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Journalist Ben Jacobs says that Tottenham Hotspur have not abandoned their pursuit of Conor Gallagher yet, with the club’s decision-makers thought to be big fans of the Chelsea star.

Tottenham still want Conor Gallagher

The Gallagher transfer saga has been going strong for the last 12 months and there does not appear to be any end in sight, with the midfielder continuing to be linked with a move to Spurs.

There has not been any concrete development on the future of the 24-year-old so far this summer, perhaps because he has been with the England squad at the Euros.

The player only has a year left on his contract at Stamford Bridge and does not appear close to penning a new contract with his boyhood club.

Over recent weeks, some sources have suggested that Tottenham are no longer likely to push ahead with a move for Gallagher after successfully signing Archie Gray from Leeds (Dean Jones –Ranks FC Ultras Podcast).

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Postecoglou sees Conor Gallagher as a leader

However, Jacobs believes that the reason Spurs are yet to make a move for the midfielder is down to the Euros, remarking that the Chelsea star would likely be the club’s target to replace Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.

The journalist said on the Last Word on Spurs podcast: “This is a post-Euros thing. The situation is exactly the same. Tottenham like Gallagher and feel they could still add another midfielder, more so if Hojbjerg goes which is the expectation.

“Gallagher is someone they feel can offer leadership, be a positive dressing room influence and he’s versatile.”

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While there have been a lot of links to attacking players over the past few weeks, Tottenham’s midfielder pursuit appears to have gone quiet.

The club will likely be looking at homegrown options, with Gallagher and Jakob Ramsey seemingly being the main options that Spurs have explored so far.

Just a little over a week into pre-season, it looks like new signing Archie Gray is already making waves at Hotspur Way.

Archie Gray is ready to make a splash at Spurs

In his first interview with Tottenham’s official channel following his £40m switch from Leeds, Gray came across as a confident young man, insisting that he will fight hard for a place in the side this season while suggesting that Premier League football could suit him better than the Championship.

It looks like the 18-year-old is now walking the walk, with Football.London’s Alasdair Gold revealing that Gray is already standing out in training.

The youngster is thought to have impressed in Tottenham’s behind-closed-doors friendly against Cambridge United on Saturday, with the Lilywhites running out 7-2 winners.

Archie Gray is already impressing at Tottenham

Gray is said to have played at right-back in the second half as Ange Postecoglou reportedly experimented with his backline due to the unavailability of Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Radu Dragusin.

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Gold adds that Gray had also been catching the eye of the coaching staff in training in his first week at the club.

Spurs fans will be waiting with bated breath to watch the Leeds academy graduate in action.

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The fact that Ange used Gray at right-back even though he had both Pedro Porro and Emerson Royal at his disposal perhaps sheds a light on the Australian’s plans for next season.

I fully expect the 18-year-old to serve as Porro’s understudy, at least during the start of the season. I do not think we will see him play in midfield much initially.

The Athletic’s David Ornstein says Everton are not likely to consider any offers for rumoured Spurs target Jarrad Branthwaite, now that they are on the verge of selling Amadou Onana to Aston Villa.

Tottenham were linked with Jarrad Branthwaite

Tottenham have been linked with a whole host of centre-backs over the last few months as Ange Postecoglou tries to build a stronger squad to compete on multiple fronts next season.

Branthwaite has been repeatedly mooted as a target for the Lilywhites, with the print edition of the Daily Mail claiming earlier this month (03/07/24 – page 67) that the North London club are still keeping tabs on the young defender.

Branthwaite was named in Gareth Southgate’s initial England squad for the Euros this summer but failed to make the cut for the tournament itself.

Everton look likely to keep Jarrad Branthwaite

Ornstein has now offered an update on the defender’s future, revealing that the 21-year-old is no longer likely to leave Goodison Park.

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This is because Aston Villa are in the process of finalising an agreement with Everton to sign Onana in a £50m deal.

With the Toffees’ coffers set to be boosted significantly, the journalist says that the chances of Branthwaite leaving the club this summer are now all but over.

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Tottenham were never really serious contenders for Branthwaite this summer as the club were never going to spend upwards of £60m to sign a centre-back, especially when they are desperately in need of big-name signings in other areas across the pitch.

I would also rather spend that kind of money on Marc Guehi over Jarrad Branthwaite, even if Spurs did want to splash out on another centre-back for some reason.

According to The Daily Mail, Tottenham Hotspur have agreed to forgo the payment they were owed by Everton for Dele Alli.

Dele Alli left Tottenham back in 2022

Dele moved to Goodison Park on a free transfer in January of 2022 but as part of the deal, it was agreed that Everton would have to pay Spurs £10m if the attacking midfielder made 20 appearances for the club before the end of his two-and-a-half-year contract (Football.London).

However, injuries meant that the former Spurs man could not make the required number of appearances, having featured just 13 times for the Toffees since his move.

The midfielder’s deal at Goodison Park has now run out and it is unclear what the future holds for the former Tottenham man.

What next for Dele Alli?

The Liverpool Echo reporter Joe Thomas revealed last week on the Royal Blue Mersey YouTube channel that if the Merseyside club were to offer Dele a new deal, that would mean that they would have to pay significant compensation to Tottenham.

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However, The Mail have now claimed that Everton and Spurs have reached an agreement that will see the North London side surrender the previously agreed bonus.

That means that Sean Dyche’s men are now free to negotiate a new deal with the midfielder without having to worry about paying any fee to the player’s former club.

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If Tottenham had not waved off this fee, the likelihood is that Everton would not hand Dele a new contract and the 28-year-old would have likely had to find a new club, which means that the Lilywhites were not going to get any compensation anyway.

So it is a no-brainer for Spurs to surrender this bonus so that the midfielder can get on with his career at Goodison Park.

Will Lankshear celebrated his new long-term contract by netting a brace for Tottenham’s Under-21s in their first pre-season game of the summer against Enfield Town.

Will Lankshear signs new five-year Spurs contract

Lankshear netted 25 goals in 26 matches across all competitions last season, playing a vital role in taking Tottenham’s Under-21 side to the Premier League 2 title.

There is a lot of excitement about the centre-forward’s potential at Hotspur Way and he is thought to be attracting interest from the EFL ahead of the new season (London World).

Tottenham announced on Friday that on the back of his outstanding showing over the last year, the 19-year-old had been rewarded with a new five-year deal, thus committing his future to the club until 2029.

Lankshear scores a brace in pre-season friendly

Lankshear continued where he left off last season, netting twice in the pre-season opener on Saturday to add to Callum Olusesi’s early opener as Wayne Burnett’s men raced to a 3-0 lead at half-time against Enfield Town.

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The non-league side hit back with two goals in the second half through Marcus Wyllie and Billy Leonard to add respectability to the scoreline.

Lankshear will surely be hoping to either break into the first-team set-up or impress out on loan next season as he looks to take the next step in his Spurs career.

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One would have expected Lankshear to be involved with the first team during pre-season but that does not appear to be the case.

If the teenager does not fly out to Asia with the senior squad, that could perhaps be a sign that Tottenham wish to loan him out.

Journalist Ben Jacobs has backed Tottenham Hotspur and other Premier League sides to press ahead with a move for Eberechi Eze over the coming days, now that the Euros have concluded.

Tottenham want Eberechi Eze this summer

Over the past couple of months, various outlets have backed Tottenham to prioritise a move for Eze this summer, with the attacking midfielder thought to be at the top of Ange Postecoglou’s wishlist.

This claim was also made last week by The Sun, who asserted that the Lilywhites are willing to activate the £60m release clause in the 25-year-old’s contract.

However, the same report suggested that Manchester City are also willing to meet the clause, although this was later denied by The Athletic, who have insisted that as things stand, the Premier League champions do not plan on getting involved in the race for the Palace star.

Over recent days, it has also emerged that Tottenham’s North London rivals, Arsenal, have reached out to the England international’s agent regarding a move to the Emirates (Football Transfers).

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The race for Eberechi Eze is about to heat up

Jacobs expects the race for Eze’s signature to heat up sooner rather than later, with the journalist asserting that Tottenham want him more than the Gunners do.

When asked about the interest of Man City and others in the Eagles star, he told Last Word on Spurs podcast: “When one club enquires, every club enquires. As soon as the Euros finish we might see some movement on this one.

“You’re right that Manchester City like this player, but Tottenham are there and I think they’re ahead if you like in terms of how concrete they are that he’s someone they wish to move on than Arsenal who have been linked with Eberechi Eze as well.”

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All indications are that Tottenham have already spoken to Eze’s entourage and are confident that the player wants the move.

It will now come down to whether Spurs are willing to meet the midfielder’s release clause as it seems like Palace are unlikely to come to the negotiating table.

Journalist Ben Jacobs has revealed that AC Milan boss Paulo Fonseca has spoken to Emerson Royal about his proposed move to San Siro.

AC Milan want to sign Emerson Royal

It is an open secret that Tottenham and Milan have been locked in negotiations over Emerson for a couple of weeks, with the right-back admitting publicly last week that he wishes to join the Serie A side this summer (Globo).

However, there have been mixed reports over the last few days on how close the two clubs are to striking a deal for the 23-year-old.

While some sources have suggested that the two sides are not that far apart in their respective valuations of the player (Matteo Moretto), others have suggested that the Rossoneri have plenty of work to do to get their hands on the former Real Betis man (Daniele Longo – Radio Rossonera).

Meanwhile, there have also been rumours of interest from Saudi Arabia, with Gazzetta Dello Sport even asserting that Emerson could quadruple his wages if he moves to the Middle East.

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Paulo Fonseca has chatted with Emerson already

However, Jacobs has revealed that the Spurs star very much has his sights on Milan, having also held positive conversations with Fonseca.

The journalist said on Last Word on Spurs: “The player’s priority is Milan. It’s as simple as that. Emerson Royal would like to move to Milan, there’s a five-year deal on the table and personal terms are agreed.

“In addition to that, it’s not just Zlatan Ibrahimovic working on this. Paulo Fonseca has come in. I’m told in the last week or so Fonseca has been in contact with Emerson Royal and it’s all very positive. There’s no problem on the Milan end except for the negotiations with Spurs.”

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With Milan knowing that Emerson has his heart set on a switch to the San Siro, they are seemingly trying to sign him on a discount and one would expect Tottenham to soften their stance sooner or later as they would want to make space in the wage bill for new recruits.

Football Insider have revealed that Tottenham Hotspur are racing to sign Jonathan David ahead of Manchester United and Chelsea.

With Canada’s Copa America campaign coming to an end with their defeat against Uruguay in the third-place playoff, one would expect talks over David’s future to intensify over the coming days.

Football Insider claim that Ange Postecoglou is ‘obsessed’ with the idea of bringing a top-quality number nine through the door and has set his sights on the Lille star.

With the striker having just a year left on his contract at Stade Pierre-Mauroy, Spurs and others have allegedly learnt that he is available for just £25m.

Spurs, Chelsea and Man United all like David

The report states that the 24-year-old has been on the radar of the Lilywhites for a long time and the club view this summer as the ideal opportunity to land the player.

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However, the publication adds that Tottenham will find it challenging to push through the deal, with Chelsea and Manchester United also keen on securing David’s signature.

It remains to be seen who blinks first in the race for the Canadian goalscorer.

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Given the modest fee that David is available for, one would expect a whole host of clubs across Europe to vie for the striker over the coming days.

It will be up to Spurs and Postecoglou to convince the Lille star that a move to N17 would be the right one for him at this stage of his career.

Cristian Romero and Giovani Lo Celso have helped Argentina to create history by helping the country win a record 16th Copa America title.

Argentina win the Copa America 2024

Argentina had to wait a long time before getting their hands on the trophy back in 2021 and they have now repeated the feat three years later, with Romero being crucial to their success once again.

The Albiceleste’s march to the title was down to their defensive solidity, with the Tottenham man getting plenty of praise through the tournament for marshalling the backline impressively.

He once again delivered on the night of the final against Colombia in the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, helping his side keep a clean sheet, with Lisandro Martinez’s 112th-minute winner proving the difference between the two teams after the game went into extra time.

Lo Celso grabs the all-important assist

Lo Celso had a much less prominent role this tournament, having started just one game, but he was used frequently as an impact substitute by Lionel Scaloni, including in the final.

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In fact, the midfielder even popped up with the all-important assist to win his country the Copa America in extra-time.

Tottenham took to X (Twitter) to congratulate their two players after the final whistle.

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One can now legitimately make the case for this being the most successful spell in Argentine football history, with the nation winning two Copa Americas and a World Cup in a space of three years.

Cristian Romero has arguably had a bigger hand in those wins than any other player, with the centre-back now sealing his status as one of the legends of Argentine football.

Tottenham have been handed a blow in their pursuit of Nico Williams as multiple outlets are now reporting that the Athletic Club Bilbao star has agreed to join Barcelona this summer.

Nico Williams is a popular target this summer

Williams has been linked with a whole host of Premier League sides, including Tottenham (The Telegraph), but it now appears that the winger wants to remain in La Liga.

This is the information now being carried by Mundo Deportivo, who claim that the 22-year-old has agreed to move to Camp Nou, with Barcelona expected to make their move after the Euros final against England.

This claim has also been backed by CaughtOffside, who say that Williams has ‘verbally accepted’ the Spanish side’s offer of a five-year contract.

Barcelona are keen on Nico Williams

However, the report makes it clear that the deal is far from done just yet, with the Catalan side having to either meet the player’s release clause or strike a deal with Athletic Club Bilbao.

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The report adds that Premier League clubs might have their work cut out to land the Spain international after he expressed his preference to move to the Blaugrana.

If Barcelona fail to agree on a price with Bilbao, the race may become a little more interesting.

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Barcelona’s financial issues are well documented and there is no guarantee that they would be able to pay the required fee to sign Williams.

Spurs and other Premier League clubs would be watching the situation closely and ready to pounce if the player’s move to Catalonia falls through.