Dele Alli could have finished the fella's career': Ex-Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp slams horror tackle

ALI

Dele Alli's horror tackle on Gent's Brecht Dejaegere saw him deservedly shown a straight red card and put Tottenham's Europa League fate in serious peril.

With the score on the night at 1-1 against Genk and 40 minutes on the clock the England international lunged in studs up at the Belgian midfielder and was immediately dismissed by referee Manuel de Sousa.

At that stage Spurs were left a man short and needing to score two more goals before the final whistle. However, the game itself was not at the forefront of the BT Sport pundits' minds when discussing the incident at half-time.

'[Alli] could have finished a fella's career. He could have finished a boy's career. There's no doubt. IT was that bad,' said former Spurs boss Harry Redknapp.

'He could have broken the lad's leg, snapped his leg, and that would have been the end.'

'He's got to cut that out of his game. He's got that streak in him. I rave about the boy. That tackle is horrendous. He could've finished that fella's career there with that tackle. 

'He's not got a decision, you can see his reaction straightaway, he's lost his head. How the fella's not got a broken leg, I do not know. It's a miracle.'

Another White Hart Lane luminary, Jermain Jenas, was equally damning. He said: The first thing to say is that it's a shocker. A terrible, terrible challenge from Dele. 

'He's obviously very disappointed that he didn't get the free kick, but to react in the way he did, that's not on, it's a leg breaker.

'It's frustration. But he's put his team in a tough situation.

'He's got fire in his belly, he wants to go out and win games, but he needs to control that emotion in the correct way, and that wasn't it.' 

Spurs legend Glenn Hoddle refused to excuse Alli's reckless behaviour.

'Undefendable. You can't defend that. It was a reaction, a poor reaction to losing the ball, not getting the foul,' said Hoddle.

'You can't do that on a football pitch. Not nowadays.'

Post-match Jenas and Hoddle attempted to disect their former club's failings on the European stage. Each concluded personel was a key issue for the club going forward.

Hoddle said: ‘This is a side they should’ve swept aside, they should be winning this over an aggregate of three clear goals. 

'They really lack a creative player. Against the top teams, they’re holding themselves back. Janssen and Sissoko… £50m? They need that spend that sort of money on a player who can change a game.'

Jenas added: ‘I think they’ve got one of the best starting XIs in the league, but as a squad, I don’t think they can compete with the other top teams in the league and that showed tonight. 

It was a tough one for them to take because they started so well. They had to somehow build themselves back up after those goals.'

GRAHAM POLL'S VIEW 

Portuguese referee Manuel De Sousa had no choice but to dismiss Dele Alli once he had made the dreadful challenge on Brecht Dejaegere; it was an over the top, studs first, 'X-rated' challenge that could have potentially broken his leg.

However angry he felt after not being awarded a free kick after he was fouled by Samuel Gigot there can be no excuse for such a tackle. I hope UEFA look closely at a lengthy ban for the Spurs playmaker who must be shown there is no place for such action on a football field.

There was no need for a replay to know it was a red card offence however just such a replay could have helped Tottenham as the goal they conceded came from a corner which should have been a goal kick. Clearly the extra assistant behind the goal couldn't help his refereeing colleague which is exactly why he's there.

Spurs crash out of Europa League as Harry Kane own goal and Dele Alli red card cost Mauricio Pochettino's men at Wembley

SPURS

Same old Dele Alli, same old Tottenham. He seems incapable of engaging his brain in certain moments of intensity and they seem incapable of making significant progress in Europe.

Once again, Spurs go out early, falling in the last 32 and making it a fourth straight season in which they have failed to reach the quarter-finals of Europe's second competition.

For a club that wants a place among the world's elite, that simply isn't very good; for manager Mauricio Pochettino, it must be a cause of increasing irritation, given the clock is ticking ever louder on when he will win his first trophy. Now, in reality, it is FA Cup or bust for Tottenham. 

But what a different tale this might well have been if Alli was not so impulsive, not so prone to the flashes of idiocy that pushed the shin of an opponent close to breaking point at the end of the first half.

It was a disgraceful tackle, well worthy of the red card and perhaps made worse by the fact it was in retaliation to some rough treatment he received in a robust challenge a moment earlier.

Clearly, Alli has issues getting his temper under control, no matter how good he is as a player and irrespective of tired arguments that curbing his aggression will lesson those gifts. 

It will be pointed out that this was his first red card, but it was not the first time he has lashed out. Not even the second, third or fourth.

It was an accident waiting to happen and this time it robbed his own club, given how they dominated the match before and after Christian Eriksen pulled them level on aggregate in the 10th minute. 

At that point they looked set to get it done. But first they were pulled back by a Harry Kane own goal, meaning they needed two more, and then they were floored by Alli's lunge.

Victor Wanyama put them ahead again in the second half but, in the scramble for the vital third, Jeremy Perbet scored for Gent, just as he had in the first leg.

So, a wasted opportunity in a competition that Pochettino clearly wanted to embrace.

He had approached the game by calling it a 'final' and backed this up by fielding his strongest available line-up.

Eriksen and defender Jan Vertonghen came into the side having missed the first-leg defeat and Moussa Sissoko and Harry Winks dropped out, with Kyle Walker and Ben Davies stationed as wing backs either side of a three-man defence.

Bold, ambitious and entirely necessary after the debacle of the initial performance a week ago. 

Pochettino claimed it took him only 50 seconds in Belgium to see his side lacked the focus and sharpness to win that leg.

Here, it was a white blitz for the first 19 minutes. Walker was central to much of what was good and then carried the sole burden in those moments when good became bad. 

His pace is one thing, but his desire to beat a man is quite another for a player who is typically used as a right back but seems to be thriving with a more attacking brief. It is no great surprise that he has crept on to Barcelona's radar.

He had already created three chances before Eriksen made the breakthrough. The goal came from a long ball, delivered by Eric Dier and misjudged in flight by Kenneth Saief.

It dropped for Eriksen, who outran Rami Gershon and threaded his shot between Lovre Kalinic's legs. A brilliant finish.

It took 19 minutes for Gent to work a chance of any description, with Danijel Milicevic getting close enough to goal to necessitate a mildly desperate tackle from Toby Alderweireld. In isolation it was a harmless enough situation, except Alderweireld's challenge conceded the corner that caused the goal.

The delivery was decent, but how infuriating for Pochettino to see Milicevic given so much freedom to head the delivery back across goal and into the position from which Kane scored his own goal.

It was actually his fourth since the 2013-14 season — prolific at both ends. 

That left Spurs needing two but still, it was the kind of performance that might yield them.

Walker created numerous chances and Ben Davies chipped in with one on the other flank, sending a ball skidding across the six-yard box and only marginally out of Kane's reach.

It was all rather promising and then suddenly it wasn't — the legacy of Alli's stupidity. 

He had taken a hard tackle immediately beforehand but that was no justification for the lunge that appeared to bend Brecht Dejaegere's shin. The bone so easily could have snapped. 

Alli disappeared down the tunnel, ignored by his manager, and took what appeared to be Tottenham's hopes of staying alive with him.

Still they pushed, though. Kane missed a pair of chances before Wanyama had his moment, surging on to a loose ball near the edge of Kalinic's area and lashing past Gent's keeper on the hour. 

Pochettino leapt into the air as it went in. Game on.

Spurs pushed but could not do what was needed. In the rush at one end, they conceded to Perbet at the other. It might all have been very different. A penny for Alli's thoughts, if there were any.

Claudio Ranieri sacked by Leicester with Premier League champions in relegation battle just 298 days after title triumph

RANIERI

Leicester City took the astonishing decision to sack Claudio Ranieri on Thursday night only nine months after the Italian guided them to the greatest title win in English football history.

The club's Thai owners appeared to back their manager earlier this month when they insisted his position at the club was secure. He was given their 'unwavering support'.

But after a Champions League defeat in Seville followed six Premier League games without scoring, Ranieri was summoned to the King Power Stadium. There, Leicester confirmed the brutal call to part company. 

Ranieri achieved the impossible by guiding a team who narrowly escaped relegation the previous season to the Premier League title in May at odds of 5,000-1. 

But with the team a place and a point above the relegation places with 13 games of the season left, Leicester decided a change was needed.

The news was broken on MailOnline and revealed by sources in Italy before the club issued a statement at 8pm on Thursday, saying: 'The board reluctantly feels that a change of leadership, while admittedly painful, is necessary in the club's greatest interest.  

LEICESTER'S STATEMENT IN FULL 

Leicester City Football Club has tonight (Thursday) parted company with its First Team Manager, Claudio Ranieri.

Claudio, appointed City manager in July 2015, led the Foxes to the greatest triumph in the Club's 133-year history last season, as we were crowned champions of England for the first time. His status as the most successful Leicester City manager of all time is without question.

However, domestic results in the current campaign have placed the Club's Premier League status under threat and the Board reluctantly feels that a change of leadership, while admittedly painful, is necessary in the Club's greatest interest.

Vice Chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha said: 'This has been the most difficult decision we have had to make in nearly seven years since King Power took ownership of Leicester City. But we are duty-bound to put the Club's long-term interests above all sense of personal sentiment, no matter how strong that might be.

'Claudio has brought outstanding qualities to his office. His skilful management, powers of motivation and measured approach have been reflective of the rich experience we always knew he would bring to Leicester City. His warmth, charm and charisma have helped transform perceptions of the Club and develop its profile on a global scale. We will forever be grateful to him for what he has helped us to achieve.

'It was never our expectation that the extraordinary feats of last season should be replicated this season. Indeed, survival in the Premier League was our first and only target at the start of the campaign. But we are now faced with a fight to reach that objective and feel a change is necessary to maximise the opportunity presented by the final 13 games.'

First Team preparations for Monday's Premier League fixture against Liverpool will resume on Saturday, with Assistant Manager Craig Shakespeare and First Team Coach Mike Stowell taking charge of the squad until a new manager is appointed.

Assistant Manager and First Team Coach Paolo Benetti and First Team Sport Science and Conditioning Coach Andrea Azzalin have also parted company with the Club and leave with our thanks for their service and best wishes for the future.

The Board will now begin the recruitment process and will make no further comment until that process is completed.

'His status as the most successful Leicester City manager of all time is without question.'

The club's vice-chairman Aiyawatt Srivaddhanaprabha added: 'This has been the most difficult decision we have had to make in nearly seven years since King Power took ownership of Leicester City. 

'But we are duty-bound to put the club's long-term interests above all sense of personal sentiment, no matter how strong that might be.

'We will forever be grateful to him for what he has helped us achieve. Survival in the Premier League was our first and only target at the start of the campaign. 

'But we are now faced with a fight to reach that objective and feel a change is necessary to maximise the opportunity presented by the final 13 games.'

Pedro is 'very happy' at Chelsea after adjusting to Premier League life under manager Antonio Conte

PEDRO

Chelsea forward Pedro confirmed he is now 'very happy' at Stamford Bridge after adapting to life under new manager Antonio Conte.

Pedro hinted at his desire to stay at the club after his poor form last year coincided with a forgetful season for the Blues as they stumbled to a mid-table finish.

The Spain international held transfer talks with Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu last summer, but the move back to his former club fell through.

But Antonio Conte's revived Chelsea outfit have romped to the top of the league and the Spanish winger revealed he is in a good place.

'This is the best moment for me at this club and also the best moment for the whole team since I've been here,' he told the Chelsea club magazine.

'I'm very happy here. It's a good situation when you are top of the League and progressing in the FA Cup. We are on the right path.

'Last year was a difficult one for me, for the club, for the team, but this year is different.

'With this coach, all the team is focused on the fight for the title, with more confidence for every game and this is good. It's a completely different season.

'Every day I'm more comfortable with the team, with my team-mates, with the club and I have a good relationship with the supporters. All is good for me here and I'm very happy with the situation.'

The Spanish flier joined from Barcelona with a glowing reputation. After scoring and assisting in his debut for the Blues against West Brom in August 2015, the £21million Spain international looked a shrewd signing.

But his turbulent form saw him dip in and out of the side at Stamford Bridge as he failed to showcase his talents consistently.

Now under Conte's stewardship, Pedro and the whole Chelsea team have hit their straps to race away from their title challengers.

PEDRO'S HONOURS 

La Liga: 5

Supercopa de Espana: 4

Copa del Rey: 3 

UEFA Champions League: 3 

UEFA Super Cup: 3

FIFA Club World Cup: 2

FIFA World Cup: 1

UEFA European Championship: 1 

'I understand the Premier League more now,' he added.

'It's very different compared to Spain, but now I'm in my second year here I understand the football. It's quicker, more intense and more competitive.

'For me it's different now I have adapted. I have to run a lot, play harder and I'm very quick, which helps me in the games here in England.

'There are more crosses into the box and everything happens very quickly, which is good for the players and the spectators.

'Spain is different. It's more tactical. It's more about passing the ball and developing something.

'Here it's quicker when you attack and everything is different. You have to change mentally and it's difficult to adapt at first, but I have changed, I have done that now.

'It's a good moment for me. I feel really good on the pitch. I'm scoring goals and I'm connecting well with my team-mates.' 

Thorgan Hazard backs Chelsea youngsters Andreas Christensen and Charly Musonda to make impact for Blues next season

CHRISTENSEN

Thorgan Hazard has lavished praise on Chelsea's often maligned approach to young players, insisting Andreas Christensen and Charly Musonda can make it at Stamford Bridge. 

Hazard, a former Blues prospect himself, spoke glowingly of defender Christensen in particular who is in his second season on loan at Borussia Monchengladbach.

The Belgian is convinced his team-mate has all the attributes to make it at the top level with Antonio Conte's side.

In an exclusive interview with Goal he said: 'When he arrived everybody in the team and at the club were saying "wow", what a defender, what a player.

'He can play football, he is strong, he is fast, he is intelligent and so he has helped us a lot and helped us get Champions League qualification.'

Christensen is expected to return to the Blues next season and attempt to break into Conte's star-studded ranks.

Hazard is convinced the 20-year-old can make the step up, saying: 'I think he has a great future and he can play at a top, top level at a top, top team.'

Eden Hazard's younger brother was also effusive in his assessment of Charly Musonda, another Chelsea youngster who has developed on loan.

Musonda, a fellow Belgian, spent time with Real Betis in Spain in a move labelled by Hazard as 'fantastic' for the attacking midfielder.

'Charly is a friend. He decided to go on loan to Betis and the first year he was fantastic for Charly.
'I know Charly and I think he is a winner. He will fight for that and I hope he can do this [play for Chelsea],' he added.

The Blues have come under fire for their treatment of young players with 35 out on loan from their parent club but supporters will be heartened by Hazard's assessment of two up-and-coming prospects.

Chelsea manager Antonio Conte welcomes England boss Gareth Southgate to training

CONTE AND SOUTHGATE

There was a notable special guest at Chelsea's Cobham training ground on Thursday, as England manager Gareth Southgate dropped in to watch how the Premier League leaders prepare.

Southgate, whose side return to action next month with a tough friendly away to world champions Germany before a World Cup qualifer at home to Lithuania, was warmly welcomed by Chelsea boss Antonio Conte.

Another man pleased to see Southgate was Nathaniel Chalobah, whose hopes of a senior call-up may be boosted by the friendly handshake he shared with Southgate.

He has closer ties to Chelsea than with many other Premier League clubs through Steve Holland, Southgate's assistant manager who will continue in his role as a coach at Stamford Bridge until the summer.

With Southgate's next fixtures coming up soon, he will be keen to get as much information on English players as possible, as well as picking up tips from Conte, whose team are eight points clear at the top of the Premier League. 

One English player very much involved in the action, however, was one not available to Southgate - John Terry was in full flow, going into tackles as full-blooded as he would for any game.

Terry, 36, retired from England duty in 2012 amid controversy, and rejected calls to return to the team under Southgate's predecessor, Sam Allardyce.

It was a competitive training session all round - Nathan Ake and Michy Batshuayi gettin involved in a tussle for the ball in one drill, with Ake tugging on the Belgian forward's bib.

Chelsea were preparing for their FA Cup fifth round tie on Saturday, when they take on Wolves, the Championship side having conquered Liverpool in round four. 

Have Chelsea benefited from Champions League and Europa League qualification failure?

CHELSEA

Chelsea are eight points clear at the top of the Premier League, but did their failure to qualify for the Champions League or Europa League last season help their title charge?

"In some ways it's good, in other ways maybe not," Blues 'keeper Thibaut Courtois told Chelseafc.com when asked whether Chelsea's lack of European competition was an advantage.

"The other year, when we were champions, we had European football so I don't think it makes a big difference."

But is Courtois correct? Or does missing out on European football boost Premier League form?

Over the last 10 years, the current top six teams in the Premier League have improved their league position by three places, on average, when they've not been playing in Europe. That's a significant rise.

Tottenham, for example, can point to claiming their first top-four finish in 21 years in 2010 when they didn't have any continental competition.

Spurs claimed 70 points that season, 19 more than the previous campaign when they were in the UEFA Cup.

Similarly, Manchester United missed out on European qualification for the 2014/15 season and went on to finish fourth in the league - a considerable improvement from seventh the previous season.

A lack of European football was also attributed to boosting Liverpool's title tilt in 2013/14, when their points total of 84 dwarfed their hauls of 61 and 62 in the seasons before and after, when they were involved in the Europa League and Champions League.

Just last season, Leicester won the Premier League with no European football distracting them from their domestic duties.
It's been argued the added workload of Champions League fixtures has contributed to their struggles this season.

In fact, of the Premier League's current top six, over the last 10 years, Liverpool are the only club to have finished in a lower position without European football than a previous season with. And that happened just once, in 2011/12.

Why could European football be a hindrance?

The increased number of fixtures is often cited as the main issue.

With European games to contend with and the travelling involved, teams are supposedly sapped of energy for Premier League matches and left with less time to prepare for domestic opposition.

But that's a theory dismissed by Courtois.

"Everybody wants to play in Europe and if you're in the rhythm of playing a game every three or four days, sometimes you can play better, even though it's harder at the end of the season," he explained.

"We have a lot of people on the bench who want to play and maybe haven't had as many minutes as they deserve, and if we had European football they would have played more minutes."

Out of the top six clubs, Chelsea have played the fewest games with 30 - excluding the Checkatrade Trophy - while Liverpool, who also missed out on Europe this season, have played the second fewest with 34.

In contrast, Manchester United's Europa League exploits have extended their fixture tally to 39 this season - more than any other top six club.

European football could also add decisively to the workload during the run-in - should Tottenham, Arsenal, Man City and Manchester United progress to the latter stages of their respective competitions.

United could still face another 28 fixtures, more than twice the number of out-of-form Liverpool who only have a guaranteed 13 games left after exits from the EFL Cup and FA Cup.

Chelsea only face a maximum of 18 more games if they progress in the FA Cup, so the Blues' workload could be considerably lighter than all of their rivals except Liverpool during the crucial latter stages of the season.

Chelsea too good to slip up in title race, says Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink

CONTE

Jimmy Floyd Hasselbaink believes Chelsea's rivals for the title should not take too much encouragement from the league leaders' draw at Burnley.

Antonio Conte's side took the lead at Turf Moor on Sunday with an early goal from Pedro, but Robbie Brady earned a share of the points for the Clarets with a spectacular free-kick.

Burnley have only lost three Premier League games at home this season, to Swansea, Arsenal and Manchester City, and still have to entertain title contenders Tottenham and top-four hopefuls Manchester United.

Hasselbaink, who played for Chelsea between 2000 and 2004, is confident Conte's team will not be knocked out of their stride.

"It's a good point for me, at Burnley. It's a difficult place to go. You have to give Burnley credit because not a lot of teams go there and win, only Man City and Arsenal, who were quite lucky," Hasselbaink said on Premier League Daily.

"So for Chelsea to go there, winning 1-0 and then they score a stunner, I think it's a good result. Man United still have to go there, Tottenham still have to go there, so it's not going to be easy.

"Chelsea have found a way of how to play, and they are very calm and relaxed within that, very confident. I don't see them losing three games out of the 13 games they have left.

"Also, they don't have any European games, they only have the FA Cup and the Premier League, so they can concentrate in midweek, from Saturday to Saturday and really prepare. I think they will be too far ahead for the others."

The form of Chelsea striker Diego Costa has come under examination after a January move to China failed to materialise.

The Spain international has scored just one goal in six games this year, and missed a penalty in the 1-1 draw with Liverpool at Anfield, but Hasselbaink does not believe there is any cause for concern.

"Always as a striker you get those little spells where you don't score, you have to look at the attributes, at the amount of work he does and how much he creates," Hasselbaink said.

"He's missed a penalty but that can happen. But for me, pound for pound he's the best striker at the moment in the Premier League."

Arsene Wenger has earned the right to decide when he leaves Arsenal, says Charlie Nicholas

WENGER

The time has come for Arsene Wenger to call time on his 20-year association with Arsenal, but he has earned the right to decide when he leaves, according to Charlie Nicholas.

The Gunners' Champions League last-16 struggles returned on Wednesday as Bayern Munich all but ended their hopes of navigating the stage for the first time since 2010 with a humbling 5-1 first-leg victory.

Already under siege for Arsenal's faltering Premier League title bid, Wenger's position at the Emirates Stadium has been the subject of yet more scrutiny.

Nicholas feels the Frenchman's revolutionary tenure in north London - which has yielded nine major honours - has run its course, but he stressed Wenger deserves to leave in a dignified manner.

"He has earned the right to decide when to leave," he said. "For the last three years he has been questioned and last year was the first time I started to turn.

"I don't enjoy saying it but the reality is that this is not the Arsenal I want to see. He deserves criticism but I feel pain for him more than anyone else.

"I want him to leave with dignity and humility after the greatness he has achieved. He will decide when the time is right but I feel that time is coming.

"He cannot continue with this pain, the anxiousness he has before games and the players not reaching the level he has delivered in the past.

"I suspect he will say enough is enough this summer, he won't announce it until the season wears as to not affect their involvement in the FA Cup.

"He will also want to uphold his record of securing a top-four finish in every season, so he will put himself in a position to do so.

"The fact of the matter is that there has been no improvement this season, even with Mesut Ozil and Alexis Sanchez. Nothing at Arsenal is driven, it's all nice and easy, these players need driving.

"He will walk away this summer because of the intensity surrounding his position and having blindly put his faith in players who simply haven't improved."

Mark Clattenburg quits Premier League to referee in Saudi Arabia

CLATTENBURG

Referee Mark Clattenburg has quit the Premier League and is moving to Saudi Arabia.

Clattenburg is one of the world's leading referees and in 2016 he officiated the FA Cup final, Champions League final and Euro 2016 final.

With no Premier League fixtures this weekend, Clattenburg's final top-flight game was Arsenal's 2-0 win over Hull on Saturday.

He has taken a role with the Saudi Arabian Football Federation.

The Professional Game Match Officials Limited (PGMOL) issued a statement in which they praised his contribution to the English game.

"PGMOL would like to wish Mark Clattenburg well as he prepares for his move to the Saudi Arabian Football Federation," it read.

"Since joining the PGMOL Select Group in 2004, Mark developed into one of our top officials, refereeing at the highest level and setting standards for others to follow.

"His accomplishments are numerous and last season saw Mark achieve a memorable treble, on top of another consistently excellent season in the Premier League, as he officiated three major cup finals - the FA Cup final, the UEFA Champions League final and the UEFA Euro 2016 final.

"Mark is a talented referee, he has been a great asset to the English game and hopefully an inspiration to those who want to get into refereeing at the grass roots of the game.

"We understand this is an exciting opportunity for Mark as well as further underlining what high esteem English match officials are held throughout the world game."

Clattenburg's first match in professional football was in 2000, a Third Division (now Sky Bet League Two) match between Chesterfield and York City at the age of just 25 - which was then a post-war record.

Just four years later he had climbed the ladder to the Premier League, where his first match was Crystal Palace's game with Everton.

The Newcastle fan was in charge of the 2012 Olympic final in London, the 2012 League Cup final and the UEFA Super Cup in 2014.