Lloris aiming for top three

Hugo Lloris believes Tottenham have the ability to challenge for a place in the top three of the Premier League.



Spurs are currently fourth in the table, just a point behind Chelsea, although they trail runaway leaders Manchester United by 17 points with 12 games remaining.



But goalkeeper Lloris believes his side are closing in on the likes of United, Manchester City and Chelsea, although he is also wary of slipping up in the race for fourth place this season.



"Today, there's United, City and Chelsea who are a cut above, and who have more financial means. But Tottenham is just behind," said Lloris, who joined Spurs from Thursday's opponents Lyon last summer.



"The club has been trying to establish itself in the top four for some years now.



"For the minute, the season has been promising, but the hardest part is yet to come because there are still a number of key matches to be played and we'll have to be ready for that.



"For the moment, we're well-placed, though we're not beyond a possible charge by Arsenal."



Lloris had to be patient after initially making the move to England due to Andre Villas-Boas keeping faith with Brad Friedel.



Now established as the first-choice goalkeeper at Spurs, Lloris reckons the experience of challenging Friedel for the position has made him stronger.



"Things were very clear, that I was coming to Tottenham as the number one," he told RTL.



"But the manager made a decision at the start, and then made a different one a few weeks later. The negotiations over the move were with the chairman, but it was also the choice of the coach. I also had talks with him during that time.



"It's not easy, because I came in after the start of the season, and he was already under pressure because the results were not good at that point in time. It's the sort of situation which helps you grow, it's a personal challenge."

Premier League TV payments: 2011-12

Manchester City sealed the 2011-12 Premier League title in the most dramatic fashion on Sunday, and now know the precise financial reward for the season from Premier League central funds: £60,602,289.

The massive sums on offer for simply being a member of the Premier League are highlighted again below with the release of official figures detailing League TV and merit earnings for each club for the 2011-12 season.

Clubs have three main revenue streams: match day income (from tickets, corporate dining etcetera), media income (of which the payments listed are the largest but not the only part) and commercial income (from kit deals, sponsorship, merchandise, tours and so on).

The lowest-earning team in 2011-12 from central funds, Wolves, picked up £39,084,461 while City’s cross-town rivals, United, were the second best-paid team with £60,325,337. This is the second year the £60m barrier has been broken for the top-earning teams, after last year.

Every club got £13,788,093 as an equal share of domestic TV income, plus £18,764,644m as an equal share of foreign TV income. The Premier League’s income from overseas TV rights alone 2010-13 inclusive was £1.437bn (£439m a year). Rights are now up for auction for 2013-16.

In the central payments for 2011-12, facility fees – £485,000 per live TV match in the UK plus bits and pieces for net, phone and delayed rights – varied depending how many times each club featured in live matches, between a minimum of 10 times and a maximum of 26.

Each place in the table was worth £755,062 in prize money, with that amount going to the bottom club (Wolves) and 20 times that amount (£15,101,240) going to City.

The biggest winners and losers, year on year in terms of improved and decreased payments were Newcastle and Aston Villa respectively. Newcastle’s total money went up £7m from £47.2m to £54.2m, while Villa’s went down £7m from £49m to £42m. See table below for full details, and compare with previous seasons: Payments for 2010-11 / Payments for 2009-10

‘Parachute’ payments were made to seven former League clubs, with Birmingham, Blackpool and West Ham each getting £15,475,005 to assist their landings in the Championship. This money helped all three to make the play-offs, with Blackpool facing West Ham on Saturday for the right to return to the PL (Promised Land).

Monday's round up of the top transfer stories

- Xabi Alonso has admitted he could return to the Premier League as his ongoing contract talks remain clouded in uncertainty at Real Madrid.



- Crystal Palace will reject Manchester United's opening offer of £8million for star winger Wilfried Zaha, according to Dailymail.



- Mathieu Debuchy's transfer to Newcastle will finally happen once they settle on bonus fees with Lille.



- Liverpool face competition from Manchester City, Everton and Southampton for Birmingham goalkeeper Jack Butland.



- Chelsea are confident of winning the race to sign Atletico Madrid striker Radamel Falcao, according to the Sunday Mirror.



- Chelsea's Frank Lampard says there is no sign of a contract extension at Stamford Bridge despite his good form.



- Theo Walcott, who has been linked with the likes of Chelsea and Manchester United, says his Arsenal future "will be sorted soon".



- Arsenal boss is ready to raid Southampton for another of their talented ­youngsters as he looks to tie up a January deal for teenage left-back Luke Shaw.



- Everton and Southampton have targeted Italian defender Davide Astori ahead of the opening of the January transfer window.



- Everton defender Seamus Coleman has signed a new five-and-a-half-year contract with the club.



- Eintracht Frankfurt want Everton midfielder Thomas Hitzlsperger.



- Roberto Mancini admits he might be forced to consider signing some new players in the January transfer window.



- And believes Mario Balotelli will stay at Manchester City as he has a big admirer in owner Sheikh Mansour, but has warned the striker to improve his attitude.



- Manchester United winger Nani has been told he still has a future at the club following reports linking him with a move to Arsenal.



- Demba Ba’s proposed move to Chelsea is off, according to Agent.



- Goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini looks set for a fresh start in America after Tottenham announced they have reached an agreement to sell the goalkeeper to Major League Soccer outfit the LA Galaxy.



- The agent of Chelsea winger Kevin de Bruyne says there have been no discussions over Werder Bremen trying to sign the Belgium international permanently when his loan deal expires.



- Newcastle are continuing to show interest in West Ham defender James Tomkins.



- Sunderland manager Martin O'Neill has admitted he could let Ji Dong-won go out on loan next month.



- Sky Sports sources understand Swansea City are interested in Bolton Wanderers defender Marcos Alonso.



- West Brom defender Jonas Olsson is wanted by Fenerbahce.



- Reading are trying to tie up a January deal for Australian starlet Tomas Rogic.



- Reading have pulled off a surprise coup with a £500,000 deal for Sporting Lisbon defender Daniel Carrico.



- Norwich City will table a £3million offer for Crystal Palace striker Glenn Murray this week.



- Juventus have put together a player-plus-cash package in order to beat Manchester City to Sampdoria star Pedro Obiang.



- Juventus are poised to rekindle their long-standing interest in Manchester City target Stevan Jovetic, according to sources in Italy.



- Juventus are ready to steal a march on a string of Premier League clubs in the race to sign Theo Walcott - and could open talks with the striker’s representatives this week.



- Sunderland boss Martin O'Neill is weighing up a January move for Inter Milan midfielder Joel Obi.



- Inter Milan midfielder Wesley Sneijder has moved to dampen speculation linking him with a January move to Liverpool.



- Alexandre Pato's move to Corinthians in Brazil is about to be made official, according to his agent.



- Serie A high-flyers Fiorentina are ready to battle with Juventus and Spurs for Roma hitman Pablo Daniel Osvaldo.



- Lazio are eyeing an audacious January move for Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard, according to Corriere dello Sport.



- Celta Vigo coach Paco Herrera is confident Swansea City target Iago Aspas will not be sold in January.



- Portsmouth have signed striker David Connolly on a one-month deal but top scorer Izale McLeod has departed Fratton Park.



- Bristol Rovers have completed the loan signings of QPR striker Tom Hitchcock and Colchester midfielder John-Joe O'Toole.



- Bristol Rovers have signed Millwall goalkeeper Steve Mildenhall on loan after he was recalled from his stay at Scunthorpe.