Football.London

Tottenham Hotpsur have sent a lighthearted apology to midfielder James Maddison after his three-word response to a post from the club on Instagram following the release of the Premier League fixtures.

Spurs discovered their fixtures for the 2024/25 Premier League season on Tuesday morning. They kick off the campaign with a trip to face Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on Monday, August 19 (8pm kickoff).

The game will see Maddison come up against his former club for the first time since joining Spurs last summer. The match will also see former Tottenham midfielder Harry Winks reunite with the club for the first time since making the opposite switch.

After finding out about the opening-day trip to Leicester, Spurs took to Instagram to share a recent memorable game at the King Power Stadium. In January 2022, Tottenham found themselves 2-1 down after Maddison scored for Leicester in the 76th minute.

The score stayed that way until the 95th minute, when Steven Bergwijn scored an equaliser. It then got even better for Spurs, as the Dutchman was on target again to snatch all three points in the 97th minute.

Spurs captioned the post with: “Run it back”. That prompted a response from Maddison in the comments section, with the midfielder writing, “No need admin.”

Spurs replied to the comment with a simple: “Sorry xx”. Bergwijn himself also responded by posting two eyes emojis in the comments section.

Maddison spent five years at Leicester after joining from Norwich City in 2018. He played 208 times for the club, scoring 55 times and providing 39 assists.

The midfielder will be looking to prove a point when the Premier League returns in August, having been cut from the England squad for the current Euro 2024 finals. Responding to the axe, Maddison said: “Devastated doesn’t quite cut it.

“(I)Trained well and worked hard all week but if I’m honest with myself, my form for Spurs when coming back from injury in the second half of the season probably wasn’t at the levels I had set which gave Gareth a decision to make. I still thought there would be a space for me in a 26 man squad as I feel I bring something different & had been a mainstay in this whole qualifying campaign for Euro 2024 in Germany but the manager has made the decision and I have to respect that. I’ll be back, I have no doubt.”

Listen to the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham by clicking here! In depth Spurs chat on your preferred podcast platform.

Tottenham have a big season ahead packed with fixtures that will require a strong squad for Ange Postecoglou to compete in the Premier League, Europa League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup.

The Premier League fixtures were released on Tuesday morning with an even spread of games for Spurs without the bunching, at this point, of the tough fixtures that came towards the end of the previous campaign. Postecoglou will also have to factor in eight Europa League group games in the new expanded version of that competition while also trying to improve on last season's poor showings in the domestic cups.

The Australian has said he will need a strong squad next season to cover all of the matches, with a minimum of 48 matches this season compared to the 41 of the last campaign and a potential maximum of 69 if they went on a remarkable run to the final of all three cup competitions they are in.

Tottenham are not looking to let any of their star players depart this summer, including Cristian Romero, despite one Argentinean report of interest from Real Madrid in the 26-year-old World Cup winning centre-back. However there is expected to be plenty of business in the weeks ahead as Postecoglou's squad is shaped to fit his needs for the busy campaign ahead.

Our Spurs reporter Alasdair Gold and head of football.london Lee Wilmot, filling in for Rob Guest, discuss all of the above in the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham and plenty more, including Radu Dragusin's excellent performance for Romania against Ukraine at Euro 2024 and potential transfer movement and problems during this summer window.

You can listen to the latest episode of the podcast by heading right here or watch it on YouTube by going right here.

Listen to the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham by clicking here! In depth Spurs chat on your preferred podcast platform.

The wait for outside investment in Tottenham Hotspur continues two-and-a-half months after Daniel Levy confirmed discussions with potential investors.

Levy's comments in early April acknowledged that "the board and its advisors, Rothschild & Co, are in discussions with prospective investors." The statement added that "the club requires a significant increase in its equity base".

Those remarks came months after Levy made known in September during a Bloomberg interview that the club had received multiple offers that never materialised into a done deal. In the same sit-down, he also stated: "If someone came along and we felt they could take us to another level, we'd look at it." It is the same stance Levy shared at the Cambridge Union last April.

Over 12 months after that first public declaration, social media rumours earlier this month named American investment firm MSP Sports Capital as a prospective investor. They were apparently in talks to take a minority stake as high as 40% in Spurs with links stretching back to last year after a report emerged in the Financial Times naming them as potential suitors.

The New York-based private equity fund is already involved in football, holding stakes in European clubs across Belgium (Beveren), Denmark (Brondby), Germany (Augsburg), Spain (Alcorcon) and Portugal (Estoril). Its portfolio also includes McLaren Racing and the X Games in its portfolio.

But football.london understood at the time that those within the club strongly shot down the suggestion that it was in investment talks with MSP Sports Capital. And even if exploratory discussions took place, the firm has since reportedly ended its interest in Spurs.

GiveMeSport and TBR both report that their focus is on Everton rather than Tottenham with any attempts to purchase the latter have been 'formally ended'. But despite their apparent interest in buying out majority owner Farhad Moshiri as the face of a group of investors, they look set to miss out. Dan Friedkin emerged as the favourite candidate on Friday night, with one other bidder even conceding over the weekend, and there is anticipation of an announcement in the coming days.

Listen to the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham by clicking here! In depth Spurs chat on your preferred podcast platform.

Tottenham Hotspur fans will be hoping that the club can repeat what happened the last time they finished a Premier League season with a match at home.

The Premier League fixtures were released on Tuesday morning and Spurs' final game of the season will be at home for the first time in more than half a decade. They will host Brighton on Sunday May 25, meaning they will end the league campaign in front of their home fans at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the first time in what will be six years by that point.

Tottenham also have a rarity to kick off the campaign in that they will not begin the league season on a weekend, instead travelling to the King Power Stadium to face Leicester on the evening of Monday August 19.

Some Spurs fans have noticed, and others might start hoping, that the club's season under Ange Postecoglou bears another major similarity to the last time they finished a Premier League campaign at home, albeit with a much happier ending this time around.

That is because back in the 2018/2019 season under Mauricio Pochettino, Tottenham drew 2-2 at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in their final game, wrapping up a top four finish ahead of Arsenal at their huge new home which had only opened the previous month. Yet there was one more game to be played as Spurs travelled to Madrid a couple of weeks later to play in the Champions League final against Liverpool.

Tottenham lost that night in Spain, but showed that they could take on plenty of fixtures, including reaching the Carabao Cup semi-finals and make it all the way to a European final, which they will be hoping to do again this season in the expanded version of the Europa League, which does not have teams dropping down from the Champions League.

A journey all the way in that competition would mean another big trip to Spain. The Europa League final will be played at the Estadio de San Mames in Bilbao, Spain, on May 21 in the midweek before that last game of the Premier League campaign at home against Brighton.

Postecoglou is expecting to oversee a big season at the north London club and Spurs supporters will be hoping that Tottenham can show their European pedigree as they did in 2019 but this time go all of the way under the Australian and bring some long-awaited silverware home to that empty trophy cabinet.

Listen to the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham by clicking here! In depth Spurs chat on your preferred podcast platform.

Tottenham have discovered their Premier League schedule for the 2024/25 season, but that's not the only set of fixtures they've been waiting for this summer.

Ange Postecoglou's side will be looking to build on their fifth-placed finish last term when they begin their league campaign against newly promoted Leicester City on August 19.

Spurs will have the added strain of Europe in 24/25 as they face a season of Europa League football at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Below, football.london have taken a look at all the latest surrounding Spurs' involvement in the new-look Europa League...

What is the new format?

The new Europa League format will see the group stage become a 36-team league phase. Each side will face eight different teams - four at home and four away - with the top eight overall advancing directly to the round of 16.

Teams finishing from ninth to 24th will contest the knockout round play-offs, with the victors going through to the last 16. From then on it is a straight knockout.

When is the draw?

Tottenham will begin in the league phase after finishing fifth in the Premier League last term. The draw will take place on August 30.

Which league fixtures will take place around European dates?

TV picks are yet to be made for fixtures across the 2024/25 Premier League season so dates could be changed. As it stands, here are the league fixtures due to take place around European games...

Tottenham are back in European action next season and their matches in the Europa League, as well as FA Cup and Carabao Cup ties, will have a huge impact on their Premier League 2024/25 calendar and the need for Ange Postecoglou to have a big squad.

Postecoglou took Spurs back into continental competition with their fifth place finish in the league last season and the Australian will be looking to have a bigger impact in the domestic cups this time around after early exits in both tournaments in his first campaign as well as taking on the expanded Europa League, which features eight group stage matches alone.

The first cup competition that arises next season is the Carabao Cup, which Tottenham will enter in the third round and those ties are currently pencilled in over two weeks but the club's Europa League involvement would ensure they would need to play their game in the September 17/18 week.

So after the first international break, that would mean a Carabao Cup fixture just a few days after the first North London Derby of the season at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on September 14. Then after a home Premier League game against Brentford on September 21, Spurs will begin their busy expanded Europa League schedule with the first match on either September 25 or 26, with that opening round the only one that currently offers a potential Wednesday night fixture rather than a Thursday one.

That will come just a couple of days before a trip to Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the Premier League on September 28.

Matchday two in the Europa League arrives the following week on October 3, in between the game at United and the trip to Brighton on October 5. After the second international break, matchday three in Europe is on October 24, which places it between Tottenham's home match against West Ham and trip to Selhurst Park to face Crystal Palace.

The following week of October 29/30 brings the Carabao Cup fourth round should Postecoglou's men progress in that competition this time.

Europa League football returns ahead of yet another international break, with matchday four on November 7, placing it between Spurs' home games against Ipswich Town and Aston Villa. Matchday five arrives on November 28, scheduled in the middle of a week with Premier League games at Manchester City and at home against Fulham.

A fortnight later and matchday six comes on December 12, placing it between the home derby against Chelsea and journey to Southampton. The next midweek brings the return of the Carabao Cup with the fifth round, or quarter-finals if you prefer, on the dates of December 17/18 if Tottenham have reached that stage, ahead of a home clash against Liverpool.

The first leg of the semi-finals are scheduled to take place in the midweek of January 7/8, in between a home game against Newcastle United and the FA Cup making its first appearance for Premier League teams with the third round coming on the weekend of January 11 ahead of an unusually scheduled midweek North London Derby at the Emirates Stadium.

That expanded Europa League group stage continues into 2025 for the first time with matchday seven on January 23, in between a trip to Goodison Park to face Everton and a home fixture against Leicester City. The following midweek brings the conclusion of the group stages of the Europa League with matchday eight on January 30, stuck between that home game against the Foxes and the short journey to Brentford.

The Carabao Cup semi-final second leg then arrives, if Spurs make it that far, on February 4/5, which would be between that game at Brentford and any potential FA Cup fourth round tie on the weekend of February 8.

The Europa League knockout stages then have a different look as the top eight overall advance directly to the round of 16, while the sides finishing from ninth to 24th will take their place in the knockout round play-offs. If Tottenham could do well in the group stages and avoid that two-legged play-off round in February 13 and 20, it would really help ease their fixture schedule.

The FA Cup firth round comes on the weekend of March 1, before the Europa League round of 16 legs arrive on March 6 and 13. The latter date would come either just days before a Premier League trip to Fulham or a potential Carabao Cup final if Tottenham went all the way to Wembley.

After another international break, the next potential cup match would be an FA Cup quarter-final in the weekend of March 29. Should Spurs continue to progress in the Europa League then the quarter-finals would be played across two legs on April 10 and 17.

The FA Cup semi-final weekend is the same one that Spurs are currently slated to play Liverpool in on April 26. The business end of the season brings with it the potential of Europa League semi-final legs in May 1 and 8.

The two finals then are the FA Cup final at Wembley on Saturday May 17, in the penultimate weekend of the season when Spurs are scheduled to travel to Aston Villa and then the Europa League final will be played at the Estadio de San Mames in Bilbao, Spain, on May 21 in midweek before the last game of the Premier League campaign at home against Brighton.

One thing is for sure and that is that Postecoglou will need a big squad at Tottenham in order to compete in the first half of this season, with 27 matches in around 17 weeks - if you only take a week off each for the three international breaks - before 2024 ends and 29 if they get through the Carabao Cup third and fourth rounds. That's before even contemplating what potential knockout matches would mean at the business end of the campaign.

Here is what the packed fixture schedule will look like with the confirmed and potential cup fixtures added in bold:

Listen to the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham by clicking here! In depth Spurs chat on your preferred podcast platform.

A supercomputer has attempted to predict the final Premier League table for next season following the fixture announcement.

Tuesday morning saw the full fixture list for the 2024/25 Premier League campaign confirmed. The opening weekend will have an early start when Manchester United host Fulham in the Friday Night Football on August 16.

The following day is when the majority of top-flight clubs will begin their season. Arsenal will host Wolves at the Emirates Stadium, although the fixture will not be televised live in the UK.

Sunday will see Chelsea host Manchester City at Stamford Bridge. Tottenham Hotspur will travel to face Leicester City at the King Power Stadium on the first Monday Night Football of the season.

With the new campaign just a couple of months away, a supercomputer has attempted to predict how the final table will look. BonusCodeBets have provided a predicted league table that uses a simulation model based on results acquired over the last two seasons.

According to the prediction, Man City will win the league title once again by finishing with 84 points. The prediction believes Arsenal will finish as runners-up for a third consecutive campaign, just three points behind Man City.

Aston Villa and Manchester United are the two clubs predicted to secure Champions League football, with third and fourth-place finishes, respectively. There is no place for Chelsea or Tottenham Hotspur in the top-four spots in the prediction, though.

Chelsea will finish sixth once again according to the prediction, in what will be Enzo Maresca's first season as manager. The Blues are tipped to amass 68 points and finish behind fifth-placed Liverpool.

Spurs, however, are predicted to endure a much more difficult campaign. Ange Postecoglou's side have been tipped to finish ninth on 54 points, in a season that will apparently include 14 defeats and just 15 wins.

All three newly promoted clubs - Leicester City, Ipswich Town and Southampton - are predicted to be relegated back to the Championship.

Harry Winks has had his request for a reunion with Tottenham Hotspur on the opening weekend of the upcoming season granted by the Premier League. The Leicester City midfielder, who left Spurs last year, is back in the Premier League after his side's promotion under Enzo Maresca last season.

And Winks' City will host Spurs on Monday Night Football on the opening weekend of the season. Spurs' trip to the King Power Stadium bookends the first weekend of the 2024/25 Premier League campaign with Manchester United vs Fulham, Ipswich Town vs Liverpool, West Ham United vs Aston Villa, Brentford vs Crystal Palace and Chelsea vs Manchester City also picked for live television coverage.

It will be an emotional evening for Winks, a boyhood Spurs supporter who used to go to matches at White Hart Lane as child, with his father also a big supporter of the club. Having joined Spurs at the age of five, Winks came through the ranks at the same time as Harry Kane and would make more than 100 Premier League appearances for the club before leaving for City in a deal worth around £10million last year.

Despite being a key player for Mauricio Pochettino, Winks' career at Spurs stalled under Jose Mourinho and Nuno Espirito Santo before finding himself loaned out at Sampdoria for the 2022/23 campaign. He got back to his best at City, though, and played a pivotal role in the Foxes' return to the Premier League after a shock relegation two seasons ago, appearing in all-but-one match.

Now he is getting a request made to the Premier League for Spurs on the opening day of the season granted after making clear he would like to face his old club when asked by City's Instagram account for his favoured opening day opponent last week.

Tottenham's 2024/25 Premier League fixtures have been released and one bizarre trend has finally come to an end for Ange Postecoglou's side.

Ange Postecoglou now knows that his Spurs team will start their campaign later than most other teams with a Monday night fixture away at Leicester City's King Power Stadium on August 19. Spurs started away last year as well at Brentford, ending a run of four straight home starts to the season.

Subject to being moved for broadcasting, their first home game this coming season arrives five days after the trip to Leicester with the visit of Everton to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on August 24.

After a journey to Newcastle the following weekend, the first North London Derby of the season arrives early for captain Son Heung-min and the team and is at home as Spurs welcome Arsenal immediately after the first international break with the game currently set for September 14 before the broadcasters decide when it will be.

That is followed up by a home game against Brentford before trips to Manchester United and Brighton. The first game against champions Manchester City comes on November 23 and there is no derby against Chelsea until later this year when Spurs host the Blues at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium on December 7.

Spurs' nearest match to Christmas is currently set as a Boxing Day trip to Nottingham Forest, making it three years in a row away from home for their festive clash.

One long-running trend has finally come to an end though as Tottenham's final game of the season will be at home for the first time in more than half a decade. They will host Brighton on May 25, meaning they will end the campaign in front of their home fans at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the first time in six years by that point.

The last time was a month after the stadium opened at the end of the 2018/19 season when they welcomed Everton that year before going on to play in the Champions League final against Liverpool in Madrid the next month.

The second North London Derby of the season comes early in 2025 with a trip to the Emirates Stadium currently slated for January 14.

It's worth noting as well that unlike last season, there is no clumping together at this stage of a nightmare run of fixtures which Spurs have had in recent years, with last season in particular bringing games against Newcastle, Arsenal, Chelsea and Liverpool in a row at the business end of the season, before a match against Manchester City swiftly followed.

This time around the final five games of the campaign bring trips to Liverpool and West Ham United, a home match against Crystal Palace, a trip to Villa Park and then that rare final home game against Brighton.

It is also worth noting that Spurs will have plenty of Sunday matches during this coming season as games are moved after Thursday night Europa League fixtures for Postecoglou's men.

Here are Tottenham's Premier League fixtures for the 2024/25 season, subject to broadcasting changes, with home games in bold:

Listen to the latest episode of Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham by clicking here! In depth Spurs chat on your preferred podcast platform.

Half an hour to go... but how does it all work?

Today has been six months in the making. Fixture-list compiler Glenn Thompson, of Atos, told the Mirror: "For me it is at the start of the year when I get the playing dates from the Premier League.

"The whole thing is built up, putting in the international dates from FIFA, then the European club competitions. Then the Football Association adds the dates for its competitions.

"You’re left with the dates when you can play league and League Cup matches. We also consult fan representatives, from the Football Supporters' Federation, and other stakeholders, to take on board their views.

"Around March, the Premier League sends to its clubs a form asking questions such as whether there are there any dates they wish not to be at home - which is answered in conjunction with the local police - and whether there are any teams they do not wish to play at home on Boxing Day."

James will miss the start of next season!

Reece James will miss the first three Premier League games of next season. The Chelsea captain was shown a red card during the Blues' 2-1 win over Brighton towards the end of last term and he was given a four-match ban.

Not only did James miss the final game of the campaign against Bournemouth, but he also missed out on the chance to prove his fitness to Gareth Southgate ahead of the Euros. James was snubbed by the England boss and he'll also miss the first few games of the new season.

Will Chelsea FINALLY sign Olise this year?

Michael Olise was criticised by Paul Merson last summer after snubbing a move to Chelsea and signing a new deal at Crystal Palace instead. Reacting to that news, the Arsenal legend told Sky Sports: "I was shocked.

"It might have been because he was at Chelsea before that could’ve been the reason. But for me, the whole idea is to move up the ladder surely you got to make hay while the sun shines. Form can come and go very quickly a couple of bad games here and there

"We’re talking about Zaha eight, nine, ten months ago was available on a free transfer who was going to have him? He couldn’t go back to Man Utd, will Arsenal have him? Tottenham might take him if they don’t

"All of a sudden, no disrespect, he’s playing at Galatasaray in the Turkish league and you’re quite shocked. I hope the kid has got it right..."

How will international breaks impact the Premier League next season?

There are international breaks in September, October, November and March. In Europe, the first three of those are for Nations League fixtures. World Cup qualifiers in Europe start in March 2025. In South America and Asia, they are being played in all four windows.

Historically, England managers have not been keen on blockbuster league matches immediately before a break. Club bosses are equally unhappy at having to play marquee matches after them when so many players return (usually late and or tired!) on Thursday or Friday.

Chelsea had a tough start last season...

Last year, Chelsea had a pretty tough start to the Premier League season. The Blues welcomed Liverpool to Stamford Bridge on the opening day before facing West Ham at the London Stadium.

Chelsea then faced Luton Town, Nottingham Forest and Bournemouth before locking horns with Aston Villa. On matchday nine, the west Londoners held Arsenal to a draw. Had the Gunners won that day then they may have won the title in May...

What time will the Premier League fixture list be out?

The Premier League fixtures for next season will be released on Tuesday, January 18, at 09:00 BST.

Enzo Maresca is one of four new managers in the English top flight this term after joining Chelsea from Leicester City. Fabian Hurzeler has replaced Roberto De Zerbi at Brighton, Arne Slot has taken the reins at Liverpool and Julen Lopetegui will challenge himself at West Ham.

A fifth is to come when the Foxes finally replace Maresca... Russell Martin continues at Southampton boss, but he's never managed a Premier League game before!