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Although Tottenham Hotspur are riding high after blanketing Manchester City 2-0 to keep up their spotless record to start the 2025/26 Premier League season, the same positivity isn't being reflected in their summer transfer business.

After star attacking midfielder Eberechi Eze spurned Spurs for a move to bitter rivals Arsenal, Tottenham have been scouring the open market for any signs of quality playmaking to replace an injured James Maddison.

Although the options are limited, Spurs were zeroing in on Como star Nico Paz as their top target at the position. Paz only enhanced his reputation with a goal and an assist in a brilliant Serie A victory for the underdog side, as they managed to upend one of the bigger clubs in the league in Maurizio Sarri's Lazio.

The performance from Paz was followed up with some transfer news from Italian insider Fabrizio Romano, who dropped some unfortunate news for Tottenham fans. Per Fab, Tottenham did actually up their transfer bid to Como for Paz to the 70 million euros they were asking for, but even that fee was no longer enough to persuade the Italian club.

A European giant looms above

Romano states that Como rejected the bid outright, and, furthermore, Paz himself doesn't want a move. The 20-year-old Spaniard, in fact, doesn't want to exit Como at all this season, because his goal is still to return to Real Madrid as a star player, even after the Merengues bagged brilliant teenager Franco Mastantuono this summer to start alongside fellow playmaking phenom Arda Guler.

Real Madrid themselves were always going to match any offer for Paz anyway and do not want to see the player leave Como, as they are still reportedly intent on signing him in the future if he shows he's ready, given they hold a mere 10 million euro buy-back clause over Paz for 2026 in case Spurs or any other club were to get ideas of stealing him away.

Basically, the fact that Tottenham offered 70 million euros and were still rebuffed by all three of Como, Paz, and Madrid entirely enforces the idea that Paz isn't for sale at all. No amount of money, beyond anything truly absurd (which Spurs would not even offer) would coax a transfer. Paz is going to stay put in Como, and if Tottenham identified him as their next top transfer target, then they might as well take him off their list now and stop wasting their time. He isn't leaving.

Tottenham Hotspur have one main order of business before the transfer window closes at midnight on the night of Aug. 31, and that is to sign at least one more playmaker to bolster the squad after James Maddison's ACL tear and the infamous Eberechi Eze transfer snub in favor of rivals Arsenal.

Spurs are also working on Manchester City winger Savinho, though it's unclear if the way Spurs manhandled Man City at the Etihad on Saturday will work in their favor to convince the Brazilian to switch sides to them or if it will lead the Citizens to rethink doing business with a possible Premier League title rival.

That's the level Spurs can aspire to reach if they are able to sign the right players before the summer transfer window ends, though they are finding that the pickings are slim when it comes to playmakers who can truly elevate the squad.

One possible gamble on a cheaper deal that has been kicked around is AS Roma playmaker Lorenzo Pellegrini, who was once one of the most touted and well-rounded playmakers in Europe. And he was actually quite good until the bottom fell out last season, and his form didn't recover as Roma's did under Claudio Ranieri.

Tottenham might actually benefit more from losing this transfer

Now, Roma are open about moving on from their former captain and club legend. Via Fabrizio Romano, Roma director Frederic Massara confirmed that Pellegrini will be on his way out and ideally this summer so that the Italian international does not leave the club for free:

“Lorenzo Pellegrini will leave, now or in January for sure. We won’t extend his contract and we are looking for a solution not to lose him as free agent”.

Pellegrini had a run of five straight seasons with at least nine goal contributions in Serie A, and at 29 years old, the Roma attacking midfielder should still be in the prime of his career. But he's run a lot for a long time in Italy, and all of that running takes its toll, which may have been what happened last season.

With Gian Piero Gasperini on board, Pellegrini is expendable, but he is drawing interest from West Ham and Tottenham. Although Tottenham will only have Pellegrini as an emergency option if nothing else is there, he might be better than nothing at all, especially if Spurs can get him for well under 10 million euros with time ticking on his contract expiry.

Better yet, though, if West Ham are interested, that could open up a better signing for Spurs. Imagine Mohammed Kudus and Lucas Paqueta both ending up together at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium under Thomas Frank in 2025/26.

It was already hard enough for Tottenham Hotspur supporters to wave goodbye to Ange Postecoglou this summer, as Daniel Levy and the club rather unceremoniously dumped the Australian coach weeks after he had brought them a Europa League title in a particularly arduous season.

While moving from Postecoglou to Thomas Frank has proven to be a massive upgrade tactically and an overall better move for the clubs future, just looking at how Spurs have played in the last three games, there's no question that Big Ange did more good than harm for Spurs. The fight the current squad has, of course, is largely down to a lot of what Postecoglou imparted to the players he fought so hard for.

Postecoglou will always be a beloved figure around Tottenham, even through the gaffes and his inexplicable inability to play with a midfield in the Premier League. The memories and triumphs will live on, as well as the undeniable spirit with which he carried himself.

Of course, Big Ange won't be on the unemployment line for long, and, likely, another Premier League job will open up for him. And it already looks like the charismatic coach is thinking about his next move. Unfortunately, it's to a club that Spurs supporters won't be particularly pleased to see him at.

Big Ange could be back in the Premier League this season

According to the talkSPORT insider duo of Alex Crook and Ben Jacobs, Ange Postecoglou has already engaged in "informal talks" with Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis as the next possible candidate to take over from Nuno Espirito Santo - a former Tottenham coach himself - should the veteran Premier League manager choose to depart. Santo recently made public statements distancing himself from Marinakis and hinting at a possible resignation.

Marinakis is the most controversial figure in the Premier League, which is saying something since there are a load of players, coaches, and obviously owners who raise their fair share of eyebrows with their shenanigans.

But the stunt Marinakis pulled in barring Tottenham from signing Morgan Gibbs-White to a fair-and-square transfer is not one forgotten by either Spurs fans or the rest of the diehard supporters around the Premier League.

Marinakis quite possibly rubbed Santo the wrong way, and who is to say that he wouldn't have the same kind of clash with the headstrong, heart-on-his-sleeve Postecoglou? Save for Arsenal and maybe Chelsea, there may not be a place Spurs fans would rather see Postecoglou go less than Forest, both for the bad blood after the Gibbs-White deal and, maybe more concerningly, the dark cloud around Marinakis at the top.

Tottenham Hotspur are riding high after another big win, as Spurs cooked Manchester City 2-0 at the Etihad to make it a perfect 5-0 aggregate start to the season with convincing wins over two very different opponents in Burnley and the Citizens.

After showing in the UEFA Supercup Final that they can legitimately go toe-to-toe with the best team in European football, Tottenham have to be feeling good about themselves as they head into a crucial final week of the summer 2025 transfer window.

Although the focus needs to be on incoming players in order for Tottenham to maintain this level through a grueling season that now includes the Champions League, Spurs next move may be a relatively high-profile departure.

According to the latest information from Fabrizio Romano, Bundesliga newcomers HSV Hamburg are "close" to an agreement with Tottenham over a loan deal for star center back Luka Vuksovic, one of the best young players in the world at the position.

Tottenham are loaning their two biggest gems

Per Fab, negotiations are ongoing, and agreement between the two parties will be "completed soon", ending weeks of transfer speculation that the Croatian international would soon be headed to the German top flight.

Vuskovic is one of two prospects Tottenham fans are most exciting about with the other being winger Mikey Moore, who already joined a very high-profile club in Scottish giants Rangers on loan. Vuksovic is about to follow, and, like Moore, he will benefit from having more opportunities to start elsewhere.

Hamburg are only just returning to the Bundesliga after years of being stuck in the second division, and Vuskovic, even at the age of 18, already has the quality to start for them. That means Vuskovic will be a starter in a top five European league once this deal goes through, and that is invaluable experience for the Tottenham youngster to gain before returning to North London.

Simply put, Vuskovic is good enough to get some minutes for Spurs, but they are already loaded at center back with four legitimate quality footballers at the position in the superstar duo of Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, the ever underrated Kevin Danso, and even Radu Dragusin is an above-averager starting center back.

Vuskovic to Hamburg is as nailed-on of a transfer as you'll see, and while it is always tough to see a young player leave on loan, the benefits far outweight the negatives for Spurs with this Vuskovic loan deal.

The field of candidates at the No. 10 position seems to be pretty wide open due to the uncertainty of the situation for Tottenham Hotspur, as the club are scrambling for a valid James Maddison replacement after previous top target Eberechi Eze snubbed them at the last second for rivals Arsenal.

Eze's decision has sent Tottenham's summer transfer plans into a tailspin, and while there aren't many great options available in terms of playmakers who can raise Spurs level to that of a contender in the Champions League and Premier League, the undefeated North London giants still have a couple of quality players left to look at on the market.

Perhaps the most promising is Nico Paz of Como, though the complicated aspect of going for the Spanish international is the looming presence of Real Madrid, who can buy the player back at a future summer transfer window at a meager fee of less than 10 million euros. Removing that clause threat will likely take additional financial negotiation.

For now, though, Spurs seem serious about trying to pry Paz away from Como just one year after his breakout season helped the ambitious Italian side survive their first campaign in Serie A. According to veteran Italian transfer journalist Gianluca Di Marzio, Tottenham have indeed followed through on their plan to submit an improved offer to Como for Paz.

Tottenham will likely have to pay more

After previously sending a bid to Italy for 40 million euros in exchange for the 20-year-old attacking midfield talent, Tottenham have now upped their offer to 50 million euros. While that's still significantly below the high price of 70 million euros that Como are asking for, there is likely room for negotiation underneath the "sell high" fee that Como are aiming for.

Perhaps Tottenham can snag Paz for something in between 50 and 70 million euros, though it's hard to see Como going for just 50 million when Paz still has more room to grow and is already so vital to Como's hopes. Now, Como are seeking more than just survival and are looking to invest and build towards something greater in Serie A.

Tottenham don't have many options, and Paz is one of the few who is both talented enough to play games for Tottenham right off the bat and with enough upside to be a long-term solution at the position alongside a, hopefully, healthy Maddison. Negotiations should continue, though a sticking point may not be just the fee for Paz to Como, but also the fact that Real Madrid will surely want a hefty slice of pie, too.

This was a big performance from Tottenham. A statement win in only Thomas Frank's second game. It was a controlled performance, very similar to the one vs. PSG without, thankfully, any of the late drama.

GK Guglielmo Vicario

Was not tested anywhere near as much as I, and perhaps he, would have expected. Looked comfortable with any shots or crosses that came his way. Made one potentially big error passing out from the back, but otherwise was solid, including narrowing the angle really well for an important first half save from Omar Marmoush with the score at 0-0. Rating: 7

RB Pedro Porro

Was his usual energetic self on the right of defence, and linked the forward play effectively. Performed especially well when Jeremy Doku came on, really limiting the impact of the City sub. Rating: 8

LB Djed Spence

Goes from strength to strength. Spence defended superbly, rarely giving opponents time on the ball. Is comfortable on the ball in attack and has improved his tackling already this season. At the moment it is difficult to understand how he took so long to break into the first team after signing from Middlesbrough. Rating: 9

CB Cristian Romero

Looked strong, and even on a yellow card was not pulling out of any tackles. When he and Micky van de Ven are on this form, our spine is very solid. Looked like a captain today against one of the best attacks he will face this season. Rating: 8

CB Micky van de Ven

Similar to Romero, very solid. Micky did not have to use his pace so much today as we played a more controlled game. Made some important blocks in the second half. A performance that should give a lot of confidence going forward. Rating: 8

CM João Palhinha

Was part of a wall in midfield that did not give City any time. Palinha seemed to be everywhere. Drilled in the second goal when it looked like the gift of a chance might have been passed up. Would have been our best player had it not been for Pape Matar Sarr's performance next to him. Palinha is the type of player we have needed for a long time, and let's hope more of these performances are to come. Rating: 9

CM Pape Matar Sarr

His best performance in a Spurs shirt. Sarr has improved with each season and this year has had an excellent pre-season. Like Palinha, he was involved all over the pitch, constantly broke up City's play, and did not stop running. If he keeps playing like this and can also improve his forward play, Sarr could be a box-to-box midfielder that most teams will have a hard time stopping. Rating: 10

CM Rodrigo Bentancur

Calm in possession as always, and provided a steady outlet for us to play out from the back. Bentancur generally reads the game very well, and his positioning today showed this to a great extent. Very promising start to the season. Rating: 8

RW Mohammed Kudus

We didn't get to see as much of his attacking play as last week, which was always going to be likely given the difficulty of the fixture. Kudus, however, still put in a great performance, winning the ball, holding it up and helping us to control parts of the game. I'm not sure if we will see another player that has quite the same unique style as Moussa Dembele, but Kudus, while playing in a different position to Dembele, certainly has some of the same attributes. Rating: 8

LW Brennan Johnson

Continues to not be involved too much in a game, apart from scoring, of course. Does seem to get lost a little in games but impossible to leave out while he maintains such a goal threat. Took the goal very well from a cross that just had enough to reach him. Rating: 7

CF Richarlison

Put in a good effort up front, pressed well, and held the ball up at times. Good run to provide the assist for the critical opening goal. Still doesn't always seem too confident to take on chances, but built on last week's excellent performance. Deserves to continue to start at the moment. Rating: 7

Substitutes: Kevin Danso, Lucas Bergvall, Dominic Solanke, Wilson Odobert

Tottenham Hotspur have missed out on at least a handful of credible attacking midfield options this summer transfer window. Eberechi Eze to Arsenal is the highest profile and most recent of the snubs, but it was almost as brutal watching Morgan Gibbs-White agree to a deal with Spurs, only to end up re-signing a contract extension with Nottingham Forest anyway.

Spurs also missed out on James McAtee, who moved from Manchester City to Nottingham Forest, and Rayan Cherki early in the window. RB Leipzig star Xavi Simons would be a dream signing, but he's made it abundantly clear on several occasions in reports by top transfer insiders that he only wants to move to rivals Chelsea.

After Eze chose to join Arsenal, Tottenham have been scrambling to sign anyone, and one of the bottom-of-the-barrel options is Tyler Dibling from Southampton. The top young prospect only scored a couple of Premier League goals in his debut as a starter at the top level last season, disappointing in the end.

But he is still just 19 and a high-upside player. So while he is far from the ideal option for Tottenham and would not start right off the bat, he was on their radar. Now, though, he's off it, and even Dibling, the lowest-ranked of the Tottenham transfer targets at the 10 position, has found a new home in the Premier League.

Tottenham transfer target signing 42M deal

Fabrizio Romano gave Dibling to Everton the fabled "here we go", and perhaps the Toffees hearing the mumblings that Spurs were interested in the Saints teenage sensation was enough to spur them into action to officially sign Dibling.

A deal is reportedly in place between Everton and Southampton on a whopping 42 million pound transfer with an additional sell-on clause for the Saints to profit from, should the U21 talent shine and move on from Everton to an even bigger club.

Dibling has talent and potential, but 42 million pounds for a player who would have been nowhere near the Tottenham starting lineup as a playmaking No. 10 or a wide playmaker on the wings would have been, in all honesty, absolutely asinine.

Tottenham fans will be happy Dibling went to a worse Premier League club for a ton of money, and Spurs supporters will be pushing the team hard to go after a world-class player. But those options are few and far between at this late stage of the transfer window with the 2025/26 Premier League season under way. It's all down to the Diblings now, and even they are finding homes fast, too.

Desperate times call for desperate measures for Tottenham Hotspur. The North London giants just lost out on another top-tier Premier League playmaker on the transfer market, as Crystal Palace star attacking midfielder Eberechi Eze broke Spurs hearts by choosing to sign with rivals Arsenal at the last second.

Eze's snub followed Morgan GIbbs-White's, leaving Tottenham without a viable star in the attacking midfield role following a potentially season-ending injury to James Maddison, as well as a prolonged recovery period for emergency backup option Dejan Kulusevski.

Spurs are left scouring the market for alternative options, and arguably the most intriguing of the ones actually available for transfer is Como star Nico Paz, who broke out in his first season at the top level.

An immediate starter - and star - in Serie A, Paz joined Como permanently last summer for six million euros. Real Madrid, the club where he graduated from as a top academy prospect, are no longer his parent club, but they can buy him back next summer for less than 10 million euros.

Tottenham may have to spend even more than 70M

Despite Madrid's looming presence, Tottenham are interested in plucking the 20-year-old Serie A playmaker from Como. According to a new report from Italian transfer insider Gianluca Di Marzio, Tottenham are ready to go back in for Paz after submitting a 40 million euro transfer bid to Como for the player earlier this window.

Per Di Marzio, Tottenham are going to submit an improved transfer bid to Como for Paz, but Como have set a high asking price for the Spanish international. The Italian club would like to obtain 70 million euros in exchange for the young midfielder, Complicating things further is the fact that Real Madrid will have final say on any Paz transfer because of their buy-back clause.

Therefore, in order for Tottenham to guarantee they keep Paz and don't end up in a Johnny Cardoso situation where he ends up in Madrid, Spurs may have to pay additional cash to Real Madrid on top of the 70 million euros to Como in order to avoid an eventual letdown,

It's a lot of money for a player who could end up being more expensive than Mohammed Kudus, Eberechi Eze, and even Savinho over at Manchester City. Paz is really good and blew everyone away in Serie A, but the competition was easier and the pressure virtually nil at Como with the keys to the kingdom handed to him. He's better than almost all the options left for Tottenham, but he's also ridiculously expensive for someone without a proven track record at the Champions League or Premier League level among the best of the best in Europe.

Tottenham Hotspur made quite the statement on the Premier League's opening weekend, lambasting newcomers Burnley 3-0 to take out their frustrations on the blown loss in the UEFA Supercup Final against reigning Champions League winners PSG.

Things are looking up for Spurs on the pitch, even as they were dealt a crucial blow off it with Crystal Palace star Eberechi Eze choosing loathsome rivals Arsenal over them. Spurs still need to reenforce the attacking elements of their squad, and one of their biggest transfer targets is actually a member of the opposition on Saturday afternoon, Manchester City winger Savinho.

Manchester City will be a much more appropriate test for a Tottenham team that looked very game for the champions of Europe, as they have a lot more quality than Burnley. They showed it, too, last weekend with an even more impressive 4-0 drubbing of Wolves

Ahead of the big match on Saturday at the Etihad, Tottenham manager Thomas Frank spoke about two formations he is thinking of running against Manchester City and beyond in the 2025/26 Premier League season, via The Spurs Express:

“I treat every game a little bit different, but it’s definitely in my mind the 3-5-2, it’s also definitely in my mind the 4-2-3-1, and I will take a decision on what we do and you’ll see that tomorrow. I am always thinking, how can we tweak a little bit inside our principles. Then of course system can give us something, but principles are the most important thing. So, yeah I will be pragmatic, I will use different systems and different ways to win football matches.”

Tottenham went with three against PSG

Tottenham utilized a back four in the Premier League opener against Burnley with Pape Sarr, Archie Gray, and Lucas Bergvall anchoring the midfield three with the main back four, sans Djed Spence starting for Destiny Udogie, behind them.

But it's worth noting that in the game before that against PSG, Frank made use of a back three and had Pedro Porro and Djed Spence as wing backs. Kevin Danso drew a start in central defense alongside Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven to form quite the enviable trio of center backs.

Frank can't go wrong with any approach, and, ultimately, against a stronger like like Man City, he may opt for the formation he used against PSG for more defensive solidity against the likes of Erling Haaland, Bernardo Silva, Jeremy Doku, and new Man City superstar Tijjani Reijnders.

Going forward, Tottenham will be a flexible team with multiple formations that will be deployed depending on the situation. The fact that Spurs have such a versatile, young squad under Frank definitiely helps, and that tactical flexibility and squad versatility is exactly why it's so important for Spurs to keep signing good footballers before the transfer market ends.

No Son Heung-min or Dejan Kulusevski this weekend for Tottenham. Two players who Man City have historically struggled against. Here's how the last 5 games have gone.

Tottenham 0-1 Man City (Premier League)

After finding it difficult at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium for many earlier games, City continued better recent form there. Erling Haaland, just recently back from injury, scored an early goal. Having already been a threat, Haaland converted a Jeremy Doku pass from close range to give City the lead. Tottenham struggled to deal with Doku and Savinho on the wings and needed Vicario to make some good saves, but improved in the second half.

Odobert came close, and we did see a great late chance fall for Son, who had his shot saved. That gave Tottenham hope, but there were no more goals to come, Haaland even had a late finish ruled out for a handball. There was time, though, for Pape Matar Sarr to head over what should have been an equalizer.

Man City 0-4 Tottenham (Premier League)

If ever there was a game that shows Angeball at its finest, this was it. Ange's tactics did not always work, of course, and opposition teams did seem to figure them out quickly, but when they worked like this, it was wonderful to watch. Spurs went into this game without Cristian Romero or Micky van de Ven, two players who it was thought would be needed to have any chance. City were on a terrible run of form, and it wasn't long before they were struggling again.

James Maddison scored twice in the first half, once from a perfect Dejan Kulusevski cross and another from a Son through ball. The expected City avalanche in the second half didn't happen. Instead, Porro scored a third after another Kulusevski drive. Brennan Johnson added a fourth in injury time. Timo Werner provided the cross to leave the stadium in shock, showing great pace to go straight past Kyle Walker.

Tottenham 2-1 Man City (League Cup)

Timo Werner and Dejan Kulusevski combined for Werner to score to give Spurs the perfect start. Werner could have scored again before Pape Matar Sarr curled in a brilliant effort from outside the box. Sarr hit the ball first time, passing it into the net, and after 25 minutes, Spurs were two up. Since then, City came back into the game, led by Phil Foden and Matheus Nunes.

Nunes it was who scored just before half time to reduce the lead to 2-1. Both teams had chances in the second half in what was an open game. Werner and Savinho looking threats on the wings for each side. Werner and Richarlison both missed opportunities when through on goal. City pressed but a late goal-line block by Yves Bissouma was enough to give Spurs the win.

Tottenham 0-2 Man City (Premier League)

One of the strangest recent games at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Many Spurs fans came into it not particularly wanting to win, given City dropping points would boost Arsenal's title chances. Ange Postecoglou did not seem impressed with this talk before the game, but its difficult to see how this should have been a surprise.

In any case, the awkward situation of Spurs helping Arsenal did not materialize. Haaland scored twice as City won fairly comfortably. There were chances for Kulusevski and Son, but City's win put them on their way to the title.

Tottenham 0-1 Man City (FA Cup)

Tottenham vs Man City in the FA Cup will always make me think of Ricky Villa and his (best ever) FA Cup final goal. This game, however, was not as memorable. City had some chances, Spurs did not, and it was a game that never really got going.

Fittingly, the winning goal was a scrappy one, too. Nathan Ake scored late from a corner with Spurs feeling it should have been ruled out for a foul on Vicario. It was the first goal City had scored at the Tottenham Hotspur stadium and was enough to send them through.