Tag Archives: Premier League

Football, Opinion

Dean Henderson Signs New Manchester United Deal To Compete With David De Gea

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Dean Henderson has signed a new five-year contract with Manchester United, with the option of a further year to stay at the club and compete with David De Gea as the No.1 goalkeeper at the club.

Henderson has spent the last two seasons on loan at Sheffield United, helping them get promotion to the Premier League before keeping 13 clean sheets in the top division last year as they secured a top half finish at the first attempt.

There was interest from Chelsea and Sheffield United about a potential permanent deal, but the Carrington graduate had made it clear that he wants to be the No.1 at Manchester United and refused to leave on a permanent deal.

The new deal keeps him at Old Trafford until 2025, with an option for an extra year essentially making it a six-year contract for the 23 year old. Reports suggest the deal is worth around £120,000 per-week which would put him among the highest paid goalkeepers in the league.

Despite that, Henderson will be competing with David De Gea for the starting spot in Ole Gunnar Solskjær’s side next season if he ends up staying at the club beyond the transfer window. According the Manchester Evening News the club and player have different ideas on the coming season, with the club believing a loan would be the best option while Henderson himself wants to stay and play.

With David De Gea still having three years to run on his £275,000 per-week deal, he is expected to start the season as the No.1 choice but if Henderson remains at the club then he will be facing real competition for the jersey for the first time in his United career.

It’s believed that United would like to loan Henderson out to a club playing European football, potentially abroad, so that he can continue to play regularly and then potentially replace De Gea next year. However having been called up to the England squad, he believes that he is ready now and is happy to provide competition for places.

It seems like a win-win situation at the moment for Manchester United. As it stands, De Gea is the better goalkeeper despite his recent errors and dips in form. He is more experienced and a better shot stopper, plus he is used to all the limelight and criticism that comes with the role. While Henderson can’t get that without being in that position, it’s something that doesn’t need to be thrust upon him right now on top of the attention that would come with displacing a club legend like De Gea.

A loan would suit all parties, as Henderson would play and likely keep his role in the England side with Euro 2020 coming up next summer while United know they have him tied down for the foreseeable future. He could then return next summer with a year of European experience added to his career and really compete while United consider whether De Gea is really done at this level or whether it was just a blip.

Staying shows real character and gives De Gea a kick up the backside. Solskjær will know he has a top goalkeeper waiting in the wings to replace De Gea for any mistakes that occur and it will only boost the level at the club.

It’s a win-win for all parties no matter what happens from here on out but the only thing guaranteed is that Dean Henderson is a Red for a while longer yet.

jack grealish’s england squad omission continues to baffle
Football, Opinion

Jack Grealish: England Squad Omission Bizarre

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Another England squad was announced on Tuesday with the name of Jack Grealish not listed once again.

The Aston Villa captain is yet to be called up to the senior England team since opting to switch allegiances from the Republic of Ireland way back in 2016, despite impressive form and top performances for his club side in both the Premier League and Championship.

After missing out on the squad last season, Gareth Southgate said that it was simply because the player needed more top level experience. Grealish was then promoted to the Premier League and was one of the best performing playmakers throughout the season, yet still wasn’t called up.

When the squad was announced on Tuesday, there was space for the debuts of Phil Foden and Mason Greenwood but not for Jack Grealish. The manager faced criticism for the decision, although he explained during his press conference

“With Jack [Grealish], the simple answer is Mason Greenwood. He’s competing in my view against Greenwood, Marcus Rashford, Jadon Sancho and Raheem Sterling. I know Villa have played him as an eight but I don’t see him in that role for us.“

It’s an interesting response from Southgate, who also selected Harry Kane, Danny Ings and Tammy Abraham as attackers in his 23-man squad. Kane and Ings are obvious choices, with Kane being England’s best striker and Ings having the best season of his career. Abraham however saw himself lose his place in the team to Olivier Giroud, while Grealish scored the goal that kept Aston Villa in the Premier League on the final day.

Birmingham City v Aston Villa - Sky Bet Championship : News Photo

While Greenwood’s short career has been spent mainly on the right-wing for Manchester United, he is a natural number 9 and has scored goals there freely whenever he has played. Would anyone have caused a ruckus if Grealish was called up ahead of Tammy Abraham? Nope, because one deserves it and one probably doesn’t.

Not only that, but considering Grealish as only a winger is a weird shout. He was moved there by Villa boss Dean Smith as a way to get him closer to goal, so he can effect the game more for a side fighting to survive. For England, Southgate wants to dominate the ball and control games. In 80% of games, they’ll likely be the stronger team on the pitch so you can most definitely place Grealish back into his preferred central role. His ball retention is excellent, he can beat players one-on-one in central positions and would add extra creativity to a midfield currently bereft of it.

Southgate mentioned that Aston Villa fans already dislike him following his move to Middlesbrough as a player, then was quick to state that it’s nothing to do with the club since he also picked Tyrone Mings. But there is something fishy about the decision not to pick Grealish.

The arguments he’s used previously he’s now gone against too, since he picked Kelvin Phillips of Leeds without him having ever played a Premier League game before.

Grealish has earned his opportunity to, at the bare minimum, be called into the squad. Nobody is claiming he should be a sure-fire starter for the national team but if he can’t even get into a 23-man squad at this point he probably never will.

At 24 years old, maybe Grealish will need to consider putting his tin-hat on and crawling back to the green of the Republic of Ireland in order to get himself an international career.

messi’s barcelona departure is real… and good for football
Football, Opinion

Europe’s Elite On The Edge As Max Allegri Waits For New Challenge

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Europe’s best managers are on red alert after it emerged that Max Allegri is ready to return to management ASAP and he wants a top job.

The former Milan and Juventus manager has been out of a job since resigning from his position at Juventus in 2019, after winning a fifth straight Serie A title but crashing out of the Champions League at the quarter-final stage.

During his time at Juve, as well as winning Serie A five times he also won the Coppa Italia four times and reached the Champions League final twice, losing both times to Real Madrid and Barcelona respectively.

After taking a year out of the game to recharge his batteries, Allegri has come back to a football world where top clubs all have a manager but may not be as secure as they seem.

PSG manager Thomas Tuchel is reportedly under pressure having failed to deliver the Champions League trophy once again despite making the final, while Europa League runners-up Inter Milan are also considering parting ways with Antonio Conte after a fallout with the former Chelsea boss wanting more backing from the board.

In England, Ole Gunnar Solskjær is secure at the moment at Old Trafford but the club will know that if Allegri is available he is a manager with pedigree and reputation that could take over easily if things went downhill. Pep Guardiola is expected to leave at the end of his contract next summer so it’s possible City could move quickly to secure Allegri early, much like they did when Guardiola agreed to take over back in 2015. Frank Lampard is also secure at Chelsea but with the club spending in excess of £200million this summer to boost his squad, under-performance won’t be tolerated and he will be walking a tight-rope all year.

Zinedine Zidane’s job is secure for as long as he wants it to be, with the legendary Frenchman building up enough equity during his time there that they will stick with him but at Barcelona they’ve just brought in Ronald Koeman to replace Quique Setien. Setien himself was only brought in in January, following the dismissal of Ernesto Valverde. That in itself proves that Barcelona aren’t afraid to pull the trigger if necessary and while Allegri doesn’t fit their usual style, he would surely be an option if the role opened up again.

While he is still waiting in the wings as of this writing, with Inter and PSG both likely to become vacant in the near future it’s almost time for the return of Max Allegri to Europe’s elite.

paul pogba: new man utd contract, new man utd captain?
Football, Opinion

Paul Pogba: New Manchester United Contract, New Captain?

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A slow moving transfer window for the club has finally brought good news for Manchester United fans, as it has been confirmed that Paul Pogba will be staying at the club for the forseeable future.

The France international signed for the club for £89million back in 2016 but following an uninspired spell so far, has constantly been linked with a move away with Real Madrid and Juventus interested.

After winning the World Cup with France in 2018, Pogba returned to the club and fell out with manager Jose Mourinho. After Mourinho was sacked in December of that year, Pogba was reinstated to the side under Ole Gunnar Solskjær and had his spell at the club. He ended the season as the top goalscorer and top assister across all competitions.

That summer however, Pogba publicly revealed that he was questioning whether it was time to move on or not with Zinedine Zidane returning to Real Madrid and making him his prime target. A deal was never made between the clubs and Pogba stayed. He then missed the majority of last season with an ankle injury that required surgery, but returned following the COVID-19 lockdown to help the club earn a Champions League place for next season.

With a year left on his deal (plus an extra year that Manchester United can trigger when they wish), questions marks remained over his future once again. But agent Mino Raiola has told the media that Pogba will stay at Old Trafford and that talks over a new contract are due to start soon.

Prior to his admission about wanting to leave the club, Pogba was among the front-runners for the captaincy after Antonio Valencia left following the expiration of his contract. He, De Gea and Ashley Young shared the armband for the end of the campaign before Young was given it permanently in the summer.

David De Gea and Pogba both seemed to find themselves out of the running following comments to the press during the season though. When Young was out of the side, De Gea wore the armband and when he said “this is the worst I’ve seen at United” following yet another poor result, he was never named captain again. Pogba hasn’t worn the armband since he almost left last year.

Despite being the obvious candidate for the role, when Ashley Young joined Inter Milan in January it was Harry Maguire who was given the full-time captain role. Many stated it was due to his leadership qualities and the fact that Pogba wasn’t committed to the club while his future was up in the air.

But with his sights firmly set on Old Trafford now going forward, he should be given the armband. He is the leader of the dressing room. Whenever you hear a player talk about the behind the scenes elements at the club, it’s always Pogba who’s name comes up as an inspiration or a leader or someone who helps the younger players along. He’s a winner too, having won the World Cup, Serie A four times, Coppa Italia twice plus the League Cup and Europa League with United under Mourinho.

We’ve seen plenty of times where he has take it upon himself to be the leader in high profile situations, with footage online of his team-talks during France’s run to winning the World Cup. With a young squad at the helm now, they need someone who’s mentality is that of the elite. There is nobody more elite in the Manchester United squad than Paul Pogba.

In reality, the person wearing the armband doesn’t really matter. The club needs leaders throughout the team and that is something Solskjær has made clear during his time at the club. With De Gea, Maguire, Pogba, Fernandes and Rashford they have a spine of players that command respect throughout the club and that’s a good sign.

But considering Pogba’s reputation worldwide in the game, plus the fact he is the best candidate for the role, I think it would be the best thing for the club if Pogba is seen as the leader of the club in an official capacity.

luis suarez to leave barcelona as exodus begins at camp nou
Football, Transfers

Thiago Silva To Join Chelsea Following Champions League Final Defeat

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Brazilian defender Thiago Silva is set to join Chelsea on a free transfer following the Champions League final defeat to Bayern Munich.

Silva, 35, played for PSG in the 1-0 defeat to Bayern on Sunday night in what was his final game for the club with his contract expired and not renewed by the French giants.

Reports that there were talks between Silva and Fiorentina about a potential move seem to have been too soon though, as the player denied them following the final and it’s now come to light that he has chosen Chelsea as his next club.

Frank Lampard has been linked with a new centre-back this summer, with many reports that Declan Rice was his number one target for the position due to his ability to also play in midfield. However with the club prioritising their big money signings in attack, it seems they’ve made the decision to cut back and bring in a proven name without a transfer fee.

Silva would join as a free agent on fairly large wages, but a short-term contract makes the deal a very clever bit of business from the club.

With Rice the number one target seemingly, by bringing in Silva on a short-term deal it means they can revisit the Rice deal at a later date without signing an expensive stop-gap in the process. It also means that if they decided against Rice in the future, the position is still open to be filled in the near future and they can revisit the market as a whole again.

Despite that, Silva has shown this season that he is still at the top end of the centre-back ladder in Europe and he is an instant improvement on all their options in the position at the club currently. He brings experience and leadership to a squad bereft of it and can help improve the mentality of the young squad, including players like Fikayo Tomori, Mason Mount and Callum Hudson-Odoi who have come through the academy.

If Chelsea are able to complete the deal, as looks likely this week, then it would take their new additions up to five for the summer with a deal for Kai Havertz also likely to be completed in the near future after the clubs agreed a €100million package for the German sensation to go along with Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech and the incoming Ben Chilwell at left-back.

Chelsea are coming for the title next season, and Frank Lampard will have no excuses for not delivering an improvement on the last campaign.

ben chilwell close to chelsea move for £50million
Football, Transfers

Chelsea Close To £50million Ben Chilwell Deal

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Chelsea are closing in on the £50million signing of Leicester defender Ben Chilwell, according to reports.

The England left-back, 23, had been touted as manager Frank Lampard’s number one defensive target this summer as the Stamford Bridge legend looked to bolster a defence that leaked 79 goals in all competitions last season.

With Marcos Alonso and Emerson Palmieri out of favour under Lampard, left-back was seen as a problem position that needed filling urgently and it was known early on that Chilwell was the man that Chelsea wanted.

Leicester initially quoted a fee of around £80million, using Harry Maguire as a precedent for selling their best defenders. However after failing to make the Champions League next season and with COVID-19 still among us, they have had to drop their fee knowing that the player is keen on the move also.

Chelsea have moved quickly to complete their business so far this season, completing deals for Timo Werner and Hakim Ziyech before the 2019/20 season was over and they are close to signing Kai Havertz as well from Bayer Leverkusen.

With centre-back reportedly the final piece of the puzzle for Lampard, once the deals for Chilwell and Havertz are complete all attention will reportedly turn to Declan Rice of West Ham. The Hammers will undoubtedly ask for an exorbitant fee for the talisman, but with a few protracted sales I wouldn’t rule out Chelsea getting the deal done.

West Ham United v Aston Villa - Premier League : News Photo

Chilwell burst into the Leicester side following their Premier League title win, displacing title-winner Christian Fuchs as the first choice left-back. Since then, he has also displaced Danny Rose and Luke Shaw as England’s first choice defender in that position too.

Despite the accolades, I have quite a few revisions about Chilwell. While he has good pace and is fairly good going forward I struggle to see what, if any, stand-out attributes he has that make him so highly sought after with a £50million fee.

Positionally Chilwell gets caught out fairly often, which has led to Caglar Soyuncu and Harry Maguire earning big credit for their defensive work alongside him in recent years. He has a good delivery, he’s good on the overlap, he’s good one-on-one but he doesn’t seem to excel at anything in particular. At 23 years old there is plenty for him to improve on and he has the time to do so, but he just doesn’t blow me away personally.

Undoubtedly, he is an upgrade on Chelsea’s current options so I understand the want to sign him this summer. However, paying a £50million fee should see you able to obtain the best in the world in that position. Bearing in mind the current world-record fee for a full-back is £51million on Benjamin Mendy by Manchester City, Chelsea should be able to do much better than Chilwell especially in the current COVID-effected market.

That said, he’s young, British and fits in well with Lampard’s current squad in terms of personality and character. Lampard is obviously confident he can get something more from Chilwell and if that’s the case, Chelsea fans should be relatively excited about the upgrades they’re getting this summer.

new boss pirlo axes two world cup finalists as juventus reset begins
Football, Transfers

David Brooks Could Prove A Shrewd Signing For Manchester United

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As the transfer window drags on and the pursuit of Jadon Sancho gets no closer to finding an end, Manchester United have been linked with a new name in the attacking positions.

Bournemouth’s David Brooks has emerged as a serious target for the Red Devils and it’s reported that the seasiders are looking for around £40million for the Wales international.

Brooks is predominantly a right-winger who is capable of playing centrally too and is best known for his nimble footwork and ability to beat a man one on one, something United have greatly missed in wide areas under Ole Gunnar Solskjær.

He’s a very technical footballer, with a strong left foot and an excellent weight of pass from deep positions, which will help United to unlock defences that decide to adopt a low block against them. He’s also quick, with WhoScored listing his counter-attacking skills as one of his main strengths.

While £40million is definitely on the high side, it’s highly unlikely that Bournemouth would be able to stand firm on that price. They sold Nathan Ake to Manchester City for £41million after initially wanting upwards of £50m and sold goalkeeper Aaron Ramsdale to Sheffield United for £18million after wanting around £30million, although the Blades had a sell-on clause on the player which helped them to negotiate a discount.

If Manchester United can get the fee down to between £25-30million, it would represent a great bit of business in the transfer market. Brooks would boost the squad’s options from the bench, something that the fans have been calling for. He’s good enough to push for a starting place in some games but also at just 23 years old, is young enough to improve a lot into the future. He’s also British so fits into the homegrown quota for the club and possesses resale value if the move didn’t work out for whatever reason.

It’s deals like this that the club should be looking for this window, to go along with the starting line-up quality of Sancho, a midfielder and a centre-back.

The problem remains however that if United continue to just work on one transfer at a time as has been reported in the past, then they will not be able to get things done in time to strengthen ahead of the new campaign.

premier league fixtures for 2020/21 season released
Football, Opinion

Premier League Fixtures Released for 2020/21 Season

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The Premier League has released it’s fixtures for the upcoming 2020/21 season, including champions Liverpool taking on newly promoted Leeds United at Anfield on the opening day.

The new season will begin on Saturday September 12th 2020, although TV picks could see games moved to the Friday night. All 20 clubs have been announced the opening weekend, although it has been confirmed that Manchester City and Manchester United will both miss that first weekend following their participation in Europe this month. Chelsea and Wolves have also been allowed a slightly delayed start to the season.

Also on the opening day, Everton travel to North London to take on Jose Mourinho’s Tottenham while newly promoted sides Fulham and West Brom are both given home fixtures, taking on Arsenal and Leicester City respectively. As mentioned already, both Manchester sides will see their opening day fixtures postponed, meaning Burnley and Aston Villa will also get that weekend off.

Looking further down the season, Arsenal will host Chelsea on Boxing Day while Manchester United will travel down to Leicester City. Leeds United will host Burnley at Elland Road while Wolves and Spurs will face off at Molineux.

On the final day of the campaign, Manchester United will once again be away to a contender for the European places as they travel to Wolves while there will be an clash between two newly-promoted sides that could potentially have a huge say in the relegation race when Leeds United host West Bromwich Albion. Champions Liverpool will be at home to Crystal Palace while Manchester City will host Everton as both sides will hope to be in the title race again this season.

With no winter break for any clubs this season due to the COVID-19 pandemic forcing the season to start late, fixture order is actually a big factor this season. All clubs will need to use their full squad as we enter the middle stages of the season and the fixture schedule will be key in which games they can rotate in and for gaining momentum.

As clubs also voted against keeping the five substitutes rule for the upcoming season, squad rotation will be even more key. With the transfer window open until October 5th, clubs will be able to add to their squad once the season has begun and they will surely use it as a way to boost numbers in the squad as well as just for quality starting eleven additions.

Are you happy with your club’s fixture list? Let me know on Twitter.

why man utd & romelu lukaku had to divorce to prosper elsewhere
Football, Opinion

Romelu Lukaku: Why The Manchester United Divorce Had To Happen

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When Manchester United splashed out £75million for Everton’s No.10 back in July 2017, it was met with a mixed response from fans, critics and ex-pros.

Lukaku was a certified goalscorer, scoring goals at every level no matter what club he was playing for. United had just lost Zlatan Ibrahimovic to a long-term knee injury and hadn’t yet decided to re-sign him to a new contract, meaning they were in desperate need of a new talisman to lead the line.

When he signed, Lukaku hit the ground running with 10 goals in his first 9 games for the club including in the UEFA Super Cup against Real Madrid. Then he went on one of his now annual droughts. Romelu has a period, every year and at every club, where he will go almost double figure games without a goal. He will miss chances and then eventually get back on the scoresheet before going on another run. He ended the season as their top scorer with 27 goals in all comeptitions, including 16 in the Premier League.

The following season was when we saw the beginnings of cracks in the relationship between Lukaku and the club. With Jose Mourinho struggling for results and Lukaku on the end of criticism for yet another goal drought, the fans turned on him. He was booed and even stopped celebrating goals that he did score.

Manchester United v Leicester City - Premier League : News Photo

One of the issues for Lukaku under Mourinho was that the team were not playing to his strengths as a striker. Lukaku has made a name for himself everywhere he has been with his excellent finishing ability inside the box but also the pace and power he has to run in behind defences and stretch them while drifting out wide. Despite that, Mourinho insisted on using him as a traditional target man – competing for flick ons and being asked to hold the ball up with his back to goal, despite a clear weakness in controlling the ball and linking up with others in the build up of moves.

So when Ole Gunnar Solskjær took over after Mourinho was sacked and said he wanted to get the opposition teams turning and facing their own goal when United attacked, it seemed Lukaku would fit in much better. But he was out of favour with the Norwegian manager. Ole’s preference was to go with Marcus Rashford as the striker for his pace in behind but also his ability to link with his teammates and float across the front-line in a fluid setup. Lukaku still performed well when called upon, famously scoring twice in the Red Devils’ famous comeback win against PSG in the Champions League.

At this point however, it was clear that Lukaku was now back-up. Regardless of what you think about Lukaku as a footballer, as a player who cost upwards of £75million with a goalscoring record like his, he’s too good to be playing second fiddle. After a long, drawn-out transfer saga in which Lukaku even trained away from the club and with his former side Anderlecht, United recouped their money and sold him on to Inter Milan where he was paired up with Antonio Conte.

Since moving to Italy Lukaku has so far scored 33 goals in all competitions, just one less than the legendary Ronaldo’s record of 34 for a debut season. Lukaku can match that record in their final game of the season after his brace helped the side make it into the Europa League final.

FC Internazionale v Shakhtar Donetsk - UEFA Europa League Semi Final : News Photo

He scored 23 Serie A goals, only behind Cristiano Ronaldo and Ciro Immobile and has become a leader in the dressing room as Inter missed out on the title by just a single point. Inter play a much more defensive style of football that is based on quick transitions, something that Lukaku thrives off and his partnership with Lautaro Martinez has seen the Argentine linked with a move to Barcelona to replace Luis Suarez.

But it hasn’t been all fun and games for Lukaku there either. His longest drought without a goal this season was only three games, but he scored just 8 times against clubs that finished in the top half of the table. With that said, it seems to be one of those moves where everyone has come out as a winner.

Inter Milan have a top striker in their ranks and the fee looks good based on his performances and numbers, while United made their money back on a player that no longer was part of the plans for the first team. Lukaku is now playing in a side that is essentially built to maximise his strengths as a striker, while also playing in a league that suits his style to a tee. United on the other hand, have been able to use Marcus Rashford and Anthony Martial together, with both in their preferred positions. They’ve also been able to bring through Mason Greenwood as a first-team regular and all three players managed to score more this season for United than Lukaku did last year.

Both parties are better off without the other at this point and while neither side will look back on Lukaku’s time at the club with great fondness, it was something that needed to happen. Just like his move away was.

joe hart to spurs shows that he is finished at the top level
Football, Transfers

Joe Hart To Tottenham Proves He’s Finished At The Top Level

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Joe Hart is on the verge of joining Tottenham Hotspur on a free transfer, signalling the end of his career at the top level in England.

The former Birmingham, Man City and England goalkeeper left Burnley before the end of the last season when his contract expiring on June 30th. He played 24 games for the club over a two-year period.

Hart was expected to head down a division or abroad, with Celtic reportedly interested in his services for the upcoming season after Fraser Forster returned to Southampton at the end of his loan deal. It seems however that he instead opted to stay in the Premier League with top 6 side Tottenham, as the two parties have agreed a two-year deal and a medical is happening.

With Spurs already having Hugo Lloris as the number 1 at the club and Paulo Gazzaniga as back-up, it seems Hart will be joining the club as the 3rd choice goalkeeper. If that’s the case, it seems Hart has accepted that his time at the top level of the sport is over and he has decided to cash in on his reputation and take another payday to not play.

It’s a shame for Hart, who is arguably England’s best goalkeeper since David Seaman. Hart was the undisputed No.1 at Manchester City as they won two Premier League titles until Pep Guardiola arrived at the club and made the ruthless decision that Hart wasn’t good enough on the ball for him.

Burnley FC v Chelsea FC - Premier League : News Photo

He immediately replaced Hart with Claudio Bravo and then Ederson, which saw Hart go on loan to Serie A side Torino and then West Ham before he eventually joined Burnley.

Since the sudden departure at Man City, Hart’s career has completely spiralled. He struggled in Serie A, keeping just five clean sheets despite playing all 38 league games and then he was dropped at West Ham before Christmas after a rough start which saw him concede 10 goals in his first three games for the club.

He lost his place as England goalkeeper and then at Burnley was slowly demoted from first-choice, to second choice to even third choice behind both Nick Pope and Tom Heaton.

Now going to Spurs, Hart’s career will continue in a dormant state. He will essentially be the backup to the backup and is likely being signed simply because he helps the club to fill their homegrown quota in both the Premier League and UEFA competitions.

Spurs get to replace Michel Vorm, who has left the club once again following the end of his contract, without spending any money while also getting an experienced professional with a history of winning titles and trophies behind him.

It’s a smart move for Tottenham and one that many will understand simply because of the current climate in the world, but for Joe Hart it’s a sad career trajectory that continues to spiral downward.

manchester united’s familiar issues see them crash out of europa league