The Guardian

Morgan Gibbs-White’s anticipated £60m move to Tottenham is on hold because Nottingham Forest are considering legal action over an alleged illegal approach for the player.

Forest are also preparing a complaint to the Premier League, arguing that Spurs’s conduct surrounding the proposed transfer has been inappropriate. It had been expected that Gibbs-White would undergo a medical on Friday before completing the move.

Forest are consulting lawyers about possible legal action because they believe they have not granted Spurs permission to speak with Gibbs-White and also feel there has been a breach in confidentiality regarding the release clause in the England midfielder’s contract.

Spurs, who signed Mohammed Kudus from West Ham on Thursday, still plan to proceed with the deal as they look to boost Thomas Frank’s squad. This summer they have also tracked the Crystal Palace and England midfielder Eberechi Eze, who is wanted by their rivals Arsenal, Brentford’s Bryan Mbeumo and Southampton’s Tyler Dibling.

Forest and Tottenham declined to comment when contacted. Forest consider the deal to be off but their anger may delay and not veto the move.

Tottenham are poised to sign Morgan Gibbs-White from Nottingham Forest after triggering a £60m release clause. The England midfielder is expected to have a medical on Friday and could complete the move in the next 24 hours.

Gibbs-White has also attracted interest from Manchester City since excelling at Forest, whom he joined from boyhood club Wolves in 2022 for an initial £25m in a deal that was worth up to £42.5m.

Spurs have also signed Mohammed Kudus from West Ham for £54.5m as well as the 20-year-old Japanese defender Kota Takai from J League side Kawasaki Frontale.

The France forward Mathys Tel, who spent the second half of last season on loan at Spurs, was Thomas Frank’s first permanent signing after arriving from Bayern Munich.

Tottenham have tracked the Crystal Palace forward Eberechi Eze, the Brentford pair of Bryan Mbeumo and Yoane Wissa and Southampton’s Tyler Dibling. Spurs are thought to be at the front of the queue to sign Saints teenager Dibling,who enjoyed a breakthrough campaign despite relegation.

Tottenham have reached an agreement to sign Mohammed Kudus from West Ham for £54.5m.

Kudus is due to undergo a medical on Thursday and will sign a six-year deal. The Ghana attacker will become the first player to leave West Ham for Spurs since Scott Parker in 2011.

West Ham’s decision to sell Kudus to their London rivals is down to their needing to revamp their squad without inviting a potential breach of the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability regulations. Sources at the London Stadium are adamant that West Ham must sell to buy. They want a goalkeeper, a left centre-back, a left wing-back, at least two midfielders and a striker.

Kudus had an £85m release clause valid for Premier League sides for the first 10 days of July but West Ham were always likely to accept a lower fee. He was deemed the club’s most sellable asset and has attracted plenty of interest. Spurs have made the strongest push for the 24-year-old and had a £50m bid rejected last week. The payment is to be spread over three years.

West Ham are comfortable with allowing Kudus to leave, reasoning that he is best playing on the right – the same position as the captain, Jarrod Bowen. Graham Potter does not feel that Kudus is capable of playing in a central role in the Premier League. It is understood Kudus was twice late for training this week and had requested a transfer.

Kudus impressed after joining West Ham from Ajax for £37m two years ago but struggled last season. He clashed with Potter’s predecessor, Julen Lopetegui, and managed four goals in all competitions. He served a lengthy ban after a red card during a 4-1 defeat by Spurs last October.

That dismissal has not stopped Tottenham from going for him. Kudus will boost Thomas Frank’s options in the final third and his arrival represents a show of intent as Spurs look to rebuild after replacing Ange Postecoglou with the Dane.

Leeds are inching closer to signing the midfielder Sean Longstaff from Newcastle for an initial £10m, potentially rising to £12m. The 27-year-old, who joined Newcastle’s academy almost 20 years ago, lost his first-team place to Sandro Tonali last season. With one year on his contract, the clubs have spent recent weeks discussing a long-mooted move.

A transfer that will be registered as pure profit for Newcastle under the Premier League’s spending rules, given Longstaff’s homegrown status, appears imminent. With Longstaff keen on relocating to Leeds, personal terms will not represent a problem for a player whose experience should help Leeds adapt to the top tier after promotion.

While Newcastle’s pursuit of the Burnley goalkeeper James Trafford continues – the fee remains a sticking point – Eddie Howe is close to welcoming one of his top summer targets, the Nottingham Forest right-winger Anthony Elanga.

With the final touches being applied to Elanga’s £55m move, the Swede is expected to undergo a medical in the next 48 hours and be reunited with his international teammate Alexander Isak.

Newcastle remain in the market for a right-sided central defender and retain an interest in the Atalanta 21-year-old Giorgio Scalvini, who impressed in Serie A last season.

With Callum Wilson having departed, a striker to understudy Isak is required and Newcastle have been offered Dominic Calvert-Lewin, who has left Everton. Although Howe has previously expressed interest in signing Calvert-Lewin, a move is unlikely until later in the transfer window.

Kota Takai has completed a £5m move to Tottenham from Kawasaki Frontale in Japan to become the first signing of the Thomas Frank era. The 20-year-old centre-half, who is 6ft 3in and known for his strength, speed and comfort on the ball, has signed a five-year contract.

Takai swells the club’s extensive options in the middle of the backline, which start with the first-choice partnership from last season – Cristian Romero and Micky Van de Ven. Frank will also be able to call upon Kevin Danso, Radu Dragusin and Luka Vuskovic, the 18-year-old who has joined for £12m from Hajduk Split.

Romero’s future at Spurs is unclear. The Argentina international, one of the vice-captains under Frank’s predecessor, Ange Postecoglou, has made no secret of his desire to play in Spain and he has been openly courted by Atlético Madrid. Spurs, though, would not sell for less than £60m, a figure that may prove beyond Atlético. Romero is under contract to 2027.

Takai came through the youth ranks at Kawasaki Frontale, the club that produced the Brighton winger Kaoru Mitoma, making his debut for them as a 17-year-old. He won the Japanese Cup in 2023, was named as the J-League’s best young player in 2024 and this year helped his club to reach the AFC Champions League final – which they lost to Ivan Toney’s Al-Ahli.

Takai played in every minute of the knockout rounds and won plaudits in the semi-final victory over Al-Nassr when he kept Cristiano Ronaldo and Jhon Durán quiet. Takai made his Japan debut last September and has four caps.

Which transfer fee blew your mind? It was probably Spurs signing Gazza for £2m in the summer of 1988. TWO MILLION. No one is worth that kind of money. The following year, I distinctly remember running into the living room – Spurs had just signed Gary Lineker. I was preparing for the season ahead, invisible football at my feet, commentating to myself: “Gascoigne, to Waddle, in for LINEKERRRR.” The next moment I switched on the TV and someone (let’s say Ray Stubbs) was telling me that Spurs had sold Waddle to Marseille. I was bereft. There was no warning. For me, or for Lineker it turns out.

I heard the striker talking about the transfer recently on the excellent What Did You Do Yesterday? podcast hosted by David O’Doherty and generic broadcaster Max Rushden (perhaps the second-best podcast he hosts).

I asked Lineker whether he was as sad as I was when Waddle left. “I imagine I was considerably sadder. I signed for Spurs and then I went on holiday and I got the news; my agent called me and said: “They’ve sold Chris Waddle to Marseille.” Honestly it was like someone stealing 15 goals from my back pocket. He was so good, so good …”

This may be the most self-indulgent way to illustrate the blind beauty of transfers back then – for fans and teammates. They just appeared out of nowhere like the Dungeon Master (press the red button for other more youth-friendly references). Patrick Bernal, Hugo Lambert and I playing Championship Manager 93 on the Amiga, flicking on the radio to hear Tottenham had signed Jürgen Klinsmann. No warning. No rumours. Just bang. Klinsmann.

For Cambridge United signings you had to wait for the Cambridge Evening News to see Steve Claridge’s beaming face holding a scarf aloft. I was not allowed, and too square, to ring ClubCall, an 0898 number, 90p a minute, to find out whether we were selling Alan Kimble to Wimbledon.

That guy recording messages from a shed on an answerphone must be sitting somewhere now thinking if only he’d been born 30 years later, he’d be earning a fortune writing “Here We Go” on X to announce Everton’s purchase of Thierno Barry.

At the lower reaches of the EFL, transfers do still pop up nostalgically from nowhere. A picture of a man’s face, straight to Wikipedia to find out who Ben Purrington is, and then finding a mate who supports Charlton to ask whether he’s any good. Elis James still hasn’t got back to me about whether the former Swansea under-21 keeper Ben Hughes can do a job between the sticks in the Vertu Trophy.

At the top of the Premier League, though, with TV and radio shows hosted by professional transfer influencers, and with flight tracking of private jets, almost nothing is unknown. Either that or you just keep linking a player with every possible destination so that eventually you say the right thing. “My understanding is …” “I’ve just exchanged a message from someone close to the club.” “All my sources tell me the player is determined to push this through.” Maybe some people with more self-control manage to ignore this stuff and watch Chris Woakes moving it perfectly off a length for hours at Edgbaston without reaching for the second screen and typing “Eze Spurs”.

New transfers are fun and exciting. But the hype machine ignores a few basic realities. There is no guarantee of it working out, even if you spend more than anyone’s spent before. In fact, a cursory look at the most expensive transfers of all time suggests they are more likely to fail.

In purely football terms – I’m not checking the shirt sales numbers – Neymar to Paris Saint-Germain for just under £200m (that’s a hundred 1988 Gazzas!) didn’t deliver the Champions League. Ditto Kylian Mbappé (for about £160m). The rest of the top 10: João Félix to Atleti, Enzo Fernández to Chelsea, Philippe Coutinho to Barça, Antoine Griezmann to Barça, Florian Wirtz to Liverpool, Moisés Caicedo to Chelsea, Declan Rice to Arsenal, Jack Grealish to Manchester City. Perhaps it’s a little early to judge Wirtz. But with all the caveats of how you define success, how many of them have been worth the money? Or even taking the money out of it, how many have delivered consistently on the pitch? Maybe Rice is the only one? OK, Mbappé’s 256 goals in 308 games seems pretty good, but … look at PSG now, look at Real Madrid now.

Taking inflation into account, of course money is sometimes well spent: £80m for Ronaldo in 2009 feels like good business for Real Madrid – a few million less than United spent on Antony 13 years later . Poor Antony, always getting mentioned in these articles; he’s taken a lot of the heat off Nicolas Pépé.

Is it just the pressure of such a high fee? Or the fact we judge someone who cost a hundred million in a different way to someone who commands half that? Fifty million pounds still seems quite a lot for, say, Richarlison. Out of the most expensive 100 transfers of all time, if generous you could make a case that about 40 have worked out.

What a terrible hit rate. Why are so many of us blind to the possibility that a new face won’t work out? You’ve seen a seven-minute heavily edited YouTube video to early 2000s Europop. There’s no way they’ve made Ricky van Wolfswinkel look like Kaká. He simply is just that good.

There is actually a chance that someone already at your club will get better at football. Most of them train every day. It remains baffling how often a manager is praised for being able to improve players. Feels like a prerequisite.

Of course relentless 24-hour coverage of existing squad players would be even less interesting than the rumour mill. “My understanding is that Joelinton was good last year and might be good again this year.” Official club accounts making big reveal videos for a centre mid you signed three years ago may not get the numbers. But there’s every chance they’ll be more important this season than the guy you just signed for £30m from Strasbourg.

Nevertheless, in a month or so someone will have won the transfer window. It would be great to have a life option to switch off rumour notifications, reject those cookies and select the 1988 discovery option.

The English coach Martin Ho has signed a three-year deal as Tottenham Hotspur’s head coach until 2028, the Guardian understands.

The 35-year-old had been in charge of the Norwegian club Brann’s women’s team for two years, since leaving his role as the assistant coach at Manchester United women in July 2023.

Ho is Spurs’s replacement for Robert Vilahamn, who was sacked in June after the club finished second from bottom in the WSL last term.

He leaves Brann second in the Norwegian top flight midway through their 2025 season, after a second-placed finish last year. He took Brann to the 2023-24 Women’s Champions League quarter-finals, where they were eliminated by the eventual champions, Barcelona, which was the furthest a Norwegian side have progressed in the competition.

Ho had spent three and a half years at United, initially working with the under-21s in the second half of the 2019-20 season alongside the now Bristol City head coach, Charlotte Healy. Ho then moved up to be Casey Stoney’s assistant with the first team in July 2020 and, after Marc Skinner replaced Stoney as head coach in 2021, he spent two years as Skinner’s No 2, including a second-placed finish in the WSL in 2023.

Born and raised in Mossley Hill in Liverpool, Ho previously had spells working at Everton – as assistant manager – and at Liverpool, where he was the under-21 women’s team’s head coach.

Spurs are understood to have been impressed by Ho’s passion and his track record of player development, as well as by his results in the Women’s Champions League with Brann. Sources have told the Guardian that the club received strong references from around the world in support of Ho.

Arsenal have held talks with representatives of Eberechi Eze and could battle with Tottenham for the Crystal Palace forward. Mikel Arteta has identified Eze as someone who could add creativity and depth to his squad after they finished as Premier League runners-up for a third successive season.

Arsenal officials met Eze’s agents on Saturday to discuss personal terms and other details, but have yet to open talks with Palace over the England international.

Eze, who was released by Arsenal at the age of 13, is believed to have a release clause of £67.5m in a contract that runs until 2027, and Palace have been adamant they will allow him to depart only if that is met. Tottenham have a longstanding interest in Eze and have discussed whether to make him a statement signing for their new manager, Thomas Frank. A readiness to submit an official offer could depend on whether Palace are willing to accept less than his clause, which at this stage seems unlikely.

With Marc Guéhi prepared to see out the final 12 months of his deal if the right move does not materialise, Palace are wary of losing Eze for a discounted fee if he does not leave this summer. In January, they rejected a bid from Spurs worth up to £70m for Guéhi, who is also of interest to Liverpool and Newcastle. Liverpool have been reported to be willing to offer Ben Doak as part of the deal after Palace expressed interest in signing the Scotland forward in January.

West Ham’s need to rebuild their squad without breaching the Premier League’s profitability and sustainability regulations could lead them to sell Mohammed Kudus to Tottenham if their London rivals offer enough for the attacker.

Spurs have identified Kudus as a key target and there is a feeling that he will be available for less than his £85m release clause, which is applicable to Premier League sides for the first 10 days of July. There is no asking price but there is a sense that £60m could be enough to get a deal done.

Sources inside West Ham and who know the club well say money is extremely tight. West Ham are adamant that they must sell to buy and have long known that selling Kudus is the best way to give their head coach, Graham Potter, funds to improve his ageing squad. They would prefer not to sell to Spurs given the enmity between the clubs but are willing to be pragmatic. Kudus would be the first West Ham player to join Spurs since Scott Parker in 2011.

It is understood that West Ham will be at risk of falling foul of PSR if incomings are not offset by significant sales. They are keen to shift big earners such as Edson Álvarez, Nayef Aguerd and Niclas Füllkrug. Hopes of bringing in big money for Lucas Paquetá have been dashed by the Football Association’s investigation into alleged betting breaches by the Brazil midfielder, which he denies.

Potter is comfortable with the idea of selling Kudus because the Ghanaian struggled last season and is at his best on the right – the same position as West Ham’s captain and most important player, Jarrod Bowen. Kudus has also attracted interest from Chelsea, Newcastle and Manchester United. Chelsea like that the 24-year-old can play in three positions across the attack but it remains to be seen whether they sign another forward after agreeing deals for Jamie Gittens and João Pedro.

Kudus impressed after joining West Ham from Ajax for £37m two years ago. He shone in his first season but endured a difficult second campaign. He clashed with Julen Lopetegui before the Spaniard’s sacking in January and scored only four goals. West Ham admire Kudus’s talent but wonder whether he fits in Potter’s system and believe a sale will help their rebuild.

Spurs have not been put off by Kudus getting sent off against them and receiving a five-match ban last season. Their new manager, Thomas Frank, is looking for attacking reinforcements and is likely to lose out to Manchester United in the race to sign his former player at Brentford, Bryan Mbeumo. Spurs are known to be looking at Bournemouth’s Antoine Semenyo and Crystal Palace’s Eberechi Eze, who is also admired by Arsenal.

The former Chelsea striker Tammy Abraham is poised to become Besiktas’s record signing after the Turkish club agreed a €15m (£12.9m) deal to buy him from Roma. Abraham, who spent last season on loan at Milan, is to sign a four-year deal with Besiktas, where he will work under Ole Gunnar Solskjær.

Abraham spent four years in Italy after joining Roma from Chelsea, helping them win the Europa Conference League in 2022. Since sustaining an anterior cruciate ligament injury in 2023, Abraham has struggled for form. He scored only three Serie A goals for Milan.

Everyone t’up north (London) wants Eberechi Eze. Fierce rivals Tottenham and Arsenal are ready to battle it out for the winger, eager to procure his dazzling dribbling and finishing. Crystal Palace know their position in this and are willing to sell, but he will set any suitors back around £68m. Last season the England international scored and created eight goals in 34 league appearances to make him one of the most sought-after attackers in the country.

Spurs do not plan to fund any of their summer business by selling Europa League winner Cristian Romero on the cheap. Atlético Madrid are flirting with the idea of signing him but the £60m sale demands will almost certainly put them off.

Cristhian Mosquera is in talks with Arsenal over a potential move from Valencia. The Spaniard was part of their squad at the European Under-21 Championship and after elimination can focus on finding a new club, although his current employers are asking for £25m. The young centre-back has become a regular at the Mestalla, and can boast 82 appearances in La Liga before his 21st birthday, which happens to be this very day. ¡Feliz cumpleaños, Cristhian!

Manchester United need young and hungry players, so they have decided to target a teenage Champions League winner in the form of the Paris Saint-Germain midfielder Warren Zaïre-Emery. Ruben Amorim will need to offload a few outcasts soon. Napoli and Juventus are open to signing Jadon Sancho but his £250,000-per-week wages are proving a stumbling block.

Aston Villa are interested in bringing the Galatasaray midfielder Gabriel Sara back to England. The Brazilian, who previously had a spell with Norwich, has flourished in Turkey, bringing a host of scouts to watch him play, but Unai Emery may be the most eager in acquiring him.

After suffering a bit of pushback from clubs about signing their players, Newcastle are trying to solve their problem with £125m worth of bids on João Pedro, Anthony Elanga and James Trafford. The first two are valued in the region of £50m each by Brighton and Nottingham Forest, respectively, and it seems unlikely that Burnley will allow their No 1 to leave for £25m, but it is good to show willing.

It may seem like Brentford are losing some of their best talents but they are pretty adept when it comes to replacing them. The latest set for a move to west London is Feyenoord’s Antoni Milambo, who will cost about £17m with a further £4.25m in potential add-ons.

Nicolas Kühn was a standout player at Celtic last season, alerting the rest of Europe to his obvious talent. Como have got on the blower to the Scottish champions to see how much the winger would cost but could face competition from Leipzig. Speaking of Celtic, their defender Greg Taylor is close to joining Paok.

Tottenham are weighing up a move for Eberechi Eze and believe the Crystal Palace forward would be open to joining them.

Spurs have a longstanding interest in Eze, not to mention close connections with the agency that represents him, and they have discussed whether to make him a statement signing for the new manager, Thomas Frank.

Spurs have already completed the purchase of one wide attacker, turning Mathys Tel’s loan from Bayern Munich into a permanent deal for £30m. They would have to pay around double that for Eze, who was one of the Premier League’s most eye-catching performers in the final weeks of last season. It has been reported that Eze’s contract contains a £68m release clause.

The 26-year-old scored his first goal for England in the World Cup qualifying win against Latvia on 24 March and it was the trigger for him to finish the campaign in arguably the form of his career. He scored nine in 13 matches for Palace, including two in the 2-0 league victory at Spurs and then the winner in the FA Cup final against Manchester City.

Eze can play wide or as a No 10 while the England manager, Thomas Tuchel, even used him as a second striker in the friendly defeat against Senegal two weeks ago. Tuchel is a huge fan. Eze is represented by the influential CAA Base agency, which has a number of players at Spurs, including the captain, Son Heung-min, James Maddison and Pape Sarr.

Son’s longer-term situation at Spurs is unclear. He has one year to run on his contract and will be 34 next summer. He has been linked with a move to the Saudi Pro League.