SPORTbible

Spurs kicked off their Premier League campaign with an impressive 3-0 win over Burnley but their opener was perhaps overshadowed by a bizarre moment in the stands on Saturday.

A brace from Richarlison and a strike from Brennan Johnson got Thomas Frank off to a winning start at the North London side as Spurs responded to their UEFA Super Cup penalty shoot-out defeat to Paris Saint-Germain on Wednesday.

Spurs fan proposed to partner at Burnley game

In a viral video doing the rounds online, a fan in the stands got up out of his seat and promptly proposed to his other half while the game was going on.

Proposals at games have taken place before at half-time but while the likes of Mathys Tel, Djed Spence and Pape Sarr could be seen in the background, this particular supporter took off a jacket to reveal a new Spurs home shirt which had 'Marry Me 13' on the back.

He got the answer he wanted and then held up a second shirt which said, 'Yes I do' with the No.14. The moment, which appeared to be genuine as opposed to a viral staged stunt, was cheered and applauded by a section of nearby fans and caught plenty of attention from social media.

Reacting to the stunt, one fan on X said: "Fair play but I hope this doesn’t start a trend."

A second added: "Congratulations but this cannot become a regular occurrence."

A third commented: "The game's gone."

A fourth fumed: "There is absolutely no place for this in football what so ever!"

A final person joked: "Life time ban surely."

Spurs' state-of-the art stadium is available for hire and has many function facilities if the happy couple fancy tying the knot at the place where they got engaged.

At White Hart Lane, fans were allowed get married at various locations - including the director's box, pitchside or the home changing room.

Paris Saint-Germain have immediately transfer listed a player in the wake of their Super Cup win on penalties over Tottenham Hotspur, it has been claimed.

On Wednesday, Spurs squandered a 2-0 advantage over PSG, as the Champions League holders netted in the 85th minute through Lee Kang-in, before claiming an equaliser through substitute Goncalo Ramos in the 94th-minute.

The tie went to penalties, with PSG’s Vitinha firing wide with their opening effort, before the French side recovered to win the shoot-out 4-3.

But according to RMC Sport’s Fabrice Hawkins, Lee, who played a central role in PSG’s comeback, could leave the club this summer should they receive a good offer.

The report adds that there are clubs in England that have considered an approach for the South Korea international, and PSG are ready to listen for offers.

Indeed, PSG are said to be focusing on sales after securing the arrivals of goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier and centre-back Illia Zabarnyi.

One of those clubs potentially interested in Lee could be Arsenal, with the Gunners having been linked with the 24-year-old in January and May.

According to the Sun, Arsenal’s sporting director Andrea Berta is said to have been the driving force behind a failed bid from Atletico Madrid for Lee two years ago, when he left Mallorca for the Parc des Princes.

Meanwhile, French publication L’Equipe claimed in May that PSG will want to recoup their £18.7m outlay and will not listen to any offers below £17m for the player.

The outlet added that Lee is dissatisfied with his playing time, and has indicated to the club that he will seek a new team this summer.

Lee has netted 13 goals and registered 11 assists in his 86 career encounters for PSG.

French outlet L'Equipe shocked Paris Saint-Germain fans with their player ratings for the Super Cup clash with Spurs.

Despite entering into the match as heavy underdogs, Europa League winners Tottenham Hotspur surprised viewers as they took a 2-0 lead over Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday.

However, things were not meant to be for Spurs at the Bluenergy Stadium in Udinese, Italy, as they failed to see out the final 10 minutes of the match, with goals from PSG substitutes Lee Kang-in and Goncalo Ramos taking the match to a penalty shootout.

A miss from Vitinha at the start of the shootout offered Spurs fans a glimmer of hope, but the French champions managed to come back and win the shootout 4-3, therefore winning the UEFA Super Cup.

Immediately after the match, popular French outlet L'Equipe published their report of the dramatic game but this time they decided to do something that fans had never seen before.

As one of the biggest newspapers in the country, L'Equipe tend to be one of the most popular outlets for any news regarding PSG and other Ligue 1 teams.

Following PSG's winning a historic four trophies including both Ligue 1 and the Champions League, the vast majority of L'Equipe's coverage of the French champions has been positive.

After their win over Inter Milan in the Champions League final, they even awarded teenager Desire Doue and PSG boss Luis Enrique to their exclusive list of 10/10 performances.

But this positive coverage came to a halt on Wednesday night, as L'Equipe brutally ripped into PSG for their performance in the match, despite the fact that they ultimately won the match.

Overall, the PSG team were given an average rating of 3.9, with winger Khvicha Kvaratskhelia receiving a 2/10, the lowest rating in the team.

However, the biggest shock came as the French outlet actually Spurs with a higher average rating, giving the Premier League side a 5.7.

Reacting to the ratings, freelance sports journalist Robin Bairner wrote on X: "Not sure I've ever seen L'Equipe give a winning team a lower average rating than their opponents until now..."

With the French outlet covering hundreds of matches a season, their decision to give such a damning report of PSG's performance in Italy shows how they truly feel about the result.

The Ligue 1 champions will have the chance to improve on this when they face FC Nantes on Sunday.

Football fans are not happy with UEFA after it was announced who had been awarded player of the match for the Super Cup.

On Wednesday night, Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain faced off against Europa League winners Tottenham Hotspur in the UEFA Super Cup at the Bluenergy Stadium in Udinese, Italy.

Despite boasting a 2-0 lead over the Ligue 1 winners heading into the final 10 minutes of the match, Spurs failed to see out the match, with goals from substitutes Lee Kang-in and Goncalo Ramos taking the match to a penalty shootout.

After Vitinha missed the opening penalty of the shootout, PSG managed to come back and win the shootout 4-3, therefore winning the UEFA Super Cup.

Post-match, UEFA took to social media to announce who they had selected as the player of the match, and fans were truly baffled by the decision.

Ahead of their Ligue 1 opener against FC Nantes on Sunday, PSG manager Luis Enrique named a full strength starting team in the Super Cup, handing a debut to new goalkeeper Lucas Chevalier.

But, despite his heroics in the shootout, it wasn't Chevalier who took home the player of the match award, as UEFA instead decided to give it to teammate Ousmane Dembele.

Although he started the match and played until the final whistle, Dembele failed to register a goal involvement until he set up Ramos for the equaliser in the 94th minute, leading to many fans saying he didn't deserve the award.

Reacting to the decision on X, one fan wrote: "Ghosted 85 minutes and got 1 assist, this PR is crazy. Lee or Fabian Ruiz were the best players, they changed the game."

While a Spurs fan claimed: "That's a f****** joke. Was missing for half the game. Spurs may have lost, but more Spurs players deserving of the recognition, Spence for starters."

And one fan suggested that the decision may have been influenced by the upcoming Ballon d'Or ceremony, writing: "Can't lie he's absolutely not deserving of this one. I guess they've made their mind up he's Ballon d'Or winner then."

As it stands Dembele is the favourite to win the 2025 Ballon d'Or after his crucial role in PSG securing a quadruple including both Ligue 1 and the Champions League.

Who else could win the Ballon d'Or this year?

Although Dembele is now a relatively heavy favourite to win the Ballon d'Or at the ceremony on September 22nd, at the Theatre du Chatelet in Paris, several other players are in contention for the award.

Barcelona youngster Lamine Yamal could win his first of what is expected to be several career Ballon d'Ors in September should he be credited for establishing himself as one of the biggest names in the sport this season.

Savinho’s agent has reportedly made clear how much it will cost Spurs to sign the Brazil winger from Manchester City.

Savinho, 21, was the subject of an approach from Spurs on Monday despite signing for Man City just last summer.

It was reported by The Athletic’s David Ornstein that dialogue took place between the clubs concerning a package worth €50million (£43.3m).

City have supposedly expressed that they do not want to sell the player this summer, but the Brazilian is "open to the possibility" of a move.

The 21-year-old cost City around £30.8m when he joined from French side Troyes in July of last year.

During his first season in England, the winger made 48 appearances for Pep Guardiola’s side, producing three goals and 13 assists, helping City finish third in the Premier League and reach the FA Cup final.

On Wednesday (August 13), Brazilian journalist Jorge Nicola revealed that he has spoken to Savinho’s agent, Frederico Moraes, who confirmed that an offer of €50m (£42m) from Spurs had already been turned down.

Nicola reports that an asking price of €80m (£67m) has been placed on Savinho, and it is unclear if the north London outfit are willing to meet the valuation.

Savinho, who plays predominantly as a right winger, would likely fill the void left by the departure of Son Heung-min if he were to join Spurs.

The Korean joined Major League Soccer outfit LAFC last week, after a decade with the Lilywhites. If Savinho were to join Spurs, he would become the club’s seventh signing of the summer, with Mohammed Kudus, Mathys Tel, Kevin Danso, Luka Vuskovic, Kota Takai and Joao Palhinha (loan) also arriving during the transfer window.

Spurs have also opened talks with Crystal Palace regarding a move for Eberechi Eze.

Thomas Frank on Spurs' transfer dealings

Earlier this month, the Dane explained how his squad "needs to be big and robust enough so we can compete in all four tournaments".

"But I can’t have too many players," Frank told The Athletic. "It’s just so difficult to keep everyone happy. It’s almost impossible.

“Then we want to see if we can add quality. We don’t want to sign players we don’t think can really improve the squad. I would want to wait. We have talented players who can grow. I’m not here for the short-term fix; I want to build something that can last. We need to think longer-term, but we need to compete now.

“I’m constantly learning about (the players). Finding out… are they good enough? Can they raise their ceiling? And do they fit the culture? Those are the three big things.”

UEFA could be set to make a huge change to the Super Cup format ahead of next season.

On Wednesday (August 13), Europa League winners Spurs will take on last season’s Champions League winners Paris Saint-Germain in Udine, Italy.

The first UEFA-sanctioned Super Cup took place in 1974 and has been a fixture ahead of the subsequent campaigns.

Real Madrid boast six titles – the most of any club – while AC Milan and Barcelona have won the prize five times, with Liverpool securing four.

Currently, the match is a one-off fixture contested at a neutral venue between the winners of the Europa League and Champions League.

The competition is also different to other UEFA-sanctioned tournaments as it is decided via a penalty shootout without extra time if the 90-minute match ends in a draw.

The way the tournament works could be set to change with UEFA proposing a huge shake-up to how the competition is formatted.

The Telegraph reports that the Super Cup could be turned into a four-team tournament before the start of the 2026/27 campaign. Venues in the Middle East and the US could also stage the fixture.

UEFA previously raised the prospect of re-jigging the Super Cup back in 2022, intending to sell TV rights for the 2024-27 cycle as well as the competition acting as an “opening tournament” ahead of the yearly Champions League.

This comes after UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin revealed that the prospect of playing Champions League games outside of Europe was discussed by the body in 2023.

Speaking to Men in Blazers, Ceferin said: "It’s possible. We started to discuss about that but then one year it was the World Cup."

He added: "Football is extremely popular in [the] United States these days. Americans are willing to pay for best and nothing for the less. So they will follow European football as basketball lovers in Europe follow NBA.

“it’s a very important promising market for the future. The thing is that we are selling rights very well. Sponsorship is so-so for now from the US, but here [in the US] commercialisation is completely different than in Europe. "They [Americans] are much more talented for that than us [Europeans].”

The revamped version of the competition would involve two semi-finals and a final. The Telegraph’s report claims that the previous proposal was dropped but could resurface ahead of the new round of bidding rights.

Meanwhile, earlier this week, the Spanish FA approved plans to host a La Liga fixture between Barcelona and Villarreal in Miami in December of this year. The RFEF will now seek permission from FIFA and UEFA to move the game to the Hard Rock Stadium.

Paris Saint-Germain or Spurs will have to follow a strict rule if they get their hands on the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday night.

The Champions League and Europa League winners lock horns at Bluenergy Stadium, home of Serie A side Udinese, in what is the 50th edition of the annual fixture.

PSG, who left out Gianluigi Donnarumma out of the squad, have appeared in the game before back in 1996 when they won the UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and ended up losing 9-2 in a two-legged thrashing at the hands of Champions League winners Juventus.

It is Spurs' debut after they ended a 17-year trophy drought by beating Manchester United in the final in Bilbao but both sides need to be aware of a regulation put in place by UEFA.

The winner will of course get their hands on the trophy, which is 58cm and 12.2kg, as well as 50 gold medals.

But they only have that piece of silverware for the official presentation as that is kept in UEFA's clutches. Instead, the winners get a full-size replica that belongs to them.

However, if the club plan to leave their country of residence with the trophy - they must receive written permission from UEFA.

In addition , there are strict regulations in place for any trophy-related activities involving any sponsors and commercial partners.

Article 9.02 in the regulations of the UEFA Super document states: "Replica trophies awarded to winners of the competition (past and current) must remain within the relevant club’s control at all times and may not leave the club’s country without UEFA’s prior written consent (in this respect, clubs must comply with any request from the UEFA administration to confirm the location of the club’s replica trophies).

"Clubs must not permit a replica trophy to be used in any context where a third party (including sponsors and other commercial partners) is granted visibility or in any other way that could lead to an association between any third party and the trophy and/or the competition. Clubs must comply with any trophy use guidelines that the UEFA administration issues."

Spurs received apology from UEFA in last final appearance

James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski and Radu Dragusin are all absent for Spurs, though Dominic Solanke is fit after recovering from an ankle injury.

When Spurs beat United to win the Europa League, there was confusion regarding their medals as some did not wear the full kit as is required by UEFA - instead wearing Nike sports socks.

Spurs actually received an apology from UEFA after captain Son, Rodrigo Bentancur and Cristian Romero did not have medals on for the trophy presentation due to an "unexpected discrepancy" which meant Alexander Ceferin didn't have enough to give out.

The trio didn't end up missing out as they received their mementos in the dressing room instead.

James Maddison has spoken out following surgery on an anterior cruciate ligament injury he suffered in pre-season.

The Spurs star was stretchered off in the closing stages of last week's 1-1 draw against Newcastle following an innocuous challenge.

Maddison is set to miss the majority of the 25/26 season which significantly dents his chances of making his first international tournament with England next summer.

Fabrizio Romano has reported that the 28-year-old's injury will force the London club into the transfer market with Crystal Palace star Eberechi Eze heavily linked.

Maddison has undergone successful surgery on his knee, and will begin his road to recovery as soon as possible.

James Maddison calls out haters in post surgery statement

On Tuesday, Maddison broke his silence on the situation claiming it has been the 'lowest low' of his career in an extremely honest statement.

"Lowest low I’ve ever had," he wrote on X.

"Heartbroken at the fact this injury has occurred at this time in my career. With the Super Cup tomorrow, the Premier League season on the horizon, the exciting Champions League campaign & it being a World Cup year for England it all feels very very cruel but nevertheless the ACL reconstruction surgery was successful.

"To all my close friends and family, your support and love means absolutely everything to me to those of you who have gone out of your way to message on social media platforms in support of me and my recovery even when we don’t know each other personally, I appreciate you all more than you’ll ever know so thank you.

Maddison also had a word for those who haven't been supportive following the injury and emphasised the hate only makes him stronger.

He continued: "And lastly to those of you who doubt, hate & mock. You truly motivate me to levels I didn’t know I had inside of me so again, thank you.

"See you all on the other side."

Thomas Frank has axed Spurs midfielder Yves Bissouma ahead of the UEFA Super Cup on Wednesday for disciplinary issues.

The European curtain raiser will be Frank's first competitive game in charge since his move from Brentford, having won two of his six pre-season games in charge.

It's been a far from an ideal pre-season for the London club, who lost 4-0 to Bayern Munich in their final preparation match.

Frank has also suffered a huge injury blow with James Maddison rupturing his ACL against Newcastle United in Seoul.

Maddison isn't the only midfielder absent for the season opener, with Bissouma left out of the squad to face PSG in Italy.

When asked about the Mali international, Frank revealed he had been left out after repeatedly reporting late to duty.

“He's been late several times and now this latest time was one too many," he told reporters.

"There needs to be demands and consequences. This time there was a consequence.”

Bissouma had featured in all but one of Spurs' pre-season outings until this point, starting once in a 0-0 draw with Luton Town.

PSG will also be missing a key midfielder with Portugal international Joao Neves forced to sit on the sidelines due to a red card in the Club World Cup final against Chelsea.

The 20-year-old was handed a straight red in the US after VAR intervened for pulling on Marc Cucurella's hair during the second half.

Although the dismissal came in a FIFA match, the suspension will carry over domestically and in Europe, meaning Neves will also miss the Ligue 1 opener against Nantes.

Thomas Frank 100% ready for PSG

Speaking following Spurs' final pre-season match last week, Frank insisted his players are fully prepared and focussed on bringing home another trophy.

“We will 100% be ready for that game. I’m not in doubt about that," he told reporters.

"There are six days ahead… then we will be ready against PSG.

“The lesson I want to learn is that we won. That game will be about winning.

"If, for whatever reason, we shouldn’t win, then we will learn from it. We don’t see it as a test. We see it as two good teams against each other, and we want to win,"he added.

Spurs could see their chances of beating Paris Saint-Germain bolstered by taking advantage of a little-known UEFA rule ahead of the Super Cup on Wednesday.

Thomas Frank’s Spurs side qualified for the UEFA Super Cup due to their victory over Manchester United in the 2024/25 UEFA Europa League final, while PSG defeated Inter in the UEFA Champions League to book their place.

The match will be played at the Bluenergy Stadium in Udine, Italy, where Serie A side Udinese play their home matches.

Of course, PSG, fresh off the back of a treble-winning campaign last term, will come into the game as favourites.

However, Frank, who spoke to UEFA in the build-up to the clash, is seemingly not fazed at the prospect of facing Achraf Hakimi, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Desire Doue, Ousmane Dembele and Co.

Frank said: “We're playing in a final; it's fantastic. Hopefully we can use some of the experience we have from the last final that the team played against Manchester United. [Paris] are the best team in Europe. They won the treble, and it looks like they are extremely strong in all 11 starting positions.

“It's a fantastic challenge to have in the first game, but, of course, we believe in ourselves. We're going to a final and there will be one objective – try to win it. We don't see it as a test; we see it as two good teams against each other, and we want to win.”

And containing such talent will undoubtedly prove a test for Frank’s side, but they could benefit from a little-known UEFA rule.

In other UEFA-ruled competitions, such as the Champions League, Europa League and Conference League, knockout games which do not conclude in 90 minutes continue for 30 minutes of extra time.

However, this is not the case during the Super Cup.

As per UEFA’s regulations, “if the result stands as a draw at the end of normal time, no extra time is played at the end of the match. A penalty shoot-out determines the winner”.

Therefore, tired Spurs players will get at least some respite after facing PSG’s world-class operators during normal time.

Both Spurs and PSG have never won the UEFA Super Cup.