who were further forward. I thought without Phil’s contribution without the ball – and I know that’s not the sexy bit and everybody wants to see him on the ball – I don’t think we win the game. So then later in the game when we needed somebody to retain the ball and take the pressure, I thought he did that really well for us.

"I think Phil has obviously set an incredibly high bar at Manchester City, where he knows exactly where every player is going to be every time he picks the ball up. A club that he’s been at since he’s been 13 years old. He used to go in there during the week for training, so an environment that he’s known nothing else. With us, we’re always having to adapt to different team-mates, different runs they make and there is adaptation with that.”

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GettyDID YOU KNOW?

Trippier, who was suffering from cramps against Serbia, is also expected to start against Denmark which will see him earn his 50th cap for England. However, Manchester United left-back Luke Shaw will miss the clash as he continues his recovery from a hamstring injury. Shaw, who has been sidelined since February, did not participate in training with the squad on Wednesday and is following an individual programme away from the team.

With Luke Ayling departing for Middlesbrough this month, veteran defender Liam Cooper still represents the Leeds United old guard at Elland Road currently.

Once a pivotal figure in the Whites first-team under iconic past manager Marcelo Bielsa, the Scotsman was crucial to Leeds securing promotion up to the Premier League back in the 2019-20 campaign, the 32-year-old is now showing signs of rust as a bench option under Daniel Farke.

With both Ethan Ampadu and Joe Rodon absolute warriors at the back for the promotion hopefuls in recent games at the heart of defence – as Leeds continue to go from strength to strength in hunting down the coveted Championship top two – Cooper's days are numbered in West Yorkshire.

The 32-year-old's career at Elland Road could fizzle out even more with this transfer development, as the club are reportedly interested in adding a centre-back on loan from the top-flight to their ranks.

Leeds eyeing up Liverpool defender

A report from Daily Mail journalist Lewis Steele suggests that Farke's in-form Whites are eyeing up a possible swoop for Liverpool centre-back Nathaniel Phillips this month.

Phillips has just relocated back to Anfield after a disappointing loan switch to Celtic, with the report further stating that fellow Championship outfits Blackburn Rovers and Cardiff City also want to add the 26-year-old to their squads in the transfer window.

Impressing the now out-going Jurgen Klopp when picked to start for the Reds on occasion, this deal could be a coup for Leeds as they aim to add strength wherever necessary to push on for automatic promotion glory, whilst also allowing them to finally ditch Cooper.

How Nat Phillips would fit into the Leeds team

Phillips could well even come into the team and take Ampadu's place, allowing for the solid Welsh number four to then be pushed further forward to a more comfortable defensive midfield position.

The 26-year-old showed glimpses of his quality at Parkhead when rarely selected by Brendan Rodgers this season, winning seven aerial duels last year when Celtic beat St. Mirren 2-1 with his confidence on the ball showcased also with a remarkable 127 touches managed.

In contrast, Cooper has struggled at points this campaign when Farke has given the Scotsman a go – the waning 32-year-old failing to win a single duel versus Huddersfield Town in October last year when substituted on for an injury-stricken Rodon.

Klopp is a big fan of Phillips despite the lack of game-time the Reds defender has been handed by his German boss over the years, describing the Liverpool academy product as "incredible" back in 2020 after giving him his Premier League debut.

To date, the 6 foot 3 colossus has only made 29 appearances over four seasons since breaking through so could sense the time is right to test himself away from the club with another loan switch.

The current Liverpool defender has excelled playing second tier football before in his career too, even helping AFC Bournemouth win promotion to the Premier League during a stint at the Cherries during the 2021-22 campaign – contributing to eight clean sheets from 17 appearances on the South Coast.

It will be a bittersweet day akin to Ayling's farewell when Cooper waves goodbye to Leeds, but with this deal for Phillips rumbling on in the background this month, all sentiment could go out the door as Leeds go all out to strengthen for a promotion push with Cooper now merely making up the numbers.

The English centre-back has played a part in a promotion-winning team in this division with the Cherries and his arrival could allow Farke to ditch the Scotland international, whether that is this month or in the summer when his contract is due to expire.

JP Duminy has retired from domestic cricket, Cape Cobras coach Ashwell Prince confirmed. Duminy, however, will continue to play T20 cricket for South Africa and in international leagues, including the Mzansi Super League. Duminy, 35, had announced in March that he will retire from ODIs after the 2019 World Cup.Duminy has not played first-class cricket for the Cobras for three years, but had been part of Cobras’ List A campaigns, up to and including his participation in the Momentum One-Day Cup this season. Having spent much of the summer on the sidelines, recovering from surgery on his injured right shoulder, Duminy returned to competitive cricket with the Cobras and was part of the squad that reached both the domestic One-Day and CSA T20 Challenge semi-finals.Having played for provincial B and age-group sides, Duminy made his first-class debut with the senior Western Province side as a 17-year-old in February 2002, joining a team that included Herschelle Gibbs, Gary Kirsten, Jonathan Trott and Paul Adams, and sharing in a 43-run stand with Kirsten in his debut innings.His first List A match for Western Province came the following season, in November of the same year. The teenage Duminy top-scored with 78 made at No. 4 in a 62-run win over Namibia in what was then called the Standard Bank Cup. He quickly established himself in the senior side, and was for several years a stalwart of the Cape Cobras side after Cricket South Africa adopted the franchise system in the 2004-05 season.In 108 first-class matches, Duminy scored 6,774 runs, including 20 hundreds and two doubles, with his top score of 260 not out coming in his final first-class game for the Cobras at Boland Park just over three years ago. He has also scored 7,408 runs in 269 List A games at an average of 38.78.While his rehabilitation and conditioning work on his right shoulder meant that Duminy could not be part of the early stages of Cobras’ CSA T20 Challenge campaign, he returned to play in their last three matches, his last game for the Cobras being the semi-final defeat to Warriors in East London on Wednesday.

It has been another season of footballing misery for Chelsea fans this year, and while they have made it into the semi-final of the League Cup and the fourth round of the FA Cup, they find themselves tenth in the Premier League and miles off qualifying for any European football, let alone the Champions League.

New boss Mauricio Pochettino has struggled to get his young team of promising players firing, and while there have been glimpses of brilliance here and there, the number of draws and defeats are perhaps starting to put his job under pressure.

However, the latest name touted for a move to west London could just help him turn this poor run around; a player that shares some similarities with Dele Alli when he was at his best: AS Roma's Paulo Dybala.

Chelsea transfer news – Paulo Dybala

According to Italian outlet TuttomercatoWeb, Roma star Dybala is now a transfer target for Chelsea this January.

The report reveals that due to a clause in the Argentine's contract, the Blues could get their man for as little as €12m – about £10m – and while that is still a significant amount of money, it would represent a bargain in the modern transfer market.

That said, the Giallorossi are understandably keen to keep a hold of one of their most important players midway through the season, so they're intent on renewing his deal to remove the clause that Chelsea are looking to exploit.

While Pochettino already has plenty of players he needs to find space for in his team, the opportunity to sign someone as talented as Dybala doesn't come around very often, so the Blues should be doing all they can to get this deal over the line, especially if the former Spurs manager can utilise him similarly to how he used Dele in N17.

Paulo Dybala could be Mauricio Pochettino's new Dele

Now, when talking about Dele, it is hard to ignore the significant period in which he has been unable to play due to injury or a plethora of other personal issues, which he bravely spoke about last year. However, he was near enough unplayable when he was in his pomp under Pochettino at Tottenham Hotspur.

The Englishman's best season, at least in terms of output, came back in the 2016/17 campaign, when he scored a mind-boggling 18 goals from an attacking midfield or second striker position and provided nine assists along the way.

Comparatively, Dybala found most of his success for Roma last season from a second-striker position, scoring 12 goals and providing seven assists in just 25 Serie A appearances.

The Argentinian "wizard", as described by Nigerian journalist Buchi Laba, has been a lethal attacker ever since he made his way to Italy.

Paulo Dybala's Serie A career

Club

Palermo

Juventus

AS Roma

Games

61

210

38

Goals

16

82

17

Assists

10

41

13

Titles

0

5

0

All Stats via Transfermarkt

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The 25-year-old could turn the youngster into an assist king.

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In 309 Serie A appearances, he has scored 115 goals and provided 64 assists, meaning he has averaged a goal involvement every 1.7 league games.

It isn't just the number of goals that the former Juve star scores, but the quality of them, as just like Dele, he has scored his fair share of wonder goals, leading to football writer Raj Chohan declaring that he has "joke levels of footballing talent."

Ultimately, Chelsea are in need of some serious footballing magic if they are to turn their season around anytime soon, and while Dybala might not be quite at the height of his powers anymore, he would surely add that extra spark to the Blues' midfield.

Shammi Silva has been elected president of Sri Lanka Cricket. Drawing in 83 out of a possible 142 votes Silva, a candidate backed by former president Thilanga Sumathipala, beat Jayantha Dharmadasa, who received 56 votes.Despite the many delays and swings in fortune over the course of the last several months, when elections were postponed indefinitely and SLC was run by a sports ministry-appointed Competent Authority, the final tally of votes means essentially the same faces return to power.Alongside Silva, other members of the previous executive committee in Mohan de Silva and Ravin Wickremaratne have been voted in again, this time as secretary and vice-president respectively. K Mathivanan also returns as vice president, the only member of the Dharmadasa faction to be elected.The results translate to yet another unhappy election outcome for the brothers Ranatunga. Former World Cup winning captain Arjuna lost out narrowly in the race for vice-president, racking up 72 votes to Wickremaratne’s 82 and Mathivanan’s 80, while the younger Ranatunga, Nishantha, running for the post of secretary, picked up just 43 votes to de Silva’s 96.The end result is a mere shuffling of the same people, with Sumathipala and Dharmadasa the only major players missing out among the office bearers voted in during SLC’s last elections in 2016.In the race for other positions, Lasantha Wickremasinghe (100 votes) beat Eastman Narangoda (37) to the post of treasurer, while Lalith Rambukwella (92) was voted in ahead of Sanjaya Senarath (42) for assistant treasurer. Chrishantha Kapuwatha (94) was voted in assistant secretary ahead of Hirantha Perera (44).In the preceding weeks both de Silva, who was set to run for president, and Wickremaratne, who was up for the post of secretary, had been banned by an election appeals committee after being adjudged to have violated Sri Lanka’s Sports Law, which as per a 2016 amendment prevents any previous office bearer of a national sports body which had been dissolved by government from contesting in any future elections. The pair had been part of ousted committees in 2001 and 2005.In response, de Silva and Wickremaratne challenged the ruling in an appeals court, which was where a loophole was discovered. As it transpired, while de Silva and Wickramaratne had put their names in the hat for multiple positions, the objections filed against them had only referenced some of those posts. Essentially, this allowed the pair to contest on the condition that it wasn’t for the posts they were banned from.It is unclear who is at fault for these clerical errors, but in any event it left the legal counsel representing the Sports Ministry no choice but to let de Silva and Wickremaratne contest for the posts of secretary and vice president. The writ petition hearings though are set to continue on 21 March.This turn of events is thought to have swayed voter sentiment. Until then Silva, a backup candidate to de Silva, was to run for president against Dharmadasa, while the coveted posts of vice president and secretary were set to be run virtually uncontested by those in the Dharmadasa camp – a situation that, had it prevailed, would almost certainly have seen Dharmadasa come out victorious in the presidential stakes.That events panned out in this manner, while unexpected, was not wholly surprising. Thilanga Sumathipala has long been identified as the most powerful force in Sri Lanka Cricket, and despite not contesting this time around, he has continued to cast a wide shadow. Most notably in the strong voting bloc he possesses, which is likely what eventually won Silva the presidential race.One of the primary election strategies for Dharmadasa and his camp had been to neutralise this threat. Nishantha Ranatunga’s court case against Sumathipala, which eventually led to the latter withdrawing his candidacy, and Dharmadasa’s objection to Mohan de Silva’s candidacy had seemingly achieved this goal successfully.So much so that Dharmadasa had been favourite to take the post right up until the eve of the elections. But that late compromise between Sri Lanka’s Sports Ministry and the previously disqualified pair of de Silva and Wickremaratne reinstating them in the race, gave the Sumathipala-backed faction the numbers they needed.It is a scarcely believable fact that Shammi Silva learned of his candidacy for president on the eve of the race; Silva is in essence president by accident. Though by now, not many are in doubt as to who exactly is running the show.

MatériaMais Notícias

O Corinthians não atuou no último final de semana, mas os acontecimentos nesses dias foram determinantes para o futuro do time no Brasileirão, de olho em uma vaga na Copa Libertadores. Além de o título sul-americano do rival, vitórias de adversários diretos nessa briga apontam para rodadas decisivas para o clube nas próximas semanas, jogando pelo menos três “finais”.

continua após a publicidadeRelacionadasCorinthiansCorinthians x Athletico-PR é adiado; confira o calendário do Timão até o término do Brasileirão-2020Corinthians31/01/2021CorinthiansCorinthians treina finalizações em preparação para encarar o CearáCorinthians31/01/2021CorinthiansCorinthians tem pior mês com Mancini e vê derrotas dobraremCorinthians30/01/2021

TABELA
> Veja classificação e simulador do Brasileirão clicando aqui

GALERIA
> Relembre quantos jogadores da base o Corinthians utilizou nesta temporada

Com o Palmeiras campeão da Liberta e mantida a posição alviverde entre os seis primeiros do Campeonato Brasileiro, o G6 vira G7 automaticamente, ampliando o leque de possibilidades para os clubes que brigam no meio da tabela. Atualmente, com o Verdão em quinto, os sete primeiros estão se classificando para o torneio continental. O Timão, por sua vez, está em décimo.

E esse G7 ainda deve virar G8 após a Copa do Brasil, já que se o Palmeiras ganhar, mais uma vaga vai para o Brasileirão, e se o Grêmio sair vencedor, estando entre os seis (ou sete) primeiros, também será aberta uma vaga na tabela do Brasileiro. Com oito indo para a Libertadores, o sonho corintiano de classificação, que parecia ter ficado distante, volta a ser uma possibilidade.

Acontece que as duas derrotas seguidas do Corinthians (Red Bull Bragantino e Bahia) possibilitaram que mais clubes pudessem chegar para a briga, e eles chegaram. No último domingo, o Atlético-GO venceu o São Paulo e o Athletico-PR venceu o Ceará, em confronto direto. Assim, ambos atingiram 45 pontos na tabela, a mesma pontuação do Timão, e também do Vozão e do Santos.

Ao todo, cinco clubes estão com 45 pontos, sendo que o Corinthians tem um jogo a menos, diante do Peixe, que seria disputado também no último domingo, mas foi adiado por conta da final da Libertadores, em que os santistas foram vice-campeões, ou seja, não conquistaram uma vaga na próxima edição e precisarão buscá-la no Campeonato Brasileiro.

Dessa forma, o clássico Santos x Corinthians, que já seria disputado, pois ambos vêm com pontuações iguais há algum tempo, passou a ser ainda mais decisivo por conta da busca pelo mesmo objetivo na tabela, o famoso “jogo de seis pontos”. No entanto, não será somente essa decisão do Timão nas próximas rodadas, que ainda reservam duas partidas consideradas “finais”.

São elas: o duelo desta quarta-feira, contra o Ceará, na Neo Química Arena, também com ambos os clubes com pontuações iguais, depois, na próxima semana, outra vez em casa, diante do Athletico-PR, que atualmente tem os mesmos 45 pontos. Em resumo, três compromissos decisivos em um espaço de 15 dias, que podem definir o futuro corintiano no Campeonato Brasileiro.

Para essa sequência de decisões, o Corinthians volta a treinar na manhã desta segunda-feira, no CT Joaquim Grava, em preparação para encarar o Ceará, nesta quarta-feira, às 21h30, na Neo Química Arena, pela 34ª rodada do Brasileirão-2020. Atualmente, o Timão ocupa a décima posição com 45 pontos.

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It's reported that a 2023 Chelsea signing could look to depart next month, and the club may well sanction his January sale for around £35 million.

Chelsea's form under Pochettino this season

Winning five, drawing four and losing six Premier League games so far this term, manager Mauricio Pochettino has so far struggled to inspire a consistent run of form.

Chelsea now "vying" to sign World Cup winner they think is "perfect"

Boehly has his eyes on another in-demand sensation.

ByEmilio Galantini Dec 8, 2023

Chelsea had looked as if they were turning a corner before a 4-1 thumping at the hands of Newcastle last month. Avoiding defeats to big-hitters like Arsenal and Man City, Pochettino also ended Tottenham's early-season unbeaten run with victory over them in north London.

However, since then, the humbling at Newcastle and most recent 2-1 defeat away to Man United at Old Trafford has highlighted the real problems facing Chelsea's squad still. Pochettino, speaking after his side's latest defeat, pointed to injuries and insisted that the loss was nowhere near as detrimental as their trip to St. James' Park.

"Now is not the same because I think we miss players, we play nearly with the same players against Brighton, with one less for 60 minutes," said Pochettino.

"One day more for Manchester United to prepare the game. See the bench, many young players try to help us. That is not an excuse but we need to talk about the reality and that is the reality. I am not disappointed because they gave everything but maybe we didn't match their energy, they were a little bit more aggressive than us.

"We were competitive as we created chances, maybe enough to draw the game. But when the result is 2-1 and you get nothing, you get more critics and try to find different reason why we didn't win. I think we need to be calm, keep going, trying to help the players and now we need to lift all of the players because we need to be ready Sunday."

One player who didn't take part against Man United, though, was winger Noni Madueke – who didn't even make the matchday squad. The 21-year-old, signed from PSV Eindhoven for around £29 million in January this year, has struggled for opportunities under Pochettino this season.

Making just six league appearances, Madueke is having to contend with plenty of competition for places, with a report from Spain shedding some light on his uncertain future.

Madueke "wants to leave" Chelsea

Indeed, according to a Spanish media source, Madueke "wants to leave" Chelsea and the west Londoners could be willing to sell him for around £35 million next month. However, as things stand, a loan is the more likely scenario for him as he seriously considers quitting Stamford Bridge in favour of more game time.

Likes to dribble

Likes to cut inside

Likes to play short passes

The Englishman made 12 appearances for Chelsea in the second half of last term, getting on the scoresheet in a 3-1 defeat to Arsenal.