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Former Tottenham Hotspur goalkeeper Paul Robinson has shared his verdict as Spurs reportedly close in on the appointment of a 52-year-old, with the ex-England international expressing his delight for chairman Daniel Levy.

Tottenham ponder new manager after 20 Premier League defeats

The Lilywhites set a dismal record over the weekend, surpassing their previous number of total Premier League defeats in a single season.

Related Tottenham: £4m-per-year manager enters pole position to replace Postecoglou

The Australian could still leave Spurs if they win the Europa League.

Posts 1 ByEmilio Galantini May 10, 2025

Ange Postecoglou’s side have now lost 20 league games this term, following a 2-0 home defeat to FA Cup finalists Crystal Palace, and this torrid number is quite simply inexcusable for a ‘big six’ club.

Tottenham’s final Premier League fixtures

Date

Aston Villa (away)

May 16th

Brighton (home)

May 25th

Spurs also find themselves 17th in the table with no wins from their last five. The terrible form of relegated trio Ipswich Town, Leicester City and Southampton has seemingly rescued them from flirting with a drop to the Championship, which makes for seriously grim reading from Postecoglou’s perspective.

Some reports suggest Postecoglou is set to leave Tottenham this summer, even if the Australian ends their 17-year wait for a trophy and qualifies for the Champions League by winning the Europa League final.

A host of tacticians have been tipped to potentially replace Postecoglou, with Andoni Iraola (Bournemouth), Marco Silva (Fulham), Oliver Glasner (Crystal Palace), Thomas Frank (Brentford), Scott Parker (Burnley), Jürgen Klopp (Head of Global, Red Bull), Niko Kovač (Borussia Dortmund) and Edin Terzić (free agent) all on Tottenham’s rumoured managerial shortlist, according to reports in the last month.

In the meantime, while none of these possible appointments appear close, one hire which is becoming more anticipated by the week is the return of ex-managing director Fabio Paratici.

The Italian’s worldwide ban by FIFA is due to end on June 30th, and this has prompted many reports linking him with a return to N17.

Corriere della Sera recently stated that Paratici will re-join Tottenham after talks with AC Milan broke down, and some media outlets closer to home claim that Marseille boss Roberto De Zerbi has been recommended to Spurs by the 52-year-old already.

Robinson thrilled by potential Paratici return to Tottenham

Speaking to Tottenham News, ex-Spurs keeper Robinson has shared exactly why he believes Paratici’s potentially imminent comeback is a welcome boost for the north Londoners.

“His recruitment has been excellent,” said the pundit, who regularly features on Sky Sports.

“Listen, he’s had an official ban, but I think his fingerprints have been all over a lot of Tottenham signings. You can’t work in an official capacity, but there’s nobody saying you can’t ring your mate up and make a phone call and recommend him a player.

“Anyone can do that. You look at the signings that he’s had, you look at Kulusevski, Bentancur, Romero, Vicario. The signings that he’s brought to the club have been a success.

“I think from the outside looking in, it’s somebody that Daniel Levy trusts. So if he comes back in an official capacity, I think that’ll be a good thing for the club if he can work with whatever manager’s in charge next season and get the recruitment right for the style of play that the manager wants to achieve.

“It’s vitally important, as we’ve seen this season with Ange, you have to have a set of players that fit the system that the manager wants to play, or else it’s not going to work.”

Tottenham Hotspur are believed to be on the verge of appointing a 52-year-old, following some private talks with chairman Daniel Levy in early April.

Tottenham set for summer overhaul after disappointing campaign

Spurs have recorded a dismal 19 Premier League defeats under Ange Postecoglou this season, a record which could end up costing the Australian his job.

£195k-per-week Chelsea player holds talks over joining Tottenham via agents

His team are trying to find a new club.

1 ByEmilio Galantini Apr 30, 2025

Over the course of a campaign hampered by injuries and poor form, matters are made worse by reports that Levy and co are likely to employ a ‘sell to buy’ policy when the transfer window reopens this summer (The Telegraph).

West Ham (away)

May 3rd

Crystal Palace (home)

May 10th

Aston Villa (away)

May 18th

Brighton (home)

May 25th

The Lilywhites could see the likes of Richarlison, Cristian Romero and even Pedro Porro depart before 2025/2026, according to some reports, while Spurs attempt to garner enough funds to reinforce their squad across the board.

Tottenham want a new centre-back and are targeting Dean Huijsen, while it is believed Postecoglou’s side are eager to acquire a central midfield player too, leading to their interest in Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder Hugo Larsson (GiveMeSport).

Spurs are also boldly eyeing a move for West Ham forward Jarrod Bowen, which may seem far out of the club’s reach.

All of these ambitious plans will require an astute operator when it comes to behind-scenes transfer dealings, and ex-managing director Fabio Paratici will soon be available for hire again.

The Italian resigned from his post in 2023, after being slapped with a worldwide ban by FIFA, but that is due to expire on June 30th.

According to reports from his homeland, back in late March, Paratici held talks with Levy over re-joining Tottenham, and it was claimed at the time that they were ready to make him a rich offer.

Fabio Paratici "will sign with Tottenham"

After his failed switch to AC Milan, Italian media sources started reporting yet again in the last few days that Paratici’s return to Spurs is possible, with newspaper Corriere della Sera now sharing a pretty significant update of their own.

It is now believed that Paratici “will sign for Tottenham” once again, and he is likely to return to the same role he once took before the 52-year-old was forced out.

His return has been tipped for some time, with pundit John Wenham anticipating it after he was spotted at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for their clash against Eintracht Frankfurt.

“If Postecoglou is sacked, I’m not sure who will come in until the end of the season,” Wenham said to Tottenham News.

“We will have to wait and see. However, we saw that Paratici was at the stadium again on Thursday, sitting with the club legends. Therefore, it looks like he is coming back, and perhaps he is already lining up a new manager to replace Postecoglou.”

If confirmed, his hire would be seen as a major boost by some, considering the plaudits he received and how Paratici grew in popularity during his time at N17.

As Evangelos Marinakis commenced the club’s latest scouting mission in Turkey, one Nottingham Forest target was given his marching orders in what was an ill-timed moment to forget.

Nottingham Forest send scouts to Besiktas vs Galatasaray

After defeating Manchester United 1-0 courtesy of Anthony Elanga’s stunning solo effort, Nottingham Forest have every right to be dreaming of Champions League football more than ever in the Premier League. And with that comes the right to turn their attention towards stealing further headlines in the transfer market this summer.

On the transfer front, several big names have already been mentioned – the biggest of which arguably being Victor Osimhen. The Galatasaray loanee has enjoyed an excellent spell in Turkey and looks destined for bigger and better things once back at Napoli this summer. With Chris Wood not getting any younger either, Forest could yet make their move.

Turkish football seems to be where it’s at for those at the City Ground too, having also set their sights on two other targets. According to The Boot Room, Nottingham Forest’s scouting mission focused on Semih Kilicsoy last weekend, only for the young Besiktas star to receive a red card in his side’s 2-1 victory over Galatasaray.

Forest officials were also in attendance to watch Baris Alper Yilmaz, but it’s Kilicsoy who stole the headlines when he received his marching orders in the 96th minute before his teammates handed their rivals their first league defeat of the campaign.

Nottingham Forest now racing to sign £33m defender wanted by Real Madrid

He’s a man in-demand…

ByTom Cunningham Apr 2, 2025

The first red card of the teenager’s career couldn’t have come at a worse time given that scouts from both Nottingham Forest and Aston Villa were in attendance, but he will hope to have still done enough to maintain their interest.

"Incredible" Kilicsoy is a rising star

Red card aside, Kilicsoy has been one to watch throughout the current campaign. At just 19 years old, the winger has scored four goals and assisted a further six in all competitions and doesn’t look likely to stop there. A player destined for the top, Nottingham Forest could yet sign another talented winger to add to the likes of Elanga and Callum Hudson-Odoi in the coming years.

Earning the praise of football talent scout Jacek Kulig last season, who described his campaign as “incredible”, Kilicsoy has only improved ever since and could earn the move that reflects that improvement this summer.

The Besiktas star is arguably one of the most talented young players that European football has to offer, but that won’t stand in Forest’s way. Closing in on a Champions League place, they could be more ambitious than ever this summer.

He struggled in white-ball cricket and was moved from opener to No. 7 in the early rounds of the Ranji Trophy last season. Then he turned it around and went on to average 74.18

Sruthi Ravindranath11-Sep-2024N Jagadeesan was pretty sure he was getting phased out of the Tamil Nadu team last season. He was only 28 and was one of the side’s senior players, with eight years of domestic experience. He had broken records at the Vijay Hazare Trophy in the 2022-23 season. But he played only two games in the 2023-24 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and had an average return in the Vijay Hazare Trophy that followed. He was also pushed down to No. 7 from his regular opening position in the first match of the Ranji Trophy. Then, when he got a chance to move up to his preferred opening slot in his hometown Coimbatore, he wanted to make it count. He went on to enjoy his best season, racking up 816 runs in nine games at an average of 74.18, and went on to make the India B side for the ongoing Duleep Trophy.Among the feats he achieved in the Ranji Trophy last season was also facing 400-plus balls in an innings in two consecutive games: he scored 245 not out against Railways and followed it up with 321 against Chandigarh.”I was coming out of a place where I wasn’t considered to be part of the team,” Jagadeesan tells ESPNcricinfo. “In the second game [against Tripura] I didn’t get to bat and the first game [against Gujarat] I didn’t score a lot of runs, I was batting lower down the order too. The moment I went opening, I told myself there’s no way I’m going to let my wicket go.”There was a very much a driving factor after I got settled which kept telling me that ‘you’ve struggled a lot and people have been talking about dropping you, you are not going to be in that situation ever again’. The moment I got settled in, there was another driving factor. I was settled and I was not letting it go. It’s a different high when you know that you actually faced 400 balls because it involves a lot of stamina. My focus levels were really, really high too. I genuinely felt that I didn’t have the patience to play 400 balls. It was the grit.”While Jagadeesan finished the season on a high, TN’s campaign ended on a sour note. After their semi-final loss against Mumbai, Sulakshan Kulkarni, who was the coach of TN at the time, publicly criticised captain R Sai Kishore’s decision to bat first.It was the culmination of a season in which relations between the coach and the players were not smooth and, in that tricky situation, the TN players got a lot closer, Jagadeesan says, praising Sai Kishore’s leadership.During the downtime post the domestic season, Jagadeesan captained the TN Colts team on their UK tour in May for three weeks under coach L Balaji. That aside, he also dabbled in TV commentary during IPL 2024 and the men’s T20 World Cup, which he says was an “eye-opening” experience.”When you’re at the comm box, you have to pay a lot of attention,” he says. “You have to focus on the game and predict…only then you will be able to speak well. I realised even when I’m not playing the game, I knew what the bowlers were going to do by just watching. It was very insightful.”For example, when you’re in the comm box you actually predict what a fast bowler is going to do looking at the field set. You get deeper connections with the bowlers. That helps you while you bat against them as well, because you’ve actually seen what the bowler is going to do. If the thing I predict happens then I can say I’ve learned something out of it. There’s a lot you can learn when you commentate.”Jagadeesan is hoping to harness all of these experiences, and has also set clear goals – which he usually doesn’t do – heading into this domestic season.”The ultimate aim for me is to be part of the Indian cricket team,” he says. “I don’t usually set goals coming into a domestic season, but I think it’s high time I start doing that. In Ranji Trophy where I did not even think I could face 400 balls, I did that. These were the things which I did not even think was possible. Just like how my long-term goal is to play for India, there’s always been a goal for me in my head since childhood which is to cross the 1000-run mark in Ranji Trophy. That’s always been on my checklist.”

The opener is in line for a Test debut in Perth next week after a prolific year with the bat

Andrew McGlashan25-Nov-2022So, is Tagenarine going to play the first Test against Australia?
It would be a huge surprise if he doesn’t, having made 119 against a strong Prime Minister’s XI attack in Canberra to continue a prolific year. He had made just 4 in his one outing against NSW/ACT XI last week, after missing the first innings because of illness. But on Thursday, he faced 293 balls before falling to the final delivery of the second day when he top-edged a pull against Joel Paris. The PM’s line-up included Test seamer Michael Neser as well as Mark Steketee, who has been in Australia squads. Todd Murphy, the young offspinner, and left-armer Ashton Agar bowled 41 overs between them, which is likely to be more spin than Chanderpaul will face in Perth, but should put him good stead for the challenge of Nathan Lyon. A vacancy for Kraigg Brathwaite’s partner has come up at the top of the order following the anti-doping ban handed to John Campbell.Related

• Kraigg Brathwaite wants West Indies 'to bat 100 overs' as fiery Perth surface beckons

• Australia look to shut out the noise as West Indies face 25 years of history against them

• Holder urges West Indies quicks to not get 'carried away seeing carry and bounce' in Perth

• Green gung-ho about IPL 2023 but hectic calendar will make it tough, warns Warner

• Brathwaite hopes to 'do good things together' with Tagenarine

He’s 26, so not really young for a debutant…
He’s waited a little while for this opportunity, but he effectively lost two years of his career because of Covid and did not play a match from March 2020 until February 2022. Before that gap, he had shown glimpses of his potential with a maiden first-class hundred against Barbados in 2018, and then another against Windward Islands in 2019, which at a marathon 484 deliveries is his longest first-class innings to date in terms of balls faced. From early on, he had shown the ability to bat time, facing more than 150 deliveries in an innings three times in his first two seasons. However, it’s been this year where things have really taken off: in 2022, he has an average of 89.50 including four centuries.He and his dad played together, right?
Indeed they did, 11 times in first-class cricket. The first came in 2013 against Trinidad and Tobago [Tagenarine made 42 in the first innings, Shivnarine 108 in the second], and the last in 2018, which is when Tagenarine made his maiden first-class hundred.What has his route to the Test side been?
He played in the 2014 Under-19 World Cup in the UAE, where he made 293 runs. That team also featured Nicholas Pooran, Fabian Allen, Shimron Hetmyer and Brandon King. After that, he bided his time in first-class cricket before the Covid-enforced break. Earlier this year, he was rewarded for his impressive domestic form with a West Indies A call-up to face Bangladesh A where he made an unbeaten 109 in the second four-day match.Does he bat like his dad?
Make your own mind up…

Meet the Chanderpauls #PMXIvWI #AUSvWI pic.twitter.com/hSOJfFZSre

— cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) November 24, 2022

What Shivnarine said
“He’s been knocking at the door since before Covid… two-and-a-half years passed with no cricket behind, then he started to get some cricket back. He started the first-class season without many runs, then he came to Florida and did some work with me. When he got back, he got a couple of hundreds and now he’s got selected to come here. Knowing the attack Australia has – these guys are relentless – if he can come here and do well, it will be a start to his career.”I try to help him sometimes but he’s a little bent in his ways. He’ll seek me out for some help but then there’s a lot of times, like any kid, when you message him but he doesn’t message back. Unless he wants something! I’ll message [while] watching the game whenever he’s playing, I’ve seen what he’s doing, if he’s doing something he’s not supposed to be doing then I’ll message and say ‘this is what I’m seeing’ and he’ll not message back for two months after.”What Tagenarine said
“I try and be myself. I can’t be him, so I can only be myself. Fingers crossed… I’ll try to get some runs if I’m selected.”And here’s a fun fact
Tagenarine has a movie credit to his name. He was plucked to play Larry Gomes in the film about India’s famous World Cup triumph.”Being a part of was a great opportunity that I stumbled upon while playing four-day cricket in St Lucia in 2018,” Tagenarine told last year. “During a practice session a scout came to the ground and asked who wanted to try out for the film. To my surprise a few months later I received a call that I had been chosen to play the part of Larry Gomes.”Lastly, but most importantly, does he mark his guard with a bail?
“Sometimes,” Shivnarine said.

Since 1987, their record shows they have been competitive with the very best teams on tours there

Osman Samiuddin04-Aug-2020The English cricket summer has long held a central place in the Pakistani cricket calendar. But you could argue now that it has become a mere subset of the Pakistani cricket summer. Including this year and the next, when Pakistan are scheduled to visit for a limited-overs-only series, they will have toured England six summers in a row.The frequency and familiarity have helped Pakistan’s modern* Test record in England, which stacks up remarkably well, and not just among subcontinental sides. They’ve won three more Tests in that period than India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh combined. Their win-loss ratio is third, behind only Australia and South Africa.*Pakistan’s modern era in England begins in 1987, when they won their first Test series in England. They had already had a few closely contested series by then, including a 1-1 draw on their very first tour, and narrow losses in 1971 and 1982.ESPNcricinfo LtdA better measure than individual matches is series results, and here, Pakistan stand out. Only Australia have won more series in England in that period, and Pakistan have won as many as India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh combined. And though they haven’t won a series since 1996, they have drawn their last two series (in a period where, for instance, India have lost their last three series, and resoundingly).England is less imposing a place than, say Australia or South Africa, for all teams. Still, Pakistan have stood out. Why? What is it about England that brings out their best?Start as you mean to go on
Pakistan’s record in the first Tests of series in England is exemplary, second in win and non-loss percentages only to Australia and South Africa.