Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg said Tottenham went down with “the flag held high” in their 4-1 loss to Chelsea and has backed the squad to cope with the absence of key personnel. Spurs lost their unbeaten start to the Premier League season in a pulsating London derby in which five goals were disallowed and the hosts played the final 35 minutes with nine men. To add salt into fresh Tottenham wounds, Micky van de Ven was forced off with a hamstring injury and James Maddison had to be withdrawn due to an ankle knock, while Cristian Romero and Destiny Udogie, who were both sent off, will sit out this weekend’s trip to Wolves. Ange Postecoglou’s side battled admirably, first with 10 men from the 35th minute and then when down to nine early in the second half, but Nicolas Jackson grabbed the first of his three goals with quarter of an hour left to finally break the hosts’ resolve. Hojbjerg said: “I think we went down with the flag held high. We gave it our all but the result hurts a lot. “We showed what we had in our hearts but the result hurts. “Tuesday we have a day off and when we see each other on Wednesday, we’ll gather the pieces and focus on the next game, as we have to. “Everyone has to show their availability and show they are prepared to do what it takes. We lost the game, we hate to lose, it was the first of the season, but we have to make sure this doesn't happen again and play 11 v 11 because then it is much harder to beat us. Tottenham attacker Dejan Kulusevski “A good squad is not 11 players. It is 18 or 25 players and this is what we have to show. The result hurts a lot but we have to keep going.” Mauricio Pochettino’s first return to Tottenham had initially started in the worst possible fashion when Dejan Kulusevski’s curled effort deflected off Levi Colwill and beyond the helpless Robert Sanchez after six minutes. The wheels started to fall off during a 57-minute first half where four goals were chalked off by video assistant referee John Brooks at Stockley Park, who decided that Romero’s tackle on Enzo Fernandez was worthy of a red card and a penalty in the 33rd minute. Spurs’ uphill task increased further when Udogie was shown a second yellow after 10 minutes of the second period, but Postecoglou deployed a high line and Guglielmo Vicario starred in the sweeper-keeper role before Jackson made it 2-1. Tottenham remained resolute and started to create chances with substitute Eric Dier marginally offside when he volleyed home soon after Jackson’s first goal before Rodrigo Bentancur and Son Heung-min squandered opportunities. Jackson made the points safe in stoppage time when he lashed in from Conor Gallagher’s pass, but Spurs supporters greeted the goal with a standing ovation for their crestfallen players. Kulusevski said: “It was unbelievable, honestly. Some things are bigger than life, bigger than football, bigger than the wins. “Honestly I was really proud of that moment and the fans. I was grateful and it makes me want to give more back. “It has to give us fuel. We lost the game, we hate to lose, it was the first of the season, but we have to make sure this doesn’t happen again and play 11 v 11 because then it is much harder to beat us.” The consequences of this defeat could be long-lasting with Romero set for a three-match ban, which will rule him out of matches with Wolves, Aston Villa and Manchester City. Of bigger concern is centre-back partner Van de Ven after he pulled up at the end of the first half in a sprint with Jackson, which saw him helped off the pitch and he was later seen on crutches. Udogie will also miss Saturday’s clash at Wolves and with Ben Davies nursing an ankle knock, Postecoglou could use Under-21 defenders Ash Phillips or Alfie Dorrington this weekend. “It will be a test for sure. They (Van de Ven and Maddison) are amazing players and I hope they are back very, very soon, but as you saw the players that came in were amazing,” Kulusevski said. “We train really hard every day and everybody is ready. You saw Eric Dier, he came in, did his first appearance and was unbelievable. The guys are ready. “Everybody wants to play and it is so high level the training. So, if (Phillips) will be called, he will be ready.” Read More From Aguero winner to Keegan dismay, Spurs-Chelsea joins Premier League classics England assistant Carl Hopkinson insists Netherlands clash is no ‘dead rubber’ Always need to improve – Nicolas Jackson keen to push on after hat-trick heroics On this day in 2009: David Haye becomes a heavyweight world champion Los Angeles Chargers demolish New York Jets 27-6 Injury blow for New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones

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Chelsea have agreed a fee with Monaco to sign France defender Axel Disasi, the PA news agency understands. A deal worth £38.5million is believed to have been struck, which will see the 25-year-old make the move to Stamford Bridge. The Blues dipped into the market for a centre-back after Wesley Fofana suffered a serious knee injury. Disasi moved to Monaco from Reims in 2020 and has made 118 appearances for the Ligue 1 side, and has impressed suitably in the principality to have made his senior France debut. Having previously been capped at Under-20 level, he became the first Frenchman to make his debut at a World Cup since 1966 when he featured in the 1-0 group-stage loss to Tunisia in Qatar. Disasi is set to become Chelsea’s third major signing of the summer with forwards Nicolas Jackson and Christopher Nkuku having joined from Villarreal and RB Leipzig respectively. Chelsea, under new head coach Mauricio Pochettino, begin their Premier League campaign away to Liverpool on August 13. Read More Charity boss speaks out over ‘traumatic’ encounter with royal aide Ukraine war’s heaviest fight rages in east - follow live

Jordan Pickford will head into Tuesday’s crunch Euro 2024 qualifier against Italy looking forward rather than back. The Everton goalkeeper was between the posts when Italy beat England on penalties to win Euro 2020 at Wembley. Pickford was rested for Friday’s 1-0 friendly win over Australia, but is expected to return for the visit of the Azzurri – where victory would secure Gareth Southgate’s side a place at next summer’s finals in Germany. Since suffering Euro 2020 heartbreak, England have met Italy twice in the Nations League and also won 2-1 in Naples in the reverse qualifying fixture. Now it is that prospect of another shot of international success – and not seeking payback for the heartache of two years ago – that Pickford insists is driving the team heading into the game. “We know where we are in the world rankings and we know where we want to be. To do that, these are the teams you have to beat,” he said. “I don’t think this game has anything to do with revenge. We went to Italy and made a bit of history, having gone so many years without beating them away from home. This is all about qualifying for Germany. It’s another hurdle we have got to get past Jordan Pickford “This is another tough game. They’ve got a new manager, played well in the last break, and we know they are a top side. “This is all about qualifying for Germany. It’s another hurdle we have got to get past and we’ll be going for the victory.” Pickford revealed there has never been much of a debrief on the shoot-out loss in 2021 and was more upset with the performance in last winter’s World Cup – praising England for brushing themselves off so quickly to work towards Euro 2024 qualification. “We never really touched base on that Euro final,” he added. “There was more disappointment in Qatar, getting beat in the quarters, and then coming back straight into two competitive games. “That just shows you the characters we are and the type of squad and togetherness we have to beat Ukraine and then beat Italy in their own backyard in Naples in a hostile environment. “That shows you what kind of squad we are and I think the fans love it. “Every time we put the shirt on we wear it with massive amounts of pride. “To beat Italy in Naples was a great feeling, but they’re coming into our backyard now and they will want revenge. “We just want to put on a performance, be at our best, and get a result to qualify. “They are reigning European champions and are a top side. We only focus on ourselves. “We look at what’s in front of us and we will always back ourselves to beat any team because we are fully prepared and have a lot of experience and ability.” Read More Andy Farrell believes spirit of outgoing Johnny Sexton can spur Ireland on Rangers appoint former Club Brugge boss Philippe Clement as new manager Michael O’Neill hoping to take ‘good feeling’ into Slovenia game Glittering career ends with tears for retiring Ireland captain Johnny Sexton Joe Root dismisses ODI retirement talk with next Cricket World Cup in his plans Ben Stokes ‘getting better day by day’ but Afghanistan game could come too soon

It was a wild and historic opening day in women’s college basketball with a monumental upset and stellar debuts