Cartilage Free Captain

Programming note: After a quieter week of transfer activity, hoddle headquarters can announce the new hoddle hero will be revealed on Monday.

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Wet Leg are finally out with their new album, Moisturizer.

Those who read the hoddle (lol) know how much your hoddler-in-chief has been looking forward to this album. Wet Leg exploded onto the post-punk scene when they released Chaise Lounge, which they followed with a very successful debut album.

Their follow-up features a much stronger cache of songwriting, and it isn’t lost on me that frontwoman Rhian Teasdale and guitarist Hester Chambers opened up the song-writing process to other members of the band.

The result is a very smart, mature and formidable second output. Oddly enough one of the few songs that doesn’t fit is their lead single catch these fists, whose seemingly meaningless lyrics would fit better on their previous album.

Another major change that we see in this album is the physicality of Tesdale, who ditched her Victorian-era get-up with a far sharper look: strawberry/platinum hair, large biceps and freeing the hair under her armpits.

These songs also came forth out of a new relationship for her. And that’s what makes this so interesting.

It can be easy for love songs to feel unchallenging but Teasdale captures the ranging emotions brilliantly. We have the euphoric CPR, a love confessional that namedrops presenter Davina McCall, and the bubbly Pokemon - to name a few.

I felt Side 2 was a little bit weaker than an explosive Side 1, and that’s where I feel this album slightly stumbles. But that’s more nitpicky than anything else.

Wet Leg’s first offering catapulted them to the very centre of the post punk world. This album cements their place as one of the most exciting artists to occupy that space.

Fitzie’s track of the day: Mangetout, by Wet Leg (NSFW for naughty words)

And now for your links:

Jay Harris ($$): “Why long throws are so important to Thomas Frank, and how he may use them at Spurs”

Football London: “Five new signings, £123m spent, Morgan Gibbs-White move and Tottenham still have a glaring issue”

BBC: “How the ‘greatest and worst shootout of all time’ unfolded”

Real Betis defensive midfielder and USA international Johnny Cardoso has finalized his transfer to Atletico Madrid today. Cardoso remains in La Liga and becomes one of the USMNT’s most expensive players after his €24m transfer.

Depending on who you talk to, Tottenham Hotspur have either dodged a bullet or missed out on signing a needed #6 in a race in which they were in pole position. You probably recall that in exchange for selling Giovani Lo Celso back to Betis, Tottenham received a priority option to sign Cardoso in the opening few weeks of the summer transfer window. However, Johnny was said to prefer signing with Atletico over a move to England, and Tottenham either decided not to pursue him or not to push the issue. It felt like a really good thing at the time Lo Celso was sold, but clearly it didn’t work out. C’est la vie.

There was some weird speculation at the time that Spurs would maintain a sell-on clause for Johnny in the event that he was sold to another club. That felt weird at the time that Tottenham could have a sell-on for a player they don’t even own. None of the reports I’ve read about this transfer have mentioned Spurs getting any money for him, so I have no idea whether that clause is a thing or not. Maybe it’ll come out eventually.

According to Alasdair Gold at Football.London, Tottenham Hotspur are close to a deal to sell one of their talented younger players. Gold reports that Spurs and Luton Town are nearing agreement on a deal for 22-year-olkd Irish keeper Josh Keeley; the transfer price was not stated but it will include a sell-on clause.

Keeley is a talented young shot-stopper who spent the year on loan at League One club Leyton Orient, taking the Mighty O’s to the brink of promotion to the Championship before falling to Charlton Athletic in the final.

This move will possibly puzzle a lot of Tottenham fans, but it’s probably the right call. Right now Tottenham’s keeper situation is pretty much rock solid, with Guglielmo Vicario and Antonin Kinsky as the established 1-2, and homegrown/club-trained keeper Brandon Austin as third keeper. Neither are likely to be dislodged anytime soon — Vicario and Kinsky will get the lion’s share of the minutes, and Austin’s status as the team’s only club-trained player make him essential for the Champions League squad.

That leaves Keeley, as talented as he is, out. And because he’s an Irish keeper signed in 2022 at age 19, he is not and will not be homegrown or club-trained. Gold also states that Spurs attempted to offer him a new contract, but Keeley turned it down, which is probably the smart call by him.

Gold writes that the club thinks Keeley could be a Premier League-level keeper in the future, which I don’t doubt. While selling him to Luton means Keeley stays at the same level, we know he can perform there and another solid season means he’s very likely going to be a target for a larger club in the future. Spurs won’t get a ton of cash if/when Luton does sell him, but a small transfer fee plus a small sell-on clause means Spurs will get some compensation.

Keeley always felt like a player Spurs would eventually flip for a profit, and that appears to be what’s happening. It’s the right decision. Keeping him around in the event he maybe displaces Kinsky feels like a disservice to a talented young player, and this way Spurs can at least get a little cash for him down the road.

Let’s try this hoddle again!

There are three football clubs who are in serious crisis right now: Hull City, Morecambe and Sheffied Wednesday. We previously covered the latter two, but let’s take a closer look at where things currently stand:

Morecambe

The club’s sale hit a major setback when the ownership group announced an unnamed new buyer would be taking over instead of Panjab Warriors. It’s still not clear what the timeline is to actually sell the football club, which was relegated from League Two to the National League.

The Guardian reported Panjab Warriors is considering taking legal action against Bond Group Investments.

On Wednesday the Shrimps announced its July 22 friendly against Barrow would be played behind closed doors due to “ongoing circumstances at the club”.

Sheffield Wednesday

The Sheffield Star recently reported that a deal to sell the club has stalled.

I’m not sure what the latest twist in the saga will bring, but 21-year-old left-winger Djeidi Gassama made the move from Wednesday to Rangers.

The Telegrpah has also previously reported that six players at the club handed in their notices on July 2 after wages were not paid.

Hull City

Hull were hit with a transfer embargo last week amid fears of the club’s financial stability. The Telegraph had also reported Hull City owe nearly £1 million to one Premier League Club and that possible future sanctions remain.

The Athletic did a good feature on the club’s crisis and how it reached this point.

Fitzie’s track of the day: Mr Blue Sky, by Electric Light Orchestra

And now for your links:

Jack P-B ($$): “Tottenham’s transfer policy will please Danny Rose, but will it get results?”

BBC: “Bournemouth sign Chelsea keeper Petrovic for £25m”

With Nottingham Forest owner Evangelos Marinakis doing Marinakis Things™ and the reported transfer of Morgan Gibbs-White slowing down, reports are emerging that Tottenham Hotspur are starting to look at other options. This morning, French journalist Sebastien Vidal tweeted that Tottenham are set to hold talks with Liverpool for a transfer of 22-year-old attacking midfielder Harvey Elliott.

My immediate reaction to this? Oooooooooooooooooooooooooooo.

Elliott has put up some impressive numbers for Liverpool this past season despite being essentially an impact player off the bench and a rotation option. That’s not a pejorative — Liverpool really were that good last season, and Elliott needs to go to a place where he can get more minutes. Elliott profiles as an attacking midfielder — he’s creative, he can pass, he can score. He’s mostly been deployed as a right winger or right-sided inside forward, but can play centrally as well. He’s coming off a five-goal performance at the U21 Euros, which England won for the second straight time. And look, if Brighton are interested in the guy, then it probably behooves us to scoop him up before they can get their mitts on him and double his transfer fee.

The knock on Elliott is that he’s only 5’7”. But despite being a smol bean, he’s the kind of midfielder Spurs were lacking last season and I think he’s not only got the skills to improve Tottenham now, his ceiling is even higher. I know a lot of fans are hung up on Gibbs-White right now. I think Harvey Elliott has the potential to be even better.

I have no idea what the status of the Gibbs-White transfer is, whether it’s going to go through or collapse in the face of Marinakis and Nottingham Forest’s obstinacy. But it’s probably a good idea for Spurs to be looking at other options. This is the first report about Elliott I’ve seen, and to be fair it’s a bit curious why a French reporter would have the goods here, so skepticism is probably warranted. That said, honestly, despite his diminutive stature, I’m kind of wondering why Tottenham didn’t just go after Elliott first.

I would be very, very okay with this, depending on the price.

Preston North End might have just announced the greatest kit sponsor in history - Spud Bros.

You read that right: Spud Bros! The EFL Championship club is sponsored by a potato company.

Here’s a look at the kit logo:

Spud Bros is a potato company that apparently became famous on TikTok (I think they call that “TikTok famous”) for their jacket potatoes. And apparently they’re a Preston-based business too. And that’s pretty dang awesome to have a local business as your kit sponsor.

According to The Guardian, the queue for a Spud Bros spud stretches as early as 10.30am

And here’s something they did about a potato and Joe Jonas:

I took a look at their menu and these jacket potatoes seem like no joke. Take the SpudBros Classic, which has its signature three-cheese mix, baked beans, crispy onions and of course the “world famous tram sauce”.

You want something a little more Italian? Well how about the Bolognese Spud? This bad boy is smothered in garlic butter, features a three-cheese mix, a bolognese sauce and is finished with Gran Moravia.

You can build your own, too, of course, in case those other ones weren’t so appetizing.

As far as kit sponsors go, this is a pretty great one. I love an iconic local business supporting the local football club.

Which begs the question: When are we getting a Chick King Tottenham kit sponsor?

Fitzie’s track of the day: Disco Peanuts, by Warmduscher

And now for your links:

BBC: “How TikTok’s Spud Bros sent jacket potatoes global”

Telegraph: “Chelsea eye £100m kit sponsor boost after Club World Cup glory”

Look, let’s be real here. Tottenham Hotspur need to sell some players, and one of those players they need to sell is probably Richarlison. I like Richarlison. I think he’s a great hold-up player, a physical presence in the box, and an all-around great dude. But he’s up there in age and wages, and just can’t stay healthy. Spurs are in the process of rebuilding around a fitter, younger core and as big a fan as I am of Pombo at a certain point we just have to let him go.

So this perked up my ears a bit — a report from Brazilian outlet Terra says Palmeiras’ president is personally negotiating with Spurs in order to sign Richarlison and bring him back to his home country.

Now, if you’re looking for reasons to be skeptical about this story — and you’re a Carty Free reader, I’ve beaten this into you over the years, you should be — you’ll find them. For starters, Tottenham are said to want £55m for Richy, and that feels like a price that’s going to be WAY out of the league of any Campeonato Brasileiro club. The article actually addresses this head on, saying that Palmeiras president Leila Pereira is planning on using some of the proceeds they earned from participating in the Club World Cup to finance a deal.

That’s still a ton of cash, but it’s likely Tottenham wouldn’t demand £55m anyway, especially if it’s for a Brazilian team and Richarlison were convinced to go. Richy is under contract until 2027, but the PSR break even price for him is probably somewhere around £20m. Negotiations are negotiations, but if I’m Spurs I’m strongly considering accepting if they get anything much over that price.

The big(ger) issue is whether Richy would want to do this. He only recently rejoined the Brazilian national team setup and he definitely wants to be part of the Brazil squad in the World Cup next summer. It’s an open question as to what would be more valuable to him in that regard — fewer minutes in England or a higher level club, or a key player for a Campeonato team.

Terra says Pereira has been trying to convince Richy to come back home for the past two weeks, and that Flamengo also made an approach which ultimately went nowhere. Palmeiras are super ambitious in this window, making eight signings including Vitor Roque, but Brazilian’s former No. 9 would be the cherry on top.

I don’t know. It’s a little difficult for me to adequately evaluate this rumor based on the source, but there’s a lot in here that feels plausible to me. Having Richy stick around another season would be great and fun but I have a feeling he also wants more than that. We know he’s ambitious. We know there’s a World Cup coming up. Leaving Spurs for Palmeiras almost makes too much sense.

Son Heung-Min’s short term future at Tottenham Hotspur has already been one of the undercurrents to this summer’s transfer window. After leading Spurs to Europa League glory and the club’s first trophy in 17 years, there have been numerous reports that Sonny is open to leaving Spurs for a new chapter here at the close of his footballing career.

But maybe not? In an “exclusive” report, Football-Asia writes that Son is unlikely to leave Tottenham this summer amidst reported interest from both Saudi Arabia and MLS.

The report states that Son, who is scheduled to return to Tottenham for preseason training at the end of this week, had a cordial video meeting with an unnamed MLS team (likely LAFC), but that a move to California wouldn’t happen before summer 2026. Previous reports suggested Sonny would be open to Los Angeles due to a (mildly) shorter flight to Korea for international duties, and the presence of a thriving Korean community in the City of Angels.

As far as the interest from Saudi Arabia, Son is said to not be entirely swayed by the prospects of massive wages in the Middle East. The report says he hasn’t outright rejected the idea, but he’s also not convinced that it would be the best step in his career. Daniel Levy and Tottenham club leadership are leaving Son’s future in his own hands and will work to bring about the outcome he eventually decides is best.

Either way, the report says that Sonny has no intention of leaving Spurs this summer, and is also open to the idea of an extended deal that would keep him at the club for longer. He intends to accompany Spurs, along with Yang Min-Hyeok and new Japanese defender Kota Takai, on Spurs’ preseason tour to Asia later this summer.

There’s the suggestion that Son will have his minutes managed next season, with the recognition that he can no longer play every minute in every match. If he stays, Thomas Frank would likely prioritize Sonny playing in the Champions League.

This is an interesting report. I’m not intimately familiar with the source publication and how reliable it is, but everything that’s in it at least feels like a plausible outcome. The gist seems to be that Son is keeping all options on the table and not closing any doors, but his first preference would be to stick around another year for Champions League football, see how his body holds up, and make a decision on his future down the road. That seems reasonable. Son may be in the final year of his contract, but if he shows he still has what it takes to compete at the highest level, I can see an outcome where he retires a Hotspur. Or if not, a comfy step down to a league like MLS where he will be just as big a local star as he is in England.

It’s certainly a pretty picture.

It’s a bit of a given, but one of Tottenham Hotspur’s newest signings can now officially start training. Football.London is reporting that Japanese central defender Kota Takai has officially received his work permit and joined the squad today in preseason.

You figured this was coming eventually. Spurs aren’t in the habit of signing overseas players without confidence and assurances that the player in question will receive a work permit, and that’s exactly what’s happened. It does, sometimes, take a while though, and Takai’s paperwork I guess only came through today.

But that should be plenty of time for Thomas Frank and his staff to get a good look at him, and have him start learning the ropes. Tottenham’s first preseason friendly is this Saturday when they head to Madejski (or “Select Car Leasing”) Stadium to play Reading, and it wouldn’t shock me at all if Takai gets a good amount of minutes in the back line for that match. I’m intrigued to see what kind of a player he is and how long it takes him to adjust to the speed and intensity of high-level English football.

Speaking of the Reading match, thus far the only place I’ve seen it scheduled to be streamed is on SpursPLAY, Tottenham’s in-house premium streaming network. You might be able to register to watch Reading’s stream of the match on their website, but honestly I didn’t look into it enough to know whether you’d have to pay money to view it.

Wimbledon has come and gone, which means an extruciating wait until we get to our next major: The US Open.

But let’s not get too disconsolate just yet. There are still a few things we need to talk about the tennis tournament, including how so many people like to play dress-up when attending the most prestigious event in the sport.

And a Tottenham (and ex-Tottenham) contingent was among the crowd in SW17. We of course talked about Europa League champion Ange Postecoglou last week, but there were a few other familiar faces. Let’s take a look:

Vinai Venkatesham

That’s the Tottenham chief executive officer sitting in the Royal Box during a women’s quarterfinal match between Mirra Andreeva and Belinda Bencic. During commentary for a men’s singles semifinals match, eight-time Grand Slam Champion Andre Agassi called these seats the “rich people’s seats”.

It is a very exclusive place to sit and, yes, you have to be obscenely rich to attend. Or you can be like Agassi and receive free seats for life if you win the tournament. It also has a dress code, which makes watching the sport more uncomfortable than it should be.

Beth England

Speaking of the Royal Box, here is Tottenham Hotspur women’s Bethany England ahead of the men’s third roudn match between Jannik Sinner and Pedro Martinez. Sinner strolled through that match 6-1 6-3 6-1.

I’m a little surprsied to see England there, not to diminish her achievements. But there were many people of her stature who could not secure those Royal Box tickets (I assume James Maddison was one of them).

Micky van de Ven and James Maddison

Speaking of James Maddison, here he is where I am assuming the Very Important People arrive at the tournament. While entering via The Queue is a unique experience and has its festivities, those who enter it do not look (or smell) as fresh as those pictured above.

We don’t know which match Europa League Champion Micky van de Ven attended, But it’s a smart casual look, and a smart choice of apparel for such a hot week.

And here’s a closer look at Europa League Champion James Maddison with Carlos Alcaraz, the 2025 Wimbledon runner-up. Maddison was spotted with Alcaraz in the first week of the tournament.

He’s also the second known Spurs player (or former) to have some rapport with the Spaniard. Former Tottenham Hotspur player and Europa League Champion Sergio Reguilon linked up with Alcaraz in Ibiza after the French Open.

I’d really like to know which matches Maddison attended (if he saw any). The suit and tie suggest a Royal Box appearance, but no such pictures are circulating online. Instead, as the main image on this hoddle suggests, he was elsewhere in the crowd that day. But where?

We may never know the answer to that, but we did know this: He didn’t need to wear a suit (unless he was in the clubhouse, of course. Even then, though, he could’ve dressed down a little bit for the match).

Fitzie’s track of the day: Whitewash, by Bucket Head

And now for your links:

Alasdair Gold: “Morgan Gibbs-White to Tottenham transfer latest - What happened and what comes next”

The Independent: “How Sweden turned Germany’s biggest strength against them in the wildest 30 minutes of Euro 2025”

BBC: “Newcastle explore record deal for Frankfurt’s Ekitike”