Tottenham goalkeeper Hugo Lloris is sounding more and more like his angry boss as Spurs drop big games, perhaps none bigger than Thursday’s massive blown lead at Dinamo Zagreb to bow out of the Europe League.
First, let’s go back to the weekend: Spurs manager Jose Mourinho said “players were hiding” in the North London derby and understandably those comments hit the headlines.
But Spurs fans paying attention to the whole team would’ve noted that their captain said something similar, saying that every attacker other than Lucas Moura failed in their work at Arsenal.
What did Lloris have to say? In some way, it was worse. The captain used the word “disgrace” on three times during a frank and damning verdict on Spurs’ attitudes.
“We are more than disappointed,” Lloris said. “It’s a disgrace. I just hope everyone in the training room feels responsible for the situation because it’s a disgrace. What can I say more about it?
“The taste of defeat is more than painful and we are all responsible for that.”
Lloris ripped into players for saying the right things for the cameras and microphones but not bringing that effort to training.
It seems to point at some high-profile players who do not start every match. And it doesn’t reflect well on anyone, though it will surely have Mourinho nodding along and maybe buying Lloris a dinner.
“It’s accumulation,” Lloris said. “We are a club full of ambition but the team at the moment is a reflection of what’s going on in the club. We have a lack of basics, fundamentals, and all of our performances are in relation of that. Mentally we should be stronger, more competitive. Today I didn’t feel that on the field unfortunately, When you are not ready at this level, you pay right away. If you don’t respect the opponent, it’s punishment and that’s what happened today. They played the game full of belief but the blame is on us. All the team. All the club. We are guilty.”
“It’s not possible. The way we play is just not enough. Not enough. One thing is to come in front of the camera and say I’m ambitious. The other thing is to say every day on the pitch. To behave as a team is the most difficult thing in football. Whatever is the decision of the manager, you have to follow the way of the team. If you follow the way of the team only when you’re in the Starting XI, you’re going to pay in your season. We had a great moment in the past because we could trust the togetherness in the team. Today I’m not sure about that.”
“The message from the manager was clear, to attack the game, to score one goal as quickly as possible to make the game easier but it happened the opposite. Dinamo started to believe again and if you don’t kill the opponent, they are going to come. They scored an amazing goal and then the game was opponent. We never felt like the game was under control and that we were the dominant team. We were far from that.”
“Anything is possible in football. If you look at all the experience that we got as players, we all had that experience from one leg to another, everything can turn if you make the perfect game. What is more painful is the feeling that we came here without the desire to kill the game. When you are a competitor, you cannot behave in that way.”
“The confidence was back inside the Zagreb team and the game became even harder but this is the story of the game. We cannot change it unfortunately. It’s a disgrace from us and we can only feel sorry for the fans because every year they are full of hopes and this competition would mean a lot but now we have to get back to basics and fight to get back into this competition next season.
“I think we all belong to the team. Football is not about individual players, that there are 2, 3, 4 players who are going to step up. We need more than that. On the bench there’s an influence to have to push the others. In training sessions the same. It’s not stay on your side and complain because in the end, what we have to respect is the badge. It’s over all the players in the place. We have to respect the badge.”
Wow.
Look, it’s simultaneously okay to recognize that Mourinho is sleeping in the bed he made whenever his words get amplified to the heavens, but Spurs absolutely have had issues in this room with effort.
Dele Alli and Gareth Bale are the names that will leap to the forefront and perhaps they should. Bale had his issues with Zinedine Zidane that were forgiven back home but now perhaps they are appearing in front of a domestic audience. Dele didn’t come off well in the Amazon show behind the scenes at Spurs, and Lloris would surely know he’s not giving any player cover with his words.
Maybe Mourinho’s at the root of Tottenham’s problems. Maybe. But even if he is, if you’re not Harry Kane, Lloris, or Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, there are real questions about the attitude in North London. And they’ll have to answer them after flying home from Croatia to meet a hungry and angry Aston Villa.
This interview from Hugo Lloris is absolutely riveting. Says Tottenham’s performance was a “disgrace” and essentially calls out players who aren’t playing regularly as troublemakers #THFC#UELpic.twitter.com/y478eB1UcL
Chelsea hosts Fulham on Friday for its first match since January 21, which is also its first match since breaking the British transfer record to purchase Enzo Fernandez from Benfica (watch live, 3pm ET on USA Network and online via NBCSports.com).
“We did some off-the-pitch activity, a bit of leadership and teamwork outside of this environment. But mostly it’s been training and working on the team and how we want to play. Of course, we’ve been integrating new players and getting injured players up to speed. So it’s a bit of everything really.”
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Chelsea vs Fulham.
How to watch Chelsea vs Fulham live, stream link and start time
Kick off: 3pm ET, Friday TV Channel: USA Network Online:Stream via NBCSports.com
Key storylines & star players
Watch out for Chelsea, because the crew is getting healthier. To be fair, it’s difficult to have more injuries than Chelsea has had this year, but we digress. Ben Chilwell, Reece James, Raheem Sterling, and Ruben Loftus-Cheek are all ready to go, though Graham Potter said none of them are ready for 90 minutes. Wesley Fofana is close to a return, but should miss out, while Joao Felix could make his return. So, yeah, we could see Felix, Mykhailo Mudryk, and Raheem Sterling on the pitch at the same time. Zoom, zoom, Fulham.
Marco Silva’s Cottagers have cooled off, at least in terms of results, since beating Chelsea at Craven Cottage on Jan. 12, the game in which Felix earned his red card. 1-0 losses to Newcastle and Spurs, forgivable, were followed up with a FA Cup draw with Sunderland. If Fulham can get through this, there’s a more forgiving run of fixtures ahead with a Sunderland replay, Forest, Brighton, Wolves, and Brentford. But is anything forgiving any more in the Premier League? Aleksandar Mitrovic, as usual, looms as a key piece of Fulham’s hopes.
Chelsea team news, injuries, lineup options
OUT: N’Golo Kante (hamstring), Christian Pulisic (knee), Wesley Fofana (knee), Edouard Mendy (shoulder), Armando Broja (knee), Denis Zakaria (thigh)
Brighton will continue their chase for European qualification, while Bournemouth try to climb out of the relegation zone, when the two sides meet at Amex Stadium on Saturday (watch live, 10 am ET on Peacock Premium).
Graham Potter and Roberto De Zerbi have, between them, guided Brighton (31 points) all the way up to 6th place in the Premier League table. The gap to 5th-place Tottenham is five points; the gap to Manchester United in 4th in eight. Bournemouth, meanwhile, are in the bottom-three for the first time this season after picking up just one point from their last five PL games.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Brighton vs Bournemouth.
Brentford will try to extend their unbeaten run, which began all the way back in October, when they host bottom-of-the-table Southampton at Gtech Community Stadium on Saturday (watch live, 10 am ET on Peacock Premium).
The Bees’ (30 points) eight-game unbeaten run (4W-4D-0L) has taken them up to 8th in the Premier League table, now closer to the top-four (nine points) than the relegation zone (13 points) in their second-ever season in the PL. Saints (15 points), meanwhile, are living dangerously at the bottom, though the gap between themselves and safety in 17th place is just two points.
Here’s everything you need to know ahead of Brentford vs Southampton.
Last time out, Brentford settled for a frustrating 0-0 draw with Leeds, but before that they rattled off successive wins over West Ham, Liverpool and Bournemouth with just one goal conceded in three games. Ivan Toney is 3rd in the Premier League with 13 goals, trailing only Harry Kane (16) and Erling Haaland (an absurd 25). After initially struggling to replace the creativity of Christian Eriksen (4 assists in 11 appearances last season), Thomas Frank’s side is firing once again thanks to Mathias Jensen (4 in 20), Toney (3) and Josh Dasilva (2) picking up the slack.
After losing 3-1 to Newcastle over two legs in the League Cup semifinals, Southampton return their attention to the ongoing relegation battle. Having won just one of their last nine Premier League fixtures (1W-1D-7L), Saints made four first-team signings to strengthen the midfield and attack. They brought in some experience (30-year-old midfielder Mislav Orsic from Dinamo Zagreb and 28-year-old forward Paul Onuachu from Genk) along with some youth and potential (a pair of 20-year-olds, midfielder Carlos Alcaraz from Racing Club and winger Kamadeen Selumana from Rennes).
The 2022-23 Premier League fixtures are front and center as the new season has delivered so much drama so far and normal service has resumed after the World Cup break.
Remember: you can watch all 380 Premier League games across NBC, USA Network, NBCSports.com and Peacock. We’ve got you covered.
Will Manchester City win yet another Premier League title? Can Chelsea and Liverpool push them all the way? How will Manchester United’s new-look side fare? What about Tottenham and Arsenal? How will the new boys get on? Who will be the surprise package?
Those questions will be answered from August 2022 to May 2023, with the full list of Premier League fixtures.
While below are the answers to all of the questions you have around the Premier League fixtures and everything else you need to know for the upcoming season, with full details on the Premier League TV schedule across the NBC family of channels and more.
The Premier League fixtures for the 2022-23 season were announced on Thursday June 16, 2022 at 4am ET. Below is the full schedule, as you can watch all 380 games across our NBC platforms.
The Premier League fixture computer decides who plays who and when, as teams located close to one another are usually playing at home on opposite weekends to help with policing, crowd control and transport congestion in those areas.
When will the Premier League take a break for the 2022 World Cup?
When will the 2022-23 Premier League season finish?
The final day of the season will be on Sunday, May 28, 2023.
Which teams will compete in the 2022-23 Premier League?
These are the 20 teams which will compete in the Premier League for the upcoming season:
Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bournemouth, Brentford, Brighton and Hove Albion, Chelsea, Crystal Palace, Everton, Fulham, Leeds United, Leicester City, Liverpool, Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United, Nottingham Forest, Southampton, Tottenham Hotspur, West Ham United, Wolverhampton Wanderers
Predictions for 2022-23 Premier League season
We made a few bold predictions ahead of the Premier League campaign, which you can read in full here. And we’ve also predicted how we think the Premier League table will look at the end of the 2022-23 campaign. I’m sure you agree wholeheartedly with these predictions…
2022-23 Premier League TV schedule
Below are the Premier League fixtures in full, with all kick offs listed at 10am ET unless otherwise stated:
9am: Nottingham Forest v Leeds – USA Network – WATCH LIVE
11:30am: Spurs v Man City – NBC – WATCH LIVEPhoto by Visionhaus/Getty Images
Matchweek 23
Saturday 11 February
7:30am: West Ham v Chelsea
Arsenal v Brentford
Crystal Palace v Brighton
Fulham v Nottingham Forest
Leicester v Spurs
Southampton v Wolves
12:30pm: AFC Bournemouth v Newcastle
Sunday 12 February
9am: Leeds v Man Utd
11:30am: Man City v Aston Villa
Monday 13 February
3pm: Liverpool v Everton
Matchweek 24
Wednesday 15 February
2:30pm: Arsenal vs Manchester City (rearranged)
Saturday 18 February
7:30am: Aston Villa v Arsenal
Brentford v Crystal Palace
Brighton v Fulham
Chelsea v Southampton
Everton v Leeds
Nottingham Forest v Man City
Wolves v AFC Bournemouth
12:30pm: Newcastle v Liverpool
Sunday 19 February
9am: Man Utd v Leicester
11:30am: Spurs v West Ham
Matchweek 25
Friday 24 February
3pm: Fulham v Wolves
Saturday 25 February
7:30am: Newcastle v Brighton
Everton v Aston Villa
Leeds v Southampton
Leicester v Arsenal
West Ham v Nottingham Forest
12:30pm: AFC Bournemouth v Man City *subject to EFL Cup Final
2:45pm: Crystal Palace v Liverpool ^If Liverpool are not in EFL fifth round and if AFC Bournemouth or Man City progress to EFL Cup final, this match will move to 17:30 and remain on Sky Sports
Sunday 26 February
8:30am: Man Utd v Brentford* Due to UEFA Europa League playoff round
8:30am: Spurs v Chelsea
Saturday 4 March
Arsenal v AFC Bournemouth
Aston Villa v Crystal Palace
Brentford v Fulham
Brighton v West Ham
Chelsea v Leeds
Liverpool v Man Utd
Man City v Newcastle
Nottingham Forest v Everton
Southampton v Leicester
Wolves v Spurs
Saturday 11 March
AFC Bournemouth v Liverpool
Crystal Palace v Man City
Everton v Brentford
Fulham v Arsenal
Leeds v Brighton
Leicester v Chelsea
Man Utd v Southampton
Newcastle v Wolves
Spurs v Nottingham Forest
West Ham v Aston Villa
Saturday 18 March
Arsenal v Crystal Palace
Aston Villa v AFC Bournemouth
Brentford v Leicester
Brighton v Man Utd
Chelsea v Everton
Liverpool v Fulham
Man City v West Ham
Nottingham Forest v Newcastle
Southampton v Spurs
Wolves v Leeds
Saturday 1 April
AFC Bournemouth v Fulham
Arsenal v Leeds
Brighton v Brentford
Chelsea v Aston Villa
Crystal Palace v Leicester
Everton v Spurs
Man City v Liverpool
Newcastle v Man Utd
Nottingham Forest v Wolves
West Ham v Southampton
Saturday 8 April
Aston Villa v Nottingham Forest
Brentford v Newcastle
Fulham v West Ham
Leeds v Crystal Palace
Leicester v AFC Bournemouth
Liverpool v Arsenal
Man Utd v Everton
Southampton v Man City
Spurs v Brighton
Wolves v Chelsea
Saturday 15 April
Aston Villa v Newcastle
Chelsea v Brighton
Everton v Fulham
Leeds v Liverpool
Man City v Leicester
Nottingham Forest v Man Utd
Southampton v Crystal Palace
Spurs v AFC Bournemouth
West Ham v Arsenal
Wolves v Brentford
Saturday 22 April
AFC Bournemouth v West Ham
Arsenal v Southampton
Brentford v Aston Villa
Brighton v Man City
Crystal Palace v Everton
Fulham v Leeds
Leicester v Wolves
Liverpool v Nottingham Forest
Man Utd v Chelsea
Newcastle v Spurs
Tuesday 25 April
19:45 Everton v Newcastle
19:45 Leeds v Leicester
19:45 Nottingham Forest v Brighton
19:45 Spurs v Man Utd
19:45 West Ham v Liverpool
19:45 Wolves v Crystal Palace
20:00 Aston Villa v Fulham
Wednesday 26 April
19:45 Chelsea v Brentford
19:45 Southampton v AFC Bournemouth
20:00 Man City v Arsenal
Saturday 29 April
AFC Bournemouth v Leeds
Arsenal v Chelsea
Brentford v Nottingham Forest
Brighton v Wolves
Crystal Palace v West Ham
Fulham v Man City
Leicester v Everton
Liverpool v Spurs
Man Utd v Aston Villa
Newcastle v Southampton
Saturday 6 May
AFC Bournemouth v Chelsea
Brighton v Everton
Fulham v Leicester
Liverpool v Brentford
Man City v Leeds
Newcastle v Arsenal
Nottingham Forest v Southampton
Spurs v Crystal Palace
West Ham v Man Utd
Wolves v Aston Villa
Saturday 13 May
Arsenal v Brighton
Aston Villa v Spurs
Brentford v West Ham
Chelsea v Nottingham Forest
Crystal Palace v AFC Bournemouth
Everton v Man City
Leeds v Newcastle
Leicester v Liverpool
Man Utd v Wolves
Southampton v Fulham
Saturday 20 May
AFC Bournemouth v Man Utd
Brighton v Southampton
Fulham v Crystal Palace
Liverpool v Aston Villa
Man City v Chelsea
Newcastle v Leicester
Nottingham Forest v Arsenal
Spurs v Brentford
West Ham v Leeds
Wolves v Everton
Sunday 28 May
16:00 Arsenal v Wolves
16:00 Aston Villa v Brighton
16:00 Brentford v Man City
16:00 Chelsea v Newcastle
16:00 Crystal Palace v Nottingham Forest
16:00 Everton v AFC Bournemouth
16:00 Leeds v Spurs
16:00 Leicester v West Ham
16:00 Man Utd v Fulham
16:00 Southampton v Liverpool