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Eberechi Eze: Arsenal make move for Crystal Palace star and Tottenham target

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Eberechi Eze: Arsenal make move for Crystal Palace star and Tottenham target - BBC
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Arsenal have launched a move for Crystal Palace attacker Eberechi Eze.

Sources have told BBC Sport Arsenal will offer around £60m for the England forward, who is also wanted by Tottenham.

Talks between Tottenham and Crystal Palace had accelerated over the past few days, with multiple sources telling BBC Sport they were progressing positively. However, no agreement has been reached.

The Gunners have concerns over a knee injury sustained by forward Kai Havertz and Eze, 27, would offer Mikel Arteta an option in that area of the field.

Crystal Palace boss Oliver Glasner said on Wednesday that Eze will start in Thursday's Uefa Conference League play-off tie against Fredrikstad, along with Liverpool-linked Marc Guehi, as they remain "committed to the team".

Sources have told BBC Sport Eze wants to join Arsenal before the transfer window closes on 1 September.

Eze had a goal ruled out when Palace began their Premier League campaign with a draw at Chelsea on Sunday.

The England international has an expired release clause in his contract which was worth an initial £60m, plus a further £8m in add-ons.

Palace benefited hugely from Eze's 14 goals across all competitions last season, having scored in their 1-0 FA Cup final win against Manchester City.

Eze joined the Eagles from Queens Park Rangers for £19.5m in 2020 and his current deal runs until the summer of 2027.

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Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur: Premier League preview, team news, stats & head-to-head

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Manchester City vs Tottenham Hotspur: Premier League preview, team news, stats & head-to-head - BBC
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Manchester City have won just four of their last 12 Premier League games against Tottenham Hotspur (D2 L6), though beat them 1-0 in their last meeting in February. They last secured consecutive league wins against Spurs between December 2017 and April 2019 (4).

Spurs have won two of their last four Premier League games at the Etihad (D1 L1), more than they did in their previous 11 visits combined (D2 L8). Following their 4-0 victory last season, they’re looking for consecutive wins away at Man City for the first time since May 2010.

The last four Premier League meetings between Manchester City and Tottenham at the Etihad have produced 21 goals (9 for City, 12 for Spurs), with the away side netting at least twice in all four. The last side to score 2+ goals in five consecutive top-flight away games against Man City were Sunderland between 1980 and 2000. Â

Since the start of April, Manchester City have picked up more points than any other Premier League side (26), and are the only ever-present side to remain unbeaten in that time (W8 D2). They also have the most clean sheets (7) and have faced the fewest shots per game of any side in the division since April (7.6).

Tottenham Hotspur are looking to win their first two Premier League games in a season for the first time since 2021-22, which was also the last time a manager won his first two league games with Spurs (Nuno Espírito Santo then). They are winless in their last 11 games against non-newly promoted sides, however (D2 L9), since a 1-0 win over Man Utd in February.

In all competitions, Pep Guardiola has lost nine games against Tottenham Hotspur in his managerial career, only losing more against Liverpool (10). Spurs are also one of three teams he’s faced 10 or more times and won fewer than half of his games against (11/23, 48%), along with Liverpool (6/24, 25%) and Real Madrid (13/27, 48%).

Spurs’ Thomas Frank led Brentford to a 2-1 victory at the Etihad when he was Bees boss in November 2022. Only two managers have beaten Pep Guardiola away in the league with two clubs – José Mourinho (Real Madrid in 2012, Man Utd in 2018) and Antonio Conte (Chelsea in 2016, Spurs in 2022).

Erling Haaland has scored 48 goals in 48 home Premier League appearances for Man City. The only player to hit 50 Premier League home goals in fewer than 50 appearances is Alan Shearer, who scored his 50th home goal in his 47th game.

Tijjani Reijnders both scored and assisted in Manchester City’s 4-0 win over Wolves on his Premier League debut – no player has ever achieved this in their first two City appearances in the competition, while Reijnders or teammate Rayan Cherki could be the first player since Emmanuel Adebayor in August 2009 to score in their first two Premier League games for the club.

Richarlison netted a brace in Spurs’ 3-0 win over Burnley on MD1, already hitting 50% of his total for the entirety of the 2024-25 Premier League season (4 in 15 games). The Brazilian has the best minutes per goal ratio of any player who has featured across the last two Premier League seasons (goal every 95 mins), also enjoying a 27.3% conversion rate.

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Mathys Tel: Tottenham forward says racist abuse after Uefa Super Cup will not bring him down

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Tottenham forward Mathys Tel says the online racist abuse he received after the club's recent defeat in the Uefa Super Cup will not "bring him down".

The 20-year-old Frenchman was the target of abusive messages on social media after Spurs lost the match 4-3 on penalties after letting a two-goal lead slip in normal time.

Tel came on as a substitute in the 79th minute and was one of two Spurs players who failed to convert from the spot in the penalty shootout.

Spurs said they were "disgusted" by the abuse and those who sent the messages to Tel, who joined the north London club from Bayern Munich permanently in the summer, were "nothing but cowards".

Speaking for the first time since the incident in a post on his Instagram account, external Tel said he wanted to say "thank you" for all the "messages of support" he had received.

"I was also disappointed about Wednesday night but racism has no place in our society. Every day is a learning curve, and every day is a lesson," Tel said.

"I know where I come from, where I started and none of this will bring me down. With work and humility, respect reigns."

Tel's comments come in the wake of racist abuse suffered by Bournemouth player Antoine Semenyo in their opening match of the Premier League season against Liverpool at Anfield.

Last Friday's game with the current champions was briefly halted in the 29th minute after Semenyo flagged it up to the referee.

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Cristian Romero: Tottenham captain signs new long-term contract

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Cristian Romero: Tottenham captain signs new long-term contract - BBC
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Tottenham Hotspur captain Cristian Romero has signed a new four-year contract to commit his future to the club.

The 27-year-old Argentina centre-back joined Spurs from Atalanta in August 2021, initially on loan before the move was made permanent the following summer.

He has made 126 appearances for the club, scoring eight goals, and captained the side in the Europa League final as Tottenham beat Manchester United to end their 17-year wait for a trophy.

After being heavily linked with a move to Atletico Madrid over the summer, Romero was named club captain by new head coach Thomas Frank and the deal ensures he will remain in north London until 2029.

The former Belgrano defender, who had two years left on his previous deal, follows right-back Djed Spence in signing a new long-term contract.

Spence, 25, arrived from Middlesbrough in 2022 but endured a difficult start to his Spurs career and spent loan spells at Rennes, Leeds and Genoa.

Last season he emerged as an important player for Ange Postecoglou and has made 42 appearances, scoring twice.

Spence's existing deal was set to expire in 2028.

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Premier League: Counter-attack Liverpool - what we learned from opening weekend

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Counter-attack Liverpool - what we learned from Premier League weekend - BBC
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Another Premier League season has begun, with new-look sides, new-look tactical approaches and plenty of optimism (and pessimism!) among the fans.

We could have picked out many observations across all teams - but here are five that caught our eye in particular at the weekend.

Arne Slot's Liverpool have brought in attacking reinforcements but the balance of their side looks off. Against Bournemouth, they were bright going forward but looked susceptible to conceding on the break.

Last season, Liverpool only conceded two goals from fast breaks all season. In the first game of this season, they equalled that number.

So what has changed for Liverpool?

The personnel informs how tactics are executed and Slot pointed towards sloppy passing in midfield as a reason Liverpool were so exposed. These misplaced passes gave the opposition time and space against a disorganised defensive shape while attacking the centre of the pitch.

This is more dangerous than losing the ball in the wide areas as attackers are closer to goal, in better shooting positions.

Although Slot focuses mainly on the sloppy passing and dispossessions in midfield, it is objectively true that Liverpool committed many bodies to their attack. At times, there were seven or eight players in and around Bournemouth's box, leaving Liverpool with very few players back to defend.

For Antoine Semenyo's second goal, both Joe Gomez and Andy Robertson were attacking in the opposition's box so were unable to get back to defend the counter-attack when the ball was lost.

Yes, decision-making and passing quality needs to be better but Slot may need to tweak the positions of the full-backs or central midfielders when Liverpool are attacking for additional protection against dangerous counter-attacking sides.

Rodri's season-ending injury last September clearly derailed their Premier League campaign but rather than simply awaiting his return, Pep Guardiola has found a solution without him and the former champions have been getting back on track since the start of the year.

Below is Man City's 'non-penalty expected goal difference per game' (that's a mouthful) since the start of last season, which tells us how much a team dominates their games by creating lots of good chances and limiting their opponents to few, bad ones.

It's the X-ray stat, the one that shows how good teams are before hot finishing streaks and the rub of the green come into play.

Mikel Arteta's Arsenal have taken an alternative approach to their recent summer transfer business. For a team who have dominated the ball, playing slowly and methodically for the last few seasons, they have now looked to introduce directness and counter-attacking threat.

Against Manchester United, Arsenal played more directly and it was to their detriment on the day. We saw numerous quick attacks consisting of players carrying the ball quickly upfield over large distances before trying to play through balls for the attackers. In seasons gone by, they would've likely opted to hold the ball, passing it backwards before restarting their attack.

Martin Odegaard was primarily the player leading the majority of counter-attacks. Viktor Gyokeres' best attacking zones are in the inside right channel. As the Swede darted in behind, Odegaard's weight of pass was off and chances broke down. This made the game end-to-end, suiting United's quick attackers.

Odegaard being left footed here was slightly problematic too. Angle-wise, using a right-footed player would allow the pass to go towards the goal rather than curling away from it, making it easier for someone like Gyokeres to shoot early. Imagine Kevin de Bruyne's through balls (from right central midfield) to Erling Haaland if you're struggling to understand what I mean.

Although this style of play was ineffective in the opening game, there are positives. If Arsenal can get the final pass correct, they'll find themselves in clear goalscoring opportunities more often. How Arsenal balance their slower possession style with this newer, transitional quality will be an important thread to their season.

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Tottenham 3-0 Burnley: Fan views

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Tottenham 3-0 Burnley: Fan views - BBC
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We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Tottenham and Burnley.

Here are some of your comments:

Tottenham fans

David: Amazing game - it was really nice to see the ball run so smoothly. I never really thought much of Richarlison, but now it looks like he is bound to have an amazing season. Go Thomas the Frank Engine! Choo choo!

John: Good win and nice to get three goals - even better not to concede any. The team looks like a unit that knows what its doing, playing like a proper team. Frank knows what he's doing.

Neil: A good start - three points and three goals plus a double for Richie - who, if he stays mentally and physically fit, will be a bonus. A lot still to work on for Frank, but after losing all those games last season, it was nice not to be worried all match.

Iain: Great win, but don't get too excited because there's another 37 league games to go. Frank's trust in Richarlison paid off and was, by a long way, the outstanding player, with Mohammed Kudus deserving applause for his performance too. Manchester City away next week will be a better test for Spurs' players. But football is a funny old game, so who knows!

Brian: Still a small sample size, but it is interesting to see how more or less the same squad as last year can look so robust, as if they are now playing with their whole bodies rather than just their feet. The best of the Ange era was still on display with Johnson's goal, but that was the icing, not the cake. Great start!

Phil: While it was a good start to the league, we were very lucky again. Just like the Europa League final. Attack was good but, yet again, very shoddy in defence - hence good luck needed.

Burnley fans

Chris: No surprises, but no worries - it's the Premier League isn't it. Just keep focused and don't panic. Great manager and keen squad to succeed. It will take time.

Jonathon: We weren't as bad as the scoreline shows but this is the Premier League. We can't afford to leave players free in the box when we have five at the back. We need attackers with actual quality as well. I feel like it's going to be worse than the Kompany season. Maybe I'm overreacting...

Alan: Crushed. I hoped Burnley would get a positive result, but it is the manner of the loss that is so disheartening. Defensive set-up beaten after 12 minutes and no way back. Another long season with nothing but disappointment to look forward to.

Paul: Judging from that, it's going to be a very long season. We simply do not have a credible goal threat. That will make attacking us easy for other teams. If we do not beat Sunderland at home next week we will find ourselves stranded at the foot of the table. And that will be that.

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Rejuvenated Richarlison helps Frank to 'dream start' at Spurs

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Rejuvenated Richarlison helps Frank to 'dream start' at Spurs - BBC
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A convincing three-goal home win in their opener against Burnley seemed the perfect start to Thomas Frank's Premier League reign at Tottenham - but one factor disappointed the Dane.

Such was the beauty of Spurs' second goal, with Richarlison scoring a sensational scissor kick from Mohammed Kudus' cross after a wonderful passing move that swept up the pitch, manager Frank fears nothing will top it this season.

"For the second goal we had 17 passes and every player in the team touched the ball and then an exceptional finish. I'm a bit disappointed as so early on we've had the goal of the season," joked Frank.

He had every reason to be in a jovial mood as Spurs and Richarlison were in excellent form for Frank's first home game since he replaced the sacked Ange Postecoglou, who was dismissed 16 days after guiding the club to Europa League glory.

Spurs only needed 10 minutes to grab their first league goal of the season as Richarlison swept home on the turn with a fine finish after good work from Kudus, who has made a promising start following his £55m move from West Ham.

After Richarlison's acrobatics for goal number two, he was then involved in the build-up to the third, before Pape Matar Sarr released Brennan Johnson whose clinical finish made it 3-0 and sealed Frank's winning start.

When the Brazil striker was replaced after 71 minutes, with England striker Dominic Solanke coming on, Richarlison was afforded a standing ovation.

Richarlison cost Tottenham £60m when they bought him from Everton three years ago, but only scored four times in the league last season in an injury-hit campaign that included him missing 17 games with a hamstring injury and then a further 10 with a calf injury less than a month later.

"The medical team have done a top job to build him and that's something we need to do throughout the season," added Frank.

"The first goal was easier to score without it being easy. To have a striker that takes those two chances helps us win the game. He was very good against PSG [in the midweek Super Cup defeat] and again today with his work-rate, driving the team, linking up the play, hold-up play, just demanding the ball and then the two finishes.

"I've always liked Richarlison and I always thought he was a good player when he played for Everton. When he came to Tottenham he struggled with injuries so we're aware we need to protect and build him. The first signs are good."

It was not just Frank who was impressed with the striker.

Record Premier League goalscorer Alan Shearer told BBC Sport: "Richarlison was very impressive this afternoon and his second goal was a phenomenal finish.

"First of all it's great wing play from Mohammed Kudus - just as it was for his first goal.

"Richarlison's going away from goal. You've got to readjust almost every part of your body to get the connection. It's such a difficult technique."

Ex-England striker Dion Dublin, speaking on Final Score, was another to praise Richarlison, who has played 50 times for Brazil, scoring 20 goals.

"Richarlison has everything he needs to score the goals but he just needs a bit of managing on and off the field," said Dublin.

"I believe he is one of these players where you have to massage his ego and say 'You're great, go and play, you're playing every week'. Do that and I think you'll get the rewards."

Although Tottenham's 2024-25 season ended in glory with their first trophy in 17 years and their first European silverware since 1984, their woeful league performances left them 17th, in their worst position in English football since one campaign in the old Second Division in the late 1980s.

Fan protests were a regular part of last season, although a planned protest on Saturday failed to materialise, apart from a handful of fans outside the stadium holding one banner criticising chairman Daniel Levy, which read: Built a business, killed a football club.

Some supporters have expressed their disappointment at the club's business in the transfer window as Kudus, along with midfielder Joao Palhinha who has joined on a season-long loan from Bayern Munich, have been the only major additions.

Hugely popular club captain Son Heung-min was sold to Los Angeles FC for £18m, while Spurs failed in an attempt to sign England's Morgan Gibbs-White with the midfielder since agreeing a new deal with Nottingham Forest.

But the club are making progress to sign Crystal Palace and England forward Eberechi Eze with talks expected to progress in the next 48 hours, while Manchester City winger Savinho remains a target.

The best way for Tottenham and Frank to stop fans protesting is with their performances.

This result, and their showing in the Uefa Super Cup on Wednesday - when they gave European champions Paris St-Germain a huge fright before conceding a 94th-minute equaliser to draw 2-2 and then lose on penalties - has been a good start.

Tottenham have remained as entertaining as they were under Postecoglou, but the early signs under Frank are that the team will be able to do that without the all-out attack and defensively vulnerable nature often displayed under the Australian.

Frank summed it up by saying: "It was a perfect start, our dream start, but we all know we need to follow on it.

"But today I will just enjoy it, and I hope the players, the club and the fans enjoyed it."

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