Tottenham Hotspur escaped the Group of Death, and then some.
On Wednesday, Tottenham laughed at those who thought Spurs would be unable to reach the Champions League knockout phase, defeating Real Madrid 3-1 at Wembley Stadium to qualify for the tournament’s last 16. It was a phenomenal night for the English club, which outplayed Los Blancos in all aspects of the game and could have scored more than three goals.
Dele Alli, who made his first appearance in the Champions League this season and endured a bumpy start to the campaign, overshadowed Harry Kane, who was returning from a hamstring problem. The English midfielder opened the scoring in the 27th minute, one-timing the ball into the back of the net after Nacho needlessly produced a throw-in, although the assistant referee failed to note that Kieran Trippier was in an offside position.
Alli then doubled Tottenham’s lead in the 56th minute, beating Casemiro twice and striking the ball past Kiko Casilla via a deflection off Sergio Ramos. Spurs’ third was produced by Christian Eriksen, while Cristiano Ronaldo scored what proved to be nothing more than a consolation goal for Madrid.
“It was a fantastic performance from us,” Alli said, according to the Guardian’s Jacob Steinberg. “We knew if we stuck to the game plan and stayed solid at the back, we would have a lot of chances. We spoke after the game at their place and couldn’t believe the space we had. The easy pass was sometimes too obvious at times. We don’t want to compete with these teams, we want to be winning.”
Tottenham’s last adventure in Europe – in which Spurs were eliminated from the Champions League in the group stage and subsequently tasted defeat to KAA Gent in the Europa League – now feels like a distant memory.
Lance Dunbar was added to the Los Angeles Rams’ active roster Saturday and is expected to serve as the new backup for star running back Todd Gurley, a need in the wake of Malcolm Brown’s recent knee injury.
Dunbar, who spent the previous five seasons with the Dallas Cowboys, was signed as a free agent but missed the entirety of the offseason program and training camp because of a pre-existing knee issue. He began the year on the physically unable to perform list, but has been practicing with the Rams over the last two weeks.
Lance Dunbar missed the entirety of the offseason program and training camp because of a pre-existing knee issue. Christian Petersen/Getty Images
“He’ll be a guy that we’re counting on,” Rams coach Sean McVay told the media from the team facility on Friday.
“I think part of the reason we brought him here is he’s a pretty versatile guy out of the backfield,” offensive coordinator Matt LaFleur added. “He’s got very good receiving skills. He’s a guy that’s been in the league for six years, so he’s got that veteran experience, as well.”
The Rams also promoted Johnny Mundt from the practice squad to replace Derek Carrier as the No. 3 tight end for Sunday’s home game against the Houston Texans. Carrier (hamstring) and outside linebacker Robert Quinn (illness) are each doubtful for the Week 10 game from the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.
Brown suffered a high-grade MCL sprain during Sunday’s 51-17 win over the New York Giants, but will not require surgery. The Rams also have Justin Davis, an undrafted free agent out of USC, as an option at running back.
To create room on the active roster for Dunbar and Mundt, the Rams waived offensive lineman Andrew Donnal and transferred defensive back Isaiah Johnson to the practice squad. Dunbar will wear No. 25.
The Champions League group stage is two-thirds toward completion, and for each continental power struggling to secure progression to the knockout stage, a fresh face is making a claim to enter the discussion.
Two-time defending champ Real Madrid appears a shadow of its former self, Juventus, the side it beat last in June’s final, has faced its fair share of obstacles, and last year’s semi-finalists Monaco and Atletico Madrid perilously hang onto narrow hopes.
Conversely, continental tenderfoots Manchester City, Tottenham, and Besiktas have the look of world-beaters and suddenly, the 2017-18 Champions League is a wide-open affair.
With the knockout stage picture less murky after Wednesday’s fixtures, gaze into a crystal ball and have your say below:
GREEN BAY, Wis. — Martellus Bennett disputes that the Green Bay Packers should have released him with the “failure to disclose a physical condition” designation.
The veteran tight end was cut on Wednesday and claimed off waivers by the New England Patriots on Thursday.
Bennett signed a three-year, $21 million contract that included a $6.3 million signing bonus in free agency. He played in just seven games for the Packers.
Bennett used his Instagram Story — the same avenue he used to post during the bye week that he was “pretty sure” he would retire after this season — to tell his side of the story.
“The packers examined my shoulder on my visit March 10 and cleared it,” he wrote. “They even gave me an xray as well. It got worse during the season, specifically against the Cowboys so I asked to have it checked out and we checked it. After a few days of contemplating to play with it or get surgery, I chose surgery. Now here we are …”
Bennett, however, passed his physical with the Patriots on Friday and was on the practice field. Still, he posted that he wasn’t happy that the Packers’ longtime team physician Dr. Pat McKenzie allegedly encouraged him to play. McKenzie, however, has long been known as one of the most conservative doctors around the league.
“They tried to f— me over,” Bennett continued on his Instagram story. “Dr. McKenzie trying to cover his own ass. After trying to persuade me to play thru a major injury and choosing to get surgery.
“They have access to all my medical records. My shoulder wasn’t where it is now at the beginning of the season. I f—– it up playing for the @packers.”
“Dr. McKenzie didn’t make [me] feel safe and was pushing to play, which I thought was weird. Not that he was trying to get me to play thru it but the way he was saying things. I didn’t trust him. So I got 3 other opinions from doctors who all said I need to get it fixed. So I decided to do that. And they decided to waive me the some bulls— excuse. Failure [to] disclose.
“Every week we do a body evaluation sheet in the weight room and pretty much every week I circled my shoulder. I just kept playing but it got worse.
“During the bye week I got off anti inflammatories to clean my system and could really feel the pain. So I asked to examine it first day back in. And that’s when we found out it was really f– up.”
“They knew.
Martellus Bennett said he wasn’t happy that the Packers’ long-time team physician Dr. Pat McKenzie allegedly encouraged him to play. AP Photo/Mike Roemer
“They panicked. Thinking that I was trying to go on IR and be on their books next year. When I mentioned that I would possible retire. So they tried to f— me before they thought I would f— them. This was all about money.”
“All about money. I get it. But don’t lie homie. You knew wtf was up.
“I had intentions of playing all 8 games as I mentioned in the post during the bye week, but found out it was worse than I felt after getting it checked out.
“Now I’m like f— it.
“I chose my health over the ‘team’. They chose money over me.”
The first public hint of a shoulder injury came after Bennett returned from the bye week. He practiced with the team during their first workout Tuesday but was on the field the next day and later showed up on the injury report.
The Packers did not have any comment after Bennett’s post, but Packers wide receiver Jordy Nelson posted a statement on Twitter later on Friday to defend the organization and the medical team.
Earlier on Friday coach Mike McCarthy addressed the situation.
“I’m not going to get into the Patriots claiming Marty, I’ll just reiterate what I said yesterday: I just know what the facts are and how the timeline came about,” McCarthy said. “I talked to him Tuesday [following the bye week] after practice and he [had] a shoulder concern injury. I advised him to get the second opinions. He did that and he went to a number of them. The last medical conversation I was involved with in regards to Marty, they were talking about scheduling surgery. After that, then you have the termination and then the claim. I really don’t have any comments on that. I’ve answered the question for the last time, respectfully.”
Said tight end Richard Rodgers: “I think we know where we’re trying to go. If someone is not on that boat, it’s better that they’re not here. We’re looking to move on. We know our ultimate goal. We have to continue to execute on offense.”
Bennett is questionable for Sunday night’s game in Denver with a shoulder injury. He was limited in practice Friday, per the Patriots’ participation report.
