Mauricio Pochettino admits team selection is not easy at Spurs at the moment, with players from across the squad pushing for starts.

Full-back is a prime example, with Kyle Walker and Danny Rose in peak form but Kieran Trippier and Ben Davies impressed when given a chance in the FA Cup.

And for Pochettino that has made it increasingly difficult to give everyone game time, even if he believes squad depth will be crucial for Tottenham’s ambitions this season.

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He said: “It’s important for us to be competitive to increase our level. For me, it’s not just about 11 players, it is 25 players and we need to behave like a team.

“My decisions are always tough, picking one player or another and only (having) the possibility to select 11 and seven more on the bench.

“That’s always tough but it’s about competition, about trying to put a competitive team on the pitch and then if we win, it will be about the squad. I don’t change my mind for those decisions.

“The problem is that it’s difficult to be fair with them all but being professional means being ready and then if you play or don’t play, that’s the manager’s decision.

“Maybe you are disappointed because you believe you can play but that is football and if you behave well and are always professional, football will always reward you.”

Spurs striker Harry Kane revealed he’s been getting tips on fatherhood from team-mate Kieran Trippier after the birth of his first child.

The 23-year-old goal machine missed Spurs’ FA Cup third round tie against Aston Villa, which they won, to be at the birth of Ivy Jane Kane with his long-term partner Kate.

And despite a goal on his England debut, breaking the 30-goal barrier in his first full season of Premier League football and a Golden Boot award, Kane admitted the birth was a whole new level.

“The whole experience of being at the birth was quite surreal and one of the best feelings in the world, to become a dad,” he said.

“I wanted to be there for Kate and I’m so proud, especially proud of Kate, she was great, amazing.

(Photo by Catherine Ivill – AMA/Getty Images)

“He (Trippier) has let me know a few things. I’ve been helping feeding, changing and getting her to sleep.

“I don’t think you can really put it into words. It’s totally different from, say, scoring a goal and the adrenaline rush you get from that.

“It’s overwhelming really. It’s a miracle the way it all happens and to see a young human being coming into life was just incredible.”

Kerry Dixon knows what it takes to score in a Chelsea shirt, and the Blues legend insists boss Antonio Conte would be making the right decision if he does make a move for Swansea’s Fernando Llorente.

With transfer rumours swirling in January, a move for the 31-year-old Spain international would surely leave youngster Michy Batshuayi, whom Chelsea forked out £33million for in the summer, out in the cold.

Llorente has worked with Conte before at Juventus, and Dixon – regarded as one of Chelsea’s greatest ever strikers having scored 193 goals during his time at Stamford Bridge – believes swapping a young striker for a more experienced one would be a smart move.

“It makes sense to me,” he said. “Batshuayi was bought by Chelsea with a pretty hefty price tag and for a striker of that ilk, you would expect a certain amount of games which, due to the form of Diego Costa, he hasn’t been able to achieve.

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“I fully understand if they do put him out [on loan] for game time. If he goes to West Ham and proves he can score in the Premier League then his value on the transfer market, if indeed Chelsea were to sell, would at least be the equivalent of what we bought him for.

“Llorente is somebody that Conte can say, ‘I have worked with him before’. He would come in and be a squad player and be capable of doing a job for us, if indeed Diego Costa was injured or suspended.

“The downside to Llorente is we haven’t seen much of him. We haven’t seen much, really, of him doing well and having the pressures of coming in and doing well in the Premier League.

“But we will see and if it does happen we have to go with what Conte is saying. If Diego Costa stays fit, I can’t see him playing too many games.”

Southampton’s Oriol Romeu says getting back to their solid defensive foundations will be the key as the second half of the season progresses.

The Saints shut out Jurgen Klopp’s Liverpool for the second time this season in midweek, despite them being the highest scorers in the EFL Cup going into the first leg at the St Mary’s.

Southampton currently sit 13th in the Premier League table and Romeu believes that their 1-0 win over the Reds came at the right time, ahead of a mid-table clash away at Burnley.

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Romeu said: “We needed to win battles but if they don’t feel comfortable they won’t have that confidence playing.

“Having the chance to win those duels, they felt a little bit more uncomfortable and they didn’t play as well as they could so it was good to win those and those second balls.

“The clean sheet was very important. We need to have more clean sheets because recently we have conceded too many goals.”

Southampton had not managed to keep a clean sheet in five games prior to their EFL Cup semi-final win against Liverpool.

He added: “Sometimes we score one goal and after five or ten minutes we were not playing as good as we were.

“We scored and we kept playing the same in the whole game and I think we’ve learnt from the last games.”

Leicester City manager, Claudio Ranieri has called upon his side to show their fighting spirit as they clash with league leaders Chelsea on Saturday.

The Foxes are in Premier League action for the first time since Riyad Mahrez, Islam Slimani and Daniel Amartey departed for the Africa Cup of Nations, but Ranieri says his side are well-prepared for the clash with the Blues

Antonio Conte’s men sit five points clear at the top of the table and after a shock loss to Tottenham Hotspur in their last league outing, ex-Chelsea boss Ranieri knows the London outfit will want to return to winning ways.

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Ranieri said: “I expect a strong reaction from them. They are old champions and they want to make up for defeat.”

“Of course we’d like all the competition in the normal time. But I understand when there are European cups or American cups, it’s difficult to play in summer.”

Ranieri may be without some of his African players for as long as four weeks which would see them miss out on a crucial FA Cup fourth round tie away at Derby County.

“When we lose our important players, it’s not good, but when all the teams lose players, it’s okay,” added Ranieri.

“We prepared very well. In the first match without Riyad and Islam, we won in the FA Cup against Everton. Now, we have to show the same attitude and strength against Chelsea.”

Everton legend Kevin Ratcliffe has hailed manager Ronald Koeman for hitting the January sales early after the capture of Morgan Schneiderlin.

The Toffees splashed £24m on the midfielder from Manchester United and he could make his debut against Manchester City this weekend, in what would be his first Premier League start of the season after he struggled to impress new United boss Jose Mourinho.

Koeman has been busy, also adding young striker Ademola Lookman from Charlton while they are believed to be close to a deal for striker Ishak Belfodil.

Photo by Tony McArdle/Everton FC via Getty Images

And Ratcliffe, who played 348 times for the club between 1980-92, says it has given his side a huge advantage over their rivals as they push for European football next season.

“Do those three players get you off your seat? I’m not sure,” Ratcliffe said. “But it’s nice to know we have started early.

“It means we have two weeks to integrate them before the window closes.

“While other teams will be scrambling around towards the end of the window, we have players that we have used and integrated already.

“It’s nice to do business early, and get them for a couple of weeks before others have.”

Manchester United midfielder Juan Mata claims his side is not dwelling on their nine-match win streak as they prepare for their clash with Liverpool on Sunday.

United’s winning run has been spread across four competitions including six Premier League victories and the Spaniard insisted manager Jose Mourinho’s mentality has rubbed off on the squad.

Mata said: “It is very important to be consistent if you want to win things and that is one of the things the manager has always said.

“The manager said we needed to find this routine of always winning and we have done that in the last two months and we have to keep that going.

“Nine wins in a row feels very good. We are playing better – not so good in some games but we are still winning.”

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United’s run will be tested when they host second-placed Liverpool at Old Trafford and Mata admitted his side must improve for the Reds’ visit.

He said: “When we play at Old Trafford we need to play our best for these kinds of games.

“When you don’t play your best game but you are winning, it is a strong mentality, and this club should always have that.

“The last two or three years have not been the best in the club’s history but hopefully the next ones will be very good and I can be here to live it and celebrate very important things with United.”

Sunderland striker Fabio Borini insists home form will be crucial to his side’s bid to retain Premier League status as the Black Cats host Stoke City on Saturday.

Since September, only Chelsea and Arsenal have won at the Stadium of Light and the Italian admits confidence is high after keeping a clean sheet in their FA Cup tie against Burnley last time out.

He said: “Our home form will be key for the rest of the season.

“Stoke have good quality players, they are very physical players and they are aiming at a top half finish.

“But if we put the effort in that we have in the last few games, especially against Liverpool, we will be fine.”

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Borini, whose side earned a 2-2 draw against title contenders Liverpool in their last league outing, is confident they can pick up a valuable victory over the Potters.

He added: “We have targeted to win the game because with three points we might get out of the relegation zone before we play West Brom away which will be another tough game.

“It is obviously great when we have our fans behind us when we get positive results and pick up points.”

Liverpool defender Alberto Moreno believes this weekend’s derby against Manchester United holds greater significance than normal as both teams look to stay in the hunt for the Premier League title.

The Reds start the weekend in second place in the table, five points behind leaders Chelsea, heading into Sunday’s match at Old Trafford but face a Manchester United team in red-hot form.

Jose Mourinho’s side are on an 11-game unbeaten streak in the league and, despite currently lying in sixth place, are confident of challenging those above them.

And Moreno believes the fact that both teams are performing so well adds even more importance to one of the most talked about fixtures in the Premier League.

“It’s a great game to look forward to. Both sets of fans, obviously our fans, can’t wait for those sorts of games to come around and the players are no different,” the full-back said.

(Photo by Clive Brunskill/Getty Images)

“We know it’s going to be a tough game, it’s a tough ask to go there and do well, and it’s even more important because we’re both rivals in the upper part of the table, we’re both right up there so it’s even more important than ever.

“Playing in a derby match is great, all players enjoy that and me especially. I love the challenge of derby games and if you can win, it makes it even more extra special, so I can’t wait for it to come around.”

Burnley manager Sean Dyche insists his team won’t change how the club is run after a UEFA report showed they had a greater operating profit than some European giants.

The report showed the Clarets had a return of €54m in 2015, more than teams such as Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund, while only Liverpool, Newcastle and Real Madrid turned over a greater net profit in the same year.

They were more carefree in 2016 as they twice broke their transfer record in August, spending £7.35m and £10.5m on midfielders Steven Defour and Jeff Hendrick respectively, but Dyche believes that maintaining a healthy turnover is still greatly important.

He said: “A balance has to be found and it’s not just year one either, it’s year two, three and four, it has to be an ongoing manageable business, and unless that changes I totally respect that and I work within it.

(Photo by Jan Kruger/Getty Images)

“It is hard at times as a manager. You want to buy the best players you can and you want to increase your chances of being successful, but there has to be a balance to that and I get it.

“I’ve always said if it was a different club with a different ownership who said ‘don’t worry about the club because we’re going to back the club for the next 20 years and put millions in,’ I’d spend it.

“But it’s not the case, so I manage what’s given to me. That’s just the way I thought it always should be done.”