Chelsea beat Watford to stay top of table, medical emergency delays game, Liverpool thrash Everton, Barbosa Prem link

CONTE: MY TOUGHEST JOB

Antonio Conte says managing Tottenham is the biggest challenge of his career.

The Italian insists Spurs are having to start again as the team they have now is at a “medium level”.

Conte and his players are still reeling from last Thursday’s embarrassing Europa Conference League loss away to Slovenian minnows NS Mura.

The former Chelsea boss took over at Tottenham last month but he has warned he will not be able to turn the North Londoners around overnight.

Ahead of Spurs Premier League clash at home to Brentford tonight, he said: “This is a big challenge for me.

“This is a big challenge for the club. And this is a big challenge for the players. For everybody.

“The club, in the last years, has been slipping.

“If I compare Tottenham to when I was in Chelsea, Tottenham were very very competitive, a really really strong team.

Conte and his players are still reeling from last Thursday’s embarrassing Europa Conference League loss away to Slovenian minnows NS Mura.

The former Chelsea boss took over at Tottenham last month but he has warned he will not be able to turn the North Londoners around overnight.

Ahead of Spurs Premier League clash at home to Brentford tonight, he said: “This is a big challenge for me.

“This is a big challenge for the club. And this is a big challenge for the players. For everybody.

“The club, in the last years, has been slipping.

“If I compare Tottenham to when I was in Chelsea, Tottenham were very very competitive, a really really strong team.”

ASTON VILLA 1 MAN CITY 2

Bernardo Silva sealed Steven Gerrard’s first defeat as Villa boss with a sensational volley as City stayed a point clear of third-placed Liverpool with their fourth successive victory.

Ruben Dias curled City’s stylish opener before Silva sidefooted Gabriel Jesus’ dropping cross high into the net on 43 minutes.

Ollie Watkins replied deftly soon after the break but defeat left Villa 13th.

WATFORD 1 CHELSEA 2

Mason Mount hit the opener and set up the winner as leaders Chelsea stayed a point clear of Man City in a game delayed by 32 minutes by a medical emergency in the crowd.

England midfielder Mount rounded off a sweet move just before the half-hour mark – after the players had resumed action.

Emmanuel Dennis fired a deflected equaliser after Ruben Loftus-Cheek lost the ball.

But Mount teed up sub Hakim Ziyech to seal Chelsea’s victory on 72 minutes.

EVERTON 1 LIVERPOOL 4

Mo Salah’s double spearheaded Liverpool’s convincing win as Everton’s slump continued in Rafa Benitez’s first Merseyside derby on the Blue side.

Jordan Henderson and Salah’s angled effort put the third-placed Reds’ 2-0 up inside 19 minutes.

Demarai Gray cut the deficit on 38 minutes but Salah punished a Seamus Coleman mistake midway through the second period and Diogo Jota bagged Liverpool’s fourth.

SOUTHAMPTON 2 LEICESTER 2

Jonny Evans and James Maddison bagged Leicester’s two equalisers in this entertaining Prem draw.

Jan Bednarek snapped up the Saints’ third-minute opener as they edged the first half.

Evans’ follow-up shot made it 1-1 on 22 minutes but Che Adams headed Southampton back in front from Nathan Redmond’s centre.

Maddison drilled a clinical equaliser soon after the break, before Harvey Barnes and Jamie Vardy almost won it for the Foxes.

WOLVES 0 BURNLEY 0

Burnley’s dogged defending stopped Wolves going fifth.

Ft-again winger Adama Traore, in his first game since October 23, fired against the Clarets’ bar.

And Nick Pope tipped a Traore shot wide in Wolves’ only second-half effort on target as third-bottom Burnley made it five draws from their past seven matches.

WEST HAM 1 BRIGHTON 1

Neal Maupay’s brilliant 89th minute overhead kick rescued ten-man Brighton.

Tomas Soucek headed West Ham’s fifth-minute opener from Pablo Fornals’ inswinging corner.

And Brighton were a man short when they snatched their late Premier League point-saver as Adam Lallana had gone off injured after their three substitutions.

FAN MEDICAL EMERGENCY HOLDS UP SAINTS’ GAME

The second-half of Southampton’s clash with Leicester was delayed due to a ‘medical emergency’ in the stands.

Saints led 2-1 at St Mary’s when both sides went in for their break.

But with the teams moments away from coming out to restart the match, a fan suffered a medical emergency in the stands.

Amazon commentators initially claimed a fan had suffered a cardiac arrest.

Medics rushed to the stricken supporter’s side.

And players from both teams waited in the tunnel to discover the person’s condition, with Leicester goalkeeper Kasper Schmeichel looking particularly worried after seeing Denmark pal Christian Eriksen collapse at the Euros.

After ten minutes, Amazon then revealed the fan had NOT suffered a cardiac arrest.

However, they had collapsed in the stands, prompting the emergency.

After initial treatment, the supporter was put on a stretcher by medical staff.

And they were wheeled out of stands and onto the concourse for further support.

The game between Southampton and Leicester was then able to resume, with a total delay of just over ten minutes.

The incident came after Watford’s clash against Chelsea was stopped after 12 minutes when a fan suffered a cardiac arrest at Vicarage Road.

SILVESTRE DEFENDS UTD STARS’ USE OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Mikael Silvestre laughs when he is told that Manchester United players are currently being criticised for their presence on social media.

The ex-Red Devils defender is reminded of a time when he felt the wrath of a certain Sir Alex Ferguson for his own online mishaps.

Frenchman Silvestre explained: “I was one of the first players in the Premier League to have a website, in the early 2000s.

“In France, it was very trendy so I thought it would be cool to have one. I would have an interview on the phone after the game and it was published there in French on my website.

“But an English paper picked it up and I remember my quotes were used as a headline the day after the game and the boss was like: ‘You have to stop it’ and I did!

“I was being very honest about the team’s performance and that was the headline: ‘Silvestre said the team didn’t do well’ and the gaffer was mad.

“He said: ‘I’m in charge of the communication – you play football!’”

WOLVES FAN BLOODIED BY MATCH BALL

A female Wolves supporter was left with blood pouring down her face after being smashed in the face by the ball.

And a young boy was left in tears at the unfortunate incident during the Premier League clash at home to Burnley.

In the 27th minute, the visitors forced a corner with the teams tied at 0-0.

The ball was swung in, but headed clear from danger by Wolves defender Max Kilman.

But it was far from comfortable for the lady sat behind the goal as the ball pinged into her face.

Burnley winger Maxwel Cornet managed to fire another corner in that was punched clear by Wolves keeper Sa.

But seconds later Sa and striker Raul Jimenez furiously waved on the emergency team to attend to the fan.

Amazon Prime cameras captured her picking up a pair of glasses from the floor and holding tissue to her bloody nose.

A young lad next to her was sat on his seat in floods of tears as the game was paused.

Fans around the woman burst into applause as the emergency teams attended to her.

WATFORD GAME HALTED AS FAN COLLAPSES

Watford vs Chelsea was paused after 12 minutes as doctors rushed to deal with a medical emergency in the crowd as a supporter collapsed and required CPR.

Hornets ace Adam Masina had been down receiving treatment for an injury, when Marcos Alonso alerted Chelsea medical staff to an incident in the Graham Taylor Stand.

Blues medics sprinted across the pitch and entered the field of play.

After two minutes, referee David Coote informed both managers that the match would be paused as doctors dealt with the emergency.

Players are said to be waiting in the tunnel for the matter to be resolved.

The fan has been stabilised and is being taken to the hospital which is situated next to the ground.

UTD ANNOUNCE BOARD MEMBERS

Manchester United have announced the make-up of their Fans Advisory Board in the wake of protests at Old Trafford last season, writes NEIL CUSTIS.

There are seven fans representatives in the group which will be co-chaired by barrister and lifelong United fans Christopher Saad and the club’s Group Managing Director Richard Arnold.

The group was set up to ensure better fan representation with major decisions made by the club.

The attempt to breakaway into a European Super League caused a mass protests last season which saw the club’s home game with Liverpool last May postponed.

‘DONNY’S LIKE HENRIK’

Manchester United staff compared Donny van De Beek to Henrik Mkhitaryan during his early struggles at the club, according to reports.

The Dutchman, 24, has struggled for game time since his move to Old Trafford.

He has made just four Premier League starts since the beginning of last season, despite scoring on his debut against Crystal Palace.

And after struggling initially, staff at United were reminded of another expensive flop, Mkhitaryan, according to ESPN.

There were also fears he would struggle to adapt to the workload and intensity of the Premier League, which is why he was initially selected for Champions League matches only.

Mkhitaryan, like van de Beek, arrived for a significant fee of £26million in 2016 and quickly fell out of favour under Jose Mourinho.

He had to settle for substitute appearances in his first three games but when his big chance came in a start against Manchester City, he wasted it.

A minor injury followed and Mourinho soon lost faith in his marquee signing and Mkhitaryan had to wait until December for his next start.

LEW’S A CLASSY LOSER

Robert Lewandowski was reportedly told he would not be winning the Ballon d’Or days before the event but turned up anyway.

The Bayern Munich star, 33, came second to Lionel Messi, who won the award for a seventh time.

Lewandowski lost out by just 33 points with Chelsea star Jorginho rounding off the top three.

France Football inform the winner of the award beforehand and according to Bild Lewandowski knew he would not be collecting the coveted prize three days before Monday’s ceremony.

But he still turned up, unlike Cristiano Ronaldo, and came away with the striker of the year award instead.

Many felt his omission for the Ballon d’Or was harsh, particularly after he was a favourite to land the 2020 title.

His agent Pini Zahavi felt Messi winning was unfair, saying: “Big congratulations to Messi. An impressive player and an eternal legend of football.

“But the Ballon d’Or 2021 is not his. Not this time. The Golden Ball belongs to Robert Lewandowski.

“He wasn’t robbed, but he’s the man who deserves it. No wonder that many hundreds of millions of fans find the result difficult to believe at the prestigious football event.

“Monday should have ended with Robert celebrating his first Ballon d’Or.”

BARBOSA IN PREM LINK

The agent of Flamengo striker Gabriel Barbosa has shot down rumours linking the Brazilian to the Premier League.

Arsenal have been linked with the 25-year-old, but journalist Jorge Nicola has seemingly put those rumours to bed after speaking to Gabigol’s agent Junior Pedroso.

Pedroso said: “Only us from 4ComM and Gabriel’s father can speak on behalf of the athlete. And there is absolutely nothing with Premier League or any other league at the moment.

“He is focused solely on playing for Flamengo, because he is very happy at the club.”

CARRICK NOT SPOKEN TO RALF YET

Michael Carrick revealed he is yet to speak to incoming Manchester United interim manager Ralf Rangnick.

Rangnick, 63, has been confirmed as manager but is awaiting a work permit to take over the reins.

That means Carrick will be in the dug out once more against Arsenal.

And asked whether he has communicated with the incoming boss, Carrick replied: “No, because of the process and work permit, we haven’t been able to.

“So we’ve carried on, it’s worked well the last two games and hopefully will tomorrow.

“I haven’t really got anything to update you on, other than the work permit process is ongoing as we speak and I’m in this position, as I was for Villarreal and Chelsea, getting the boys ready for the game tomorrow night.”

Rumours of the pair working together to select the team against Chelsea arose after Cristiano Ronaldo was dropped.

Gary Neville suggested Rangnick would have influenced the starting eleven, with the pace of Marcus Rashford and Jadon Sancho in attack indicating a pressing style.

HE AZ TO GO

Barcelona are reportedly ready to swoop for Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta.

The Spaniard has not featured in the Premier League since mid-October, mainly because of James’ excellent form down Chelsea’s right side.

And while SunSport exclusively revealed he is relishing the battle with Reece James for the right-back spot, he is yet to agree a new contract with the Londoners.

Mundo Deportivo reports that while Chelsea are confident of agreeing a new deal with the player, Barca are ‘keen try and sign him’,

And according to ESPN, Barca are keeping a keen eye on how contract talks progress between the Blues and club captain Azpilicueta.

The 32-year-old’s current deal at Stamford Bridge runs out at the end of the season.

If a new deal has not been agreed before January 1 the Spaniard is free to begin talks with foreign clubs regarding a pre-contract agreement.

The Blues though are thought to be keen to tie him down to a new deal and extend his stay at the club with talks currently ongoing between Blues chiefs and Azpilicueta’s representatives.

ZLATAN CURSE FEAR

AC Milan striker Zlatan Ibrahimovic has lifted the lid on his explosive bust-up with ex-Inter ace Romelu Lukaku earlier this year.

The pair squared up to each other at the San Siro in January during the fiery derby, with the Swedish centre-forward taunting the Chelsea ace over his mum’s ‘voodoo’ rituals.

He was seen and heard shouting at Lukaku: “Go do your voodoo s***, go do your voodoo s***, little donkey.”

Hitting back, the Belgium international responded: “‘F*** you and your wife, you little b****. You want to speak about my mother?”

Inter won the derby in the Coppa Italia quarter-final 2-1, with Lukaku and Ibrahimovic both on the score sheet, with the latter sent off in the second half.

The ex-Barcelona man then picked up an injury following the fixture, leading him to believe he was cursed, as he asked his religious friends to pray for him.

Speaking to Corriere della Sera, Ibrahimovic, 40, has opened up on how the confrontation with his former Manchester United team-mate materialised.

He said: “He first argued with [Alessio] Romagnoli, then with [Alexis] Saelemaekers.

“I intervened to defend my team-mates and Lukaku attacked me on a personal level. I was shocked. We even were team-mates at Manchester United.

“Lukaku has a great ego, he thinks he’s a champion and he’s really strong.

“But I grew up in the Malmo ghetto, and when someone comes under me with his head down, I put him in his place.”

AG-GRO IF REDS BEAT EVERTON

Ex-Premier League striker Gabriel Agbonlahor believes the atmosphere could turn ‘toxic’ at Goodison Park if the Toffees are beaten by Liverpool tonight.

Rafa Benitez’s side are winless in their last seven games, with pressure beginning to mount on the former Reds boss.

Speaking on talkSPORT, Agbonlahor said: “I didn’t think it would work [for Benitez at Everton]. The first five or six games they were getting great results and, yes, the Everton fans were OK with it.

“But I knew, once they had some bad results, the Everton fans would turn because of the success he had at Liverpool.

“They’re going to use that as an excuse to turn against him.

“If they lose, and lose badly, at Goodison Park, it’s going to be toxic.”

MESSI’S STILL THE DADDY

Lionel Messi’s dad has hit back at those who claim his son did not deserve to win the Ballon d’Or.

The 34-year-old Argentine claimed the award for a record-extending SEVENTH time on Monday night following his Copa America glory with the national team in the summer and another stellar individual season for Barcelona.

Messi netted 38 times in 44 games for the Catalan giants and then led the Argentina national team to their first major trophy in 28 years.

But some felt the iconic footballer did not deserve the award and that it should have gone to Bayern Munich striker Robert Lewandowski instead.

The Polish talisman missed out on the 2020 award after the coronavirus pandemic led to the ceremony being cancelled.

He was hoping to secure it in 2021 following a sensational season saw him net 48 goals in 40 games.

But he was forced to settle for second place behind Messi and ahead of Jorginho, Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante.

The likes of Thomas Muller, Toni Kroos, Iker Casillas and Cristiano Ronaldo came out against awarding Messi the gong.

The Argentine’s dad Jorge Messi responded with an Instagram picture of his son holding the Ballon d’Or alongside a caption which translated as: “Bla, bla, bla…continue.”

UTD STAFF FEARED VDB WOULD FLOP

Manchester United staff compared Donny van De Beek to Henrik Mkhitaryan during his early struggles at the club, according to reports.

The Dutchman, 24, has struggled for game time since his move to Old Trafford.

He has made just four Premier League starts since the beginning of last season, despite scoring on his debut against Crystal Palace.

And after struggling initially, staff at United were reminded of another expensive flop, Mkhitaryan, according to ESPN.

There were also fears he would struggle to adapt to the workload and intensity of the Premier League, which is why he was initially selected for Champions League matches only.

Mkhitaryan, like van de Beek, arrived for a significant fee of £26million in 2016 and quickly fell out of favour under Jose Mourinho.

He had to settle for substitute appearances in his first three games but when his big chance came in a start against Manchester City, he wasted it.

A minor injury followed and Mourinho soon lost faith in his marquee signing and Mkhitaryan had to wait until December for his next start.

ROMERO OUT FOR YEAR

Antonio Conte has confirmed Cristian Romero’s injury is serious and the star will not play for Tottenham again in 2021.

On-loan Atalanta defender Romero injured his hamstring playing for Argentina against Brazil in the last international break.

And scans have proved Spurs boss Conte’s worst fears.

He said: “The news is not positive. It’s not good. The injury is serious and it will be a long time before we see him again. Surely next year.

“We will check on his injury week by week but it is serious.

“Now he is trying to recover but he needs time to recover. He’s an important player for us.”

Conte broke the news at his press conference ahead of Tottenham’s Premier League clash at home to Brentford on Thursday.

Asked if ‘next year’ meant next season, Conte said: “No, maybe January or February next year.”

5 DEFENDERS CHELSEA COULD TARGET

Chelsea are still sweating over the future of Antonio Rudiger.

The German, 28, is yet to sign a new deal and has attracted attention from Europe’s elite, most notably Real Madrid.

Cesar Azpilicueta, 32, Thiago Silva, 37, and Andreas Christensen, 25, are also defenders Chelsea face losing for nothing unless contract extensions are agreed.

The Blues are said to be prepared to offer all four new deals, but it will not stop them from scouting out alternatives.

Here, SunSport runs down five centre-back options for Chelsea.

JULES KOUNDE
ATTILA SZALAI
MARQUINHOS
NIKLAS SULE
PAU TORRES

HERE’S OUR FULL RUNDOWN ON THE BLUES’ POSSIBLE TARGETS

GUNNERS LINKED TO DEJAN

Arsenal are targeting a move for Juventus forward Dejan Kulusevski in the January window.

And contact has already been made between the club and representatives of the Sweden international.

However, Tottenham are also said to be keen on a deal for the 21-year-old.

Transfer expert Gianluca Di Marzio has told Sky Sports: “Arsenal want him.

“The first contacts with the agents (have been made). Juventus bought him for £30 million plus bonuses. So, it depends on how much Arsenal want to invest on this player.

“But, I know that the first contacts have been made by the parties.”

BELE TOLLS FOR OUSMANE FUTURE

Ousmane Dembele has reportedly been given 15 days by Barcelona to make a decision on his future.

The winger is out of contract at the end of the season, and has been linked with a move to Newcastle.

According to Mundo Deportivo, Barcelona chiefs are keen for Dembele to extend his current deal, as is the player himself.

But the Frenchman’s agent is said to have rejected a number of offers, insisting on a ‘Ballon d’Or’ salary for his 20-year-old client.