Football London

One Tottenham youngster is getting plenty of attention this summer and looks set to depart from the north London club amid the interest

Tottenham midfielder Alfie Devine looks set to have a big decision to make this summer amid what could turn into a transfer tug of war for his services.

The 21-year-old has enjoyed a memorable season out on loan with eight goals and eight assists in the centre of the park from 48 appearances for Preston North End. He earned plaudits aplenty for his performances across the season and football.london understands that Devine currently has eight clubs interested in taking him permanently from Spurs.

Before taking Devine on loan last summer, Preston agreed an option with Tottenham to buy the England U20 midfielder in a deal worth around £6million. That figure is more than twice their transfer record but the youngster has impressed so much that the Lancashire club, who finished 14th in the Championship last season, have reportedly triggered the option with payments in instalments.

That means Preston will now be able to hold talks with Devine but football.london understands they face plenty of competition for his services with Scottish champions Celtic showing interest in the player as well as a number of clubs at the top end of the Championship with Premier League ambitions, including relegated Wolverhampton Wanderers.

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Despite Devine only having 12 months left on his contract in north London, Spurs may well look for a bigger fee from other interested clubs than the one agreed with Preston after the midfielder dazzled with his displays this season.

A future at Tottenham looks unlikely for Devine unless new head coach Roberto De Zerbi gets the chance to take a look at the player in more than a month's time when pre-season starts. However, a deal for the midfielder's exit could be sealed before that point.

Devine is the north London club's youngest ever goalscorer after his FA Cup strike in 2021 as 16-year-old against Marine, but two appearances in that competition are the only occasions in which he has pulled on a Spurs shirt in senior competitive matches. Instead he has been sent out on loans over the years to Port Vale, Plymouth, Belgian side Westerlo and then Preston last season.

With the large number of midfielders in Tottenham's squad and more potentially arriving this summer, Devine's future looks set to lie elsewhere despite high hopes for how good he can become.

Tottenham will be looking to bolster Roberto De Zerbi's attacking options in the summer transfer window after narrowly escaping relegation

Roberto De Zerbi admitted he plans to create his "dream" Tottenham team this summer as they look to end their participation in relegation battles.

The north London side secured their Premier League status in their 1-0 win over Everton last Sunday as they condemned West Ham to playing in the Championship next season. The Italian head coach earned three wins in his first seven games in charge with Spurs now looking to return to the top half of the table - at the very least.

De Zerbi was quick to announce his plans to reconstruct the squad after their win against the Toffees. He said he will keep a core group of 12 players with considerable "change" needed this summer.

He said: "From tonight, we have to start to organise and to build a new team. I think we have now to change too many players. We have 10, 11, 12 players good enough to stay. Good enough. Like players. Especially like people. And then we have to complete the squad with the first level of players."

He added: "My target is to start the pre-season with the team I have in my dream." Among the changes Spurs must make, their wiltering attack would be a good place to start. The attacking trio of Richarlison, Mathys Tel and Randal Kolo Muani managed just 15 league goals between them this season.

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One player that De Zerbi is reportedly chasing is Manchester City winger Savinho, per the Daily Mail. The Brazilian was subject to bids made by Spurs last summer but Pep Guardiola kept him at the Etihad Stadium after failing to find an adequate replacement.

The 22-year-old scored just one league goal this season but could give Spurs a new lease of life on the right-wing given the injury issues of Dejan Kulusevski and Mohammed Kudus. Savinho was willing to make the move to north London last year and could remain interested in the transfer given his lack of minutes at City.

City are reportedly holding out for £60million for the forward - double what they paid Girona for his services in 2024 - as it remains to be seen whether Spurs fork out the staggering figure despite the flashes of brilliance he's shown at times in Manchester.

Another possible attacking arrival could be that of Crysencio Summerville. The West Ham star suffered the second Premier League relegation of his career - following Leeds' drop in 2023 - but enjoyed a purple pitch in front of goal earlier in the season where he scored in four league games in a row.

According to Voetbal International, De Zerbi is keen on signing the Dutchman, who Gazetta dello Sport say carries a £35m price tag. The 24-year-old's speed, dribbling ability and coolness in front of goal gives Spurs a threat on the flanks they've severely lacked this campaign.

The signings of Savinho and Summerville will certainly freshen up Spurs' wing options and with James Maddison back to full fitness, the 29-year-old will aim to regain his playmaker status after missing almost the entirety of the season due to injury.

However, the number nine position remains a huge problem for De Zerbi with Dominic Solanke managing just three league goals this season in an injury-hit campaign.

Richarlison ended the season as the club's top scorer with 12 goals across all competitions but with one year left on his contract, AS reported that the Brazilian is set to leave. After four years with the club, his possible absence leaves quite the gap at the top end of the pitch.

With no European football to offer potential incomings, Spurs' scope for new forwards will be lessened but could contend in the race to sign AC Milan striker Santiago Gimenez. According to reports in Mexico, via Sport Witness, the 25-year-old is open to leaving Italy after going scoreless in 16 league games.

The Mexico international is an unknown quantity when it comes to English football but given his current value of £15m, as per transfermarkt, he could prove to be a shrewd pick-up by De Zerbi as back-up to Solanke.

Richarlison and Erling Haaland both send brutal Arsenal digs after their Champions League final defeat

Tottenham Hotspur forward Richarlison and Manchester City star Erling Haaland fired brutal social media digs after Gabriel Magalhaes' penalty miss in the Champions League final, just minutes after the Arsenal defender skied his spot-kick.

Gabriel was inconsolable after his miss handed Paris Saint-Germain their second consecutive Champions League title. Arsenal players and PSG skipper Marquinhos instantly looked to console the central defender, who wept as Luis Enrique's side celebrated.

Gabriel was not the only Arsenal player to miss a spot kick, as Eberechi Eze also failed to hit the target with his effort. However, considering Richarlison and Gabriel's history with each other, it was clear the Spurs ace was mocking his fellow countryman, as was Haaland.

The defender was still being hugged by his team-mates as Richarlison uploaded a video of a young child laughing hysterically onto his Instagram story in a clear dig at the Arsenal ace.

Haaland also took to social media and uploaded a picture of himself and some friends all smiling into the camera. The Manchester City ace has had numerous digs at the Gunners, including his infamous "stay humble" snipe at Mikel Arteta and his side-eye glance at the camera after City beat Arsenal 2-1 at the Etihad Stadium this year.

However, the social media feud between Richarlison and Gabriel is less subtle. The pair have been sniping at each other on social media since last summer, when Tottenham beat Arsenal in a pre-season friendly in Asia.

The Spurs striker tagged Gabriel's Instagram account and uploaded a picture of himself holding a man of the match award. The Arsenal defender then responded by uploading a picture of the three man of the match awards he has picked up against Tottenham.

When the Gunners beat Tottenham 4-1 earlier in the campaign, Gabriel, despite not featuring in the match, posted a picture of Eze's player of the match gong, as well as his own October Player of the Month award.

When Arsenal secured another 4-1 victory over Tottenham, Gabriel sent another dig at Richarlison. He uploaded a picture of himself holding a hand of cards with the four of hearts visibly on display, a reference to the number of goals scored and the fact Arsenal have picked up four wins at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Both Haaland and Richarlison have waited months to get their own back and they did so at Gabriel's lowest moment. The defender was devastated after he watched his penalty sail over the bar.

Tottenham defender Luka Vuskovic is returning to Spurs this summer following the conclusion of his loan spell with Hamburger SV

Luka Vuskovic has revealed his Tottenham future will not be decided until after the World Cup.

The highly-rated central defender is set to feature at this summer's tournament with Croatia as rumours continue to swirl.

A number of top European clubs are said to be interested in the 19-year-old but for now, he's focused on his country.

He told Croatian media: "Well, honestly, I don't know anything yet. I haven't talked to any clubs or agents, so I'm just focused on the World Cup now, and after the World Cup, whatever happens, I think every option is a good path for me, so I don't need to think too much about anything."

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In a separate interview with Nova TV, Vuskovic also appeared to rule out a second loan to Hamburger SV and also had his say on Roberto De Zerbi, who he could work under in N17.

He said: “Playing with my brother at HSV would be a dream and a dream come true for me, but it’s hardly possible. I don’t know what else to say except - impossible.

“I think he’s [De Zerbi] a top-class coach. He likes attacking football, he likes build-up play, and I really like that. I hope we’ll work well together in the future.”

Vuskovic excelled in Germany, earning a spot in the Bundesliga Team of the Season after scoring six times for Hamburg.

Tottenham are stacked with centre-backs though as they are also poised to seal the signing of Marcos Senesi on a free transfer from Bournemouth.

They also have Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Kevin Danso, Radu Dragusin, Kota Takai and Ashley Phillips on their books.

De Zerbi is expected to be backed heavily in the summer transfer market too, meaning there will be scope for reinvestment.

Romero's future is in doubt even though he only signed a new long-term contract last summer.

Meanwhile, Micky van de Ven has also been linked with the likes of Manchester United and Liverpool in recent months but there's hope he can be convinced to stay as he has thrived in a leadership role under De Zerbi.

It's time for the latest episode of Talking Tottenham as our Spurs reporters Alasdair Gold and Ryan Taylor discuss the latest news at the club

Roberto De Zerbi's Tottenham transfer revolution is expected to kick off with the double arrival of Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi.

The defensive duo are out of contract next month and will leave Liverpool and Bournemouth respectively with Spurs looking set to bring them in to increase the experience and quality in De Zerbi's squad. Left-back Robertson has won everything possible with Liverpool while centre-back Senesi was named the Cherries' player of the season after their fine campaign and sixth-placed finish in the Premier League.

It is set to be a busy summer around the World Cup after De Zerbi made it very clear on Sunday after the victory that kept Tottenham in the top flight that only half of his squad are fit for purpose.

"From tonight we have to start to organise and build a new team. I don't think we have now to change too many players. We have 10, 11, 12 players good enough to stay. Good enough. Like players, especially like people, and then we have to complete the squad with the first level of players," he said.

"First level of players because we suffered too much. I suffered a lot but I think the fans, the club, the board, the players. They suffered too much. We are Tottenham and we can't suffer like this until the last second of the last game to stay up.

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"And I will be stronger. I don't want to decide alone because football is a group - sporting director, scouting, CEO - but my target now is finished to stay up. My target is to start the pre-season with the team I have in my dream."

Our Tottenham correspondents Alasdair Gold and Ryan Taylor discussed the expected arrival of Robertson and Senesi as well as what else will happen in the transfer window at the north London club this season in the latest episode of their podcast Talking Tottenham.

The north London club are set to benefit financially from their players going to the World Cup this summer thanks to an increased pot of FIFA money

Tottenham are set to benefit from a FIFA pot of £263.6million for those clubs supplying players to the World Cup.

FIFA bumped up the fund in their Club Benefits Programme and announced in 2023 that it would now cover 1,009 matches, not only across the tournament in the USA, Canada and Mexico this summer but also the World Cup qualifiers and the play-off tournament that preceded it.

FIFA president Gianni Infantino announced last year: "The enhanced edition of the FIFA Club Benefits Programme for the FIFA World Cup 2026 is going a step further by recognising financially the huge contribution that so many clubs and their players around the world make to the staging of both the qualifiers and the final tournament.

"A record USD 355million will be distributed via the CBP to clubs for the release of their players, and this reinforces our solid collaboration with the European Club Association and clubs worldwide as we all look forward to a groundbreaking and globally inclusive edition of the FIFA World Cup next year."

For the World Cup itself, clubs will be paid per day for each of their players involved - they don't have to play in the games either - beginning from the date that they are released for international duty - reportedly 10 days before their tournament begins - up until their final match in the competition.

The daily rate is yet to be announced by FIFA but for the 2022 World Cup in Qatar it was 10,950 dollars (£8,131) so we'll use that figure for now.

Let's offer up Micky van de Ven as an example for Spurs. The Dutchman's first game is against Japan on June 14 in Dallas and let's say the centre-back was released for international duty on June 4. The Netherlands' final group stage game is on June 25 against Tunisia.

That means, using the finances from the last World Cup, Tottenham will get £170,751 for Van de Ven's time with his international squad in the group stage. If the Netherlands were to get all the way to the World Cup final on July 19 in New York, then the north London club would get £365,895 for Van de Ven's participation along the way.

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That's also not including the World Cup qualifier appearance money from FIFA from throughout the season as part of the new regulations.

Currently Spurs have not only Van de Ven but also Cristian Romero, Lucas Bergvall, Pedro Porro, Rodrigo Bentancur, Djed Spence and Pape Matar Sarr at the tournament, along with Luka Vuskovic, who has been on loan at Hamburg this season. So there is potential for Tottenham to earn back millions for Roberto De Zerbi's players as they hope they impress, go far in the tournament and even more importantly from a club perspective, do not pick up any injuries.

There is one more thing that impacts on those finances, but just for one of the players. FIFA share the money not only to the player's current club but also any club that player has represented in the two prior years to the tournament. That means for Vuskovic, the money will be split between Hajduk Split and likely his loan clubs of recent seasons Hamburg and Westerlo as well as Tottenham.

Everyone else in the Spurs contingent at the World Cup should bring home their full share for the coffers in N17. Every little helps.

The club faces a new threat to their long-standing plans to build a new academy complex for their women's players at Whitewebbs Park

Tottenham's proposals to build an academy training complex for their women's team in Whitewebbs Park face a new opponent in the recently-elected leader of Enfield Council.

The council voted to approved Spurs' plans last year to turn a disused former golf course near their Hotspur Way home into a new women's and girls' football complex, with 11 football pitches and a training centre on 16 hectares of land, the restoration of the parkland for the public on another 23 hectares and the remaining 12 hectares being preserved as woodland.

However, those plans stalled with a high court judicial review granted amid opposition to the proposals and claims that mistakes had been made in the council's process. That is yet to be heard and comes on the back of a failed litigation in 2024 that challenged the council's decision to hand Spurs a 25-year lease for the grounds.

That lease is yet to be signed over and Tottenham have a new obstacle in their way as the recently-elected leader of Enfield Council Alessandro Georgiou signalled his intention this week to block the plans.

At the annual council meeting on Wednesday, Georgiou, the leader of the new minority Conservative administration, confirmed that he would refuse to sign the lease over to the north London club so as to preserve Whitewebbs "for the enjoyment of future generations".

The council had received 788 objections to the original plans back in 2022, including from some councillors. Those objections included concerns ranging from reduced public access, loss of wildlife habitats and a lack of consultation.

There was also a famous objector to the plans earlier this year in Oscar-winning acting legend Dame Judi Dench. The 91-year-old wrote for the Campaign to Protect Rural England in a press release, saying: "Staggeringly, 10% of public land in Britain has been lost since 1979. Whitewebbs Park in Enfield is one of the public parks currently under threat."

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She added: "Spurs' plans to develop the park involve cutting down 207 trees, including veteran and mature trees, and taking over most of the park for their elite private use.

"It is absolutely essential for us to protect these trees and people’s access to nature. CPRE London is assisting the fight to save Whitewebbs and other sites currently under threat and it is clear to me that it is more important than ever to protect our parks and green spaces, before it’s too late."

Spurs also plan to create a Sports Turf Academy, providing employment and training opportunities for sports turf, greenkeeping, horticultural and mechanical staff. They proposed to redevelop a southern clubhouse from the old golf course into a new cafe and toilets for park visitors along with other facilities and opportunities for community and educational activities.

Former Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy had said back in 2021 as part of the proposal: "As with our existing training centre, close attention to detail will be paid to ensuring the site’s natural environmental habitat is maintained and enhanced and that all design is to the very highest standards.

"Our proposals will enhance public access, improve opportunities for recreational and community use and build on the fantastic work that has been delivered by our Foundation in Enfield over the past decade.

"The new Women and Girls’ Football Academy will enable us to continue developing the game at grass roots level and to improve participation in the sport. It would be the first of its kind in the UK and it would be in Enfield – an inspirational setting."

Five years on though and Tottenham's plans still look a long way from being realised.

The Tottenham attacker made his international debut before getting his chance for the north London club as a decision is awaited on what comes next

Roberto De Zerbi will make the final decision on Mason Melia's next move this summer after the youngster made his senior Republic of Ireland debut before making his Tottenham one.

The 18-year-old striker arrived through the doors at Spurs in January with a back injury and that and a subsequent chest infection delayed his debut for Spurs' U21s until last month. Melia has trained with the first team since but is yet to be involved in a matchday squad for the north London outfit.

However, that did not prevent the teenager from earning his first Republic of Ireland senior appearance on Thursday night under Heimir Hallgrimsson as he came on to the pitch in the 89th minute of the 1-0 friendly victory against Qatar at the Aviva Stadium in Dublin.

Melia fittingly came on for Troy Parrott, who was in Spurs' academy and played a handful of games for the club before starring in the Netherlands with AZ Alkmaar.

Tottenham had agreed a deal for Melia with St Patrick's Athletic last year for his transfer worth an initial £1.6million - a record figure for the League of Ireland - with the potential for future add-ons to double it. He was handed a long contract until 2031 as they saw off other top clubs across the game to sign a player considered one of the brightest young talents in Irish football, having already played 98 senior games for St Pat's with 25 goals and eight assists.

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What comes next for Melia after Friday night's friendly in Canada will be determined by De Zerbi. Spurs are expected to sign a new forward this summer with Richarlison being linked with a move out of the club as his contract reaches its final year.

De Zerbi has made it clearly publicly that he rates Dominic Solanke highly, despite his injury-ravaged season, and there is also 21-year-old forward Will Lankshear, who hit 12 goals for relegated Championship side Oxford United on loan last season and has been tipped for big things.

That could all point towards Melia getting a loan move next season to ensure his development does not stagnate within under-21s football. That decision though will be made by De Zerbi during pre-season in just over a month's time as he runs the rule over the teenage striker.

Tottenham appear to be closing in on the signing of the Liverpool centre-back as a free arrival this summer and it's a move that makes sense

Andy Robertson looks set to swap the surroundings of Liverpool for north London and Tottenham and it's a move that makes a lot of sense for Roberto De Zerbi and Destiny Udogie.

The 32-year-old's time at Anfield comes to a close at the end of next month and he is expected to finally make the move to Spurs after being unable to see through the switch in January. The two clubs had agreed a deal for the left-back in the winter on the proviso that Liverpool could recall Kostas Tsimikas from his loan at Roma, but that was not possible and the Scotland captain remained with Arne Slot's side.

Now with late interest from Juventus reportedly seen off, De Zerbi is said to have given the green light to the move at the second attempt, with Thomas Frank having been in charge when Spurs first approached Liverpool.

While Robertson, who captain Scotland at the World Cup this summer, is now in his thirties, it's a transfer that makes a lot of sense for Tottenham.

With the veteran Ben Davies reaching the end of his contract and potentially moving on for regular football this summer, there is a hole in the squad at left-back with Djed Spence utilised there for much of this campaign when Davies or Destiny Udogie were out injured.

Spurs are desperately in need of a mentality change within their dressing room, with vocal winners and leaders required. Robertson ticks both boxes and will bring that desire to be better.

The Scotland skipper won everything possible at Liverpool. He has claimed two Premier League titles, one Champions League - beating Tottenham in the process not that anyone needs reminding, one Club World Cup, one UEFA Super Cup, one FA Cup, two League Cups and the Community Shield if you want to throw that in as well.

The Glaswegian has also been one hell of a left-back in the Premier League and in Europe and even when people felt he was heading off in January and was out of favour, he ended up starting most of the remaining games of the season for Slot.

In the end, Robertson made 378 appearances for Liverpool and registered 83 goal involvements, with 69 assists and netting 14 times himself, a very decent total for a full-back.

Bear in mind that Tottenham have two young left-backs currently in 23-year-old Destiny Udogie and 19-year-old Souza and you can't really find a much better mentor and player to learn from for them than the decorated Scot.

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Think back to Ledley King at Spurs and the one player who the former captain cites as being someone who shaped his career as a young centre-back was Noureddine Naybet.

Tottenham signed the 34-year-old Moroccan from Deportivo La Coruna in 2004 and while he only really played through one full season in north London, the La Liga and Copa del Rey winner taught the young King huge amounts when it came to reading the game and simply being a central defender in a flat back four.

Both Udogie and Souza, if the young Brazilian is not loaned out or before he goes, can learn similarly large lessons from Robertson in the season ahead.

Udogie, for example, does not contribute enough at the other end of the pitch with just two goals and five assists from his 94 appearances in a Spurs shirt. He registered more than double those numbers in 23 fewer games at Udinese before arriving at Tottenham in 2023, having spent a loan season back in Udine.

Udogie also should have played more matches than he has over those three years in N17 but muscle injuries have held the Italy international back and he will share the duties with Robertson if the Scot does put pen to paper as expected. That will place less pressure on the Italian to play as many minutes in games but will also challenge him to up his level or end up sitting and watching the new man get most of the action in a season without European football and as many midweek matches.

Robertson is also robust and, other than a shoulder injury at the end of 2023, has missed a handful of games across the rest of his career. Tottenham are looking to ensure they sign more players who will be able to handle the rigours of De Zerbi's energetic and powerful football.

Spurs need a major overhaul this summer to help De Zerbi create the dream squad he wants to turn the club around. Bringing in Robertson so quickly after the season ends, along with Bournemouth's player of the season Marcos Senesi, on free transfers injects a huge dose of quality, experience and mentorship into the team and leaves the big transfer money to be spent further up the pitch.

The Tottenham Hotspur attacker has been out of action for more than a year and now more information about the injury has come to light

Sweden's national team doctor has gone into detail about Dejan Kulusevski injury and the "troublesome" nature of it but has high hopes that the Tottenham star will return to football.

The 26-year-old suffered a patella injury in his right knee after a challenge from then Crystal Palace centre-back Marc Guehi in May 2025. The Swede underwent surgery and a later clean-up procedure this year as he suffered setbacks in his attempts to come back to training at Hotspur Way during this season as he felt discomfort in his knee.

Kulusevski made it clear that he would be fit for the World Cup but found out, on the year anniversary of his injury, that Graham Potter had not selected him in his squad for the tournament across the Atlantic this summer. The attacker returned from his rehabilitation abroad last weekend to be on the sidelines for Tottenham's 1-0 win against Everton under Roberto De Zerbi which saved the club's Premier League status.

Now Sweden's national team doctor Jonas Werner has been speaking at a press conference ahead of the World Cup and said that he has been in continuous contact with Kulusevski and Tottenham's medical team.

"It's been a long story with Dejan. He's done everything he can to get ready, but when it came to deciding [if he would make the squad] he wasn't," said Werner.

"The reason is that he hasn't played football in a year, but even the medical assessments made this spring have pointed in the direction that he wouldn't be ready."

Werner went into more depth about the problem that Kulusevski faces with his knee.

"Cartilage injuries, like in Dejan's case, are troublesome. They are difficult to treat. Plus, he has it in a place that gets a lot of stress. The injury simply hasn't healed enough to handle that stress," he explained.

When asked if the Spurs man will be able to come back and play football again, the doctor said: "I have high hopes for that and I really hope so."

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This week Kulusevski posted a collection of images on Instagram, including him working in the gym, with the message: "If you were God and could dream any life you wanted, you’d begin with the most ecstatic adventures. But eventually, you’d crave surprise. You’d crave uncertainty. You’d dream the dream of not knowing what happens next — and that is the dream you’re living right now.

"Not the year I expected, but I keep fighting every day and holding on to the moment I get to do what I love most again."

Sweden boss Potter had previously appeared to suggest his hope that Kulusevski could be back in action in time for Tottenham's return to Premier League action in August when naming his World Cup squad.

"I think we have to think about what is right for the team, that's important but also Dejan is in a place where he has had a long fight and he is making progress," the former Chelsea and Brighton coach said earlier this month.

"I think it's important now that this time he can really focus on getting himself ready for the start of the season. Dejan is at a stage where his rehab is so important and he has made some progress.

"I think the aim for him would be to start the next season with Tottenham, hit the ground running and to get back on the pitch and do the thing he loves. I think we have to be careful about that and ultimately that is the priority for him."