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Chelsea were almost put to the sword by Crystal Palace on Tuesday after a thrilling London derby at Selhurst Park.

The Blues were perhaps fortunate to come away with all three points against the Eagles after a Scott Dann attempt in the dying minutes of the match hit the woodwork. An equaliser would have left Frank Lampard’s side with no time to get their noses back in front but they were fortunately able to diffuse the chance and round off a 3-2 victory on the road (as per BBC).

Goals from Olivier Giroud, Christian Pulisic and Tammy Abraham made the day a success, although one Chelsea man has come under fire for his performance.

Ian Wright has criticised Kepa Arrizabalaga’s display between the sticks and thinks that he should’ve done more to prevent Palace’s first goal. Chelsea were enjoying a 2-0 lead before Zaha fired a long-range strike into the back of the net to half the deficit. His shot was straight at Kepa in the middle of goal, who arguably should have at least got a hand to it.

“Honestly for me for £71m worth of a goalkeeper he’s got to do better with that,” the Arsenal icon told Premier League Productions (via Football365). “It’s a powerful strike don’t get me wrong but from where it’s gone in the goal he’s got to do better, he’s got to at least get a hand to that. I’d be gutted if my goalkeeper let that in”

Kepa’s performance earned him the lowest Sofascore rating out of Chelsea’s starting XI – making an error that led to a Crystal Palace shot and recording just 18 successful passes.

Having shipped 50 goals in total this season, including five in the last eight days, Wright’s concerns about the Spaniard seem pertinent and one must wonder what Lampard has made of the goalkeeper’s recent displays.

How do you think Kepa played against the Eagles, Blues fans? Join the conversation in the comments below…

Newcastle United’s £300m takeover is still awaiting the official green light from the Premier League despite The Sun claiming that they had given the all-clear late last week.And now fresh news has emerged surrounding the managerial position at the club after the Telegraph linked former Magpies boss Rafa Benitez with a sensational return to Tyneside.It’s also suggested that the Spaniard already has two signings in mind in the shape of John Stones and Ross Barkley.However, The Athletic’s George Caulkin has downplayed such claims on Twitter today, he said:

He makes a couple of interesting points that have to be considered. Benitez is still employed by Dalian Yifang in the Chinese Super League, the club he left Newcastle for in the summer. It’s thought he is picking up £12m-per-year as per the Independent.

The 60-year-old will need to get out of that contract before he can be brought back to the northeast.

The Greatest Bargains in Premier League history – How much did they cost?

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Whilst Steve Bruce is also still in his job with two years to run on his current deal, so he’d need to be released from his contract too.

An ‘incredibly complicated situation’ is one way of describing it, that’s for sure.

AND in other news,ÂNewcastle’s post-takeover plans revealed by Mark Douglas…

Another player is out of the door at Sunderland and that means boss Parkinson has another position that he must look to fill in the transfer market.

The Sunderland manager is going to have his work cut out to build a squad capable of gaining promotion and it will be interesting to see who arrives at the club in the next few months.

Do you think Sunderland should have kept hold of Alim Ozturk? Let us know in the comments section below…

It’s safe to say Dean Henderson has established himself as one of the more impressive goalkeepers the Premier League has to offer.

The 23-year-old has spent the last two campaigns on loan at Sheffield United, and in the Blades’ debut campaign in the top-flight this year, he has helped to form a formidable defence.

They have conceded just 25 goals in their opening 28 games in the Premier League, meaning they have the second-best defensive record in the division, only behind league leaders Liverpool.

Spot the fact from the fib: Are these Premier League records true or false?

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With his loan spell set to end this summer, the 6 foot 2 Henderson may have harboured hopes of challenging David de Gea for the number one spot at Old Trafford.

However, ESPN now claim that whilst Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s side are “determined” to resist any bids for the goalkeeper, they are looking to get him another loan move.

And after hearing about the update, United fans took to Twitter to voice their thoughts on the situation.

A couple of fans didn’t seem to be too impressed with Henderson however, and even called for him to be sold.

Just what does Henderson have to do for United to give him a chance in their first-team?

The logic behind letting him stay at Sheffield United for this season was certainly understandable, given that he would get a whole campaign of Premier League football under his belt.

But surely that would have set him up perfectly to challenge De Gea this upcoming summer? Instead, United may end up risking alienating one of their most talented prospects by refusing to show him a pathway to the senior side.

Meanwhile, Man Utd fans discuss this key aspect about Jadon Sancho’s potential arrival.

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According to The Telegraph journalist John Percy on Twitter, Stoke City are in advanced talks with Burnley over a deal for centre-forward Sam Vokes, and Potters fans were quick to react on the social media platform.

According to Percy, there is an issue over the fee, but Peter Crouch could move to Burnley as part of the deal, which would be some story.

It would certainly be no surprise if the Championship outfit want a new striker before the deadline, with the likes of Saido Berahino struggling for goals during the 2018-19 campaign.

Pl>ymaker FC’s Matchday with Max caught up with Jamaica’s women’s team. See what happened when he met the history makers in the video below…

Vokes would arrive with a good pedigree, having scored 17 Premier League goals for the Clarets, as per Transfermarkt.

The Welshman has managed 52 goals in 198 appearances at Championship level, meanwhile, and would certainly boost Stoke’s attack.

Potters fans have been on social media offering their views on the potential deal.

And it would be fair to say that the majority are struggling to agree whether Vokes’ arrival would represent good business for the club.

A selection of the Twitter reaction can be seen below:

Mauricio Pochettino is looking for his Chelsea squad to “grow up” after losing Malo Gusto and Nicolas Jackson to untimely suspensions.

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Argentine coach struggling to pick up resultsInjuries & suspensions doing cause few favoursSpark required from somewhere at Stamford BridgeWHAT HAPPENED?

The two big-money summer signings will be forced to sit out important fixtures over the coming weeks after their recent disciplinary misdemeanours. Gusto was shown a red card during Chelsea’s 1-0 defeat to Aston Villa, while Jackson picked up his fifth booking in just six games.

AdvertisementGettyTHE BIGGER PICTURE

Both will now serve bans, with Gusto seeing an initial yellow card against Villa upgraded to an instant dismissal following a VAR check on his studs-up challenge on Lucas Digne. Jackson, meanwhile, has added to Chelsea's striker woes as he prepares to head for the stands – with a team already lacking in firepower losing another attacking option.

WHAT THEY SAID

Pochettino, who is coming under mounting pressure after only inheriting the managerial reins at Stamford Bridge over the summer, has said when challenging his youthful squad to show greater maturity: “We need to grow up like a team. A player like Nico is so young and is feeling the Premier League and is learning. He made the mistake. We feel disappointed because we are paying for too many situations like this. It was a little bit unlucky [to lose] because of how many chances they created. We cannot say that the players gave up after 70 minutes. They were fighting until the end with one player less. First half we deserved a little bit more. I think we had control of the game. After the red card, the game changed. With 11 men and 10 men, it’s two different games.”

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GettyWHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

Pochettino said of Gusto’s sending off: “Being honest, it was in front of me but I didn’t see. I cannot say it wasn’t a red card. We need to trust the referee and the VAR. Difficult to judge because I didn’t see. It’s the player’s responsibility. We cannot blame the referee. But we cannot blame Malo Gusto because sometimes things happen in football.”

Chelsea – with just five Premier League points to their name this season – will be back in action on Wednesday when facing Brighton in the third round of the Carabao Cup.

Everything that could go wrong for Spurs did on Monday night as Mauricio Pochettino won on his return to north London

Well, what a completely bonkers game of football that was. Tottenham vs Chelsea is rarely a quiet night in at the library, but even considering this fixture's storied history, Monday's meeting between the bitter rivals was fractious, chaotic and dramatic in equal measure.

By the time Michael Oliver drew the circus to a close, there had been two Tottenham red cards, endless VAR drama and that rarest of Premier League sights: a Nicolas Jackson hat trick.

Chelsea would eventually triumph 4-1, but it wasn't just the one-sided scoreline that left Ange Postecoglou fuming. He also lost a host of key players to suspension or injury; a crushing blow that may derail his side's title bid before it's had the chance to build up a head of steam.

And what of Chelsea? The three points were welcome, especially for Mauricio Pochettino personally, but this was far from a swaggering display. Even with Spurs playing a ludicrously-high line with their eight outfield players, they did not look like scoring for a long while, which is a serious concern.

Once you've recovered your breath from that insane contest, sit back as GOAL breaks down the winners & losers from the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium…

Getty ImagesWINNER: Guglielmo Vicario

In an unprecedented summer, four top Premier League sides opted to spend big on new goalkeepers. Manchester United dropped €51 million (£44m/$57m) on Andre Onana, Arsenal palmed off Aaron Ramsdale in favour of David Raya and Chelsea sold two stoppers before ending up with Brighton's backup between the sticks.

Each of the aforementioned arrivals have endured mixed (at best) starts to life in the Premier League, including Sanchez. And on Monday his manager might have been left wishing that he shopped in Italy for his new goalkeeper in the summer.

Continuing a recent trend, Guglielmo Vicario was superb on Monday night – even if he did end up conceding four goals. Remaining remarkably cool under pressure when Micky van de Ven played a hospital pass to him early on, he soon followed this up with a world-class save to deny Nicolas Jackson a first-half equaliser.

He then came so close to keeping out Cole Palmer's penalty and prevented Jackson opening his account in the game early in the second half with a pair of great stops.

The Chelsea star eventually got the better of him, but Vicario – and Spurs' recruitment department – can hold their heads up high following this performance.

AdvertisementGLYN KIRK/AFP via Getty ImagesLOSER: Match-going fans

Yes, VAR may have made the correct decision in the end, but the time it took to get there was completely unacceptable. For five minutes, both sets of fans stood there in ignorance as three blokes in a box in Stockley Park took an age to review a string of incidents.

And, in the end, a significant portion of their work was rendered obsolete when they uncovered a red-card offence from Romero in the box.

Partway through the endless check, the travelling Chelsea fans – who would eventually benefit from the technology – expressed a sentiment that is gaining more and more traction as this crazy season's progresses: 'F*ck VAR!'.

Having already been shafted by having to travel on a Monday night, those match-going fans spent too much of their evening gazing up as various VAR messaging appeared on the four big screens at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Perhaps this would be tolerable if the interferences produced unarguable results. But it just didn't. Reece James, Destiny Udogie and Romero – for a separate offence – were all lucky to stay on the pitch after their infractions from referred to VAR. There was then another lengthy pause as Eric Dier's excellent volley was checked for offside at the end too.

It's not a new issue, of course, but it's worth repeating until we're blue in the face. Do we really need VAR?

GettyWINNER: Nicolas Jackson

Jackson experienced a rollercoaster evening. Early on, his direct runs in behind asked Spurs some questions. The real issues started when he was presented with chances to score.

Due to an injury to Christopher Nkunku, Jackson has – perhaps unfairly – been thrust into the spotlight this season, playing far more minutes than likely he and Pochettino expected. Coming into this one, he'd only scored twice and it's been abundantly clear in recent matches that the pressure of this limited goal return had begun to get to him.

That was evident in the first half, when the Senegal international did excellently to create space in the box before striking his effort too close to the impressive Vicario.

There were worse misses after the break, but something finally clicked when he met Raheem Sterling's inch-perfect cross to make it 2-1. Soon after he netted a near carbon copy of this goal, and, quite unbelievably, he completed his hat trick in second-half stoppage time when Vicario went down too early.

It wasn't the flashiest hat trick, and he should have scored more, but tonight will do wonders for his confidence. The raw talent is probably there, he just needs to find that killer edge.

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GettyLOSER: Cristian Romero

When the VAR cogs finally stopped whirling and Romero was shown a red card, the Spurs fans warmly applauded him off the field. All you could think was, why?

Romero has been an important part of his side's backline this season, but he let himself down here. He is not the most sanguine footballer at the best of times, but whipped up into a frenzy by the febrile atmosphere in north London, he chopped down compatriot Enzo Fernandez with an entirely unnecessary, studs-up challenge in the box. He was lucky not to have been sent off even earlier too, as he petulantly kicked out at Levi Colwill.

His moment of madness left his team in the lurch against a Chelsea side low on confidence. He needs to show more maturity moving forward.

The 19-year-old is set to join Lyon this summer once she has shown the world just why she is regarded as one of the game's biggest talents

When GOAL first spoke to Melchie Dumornay, Haiti’s gifted teenager, she was still at home, soon to make the move to France to join talent factory Reims. As the interview came to a close, Dumornay, still only 17 years old at this point, outlined her ambitions for the future. Her first? To play for Lyon, the eight-time European champions, one day. Fast forward, two years and she’s set to tick that off her career bucket list, having joined the French giants this summer.

Her second aim was to win individual awards at the "next level", in order to "prove" herself. When the French league announced the winners of its annual awards in mid-May, as Dumornay's final season with Reims came to a close, the 19-year-old was named Best Young Player and also included in the Team of the Season, which featured just three names not representing Lyon or Paris Saint-Germain.

The final goal was quite different. “If God allows me to have a lot of success in the future, which translates into financial success, I want to be able to open a sort of academy back home in Haiti to provide opportunities to players in Haiti that I didn't have myself,” she explained, exuding maturity beyond her years.

“In Haiti, there are so many talents, not only in soccer, that just don't get a chance. I got that chance to be in an academy, but there are top players and top talents everywhere. It's important to try and put an eye on Haiti, to not miss out on so many talents. I hope that one day more people get the chance to get out of there.”

With her yet to celebrate her 20th birthday, it might take a little time for Dumornay to be able to box that one off. But she did something else to help Haiti this year – she scored the goal that sent her country to its first ever Women’s World Cup. It’s not an academy, but it’s a huge stage for many of her team-mates to make a name for themselves and prove, just as their talismanic teenager says, that there is a lot of talent in the Caribbean nation.

As Haiti prepare to make history at the tournament, pooled in Group D with England, Denmark and China, GOAL explains why Dumornay is so, so special…

GettyWhere it began

Dumornay started playing football from a young age in Haiti and would quickly make a name for herself in the national league, with AS Tigresses, and in the youth national teams.

For Haiti, she was often several years younger than the rest of her team-mates, playing at the CONCACAF Girls' Under-15 Championship aged 12 and the CONCACAF Women's U20 Championship aged 14.

At the latter, she played a key role in helping her country to finish third and qualify for the U20 Women's World Cup, becoming the first Caribbean nation to do so. She starred so much, even, that she was named to the tournament’s best XI.

AdvertisementGettyThe big break

It was at that U20 World Cup that Dumornay announced herself to a wider audience and, significantly, Reims manager Amandine Miquel. Still only 14 years old at the time, the youngster had to get special authorisation to play at the tournament, but she still managed to stand-out despite being so much younger than the majority of players on show.

It was against Germany, in Haiti’s final group game, that Dumornay caught the eye of Miquel and her staff. “She was way above the other players,” the coach told GOAL last year. “We knew we needed that player.”

It would be “hard” to get her to Reims because the club had to wait until she was 18 years old. Before she celebrated that milestone birthday, she’d had a trial at Lyon, too, who she impressed massively.

But Miquel stayed in regular contact with the teenager and she believes that is what “made the difference” in the end, as well as the development proposition the club could offer. “She knew she would be in a good championship but she would still be an important player and not just a substitute.”

It was the move that brought one of the world’s biggest and brightest young talents to a top European league.

GettyHow it’s going

Dumornay has now joined eight-time European champions Lyon after taking her game to the next level with Reims, scoring 18 goals and providing 11 assists in just 33 league matches with the club. That form won her the Best Young Player award at the end of the 2022-23 season and a place in the Team of the Season, giving her a great send off.

Her move to Lyon was announced back in January, to come in the summer when her contract at Reims expired. A month later, Dumornay fired her country to its first ever Women’s World Cup, scoring twice in the 2-1 win over Chile.

She’s now set to star in Australia and New Zealand this summer and has a chance to showcase herself on the biggest stage in the sport. It’s going quite well, then.

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GettyBiggest strengths

Where to start? Dumornay is a very intelligent footballer, which helps inform her decision-making, she’s technically outstanding, which makes her execution superb, and she has all the physical attributes to have been able to make a splash in the senior game at such a young age.

“She has all the required skills despite her age,” Reims team-mate Sonia Ouchene told GOAL last year. “I'm never surprised by players. There are really very, very few things that amaze me, and she is one of them, especially because of her age.

“Athletically, she is powerful and fast. In the game, she's very clever. Technically, she has everything you need, although of course she's going to improve in every aspect. She is a very complete player and she showed it very quickly on the field.”

Dumornay is also extremely versatile. She arrived at Reims as a midfielder capable of playing any role in the middle of the park, such is the wide variety of skills she has. But Miquel would also deploy her as a centre-forward at times, with her having the ability to out-muscle, out-run and out-think defenders. That she is great at bringing others into the game also proved a big asset in this position.

On top of it all, she’s a player her team-mates love to have around, one who makes jokes, has fun and brings positivity to any dressing room.

Despite not being at full-strength, the U.S. has high hopes of making an impact on the tournament in Argentina

It was a winding road to get there, from a FIFA logistics point of view, but the players that will represent the United States Under-20 men's national team have arrived in Argentina for the U20 World Cup. Well, at least most of them.

Head coach Mike Varas has brought a talented squad to Argentina, albeit one with a few notable absences due to club commitments. The U.S., though, is a team loaded with potential future stars, several of whom have already made their senior national team debuts.

Still, though, the U.S. will be shorthanded for the group stage, with a few key players remaining with their clubs to finish off the European season before arriving at the tournament. Before they arrive, the U.S. will have to navigate a group that includes Ecuador, Slovakia and Fiji, a group they'll be expected to emerge from when all is said and done.

The U.S. has made deep runs in the last few tournaments, with their win over France in the 2019 U20 World Cup serving as a program highlight. Can they do so again this summer?

GOAL look at some of the key players and storylines that will determine the U.S. team's fate over the next few weeks:

GettySlonina's performance

The USMNT's goalkeeper of the future will be on full display at this tournament. Gabriel Slonina is, in fact, that damn good, so good that you can anoint him at such an early age. In a country that is known for producing goalkeepers, Slonina is one of the best youngsters American soccer has seen, which is why Chelsea were so quick to snatch him and up and start grooming him to be their own future No.1.

He has yet to debut at Chelsea and may not for some time, but Slonina is still expected to be a key figure for the U.S. youth teams and, perhaps, the senior team sometime soon.

This tournament will give him a chance to show his talents, much as he did in his USMNT debut earlier this year. He won't just be looking to impress the USMNT's upcoming coach, though, but perhaps European scouts with one eye towards a loan move away from Chelsea.

Either way, Slonina should be one of the team's most reliable pieces, and it's always nice to start a squad off with a goalkeeper you know can win you games.

AdvertisementGetty ImagesStriker options without Pepi

Ricardo Pepi technically could have been in the squad for this tournament, but it's quite clear that he has aged out of this sort of competition. If he had joined up with this U20 squad, he would have been a locked in starter and perhaps even a Golden Boot candidate. Instead, the U.S. will rely on other young forwards without the same track record.

For much of the cycle, the U.S. has played without a designated No.9, with Paxten Aaronson playing as a false-nine, but it doesn't have to be that way at the World Cup. Darren Yapi has emerged as a future star with the Colorado Rapids and then with this U.S. team back in March.

Yapi, though, is still pretty unproven, so it remains to be seen if he can be the guy. If he is, the U.S. has a chance to go pretty deep in this tournament. If not, it'll be a struggle to find goals against some of the better teams.

Getty ImagesThe missing pieces

Youth national team coaches know that they'll never get every player, but Varas will have hoped to have some of the players that were ultimately held back by their club teams. Three members of the CONCACAF U20 Championship Best XI have been prevented from joining up, with Aaronson, Jalen Neal and Christopher Brady all staying with their respective clubs.

The loss of Aaronson, in particular, will be a big one, as there was a legitimate argument that he is this group's best player. He won the Golden Ball and the Golden Boot during the CONCACAF tournament playing as a false nine, and having spent the months since with Eintracht Frankfurt, there's no doubt he's ready to take his game to another level.

Brady and Neal, meanwhile, are a bit more replaceable. Brady's spot will be taken by his Chicago Fire predecessor Slonina, while Neal's absence can be made up for with some of the center-backs in the squad. Regardless, Varas would have hoped to have something closer to a full squad, even if it was never a possibility to have everyone he wanted involved.

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GettyLate arrivals

Making matters worse for Varas? That the U.S. will be even more shorthanded for that first game against Ecuador. Cade Cowell, expected to be a key contributor in the attack, will be suspended for the opener for his role in a melee with Costa Rica. Rokas Pukstas and Kevin Paredes, meanwhile, won't be expected to join the team until the knockout stages due to their club obligations

Because of that, Varas will only have five outfield players on the substitute's bench for that first match. It's a dangerous game to play, but Varas has certainly balanced risk with reward.

By calling in Pukstas and Paredes, Varas will have something closer to his best team available to him by the time the knockout stages roll around. He's betting on his team to survive the group and, if he bets correctly, the U.S. team we see in the knockouts will be far better than the one we see in game one.

Will it pay off? We'll find out, but it's an interesting tactic, for sure.

Some fantastic players have represented Japan, but only the best of the best can make their dream team!

Japan are a regular at major tournaments like the World Cup and the AFC Asian Cup.

The Samurai Blue have featured in the last seven World Cups and qualified for the knockout stages in 2002, 2010 and 2018.

Not only that, Japan are the first country from outside the American continent to ever participate in the Copa America, having played in the 1999 and 2019 editions.

Over the years, some great players have featured for the Japanese national team, with players such as Keisuke Honda, Shunsuke Nakamura and Hidetoshi Nakata household names in the European football scene.

But who make up their best-ever XI?

Getty ImagesGK: Yoshikatsu Kawaguchi

The most-capped goalkeeper in Japan's history with 116 games to his name, Kawaguchi appeared for his country between 1997 and 2010.

He made his debut against Brazil and managed to keep a clean sheet.

It was Kawaguchi who was the first-ever Japanese goalkeeper to play at a World Cup in 1998, with Gabriel Batistuta the only one able to beat him as Argentina recorded a 1-0 win.

A noted penalty expert, Kawaguchi has saved spot kicks at the big stage from players like Croatia's Darijo Srna (2006 World Cup) and Australia's Harry Kewell (2007 Asia Cup quarter-finals).

AdvertisementGettyRB: Hiroki Sakai

With vast experience at club level in Europe, Japan have benefited from the presence of Sakai at right-back since 2012.

The former Marseille defender has over 70 caps for Japan and was part of their squad for the 2014, 2018 and 2022 World Cups.

He did not make any appearances at the 2014 edition, but got his tournament debut against Colombia four years later, playing 90 minutes in a 2-1 win for the Samurai Blue.

（C）J.LEAGUE PHOTOSCB: Yuji Nakazawa

One of the eight Japanese players to reach 100+ caps for his country, Nakazawa was first called up to the national team in September 1999.

He then played a key role in helping Japan win the 2000 AFC Asian Cup, but was not selected for the 2002 World Cup.

Newly elected manager Zico gave him his opportunity again at the 2004 Asian Cup, where he was one of Japan's best performers on their way to the trophy.

Nakazawa then did make his World Cup bow in 2006 in Germany, with Japan being knocked out in the group stages.

He announced his retirement from international football after the tournament at the age of just 28, before withdrawing his decision and then going on to feature at the 2010 World Cup, where Japan reached the last 16.

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Getty ImagesCB: Maya Yoshida

Yoshida made his Japan debut in January 2010 against Yemen and has made over 120 appearances for his country since then.

He helped then win the Asian Cup in 2011, before going on to feature in all group games for Japan at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.

Yoshida also featured for the Blue Samurai at the 2018 World Cup, reaching the last 16 before being beaten by Belgium, and captained them at the 2022 World Cup.