It feels like we are in the final chapter of Ange Postecoglou’s stint at Spurs, so we’ve ranked their next ten matches on the likelihood of being his last…

It all started so well for the once-cheerful Aussie at Tottenham, but he’s been gradually dragged down by Spurs‘ unrelenting insistence on being…well, Spurs.

When they’re good, few teams are a match for them in the Premier League, though when they are bad, they verge on Southampton’s level of ineptitude this season. To make matters worse, they place themselves on each end of this spectrum with equal regularity.

Their emphatic 4-0 statement win at a spiralling Manchester City was touted as a potential turning point for Spurs to kick on and show a level of consistency that’s previously eluded them. However, they have gone the other way, failing to win any of their last five games across all competitions.

This run has increased the pressure on the Spurs boss, who is currently the third favourite to be the next Premier League manager sacked.

Tottenham’s infuriating (or hilarious) form has led to links with potential replacements and one Premier League boss is reportedly ‘tempted’ (for some reason).

So, which of Tottenham’s upcoming matches are most likely to be Postecoglou’s last? Away games at Arsenal or Southampton, perhaps?

10) Hoffenheim (A, Europa League) – January 23
The Europa League has provided some solace for Postecoglou; Spurs are on the fringe of the top eight with three wins, two draws and a loss in their six matches.

The Hoffenheim clash is the first of two remaining league phase matches for Spurs, who can afford a disappointing result against the Bundesliga outfit next month. With such an outcome, they would still be pretty sure of a spot in the play-offs, which would give them the chance to avoid the embarrassment of an early exit.

READ: Ange Postecoglou derided as ‘self-serving, duplicitous Mourinho-lite toerag’

9) Tamworth (A, FA Cup) – January 12
Postecoglou was ridiculed for his “always wins” trophies gloat at the start of this season. For his sake, he needs to be proven right as his future could well be decided by how trophy-shy Spurs fare in cup competitions this term.

They get their FA Cup campaign underway with a trip to National League side Tamworth. It’s Spurs we’re talking about, so a mammoth cup upset cannot be completely ruled out, though Postecoglou’s second-string outfit *should* win by a couple of goals even without playing well. If they don’t, this would be a new low that the head coach would struggle to get past.

8) Liverpool (H, Premier League) – December 22
After the silliness of their London derby v Chelsea, Tottenham could treat football fans to another pre-Christmas thriller when they face the league leaders three days before Christmas.

While the Spurs-Liverpool rivalry delivered in spades during Jurgen Klopp’s farewell last year, this season’s meetings could be more reserved as Arne Slot has turned his side into a more complete (and better) team.

Playing Liverpool is often daunting and this remains the case with Slot’s side battling on all four fronts. Given the mood of each side, Spurs could easily be eaten alive by their superior opponents, but could alternatively put on a show and cause a shock – you never know for sure. A loss against the table-toppers shouldn’t be considered the end of the world, mind.

7) Newcastle United (H, Premier League) – January 4
Tottenham and Newcastle’s seasons have followed a similar trajectory as Eddie Howe’s side have also been out of sorts.

Currently three points and a position above tenth-placed Tottenham, Newcastle have been a shadow of their high-intensity selves for much of this campaign and they are a far cry from the side that qualified for the Champions League in 2022/23.

The Newcastle manager’s job could be another vacancy that will soon be up for grabs. When trying to make sense of Tottenham’s results under Postecoglou, this stood out as a potential opportunity to briefly ease the pressure on the head coach.

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6) Everton (A, Premier League) – January 19
Unsurprisingly, the majority of Everton’s success this term (there was not much to pick from) has come at Goodison Park as supporters bid farewell to their beloved ground ahead of a new era.

This new era could start with Everton in the Championship, though their ability to pluck a win from nowhere once every five games stands them in good stead in bidding to avoid relegation.

Such a shock victory could easily come at the expense of Postecoglou’s side, though the London outfit’s record against Everton is pretty good. The long wait for this fixture sees it drop a few places lower than it would if this list was based purely on the chances of Spurs doing something Spursy.

5) Nottingham Forest (A, Premier League) – December 26
If Tottenham do sack Postecoglou, they could try again with Nuno Espirito Santo…

No, but seriously, Nuno’s resurgence at Forest has been one of this season’s feel-good stories as their gradual building of a very strong first Premier League XI makes them a shock contender for the European spots.

Nuno would no doubt take great pleasure in getting one over on Spurs after they binned him off quicker than it took for Daniel Levy to appoint him. A loss at Forest would not be the disaster it once was, but it would still nudge Postecoglou nearer the exit door.

4) Manchester United (H, Carabao Cup quarter-final) – December 19
As mentioned, Postecoglou – if he is allowed to stick around long enough – really needs to win a trophy this season and the Carabao Cup provides an opportunity for Spurs to end their long wait for silverware.

Given Man Utd are in the suffering transitionary phase under new head coach Ruben Amorim, this is certainly a winnable tie for Spurs, especially with them being at home.

Postecoglou as good as promised that he’d win something this year and if the saving grace of a prolonged Carabao Cup run is taken away, it could be enough for Levy to stop turning a blind eye to their Premier League woes.

READ: Spurs are exciting?! Make that ‘exhausting’ if you are a fan under Postecoglou

3) Southampton (A, Premier League) – December 15
Recent indications are that Postecoglou retains the support of Levy, but talk over potential replacements is intensifying and another embarrassing loss to a lowly Premier League could turn the situation sour.

A trip to St Mary’s is probably the simplest away game a side could ask for in the Premier League this season, but Spurs have previous when it comes to losing against a relegation candidate and it would not be a surprise if they make this match more difficult than it needs to be.

2) Arsenal (A, Premier League) – January 15
The Gunners are continuing to prove that they are streets ahead of their North London rivals as they are mounting another push for the Premier League title.

Matches between the two arch-enemies deliver more often than most other local derbies in the Premier League, but Spurs (even more so as the away side) will go into this particular clash as huge underdogs.

A loss to a local rival has put the full stop on the reign of many managers and if Arsenal find their shooting boots in a one-sided hammering, it could be goodbye Postecoglou.

1) Wolves (H, Premier League) – December 29
A repeat of the 1-0 home loss to Ipswich Town to end it all for Postecoglou? Potentially…

Gary O’Neil is far from guaranteed to be in charge when this game comes, but his side usually fare better against stronger opposition and they have the necessary quality in attacking areas to punish Spurs on the counter-attack to condemn them (and Postecoglou, more importantly) to another damaging defeat.

Arsenal and Manchester United have been urged to avoid signing Sporting CP striker Viktor Gyokeres, who has 51 goals to his name this year.

Sweden international Gyokeres has been on fire this season, scoring 26 goals in 24 matches, while notching four assists.

His ridiculous performances have caught the eye of several clubs in Europe, including Arsenal, Man United and Man City.

However, 51 goals in 53 club games in 2024 is not enough to convince former Watford captain Troy Deeney that he is a “natural finisher” capable of firing the Gunners to the Premier League title.

Deeney – who has four goals fewer in 165 Premier League appearances than Gyokeres has for Sporting this year – told talkSPORT: “You know when you say something the clip is going to come back in six months.

“I genuinely think he’s a good footballer, he works really hard, all of that. But I don’t think he’s a natural finisher.

“And again, everyone is going to pull up his goal record, I get that. But I don’t think he takes either of those two to winning the Premier League.

“That’s just my opinion, and if he did, they’d have already bought him.”

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Deeney adds that the quality in the Portuguese top flight does not compare to the Premier League.

“It’s not the same league. And we’ll find that out when Gyokeres comes over,” he stated.

Gyokeres reportedly has a 100 million euro (£80million) release clause in his Sporting contract and could be the final piece of the puzzle for Arsenal.

The Gunners are struggling to create chances consistently from open play this season and have been heavily reliant on set-pieces.

Being reliant and strong from corners and free-kicks is not a bad thing, despite what many people want you to believe. It is actually a brilliant weapon to have as a title contender and something that has forever been associated with underdogs or teams fighting relegation.

Dubbed ‘Set-Piece FC’ and the modern-day Stoke City, Arsenal could not break down Everton on Saturday, drawing 0-0 at the Emirates.

Gyokeres is unlikely to move mid-season but Mikel Arteta could act in January, with Sporting helpless if the 26-year-old’s release clause is triggered.

The former Coventry City striker drew a blank against Arsenal in the Champions League last month after scoring a wonderful hat-trick against Man City in Ruben Amorim’s final European match in charge.

Amorim joined Man United from Sporting following the sacking of Erik ten Hag and there are rumours he wants to reunite with Gyokeres.

Again, a winter transfer feels unlikely and it is unclear if the Red Devils have the funds or financial freedom to afford Gyokeres after a busy summer.

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Upon hearing Ruben Amorim has banned food from the Manchester United dressing room on matchdays we immediately imagined Casemiro midway through a half-time burger while Alejandro Garnacho and Antony throw Skittles at each other’s mouths from across the room.

It’s the third of three non-negotiables he’s reportedly implemented on his players thus far in a bid to realise his “mad dogs” ideal at Old Trafford. More to come we suspect, and we’ve picked out what his next ban should be, along with one for each of the other managers of the Big Six Premier League clubs.

Ruben Amorim: Phones in the dressing room
If you have a minute or two, or much, much longer if you so wish, and enjoy social media detectives spouting spurious garbage, we would encourage you to seek out attempts to uncover The Manchester United Line-up Leaker.

There are some poorly doctored DMs to pore over, highfalutin claims from faceless accounts with the inside track but roughly 500 followers and celebrity fans telling non-celebrity fans to leave the club to it while furthering the desperate quest to find the guilty party by Knowing Who It Is but refusing to expose them as X Is Not The Forum. It’s hideously entertaining.

One such unverified claim is that it is a player that’s responsible for leaking the line-ups before they’re made official. Even if it’s not, and it’s in fact a member of the backroom staff or some other individual with dressing room access, there’s a quick fix: no phones, no leaks.

Ange Postecoglou: Public slams
We have no problem with Big Ange calling Timo Werner out after what was an almost impressively lacklustre display against Rangers on Thursday. Most managers choose not to publicly admonish their players, but each to their own.

But his decision to brand the Germany international’s first-half performance as “unacceptable” when barely 24 hours previously he told gathered reporters that he had pulled Cristian Romero up for his public slam of Daniel Levy, outed Postecoglou as a massive hypocrite, with the proximity of those two statements adding to a growing belief that he’s steadily losing his mind having already lost his Great Bloke image.

Ahead of the game against Rangers, he said: “We deal with these things in our own four walls. There’s always issues we need to deal with. The same way I wouldn’t criticise a player or anyone else, we shouldn’t be doing that in a public sense.”

Immediately after the game against Rangers, he said: “He [Werner] wasn’t playing anywhere near the level he should. In the moment we’re in right now – it’s not like we’ve got many options – I need everyone to at least be going out there and trying to give the best of themselves. His performance in the first half wasn’t acceptable.”

Pep Guardiola: Himself from public interactions
Talking of losing one’s mind. If a picture is worth a thousand words football psychology students the world over hit the mother lode as Pep Guardiola appeared for his post-match interview with a gashed nose and a scratched forehead.

We can’t imagine the City Group PR team was hugely enamoured with the image, or indeed Guardiola’s ensuing “self harm” quip, as the reason for their astonishing demise beyond Rodri Being Injured becomes every clearer with each passing public interaction from their once unflappable genius: their manager’s gone a bit mad.

He went Full Mourinho in the 2-0 defeat to Liverpool, brandishing six fingers to the Anfield crowd having been told he was Getting Sacked In The Morning, and then continued in the vein of his former bitter rival after the draw with Crystal Palace, repeating “it’s Rico Lewis” over and over again as if anyone had a p*ssing clue what he was going on about.

Mikel Arteta: Open-play training drills
We would like to congratulate everyone on their attempts to bait Mikel Arteta along with Arsenal players and fans over their reliance on set pieces. But credit where credit’s due, they’ve refused to rise to it.

Just like when he was compared to Mourinho earlier in the year, Arteta saw the similarities drawn between his side and Tony Pulis’ Stoke City as a “compliment”. He wears the “corner kings” crown with pride and the fans have responded in kind, with a mural painted of  “the most annoying man in football” to illustrate their new-found love of set pieces, which now draw intensifying ‘Oooooos’ of anticipation as Bukayo Saka or Declan Rice ready their pinpoint deliveries at the Emirates.

We’re absolutely here for it and only hope that Arteta takes a step back in training and hands the reins to Nicolas Jover to run through dead-ball routines, show the players how best to shoot to ensure deflections for corners, with full-backs given twice as many shoulder and back sets in the gym in preparation for the long-throw barrage that’s sure to be shortly introduced to their get-the-ball-in-the-box-for-the-big-f***ers repertoire.

Enzo Maresca: Title talk
Everything we’ve heard from Maresca and his players suggests this ban is already in place when talking publicly, but we also like to imagine a swear jar-like system at the training ground and in the dressing room, or a modern-day alternative, perhaps a title talk contactless card reader.

A £500 fine for discussing any game other than the next one, £750 for references to the gap to Liverpool and a cool £1k for explicit talk of winning the Premier League title.

READ MORE: Five reasons why Chelsea, not Arsenal, are Liverpool’s greatest threat in PL title race

Arne Slot: First-team regulars from Southampton, Lille and PSV
In an attempt to explain why Federico Chiesa might find game time hard to come by without just pointing to Mohamed Salah, Slot bizarrely claimed “it’s difficult to give him minutes” because “we play so many games”.

There may have been a second-language issue or perhaps he just misspoke, but something’s not right there because surely it’s easier to give him minutes when there are so many games. The Italy international’s been injured but if there is a criticism of Slot in his time at Liverpool it’s been his reticence to rotate his team.

Mohamed Salah, Virgil Van Dijk and Ryan Gravenberch have started all 20 Premier League and Champions League games, with Salah for some reason also brought on to feature in the two League Cup victories.

They face Southampton on Wednesday in the quarter-final of that competition in one clear opportunity to rest that trio and others, before two other chances to rest overworked legs in January against Lille and PSV Eindhoven in the final two group games in the Champions League, having already secured their place in the last 16.

Manchester City’s woeful form means no result will surprise us when Manchester United come to the Etihad. It’s something of a free hit for new Red Devils head coach Ruben Amorim, while the Premier League champions desperately need a win to get out of their rut.

The Manchester derby is the biggest Premier League fixture of the weekend, so here is a combined XI of the two sides. Enjoy and don’t get those knickers of yours in a twist.

GK: Ederson (Manchester City)
Ironically, Ederson is not guaranteed to start for City this weekend, while Andre Onana would need to lose a limb to be replaced in the Manchester United goal. Based on this logic alone, it should be the three-time Premier League Save of the Month winner in between the sticks here, but it is not, simply because he is not as good as the guy we have picked.

RB: Noussair Mazraoui (Manchester United)
Wow, Man United have finally nailed a transfer. Any excuse to plug my ranking of every signing they have made since Sir Alex Ferguson retired in 2013; it is hilariously s**te.

Mazraoui was signed for less than £20million and has quickly adapted to Premier League football, shutting down several right-wingers and proving to be a solid full and wing-back.

CB: Ruben Dias (Manchester City)
The only time Dias does not get in a Man City combined XI is when he is injured or suspended. He oozes class at the back and is head and shoulders above every Man United central defender.

CB: Josko Gvardiol (Manchester City)
A slight shake up in defence, this, with Gvardiol predominantly playing as a left-back since joining Man City from RB Leipzig in the 2023 summer transfer window. The Croatian youngster is naturally a centre-back and when Pep Guardiola plays a three-at-the-back, he plays as the left-sided centre-back.

Gvardiol partners Dias in our combined XI with Nathan Ake and John Stones injured, only just pipping Manuel Akanji – who is a minor doubt for Sunday’s derby.

LB: Diogo Dalot (Manchester United)
Gvardiol’s move into the heart of the defence means there is a place for Dalot, who has been Man United’s most consistent player this year.

Dalot’s versatility makes him a priceless player for Ruben Amorim, who is trying to get a tune out of his team in his trusted 3-4-2-1 system and is blessed to have someone who can play as one of the centre-backs and in either wing-back position. Not only is this the case with Dalot, but Mazraoui as well.

We really like both players and know they will be relied on by Amorim in his early days at Old Trafford.

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CM: Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City)
No explanation needed. He just needs to stay fit.

CM: Bernardo Silva (Manchester City)
Silva has been far from his brilliant self this season but the same can be said about every City player. He remains a player we adore and someone who would stroll right into Amorim’s best XI – and would do a job wherever he is asked to play. Wing-back? Attacking midfield? Centre midfield? You name it.

Silva scored the equalising goal for City in the Community Shield, so United players will be looking for revenge.

AM: Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United)
Fernandes is one of many United players still finding themselves under Amorim. His best position is in the hole, linking the attack to the midfield and chipping in with goals and assists aplenty, but the new head coach’s 3-4-2-1 philosophy does not require a player like that. Playing in the two behind Rasmus Hojlund (it has to be Hojlund) is surely the best fit, though he could play deeper, even if that is a bit of a waste.

Playing in that role behind the striker allows Fernandes to operate like a 10 but there are lots of duties your usual 10 is has no interest in. The Portuguese is the type of player who thrives off freedom, which is why he was so effective under Ole Gunnar Solskjaer. Amorim has a lot of rubbish to tidy up but getting Fernandes thriving is one of his most important tasks. If he manages that, he’s got a chance.

In case you are wondering, we are not included Rodri because he has a torn ACL.

RW: Phil Foden (Manchester City)
The 2023/24 Premier League Player of the Season has not hit the ground running this season; unfortunately for him and City, he has been really poor. One goal involvement in 12 domestic matches this term is a far cry from the devastating form we witnessed last season.

While City’s overall struggles are not helping, Foden is not helping himself and has the ability to single-handedly turn his side’s form around, which he is showing zero signs of doing. If he is better than Bukayo Saka, he should be able to carry a team during their worst moment, something his England teammate has done for Arsenal countless times.

Criticism aside, class is permanent and all that. Amad Diallo has been Man United’s best attacking player this season and is unlucky to miss out on this combined XI given his recent performances but we refuse to jerk our knee.

LW: Jeremy Doku (Manchester City)
The left-wing spot was up for grabs. It could have been Foden’s with Amad or Savinho on the right, while Jack Grealish was in with a shout. We have gone with Doku, simply because we think he has been better than the omitted lot since joining the Citizens from Rennes last August.

Sure, Doku could score and assist more and really ought to considering he cost £55million, but he is a constant danger and a player who brings City up the pitch with his ball carrying.

Savinho is worthy of an honourable mention. He has been pretty decent but we are surprised to see he has zero goals in 20 matches since signing from Girona.

ST: Erling Haaland (Manchester City)
Haaland has an impressive 13 goals in 15 Premier League games but he did have 10 from his first five, meaning he is on a current run of three from 10, which is a shocking return for him. We wouldn’t bat an eyelid if it was Joshua Zirkzee, Jean-Philippe Mateta or even Darwin Nunez, but this is Erling Haaland, lads.

Oh well. It really doesn’t matter. He is obviously much better than Hojlund, Zirkzee and Marcus Rashford.

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