The New York Times

John White was struggling to find a partner for a round of golf one afternoon in July, exactly 62 years ago, after he had finished a morning of pre-season training at White Hart Lane.

He tried to persuade some of his team-mates in a Tottenham Hotspur side who, three years earlier, had become the first team in the 20th century to win the league and FA Cup double, and the previous year had become the first English side to win a European trophy — the Cup Winners’ Cup.

Cliff Jones, his close friend and partner in crime with practical jokes that would annoy legendary Spurs manager Bill Nicholson, declined as storm clouds were gathering around north London. Terry Medwin and White’s fellow Scot Jimmy Robertson also didn’t fancy it.

So White decided to play on his own and left his home in Winchmore Hill for the Crews Hill course in Enfield despite the protestations of his wife Sandra who told him “you’re not going golfing” before relenting and dropping her husband off “just for a few holes”.

White never returned home. One of the best footballers in England and the man Nicholson planned to build his ‘new’ Spurs team around was struck by lightning as he sheltered under an oak tree on the ninth fairway when storms hit. He was killed instantly.

Spurs had lost their star inside forward and Sandra, at 22 and with two young children, two-year-old daughter Mandy and son Rob, just five months old, had lost her husband.

“There are so many ‘if onlys’,” Rob White, who has spent the 62 years since discovering as much as he possibly can about the father he never knew, tells The Athletic.

“Cliff Jones hid my dad’s trousers in the dressing room after training, which was an everyday prank for them, but it delayed dad’s world by 10 minutes while he looked for them. Then there was sheltering under the tree. Why did he do that? You can look at it and say ‘how many red lights did he miss?’ Everything could have turned out differently that day.

“I’ve actually played golf a couple of times at Crews Hill. As kids we went to garden centres near there but never to the golf course because it was the stuff of nightmares for me. But when I eventually did go there it was quite peaceful and I definitely felt a sense of closure.”

In 2010, Rob White, together with Julie Welch, Fleet Street’s first female football reporter, wrote a moving book about John called ‘The Ghost — In Search of My Father The Football Legend’ (The Ghost was John’s nickname, derived from his ability to float into space unnoticed by the opposition). Two years ago the story was turned into a brilliant play by writer and director — and huge Spurs fan — Martin Murphy.

On Tuesday, 62 years to the day after the tragic accident, The Ghost of White Hart Lane will be staged for the first time in John’s home town of Musselburgh, just outside Edinburgh.

Actor Callum Lewis Newman puts in an extraordinary performance, playing 31 different characters in this one-man play, principally John and Rob White. “At times it’s as if Callum is my dad,” says Rob. “It’s incredibly emotional for me to watch it. I’m able to get close to how he might have been.”

It is a play that tells an extraordinary story of a superstar cut down in his prime and one that remains largely unknown to a legion of younger football followers, even Spurs fans.

“There was always a silence around me growing up, probably because of the magnitude of the situation,” continues Rob before heading to Scotland for the big night in Musselburgh. “Mum would never talk about Dad. There were no pictures of him at home. I grew up knowing it was too painful for my mum and nan to tell me all about him.

“There was also this weird thing that I felt everybody knew the story apart from me. It would frustrate me. I’d think, ‘It’s my dad, my grief, what’s it got to do with you?’. Funnily enough the other week I bumped into somebody I was at school with and he said something about my story.

“I said, ‘I didn’t think anybody knew about it’ and he said, ‘We all knew about it and were all talking about it but we didn’t talk about it with you.’ It blew my mind there was this chatter going on but I wasn’t aware of it.”

In modern parlance, John White was an attacking wide midfielder on both the right and left, ‘ghosting’ around the pitch. It is difficult to exaggerate just how good a footballer he was, or how shocking his loss was in such freak circumstances at the age of just 27.

Rob’s book carries a quote on its cover from the great Jimmy Greaves that says: “Had John White lived he could have been one of the greatest footballers of all time.” It is not sympathetic hyperbole because it has been echoed by so many to John’s son.

“One of the frustrations for me being a football obsessive was trying to find out just how good my dad was,” says Rob. “Was he Johan Cruyff? George Best? Denis Law? I didn’t know. I talked to Jimmy Greaves for the book and Luka Modric had just joined Spurs.”

“I said to Jimmy, ‘I really like Modric, is he like my dad?’ and Jimmy just started laughing and saying, ‘Nowhere near as good as your dad’. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up.

“So many important people in football who were around at the time rated him so highly. I met Alex Ferguson and he said so many beautiful things about my dad.

“As Spurs fans there’s no way we can disregard the opinion of Bill Nicholson, who was our finest manager of all time, and he was definitely going to build his next team around my dad. He had just given him a pay rise and apparently had intimated that to him.

“Denis Law was adamant if Dad had lived England would never have won the World Cup in 1966 because Scotland would have done it instead. Imagine that!”

Yet for all his undoubted ability, White’s death did not elicit the huge reaction that the closest modern equivalent tragedy, the death of Liverpool’s Diogo Jota at 28 last year, brought. Sandra White and her two children were left mainly to fend for themselves.

“I grew up with my mum and grandmother and I thought Bill Nicholson’s first name was ‘Bloody’ because it was always ‘Bloody Bill Nicholson’,” says Rob, always destined to be a Spurs fan and who now lives in Tottenham “seven minutes from my sofa to the stadium”.

“It was like my dad’s death was more a huge blow to Bill’s plans for his beloved Tottenham Hotspur than a tragedy, but now I think I can see how much it all hurt him.”

“(Legendary Spurs goalkeeeper) Pat Jennings told me his first official day at Spurs was the day of my dad’s funeral and he remembers Bill breaking down in tears in the dressing room and having to go into the showers to compose himself. So I think that’s an insight into how much my dad’s death shattered him as a person as much as a football manager.

“The players were paid a bonus at the start and end of the season, which I think was £1,000, and because my dad died when he did, in July the club used his money to start a fund for us and then there was a testimonial.

“We were also given a couple of complimentary tickets for games but my nan used to have to ring up and ask for them and it stopped around 1980. There was some money raised but the club could have done a hell of a lot more.”

Now that is all in the past and Rob, a former non-League footballer himself, is at peace with the club he has spent his life supporting along with Scotland — he now even plays for Spurs’ walking football side — and his lifelong search for his father is as complete as it can be.

“I think it’s definitely a sense of pride in him now and there’s a lot more of a settled feeling,” he says. “When I was younger there was that anger, the not knowing and the embarrassment because if I told someone who my dad was there would be this cloud of grief. I’d say, ‘Don’t worry, I didn’t know him’ but now I feel I did know him.

“There was a lightbulb moment when I was training to be a counsellor (Rob’s second career after photography) and I found out how important the first six months are in an infant’s development.

“So actually that thing about not knowing him was bull****. I knew him; I knew what he sounded like and smelled like and I knew he had this presence.

“It does make me sad that his presence just disappeared one day from my life and that’s why I’ve been so determined to get that connection. And I do feel more connected now than just this abstract dialogue I’d have with him in my head.”

“I don’t think my search will ever be totally complete, but in a good way now rather than a disoriented way. I have built the best picture I possibly can, with the help of the play, of my dad.”

The Ghost of White Hart Lane is at Musselburgh on July 21-22, in the West End of London from July 31-August 2 and then the Edinburgh Fringe from August 5-31

Roberto De Zerbi has added Brighton & Hove Albion assistant head coach Andrew Crofts to his Tottenham Hotspur backroom staff.

The two clubs have agreed a compensation package for the 42-year-old to join Spurs and link up with De Zerbi, for whom he worked previously worked under at Brighton.

Crofts initially joined the south-coast club’s coaching staff in 2019 and would go on to become Brighton’s under-21 head coach.

He was placed in interim charge of the men’s first team following the departure of Graham Potter to Chelsea in September 2022 and secured a permanent position on the first-team coaching staff of De Zerbi and his successor Fabian Hurzeler, who appointed him as assistant coach.

Crofts said upon his exit from Brighton: “I’m incredibly grateful to Tony Bloom and Paul Barber for the trust, faith and support they’ve shown in me throughout my time here.”

The former Wales international midfielder made 125 appearances across two stints at Brighton as a player, and is also part of Craig Bellamy’s coaching staff with Wales.

Spurs also confirmed the appointments of Ali James as head of medical services, Tom Tombleson as head of athletic development and Agostino Tibaudi as strength and conditioning coach.

Crofts has provided continuity in Brighton staff

Crofts’ reunion with De Zerbi is rooted in the Italian’s arrival as Brighton head coach in September 2022.

De Zerbi brought with him several of his countrymen to form the bulk of the backroom team, but he also wanted somebody who knew Brighton well and would provide continuity.

Crofts was a perfect fit. He stepped in as interim coach without taking charge of a game between Graham Potter’s move to Chelsea and the appointment of De Zerbi.

The expertise added by Crofts during De Zerbi’s near two full seasons in charge at the Amex Stadium has led to them working together again.

Crofts was full throttle as a player and he brings the same level of commitment to his coaching career. He was a combative midfielder who played for Norwich City in the Premier League between spells in the second and third tiers with Brighton. He also won 29 caps for Wales across 13 years, the majority of them under the late Gary Speed, with Gareth Bale and Ryan Giggs as team-mates.

Coaching was always going to be his next step. He gained the UEFA Pro Licence (the top coaching qualification) in 2021, having returned to Brighton for a third stint at the club in 2019 as player-coach of the under-21’s. He became head coach of the under-21’s two years later.

Hurzeler followed De Zerbi’s lead in appreciating Crofts’ value when he was appointed in June 2024.

Crofts was promoted from first-team coach to assistant head coach alongside former Augsburg assistant manager Jonas Scheuermann. The departure of Crofts leaves a big gap in Hurzeler’s support staff.

Manchester United have completed the signing of 18-year-old winger Tynan Thompson from Tottenham Hotspur.

Thompson came through Tottenham’s academy on the left side of attack and is set to join Michael Carrick’s first-team squad.

United have agreed a deal worth £4million ($5.4m) in guaranteed fee plus a further £4m in add-ons, depending on the winger’s senior progress. Spurs also retain a sell-on and matching rights.

Thompson’s transfer draws similarities to Ayden Heaven’s arrival in January 2025. The centre-back joined United from Arsenal’s academy aged 18 for £1.5m and has since played 24 senior games.

Thompson is an England youth international who scored 13 goals and registered six assists across Spurs’ under-18s to under-21s last season, including seven goals in seven UEFA Youth League games.

He was named on the bench for senior Champions League matches against Paris Saint-Germain and Borussia Dortmund, as well as the Carabao Cup tie against Doncaster Rovers.

United are looking to the youth market in England for opportunities and are in talks to sign other teenage talents, including at Manchester City and Liverpool. City midfielder Karim Cassim, 16, is one such target.

If a week is a long time in football, two years is an age.

Since the summer of 2024, Tottenham Hotspur have had four permanent managers, won their first major trophy in 17 years, played in the Champions League and flirted dangerously with relegation.

At the start of that period, Pedro Porro was on the fringes of the Spain setup. After a good season with Tottenham under Ange Postecoglou, Luis de la Fuente somewhat surprisingly left him at home as his squad went on to win the European Championship. Now, 24 months on, he has emerged as a key member of the national team aiming to win their second World Cup, and should be considered among the very best right-backs in the world.

To explain his absence as Spain marched to victory in Germany at Euro 2024, we should start at the beginning of the Porro debate.

Like his club-mate Djed Spence, who often plays on the opposite flank to Porro at Tottenham, it has taken a stellar World Cup campaign for football to appreciate the extent of the Spaniard’s talent. Often characterised by his deficiencies, an attacking side which brings the best out of Porro has maximised his strengths in front of a global audience.

Ironically, one person who was under no illusions about Porro’s talent was previous head coach Thomas Frank, who was sacked in February after a nightmare seven-month period in north London. Above Micky van de Ven, Argentina’s Cristian Romero — whom Porro will confront in Sunday’s final — or last summer’s marquee signings Mohammed Kudus and Xavi Simons, Frank believed Porro was the only player who could play for one of Europe’s truly elite clubs.

The evidence speaks for itself: Manchester City were among his suitors last summer as Pep Guardiola looked for a new starting right-back, and Real Madrid were among his admirers ahead of the World Cup. Yet there is a feeling that, perhaps until this summer, Porro was not wholly appreciated by club or country.

On the senior international stage, Porro’s introduction to De la Fuente could not have been more inauspicious.

The right-back had worked with Spain’s head coach at under-21 level and was handed his first start of De La Fuente’s tenure against Scotland in March 2023. Seven minutes into the game, Porro slipped on the ball near the right touchline, allowing Andy Robertson to claim possession and square to Scott McTominay, who put Steve Clarke’s side in front.

Porro was substituted at half-time for the more experienced Dani Carvajal, and Spain went on to lose 2-0 — still their last competitive defeat. Porro failed to win his place back from Carvajal, who won the 2024 Champions League with Real Madrid and finished fourth in Ballon d’Or voting.

Neither could he displace a 38-year-old Jesus Navas, a natural right-winger who had retreated to right-back in his twilight years with Sevilla and retired from football five months after lifting the European Championship.

“It makes you feel a bit helpless,” Porro told Spanish outlet Cadena SER after his Euro 24 snub. “You work all year to be there, but, well, everyone has their opinion and that’s football. It’s normal, any player would like to play in an international competition, especially for their country… but that’s it. Keep working on it. That’s what I was taught, and that’s what I’m doing.”

While he worked his way back into the Spain setup, the following two seasons at club level were far from plain sailing. Porro has comfortably played more Premier League minutes than any of his Spurs team-mates since 2024-25 (5,405), far ahead of goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario (4,950) in second place. Due to his availability and importance at both ends in Tottenham’s Europa League-winning campaign, he was probably their outstanding performer under Postecoglou, a reality which also reflects the injury crisis and calamitous league season (they finished 17th).

Porro’s goals against Eintracht Frankfurt and Bodo/Glimt in the quarter-final and semi-final of that Europa League run were decisive, but the season was not without shaky moments — memorably when up against Beck Ray Enoru, who worked as a sales assistant at high-street clothing store Zara to supplement his semi-professional wage, in Tottenham’s 3-0 extra-time win over non-League Tamworth in the FA Cup.

And while his performances were consistently solid last term — he was possibly the first name on Tottenham’s team sheet when fit — Porro was consumed by the dark cloud hanging over the club through the most trying of league campaigns.

He created 17 more chances (52) than the next highest creator (Simons with 35) and ranked behind only Joao Palhinha and Cristian Romero in duels won. He was essential in helping the team to stave off relegation under Roberto De Zerbi, pushing forward into the right half-space from full-back to receive passes between the lines, and providing a solution to Palhinha’s limitations with the ball.

Two league assists last season represented an under-performance for a player who is not as consistent in dead-ball situations as he should be. But, for the most part, Porro was let down by his coaches (until De Zerbi), whose tactical direction limited his attacking influence.

Now, having won the starting right-back position from Marcos Llorente in Spain’s second match in the tournament in the United States, Canada and Mexico, football is awake to what Porro is and can be.

In a possession-heavy team, the former Sporting CP man has the support from team-mates to play his way out of tight situations, something not often afforded him under Frank, and the space and licence to create on the overlap and drive into the box from the half spaces. His goal against France in the semi-final was world-class, and his header against Austria, ghosting in from right-back to the near post, is a movement Spurs have coaxed from him several times before.

In these conditions, it’s tough to make an argument that there is a right-back better equipped to shine across the Premier League, and Tottenham tying him down to a long-term contract before the start of his World Cup campaign is one of their shrewdest and most important moves of the transfer window.

After a turbulent two years, Porro will return to a club with a coach, as well as an ownership group, who appear intent on providing the conditions for him to thrive as he does for Spain. Tottenham are guaranteed a World Cup winner in their squad for the third successive tournament following Hugo Lloris in 2018 and Romero in 2022, but if Porro and Spain turn up at MetLife Stadium on Sunday as they did against France, the identity of that winner may not be a contest.

Tottenham Hotspur have rejected an offer from Newcastle United for midfielder Lucas Bergvall.

The bid was around £46million (€54m) and exceeded the approaches made by Nottingham Forest to date.

All attempts to sign the 20-year-old so far, including higher proposals, have been rejected by Spurs — although a sale would be considered if the figures reach a level they deem suitable.

Bergvall is under contract until June 2031 but has informed the club of his preference to seek an opportunity elsewhere this summer.

The Athletic reported the Sweden international’s desire to leave in June and he has been the subject of attention from suitors in England and Europe.

Earlier this window, Newcastle sold midfielder Sandro Tonali to Spurs, while they missed out on the signing of Switzerland international Johan Manzambi, who moved to Aston Villa instead.

Bergvall is Forest’s primary target as they look to replace Elliot Anderson following his move to Manchester City for £116m.

The midfielder has made 78 appearances for Spurs since joining the club in a £8.5m deal from Swedish side Djurgarden in 2024.

Spurs have invested in midfield acquisitions this summer, having completed the £85m signing of Mateus Fernandes from West Ham United, alongside the arrival of Tonali in a deal worth up to £100m.

Bergvall made 33 appearances for Spurs in all competitions last season, recording a single goal and five assists. In January, he underwent surgery after sustaining a high sprain on his left ankle, and was sidelined until March.

Tottenham Hotspur have rejected Nottingham Forest’s opening offer for midfielder Lucas Bergvall.

Despite not yet agreeing a fee, Forest’s interest in Bergvall remains and negotiations are expected to continue.

The 20-year-old midfielder is Forest’s primary summer target and the player they want to replace Elliot Anderson, who Manchester City have agreed to sign in a deal worth £116million ($153m).

Bergvall is under contract at Spurs until June 2031 but informed the club of his preference to move on this summer.

The Athletic reported his desire for a new challenge in June, and he has been the subject of attention from suitors in England and Europe.

The Sweden international joined Tottenham from Swedish club Djurgarden for £8.5m in 2024. In his first season he won Spurs’ player of the year award while helping the side to their first trophy in 17 years, the 2025 Europa League. Since head coach Roberto De Zerbi’s arrival in March, however, he started just once.

Tottenham have strengthened in midfield this summer with the £85m signing of Mateus Fernandes from West Ham United and the arrival of Sandro Tonali from Newcastle United in a deal worth up to £100m.

Aston Villa had also been interested in Bergvall, but are now set to finalise a move for Wolverhampton Wanderers midfielder Joao Gomes and Freiburg’s Johan Manzambi. They are also in talks to sign Joao Palhinha, who spent the 2025-26 campaign at Spurs, on loan from Bayern Munich.

Villa, alongside Chelsea, contacted Tottenham in the winter window to express interest in Bergvall before it was made clear the north London side did not intend to consider his departure.

Bergvall was part of Sweden’s 2026 World Cup squad and appeared in all four of their fixtures at the tournament before they were eliminated by France in the round of 32.

The Athletic reported on Wednesday Forest were set to sign midfielder Xaver Schlager on a free transfer after his RB Leipzig departure. The move would reunite Schlager with new Forest head coach Oliver Glasner, who previously managed the him at Wolfsburg.

Forest’s ideal Anderson replacement

Analysis by The Athletic’s Nottingham Forest correspondent Paul Taylor

Bergvall has long been Forest’s primary target as a replacement for Elliot Anderson, and he is somebody that fits perfectly into the transfer blueprint that the club like to operate.

The 20-year-old is a young player with huge potential to improve, even if he has already established himself as a highly regarded Sweden international.

Forest spent £37.5m to make another young player, Omari Hutchinson, their record signing last summer and they will have to eclipse that figure to land another bright prospect.

Anderson is set to complete a £116m move to Manchester City, a deal that will represent more than £100m in profit for Forest, who effectively signed Anderson for £15m from Newcastle, with back-up keeper Odi Vlachodimos a £20m makeweight in the deal.

Bergvall may not initially bring the same level of quality as the England international, but Forest believe he is a player who can fill the void he will leave and who will only grow in stature with the benefit of the first team opportunities Forest will provide.

Forest are set to strengthen their midfield options with Schlager set to join on a free transfer after the midfielder left RB Leipzig at the end of last season. The Austria international turned down a number of other clubs in favour of a reunion with Glasner, who previously managed him at Wolfsburg.

But, while that is seen as a good piece of business, landing Bergvall could be even more important for Forest, as they prepare for life under Glasner.

Spurs losing another promising talent

Analysis by The Athletic’s Tottenham Hotspur correspondent Jay Harris

Selling Bergvall and Luka Vuskovic in the same window would be a bitter pill for Tottenham supporters to swallow. They could have been this team’s star players for the next decade but record-breaking moves for Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali have demonstrated that the club’s strategy has changed significantly.

Bergvall started slowly in his debut season but became a fan favourite with energetic performances. The midfielder incensed Liverpool in the first leg of a Carabao Cup semi-final in January 2025 when he scored the winning goal shortly after narrowly avoiding a second yellow card for a reckless lunge on Kostas Tsimikas. It turned him into a cult hero overnight. He finished the campaign strongly and won the club’s player of the season award for helping Ange Postecoglou’s side win the Europa League.

Bergvall’s second season with Spurs proved more difficult. They burned through three different head coaches, suffered another injury crisis and flirted with relegation. As a result, Bergvall rarely started matches in his preferred position of central midfield and was shunted out wide to cover holes in the squad.

He suffered an ankle injury in January which forced him to miss eight games and he only started once after returning in March. He made 23 top-flight appearances in total for a grand total of 966 minutes. The arrival of Tonali and Fernandes has pushed Bergvall further down the pecking order.

Spurs will probably make a significant profit on a player they signed from Swedish side Djurgarden for only £8.5m but it will be a shame that, like Vuskovic, someone so obviously talented will be forced to fulfil their potential somewhere else.

In an interview with ITV after England’s dramatic 3-2 win over Mexico in the World Cup last 16, Djed Spence was asked whether Thomas Tuchel is tougher on him than anyone else in the squad.

With a chuckle, Spence replied, “Yes”. Having watched Tuchel scream Spence’s name from the sidelines during the 0-0 draw with Ghana, or maniacally bark at him for not throwing the ball forward in the 2-1 win over the Democratic Republic of Congo, his response was hardly surprising. But what Spence said next is a better reflection of their relationship and why he is thriving in an England shirt at the World Cup under the German.

“He likes me, I guess,” Spence said when ITV journalist Gabriel Clarke asked why Tuchel continues to single him out. “Perspectives. It depends how you want to look at it.

“Maybe he believes I can do more. Maybe he believes I can reach new heights, new levels.”

From the outside, Tuchel’s critical fixation on Spence may appear unfair, or even slightly nasty. But the 25-year-old has experienced the exact opposite at club level, causing his career to meander and stall for several years before rebuilding momentum over the past 18 months at Tottenham Hotspur, and Tuchel’s tough love is proving precisely what he needs.

Spence emerged into the national footballing conscience in early 2022, when he was electric as his then-Championship Nottingham Forest beat Arsenal 1-0 in the FA Cup. In front of a terrestrial television audience on ITV, a 21-year-old Spence was outstanding as a right wing-back for Steve Cooper’s Forest, earning the man-of-the-match award and plaudits from Arsenal legend Ian Wright. Wright was recorded on the pitch after the game telling Spence, “You’re supposed to be in the Premier League. You can’t play at that level and not be in the Premier League”.

He was outstanding as Forest marched to promotion to the English top division via the play-offs, and celebrated with a post on X pointed at former head coach Neil Warnock, who sent him on loan to Forest from his parent club Middlesbrough after a dispute. Warnock questioned his attitude and aptitude at the Riverside Stadium, suggesting he’d either play in the Premier League or in non-League (the fifth tier of English football and below), but he appeared to put those criticisms to bed over a stellar season at the City Ground.

In celebrating promotion, Spence posted an image on Twitter of him holding the play-off trophy with a cigar in his mouth, captioned “Oh, Where’s my Manners! Welcome to Twitter @warnockofficial,” after his former boss had recently joined the social media site.

He had plenty of suitors in the summer of 2022 after returning to Middlesbrough from his loan spell at the City Ground, eventually joining Tottenham for around £20million, marking a return to London after growing up in the south of the nation’s capital. But if Forest served as an environment where Spence was cared for and nurtured, he found no such love in north London under new head coach Antonio Conte.

Conte essentially disowned Spence from the start, describing him as an “investment of the club” and a “club signing”. After just six months and less than 10 combined minutes of action across four league appearances from the bench, Spence was sent out on loan to Rennes in France’s Ligue 1, without having the chance to prove himself as a Premier League player.

“It wasn’t a nice feeling,” Spence told the Rio Ferdinand Presents podcast. “Especially as I was coming to the club on a high, I was confident, I was buzzing, had just won promotion.

“Then it was like running into a brick wall. It shattered my confidence a bit, obviously I’m young. It’s not nice to hear.”

Ange Postecoglou joined Tottenham as head coach the following summer, but sent Spence back out on loan to Leeds United, a return to the second tier. After an unsuccessful loan period marred by injury and concerns over time-keeping, which ended with the Yorkshire club sending him back to north London prematurely, Tottenham were ready to cut ties with the full-back, agreeing to send Spence to Genoa in Italy with an £8.5million option to buy. The Italian side opted not to take up the option at the end of his loan spell, which turned out to be a blessing in disguise for the club and Postecoglou.

Amid an injury crisis in the 2024-25 season, Postecoglou turned to Spence with few alternatives. At that point, Spence felt a million miles away from a regular Premier League starting berth, let alone a first England call-up, not least an eventual selection for a World Cup squad. After waiting 881 days from signing for Tottenham in the summer of 2022, Spence finally made his first start for the club on December 15, and assisted for James Maddison inside the first minute of a dominant 5-0 win. While he has not been a regular starter, competing with internationals like Pedro Porro and Destiny Udogie for minutes, Spence has since established himself as a core member of Tottenham’s playing group with an impressive fitness record and the ability to play on either side of defence.

Yet there’s a sense that, until very recently, he had not entirely won over English football. For that, he bears some responsibility. In an interview with Talksport, Warnock said, “You can’t say Daniel Farke, myself and [Antonio] Conte were all wrong,” and he’s probably right. Last season, Spence and team-mate Micky van de Ven ignored then-Spurs head coach Thomas Frank’s instruction to applaud the home fans on the pitch after a poor 1-0 defeat to Chelsea, and walked straight down the tunnel to their dressing room. It was a move criticised by Tuchel, who said he “didn’t like it,” and later spoke to Spence about the responsibilities of being an England player. Sources, who prefer to remain anonymous to protect relationships, recognise that Spence is an introverted character who can come across as quite aloof, and that this image may not help his cause in moments like these.

While he has been a regular inclusion in Tuchel’s England squads since winning the first of his 13 caps in a 5-0 win over Malta last September, an inconsistent season at club level meant he was somewhat of a surprise call-up. Tuchel justified his selection by describing him as the fastest player in the squad and a one-v-one defensive specialist, but with more decorated alternatives like Real Madrid’s Trent Alexander-Arnold or more in-form full-backs such as Newcastle’s Lewis Hall and Luke Shaw of Manchester United in reserve, some critics viewed it as an odd, perhaps even undeserved selection.

In that same interview with ITV, Spence also conceded that he is probably the most relaxed player in the England camp, but that should not be interpreted as uninterested or disengaged. It was notable that when Gabriel Clarke asked if the win over Mexico was the best moment of his career, he put it alongside his England debut and winning the Europa League with Tottenham in 2025. He described John Terry’s iconic “floor header” for England against Slovenia in the 2010 World Cup as a “core memory” of being a football fan. He is also the first Muslim player to play for England, and accepts responsibility as a trailblazer to “inspire young kids around the world that they can make it as well.”

While you may have to read between the lines more than you would for Harry Kane or Jude Bellingham, who speak confidently and at length about their national pride, it is very apparent how much playing for his country means for Spence, who has spent his whole professional career overcoming doubters. And that passion has shone through at the World Cup, where Spence has been outstanding from the bench. He was involved in the fourth goal in the opening 4-2 win over Croatia, but his outings in the knockout stages have been even more impressive, defending heroically against Mexico in the last 16 before a dominant cameo against Norway on Saturday.

He has loosened up in front of the travelling media, too, conducting interviews with broadcasters and even gatecrashing a press conference, presenting as a “trainee reporter” to jokingly ask fellow team-mate Morgan Rogers whether he was the fastest player in the squad. He is close to Justin Cochrane, one of Tuchel’s assistants, with whom Spence worked under as a member of Thomas Frank’s staff at Tottenham. In a tournament where history and legacy are at stake, Spence appears to be enjoying life on and off the pitch more than ever.

So if Spence gets the nod against Argentina and you spot Tuchel barking instructions from the touchline, know it’s probably what he needs and exactly what he wants.

Brighton & Hove Albion have confirmed the signing of Croatia international Luka Vuskovic from Tottenham Hotspur.

The 19-year-old central defender has joined for a club record fee of £46million ($61.5m; €54m). He has signed a five-year deal, with an option for a further year.

The Athletic revealed in June that Brighton had made a £30m bid for Vuskovic. An improved offer was rejected before agreement was reached following the £52m sale of Dutch international central defender Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton to Tottenham.

Add-ons will potentially take the deal for Vuskovic to £50m. Tottenham also have a 20 per cent sell-on clause as well as matching rights for any potential future sale.

Brighton head coach Fabian Hurzeler said: “Luka has enjoyed a fantastic start to his career — it’s one we’ve followed closely.

“Last season he demonstrated he can play at a very high level and we want to help him build on that within our environment.

“There’s been a lot of external noise about Luka joining us, but he is still a young guy who will need time to adjust to the demands of playing for Brighton and to the Premier League. We are confident that he will take this in his stride.”

Vuskovic came through the ranks in his homeland with Hajduk Split, making his senior league debut two days after his 16th birthday in February 2023.

He spent the second half of the 2023-24 season on loan with Polish side Radomiak Radom, before joining Belgian Pro League outfit Westerlo on loan in 2024-25. His form for Westerlo earned him a move to Tottenham.

Vuskovic impressed in a third loan spell with Hamburg last season, scoring six goals in 28 league appearances in Germany’s Bundesliga. He earned a sixth cap for Croatia at the World Cup in June in their 4-2 defeat by England in the opening fixture of the group stages.

An unusual deal for Brighton

Brighton do not usually spend anywhere near as big on young players as the club record outlay on Vuskovic. They have made an exception for an exceptional talent, one of the brightest centre-back prospects in world football.

He never made an official appearance for Tottenham after moving from Hajduk Split in February 2025, and could not see a pathway to first-team minutes.

Brighton can provide that opportunity. Although the fee may seem excessive, Vuskovic is seven years younger than Van Hecke and has huge potential for growth in his game. Considering Brighton’s track record in player development, it is not unreasonable to think they will make a significant profit on Vuskovic at some point.

He will be fighting for game time with two more summer signings in a centre-backs rebuild by Brighton. Pascal Struijk has arrived from Leeds United for around £18m, Michael Svoboda from Venezia for £4.3m, after Adam Webster was released at the end of last season.

A transfer window playing out exactly as you imagined is a privilege reserved for a select few at football’s top table.

While the rest of the world responds to movements made elsewhere, the likes of Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Manchester City can reasonably expect to secure most, if not all, of their summer targets without many hiccups. Judging by how this summer is unfolding, we may soon have to add Tottenham Hotspur to that shortlist.

OK, that may be a touch optimistic, but Tottenham have operated like a club with serious intentions to compete for silverware and European qualification next season.

With historic underperformance in back-to-back Premier League campaigns, this summer was always going to be a busy one in the blue and white half of north London, and Spurs still have plenty of business to do in forward areas, where transfer fees are particularly inflated, and elite talent is not readily available. Still, their additions in defence and midfield with pedigree have set a strong precedent for what is yet to come.

That said, perhaps their most important addition in recent months remains head coach Roberto De Zerbi, whose marked shift in communication was at the heart of their successful efforts to stave off relegation. Without the Italian, it’s fair to say Tottenham would be in a different league today, with a less glamorous list of transfer targets and short of a character in the dugout with the charisma and cachet to land them.

While his psychological revolution must remain central to Tottenham’s continued reversal of their protracted slide and habit of losing matches too easily, De Zerbi now has the talent at his disposal to display his tactical chops.

Backed by the majority-owner Lewis family, Spurs have spent £185million on furnishing their engine room with two of the Premier League’s most in-demand midfielders, Sandro Tonali (£100m; initial £92.5m, with £7.5m in proposed add-ons) and Mateus Fernandes (£85m), gazumping City and Manchester United, respectively, in the process.

De Zerbi has typically operated with a double pivot across his managerial career, and immediately implemented that system at Tottenham despite last season’s previous head coaches Thomas Frank and Igor Tudor experimenting with alternatives in a desperate attempt to manufacture any on-field chemistry. So, having first impressed for Milan in a double pivot, Tonali will now join Fernandes to form a new-look midfield base with the technical, physical and tactical capacity to dominate matches in the Premier League.

The changes De Zerbi made in midfield were the most important on-field adjustments over his seven-game spell last term. Spurs evolved from a side who did not press well and could not progress the ball through the middle of the pitch through Frank’s miserable period and Tudor’s hapless interlude, to a side who tried to do exactly those things.

The standout performance of the De Zerbi era so far, the 2-1 away win against Aston Villa on May 3, was built on the back of Conor Gallagher, Rodrigo Bentancur and Joao Palhinha swarming the opposition in their defensive third, while they found solutions through Bentancur’s press resistance and Pedro Porro pushing ahead of Palhinha to be effective with the ball.

And while that unit competed well, particularly without possession, to earn a crucial three points, Tonali and Fernandes should offer more with the ball than “Bentinha” did.

Fernandes led the Premier League with 13 line-breaking passes leading to a shot last season, while only seven players made more than his 25 line-breaking passes that led to a cross. He may even be a better dribbler than a passer, as he frequently received the ball from defenders or the goalkeeper at West Ham United before driving past his markers and carrying it into the opposition half.

His tendency to receive a pass and take off inside his own defensive third is tailor-made for De Zerbi, whose Marseille and Brighton & Hove Albion teams worked to bait opposition players into pressing them in the final third before breaking through it with incisive passing or a driving run. With Antonin Kinsky, one of the Premier League’s most capable ball-playing goalkeepers, in the team and the recent addition of Brighton centre-back Jan Paul van Hecke, expect to see far more risk-taking from Tottenham in their own defensive third, made possible by a dynamic midfield duo.

Tonali will play his part, too, offering many of the same qualities as his expected new running mate.

Like Fernandes, the 26-year-old is not just a ball-winner, a line-breaking passer and lung-busting runner: he’s everything, everywhere, all at once in the midfield. His athleticism and defensive anticipation were viewed as a cheat code by Newcastle United head coach Eddie Howe, who relied on Tonali’s recovery pace and physicality to snuff out opposition transition opportunities.

Fortunately, given their recent track record with fitness issues, Tottenham have signed a pair with an impressive availability history. Tonali was behind only Malick Thiaw in minutes and matches played across all competitions last season for Newcastle, while 22-year-old Fernandes has not suffered a significant injury in his professional career.

It will be needed too, as De Zerbi requires a lot from his midfielders.

He often directs his pivot to use man-to-man marking in the opponents’ half, perhaps the most physically taxing out-of-possession strategy, and the ability of Tonali and Fernandes to follow their markers and cover space will be as integral to Spurs’ success next season as anything they produce with the ball. That win at Villa Park was Tottenham’s finest display of structural unity and coherence without the ball all season aside from the 2-0 win away to City in the August under Frank, and Fernandes and Tonali are set up well to continue, and even improve upon, their efforts.

Ahead of them, Tottenham are well furnished with creative options, with Mohammed Kudus set to return from a January thigh injury for pre-season and James Maddison’s road to full fitness boosted by a couple of promising cameos from the bench late last season, while remaining forward additions should help to fill the void of long-term anterior cruciate ligament absentees Wilson Odobert and Xavi Simons.

Gallagher was extremely effective as a No 10 that day against Villa, and could be an option to reprise the role in the new season, particularly in away matches where Spurs may see less of the ball and place greater emphasis on chance creation through their press. Pape Matar Sarr was also excellent in that role in the win at City, though he and Lucas Bergvall could be candidates to depart in this window, having barely featured under De Zerbi since he walked through the training ground doors on March 30.

And while Fernandes and Tonali appear set to be De Zerbi’s first-choice pivot for the present and future, Bentancur and Archie Gray are very capable deputies, and should not be undermined.

Bentancur was crucial as Tottenham improved under the Italian to stave off relegation and is a more-than-capable Premier League midfielder. As Spurs endeavour to add more trophies to their cabinet, a pivot of him and Gray, with the latter in reserve for cup matches and deputising and rotating in case of injury or from the bench, is a strong sign that they are set up to be well stocked for all eventualities in midfield next term.

Rightfully, excitement is building.

The defence is done, and the midfield may well be sorted, too.

If Tottenham can be as decisive in securing reinforcements in the attacking third before the window closes on September 1, who knows what next season could bring?

Most football fans have had their eyes on the World Cup, with just the odd interruption as Premier League clubs continue to get their ducks in a row for the 2026-27 season.

In case you have not managed to stay across everything, our club reporters have picked the most important things to happen at each Premier League side during the tournament.

Whether a big transfer, a coaching change, long-awaited ground upgrades, new contracts for key players, season-impacting injury news, or the cold grip of a UEFA sanction, here is a recap for each side.

Arsenal

Mikel Arteta will have watched many of his players advance to the latter stages of the World Cup with mixed feelings — delight for them personally, mixed with concern for the impact that may have on their physical shape for next season. Eight important Arsenal players are going into the final week of the tournament. Some will be in the final, which takes place one day before the first official day of pre-season training.

There are obvious implications for Arsenal’s summer plans and approach to the start of their title defence. A delayed return is inevitable for England’s cohort of Declan Rice, Bukayo Saka, Noni Madueke and Eberechi Eze, plus the Spanish trio of Mikel Merino, Martin Zubimendi and David Raya, and France’s William Saliba. Those nursing injuries from the end of last season and through the World Cup (Rice, Saka and Saliba) will need attention and probably extra time out.

Special consideration to squad building for the new campaign is a factor for potential additions, with highly admired targets such as Morgan Rogers, Bruno Guimaraes and Julian Alvarez going deep into the World Cup.

It makes for a fascinating summer with particular attention to the durability and availability of players for the first batch of Premier League games.

Amy Lawrence

Aston Villa

Villa appear to have beaten Newcastle United to the signing of World Cup breajout star Johan Manzambi. As The Athletic reported yesterday, the 20-year-old Swiss attacking midfielder is in the process of a finalising a move to Villa Park.

Otherwise it has not exactly been good news. Villa were fined €22.5million (about £19m) for breaching UEFA’s squad cost ratio (SCR) limit, which sounds bad, but far worse is the injury to Amadou Onana.

Both of the setbacks are linked to the sobering reality around Villa’s finances, and just how difficult it is for an over-achieving club to compete while adhering to the strict rules.

Losing Onana, 24, to an anterior cruciate ligament injury means they have to find a replacement at the same time as trying to cut costs and reduce the wage bill. Fortunately, the SCR issue is not as dramatic as the headline figure as Villa will only pay €7.5m with the rest payable if their compliance with the regulations takes a downturn.

Gregg Evans

Bournemouth

Continuity is the watchword at Bournemouth. This time last year, they had lost five first-team squad players including Dean Huijsen (Real Madrid) and Milos Kerkez (Liverpool), with Illia Zabarnyi (Paris Saint-Germain) on his way out.

The exits of head coach Andoni Iraola and centre-back Marcos Senesi had been established for months. New coach Marco Rose will commence work with a squad which has retained its starting players including Alex Scott, Rayan and Eli Junior Kroupi.

With European football, via the Europa League, for the first time in their history, a larger squad is desirable. New signings are required but, unlike a year ago, Bournemouth can look to evolution rather than needing revolution.

Colin Millar

Brentford

Brentford have moved quickly to address their lack of attacking depth, which arguably cost them a place in Europe last season, by signing Jaidon Anthony from Burnley. The 26-year-old is capable of playing across the front line and scored eight goals in the Premier League last season.

Anthony’s arrival has gone slightly under the radar because it was announced the day after Jordan Henderson broke his left arm jumping over advertising hoardings following England’s dramatic 3-2 victory over Mexico at the World Cup.

Henderson became a key player for Brentford after he joined them last summer and his freak injury could delay his return for pre-season training

Jay Harris

Brighton & Hove Albion

Selling Jan Paul van Hecke to Tottenham Hotspur. Their hands were tied because the Dutch international central defender would have been out of contract in June 2027 and showed no inclination to agree to a new deal.

It was not so much a question of if Van Hecke would leave this summer as when and where he would go. A reunion with Roberto De Zerbi for £52m has been accompanied by the club-record purchase of Luka Vuskovic from Tottenham (£46m), plus Pascal Struijk from Leeds United (around £20m) and Michael Svoboda from Venezia (£4.3m).

Van Hecke has been a mainstay alongside veteran skipper Lewis Dunk of a sound defensive record during Fabian Hurzeler’s two seasons in charge. Absorbing the break-up of that dependable partnership will be a challenge.

Andy Naylor

Chelsea

The chance for Cole Palmer to enjoy the rarity of a full summer off, especially after a campaign where his performances were clearly affected by a nagging groin injury.

Palmer’s last three seasons have been extended due to his involvement with England at the Under-21 European Championship (2023) and Euro 2024, plus the FIFA Club World Cup with Chelsea in 2025.

He has played 148 times for club and country since joining Chelsea in 2023 and the strain has shown. It is a primary reason why he was left out of England’s World Cup squad.

So for Palmer to rest up and be ready to join the first day of pre-season training under new Chelsea manager Xabi Alonso makes his omission a blessing in disguise. If the 24-year-old is back to his best, it will feel like a new signing.

Simon Johnson

Coventry City

Coventry fans are still waiting for significant movement in the summer transfer window, but head coach Frank Lampard committing his future has been a huge boost. As reported by The Athletic last month, Lampard signed a new three-year deal.

Lampard took over in November 2024 with Coventry 17th in the Championship, guiding them to a play-off spot in his first season, before their title triumph last campaign.

Bolstering Lampard’s squad is now the focus. Winger Loum Tchaouna signed from Burnley last week while goalkeeper Carl Rushworth, last season’s player of the season during his loan spell from Brighton, remains a key target.

Tom Burrows

Crystal Palace

At the start of the World Cup it was confirmed that Pierre Sage would be Palace’s next manager.

The Frenchman replaces Oliver Glasner, who left after his contract expired in the summer and then joined Nottingham Forest.

Palace had intended to make a swift appointment to best prepare for the new campaign, wary of the impact of having no manager in place until closer to the start of the season. Although keen on Iraola, it became clear that was an impossible deal and he joined Liverpool.

Therefore, Palace swiftly turned their attention to Sage, 47, who had been in charge at Lens.

Matt Woosnam

Everton

Everton needed to be proactive after a disappointing end to the season, and they have been.

After protracted, month-long talks with Middlesbrough, midfielder Hayden Hackney joined for an initial £16.5m. He was followed last week by winger Tyrique George, with Everton negotiating down the £25m purchase option contained in the original loan agreement with Chelsea to a guaranteed £18m plus bonuses.

Merlin Rohl’s permanent arrival from Freiburg has been confirmed after his obligation-to-buy clause was triggered by the club’s Premier League survival.

It has been a busy, largely positive start to the window. But more is needed, particularly at full-back, where the right side remains a particular concern.

Patrick Boyland

Fulham

Never shy of working to their own schedule, Fulham finally announced the arrival of head coach Alvaro Arbeloa late on Tuesday — five weeks after Marco Silva’s departure.

Replacing Silva, the club’s longest-serving manager for more than 60 years, was always going to be a step into the unknown, but this change feels more like a leap into the dark.

Arbeloa’s only senior coaching experience was a mixed four-month spell in charge of Real Madrid. The 43-year-old’s youthful-looking side dominated Manchester City in their Champions League last-16 tie, but fell at the next hurdle against Bayern Munich, then finished eight points behind Barcelona in La Liga.

Without Harry Wilson and Raul Jimenez, both out on free transfers, Fulham’s attack will need to be retooled. Is Arbeloa the man to do it?

Justin Guthrie

Hull City

No sooner had Hull won the Championship play-off final to reach the Premier League, the focus shifted towards a different battle at the end of June.

A £6m overspend brought the threat of breaching Profitability and Sustainability Rules (PSR) unless business could be completed before the end of the financial year on June 30. A points deduction was a distinct possibility.

That sticky situation had parallels with the cluster of clubs that frantically traded two years ago and, just like Newcastle United and Nottingham Forest did enough back then, Hull believe they were eventually able to raise the necessary funds after selling Ivor Pandur (£6m to Rangers) and Aidon Shehu (£2.5m to Panathinaikos).

Philip Buckingham

Ipswich Town

It has been a summer of change at Portman Road. Kieran McKenna stepped down as head coach on the eve of the World Cup, bringing an end to a hugely successful spell, which culminated in steering Ipswich back to the Premier League last season.

Gary O’Neil was appointed his replacement on June 23, tasked with doing the one thing McKenna couldn’t: keeping Ipswich in the Premier League. The first signing of the O’Neil era was completed in July as Brazilian striker Emersonn arrived from Toulouse.

The club and team had been moulded into McKenna’s image during his four and a half years in charge, the success synonymous with his brand of football. Will his successor opt for continuity or sweeping stylistic changes?

Ali Rampling

Leeds United

The arrival of Harry Wilson. After failing to land him at the first attempt, on September 1 last year, Leeds finally secured his signature as a free agent this month.

Wilson was one of the most impactful attackers in the Premier League in 2025-26. Only eight players were directly involved in more goals than Wilson’s 17 (10 goals, seven assists) and Leeds have picked him up for free.

Wilson plugs a creative gap in the Leeds line-up off that inside-right channel. The 29-year-old raises the ceiling of the squad and immediately adds an additional match-winner.

Beren Cross

Liverpool

Signing Victor Munoz for £34m. Without that, supporters would be losing their minds at the lack of transfer action.

After Liverpool’s dismal display last season, the expectation is that a busy summer window will solve everything after Iraola replaced Arne Slot as manager.

There was an online meltdown when The Athletic reported that Yan Diomande would prefer to join Paris Saint-Germain if he leaves RB Leipzig this summer, and unless a blockbuster transfer is secured, there will be concern going into the season.

Munoz, who hasn’t featured for Spain at the World Cup, is a bright spark but still has the potential at 22 to improve. His arrival has at least raised the excitement levels.

Gregg Evans

Manchester City

Regardless of what happens between now and the end of the summer, the most important thing to have happened at City has to be the arrival of Enzo Maresca, and with it the end of the Pep Guardiola era.

City have signed Elliot Anderson. Several more incomings and outgoings are likely, but the change of manager, for the first time in 10 years and as a replacement for the most instrumental figure in the club’s history, is hugely significant and will be talked about throughout the season, good, bad or otherwise.

Sam Lee

Manchester United

United’s summer was always going to be defined by one issue: the success or otherwise of their long-anticipated midfield rebuild.

The Old Trafford hierarchy entered the window with the intention of signing up to three midfielders, but with little hope of beating Manchester City to their first-choice target Anderson, who is signing for a record fee for a British player.

Priorities were shifted elsewhere but, while there was early momentum behind the pursuit of Mateus Fernandes, Tottenham Hotspur swooped past to meet West Ham’s £85m asking price with a guaranteed fee.

United’s attempts to be prudent and disciplined appeared out of step with an inflating market, and may still prove to be, with three midfield signings targeted. But striking a total £50m agreement with Chelsea for Andrey Santos last week marked progress.

As it stands, the completion of a €44.5m (£38

m) deal for Atalanta midfielder Ederson hinges on medical checks. Whether he signs or not, United have work to do.

Mark Critchley

Newcastle United

Combined player sales of circa £170m.

After the damaging and drawn-out Alexander Isak saga last summer, Newcastle have been far more strategic and clinical in offloading Anthony Gordon for around £70m to Barcelona and Sandro Tonali to Tottenham Hotspur for a fee rising to £100m.

Those sales are impressive, but they are indicative of the position Newcastle find themselves when it comes to UEFA’s financial rules. Newcastle have been fined €6m for breaching those regulations and have signed up to a stringent compliance agreement moving forward. The Gordon funds ensured compliance, while Tonali’s sale allows for wider squad reinvestment.

With the wage bill (and average age of the squad) being reduced, Newcastle are replacing their experienced stars with younger, hungrier players with massive potential.

They had hoped that Manzambi would be one of those players, but he now seems likely to move to Aston Villa.

Ironically, despite not being in European competition for 2026-27, their transfer strategy is being at least partly governed by European regulations.

Chris Waugh

Nottingham Forest

The £116m sale of Anderson to City is a landmark moment, albeit one that was easy to see coming on the horizon.

What was more surprising was the club parting company with manager Vitor Pereira. That was a decision motivated more by the calibre of his replacement, in Glasner, who arrives with an impressive CV, including helping Palace to secure their first two pieces of major silverware, the FA Cup and the Conference League.

Pereira did a great job in keeping Forest up. But Forest believe Glasner can take them on to the next level, even as they acclimatise to life without their talismanic midfielder.

Paul Taylor

Sunderland

Oddly, something no one had any concerns about when last season ended: Granit Xhaka committing to the Sunderland cause.

Chelsea’s shock pursuit of Xhaka was only worsened by the Swiss captain’s genuine interest in rejoining former manager Alonso and, for six long days, Sunderland were staring into a future without the man so instrumental in last season’s success.

A miserly £8m bid helped Sunderland remain resolute, but Xhaka choosing to stay has reinforced the ambitious feeling on Wearside. Preparations are underway for only the second European campaign in history — Jose Fonte has joined the coaching setup; Eliezer Mayenda has been sold for a bumper fee to Rennes, which has bolstered the budget — but Xhaka was always going to be central to future fortune.

His next chapter remains in the North East.

Chris Weatherspoon

Tottenham Hotspur

Spurs have been the busiest Premier League club in this summer’s transfer window and made a number of eye-catching signings, including Van Hecke from Brighton. They even outmuscled Manchester United to sign Fernandes from West Ham United for £85m.

But nothing trumps their stunning pursuit of Tonali. To strip Tonali from Newcastle, a direct rival, for a total package worth £100m will have raised eyebrows around the league. Particularly as Spurs broke their transfer record twice in the same week to do so.

Spurs have finished 17th for two seasons in a row but only seriously danced with relegation in the 2025-26 campaign. Their activity in the market suggests they are desperate to move on from a dismal couple of years and return to the top half of the table. Tonali is a statement signing which will raise expectations.

Jay Harris