Football London

Thomas Frank continues to shuffle his pack as Tottenham's matches keep coming at pace with Saturday's Premier League game at Leeds United.

Spurs enter the Saturday lunch-time kick-off after returning from Norway and a fortunate scrambled draw at Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League on Tuesday night. Tottenham remain unbeaten since the last international break but Frank is well aware of the pre-international break curse that has affected the north London club in recent years with defeats in their past seven matches in a row before the players have gone off to represent their countries.

The Tottenham boss has captain Cristian Romero back in action after his contact injury in the draw with Wolves last weekend and Xavi Simons, Destiny Udogie, Joao Palhinha and Mohammed Kudus are all likely to come back into the starting line-up after coming off the bench in Bodo.

Frank will also have to make a decision on Richarlison because the Brazilian has had to play a lot of football despite his previous injury issues over recent seasons. Earlier this year Spurs had injury issues after playing on the artificial turf at Tamworth in the FA Cup and it could be that now is the time to give Richarlison a rest and not risk injuring him. That would mean Mathys Tel would come in up top for the trip to what will be a noisy Elland Road this weekend.

Here's the team that we reckon Frank could select to face Leeds:

Archie Gray can be as good as Premier League superstars Rodri and Declan Rice, reckons his Tottenham boss Thomas Frank.

The 19-year-old will return to Leeds United on Saturday afternoon 15 months on from this £40million move to north London. Gray has already made 51 appearances for Spurs, just one less than his tally at Leeds, with his versatility vital as he has turned out as a centre-back, in both full-back slots and in his more natural midfield role.

Now he has a head coach in Frank who tried to sign him at Brentford last summer, only for Spurs and former boss Ange Postecoglou to convince Gray to join them instead at the last moment.

"Let's put it this way, yes we spoke with him, but he ended up at Tottenham and maybe that was good because I still have the chance to work with him!" admitted Frank. "It’s one of those things. No matter where you are and what club you’re in, sometimes you go for targets and you can’t make it for whatever reason.

"What I am happy with is what I see from Archie here and I believe he’s got a big future ahead."

Gray helped Spurs grab a point at Bodo/Glimt on his Champions League debut on Tuesday night and Frank sees the youngster's future firmly as a midfielder and believes he has the potential to reach the level of Manchester City and Arsenal stars Rodri and Rice.

"I see him as a midfielder who can play six or eight. That is his position and these days midfielders need to be more complete. You need to be a little bit of a six, a little bit of eight and 10 and two of the best in the world right now are probably Rodri and Declan Rice," said the Spurs boss.

"They can do a little bit of everything. I see Archie, and they are big names to compare him to, but I see he has got the same potential."

Gray comes from top footballing pedigree with his dad Andy having played 51 times in the Premier League for Leeds, Nottingham Forest and Sunderland, while his grandfather is Frank Gray, who won the First Division title with Leeds and the European Cup with Forest. Archie is also the great nephew of Leeds legend Eddie Gray and on top of that his 16-year-old brother has already made his debut in the Championship last season for United.

"I definitely don’t treat them any different, I just see them as an individual that I try to help in the best possible way," Frank said of players like Gray coming from top footballing stock.

"You can say that sometimes there is something they maybe have got a little bit more in with the blood, which I think Archie has got, he seems to understand that he needs to work hard. The foundation, if you want to achieve anything, you need to do that. I think his understanding of the game is good as well. So those two bits and the discipline, I think are key areas if you want to achieve anything. So maybe that is from the blood of the family."

Gray will be looking to make the team against his boyhood club at Elland Road and prevent the extension of Tottenham's international break curse. The north London side have lost their past seven matches before each break, leaving their fans with two weeks of misery before the Premier League returns.

Frank lost his first attempt at breaking that run with a miserable performance at home against Bournemouth in August.

"We have a fantastic stat on that and we performed absolutely top in that game!" joked the sarcastic Dane .

"I really, really do hope we win so we don't need to speak too much about it in the future. It’s like a weird thing last year in Brentford where we couldn't win away for the first six or seven months, more than half the season.

"Then suddenly we were the best away team for the nine games in a row after. So with these stats, it’s up to us to be extremely focused, aware of the gameplan, show a fantastic mentality and do what we can to win."

He added: "Put it this way, I’ve mentioned it to the players. I actually said that you guys (the media) will most likely ask me so please make sure we win!"

One player who is back in training but not available yet for the game at Elland Road is deadline day loan signing Randal Kolo Muani and Frank explained the Frenchman's troublesome recent injury.

"It’s just a dead leg that was bleeding too much. Very simple. That’s sorted. Now we need to get him up to pace. No muscle, nothing, just a contact. Unfortunately. Then bleeding," he explained.

With both the PSG man out and Dominic Solanke requiring a minor procedure on his ankle, Richarlison has been left to battle away up top on his own with only 20-year-old Mathys Tel as a potential replacement. With the Brazilian's injury history, Frank was asked whether he's had to risk the striker more than he would have liked.

"No. I would say the medical and performance department have done a top job in terms of building him. I think it's quite remarkable that he's fit with his history," he said. "I think we took some good decisions. For example the first friendly we played, he was just too short so he didn't play the 45 minutes.

"There's been training sessions where we've probably [thought], 'hmm, not today'. We came back from the last international break, didn't start him. So there's been bits of those. Right now we haven't been forced into games where we had to play him if that makes sense. He's built an extra layer which I think is good."

So has all the game time meant that Frank has had to accept that Richarlison might run and press slightly less in order to counter the number of minutes he's racking up?

"Oof, that's difficult for me. That's a default in me, I get so annoyed if they're not running. They need to do something unbelievable, remarkable if they're allowed not to run. So the short answer is no!" he said.

"So far I've been happy with his attitude and his work-rate and also quite a bit of his performances, but there's still things that could be improved of course."

Richarlison's team-mate Rodrigo Bentancur committed his future to Spurs this week with a new long-term contract and Frank admitted he played his role in the club's work to ensure the Uruguayan did not run down the final seven months of his contract.

"Of course we tried to convince him in terms of what the future is here. The perspective for the team and the perspective for him, how I saw him and what kind of role I would like him to play," said the Dane.

"Of course he’s a very important player who can be part of moving the team forward and I think his qualities will be able to shine here. We're at the start of the journey and the future looks bright and exciting. One thing I’m sure of is there will be lots of ups and downs but I think he’ll be very good for that."

Bentancur was one of the senior figures to miss out on being named in Frank's five-strong leadership group at Tottenham which was announced on Friday. Despite being set to miss most, if not all, of the season following an ACL injury, James Maddison has been named in the group alongside captain Cristian Romero, Ben Davies, Guglielmo Vicario and Micky van de Ven, and Frank explained why.

"He is a very positive person and lively is not the word, but he's an extrovert," said the Spurs head coach. "He's positive, smiling, interacting with everyone and that is a big plus, and he also gets around to everyone and is interested in leadership so it was quite natural."

The Asia-based consortium of investors led by Firehawk Holdings Limited have confirmed that they will not bidding for a takeover of Tottenham Hotspur.

Early last month Spurs announced that they had "received, and unequivocally rejected, separate preliminary expressions of interest in relation to proposals to acquire the entire issued, and to be issued, share capital of ENIC from PCP International Finance Limited and a consortium of investors led by Dr Roger Kennedy and Wing-Fai Ng through Firehawk Holdings Limited".

Takeover rules meant that both interested parties then had until 5pm on October 5 to either lodge a firm intention to make a bid or announced that they would not be doing so.

PCP soon confirmed that they would not be following up with a bid and on Friday, the Asia-based consortium led by Firehawk did the same.

An announcement through the London Stock Exchange stated: "Further to the announcement made by the board of Tottenham Hotspur Limited on 7 September 2025, the consortium of investors led by Firehawk Holdings Limited confirms that it is not intending to make an offer for the club."

That now leaves only an informal expression of interest from a consortium headed up by Brooklyn Earick looking to takeover the club in a £4.5bn deal.

Tech entrepreneur Earick, who failed this year in a bid to acquire Formula E team Maserati, is fronting the £3.3billion takeover approach from a 12-strong group including NFL and NBA investors, with a further £1.2billion reportedly set aside as transfer funds for head coach Thomas Frank.

"The board of the club and ENIC reconfirm that Tottenham Hotspur is not for sale and ENIC is not looking to sell its stake in the club," said Spurs in a statement last week.

A source close to the Lewis family, who own the club, added to football.london at the time: "This unsolicited and unnecessary interest does nothing to change the family’s resolve and commitment to do whatever it takes to drive success on the pitch. The club is not for sale."

Now that consortium is required, by no later than 5pm on October 24, to either announce their firm intention to make an offer for Spurs or announce that it does not intend to do so. That deadline can be extended with the consent of the panel on takeovers and mergers.

Thomas Frank is holding his press conference on Friday as Tottenham prepare to return to action once more with the trip to Leeds United in the Premier League.

Spurs returned from Norway after scraping a fortunate draw at Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League on Tuesday night and now they must face another noisy away day with the trip to Elland Road and a Leeds side that have held their own on their return to the Premier League with only two defeats in their first six matches.

Frank will deliver an update on Cristian Romero's contact injury which kept him out of the midweek European match while Dominic Solanke has now had his minor surgery on his ankle.

There was also the boost for the Tottenham boss with Rodrigo Bentancur signing a new long-term contract with the club on Friday as a key member of Frank's team.

Our Spurs correspondent Alasdair Gold will be among those putting the questions to Frank. Scroll down for his latest updates from the press conference at Hotspur Way.

Rodrigo Bentancur has set his sights on winning more trophies with Tottenham Hotspur after signing a new long-term contract with the club. The midfielder had entered the final 12 months of his previous deal, but Spurs had made renewing the Uruguayan's terms a top priority.

Bentancur has made 122 appearances for Tottenham since joining from Juventus three-years ago, and played a key role in the club’s Europa League success last season. And after putting pen-to-paper on a new deal, Bentancur admitted: "I feel really good and I'm very happy to continue my story with this fantastic club.

"My family are happy; I have fantastic friends and team-mates who work hard every day. I love this club and feel really good here.

"Winning the Europa League was a fantastic moment and we want to build on this now, to win more trophies.

"We have a new head coach, a new captain and I want to enjoy many more years at the club."

Reacting to the deal, Spurs head coach Thomas Frank said: "I'm extremely happy that Rodrigo has committed his future to the club.

"It shows his belief in what we are building here and that we are starting a journey which we hope will be really special.

"Rodri is a big part of that. He's a fantastic midfielder who can dictate games and be the glue that holds the team together. He also has the ability to arrive in the penalty area, create goals and score them, too."

Tottenham Hotspur's potential takeover by former DJ Brooklyn Earick looks less likely to happen as one of his hopeful chief investors has pulled out of a deal.

Last month, the football world was shook when it emerged that Earick was looking to purchase Spurs from the current ownership. His approach came shortly after long-serving chairman Daniel Levy left the club, leading to speculation surrounding a future takeover.

Earick has insisted that he is more than just a mere 'tyre kicker' and would be able to stump up the funds to purchase Tottenham when the time came. To do this, it is believed that the American has approached a number of wealthy individuals to join his consortium.

One such businessman was believed to be Cleveland Cavaliers basketball team owner Dan Gilbert. However, it appears that Gilbert has withdrawn from the process.

After contacting Gilbert's sports and entertainment group, Rock Entertainment, The Telegraph were told: "Rock Entertainment Group is constantly evaluating opportunities – both domestic and international – that strengthen our position as a leader in sports and entertainment. Recently, this included the review of a major UK-based sports property.

"After careful review, we elected not to pursue this opportunity." The loss of Gilbert will be a huge blow for Earick as he is worth a cool £21billion alone.

It is also understood that Earick and Gilbert have no affiliation beyond this proposal despite the former posting a picture of himself in a Cavaliers' hat on Instagram. Earick does reportedly have 12 investors signed up to join his takeover bid of Spurs.

However, he only has until October 24 to launch his bid officially or else the bid will be dismissed entirely. Even if the funds for the Spurs takeover are fully financed and presented to the club, it seems at this stage the ENIC Group are not interested in selling.

Ryan Mason has revealed what it was like to work under Antonio Conte and explained why he decided to leave Tottenham after the Europa League success under Ange Postecoglou.

The 34-year-old left Spurs to become head coach of West Brom in the summer, bringing an end to his long association with the Lilywhites.. After spending eight years at the club as a player, Mason returned to Tottenham in a coaching capacity in 2018 and worked under Jose Mourinho, Conte and Postecoglou.

The former midfielder was even appointed interim head coach in 2021 and 2023 before becoming one of Postecoglou's assistants ahead of the 2023/24 season. Mason was well-liked among the playing squad and enjoyed the 1-0 win over Manchester United in Bilbao as much as anyone.

Mason always had ambitions to become a manager, though, and even spoke to Postecoglou about the matter only a matter of months ago. In an interview with Sky Sports, Mason said: "We created history together and we'll be bonded forever because when you win with someone, that connection is never broken.

"In the last 12 months I had the desire [to go out on my own] and it felt like the time was right. I spoke to Ange and he advised me it needs to feel right, and when it does, go for it.

"I spoke to some clubs in the last 12 months, but nothing felt right. The way the season ended in Bilbao with Spurs was amazing. When I understood [West Brom] Albion were interested, it felt right. It's a massive club with great history and impressive people. I felt a real alignment and connection straight away."

West Brom have started the new season in decent form under Mason, winning four and drawing two of their eight Championship games. It means the Baggies are fourth in the table and four points off leaders Middlesbrough.

Mason was also asked to reflect on his time under Conte and what he learned from the Italian. Conte was appointed in November 2021 following the sacking of Nuno Espirito Santo and helped Spurs qualify for the Champions League. Tottenham struggled for form the following campaign, though, and after a number of public outbursts, Conte left the club by mutual consent in March 2023.

"It was just everything with him," Mason said when asked about Conte. "Preparation. Detail. The way he lives his life. It's engrossed in winning and can become contagious. He was amazing."

The agent of Spurs centre-back Radu Dragusin has claimed the Romanian defender will return to action within the next month. Tottenham have been without the 23-year-old, signed from Genoa in January 2024 for an initial £21.5million, since the beginning of the year when Dragusin ruptured his ACL in a 3-0 Europa League win over IF Elfsborg.

Surgery was successful, however, and the player has been back out on the grass at Hotspur Way in recent weeks as he steps up his recovery.

Romania boss Mircea Lucescu recently named Dragusin on his preliminary list of overseas stars potentially in line for international call-ups for this month's upcoming matches against Moldova and Austria.

But Lucesca has since claimed Spurs were "not happy" about the prospect of Dragusin being rushed back into the international fold given he is yet to feature at club level.

Speaking to Romanian outlet Digisport, Dragusin's agent Florin Manea has since clarified that his client is on the right track and could be back to feature for Spurs in the coming weeks.

He said: “Radu is fine. I don’t know if he will be approved to play, especially since he hasn’t started full training at Tottenham. I’m glad he’s on the list. The moment of his return is approaching.

"That it will be now or in a month at most, I think Radu will be 100 per cent ready. There is no delay in recovery, the doctor told us that it is best to return from eight months onwards.

“Radu will be eight months from the operation in mid-October. On the contrary, he is ahead with his preparation. There have been players who have stayed for 12-13 months but the idea is not to rush.

“It is normal to feel Radu’s absence from the team. There is no replacement for him. He plays at the level he plays at and there is a big difference between what is played in England compared to other sides. It is impossible to replace Radu Dragusin at the moment.”

Speaking ahead of the 1-1 draw with Wolves, Thomas Frank revealed Dragusin was "progressing well" and added that his return was not too far off.

The Dane said: "He is progressing well. He has been on the grass for three weeks or something like that, so he progressing well as he should do. We all know coming back from an ACL is a longer one, so it's on track. It will be some weeks before he's involved in the squad."

Spurs are certainly not short of options at the heart of defence. When fit, captain Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven are virtually undroppable but Kevin Danso and Dragusin are both adequate stand-in replacements. Luka Vuskovic and Kota Takai also remain big talents for the future.

Kevin Danso admits that it was "very annoying" for Tottenham to concede twice in the way they did against Bodo/Glimt in the Champions League.

The Norwegian side swept into a deserved 2-0 lead thanks to a Jens Petter Hauge double only for Spurs captain for the day Micky van de Ven to head a goal back. Then in the 89th minute an Archie Gray shot was pushed out by the Bodo goalkeeper and against his own defender Jostein Gundersen to bounce into the net and to spare Tottenham's blushes.

Danso came into the defence for injured captain Cristian Romero and admitted that Hauge's finishes were excellent but frustrating.

"[They were] very good, I mean, we knew before he was a very good player, and he showed quality with the two goals he scored, but from a defensive standpoint, obviously very annoying, because you want to keep the clean sheet. But they were two good goals and we had a tough time," said the Austria international.

The centre-back added: "We know from last season they're a very good side, very, very good football. Especially in the first half, it took us a while to figure out. We went down and I think we just showed our mentality that we're difficult to beat. We came back and we're happy to take a point away from home.

The late own goal meant it has been back-to-back games in which Spurs have hit a late leveller to rescue a point after grabbing a 1-1 draw at home with Wolves in the Premier League on Saturday night.

Danso explained why that comeback ability is in Thomas Frank's team.

"Just hard work, staying in the game no matter what situation, no matter what the state of the game is," said the defender. "1-0 up, 2-0 up, 3-0 up, 1-0 down, 2-0 down.

"Just hard work and always wanting to score, always wanting more, and defending at the same intensity no matter what the state of the game is."

With the partnership of Romero and Van de Ven the main one at Spurs, Danso has had to take what he can get in game time, which meant stepping into the breach in the Champions League suddenly after Romero's contact injury against Wolves.

"Of course, when you don't play as much it's always a bit difficult, but I feel like I've got enough experience now, I know what it takes and I just know defensively I need to be stronger, a bit stronger than today," he said.

"But I feel like with the experience, nine years professional now, it's just part and parcel of football. You've got to be ready for the opportunity when it comes."

Dominic Solanke has confirmed he underwent successful ankle surgery after a "frustrating" few months. The Tottenham forward has made just three appearances this term as he attempted to manage the issue.

The striker is hoping to make a swift return, with boss Thomas Frank revealing earlier this week that he does not expect the ex-Bournemouth star to be out for an extended period. Solanke has now indicated it won't be long until he is back on the pitch.

"Hi everyone, quick update about my current situation," he posted. "The last few months have been very frustrating as I've tried everything possible to try and push through my ankle issue before taking the option of surgery.

"None of this managed to solve the problem, so we had to go ahead with minor surgery which I underwent this morning. It was all successful so hopefully I'll be back on the pitch in the very near future!

"Thank you for all your love and messages."

Ahead of Spurs' Champions League clash against Bodo/Glimt, Frank revealed Solanke's absence from the trip was due to the surgery. "Dom, you know, got that ankle issue that's been bothering him for a little while," he said.

"So now we decided to make a minor surgery. It's a small procedure. So that will mean he's not ready for today, of course.

"And of course, Leeds he's out as well. We will have more news about time frame after the international break. But I don't expect it to be long."

Solanke has not played since August and has acquired 49 minutes across matches against Paris Saint-Germain, Manchester City and Burnley. Player and club initially attempted to avoid surgery, and Frank acknowledged it is frustrating they did not know it was the right call earlier.

"I think you can look from two ways," he said. "That's the easy answer, but it's not that easy. If we knew we could have done the surgery a month ago, we probably would have done it. So for me, I'm always like I imagine, ‘oh, it is what it is, we deal from now’.

"No doubt that the way we dealt with this was because we thought that was the right way because I think in general, no one wants a surgery, no matter how small it is."

Tottenham have no shortage of injury issues. Spurs coach Frank is still without James Maddison, Dejan Kulusevski, Radu Dragusin, Kota Takai, Randal Kolo Muani, and Yves Bissouma.

Cristian Romero also missed the north London side's Champions League clash. Frank suggested the Argentina international had been left out as a precaution.

Romero did not travel to Norway for the European trip and Spurs will hope he is in contention to face Leeds.