Manchester United boss Erik ten Hag has insisted he has full confidence in Andre Onana and said there would be nothing to be gained from taking his under-fire goalkeeper out of the spotlight.

Onana’s form is once again under scrutiny after the Cameroon goalkeeper was culpable for two of Galatasaray’s goals in Wednesday’s costly 3-3 draw in Istanbul, as United surrendered a two-goal advantage to leave their Champions League fate out of their hands.

But Ten Hag has strongly defended his £47million summer signing, a player he previously worked with at Ajax, and pointed to statistics showing that Onana is second in saves made, save percentage and goals prevented in the Premier League.

“Players always need trust,” Ten Hag said. “After Alisson he is the best stopper in the league from preventing expected goals. You deserve to play.”

Onana has played in every game for United this season, with Ten Hag opting not to rest him even in the League Cup. That means Turkish stopper Altay Biyindir, a summer signing from Fenerbahce, is still awaiting his debut.

Asked if Onana might benefit from a break, Ten Hag said: “It won’t help him. I have trust in Tom (Heaton) and Altay, clear. But Andre, you see after Alisson, he prevented the most expected goals in the whole league.

“In the Champions League, he has so much experience with Ajax and last year with Inter Milan. Last year he was with (Manuel) Neuer and (Thibaut) Courtois the best goalkeeper, so he is a great keeper.

“He has the potential, so we have to work on him so that he does it consistently and we will work with him and we will support him. The manager, coaches and players all support him.”

That support was not obvious in Istanbul, when United players did not go over to Onana at the final whistle as he threw his gloves to the floor in disgust at his own performance.

But Ten Hag insisted that was not a sign that his players might be losing confidence in their goalkeeper.

“That will not happen,” he said. “This dressing room is together. Football is a game of mistakes and everyone can make mistakes. But this team has to cover that so we will operate.

“Nobody is undroppable, that is also clear. We have a strong belief that he will help us win trophies.”

Onana is expected to be called into Cameroon’s squad for the Africa Cup of Nations in January, having resolved a dispute with head coach Rigobert Song that saw him quit international football following last year’s World Cup.

Onana could miss four Premier League matches if he is called in, with some reports suggesting the 27-year-old is now concerned he could lose his place in the United side during that time.

Asked if any decision had yet been taken over his participation, Ten Hag said: “When they call him, he has to go. But we are in talks.”

Marcus Rashford will be available again for United’s trip to Newcastle on Saturday after missing the midweek drama through suspension.

Alejandro Garnacho, who has been in electric form with two goals in two including last weekend’s outstanding bicycle kick against Everton, prefers playing off the left side in the same position as Rashford, but Ten Hag said it was no problem to accommodate players in his side.

“Against Copenhagen they were both in the team, against Everton they were both in the team and now ‘Rashy’ was suspended,” he said.

“‘Rashy’ can play from the right and he likes to play from the right, but he can also play through the middle and he can play from the left, so he is really multi-functional.”

Mauricio Pochettino admitted Moises Caicedo’s international commitments with Ecuador have complicated the midfielder’s early Chelsea career.

The club paid a British record £115million to sign the 22-year-old from Brighton in August but frequent trips to South America to play for his country have limited the time he has been able to spend working with coaching staff at Cobham.

He has played 14 times in all competitions since his arrival, recovering from a red card on his first appearance against West Ham to become a steady if not yet spectacular performer in the heart of midfield.

Since joining Chelsea he has been called up three times by Ecuador and played in six matches, with each international window requiring a more than 11,000-mile round trip, sometimes not arriving back in London until the early hours of the day before Chelsea’s next game.

He revealed in an interview with the club’s website this week that he spent much of his first 10 days in England alone in a hotel room in tears and suffering from homesickness, after joining the Seagulls from Independiente del Valle in his home country in January 2021 during the Covid pandemic.

Restrictions on movement for people arriving into the UK meant he was unable to meet his Brighton team-mates until completing a period of quarantine, during which he phoned his parents in Ecuador asking to return home.

He recovered to become one of the standout successes of the team that Roberto De Zerbi led to a club-best sixth-placed Premier League finish last campaign, sparking a bidding war between Liverpool and Chelsea in which Pochettino’s side were victorious.

The manager reiterated a call for patience as Caicedo navigates life at Chelsea amid a hectic World Cup qualifying schedule internationally.

“When we signed him we knew what is going to happen,” said Pochettino. “He’s an emotional guy, an emotional player that needs time to recover.

“It didn’t help also the international games, travelling to Ecuador, to South America. That is really tough every single month, two or three weeks then go 10, 12 days away, then come back sometimes with some injury.

“It’s not an excuse but it’s the reality. Now we need time. Of course I say (the team) always need to perform. That is our mentality. But in some situations like his, we need to give time and not to be unfair in the way that we assess him.”

Caicedo has formed a reliable partnership in midfield with Enzo Fernandez, who the club paid a then-British record £107m to sign from Benfica in January while Graham Potter was in charge.

Pochettino revealed that the Argentinian World Cup winner asked for extra time off during the summer due to fatigue and was granted permission to join up late with the squad on their United States tour.

“It’s different because Enzo arrived last January, he was with different coaches here,” said the manager. “He asked when we arrived for a period of holiday because he was tired after the World Cup and everything. He joined us in North Carolina.

“I cannot judge the past. Only I can talk from when we arrived (at Chelsea). We expect all, not only (these two), all the players, even the ones not too much involved, to push their level.”

Ange Postecoglou has cited the early part of Manchester City’s journey under Pep Guardiola as a reason why he has total conviction in his ideas at Tottenham.

Spurs have hit their first real rough patch under the Australian with three straight defeats coupled with a list of absentees which has reached double figures.

Postecoglou remains determined to stick with his attacking approach and could again line up with no recognised centre-back or defensive midfielder at the Etihad Stadium on Sunday.

While many would adopt a more pragmatic style against City, the Tottenham boss will double down on his philosophy and believes the best clubs stick to the plan when faced with hurdles.

“I’m sure the players are thinking ‘is this really going to work against Man City?’ And those are justifiable questions that they need to ask,” Postecoglou explained.

“My role is to show them that this is still the way forward for us as a group. If we’re ever going to bridge that gap to being a successful side, we have to believe in the football we want to play.

“Even though the last few results haven’t been great, I don’t think the players have felt like they struggled out there.

“They still felt there were parts of the game when we were dominant, so they can see when we’re on it and we’re doing things right, even with so many absences, we’re still a very good football team. I don’t feel like it’s at a point where I’m losing people.

“There are plenty of coaches that coach very differently to me, but they’re at that club for four or five years and they have that success. That’s what I’m talking about with a plan.

“It’s not about just playing one way or having a clear identity. Having a plan means getting the right people involved in the club who you believe will take you where you want to go.

“Then you invest in them, in the club, in the squad and you stick to that plan. It doesn’t mean that’s just exactly the same as anyone else.

“City are different to Arsenal, Arsenal are different to Liverpool, Liverpool are different to both of them but as far as I can see they have the same managers and they’ve gone through tough times.

“They saw something in them. You have to show something, it’s not just about blindly appointing someone and saying you’ve got five years, but those managers have shown they have a plan and the club have said ‘let’s back these people.’”

Postecoglou is no stranger to difficult periods, especially at the beginning of his tenures after exiting the Champions League at the start of his Celtic reign, while he faced a relegation battle with Yokohama.

He reiterated how much he enjoys these challenges ahead of this weekend’s trip to last season’s treble-winners.

Postecoglou added: “I think I enjoy it after when you come out the other side! Nah, I love it, mate. I love it. I don’t think anyone goes into management, or anything you do in life, thinking it’s going to be smooth.

“There’s going to be some rough moments and you’ve got to be prepared for that, you’ve got to enjoy that. The alternative is I’m not in a job and I’m sitting on my couch with no pressure on me and no one questioning anything.

“I’m at a fantastic football club, I’m in the best league in the world, getting challenged every week. Why wouldn’t I be enjoying it? The reason I think I really relish them is because my belief gets tested on a daily basis, whether internally or externally.

“Even internally people will always ask those questions, ‘can you do this? Are you able to continue playing this way?’ or ‘is it working or is it not working?’ All those kind of things.

“When I lay my head at night, I just believe in it. I get up the next day thinking I feel strongly about it. Maybe I’ll end up in a heap, mate, I don’t know, because there are no guarantees. But my gut tells me that I won’t. I enjoy it.”

Burnley manager Vincent Kompany believes increasing diversity at boardroom level is the key to unlocking change at every other level of football.

Last week the Football Association released figures showing the football clubs who had voluntarily pledged to improve their ethnic and gender diversity through the Football Leadership Diversity Code had collectively failed to hit any of their annual targets.

Fifty-three clubs have signed up to the FLDC, which is in its third year and which sets voluntary targets in four areas of recruitment – senior leadership roles, team operations, coaching in the men’s game and coaching in the women’s game.

But figures for the last 12 months show clubs failing to achieve success in any category.

Senior leadership hiring of black, Asian and mixed heritage candidates is set at 15 per cent, but clubs only achieved 9.1 per cent. In men’s clubs, the target for new coaching hires from a black, Asian or mixed heritage background was 25 per cent but clubs only managed 16 per cent.

Asked what he thought could be done to improve those figures, Kompany said change must come from the top.

“You’d like to think over time this is going to evolve,” the 37-year-old said. “I’ve always made the point clearly and I think in this day and age it’s even more important – what is the diversity in a boardroom, the levers of power?

“The coaching, you give the job to the best people but I think the diversity, where it’s really needed is where the power is, that’s what affects everything we’re doing.

“If you have a boardroom that’s diverse, you can’t brush things under the carpet. These things will get solved.”

The latest figures show that within the 53 club signatories, 21 per cent of senior leaders and 29 per cent of team operations are female and seven per cent of senior leaders and nine per cent of team operations are black, Asian or mixed heritage.

Across the coaching workforce, 13 per cent of coaches and 11 per cent of senior coaches are black, Asian or mixed heritage.

“If you have 15 (job) applications and management and the board have got opinions from different walks of life, you can’t just brush it under the carpet, it goes through everything…” Kompany added.

“Today you have to choose between black and white, pro this or against this, but I think once you have a little bit of diversity you get much closer to the truth. The reality is, yes there isn’t enough but the truth is that’s only what we see. What’s behind it is more important to bring balance.

“When it’s balanced it’s going to be more fair and when it’s more fair it will take a little bit of pressure away from the whole debate I think.”

Vincent Kompany has suffered no loss of belief despite the bruising start to the season suffered by his Burnley side.

Last season Kompany’s men were breaking records as they charged to the Championship title with 101 points, with many – not least Pep Guardiola – talking up the former Manchester City captain’s chances of one day taking over at the Etihad Stadium.

But there has been a major reality check for Burnley since they got back to the top flight and history is now being made for the wrong reasons as they have lost seven straight home league games to start the campaign, and go into Saturday’s match against fellow strugglers Sheffield United rock bottom.

Kompany is paying no attention to the statistics, however, as he remains convinced his side are improving and remain on the right course.

“Statistics are just statistics,” he said. “To me, that’s not why I’m doing the job. If I wanted to take away the risk of this happening maybe I would make different choices in life. For me I’m in it for everything that goes with it.

“No matter what happens, when the story of this gets written however many years from now this is just part of it. I believe in myself a lot as well. That’s the truth of it.”

Although Kompany has stuck to his principles during Burnley’s struggles so far, he insisted that did not mean his side had not been adapting during the season, and pointed to recent improvements in the performances against Crystal Palace, Arsenal and West Ham – even if all three ended in defeat.

“I try and be consistent,” he said. “That’s also a method to get over moments like this, but I think if you look closely at what we’ve done from the start to now, adapting is definitely what we’ve done.

“I don’t know how you give up principles but you adapt. If you break down the positives, the performances we’ve definitely adapted but we knew we had to.

“You can’t come into the Premier League on the back of a season where you had 101 points and the first thing you do is say, ‘I don’t believe you can do it this way’. You have to stress test it first and then adapt.

“We’ve very clearly adapted and that’s given us the narrative of the last three or four games.”

Burnley caught the eye in the Championship with possession-based attacking football, but trying to play like that in the Premier League was always going to be a very difficult challenge.

While Burnley have had to change, Kompany said his own natural aggressive instincts remain.

“The possession reputation comes from the fact we were the better team in the Championship, but I try to make the point that I’m naturally aggressive,” Kompany said. “I was an aggressive player. It’s such an important thing for me.

“Last year we were so good in those moments. The difference is we were better than other teams, we had more of the ball. This season, whether we have the ball or not is not always decided by us.

“The point I’m trying to make is when you don’t have the ball, I don’t see any reason why it shouldn’t be like the West Ham game or the Palace game was good as well or Arsenal where we were done by two set plays.

“It’s what wasn’t there at the start of the season but it’s something we always had and hopefully we’ve recovered it now.”

Paul Smyth and Chris Willock were on target as new QPR boss Marti Cifuentes secured back-to-back victories with a 2-0 win over Preston at Deepdale.

Rangers had struggled in the difficult conditions in the opening 45 minutes, but goals from Smyth and Willock were enough to secure a second straight victory for the first time this season.

Preston, meanwhile, missed their chance to move back into the top six thanks to a third straight loss.

After Cifuentes had indicated before kick-off that he felt the game ought to have been called off, both sets of players did appear to be treading somewhat carefully during the uneventful opening stages.

It was North End who fashioned the first half-chance after 15 minutes.

Mads Frokjaer’s out-swinging corner-kick was eventually worked out towards the unmarked Ched Evans, only for the Welshman to guide a disappointing shot straight at grateful keeper Asmir Begovic.

Preston were looking the more enterprising of the teams, with Duane Holmes looking particularly lively. Will Keane just could not stretch to meet one of his dangerous crosses.

The hosts were definitely looking the most likely to force any kind of breakthrough, with Rangers rarely threatening at all as the game edged towards half-time.

Whether the wintry conditions had been a factor was debatable, but Cifuentes’ men finally caught a sight of goal in the 38th minute.

Midfielder Willock made a decent run towards the edge of the Preston box, but saw his strike roll harmlessly past the far post.

At the other end Evans saw a shot blocked, and by the end of the opening period both goalkeepers had been largely spectators on a bitterly cold Lancashire evening.

Preston opened more purposefully after the break. A smart corner routine saw Ben Whiteman find skipper Alan Browne, only for his shot to be blocked.

Rangers replied with Smyth guiding a glancing header narrowly off target.

The much-needed breakthrough soon followed from Rangers.

Smyth made no mistake this time, darting into the six-yard box to poke home sub Ilias Chair’s dangerous in-swinging cross.

Chair was inspired, and minutes later lashed in a shot which forced Freddie Woodman into a competent stop.

Preston, who were humbled 4-0 at Middlesbrough on Tuesday night, had lost their way, and they were certainly not helped by Holmes’ poor attempt from a free-kick with 25 minutes left.

Rangers sub Elijah Dixon-Bonner drove an effort narrowly wide as his side sought a potentially victory-clinching second goal.

And Rangers deservedly got their second in the 87th minute.

Chair was the provider again, crossing in for an unmarked Willock to slot home comfortably.

Ryan Bowman’s hat-trick fired Shrewsbury into the FA Cup third round with a 3-2 victory over Notts County.

Bowman gave his side an early lead, only for Richard Brindley to equalise for the hosts, but the Shrews striker completed his treble with two goals inside eight second-half minutes before 17-year-old James Sanderson pulled one back late on for County.

The visitors were gifted the lead in the first minute when Aden Baldwin’s slip let in Dan Udoh, who squared the ball to Bowman for a simple finish.

Luke Williams’ side dominated possession and were rewarded seven minutes before the break when Brindley’s long-range effort flew beyond Marko Marosi.

But Shrewsbury were able to regain their lead early in the second half as another defensive error allowed Bowman to grab his second and he struck for a third time in the 56th minute after another mistake from Baldwin.

The hosts got their second late on through Sanderson, picking his spot with one of his first touches on his professional debut.

England kept their bid to secure Olympics qualification for Great Britain alive in dramatic fashion as Ella Toone’s stoppage-time goal completed a fightback from two goals down to beat the Netherlands 3-2 at Wembley.

Needing a win to remain in contention to finish top in Nations League Group A1, the final position required for them to have a chance of obtaining a place for GB at next summer’s Games in Paris, the Lionesses were on course for a third defeat in the pool as Lineth Beerensteyn notched a first-half brace for the Dutch.

But Sarina Wiegman’s side battled back with two goals in quick succession from Georgia Stanway and Lauren Hemp just prior to the hour mark, before substitute Toone capped the turnaround in the first minute of time added on to bring a huge roar from the 71,632 crowd in attendance.

It leaves England in second place, level on points with the Netherlands and one ahead of Belgium, ahead of concluding their group matches by playing Scotland at Hampden Park on Tuesday. Belgium drew 1-1 with Scotland in Friday’s other Group A1 contest.

Stephen Humphrys’ ninth goal of the season secured 2013 FA Cup winners Wigan’s place in this year’s third round following a 1-0 win at Vanarama National League side York.

During a cagey first half, Humphrys had carried the greatest threat.

Just before the half-hour mark, good skills from the former Fulham forward took him past home defenders Callum Howe and Tyler Cordner before his 15-yard drive was parried to safety by David Stockdale, who raced off his line to deny the same player moments later.

But Humphrys was not to be denied in the 61st minute when he charged clear on goal again – after Cordner had misjudged Omar Rekik’s ball down the middle of the pitch – and showed immaculate composure to round Stockdale and roll the ball into an inviting net.

A late rally by the hosts saw Olly Dyson hook wide, substitute Maz Kouhyar force a fingertip save from Sam Tickle and Lenell John-Lewis head off target with the goal at his mercy from three yards at the death.

AC Milan boss Stefano Pioli admitted his side must get their Serie A title challenge back on track with victory in Saturday’s home game against Frosinone.

Just one win in their previous five league matches has seen Milan slip six points behind leaders Inter and four behind second-placed Juventus.

A home Champions League defeat to Borussia Dortmund in midweek left Milan bottom of their group and while they can still qualify for the knockout stages with one game to play, the pressure is mounting on Pioli.

The 58-year-old former Lazio, Inter and Fiorentina head coach told a press conference: “Frosinone are doing very well and have confidence, (Eusebio) Di Francesco is doing a great job.

“They are aggressive, but we know how to cause them problems. We want to win, and we need to. We need points, the league campaign is long.

“As usual, we’ll need to show concentration, determination and quality. We need to show we are still competitive and put in a good performance.”

Milan beat Pioli’s former club Fiorentina 1-0 at the San Siro last week to halt a domestic league run of two draws and two defeats and a slump in form has coincided with a lengthy injury list.

Pioli was without half a dozen key players for Tuesday night’s loss to Dortmund and saw defender Malick Thiaw forced off early in the second half.

Thiaw will not feature against Frosinone and Olivier Giroud is still suspended, while Rafael Leao, Noah Okafor, Pierre Kalulu, Simon Kjaer, Marco Pellegrino and Mattia Caldara are unlikely to feature.

Pioli added: “There are still 25 league games to play. I told the players not to come in on Thursday to Milanello if they didn’t believe we could reach Inter and Juventus.”

Frosinone boss Di Francesco has injury concerns of his own as his 10th-placed side bid to halt their poor away form, with Luca Mazzitelli, Riccardo Marchizza, Pol Lirola, Francesco Gelli and Marco Brescianini all doubtful.

Frosinone’s impressive start to the season after promotion has been built on five wins and a draw in seven home league matches, but they are winless on the road.

Di Francesco told a press conference: “We need to get this obstacle out of our heads. We made the last point (on the road) in Salerno (in September).

“We need to try to approach the away match with the right attitude. Here at home, however, we feel stronger when going to face our opponents. This way of thinking certainly needs to be changed.”

Aston Villa have lodged an official complaint with UEFA over the behaviour of Legia Warsaw fans ahead of the Europa Conference League clash at Villa Park.

Almost 50 people were arrested following violence involving the visiting fans prior to kick-off on Thursday night.

Missiles were thrown at police as the Polish supporters were held in a coach park near the ground before they were due to enter the stadium.

West Midlands Police said four officers were injured and, although the game started on time, no Legia fans were allowed in ahead of kick-off.

Villa also accused Legia officials of a “complete lack of cooperation” with themselves, the police and UEFA.

Villa said in a statement: “Aston Villa can confirm it has lodged an official complaint with UEFA over the conduct of Legia Warsaw Football Club and the behaviour of their supporters prior to last night’s UEFA Europa Conference League match at Villa Park.

“Four police officers were injured and 46 Legia supporters arrested after unprecedented violence by the Polish fans outside the stadium.

“This shocking behaviour followed Legia club officials’ complete lack of cooperation with West Midlands Police, Aston Villa and UEFA throughout the day.

“It started during the standard pre-match operational meeting that commenced at 10.30am on Thursday morning and was attended by UEFA representatives, including UEFA’s security team, as well as West Midlands Police including representatives from both clubs.

“Legia Warsaw refused to confirm if they would accept their allocation of tickets for the match at that point. This is in stark contrast to normal UEFA operational procedures.

“They advised the meeting that they would meet with their supporters at 2.30pm and communicate the decision at 3pm, but advised there was a possibility that they would not accept the tickets.

“Despite repeated requests before and after the 3pm deadline for a decision, there was no communication until 4pm when Legia informed Aston Villa that they wished to receive their ticket allocation.

“These tickets were handed to Legia officials immediately upon their arrival at the stadium at 6.16pm. To reiterate, Legia officials were advised on a call that included a number of UEFA representatives on November 2 that they would receive an allocation of 1,002 – exactly four weeks prior to last night’s fixture.”

Chris Heck, president of business operations at Villa, said: “The lack of cooperation and prevarication from Legia Warsaw officials prior to the match was entirely unacceptable and deeply disappointing.

“This behaviour increased the danger that West Midlands Police officers and our own fans were subjected to before the game and the scenes of disorder from the Legia fans have no place in modern football or civilised society.

“Aston Villa will be making further representations to UEFA in order to ensure that other clubs and police forces across Europe are not exposed to similar serious safety risks at the hands of Legia Warsaw.

“We are immensely grateful to West Midlands Police for keeping our supporters and our local community safe last night and are pleased that they will also be making their own representations via the UK police authorities to UEFA.”

West Midlands Police chief inspector Tim Robinson said on Thursday evening: “This should have been a great evening of football which was enjoyed by fans from both clubs.

“Unfortunately, there were appalling scenes which saw away fans dangerously throw flares and other missiles at our officers.”

He said the “extreme violence” left police with no other choice but to prevent away fans entering the stadium, adding: “The safety of everyone is our priority, and clearly we had no other option.”

Jamaica College and St Andrew Technical (STATHS) will meet in the 2023 Walker Cup final after scoring 3-0 victories over Excelsior High and Wolmer’s Boys respectively in the semi-finals played at stadium east on Thursday.

Coming into the season, both teams who had met in the Manning Cup final in 2017, 2019 and 2022, would have been tipped to meet at that stage once again.

Jayd Johnson scored a double for Jamaica College who led 1-0 at half time as Excelsior High finished the game with 10 players after Renaldino Medwinter was sent off for striking a Jamaica College player.

Johnson gave Jamaica College the lead in the 27^th minute, Jamoy Denis made the scores 2-0 in the 51^st minute before Johnson completed his brace in the 58^th minute.

Earlier in the first game, Nickoy Gayle scored for STATHS in the 10^th minute, Richard Livingston doubled the lead in the 19^th minute before Ajetai Marshall who was celebrating his 17^th birthday and came off the bench in the second half, completed the scoring in the 77^th minute.

The final will be a precursor to the Manning Cup final between Hydel High and Mona High at the National Stadium on December 8.

Mauricio Pochettino believes his players have been their own worst enemies this season after Chelsea’s recent good form was derailed by last weekend’s thrashing at Newcastle.

The 4-1 loss on Tyneside came after the team had given arguably their two most promising performances of the season, first winning by the same score away at previously unbeaten Tottenham, then in drawing a frenetic match 4-4 against Premier League and European champions Manchester City at Stamford Bridge.

Yet at St. James’s Park they were routed by Eddie Howe’s side, with Pochettino admitting to feeling angry and disappointed at the manner in which his players capitulated in the second half against a Newcastle team ravaged by injuries.

Inconsistency has been a thorn in the manager’s side since he took over in July, with only four wins in 13 league matches.

Home form has been a particular concern, with one victory so far and defeats against Nottingham Forest, Aston Villa and Brentford, though performances in earning creditable draws against Arsenal, Liverpool and City had offered cause for hope.

However, the heavy defeat to Newcastle, which was compounded by a red card for captain Reece James, has brought questions about the rate of progress under the Argentinian back to the fore ahead of welcoming Brighton to west London on Sunday.

“It was a tough week for everyone,” said Pochettino. “I’m very happy because the players reacted really well. We blame ourselves because our approach (at Newcastle) maybe was wrong.

“But the week was good to realise what we need to improve. We need to be more consistent and mature. I’m very, very happy so far. It was tough in training and in meetings, but sometimes this type of situation helps you to improve a lot.

“The important thing is not to look at the end of the season, but to see the process and to improve every day. That’s the most difficult thing always in this type of process, to be focused on today and not on tomorrow.

“We beat Tottenham, had an amazing game against Manchester City, then we lose against Newcastle. We are our worst enemies and we need to be focused on us.

“If we are in a good place (against Brighton), I think for sure we will compete in a very good way. Brighton are not going to be the problem. We need to pay attention (to the opposition), but in this process I think we need to pay more attention to ourselves than to the opponent.”

Summer signings Christopher Nkunku and Romeo Lavia will be assessed on Saturday ahead of the Brighton game, with Pochettino confirming “they are close” to being fit enough to make long-awaited debuts.

Nkunku, a £52million capture from RB Leipzig, suffered a knee injury during a pre-season game against Borussia Dortmund, disrupting a promising start to his Chelsea career on the club’s United States tour, whilst Lavia has been out with an ankle problem and has not played since joining from Southampton.

Pochettino added that he had not held back in showing his anger to the players following the surrender to Newcastle.

“The players know very well how my mood was,” he said. “I’m not going to act. I’m not going to show a face that I don’t feel.

“I think it’s important the players feel the coaches in a natural way when we are angry, when we’re happy we’re happy. We were tough in our analysis, but tough is about telling the truth.”

Stephen Kingsley hopes improving Hearts can become more emphatic winners as they bid to assert themselves in the race for Europe.

The Jambos have climbed to fourth in the cinch Premiership after three successive league victories by a one-goal margin.

Hearts have comfortably the best defensive record in the league outside the Old Firm, with six clean sheets and only 12 goals conceded in their 13 matches.

However, Steven Naismith’s side have scored only 13 times, with only three teams, Ross County plus the bottom two of St Johnstone and Livingston, netting less.

“One thing we’ve spoken about, even though we’ve had three good results recently, is that we need to score more goals,” said defender Kingsley.

“We’ve done well defensively and kept a lot of clean sheets this season, so the next thing is to go and really take it by the scruff of the neck and kill teams off as early as we can and make it more enjoyable for ourselves.”

Hearts last weekend made it three league wins in a row for the first time since January 2022.

If they beat Kilmarnock at Rugby Park on Saturday – a result that would lift them up to third place – it will be the first time since the start of the 2018/19 season under Craig Levein that they have recorded four top-flight victories on the spin.

“It just shows that we’ve not really shown that level of consistency we need for a long time,” said Kingsley. “Two seasons ago we had a really good run of games where we went into games feeling like we were going to get a win or a positive result no matter how we played.

“We need to build ourselves back up to that. I don’t think any team has shown that level of consistency this season. That’s why the league is so tight and it’s why we’re sitting up in fourth after not having the best of results earlier in the season.

“I think whoever can show that bit of consistency will be the ones who do well come the end of the season.”

Despite being a defender, Kingsley netted 12 goals in his first two seasons at Hearts, including seven in the 2021/22 campaign.

Remarkably, however, the 29-year-old has not found the next in the past 19 months since his sensational free-kick in the Scottish Cup semi-final victory over Hibernian in April 2022.

“As long as we win I don’t care,” he said when asked about his goal drought. “I’d obviously love to get back on the score-sheet and help the boys out, but as long as I’m keeping clean sheets and the team’s winning, that’s the most important thing.

“I had a run of form a couple of seasons ago where I was getting loads of free-kicks and getting chances to score, but they’ve kind of dried up.

“I had a few free-kicks I was disappointed with earlier in the season, but my main job is to be a defender and we’ve been keeping clean sheets so I’m happy with that.

“I really couldn’t care who is scoring the goals as long as we’re winning games.”