Tottenham’s Pochettino hopeful of Kane return vs Madrid

Tottenham Hotspur striker Harry Kane could return from a hamstring injury in Wednesday night’s Champions League match against holders Real Madrid at Wembley, the Premier League club’s manager Mauricio Pochettino said on Tuesday.

England international Kane, Tottenham’s leading goal-scorer with 13 goals in 12 appearances across all competitions, missed last Wednesday’s League Cup defeat by West Ham United and Saturday’s 1-0 league loss at Manchester United.

“With the doctors and the player, we will take the best decision for everyone,” Pochettino said when asked by reporters about Kane’s mid-week return. “We must analyze and take the best decision for everyone.

“We will assess him and then we will make the best decision. My feeling is good. But it’s not my feeling, it’s Harry Kane’s feeling.”

Tottenham, which on top of Group H with seven points, held Spanish champion Real Madrid to a 1-1 draw earlier this month.

Following the mid-week action, third-place Tottenham hosts bottom side Crystal Palace in a Premier League match on Sunday.

Liverpool back on track ahead of Maribor match

Simon Mignolet has said Liverpool will go into its Group E match at home to Maribor on Wednesday with its confidence restored thanks to Saturday’s 3-0 win over Huddersfield Town in the Premier League.

Goals from Daniel Sturridge, Roberto Firmino and Georginio Wijnaldum lifted Juergen Klopp’s team up to sixth in the standings, just six days after they suffered a 4-1 defeat away to Tottenham Hotspur.

Goalkeeper Mignolet admitted morale had been damaged by the result at Wembley and said it was a relief to have bounced back against a Huddersfield team that had defeated Manchester United in their previous league game.

“I think today will give everybody a lift in confidence, which is what we needed after last week,” said Mignolet. “Everybody knew it wasn’t good enough and we had to change, and I think we’ve done that.”

Liverpool is level on five points with Spartak Moscow in Group E, just one ahead of thirdplaced Sevilla.

The Reds thrashed Slovenian minnow Maribor 7-0 in their previous encounter and are expected to dominate once again at Anfield.

Napoli bans belts for City clash after attack

Meanwhile, Napoli has banned the wearing of belts for the encounter against Manchester City on Wednesday.

Pep Guardiola and his players will be allowed the accessories, but supporters, staff and even journalists risk being caught with their trousers down.