BREAKING: MICKY VAN DE VEN’S BRUTAL REALITY CHECK FOR SPURS AFTER FA CUP EXIT
Micky van de Ven issues a blunt warning to teammates after Tottenham’s sluggish start leads to a 2-1 FA Cup exit against Villa.
Micky van de Ven didn’t hold back after Tottenham crashed out of the FA Cup against Aston Villa. He said Spurs were “nowhere near” good enough, especially in the first half, and even questioned the team’s mentality during the game.
It was another rough night in a season that keeps getting worse for Spurs under Thomas Frank. Villa’s Emi Buendia and Morgan Rogers both scored before halftime, and while Wilson Odobert pulled one back for Tottenham after the break, it didn’t really matter. Villa’s 2-1 win sent Spurs out of the cup.
Fans had hoped the FA Cup would be their shot at some much-needed silverware, especially after the team’s early exit from the League Cup. Now, Tottenham are left with just the Premier League—where they’re sitting in 14th—and the Champions League, although they haven’t even locked in a spot in the round of 16 yet.
After the match, Van de Ven, who wore the captain’s armband, sounded frustrated. “Gutted obviously that we’re out of the cup,” he said. “First half, nowhere near our level, nowhere near where we need to be. The second half was way better. I think we showed some mentality then, but if we’d started like that, the whole game would have been different.”
Frank didn’t have much to celebrate, either. Villa supporters taunted him about being an Arsenal fan—thanks to his coffee cup slip-up earlier in the week—and reminded him of his promise to have Spurs competing in all four competitions. “Of course, that’s disappointing,” Frank admitted, knowing the pressure is on. “Everyone knows the only way to keep people happy is to perform consistently and win enough games. That’s it.”
He pointed to the second half, saying, “You could see the energy, how the players and the fans fed off each other. It was fantastic to be in the middle of it. But we couldn’t find that comeback, which sometimes sparks a run. That’s what we’re working so hard for.”
Now, Spurs have a week to get ready for their next league game against West Ham, followed by a Champions League clash with Borussia Dortmund just a few days later.
Frank should have Dominic Solanke available after his return against Villa—the striker’s first appearance since August—but there’s a big question mark over Richarlison. The Brazilian went off with a hamstring injury, and now Frank has to wait and see how bad it is.
“I think we’ve done a lot to get Richarlison back to this point, and so has he,” Frank said. “But it’s not just us. Every club is dealing with injuries across the Premier League.”
He didn’t shy away from criticising the schedule, either. “Honestly, it’s something football authorities need to look into. We played five games in 13 days, four in 10—one of the few clubs to do that, and it’s our third time this season. Two days between matches is brutal. We’re doing everything we can to compete, but the schedule is tough.”
AWONIYI DOUBLE LEAVES NOTTINGHAM FOREST ON THE VERGE OF PREMIER LEAGUE SAFETY
Nottingham Forest moved closer to safety with a 3-1 win over Chelsea, while West Ham fell into the relegation zone after Spurs won.
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Nottingham Forest came out of the weekend looking pretty safe after pulling off an impressive 3-1 win at Chelsea. They’re almost clear of the relegation mess. Tottenham’s big away win at Aston Villa shook things up too, and now West Ham are back in the bottom three, running out of time faster than ever.
Forest have stepped up just when they needed to, leaving West Ham and Tottenham behind with a string of solid performances. Honestly, no one saw this coming, especially since Vitor Pereira shuffled his lineup with eight changes, fresh off a Europa League win against Aston Villa.
Even so, Forest were ahead within 90 seconds, thanks to Taiwo Awoniyi’s quick strike. By the 15th minute, Igor Jesus calmly buried a penalty after Malo Gusto’s reckless foul in the box. Chelsea had a chance to get back in it, but Cole Palmer wasted a penalty right before the break after a scary head collision involving Jesse Derry.
Awoniyi doubled down and scored again early in the second half, pushing Forest six points ahead of West Ham with just three games left.
West Ham’s weekend started badly; they looked flat and lost to Brentford. Things got worse Sunday night when Tottenham pulled off their first back-to-back Premier League wins since August 2025, beating a heavily rotated Aston Villa side 2-1.
Forest is now out of West Ham’s reach, or almost. Tottenham’s still close enough for Nuno Espirito Santo’s team to worry, but with three tough games coming up, Spurs could stay up even without another win, unless West Ham digs deep and pulls off something unexpected before their home finale against Leeds.
Right now, Forest can practically taste safety. Spurs finally see a way out after weeks of struggle. As for West Ham, they’re left hoping for a miracle, a last-minute twist to dodge the drop.
CESC FABREGAS CONFIRMS INTEREST IN PREMIER LEAGUE RETURN AMID CHELSEA'S MANAGER SEARCH
As Chelsea searches for a new manager, Cesc Fabregas breaks his silence on his future at Como and his Premier League ambitions.
Cesc Fabregas recalls exactly how a conversation with Jose Mourinho prompted him to join Chelsea, despite having the opportunity to return to Arsenal.
After winning six trophies in just three seasons, the Spanish World Cup winner left Barcelona for the second time in 2014. That summer, Fabregas made a move back to the Premier League, signing with Chelsea for about €33 million.
He already knew English football well. Fabregas had arrived at Arsenal as a 16-year-old from Barcelona in 2003 and made 212 Premier League appearances for them. When he decided to leave Barcelona, Manchester City also wanted him, but Chelsea convinced him, mostly thanks to Mourinho.
Talking with talkSPORT’s Rory Jennings on YouTube, Fabregas laid out how it all happened. “Honestly, when I made up my mind to leave Barcelona, my first thought was just to go back to Arsenal. They had this buyback clause; they had two weeks to use it after I told them I was leaving. They knew about it but didn’t take it. That surprised me a little, but in the end, I had to think about my career. I was 27, at the peak of my career, and I wanted to continue performing and winning trophies. City and Chelsea were both options.
“But when Mourinho spoke to me, that was it. He showed me his plans for the team and told me about Diego Costa, Courtois, and Filipe Luis and how, with those guys, we’d win the league. He was right, by the way. We won both the Premier League and the Carling Cup.”
Fabregas wasted no time winning over Chelsea fans. On his debut at Burnley, he set up two goals, including a stunning assist for Andre Schurrle. He finished his first season at Chelsea with five goals and 24 assists, along with Premier League and League Cup medals.
Things dipped the next season. Fabregas got just 15 goal contributions, and Chelsea slipped all the way to tenth. But when Antonio Conte took charge in 2016-17, they bounced back, and Fabregas picked up another league title.
He added an FA Cup win in 2018, his second, after his earlier one with Arsenal, and left for Monaco a few months later. His last Chelsea match came in the FA Cup against Nottingham Forest. When he got subbed off, he couldn’t hold back tears.
Chelsea supporters still sing about him; that “Oh, Fabregas is magic...” chant sticks around. And with his name in the conversation for a possible return, maybe they haven’t seen the last of him yet.
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