London Evening Standard

Are you craving crisps all the time? This could be the reason why

Are you craving crisps all the time? This could be the reason why

Gibbs-White currently finds himself at the centre of a transfer saga involving the two Premier League clubs after the £60m release clause in his contract at the City Ground was activated last week.

However, Forest are unhappy with Spurs’ approach for the England international, claiming the north London outfit were never granted permission to speak to the 25-year-old.

As a result, any deal has been placed on hold at the moment and Forest signalled their intention to keep hold of the midfielder by naming him in their starting line-up against Monaco on Saturday in a pre-season friendly.

A potential twist in the saga, but there is expected to be an update over the next few days as it has been reported that Gibbs-White wants his future sorted before Forest head off to Portugal for a pre-season training camp.

Crucially though, it is understood that whilst the midfielder is pushing to join Spurs, he is remaining professional. A claim confirmed by Aina when speaking to Sky Sports after the goalless draw with Monaco.

Aina said: "He's keeping it professional, I don't know the ins and outs of that.

“At the end of the day, we're all professionals—we've got a job to do and that's what Morgan is doing right now. He's keeping it professional."

Thomas Frank confirmed that James Maddison is part-training with the Tottenham squad as he steps up his recovery from injury.

The midfielder missed the final weeks of last season, including the Europa League final, with a serious knee injury.

Maddison did not require surgery but the problem has kept him out of the start of pre-season. Tottenham face Reading on Saturday afternoon and Luton next weekend before travelling to Hong Kong and then South Korea.

Frank did not confirm when he expects Maddison to be available, but suggested he was further ahead in his recovery than Dejan Kulusevski and Radu Dragusin.

Kulusevski suffered an injury to his right patella and underwent surgery in May, while Dragusin has been out with an ACL injury since February.

"Maddison is the closest one," Frank said. "He is part training with the team, so that's very positive. Obviously a key player.

Maddison will not play any part against Reading on Saturday but Frank confirmed that Heung-min Son and Cristian Romero will be involved. Spurs are set to name two different XIs to play 45 minutes each, with Son and Romero the two captains.

There is speculation over the futures of both players, who have been linked with summer moves, but Frank confirmed that the pair have "set the standards" in the early stages of pre-season.

Son was the club captain last season, with Romero, Maddison and Guglielmo Vicario the three vice-captains.

However, with uncertainty over whether half of that leadership will still be at the club come the end of the transfer window, Frank has not yet determined who will have the armband this season.

"Good question, I haven't decided anything on that," the Spurs boss said.

"I think I have a long list of bullet points I need to get through. I take them in the right order.

"[Son] was the captain last year and when we play at 2:45pm tomorrow, Son and Romero will be the two captains for each team. But I haven't made a final decision.

Spurs appeared last week to be close to completing a £60m deal for the midfielder, but it had since emerged that Nottingham Forest are said to be considering legal action.

The 25-year-old has trained this week with Forest and it remains to be seen whether Spurs press ahead with the move, but Frank gave little away when asked about the situation.

"You know me well, so I'll use what I've done all the time," Frank said.

"I'll not speak about players that are not mine. I think I've done two exceptions and they're getting older, that's [Cristiano] Ronaldo and [Lionel] Messi. The rest I'll just speak about the players that are inside the squad of Tottenham."

Frank described the 24-year-old as being at "the perfect age" and praised the club's hierarchy for getting the deal done before the start of pre-season.

"Top work from Daniel [Levy], Vinai [Venkatesham] and Johan [Lange] in getting a very good player in early in the pre-season so we can start working with him.

"I think he gives us a bit of that unpredictability in the game. I think he's one-on-one actions are top, I think he's slide passes are top, I think his finishing is very good. He is almost the perfect age to perform but also to take the next level."

Frank has moved across London after nine years with Brentford, the first two as assistant manager to Dean Smith before being promoted to head coach.

During that time, Spurs have had five different permanent managers and a further two as interim.

Frank will be tasked with vastly improving Spurs’ Premier League form, following a 17th-placed finish which ultimately doomed Europa League winner Postecoglou, and faces a first ever Champions League campaign as a head coach.

"I like to challenge myself,” he said. “I've been that privileged that I've never been sacked before, that's one of the reasons why I took the job. Get a little bit more risk in my daily life. Coming to a big club, there's pressure. We need to perform.

"I like the ambitions. Everything I do, every decision I've made so far is for the long-term. It's not about surviving one game or one year or 18 months, or what is the average. No, it's for the long-term."

He continued: "[Leaving Brentford was] very difficult because I'm a person that goes all in when I'm in. Work, friendship, marriage, whatever it is. When you go all in, you get attached.

"I had a fantastic time at Brentford, fantastic people. But I also felt that maybe it was time to challenge myself and get another opportunity. When a club of Tottenham's magnitude are knocking at your door... I couldn't turn it down."

Morgan Gibbs-White wants to know where he will be playing his football next season before Nottingham Forest head to Portugal for preseason training this weekend, according to reports.

The Briton finds himself at the centre of a contentious transfer saga after Tottenham activated his £60million release clause earlier this week, prompting faced backlash from Forest.

The Midlands outfit are unhappy with Tottenham’s approach to Gibbs-White and claim Spurs were never granted permission to speak to him.

But according to the Daily Mail, Gibbs-White is now hoping to have his future set in stone by the end of the weekend, when Forest head to Portugal for a preseason training camp, which will feature friendly meetings with Fulham and Estoril Praia.

He is said to have held talks with Forest officials earlier this week, demanding clarity as to his future. He is planning to travel with the squad to Portugal if the clubs cannot reach an agreement.

The 25-year-old attacking midfielder is said to have been professional in training since reporting back to Wilford Lane, but is pushing to join the Lilywhites.

Forest, however, are keen to hold onto him having already lost Anthony Elanga to Newcastle earlier in the transfer window.

Preseason training is well underway at Hotspur Way as Thomas Frank looks to get to grips with his new squad.

He has already added West Ham’s Mohammed Kudus and former Bayern Munich loanee Mathys Tel to his front line this summer, with an eye to improving on the club’s haul of 64 goals last season.

Gibbs-White played a key role for Forest last season as they finished seventh in the Premier League, scoring seven goals and assisting a further eight in 34 League appearances. H assisted Elanga’s first-half winner as the Tricky Trees beat Spurs at home on Boxing Day last season.

Standard Sport understands Spurs have agreed to part ways with the 22-year-old after failing to agree terms on a new contract.

Keeley, whose current deal expires in 2027, is now set to join Luton once the final details of the move to Kenilworth Road are ironed out.

Joining Luton, who have been relegated to League One, will offer Keeley a chance to play regular first-team football at the same level where he starred for play-off finalists Leyton Orient last season.

The 22-year-old set a club record with seven consecutive clean sheets, across all competitions, and went on to be named Supporters' Club Young Player of the Year and won goal of the season with a 99th-minute equaliser against Oldham in the FA Cup.

Keeley and Orient went on to face Manchester City in the fourth round, in which they took the lead only for the English giants to eventually win 2-1.

After the game, City manager Pep Guardiola singled out Keeley for praise. He told reporters: "We were lucky at the end because they had chances, but we created a lot, their keeper was really, really good and it was a tight game."

Mohammed Kudus is in line to make his Tottenham debut as the club begins their pre-season preparations with a friendly at Reading.

The £55million summer signing from West Ham is the biggest new name through the door this summer as new head coach Thomas Frank begins to shape his squad in his vision. Young defender Kota Takai, who has joined from J1 League side Kawasaki Frontale for £5m, is also in contention for his first minutes.

Mathys Tel and Kevin Danso have turned their loan deals into permanent signings, while players who have spent the season away at Spurs will be looking to impress their new manager.

Manor Solomon is understood to want to prove his worth after a stellar season with Leeds, while Josh Keeley and Jamie Donley have returned from Leyton Orient. It has been almost two years since young centre-back Luka Vuskovic agreed to join Spurs and, after time in Belgium with Westerlo, he will be hoping to play his first minutes.

January signing Yang Min-hyeok was soon sent to QPR for the second half of last season, and scored twice, so Frank will be keeping an eye on him, along with the likes of Alfie Devine, Ashley Phillips, Alfie Dorrington and Will Lankshear.

Archie Gray played most of last season out of position across the back four, but this season hopes to get more chances in midfield, starting at Reading on Saturday.

Nottingham Forest have reportedly made Jacob Ramsey their No1 transfer target as Tottenham retain hope of completing a £60million deal for Morgan Gibbs-White.

Forest have turned to Ramsey amid a potential legal battle with Spurs, who they claim were never granted permission to speak to Gibbs-White when triggering the release clause in his contract.

Gibbs-White was due to undergo a medical at Spurs last week but Forest have halted the deal, forcing the player to return to pre-season training this week.

It remains to be seen if Gibbs-White will be granted the move he is determined to complete, but Forest are now exploring the market for a player who plays in his position.

The Telegraph report that Forest's key summer target is now Aston Villa's Ramsey, who can play in Gibbs-White's No10 role and wide on the left.

Forest need attacking reinforcements having sold Anthony Elanga Newcastle for £52million. Ramsey is not considered a direct replacement for the right winger.

Brentford's Yoane Wissa, also of interest to Tottenham, remains a target after a bid of around £20million was rejected earlier in July.

Forest's interest in Ramsey, the report claims, has been long-standing, but only now is a real attempt to sign the player expected. Villa's stance on selling the player is unclear.

Gibbs-White's possible departure to Spurs means Forest would be able to provide Ramsey with more regular minutes in a season leading up to a World Cup, having been name-checked by England manager Thomas Tuchel earlier this year.

Richarlison, now 28, joined Spurs from Everton in 2022 but has struggled to live up to his £50million price tag, tallying just 30 goal contributions in 90 appearances.

His Tottenham career has been defined by repeated injuries, which limited him to just four Premier League starts last season.

He could now be set for a change of scenery, with Brazilian outfit Palmeiras looking to offer him a homecoming.

Negotiations are being personally led by club president Leila Pereira, who has been quoted a £55m price tag for the forward. She has also directly contacted the player to try to convince him of the move.

Palmeiras are reportedly confident of meeting that price, though. Having reached the Club World Cup quarter-finals, where they lost to eventual champions Chelsea, they are thought to have pocketed £29.1m worth of prize money.

Spurs are yet to receive a formal offer for the player, who has also courted interest from Galatasaray and Saudi Arabian sides.

The club are prepared to sell up, though, with the signings of Mohammed Kudus and Mathys Tel marking him as unneeded.

Palmeiras presently sit fifth in the Brazilian top-flight, five points adrift of first-placed Flamengo. Richarlison, who won his 50th Brazil cap earlier this summer, launched his career in Brazil, making his senior debut for America Mineiro before signing with Fluminense.

Standard Sport understands Spurs are looking to bring in more attacking reinforcements this window and remain interested in a £20m swoop for Brentford striker Yoane Wissa, though they face competition from Nottingham Forest for his signature and have not held talks in a fortnight. The Congolese is Brentford’s all-time leading Premier League goalscorer.

Speaking in January, former Spurs head coach Ange Postecoglou described Richarlison as an important figure in the Spurs dressing room, but bemoaned his constant injury struggles.

Asked how he was protecting the player from repeat injuries, the since-sacked Australian said: “That’s a challenge. We’ve tried different ways, and Richy is trying different ways. It’s about him gaining confidence in his body as well.

“He is one of these guys that does lead by example, particularly when he plays. It’s great to have him back.

“I think he’s a really good fit for the way we play, in a couple of positions, centrally or out wide. If we can keep him fit between now and the end of the season, I’m sure he’s going to make an impact.”