Football London

Tottenham Hotspur have been put on red alert after it was claimed on Tuesday that Harry Kane is making plans to return to the Premier League.

Kane moved to Bayern Munich in the summer of 2023 and after missing out on the Bundesliga in his first season in Bavaria, he managed to complete his dream in the 2024/25 season. Heading into the new campaign, the England captain is preparing for further glory in Germany and potentially more silverware to add to the collection ahead of the World Cup in the United States.

While Kane is not planning on leaving Munich this summer, The Telegraph understands that 2026 could be a big year for the forward who will be 33 by then. They claim that Kane could seek a return back to the Premier League after the World Cup which will undoubtedly alert Spurs fans.

After Kane left Tottenham, chairman Daniel Levy insisted that there is a buy back clause in the deal that saw the talisman leave. How exactly that works is unclear but one school of thought is that Spurs would have first refusal to sign the striker.

There is also believed to be a release clause in play for Kane to activate in January. It is claimed that should he activate that clause this winter, Bayern would be legally obligated to sell the forward for £54m.

As for whether Tottenham would be interested in signing Kane again, the answer is most likely to be yes. The striker has scored 85 goals in 96 appearances for Bayern and is showing no signs of slowing down.

A return to the Premier League, whether with Tottenham or not, could be on Kane's radar sooner rather than later. The forward is currently just 47 goals behind Alan Shearer's record for all-time goalscorer in the division.

Realistically, Kane would need at least two full seasons in the Premier League to set that record and thus a move would need to be completed next summer to ensure he could have enough games in him to beat Shearer's figure of 260.

Tottenham held an open training session on Tuesday in front of 10,000 fans at the Kai Tak Stadium in Hong Kong as they continue their preparations ahead of the first ever north London derby outside of the UK.

Spurs and Arsenal will come up against each other on Thursday and new head coach Thomas Frank continued to get his methods across to his players with their latest training session, this time in front of thousands of supporters at the stadium where they will take on the Gunners.

The Dane has a big squad to work with although certain departments within it are low on numbers due to injuries with players left back at Hotspur Way to recover or rehabilitate.

Our Tottenham correspondent Alasdair Gold is in Hong Kong and he was at the Kai Tak Stadium, which had its roof covered, to watch the squad being put through their paces. Here are the things he spotted going on as the north London club worked ahead of their first summer tour game.

Who missed out

If you missed it, Destiny Udogie, Kota Takai and Manor Solomon remained at Hotspur Way for treatment, alongside Radu Dragusin, Dejan Kulusevski and Bryan Gil, who are continuing their rehabilitation. Mikey Moore, Alfie Devine and Dane Scarlett were all granted permission not to travel in order to explore potential opportunities for loan moves.

In Hong Kong, Dominic Solanke, who had a minor ankle injury which meant he missed out on the weekend's action at Luton, was not involved in the session, only emerging towards the end in trainers in order to take part in the signing session for some of the fans present.

Kevin Danso did some individual work during the session having come off alone on the hour mark on Saturday in the goalless draw at Luton. Rodrigo Bentancur, who was ill at the weekend, was back and involved.

What they did

After their warm-ups, the squad went through some passing drills and rondos. They were then put through some three-quarter pitch runs back and forth before the players took part in a 11 vs 11 half-pitch training game after that with two sides that involved four quarters of football.

There were little team talks beforehand as well with two members of the previous four-strong leadership group in each side. Cristian Romero and Guglielmo Vicario were in one team with Son Heung-min and James Maddison in the other.

After that there was a penalty shoot-out that ended up bearing little relation to a normal shoot-out and seemed to turn into spot kick practice but there was plenty to see from the session.

Who was on each side

The two sides had a good blend of experience and youth and all eyes will be on whether one of them is the team that starts against Arsenal and the other starts against Newcastle in Seoul at the weekend, or whether Frank will blend them into his strongest team. The latter seems more likely when you see the spread of some of the names involved.

The first team contained Vicario; Abbott, Van de Van, Romero, Spence, Bissouma, Sarr; Johnson, Bergvall, Odobert and Richarlison. It's worth noting that Bergvall was in the more advanced number 10 role for periods rather than Sarr who played there against Wycombe.

The other team featured Kinsky; Porro, Vuskovic, Davies, Donley; Gray, Bentancur; Kudus, Maddison, Son and Tel.

There was no Solanke or Danso, as mentioned above, while 16-year-old centre-back Jun'ai Byfield stood behind one of the goals ready to come in if needed and helped get the ball quickly back into play. Yang Min-hyeok and Will Lankshear were both at the other end of the pitch going through shooting drills of their own with Brandon Austin and Luca Gunter.

Porro and Tel concerns

Both teams wanted to win the game and there were some flashes of skill and some strong tackles going in. The latter was on display when Djed Spence caught Pedro Porro late after the Spaniard had passed the ball and left his fellow full-back writhing on the floor in agony for a while.

Porro got up and carried on but did look to have the slightest of limps later as he was walking out of the stadium on to the team coach.

The next person to have a training session scare was Mathys Tel. The Frenchman embarked on a few surging runs and during one of those he picked up a sore looking knock, seemingly to his knee.

That injury drew real concern from the group as everyone gathered around the 20-year-old in a circle as he lay on the floor and it took some time before he got up, heavily limping. Thankfully Tel appeared to run it off and later seemed fine when leaving the ground.

Penalties

The game ended in a goalless stalemate despite some promising attacking moves and efforts around the two goals, with some particularly close ones from Richarlison, and that meant it was time for a penalty shoot-out with Austin coming over to alternate with Vicario in goal.

The first three penalties from Maddison, Johnson and Porro were all saved by the keepers before Romero stroked a calm spot kick past Austin. Tel then also scored his penalty before Richarlison beat Vicario.

The two teams then came in for a chat with Frank and the coaches before some of the players returned to a shootout with Austin in goal for all the penalties the first batch.

Bissouma beat Austin twice and celebrated on each occasion, getting Austin riled up with the keeper booting the ball back near him at one point.

The goalkeeper did save from Bentancur, was beaten by Sarr before Porro sent his spot kick against the right-hand post. Eighteen-year-old Luka Vuskovic powered home his effort before Gunter had a go between the sticks only to be beaten by both Spence and Bergvall.

Son's waving

After the session the Tottenham players walked around the pitch waving to the fans with Son the most popular man on display on his home continent.

The Spurs captain was behind the main group so got his own walk around, applauding and waving to the 10,000 supporters before signing items for some of them.

The future remains uncertain for the South Korean star at Tottenham and Frank's earlier press conference did nothing to change that. Some local fans were left wondering whether they might be seeing one of the last occasions of Son in a Spurs shirt.

Tottenham look set to face a double Rodyrgo transfer issue even if the Real Madrid star was formally pursued. The Brazil international looks set to leave the Spanish capital with new head coach Xabi Alonso favouring other attackers during his first few games in charge.

Across six Club World Cup fixtures over the summer, Rodrygo played just 92 minutes and thus was linked with a move to the Premier League. Arsenal and Liverpool emerged as interested parties but both clubs now look to be focused on other deals.

With that in mind, reports from Spain have stated that Tottenham have made a move for Rodrygo, with AS claiming a request to Los Blancos, who are demanding £78million (€90m) to sell, for permission to speak to the 24-year-old has been lodged.

With Son Heung-min appearing set to join MLS side LAFC following Spurs' pre-season clash in South Korea, the Lilywhites could do with a big name coming in as his replacement.

Having won several trophies, including two Champions League titles, and scored numerous important goals for Real Madrid, Rodrygo could absolutely be that player especially as Spurs have missed out on the signing of Morgan Gibbs-White.

However, football.london understands there is nothing in Tottenham links to Rodrygo with the Athletic reporting he is not interested in a move to north London.

Having signed Mathys Tel and Mohammed Kudus, it is perhaps no surprise that Tottenham have no plans to bring in another wide forward. Thomas Frank was recently asked about the dilemma facing him in that position with his response offering an insight into how he plans to use certain players.

"I think first and foremost, I think it’s important that we have some depth in the squad," he said in a press conference on Tuesday when asked what his plan with the wide attackers was. "Richarlison, I see him more as a striker that can also play to the side.

"Sonny, can do both decisions. Mathys Tel is a winger but can also play as a striker. We need different skillsets.

"The perfect player is difficult to find so you need players that run in behind, players that can go 1-1, players that hopefully can score goals, that’s a big part of it, you need players that can press.

Micky van de Ven has heaped praise on fellow centre-back Luka Vuskovic after the youngster finally linked up with Tottenham this summer. Confirming a deal with Hajduk Split for the Croat back in September 2023, Vuskovic has spent the past two seasons out on loan with Radomiak Radom and Westerlo.

Since arriving at Hotspur Way to join up with his Tottenham teammates for the very first time, the teenager marked his Spurs debut at Reading with a goal in the 2-0 win in Berkshire. Vuskovic has made a big impression on Tottenham fans since his transfer to the club was first confirmed and he could become a key part of Thomas Frank's team going forward.

As well as speaking about Vuskovic, Van de Ven was also quizzed about working under Frank, his approach to injuries and finally getting a full pre-season at Tottenham under his belt. Here is every word the Netherlands international had to say to the media during his joint press conference with head coach Frank.

What is it like working under Thomas Frank?

It was really good. The first couple of weeks have been really good working under the new gaffer. (Frank interrupts and says: "Thank you, you couldn’t say anything different could you?")

It has been a really good few weeks. The first meeting I was not there because I was with the national team. He just showed us his visions and how he wants us to behave on and off the pitch. That's the first things that are really important to him and that we will get into the group now.

How good is Luka Vuskovic from what you've seen of him in training and in the games so far this summer?

Luka is only 18 years old but what you can see from how he behaves on the pitch and off the pitch you can see he is a really talented football player. He has a lot of qualities and I think he has shown in the last two friendlies that he has a lot of big and strong points where even our centre-backs can learn from. He's done unbelievable at this point and hopefully he can do way more for us and hopefully you can see way more from him.

Your thoughts on the name 'Micky van de Vengeance'?

I've never heard that one before but it's not bad.

Who's the fastest player you've come up against in the Premier League?

It's a good question. Anthony Elanga who has just signed for Newcastle is a really fast player so I would think I would put him up the list.

Micky, are you going to visit any places in Hong Kong?

From what I've seen now from Hong Kong is that I am really enjoying it. The fans are unbelievable, they are 24/7 in and outside the hotel waiting for us to walk by. The support is unreal over here and what I've seen from the city is really good and hopefully we can visit some places if we get some free time but I have to ask the gaffer for that.

First North London Derby outside the UK?

There is always a lot of pressure before games. I go into the game the same as if we play the game in London. Of course the stadium will be full and there will be a lot of fans from our side, so I hope that we can make them happy and give them a good game.

Andreas Georgson has come in as set-piece coach, what have you learnt so far and what are you working on?

We have had a lot of training sessions already where we are working on set pieces. I know you guys love talking about set-pieces and Tottenham. I hope we can change that this year and make it a strong point for us on the offensive and defensive side.

How important is it to have a full pre-season this year?

I think it’s important. Last year with the Euros, pre-season for me was not that long. I only had one week or two weeks of training before I started the Premier League. It is really good that I have these training weeks and that I can do all these sessions and build up my strength in this physical training for the season.

Are you approaching this season differently in terms of injuries?

No, I don't approach this season any different compared to what it was like. I didn't really have a pre-season at Tottenham before because two years ago I came after the pre-season and last season I had the Euros, so I was not there.

I don't approach it differently. Of course there's more time to work on my body and make my body prepared for the Premier League and for the Champions League and for all the other games that are coming up. So I would say that's a positive thing that I can work on that.

In the Europa League final your goal line save was the most important moment for me, did it give you confidence for the new season?

It was a really nice moment of course, a moment that I will never forget. Yeah, of course it gives you confidence. I think not only for me, but also like for the team overall that you win at the end the Europa League, that gives us confidence for this season.

Last season was tough for us, and then if you can end it up with winning a trophy after a long time, that's a positive thing. And yeah, to bring that into this season, yeah, that can help us a lot, yeah.

Thomas Frank has spoken to the media for the first time since Tottenham landed in Hong Kong. The Dane and his Spurs squad arrived in Asia on Monday ahead of Thursday's North London Derby friendly against Arsenal.

Tottenham will only be in Hong Kong for a short period before they jet off to South Korea for another pre-season fixture against Premier League rivals Newcastle United. Beating Reading 2-0 in Frank's first game in charge, Spurs were involved in two friendlies on Saturday as they were held to 0-0 and 2-2 draws against League One sides Luton Town and Wycombe Wanderers respectively.

Here is every single word Frank had to say to the media in Hong Kong:

What do you make of your first experience of a pre-season tour in Asia?

I think the tours are good in many ways. The players and everyone we are going to see, besides from the airport, hotel and the stadium, a little bit of a different culture. It’s great for the club to come out here and for us to experience the backing we have from fans across the world and especially this part of the world in Hong Kong, Asia. I’m pleased.

Is it about getting new fans?

We play for the fans. The more fans we can get the better. It’s up to us to make sure we show them our best side.

Morgan Gibbs-White is staying with Nottingham Forest, does this mean there is a bigger chance Son will stay and play as a playmaker?

Right now, Sonny is here and I’m very happy for that. He has trained well. I said in the last press conference that he is showing great character. He played the last two friendlies. He is in the squad, he will train today. What I’m focusing on is he is a Tottenham player.

What about Destiny Udogie's and Kota Takai’s fitness?

Kota's got plantar fascia unfortunately. I don’t know exactly the scale of it, weeks. Destiny has got a knee injury that we are assessing at the moment that just kept him out of the pre-season tour. When we know more, we will update more.

How important is it for Mikey Moore to be heading out on loan?

It is very important. Mikey is a big talent. I’m really excited about his future here at Tottenham. I think for all players but especially younger players they need consistent first-team football into their bodies. I think if we can find the right option we will do that.

You're playing your first North London Derby against Arsenal tomorrow, even though it is a friendly how do you approach it?

I think it's a great challenge besides being our biggest rivals and the first North London Derby outside the UK. It's also right now one of the best teams I must say unfortunately in the world we also need to be honest. In that way it's going to be a big test, but it's more than a test as against Arsenal it's not only a friendly. Of course it's a game we will do everything we can to win.

Tottenham fans seem to call you Thomas the Frank Engine, I would like to know your thoughts on the name?

I think it's ok. That's fine for me.

What positions are you looking to strengthen?

That is something I would like to keep very private of course. We of course are out there in the market and we're aware where we maybe want to strengthen the squad in general. I'm happy with the squad and we've already done a top signing in Mohammed Kudus that is coming in and showing us his quality already. We've got a squad where there is a lot of talent in and quality but of course we're looking.

Wide attackers, you have a lot of them so what’s your plan with them?

I think first and foremost, I think it’s important that we have some depth in the squad. Richarlison, I see him more as a striker that can also play to the side. Sonny, can do both decisions. Mathys Tel is a winger but can also play as a striker. We need different skillsets. The perfect player is difficult to find so you need players that run in behind, players that can go 1-1, players that hopefully can score goals, that’s a big part of it, you need players that can press. Some of them have ball carrying skills, some of them are very good at pressing players, so that's it.

After Morgan Gibbs-White, have you had any conversations with Daniel Levy about other players you are after?

In general we are constantly talking about transfers of course. It's the transfer window, we’re in the market, we’re still looking out there.

With the problems with injuries, how are you looking to improve that this season?

Of course I'm aware of the injury situation in Tottenham and I think it's a big thing for any club in the world. Availability is key. If you have availability close to 100%, which is difficult for your top players because there are more and more games. I think the games are going up.

But a couple of things. The good thing is that we've got a good and long pre-season. That means it's possible to push and pull the players. We are very aware how we want to play and how we want to train and I think that needs to be aligned completely to the style of play and the physical output of how we want to train.

So we need to make sure the players are robust enough and there's of course the gym sessions, recovery which is equally important and then there is that availability to be able to compete in all the tournaments. We are aware and a few adjustments and hopefully we will be successful there.

With Son, last season there was some talk that he was out wide too much and you said today that both Son and Richarlison can play on the wing and central, do you have any plans to use Son in the central position?

I think everyone knows that Son has been one of the best players at Tottenham in the past 10 years. I think he's been hugely successful from the left wing. I also think he's had some fantastic games down the middle as a number nine. So it's important to have players who can play in more than one position and it's about having your best players on the pitch and available. So the thing about Sonny is that he will always score goals and it's just about getting him in those situations.

I think everyone knows that Son has been one of the best players at Tottenham in the past 10 years. I think he's been hugely successful from the left wing. I also think he's had some fantastic games down the middle as a number nine. So it's important to have players who can play in more than one position and it's about having your best players on the pitch and available.

So the thing about Sonny is that he will always score goals and it's just about getting him in those situations.

It is very important. Mikey is a big talent. I’m really excited about his future here at Tottenham. I think for all players but especially younger players they need consistent first-team football into their bodies. I think if we can find the right option we will do that.

Luka is only 18 years old but what you can see from how he behaves on the pitch and off the pitch you can see he is a really talented football player. He has a lot of qualities and I think he has shown in the last two friendlies that he has a lot of big and strong points where even our centre-backs can learn from. He's done unbelievable at this point and hopefully he can do way more for us and hopefully you can see way more from him.

I think everyone knows that Son has been one of the best players at Tottenham in last ten years. It's important we have players who are flexible. Sonny will always score goals and it's about getting him in those situations.

In what is a first for both clubs, Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur will play a North London Derby on foreign soil. While the clash has been played away from both sides' home grounds before, such as at Wembley when Spurs were awaiting the construction of their new ground, this will bring the bitter rivals into contention in Hong Kong for the conclusive match of the Gunners' tour.

Fans in Hong Kong will get a glimpse of the Arsenal team for the first time since 2012. Mikel Arteta played in that game against Kitchee FC back then, but will lead his side out as the manager on Thursday.

He will do so with two brand new players at his disposal after both Cristhian Mosquera and Viktor Gyokeres were unveiled. Whether they are involved remains to be seen, but in an ideal world, fans are dreaming of getting their first glimpse of the Swede in particular, and therefore football.londontakes a look at the best-case scenario for the XI.

We're at a stage now, just under three weeks away from the start of the Premier League season, where Mikel Arteta is likely to start putting together the shape of his team for the first game. David Raya will therefore start in goal, and then others could again come in later on.

Ben White, William Saliba, and Myles Lewis-Skelly will be starting figures in the back four as Jurrien Timber continues his work back from an ankle procedure. Gabriel Magalhaes has been unable to play so far after he felt a small niggle in training but could now make his way back into the fold.

We move into midfield and still await a starting line-up with all three of Martin Zubimendi, Declan Rice, and Martin Odegaard. We expect to see this more often next season, especially against Spurs, where, despite it being a friendly, the club needs a good win.

Max Dowman continues to make waves, and soon fans will start calling for him to start in these friendlies. However, for now, he continues from the bench, looking to make another big impact.

Bukayo Saka and Leandro Trossard are the starting wide players. The central and main attraction, though, is Viktor Gyokeres' first start. And what a game to make your first appearance for the club: a North London derby.

Morgan Gibbs-White will not be signing for Tottenham Hotspur this summer.

Spurs had targeted the midfielder to be new head coach Thomas Frank's priority signing in the No.10 role in his new system at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

And it had looked like a deal that would be completed, with Spurs seemingly activating the £60million release clause for the 25-year-old. However, Nottingham Forest threatened legal action, deeming there to have been an illegal approach for the England international and after two weeks of silence on the deal, Gibbs-White put pen to paper on a new contract to remain at the City Ground.

From the outside, looking in, it looks like two weeks of the transfer window wasted for Tottenham. That may not be the case, of course, with plenty of other work potentially going in behind the scenes on other deals.

Technical director Johan Lange likes to work quietly and effectively - although the latter was not the case in this Gibbs-White instance of course - and there could be other deals in the pipeline.

But the Gibbs-White debacle does throw up another issue for Tottenham when it comes to recruiting an alternative signing.

Tottenham wanted Gibbs-White and seemingly put all their eggs in his basket. Up until the deal for him to stay in Nottingham was concluded, Spurs remained hopeful of a deal being done.

Now, if Frank does indeed want another player to play in the No.10 role, Spurs will have to turn their attentions elsewhere.

Eberechi Eze has been linked with a move this summer, although that all went quiet at the start of July, with football.london reporting that it was highly unlikely Spurs would make a move to sign the Crystal Palace man.

That was probably down to plans to secure Gibbs-White's signature. But Spurs could go back in for Eze now - who is likely to cost around £65million and has been tipped to join north London rivals Arsenal.

But how would Eze feel about being second choice for Spurs this summer? Or anyone else Spurs target in that role for that matter?

It's not like making plans and going after certain targets when they come available, this was a very public move from Tottenham because they expected to get their man.

Now they have failed to sign Gibbs-White, they will look elsewhere and players like Eze will know they are only on the wishlist because Spurs did not get a deal for someone else over the line.

That may not matter to certain players, but for some there will be slight trepidation and Lange, Frank and even Daniel Levy may have some persuading to do when it comes to new targets.

A move to Scottish Premiership side Rangers is reportedly the most likely for Tottenham Hotspur youngster Mikey Moore this summer, despite interest from elsewhere.

As reported by football.london , the 17-year-old is keen to go out on loan this season to ensure that he gets regular first team football. Last season saw him make 19 first team appearances for Spurs with him scoring his first senior goal in the 3-0 Europa League group stage win over Elfsborg.

However, the competition in wide areas at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium could see him struggle for regular game time in the upcoming season. Spurs have Mathys Tel, Son Heung-min, Wilson Odobert, Richarlison, Brennan Johnson, Dejan Kulusevsli, Manor Solomon and Mohammed Kudus who are all able to play on the wings.

The Telegraph’s Matt Law now reports that Scotish giants Rangers are favourites to sign the teenager on a loan deal this summer. There is said to be a lot of interest in the youngster, with Championship sides also said to be keeping an eye on the situation, but a move north of the boarder currently looks the most likely.

Moore played 45 minutes of the pre-season game against League One side Reading earlier this month. He was back in the starting XI on Saturday when Spurs took on Luton Town at Kenilworth Road, he played 77 minutes before being replaced by Callum Oluesi.

The final decision over Moore’s short-term future will lie with new head coach Thomas Frank. But it seems that he has been granted permission to seek a temporary move away.

Tottenham could be set for a busy week both on and off the pitch with their pre-season tour of Asia now underway. Thomas Frank has already overseen three friendlies in charge of Spurs and over the next 10 days will see his side take on Arsenal, Newcastle United and Bayern Munich overseas.

Three new signings have been completed this summer with Mathys Tel, Kota Takai and Mohammed Kudus joining. The hope would have been that Morgan Gibbs-White would also be on the plane heading to Hong Kong but he has instead signed a new contract at Nottingham Forest.

Alongside Gibbs-White, nine players contracted to Tottenham have remained in London with Dejan Kulusevski, Destiny Udogie and new signing Takai among the injured stars staying home.

Fitness problems are not the reason three academy stars have not travelled with Spurs writing in their pre-season tour announcement that "Mikey Moore, Alfie Devine and Dane Scarlett have been granted permission not to travel in order to explore potential opportunities for loan moves."

The former has significant interest from the Championship but The Telegraph's Matt Law has claimed Scottish Premiership side Rangers have emerged as the favourites to sign him on a temporary basis.

Devine and Scarlett meanwhile will likely stay in England with the latter spending last season on loan at Oxford United while Devine was at Belgian side Westerlo alongside Luka Vuskovic. Any permanent outgoings currently look unlikely with Bryan Gil and Manor Solomon, two players expected to depart, still recovering from injury.

Richarlison and Yves Bissouma meanwhile, have travelled to Asia despite Spurs being open to both leaving. Even if the latter stays, the Lilywhites are expected to sign a new defensive midfielder.

According to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano, Spurs have a genuine interest in Bayern Munich's Joao Palhinha with contact made to his camp but no formal proposal sent to the German champions. Despite only joining 12 months ago, the Portugal international is free to depart for as little as £25.8million (€30m)

With Palhinha having played in the Premier League before and Bayern open to an exit, it seems very likely that if Tottenham make an approach this week, it is a deal that could be wrapped up very quickly.

In terms of other moves that might go ahead, Spurs find themselves in what could be a very interesting set of transfer dominos. With Gianluigi Donnarumma yet to extend his contract at Paris Saint-Germain beyond 2026 - amid links to Manchester United - the European champions have made a move for Lille's Lucas Chevalier.