It is thought that the Spanish club had real interest in the Mexican International who has found first team opportunities had to come by this season but could not agree a fee with Spurs and were set to renew their interest in January with Harry Redknapp reported to be willing to let the player go.

Sevilla President Jose Maria del Nido told spanish radio station SVCF “ he is now not a target for us because his is superior to the market value” so it would seem that Tottenham value Dos Santos more than Sevilla are willing to pay and therefore will turn their attentions elsewhere.

Dos Santos has had loan spells at Ipswich Town, Galatasaray before returning to La Liga with Racing Santander and the former Barcelona Youth player has seen his form dip and has not showed the potential that arrived with him in 2008 and will wonder whether any other team are going to show an interest, in recent days it has been reported that Everton are keen for a loan deal but no official word as of yet.

Bassong who last night one of the reason’s we lost against Rubin after he decided he wanted to dribble the ball out of this own area rather than go with the natural defensive instinct and clear the ball, fouling Alexander Ryazantsev after losing control of the ball which lead to the converted free-kick, has become frustrated with the lack of first team opportunities in recent times and has had to settle for the bench.

Sebastian Bassong told the Evening Standard “ For my career, for the type of player I am, I need to play week-in, week-out, so if I don’t get another chance at Spurs, I’ll change.”

It’s strange situation Bassong finds himself in, His move in the summer to QPR broke down after our reported bid for Gary Cahill fell through and the Cameroon international remained at White Hart Lane although it now seems to his displeasure as many are suggesting he had been told by Harry that he was surplus to requirements, and Bassong is blaming his lack of appearances for Tottenham on his failure to land a spot in his Nation’s side in recent times.

He said “I got dropped at Tottenham for no reason and I lost my place in the national team as well so that was a tough moment for me but since I’ve been playing a bit more I’m confident of returning to the national team.”

Sebastian, may want to concentrate on the appearances he does get as for me he has been performing, on occasions, badly in the games we’ve seen him in.

Speaking to The Sun, Redknapp said that the doctor had advised him to rest “for a couple of weeks” as he looks set to miss out on our next London derby against Fulham at the weekend but said of his two week absence “That’s handy because after this weekend we have a break for international matches coming up anyway.” and whilst the operation has been needed for sometime, it was done quickly after he suffered chest pains at home.

Although Redknapp would have been resting last night there is no doubt that he would have kept up to date with the fixture and would have some cause for concern although he will be buoyed by the return of William Gallas and Steven Pienaar who both battled through the game and their injuries didn’t seem to return or show signs of trouble.

With Kevin Bond set to take charge again on Sunday, reports are suggesting that Harry Redknapp will pick the side and reinstate Brad Friedel although Carlo Cudicini was the sole reason we didn’t lose by further goals in Russia, pulling of magnificent saves that will have Heurelho Gomes wondering just how he is going to force his way into the side.

Redknapp has been praising 32-year-old Man Utd defender Rio Ferdinand recently. The former England Captain has come in for quite a bit of stick since the 6-1 thrashing, at Old Trafford, by Manchester City and has been dropped from by Sir Alex Ferguson.

Ferdinand’s hopes of featuring in Man United’s first team, at the moment, are not good, Johnny Evans and Nemanja Vidic have been in good form. In addition, the duo of young Englishmen Chris Smalling and Phil Jones have also impressed , further decreasing the chances of Ferdinand getting his place back in the Man Utd first team.

The second Man Utd player we are apparently going to buy is Michael Owen. Owen recently signed a one year deal with Man Utd and had been hoping for more first team appearances, this has simply not materialised for the former England International.

Whether either of these two deals come off is open to question, would we really want these two for a combined fee of £10 Million, I think not, they are too old, too injury prone and we could probably get far better value for money by buying a couple of youngsters instead.

Pavy is also focusing on Euro 2012 and fears that unless he fo4rces a move in the winter transfer window that Russia will not pick him for the Tournament next June.

Speaking to Football-Express.com Pavy said

“I have to do something in the transfer period. We’re ahead of the European Championship. If I don’t change (my club) then Euro 2012 will be played without me,”

“I was fighting and fighting but it was useless. Does Redknapp believe in me? Now I don’t think so.

“I do the training as good as the others. I do everything with 100 per cent effort.

“I don’t cry and I don’t say that everybody is bad but I’m a good footballer. If I score in each game then I can play. But it’s not a reality to score in each game. That’s all.

“Will I ask the club to sell me in December? Yes, it’s 100 per cent.

“I’d rather go back to Russia. If I sign to Anzhi or not – we shouldn’t go too far. Maybe I’ll have only one possibility and that will be Anzhi and nothing else.”

Well. It is hardly a surprise is it? Pavy has never really set the place alight has he? And I for one fully understand why he would want to leave, in fact I hope he does, then maybe we can bring in another striker that will be more consistent for us.

Speaking to Sky Sports Redknapp said “His skill is frightening, and he could be a great player. If his head’s right then he can be brilliant”.

Harry also fears that Taarabt may come back to haunt him today as He prepares for his sides London Derby. “…I always felt that he could come back and haunt you, or bite you.

Tottenham fan’s will be hoping for a quiet afternoon as far as Adel Taarabt is concerned and I for one think he flounders during the big occasions and maybe the circus surrounding him will be too much for him to handle.

Much has been made of Taarabt since his red hot form saw QPR runaway with the Championship last season but his form in the Premier League has raised question and I feel that maybe Championship was the right level for him. That’s not to say the player isn’t dangerous and Tottenham must not allow him time on the ball today.

Redknapp finished by claiming that Taarabt was “.. a bit of a fruitcake”. Whether a fruit based cake or not Taarabt certainly has potential but im confident that the Spurs Midfield and Defence will handle him

According to The Mirror Everton are keen on taking the South African midfielder back to Goodison Park in January, something that they tried to do in the summer with a Loan offer that was swiftly rejected by Harry Redknapp.

A groin injury has hampered his start to the season this term, however with the Midfield quartet of Lennon, Modric, Parker and Bale all impressing and plenty of options on the bench if required it is hard to see Pienaar getting in the squad at the moment and a move would be sensible for both the player and the club.

The Mirror is reporting that David Moyes is ready to make a renewed bid however I myself am skeptical as to whether Moyes would want Pienaar back at the club but with the lack of depth at Everton he may have no choice. Moyes is not a fan of bringing players back for a second spell especially when Pienaar left the club on bad terms.

It remains to be seen whether this comes to anything but with all transfer gossip there is an element of story-telling and one wonders whether this is the case now.

Potential Transfer Rating – 30%

Tottenham will be buoyed by the form of Dutch playmaker Rafael Van Der Vaart and will look to him to break down what is a strong QPR defence who certainly showed Chelsea they are well worth their 12th position in the League.

Spurs will wan’t to ensure a professional job is done against QPR today and given the recent performances of the team we would hope that three points would be in the bag but by no means should we be over confident against last season’s Championship winners

Location

We’ve not lost at White Hart Lane since the opening day fixture against Man City and tougher teams than QPR have come here and suffered the wrath of 36,000 Spurs fans and the Players will look to continue this impressive home form which now stands at one loss in 20 home games.

The last time our neighbors from West London visited White Hart Lane we won 1-0 however a lot has changed for QPR and will be sure to provide a stern test and one that I am confident we can come out of with a win.

It’s also well worth noting that good old London town seems to be a happy hunting ground for Spurs. We’ve not lost a London derby in 16 occasions.

Referee

Mr Howard Webb will officiate the game today and the country’s premier official is taking charge of his 13th season and will be sure to provide a stern job today.

His record this season is fifty-seven yellow card and four red card, averaging 5.08 cards a game.

Tottenham’s Verdran Corluka was vocal about Howard Webb at the beginning of the month and it is far to say the Croatian is not his biggest fan. Corluka was disappointed that Webb was in charge of the Greece vs Croatia game saying ‘ Almost every time I get at the game when Webb was in charge, I have had negative experiences”. Howard Webb suspended the match after three minutes due to crowd trouble.

This will be Tottenham and QPR’s first taste of Howard Webb’s referring this term and his previous two premier league games have seen Webb dishing out a red card.

Opposition

Since their opening day defeat to Bolton in which many condemned them to relegation and said they were not ready for Premier League football a lot has changed around Loftus Road and they boast a pretty good record since the arrival of new oner’s and a whole host of new players including the fiery Joey Barton who will no doubt provide moments to talk about. QPR’s results thus far in the league are listed below:

QPR 0 – 4 Bolton
Everton 0 – 1 QPR
Wigan 2 – 0 QPR
QPR 0 – 0 Newcastle
Wolverhampton 0 – 3 QPR
QPR 1 – 1 Aston Villa
Fulham 6 – 0 QPR
QPR 1 – 1 Blackburn
QPR 1 – 0 Chelsea

The problem with QPR and this is certainly backed up when you look at thier results is that you just don’t know which QPR are going to turn up. Their last away league game was a London derby and that ended in a 6-0 thumping against Newcastle, so should we expect more of the same?

Neil Warnock is still looking for stability amongst his side and it seems that for every good result comes a bad result so Spurs will be hoping that it’s a bad result for Rangers

All eyes will be on Adel Taarabt as he makes his return to White Hart Lane where he didn’t enjoy the best of times and Joey Barton will likely have more to say on Twitter after the match rather than during.

Conclusion

Given our recent results and how we are playing at the moment, I would say we are definitely favourites to win the game but the team will have to be aware that QPR pose threats across the park and if allowed to build rhythm they can be tricky side to over-come.

A win would see us jump over Liverpool and Newcastle and will find ourselves level on points with Chelsea. Newcastle play Stoke on Monday at the Britannia Stadium and Spurs fans will be keeping one eye on that what ever the outcome of today’s match.

Shaun Wright-Phillips and Joey Barton create most of QPR’s chances so It should be a fascinating battle between Scott Parker and Joey Barton.

Brad Friedel will be kept quiet should Jay Bothroyd start today, the striker who joined from Cardiff in the summer has failed to score in seven appearances and has yet to have a notable shot on goal.

I feel confident that Spurs will do the business against QPR today, our home form is strong and so are the team performances at the moment. So I’ll go with a 3-1 victory.

Speaking about Redknapp, Adebayor pointed to Harry’s ability to motivate the players,

“Harry Redknapp is a fantastic manager,” Adebayor said.

“He knows how to talk to players. You need that belief from your own manager. He tells you just to go out there and do your thing. That is what Harry has got more than anyone else.”

Adebayor has been in good form for us this season and has helped us to get in contention for a Champions League spot, something Adebayor believes is a real possibility,

“We have to do everything it takes to go beyond that line,” he said. “Hopefully, we can achieve that as a goal.”

But it does not stop there, having praised Redknapp and talking up our Champions League chances Adebayor then turned his attention to his team mates,

“Every morning when you come in you see lots of lads working hard in the gym to be fit for the weekend which is a very good sign,” said Adebayor.

So all good comments from Adebayor, but possibly the best comments for Tottenham are what Adebayor said about his time at Man City,

“I wish them the best of luck, but do I wish to be part of that team right now? No” Adebayor told BBC Sport
“Whenever I woke up last year to go into training it was a headache.”

“You want to be in a house where you feel comfortable,”

“Even if the house is a palace, you want to be loved and you want to be happy.”

Not sure Adebayor could have made his feelings any clearer, hopefully something can be sorted out between Man City and Spurs with regards to Adebayors future, but I wont hold my breath.

We no longer have the longest injury list anymore, not now that the news has come through that Steven Pienaar (groin), William Gallas (calf), Sandro (calf) and Ledley King (groin) are all reported to be off the injury list and more than likely available for Sunday’s game against QPR.

Harry Redknapp reported on the injury news this morning and it was certainly good news,

“William is not going to train today, but he’s trained all week and will train again tomorrow,” reported Harry

“He hasn’t played a game since last season and we have to see how he is. He could be involved.

“Steven is on the way back, which is good. He feels a lot better.

“Sandro has had a problem as well. He came on against Arsenal, did great for us, but his calf flared up. He’s had another scan, the scan looks okay, he feels okay and he could be available at the weekend as well.

“Ledley is improving. We’ll wait to see how he is tomorrow and you never know with Ledley, but it doesn’t look like he’s too far away.”

We still have four key players out, Vedran Corluka (foot), Niko Kranjcar (thigh), Michael Dawson (Achilles) and Tom Huddlestone (ankle), but the news that possibly both Gallas and King will be back more than offset the disappointing long term injury news.