He may not have scored or assisted any of Tottenham’s three goals, or for that matter made any significant statistical contributions in attack, but Erik Lamela was as important as any other Spurs player in their first top flight win over Chelsea at Stamford Bridge since 1990 on Sunday.

Indeed, Lamela’s Tottenham career has taken an incredibly curious path. Initially billed as the next Gareth Bale, he’s struggled to live up to that reputation – especially in terms of attacking output. But following on from an abysmal debut season and amid frustratingly long bouts on the sidelines through injury, Lamela has embraced Mauricio Pochettino’s philosophy with arguably greater conviction than any of his team-mates.

Although he’s not always in the starting XI, Lamela gives full commitment whenever he’s on the pitch and that really showed on Sunday as the 23-cap Argentine harassed and harried Chelsea’s back three, actually finishing the match with the most tackles and fouls to his name of any Tottenham player. That’s of course crucial to Pochettino’s game-plan, which implores his attacking players to press the opposition as high as possible, but it’s even more important against a three-man defence as the centre-backs look to play out of the back and create space in midfield.

In addition to that, it was Pochettino’s decision to switch Lamela’s role at half time that really changed the complexion of the match. Lamela proved far more effective than Heung-min Son in terms of hold-up play upon being moved to centre-forward, and the switch allowed the South Korean international to arrive with speed from deep, rather than begin foot-chases with Chelsea’s defenders at essentially a standing start.

Of course, this isn’t the only impressive performance Lamela has put in recently and Spurs fans have been singing his praises for some time now. The problem though, is how to fit him in the team when Harry Kane fully returns from injury with Son, Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen all performing so well of late.

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It’s going to be a real headache for Pochettino, especially when Spurs play Manchester City in a few weeks. So, which player would you drop to make room for the England striker? Let us know by voting below…

Celtic dominated rivals Rangers on Sunday afternoon, thumping the Light Blues 4-0 at Hampden in the Scottish Cup semi-final.

It was Brendan Rodgers’ 10th game in charge against the Gers and the win means he is still unbeaten in all of them, also winning by a four-goal margin in the derby for the third time.

At the heart of the win was man-of-the-match candidate Olivier Ntcham, who strolled proceedings in the middle of the park alongside Scott Brown.

Rangers gave the duo far too much time on the ball and the Frenchman in particular utilised it superbly, driving his team forward and using his excellent vision to great effect.

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He also found himself on the scoresheet, netting the fourth goal from the penalty spot, recognition from his teammates of the effort he’d shown across the 90 minutes.

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Fans were absolutely delighted with his performance and wasted no time in taking to Twitter to share their thoughts…

Nottingham Forest got back to winning ways in the English Championship on Tuesday night, defeating Barnsley 3-0 at the City Ground.

After a narrow defeat to Cardiff City at the weekend, fans were eager to see Aitor Karanka’s side notch up three points against their relegation-threatened visitors and didn’t leave disappointed.

Lee Tomlin was the architect of the victory, first curling in a beauty to open the scoring, then setting up Brereton for the Reds’ second of the evening. Apostolos Vellios rounded off the scoring late on.

Fans were absolutely delighted with Tomlin’s performance and are now calling on the club to sign the on-loan Cardiff City man on a permanent basis this summer.

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Since joining in January, he’s scored four goals and provided three assists, helping give Karanka’s side a cutting edge in the final third. Would he be a useful addition next season as they look to make a bid for the play-offs?

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Supporters took to Twitter to share their thoughts…

West Ham United manager David Moyes confirmed on Friday that striker Javier Hernandez is set to miss out on the huge match against Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Saturday because of a knee injury, and Irons fans have been quick to react.

The Mexico international has found first-team starts hard to come by in recent months and was criticised for the lack of effort he showed when he came on as a substitute during the 4-1 defeat against Manchester City last weekend, which left the east London outfit just three points above the relegation zone.

Reliable club insider @ExWHUemployee confirmed that the 29-year-old had spoken to manager David Moyes about his concerns this week, although he has now pulled out of the squad for the clash against the Foxes.

West Ham supporters took to social media to give their thoughts on the injury news, and while one said “Moyes wouldn’t have used him anyway”, another said “so he’s played his last match for us then”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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Newcastle fans have been debating a summer swoop for Jonny Evans, and fans are split on signing the Northern Irishman.

It’s been an odd season for Newcastle fans, as they have rather suddenly gone from competing with the likes of West Brom and Stoke to being linked with their players.

Every season there are relegated players who jump ship to Premier League sides, and West Brom’s Jonny Evans has been linked to a whole host of Premier League clubs.

Newcastle’s number one priority at the moment is of course finding a consistent goalscorer, but nonetheless Evans could be a valuable addition.

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The 30 year-old would be an excellent third option to have at centre back behind Jamaal Lascelles and Florian Lejeune, and he could even compete with Lejeune for a starting place, but it doesn’t seem like the Toon Army are all that convinced.

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The Magpies are expected to face competition from the likes of Everton and West Ham if they do go for the 68-cap Northern Irish international, but over half of the fans who voted will be happy if he goes elsewhere, as 53 per cent voted not to swoop for the centre back.

You can find the full poll results below…

According to the Daily Mail, Aston Villa are interested in signing Crystal Palace midfielder James McArthur in this summer’s transfer window.

What’s the story?

Villa’s summer transfer plans are currently on hold as the club battle to secure promotion to the Premier League via the Championship playoffs.

Steve Bruce’s side have already drawn up a list of targets, however, and according to the Daily Mail, Palace midfielder McArthur is high on their wish-list.

The 30-year-old, who has also been linked with Rangers and Cardiff City, still has two years left to run on his contract at Selhurst Park.

However, it is understood that Eagles boss Roy Hodgson is looking to sign at least one new central midfielder in this summer’s transfer window, and McArthur could be available for the right price ahead of the 2018-19 campaign.

Would McArthur be a good signing?

The Scotland international, who is valued at £5.4m by transfermarkt.co.uk, has proved over the last eight years that he is more then capable of performing at Premier League level.

Three of McArthur’s full seasons with Wigan Athletic were in the Premier League, whilst he has operated at that level of football since joining Palace in the summer of 2014.

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It would actually be a surprise to see McArthur leave Palace this summer when considering that he has scored an impressive seven goals in 34 appearances in all competitions this season.

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Villa are clearly confident that they can entice the Scot, however, and it would be some signing if they managed to pull it off.

As mentioned, Bruce’s side will not be able to finalise any transfer plans until they know whether next season will bring Premier League football, but it is not a surprise that they are already registering an interest in a very dependable Premier League midfielder.

According to The Mirror, West Ham United are interested in signing Newcastle United captain Jamaal Lascelles in this summer’s transfer window.

Indeed, the Hammers are expected to have as much as £75m to spend this summer following the arrival of Manuel Pellegrini as their new head coach.

The Newcastle fans recently claimed that Lascelles was worth £75m when suggestions of interest from Liverpool emerged.

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Now West Ham are being linked with the centre-back, but the Newcastle supporters have no concerns that he could leave for the London Stadium in this summer’s transfer window.

Indeed, it would not be a surprise to see Lascelles depart for a club in the Champions League, but the club’s fans are finding it hard to believe that the 24-year-old would swap Newcastle for top-10 rivals West Ham at this stage of his career.

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It is certainly an interesting one to watch over the next few weeks.

A selection of the Twitter reaction in relation to the transfer rumour can be seen below:

Jamaal Lascelles has once again been snubbed by Gareth Southgate’s England, and Newcastle fans are not happy about it.

Sky Sports reported on Sunday evening that James Tarkowski has withdrawn from England’s World Cup standby list, as the Burnley defender requires surgery on a groin problem.

Newcastle fans were furious when both Jamaal Lascelles and Jonjo Shelvey were denied spots in Southgate’s original squad, and Lascelles has still not been called up to the standby list despite the Tarkowski injury.

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According to a further report from Sky Sports, it is “unlikely” that Southgate will call anyone else up to the standby list, as nearly every footballer that isn’t on international duty is already off on their holidays.

England’s standby group now consists of just Tom Heaton, Jake Livermore, Lewis Cook and Adam Lallana, so it is certainly surprising to elect against adding an emergency defender to the list.

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Today marks three weeks until England’s opening group game against Tunisia, and Southgate has until June 4 to submit his official squad list to FIFA.

Newcastle fans have been giving their verdict on the England’s boss’ decision, and you can find some of the best Twitter reactions below…

Nottingham Forest fans seem to be pleased by the the rumours linking them to Benfica duo Diogo Goncalves & Joao Carvalho, who play as a winger and a midfielder, respectively.The transfer links have been reported by Portuguese newspapers A Bola.ÂThe key to the deal appears to be Forest’s newfound relationship with world-renowned agent, Jorge Mendes. Mendes operates in a similar role with Championship champions Wolverhampton Wanderers and his relationship with them was key to the signing of Portuguese stars Ruben Neves and Diogo Jota.This relationship, and the prospective signing of Portuguese youngsters has led Forest fans into a frenzy, many expecting a similar run in the Championship in the upcoming season. Both are expected to be permanent signings, with the Portuguese starlets expected to be a significant upgrade on the stars already available to Aitor Karanka.Below is a selection of the best reactions from Forest fans..

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Four Sporting Lisbon players – including midfielder William Carvalho – have rescinded their contracts with the Portuguese outfit, according to reports in The Telegraph on Tuesday morning, and Arsenal fans have urged their club to bring the 6ft 3in tall beast to the Emirates Stadium.

The Telegraph says that the Euro 2016 winner – along with teammates, Bruno Fernandes, Gelson Martins and Bas Dost – have all filed notice that they are to break their contracts with Sporting, claiming “just cause” after supporters attacked some players at the training ground last month after they failed to qualify for the Champions League.

Meanwhile, new Gunners boss Unai Emery, who should move quickly to sign a 6ft 3in England international whose future is in doubt, may well be looking to strengthen his options in the middle of the park ahead of the new season, and bringing in a player who can protect the back four and help to strengthen their leaky backline could be a priority.

Arsenal supporters were quick to have their say on Carvalho’s potential availability on a free transfer via social media, and while one described him as “better than Elneny and Xhaka”, another said “he is the player we desperately need in midfield”.

Here is just a selection of the Twitter reaction…

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