Mike Phelan admits he needs to improve his squad quickly if Hull City are to survive in the Premier League this season.

The Tigers sit 19^th in the table, just one point clear of bottom club Swansea City after Monday’s 3-1 loss to West Bromwich Albion– their 13^th defeat of the season.

Phelan replaced Steve Bruce in the summer and made a bright start, as Hull won their first two matches with only 13 fit senior players, before the challenges facing the Yorkshire club became apparent as they tumbled down the league.

Their form has not improved, with just one win from their last 18 league games putting them in real relegation danger – and Phelan says they need reinforcements if they are to survive.

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“Our football has been good but not good enough,” he said.

“When we are in control of a game, it’s not been enough. We could have had this game out of sight but when we don’t take our chances and then concede like we do, there’s real issues to be dealt with.

“I think the players, to their credit, need some new blood. They need that feeling that they’re going in the right direction.

“Hopefully we can deliver that. We’ve looked at a lot of things but there’s been no movement yet. As it stands, there’s nothing on the table to do.

“I’ll be having those conversations again and we have to look at it because we’re now into the month.

“Hopefully we’re not waiting until the 28th or 29th to do our business because we need freshening up now.”

Leicester City’s Premier League title defence has taken more rough than smooth so far this season, but captain Wes Morgan believes clean sheets are the necessary foundations for a potential resurgence.

The Foxes have been struggling for form after the dizzy heights of a remarkable last campaign, with 21 points from their first 20 games leaving them with a scrap to avoid relegation.

But the Christmas period has sown the seeds of recovery for Claudio Ranieri’s side, following up a New Year’s Eve victory over West Ham with a credible stalemate at Middlesbrough.

That mini run has coincided with two successive clean sheets, a particular highlight for centre-back Morgan despite remaining winless away from the King Power Stadium this season.

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“I don’t think either side created much, but it’s tough with the quick turnaround from Saturday to playing again,” said Morgan.

“There were some tired legs out there but, on reflection, a nil-nil is a good point for us and a clean sheet is always positive.

“We know what we expect of each other defensively and we know should be giving more, so it’s good to get a clean sheet, especially from a defender’s point of view. Hopefully we can continue with that.”

Walter Mazzarri insists he is still the right man to lead Watford this season despite suffering their fifth defeat in seven games on Sunday.

The Hornets were thrashed 4-1 by Spurs, with their only goal of the game, and only shot on target, coming in injury-time through Younes Kaboul.

Watford’s last victory came in early December when they edged Everton out 3-2, but despite their recent blip in form, Mazzarri insists the bigger picture must be looked at.

“From the first day I arrived, I spoke with the club and the president. When we spoke, the first objective, which has always been the same, was to avoid relegation,” he said.

“In this moment, if we look at the table we are doing even better than the starting objective. We could have been where Crystal Palace are or other teams, but we aren’t.

“This has always been the first objective and we’re doing ok.”

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Watford have been plagued by injuries over the festive period, with Juan Camilo Zuniga and Nordin Amrabat both limping off at Vicarage Road on Sunday to add to a long list of players currently on the sidelines.

But Mazzarri remains optimistic his side can turn their fortunes around upon his squad’s return to full strength.

“I’m the first one to say before we had all the injuries and all the players missing we were doing something extraordinary,” he said.

“We were doing something much bigger than the expectations so this is something we also need to take into consideration.”

Alfie Mawson admits Swansea’s defensive frailties are ramping up the threat of relegation after entering the New Year rock bottom of the Premier League following a heavy defeat to Bournemouth.

The Swans were thoroughly outclassed by a side many considered to be fellow relegation candidates, with a 3-0 hammering the worst possible way to end the year on home soil.

Mawson and co. looked all at sea at times in their 13^th league defeat of the campaign, enough to leave them four points adrift of safety at the halfway point, with plenty of work for expected new manager Paul Clement to undertake.

And with 44 goals conceded in 19 games – the most of anyone in the league – 22-year-old Mawson insists it’s not difficult to work out where their weaknesses lie.

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“Things are not going right for us on the pitch and it is showing,” he said.

“We knew we had to go out there and put in the performances, but we did the opposite against Bournemouth.

“They came here with a game-plan and executed it well and deserved the three points.

“When a team like that come and play well, they are ruthless.

“I am gutted with the goals we conceded. Every goal kills our game and the number we are conceding on a regular basis is concerning.”

Following last month’s sacking of Bob Bradley, the Swans are preparing for their third manager of the season after Francesco Guidolin was also axed back in October.

And with former Derby County manager and Bayern Munich assistant Clement on the cusp of taking the reins, Mawson is hoping a new face can prove its worth heading into the rest of the campaign.

“I feel we can turn things around but we need to pull together and push on in 2017,” the centre-back added.

“We must start to get results as soon as possible because the more games that go by without us picking up points, the further we get from safety.

“Hopefully a new manager will have a positive impact and we can turn things around in the coming games.”

Peter Crouch scored his first Premier League goal since May 2015 on New Year’s Eve, but ex-Stoke manager Lou Macari still believes the striker deserves a new contract.

Crouch, signed from Tottenham in 2011, has fallen down the pecking order at the Bet365 Stadium – with the likes of Bojan, Mame Diouf and Wilfried Bony ahead of him under boss Mark Hughes for much of the last two years.

But with Stoke struggling for goals, having scored 22 in 19 games, Hughes turned back to the 35-year-old over the festive period.

Crouch had expected to leave at the end of the season when his contract expires, but Hughes is still a big fan and Macari has urged the club to retain the former England striker.

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“I can’t disagree with Mark Hughes if he is thinking of asking the club to offer the big guy a new contract before his current one expires at the end of the season,” he said.

“Good professionals, which Crouch obviously is, are worth their weight in gold.

“I’d go as far as to say that you could almost forget what they can and can’t do out on the pitch, they are worth their place for the influence they have in and around the dressing room.

“Half the teams that get into trouble and go down are full of terrible pros, guys who whinge at every opportunity and have no character to show when the going gets tough.

“In this day and age, with all the money swilling around and a 25-man squad to fill, there surely has to be room for someone like Crouch.”

Josh King had to make do with a place on the bench against Swansea this weekend but the Bournemouth striker was thrilled to end a goal drought that dated back to early October.

King was Bournemouth’s leading scorer in their first season in the Premier League, but has struggled to find the back of the net this season with just two league goals prior to the clash on New Year’s Eve.

He dropped to the bench against Swansea, but came on for the last quarter of an hour and sealed the 3-0 victory with a goal two minutes from time.

That was his first goal for Eddie Howe’s side since October 1 in a 2-2 draw at Watford, and King is optimistic about his chances of forcing his way back into the starting line-up.

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“It’s a good win for us,” he said.

“I started on the bench but there’s lots of games in this period, you have to take your chance when it comes.

“Everyone is there for each other and it showed, it’s tough for the manager as there’s big players in this squad and it’s tough to pick a starting 11 each week.

“I have three goals in three games against Swansea now, that’s what I told the assistant manager so maybe that was why he put me on instead of someone else!”

Dele Alli said Tottenham Hotspur’s 4-1 demolition of Watford was the perfect preparation ahead of their crunch match against Premier League leaders Chelsea.

Alli and striker Harry Kane both netted braces for the Lilywhites as Mauricio Pochettino’s men notched their fourth straight league win, and moved into the top four for the first time since October.

Younes Kaboul scored a late consolation for Walter Mazzarri’s Hornets.

Spurs are ten points behind Antonio Conte’s side, who have won 13 games in a row, but England midfielder Alli, 20, believes his side will go into the game full of belief after such an impressive showing at Vicarage Road.

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“Yeah – it gives us a lot of confidence going into the game,” Alli said.

“We’re all full of confidence so we’re going to put this behind us now and focus on the next one.”

The match carries an added steel after the two sides drew 2-2 in May, a result which ended Tottenham’s title hopes and ensured Claudio Ranieri’s Leicester City were crowned champions.

The fiery encounter, which saw nine Tottenham players cautioned, has since been dubbed the “Battle of the Bridge”.

And Kane is under no illusion of the size of the task Spurs face, but is determined to stop Chelsea in their tracks.

“The Chelsea match is massive, so we’ll recover and go hard at it,” Kane said.

“We just need to go out there and beat them and stop their winning run.”

Sam Allardyce says his Crystal Palace players are suffering from a lack of belief after slipping to a 2-0 defeat to Arsenal on New Year’s Day.

Olivier Giroud’s audacious flick and an Alex Iwobi header lifted the Gunners up to third in the Premier League, while the Eagles suffered their 11^th league defeat in 19 games, and are two points and one place above the relegation zone.

Allardyce took over from Alan Pardew before Christmas, and will be hoping to get his first win as Palace boss when they host bottom side Swansea City on Tuesday.

The former England manager said it was imperative that his side produce a more confident performance against their fellow strugglers.

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“There was a lack of belief in themselves [against Arsenal],” he said. “It’s been so long since they’ve gone on an extended run of good results.

“Going into 2016 the club was fifth in the Premier League, and then 2016 is well documented. Let’s hope 2017 is more like 2015.

“We’re going to survive by beating teams in the bottom half and if we can get a victory against one of the top teams then that’ll be a bonus to get us safe quicker.

“I think Swansea is a massive game for the nerves of our players and they have to control them on the day as everyone expects us to win on the basis that Swansea are struggling badly recently.

“Everyone is expecting us to thrash them, and we’d like to beat them by more than one or two goals but we’ll have to hold our nerve and produce our best performance.”

Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp believes his decision to move Adam Lallana into a more central position at the start of this season is paying dividends.

The 28-year-old England international moved onto seven assists for the season on New Year’s Eve, crossing for Georginio Wijnaldum to head home the winner against Manchester City.

Lallana has also scored seven goals himself so far this term, making him one of the most effective operators in the Premier League and propelling Liverpool into second place at the halfway mark.

And Klopp reckons Lallana’s agility and quick movement are key to playing as the spearhead of the Reds’ midfield.

“We thought it made sense for us,” he said.

“He is very good in small spaces. He is a very quick player but his biggest strength is not being quick, it’s decision-making in small spaces.

“He can open the game for you in one-on-one situations; when everybody would have pressure, he doesn’t have it because his movements are that quick.

“[He has] wonderful orientation. He needed to adapt a little bit, you’ll remember against Arsenal he lost the ball, for example.

“But that’s all about orientation – he has all the technical abilities for playing there.”

Chelsea boss Antonio Conte is expecting another Premier League showcase when his side meet Tottenham Hotspur on Wednesday evening.

The Italian is looking to do the double over Chelsea’s fierce London rivals, after two goals in six minutes from Pedro and Victor Moses saw the Blues come from behind to win November’s league clash.

With Chelsea needing just one more victory to break the record for most consecutive wins in the Premier League however, Spurs will be more desperate than ever to win and avenge the defeat that saw last season’s title challenge go up in smoke.

And Conte believes his side will have to adjust to an entirely different playing style at White Hart Lane, after his side beat Stoke 4-2 on New Year’s Eve.

“You see your players are very good at adapting to different situations,” he said.

“The Stoke game was different to the last one because they played long balls to [Peter] Crouch. For us it was very difficult to stop this situation, above all the second balls, and the free-kicks and corners to find him, but I’m pleased because I saw my players ready to face this situation.

“Tottenham is another challenge, another type of football to face. They like to play from the back, they like to put a lot of pressure on when you are in possession. We have to prepare very well because this game will be very tough, for us and for them.

“Tottenham are a great team. Last season they could have won the title, and this season they have a stronger team. For sure we will see a good game.

“We only have three days to prepare for this game, but we also have a lot of work we did in the past and we need that in this moment because we haven’t a lot of time to find a solution for this game.”