Tottenham Hotspur have publicly criticized three of the club’s most famous players for breaking the rules of coronavirus after attending a Christmas party with their families.
Photos circulating on social media showed Erik Lamela, Sergio Reguilon and Giovani Lo Celso at a party in London, including West Ham player Manuel Lanzini.
UK government bans ban on mixing with other people in homes, London is in the top tier Tier 4 due to the rapid spread of the new Covid-19 strain.
The Club’s Reaction
Tottenham reacted angrily, with all three players facing disciplinary action, while West Ham said Lanzini had been “strongly reminded of his responsibilities.”
Lamela was not included in Tottenham’s squad for Saturday’s game against Leeds when newcomer Reguilon, who signed in the summer from Real Madrid, did not play unused. Lo Celso is injured.
“We are extremely disappointed and strongly condemn this image showing some of our players with family and friends together at Christmas, particularly as we know the sacrifices everybody around the country made to stay safe over the festive period,” Tottenham said in a statement.
“The rules are clear, there are no exceptions, and we always remind all our players and staff of the latest agreements and responsibilities to follow and set an example.
Tottenham MP David Lammy also took to social media to give his views, calling the three “stupid and selfish”.
“This matter will be resolved internally.”
Game Against Leeds
Tottenham’s remaining players shrugged off the controversy on the pitch with a 3-0 win over Leeds United to move into third place in the Premier League standings, four points adrift of top two Liverpool and Manchester United.
Leeds, who were very attractive after their promotion, opened the scoring before Steven Bergwijn was offended by Ezgjan Alioski and Harry Kane made no mistake in the penalty area to give Tottenham a lead.
He has also reunited with his strike partner Son Heung-min to send a South Korean for the second time, his Tottenham 100.
The three points closed successfully when Son’s corner of the second half was headed home by a post by Toby Alderweireld.
Matt Doherty’s dismissal late for a second yellow card lifted the trophy in Spurs’ fine victory, but manager Jose Mourinho was satisfied with “three key points.”
Mourinho has been briefed on disciplinary issues against his three stars after a breach of the rules.
“I think all clubs are doing their best to keep their players safe but there are times in private life that you can’t control,” he told BT Sport.
But he later expressed his anger at the three and their actions in gathering the media.
“We feel disappointed because we gave the players all the education and conditions. We are not happy. It was a negative surprise for us,” he said.”We know what we are internally. We don’t need to open the door to you and let you know what is going on internally.”What are going to be the consequences and how deeply we approach that negative surprise…I feel disappointed.”
Mourinho was critical of the Premier League after his team’s mid-week match against Fulham was later postponed and he doubled what he saw in the postponement.
“I go back to the original rules that if you have 14 players available you have to play. I see no other reason not to do it.”
Earlier, the Fulham v Burnley match on Sunday was also postponed due to Covid-19’s good qualities in the west London club.
Arsenal Beat WBA
The highlight of Saturday’s game was a 4-0 victory for resurgent Arsenal at West Bromwich Albion.
Mikel Arteta’s team recorded their third consecutive victory after striking out a poor form that left some thinking about Spain’s future in the lead.
Defender Kieran Tierney put the Gunners ahead with a curling shot in the first half, followed by a brilliant team goal that put Buka Saka in place to finish.
In a snow-covered stadium, Alexandre Lacazette continued to score twice in the second half as Arsenal roamed and defeated Sam Allardyce’s rivals.
Arsenal moves up to 11th with WBA 19th and in deep trouble.
In the afternoon game, Sheffield United remained on the sidelines after a 2-0 defeat at Crystal Palace, their 15 losses in 17 games, while Brighton bounced back from a 3-3 draw at home to the Wolves, but still struggled to float over the draw.
