Football London

Tottenham will hope to end the summer transfer window with seven new signings brought into Thomas Frank's squad. Mathys Tel, Kota Takai, Mohammed Kudus and Joao Palhinha are the players to have arrived thus far with the Spurs boss now actively looking to also strengthen in three other positions.

Following the serious knee injury to James Maddison, an addition in attacking midfield is being sought after with Crystal Palace's Eberechi Eze top of the club's shortlist. Negotiations for the Eagles talisman have been ongoing for the last week or so with a final agreement seemingly getting closer by the day.

Eze appears to be aware of that as well with his actions at the end of the 0-0 draw against Chelsea on Sunday suggesting that could have been his last game for Palace. Spurs are also actively looking to sign a new winger with talks for Manchester City's Savinho having taken place.

However, the Brazilian now looks more likely to stay at Etihad Stadium following a Pep Guardiola decision. Strengthening out wide seems less of a priority given the options currently at Frank's disposal, but it is likely that alternatives have been looked at.

Spurs are also keen to bring in a new centre-back especially if Luka Vuskovic seals a loan move for the 2025/26 season. Bayer Leverkusen's Piero Hincapie has been mooted as an option but it would likely take activating his apparent £52million release clause to agree a deal.

His teammate Edmond Tapsoba was a target for Spurs before they opted to sign Micky van de Ven and the Dutchmen has since formed a strong partnership with new club captain Cristian Romero.

The centre-back duo were key to Tottenham winning the Europa League and the hope will be they remain as part of the club's spine for the next few years with that now looking very likely after Romero signed a new four-year contract.

Confirmation of his extension arrived on Monday evening and given the speculation surrounding his future alongside his clear importance to the team, it is unlikely that Tottenham complete a more important deal.

The 27-year-old penning fresh terms is a huge statement of intent from both the player and Spurs with it seemingly clear he feels that more trophies can be won. It is also very likely he has received a pay rise up from the £8.58million he had taken in during the first three years of the contract he signed when initially joining permanently back in 2022.

The nightmare scenario of Romero leaving as a free agent next summer, after earning a reported £34.3million from his four-year deal, has now been avoided by Frank.

Tottenham could be about to strike a huge breakthrough in transfer negotiations with Crystal Palace for Eberechi Eze. The two parties are in direct contact over a permanent deal, likely to cost in the region of £60million, with the hope being he can feature in Spurs' next Premier League game against Manchester City.

A transfer looked to be entering a crucial stage this past weekend with Eze not featuring for Palace against Chelsea a real possibility. However, the decision was made by the player and Oliver Glasner that he would feature.

At the end of that goalless draw at Stamford Bridge, Eze appeared to say his goodbyes to the Palace supporters in the away end. If that was his final appearance for the Eagles, Eze was denied a dream farewell with his stunning free-kick disallowed for an infringement by Marc Guehi.

Oliver Glasner is of the belief that was not his last game however, with the Palace manager making his Eze transfer feelings perfectly clear.

Speaking about the England international on Sunday afternoon, he said: “He will come tomorrow to the Crystal Palace training ground, Tuesday off, we take Wednesday, and I expect him to be back playing for us against Fredrikstad.”

With two years remaining on his contract and Eze having made it clear that he wants to join, it is unlikely Palace will stand in his way. However, the deal stalling is a real possibility until Palace have signed a replacement with that aim appearing much closer following an update on Bilal El Khannouss.

Contact from Selhurst Park has been made for the Leicester City star with TBR Football claiming he favours a move to Palace over Everton, Leeds United and West Ham.

TBR Football's chief correspondent Graeme Bailey added: “I am told that El Khannouss has been considering his options and they are plentiful – varying from England, Europe and Saudi Arabia. However, Palace sources are very happy with how talks have gone, and they like the player.”

The Foxes now want £30million to sell the Morocco international after his relegation release clause, which was much cheaper, expired. Such a financial demand makes it likely that Palace will want a large portion of the Eze paid upfront while Spurs will hope they pay it through favourable instalments given their other transfer plans.

Tottenham, Arsenal and Chelsea as well as Liverpool, Manchester City and Newcastle will find out in just over a week's time exactly who they will face in the Champions League league phase.

Spurs are making their return to the competition under a new head coach in Thomas Frank, who will be getting his first taste of the tournament following his switch from Brentford this summer. Tottenham booked their place in the Champions League after winning the Europa League in Bilbao in May by beating Manchester United in the final.

Chelsea return to the competition through their fourth place Premier League league position, and also lifted the UEFA Conference League while Arsenal, Liverpool and Manchester City take their place once again in the tournament against the continent's elite clubs. There is also a sixth Premier League team in the competition this season after Eddie Howe's Newcastle secured a European Performance Spot having finished fifth in the table.

Two such spots were awarded to the associations with the best collective performance by their clubs at the end of last season's UEFA men's competitions.

Here's everything you need to know about next week's league phase draw.

When is it taking place?

This year's league phase draw for the Champions League will take place in Monaco on Thursday, August 28 at 5pm UK time and will follow the same procedure as last year.

What is that procedure?

Under the increased fixture format brought in last season, teams will play eight matches in the league phase. They will no longer play three opponents twice – home and away – like previous seasons, but instead will face fixtures against eight different teams, playing half of those matches at home and half of them away.

To determine the eight different opponents, the teams will initially be ranked in four seeding pots. Each team will then be drawn to play two opponents from each of these pots, playing one match against a team from each pot at home, and one away.

So 36 participating teams will be split into four pots based on their individual coefficient ranking with the Champions League titleholder PSG the top seed in Pot 1.

Starting with Pot 1, one physical ball will be drawn before the automated software – already in use last year – draws eight opponents for them.

How does that work?

Two teams are selected from each of the four pots, with one home and one away match against teams from each pot drawn by the software. No teams from the same association can be drawn against each other with teams facing no more than two opponents from the same association. The procedure will be repeated for all teams until all pairings have been drawn.

When will we know the exact dates and times?

The Champions League fixture list with match dates and kick-off times is expected to be communicated no later than Saturday, August 30.

When are the league phase matches?

Matchday 1: 16–18 September 2025

Matchday 2: 30 September–1 October 2025

Matchday 3: 21/22 October 2025

Matchday 4: 4/5 November 2025

Matchday 5: 25/26 November 2025

Matchday 6: 9/10 December 2025

Matchday 7: 20/21 January 2026

Matchday 8: 28 January 2026

When are the knockout games?

Knockout phase play-offs: 17/18 & 24/25 February 2026

Round of 16: 10/11 & 17/18 March 2026

Quarter-finals: 7/8 & 14/15 April 2026

Semi-finals: 28/29 April & 5/6 May 2026

Final: 30 May 2026

Where is the Champions League final being played?

The Puskás Aréna in Budapest, Hungary, will provide the stage for the Champions League final on May 30, 2026. This will be the first time that the final of Europe's elite club competition will be held in Hungary.

How much prize money will clubs make?

We can only base this on the figures from last season at this moment but taking that into account all six Premier League clubs would have made £15.7million just by reaching the league phase.

For every win in the league phase this season, using the last set of figures, clubs get £1.77million and for every draw £590,000. Reaching the play-off round brings a further £843,000 and finishing in the top eight in the league would net a club £1.7million as well as the £9.27million for reaching the round of 16.

Then, according to last season's figures, a quarter-final finish brings £10.53million and the semi-finals £12.64million. If you were to reach the final then the runners-up make £15.59million and the winner £21.07million.

With FIFA's hugely lucrative Club World Cup this summer, it will be interesting to see how UEFA responds with the prize money for the 2025/26 season of the Champions League. Either way, it's a huge boost to finances for the teams involved in it.

Gary Neville and Jamie Carragher have predicted which side will win the Premier League this season. Last season, the pair overlooked Liverpool as potential English champions, with the Manchester United legend backing Arsenal and the former Liverpool defender backing Manchester City.

The duo also predicted the Red Devils and Tottenham Hotspur to secure top-six finishes, yet both teams only managed to end up a handful of places above the drop zone last season. However, Neville correctly predicted each of the three relegated teams, while Carragher suggested Nottingham Forest would go down rather than Ipswich Town.

Much like Arne Slot, Nuno Espírito Santo proved the former Liverpool defender wrong. During Sky Sports' Monday Night Football programme ahead of Everton's clash against Leeds United, the two pundits shared their thoughts on the new season.

Neville backed Arsenal to finally secure the title, while Carragher tipped his former side to retain their championship. Both recognised Man City as serious challengers as well.

"I couldn't separate Arsenal, Manchester City or Liverpool," said Neville, as quoted by Sky Sports. "I think they're absolutely all in with an equal chance of winning it. Arsenal have been consistent over the last three years, they've been second.

"I do feel they'll get there at some point. Liverpool, the two full-backs have got to settle in. They look a little bit open. They are going to be exhilarating to watch. They're going to score a lot of goals.

"City have an unbelievable spine. I went for the team I've been going for the last three years, they're reliable and solid and consistent, which is important. They just have to sort that forward bit of the pitch out, and I think Viktor Gyokeres will."

Carragher said: "What I saw in the Community Shield, I didn't think I'd see on Friday night. I'm sure the manager has been speaking to the players in pre-season [about vulnerability] on the back of the Milan game, the Community Shield, and to see it in three high-profile games that did worry me a little bit.

"But if Liverpool fix that, they have great firepower. A few days ago, I thought Arsenal would be Liverpool's biggest challengers. But the way they played [at Man Utd] was typical Arsenal of last season - the name of the game is winning games - it will be interesting over the next few weeks if we see them open up more, create more chances and see how they've evolved from last season.

"I was really impressed with Manchester City and I think it's Manchester City who might be Liverpool's closest challengers," added the former Liverpool defender. "I think you have to be very careful about getting carried away about one performance.

"Man Utd lost and at no stage in the game did I think Man Utd were going to score a goal. They did play really well, the best I've seen them for a long time, there was pace and energy in the team.

"The players they've bought have got something... but that's a big jump from 15th to fourth. The manager has still got a lot to prove. I don't see Man Utd that high."

Neville, however, placed United ahead of Chelsea in the top four. The Red Devils legend said: "I've done this now for eight years, and I've always had Man Utd in the top four every year! It was a late change but with a bit of science...

"When I watched United against Arsenal, I thought the performance was very good. I think they'll get a goalkeeper and, with those players up front, with no Champions League or Europa League, I think Man Utd will surprise a few people.

"If you perform like that, you'll win a lot of football matches. And I'm not sure Chelsea are going to find it as easy with the Club World Cup, European games, all the demands of that."

Neville backed Leeds, Burnley and Wolves to be relegated, while Carragher tipped Wolves, Sunderland and Burnley to go down. The former United skipper began: "Brentford have been consistent in this league.

"I don't think Burnley will have enough. Daniel Farke and their owner said Leeds are going to sign players, so they could sign two or three and that could change my mind.

"Sunderland - I saw something that was beyond just passion, I saw a physicality, a quality to them, a strength. I thought that was a good performance. Maybe this could be the year for Wolves..."

Carragher chipped in: "It's easy to put the three promoted teams there. I'm desperate for someone to stay up. I don't want to be talking about the three [promoted] teams going down.

"I think Leeds, because of Elland Road, [can stay up]. Am I convinced Wolves are getting relegated? Not really. I think the manager is top. They have lost some big players but the manager is a good manager."

Thomas Frank could tell that Cristian Romero was hoping to be named Tottenham captain and that he will thrive after signing a new contract at the club.

The 27-year-old penned a new Spurs deal until 2029 on Monday after a summer in which Romero was linked with a move to Atletico Madrid before new head coach Frank chose the Argentine to become the club captain in the wake of Son Heung-min's transfer to LAFC after 10 years in north London.

"Of course, extremely happy. He's a very important player for us, just been named captain so that speaks for itself," said Frank. "For me, he's one of the best centre-backs in the Premier League and, to have him locked down long-term, every fan, me, staff, should be extremely happy. It also shows he's committed to the journey we're on and the future and the bits we're building together. Very happy."

The Dane could tell straight away that Romero wanted the extra responsibility of leading the team into a new era at the north London club.

"He will thrive under this captaincy. No doubt it was something he was hoping to be and wanted to be. When you have that approach, normally people take another step up and really want to go to the next level in terms of leadership," he said.

"I have no doubt he will drive the team and players and help in any way he can. There's more responsibility and we also need to remember he's a young leader so he will learn and be even better."

He added: "I always thought he was one of the better centre-backs," he added. "Then you realise that when you get to work with him closely for the past six weeks, you get to know the person a little bit and also clearly his strength and development areas.

"What he can bring on the ball: he's extremely composed, finds the right passes, his aggression in duels and commitment and willingness to win for the team, his defending in the box is extremely good and then he's also a set-piece threat."

The talks between Tottenham and Crystal Palace for Eberechi Eze feature two of the Premier League's toughest negotiators locking horns.

Spurs chairman Daniel Levy and his Eagles counterpart Steve Parish both come with a reputation for not budging an inch when it comes to getting the maximum value for their players and now the two men are heading up the talks in what will be a fascinating aspect of the negotiations as the Lilywhites look to take Eze across London to N17.

The England international wants to join Thomas Frank's side and play Champions League football and Tottenham are attempting to get a deal done while Palace look for replacements in Eze's position for Oliver Glasner, who could also lose Marc Guehi this summer with Liverpool in interested in the centre-back.

Spurs will hope to push a deal through for Eze in time for him to play a part against Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday in the Premier League while Glasner will want the 27-year-old available to play in Palace's first European match on Thursday night as they take on Fredrikstad in the UEFA Conference League.

Our Spurs reporters Alasdair Gold and Rob Guest discussed the talks for Eze as well as Cristian Romero's new contract being a priority and Frank's first match at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium with the Premier League opener against Burnley in the new episode of their podcast Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham.

Tottenham are off the mark in the 2025/26 Premier League season following a 3-0 win over Burnley on the opening day. Richarlison opened the scoring for Spurs with a neat finish on ten minutes after some good work from Mohammed Kudus.

The pair were then to link up 15 minutes after the restart as the Brazilian netted his second of the game with a stunning acrobatic effort from his teammate's cross. Brennan Johnson was to score Tottenham's third of the day six minutes later to secure a 3-0 victory and three points for Thomas Frank in his first league game in charge of the Lilywhites.

The comfortable win has certainly put Tottenham fans in good spirits and all will be hoping to make it two wins from two on Saturday when they visit Manchester City. After finishing 17th in the Premier League table in the 2024/25 campaign, Spurs will be looking to get back to challenging towards the top and secure a European place for next campaign.

So who exactly do their European rivals play in the next five Premier League fixtures? football.london takes a look below:

Tottenham

Tottenham have a big test on Saturday when they travel to the Etihad Stadium to face Manchester City. Entertainment and goals will be guaranteed as ever as the sides have played out some classics in recent seasons.

Bournemouth at home will be tricky and the same goes for the away games at West Ham and Brighton. Tottenham will be expected to collect maximum points against Wolves at the end of September.

Chelsea

Chelsea will be remaining in London for their next three Premier League games as they take on West Ham, Fulham and Brentford. The first Premier League game outside of the capital in the 2025/26 season comes on Saturday, September 20 as they travel to Manchester United in what should be a very interesting game.

The home match against Brighton will be a tough one for the Blues but they will be expected to get maximum points from it given the quality they have in their squad.

Manchester United

Manchester United impressed on the opening weekend of the season against Arsenal and would have come out of the game with a point on another day. Games against Fulham and Burnley present them with a chance to get points on the board.

The Man City and Chelsea fixtures will certainly be tough ones to negotiate before they visit Brentford in late September.

Newcastle United

Newcastle are in desperate need of a new striker and they will be hoping one is in place for the visit of Liverpool. The Magpies do have some winnable games in their next five fixtures but the Liverpool and Arsenal showdowns will be extremely difficult games.

Aston Villa

Aston Villa have the opportunity to get off the mark in their next five games with a kind set of fixtures coming up. Given how Brentford performed at Nottingham Forest on Sunday, Villa will be red-hot favourites to leave west London with all three points.

Villa will also be favourites to win their upcoming home games but the trips to Everton and Sunderland will be far from straightforward for Unai Emery's men.

Nottingham Forest

Nottingham Forest were extremely impressive on the opening weekend of the season as they put three goals past Brentford. Nuno Espirito Santo's men could inflict even more pain on Crystal Palace this weekend if Eberechi Eze is to depart for Tottenham.

Next month's trip to Arsenal is a big one for the team but they will be expected to collect maximum points in the West Ham, Burnley and Sunderland fixtures.

Tottenham must now turn their attention to two big decisions after confirming contract extensions for Cristian Romero and Djed Spence. An agreement for the latter had been in place for some time, but Romero's new four-year deal being announced came as a major shock.

The Argentine was confirmed as Thomas Frank's captain last week, which he described as an "incredible honour", and he marked that by scoring in the UEFA Super Cup final against Paris Saint-Germain. Spurs did go on to lose that clash, however.

Romero had been in the headlines for a significant chunk of the summer with Atletico Madrid keen to sign him. However, interest from the Spanish capital dissipated which actually made the 27-year-old's future even more uncertain as he only had 12 months remaining on his current deal.

With concerns he could leave on a free transfer now gone, Spurs must take full advantage and build the team around their World Cup winning skipper. The likes of Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall and Mikey Moore will be key to the club's future but it is very clear that Tottenham need players for the present.

Eberechi Eze can absolutely be one of those with it looking as though talks to sign him from Crystal Palace are advancing as his replacement has seemingly been identified.

Eagles head coach Oliver Glasner has suggested no deal is imminent by admitting he expects Eze to feature in the Conference League qualifying first leg at home to Norwegian side Fredrikstad.

The Lilywhites will want Eze signed sooner rather than later, but as long as he is part of Frank's squad by Monday, September 1, it does not overly matter. Manchester City's Savinho is also being pursued but he could yet stay at Etihad Stadium especially as it will likely take Spurs a club-record fee to sign him.

With Spence and Romero tied down, there are other players Spurs will likely want to sign new contracts. Rodrigo Bentancur is one of those with it seemingly clear he will be a key member of Frank's squad.

He has under 12 months left remaining on his current deal and therefore it should be a clear priority for fresh terms to be agreed by January to avoid European clubs making pre-contract offers.

The Uruguay international was rested for the weekend win over Burnley after shining as part of a midfield three against PSG with a similar tactical setup likely against Man City this coming Saturday.

Mikey Moore finally made his Rangers debut on Saturday evening after a long wait. Making the loan move to Ibrox at the beginning of the month, the Tottenham youngster was unable to make his Gers bow as he had been waiting for international clearance, which duly arrived last Monday when he turned 18 years of age.

Moore was handed a start by Russell Martin in Saturday's Premier Sports Cup game against Alloa Athletic as the Glasgow-based club beat the League 1 side 4-2. It didn't take the winger too long to make an impact as he got an assist to his name with only 13 minutes on the clock as Nedim Bajrami opened the scoring.

Moore will now be looking to have an even bigger impact on Tuesday evening when Rangers host Club Brugge in the first leg of their Champions League play-off tie. His loan spell in Scotland could be "massive" for his career and also Tottenham as he targets becoming "one of the best players in the world".

"Performing well here to achieve what I want to at Spurs is a huge driving factor for me," said Moore in a press conference after Saturday's win. "I want to go and play in the biggest competitions and I want to hopefully be one of the best players in the world so it's massive for me.

"I've signed a new contract at Spurs but at the minute I'm focused on playing here so I'm just buzzing to go and play some massive games at this football club. I just want to play for this club and to become a better player. I think there are huge opportunities at this club and big games.

"It's a great club so I just want to play as many games as possible, score as many goals as I’m able to and excite as many people as I can."

Moore had already received a taste of Ibrox's famous atmosphere when he had to watch two games from the stands before getting the chance to take to the pitch against Alloa. He unfortunately missed the opportunity to play at Ibrox last season when Tottenham took on Rangers in the Europa League as he was on the sidelines at that time, something which left him "fuming" to miss out on such a unique occasion.

"I wasn't up for that game here last year, no. At the time I was out for a bit so I couldn't come up but I was watching on the TV and I was fuming I couldn't be a part of it," he admitted.

"When the lads came back from here they said it was one of the best atmospheres they'd ever played at. So when I heard about Rangers wanting me that came straight into my mind. I remembered all the good things the boys had said and now I can't wait to play in that sort of atmosphere.

"Tuesday's game is a massive game, as every match is when you play for Rangers. I'm excited for it. I saw some of the club's games in the earlier rounds this season and it's been good to qualify so it's a massive opportunity for me and all the boys. I can't wait to go.

"Last season was a really good season in Europe for me and for the team. I'm thankful to Ange [Postecoglou] for giving me my debut at Tottenham. He helped me a lot but now I'm focused on playing here.

"I've had some good experiences but I'm ready to go and show more. I want to go and make more of an impact on the European stage. I'm ready to play."

Cristian Romero has called Tottenham Hotspur "the best club in the world" after putting pen to paper on a new four-year contract.

The Argentine signed a new deal until 2029 just days after being named as the club's new captain by head coach Thomas Frank following Son Heung-min's exit to LAFC. Now Romero has spoken for the first time about his new contract and why he put his name on the dotted line amid interest from Atletico Madrid this summer.

"I'm very happy here in the club. For me this club is the best in the world. The last two weeks, first becoming captain and now signing the contract with the club. For me, it's a fantastic decision," he said.

"My message to the fans is thank you for your amazing support every day and every match. For me, and it's important also for the team."

Ahead of Saturday's Premier League opening victory against Burnley on Saturday, Romero took his son Valentino on to the pitch as his mascot and admitted that was an important moment for him.

"Going on to the pitch with my son [on Saturday], it's special for me. First time as captain and yeah, it is incredible for me. I love football, I love this club. It's special for me going to the pitch with him," said the World Cup winner.

Romero was the player of the tournament and the final as Spurs won the Europa League last season and he wants more of the same this time around in other competitions.

"After winning the Europa League, it's like a special season now," he said. "In football, sometimes there are good moments, bad moments. The most important thing for me is to stay all together. We want to win. Maybe, why not again this season? Another trophy with the club is important for everyone."