The Hoddle of Coffee: Tottenham Hotspur News and Links for Friday, June 29

Hey, everyone!

Feel free to guess what serious business Mousa Dembélé and Eric Dier are chatting about in the above picture. I’m sure there’s a joke about the result waiting.

Ramble of the Day

The World Cup’s final day of group stage matches saw the most cruel of eliminations, as Senegal went home on fair play points. After thrilling matches against Poland and Japan, the Lions of Teranga had captured the hearts of many. Watching Aliou Cissé’s men play, it was easy to understand why. Cissé set up his players to play a technical style that encouraged attack, naturally making their football attractive to the eye. An attempt to do things differently in the Group H finale against Colombia, in which both sides played conservatively, did not pan out for the Senegalese. Poor defending sent the Lions of Teranga home, far sooner than most would have liked, because they picked up one more yellow card than Japan. You and your dancing will be missed, Senegal.

tl;dr: Come back soon, Senegal.

Links of the Day

José Pékerman is “very worried” about James Rodriguez after he picked up an injury in Colombia’s 1-0 victory over Senegal.

Transfer roundup: Schalke have signed Omar Mascarell from Eintracht Frankfurt; Cardiff City have added striker Bobby Reid from Bristol City and goalkeeper Alex Smithies from QPR; Wayne Rooney has joined D.C. United from Everton

Today’s longer read: Rory Smith on the five Argentine coaches at the World Cup for The New York Times