Football London

Tottenham Hotspur could be missing three crucial players for the upcoming showdown with West Ham United. Thomas Frank's side travel to the London Stadium on Saturday afternoon and will be aiming to return to winning ways following the defeat to Bournemouth before the international break.

And they might have to do it without a host of key members of their squad. Playmaker James Maddison remains restricted to the side-lines following his long-term knee injury.

Meanwhile, Sweden international Dejan Kulusevski is not expected to return to action any time soon. The pair join young defender Kota Takai in being ruled out.

And while Radu Dragusin remains out of contention for the clash with West Ham at least, Spurs have - however - received positive news regarding his fitness. The defender has returned to training following his cruciate ligament injury.

It might be some time before he returns to the pitch, but to see him back in training is an encouraging sign. Fellow defender Cristian Romero has also given Frank a boost having returned from international duty unscathed.

He was ruled out of Argentina's second game of the window due to suspension, meaning he was eligible to return earlier than expected. Elsewhere, Yves Bissouma and Dominic Solanke could also be back in the fold for Tottenham following their injury issues.

From the West Ham side of things, Graham Potter has far less headaches when it comes to getting an XI together. The Hammers only have three injury doubts ahead of the game at the time of writing.

German forward Niclas Fullkrug is out due to a calf strain. He is expected to be recovering for a fortnight.

Meanwhile, George Earthy could potentially return to contention after recovering from an ankle problem. Brazilian winger Luis Guilherme is also a doubt having picked up a collarbone issue during pre-season.

West Ham will certainly be keen to have as many players available as possible as Graham Potter's side aim to make it back-to-back Premier League wins. They downed Nottingham Forest 3-0 before the international break to secure their first victory of the campaign.

Spurs, in the meantime, are aiming to return to winning ways following their defeat at the hands of Bournemouth earlier this month.

Following the clash with West Ham, Spurs get their Champions League campaign underway having been drawn to take on Villarreal in their opening game.

Tottenham Hotspur could be about to make another huge decision behind the scenes less than one week on from the shock exit of Daniel Levy as chairman.

In the following six days after that club statement, the reasons for his departure, the possibility of a full takeover, and plans from the Lewis family, who own Tottenham through ENIC, all became trending topics.

Spurs CEO Vinai Venkatesham swiftly addressed the latter two subjects in a lengthy interview posted to club channels where the stance on selling - following a club statement which confirmed two investment approaches were rejected - was again made perfectly clear.

"Yeah, I've seen that very quickly there's been a lot of newspaper articles and a lot of media speculation around takeover, so I can be really clear on this," he said. "So the Lewis family are really clear. They see their involvement in Tottenham Hotspur being long-term and they see their involvement continuing through the generations.

"We made a statement very late last night and a statement I hope was unambiguously clear that Tottenham Hotspur is not for sale."

The possibility of outside investment has been explored in recent years though with Levy stating "the board and its advisors, Rothschild and Co, are in discussions with prospective investors". Following his exit, the advisors employed to assist investment decisions could also be let go.

According to City AM, Tottenham are weighing up whether or not to replace Rothschild as the club’s retained bankers.

The financial institution were brought on board in April 2024 to advise the club on potential external investment. However, that process was halted in its tracks earlier this summer as a cash injection from ENIC was pushed into the club.

It has also been claimed that as an investment process is no longer being conducted, contracts with third-party advisors are being reviewed and Rothschild may well end up being let go.

Levy himself also appears to be in a difficult position over whether or not to sell his 30 per cent shareholding stake in ENIC having already lost £3million through an annual salary and bonuses.

Harry Kane gave an emotional speech in the England dressing room after Tottenham defender Djed Spence made his Three Lions debut against Serbia.

The 25-year-old came on as a late substitute in Tuesday night’s 5-0 World Cup qualifying win over Serbia in Belgrade. Kane opened the scoring for Thomas Tuchel's side before Noni Madueke doubled the lead two minutes later. Ezri Konsa, Marc Guehi and Marcus Rashford scored in the second period to cap off an impressive camp for England.

After the game at Rajko Mitic Stadium, Spence was passed his first ever Three Lions cap by former Tottenham teammate Kane. Visibly emotional, Kane said: "We have a new debut today. I asked to do this, because I saw this player three, four years ago at Tottenham and he had to go through a lot.

"He had to keep his head up. He had to work hard. Now he's an England player so he fully deserves this. I'm a little bit emotional because I know how much it takes to get here and I saw what it was like, and it was tough for you. Credit to you, your family, everyone involved - you deserve this one."

Spence joined Spurs from Middlesbrough in July 2022 but has had to be extremely patient, with Antonio Conte at the time describing the signing as "an investment by the club". Loan spells to Rennes, Leeds United and Genoa followed before Spence eventually broke into the starting XI under Ange Postecoglou last season.

The defender, who can play right-back and left-back, has played every minute of Tottenham's four games so far this campaign and has impressed under Thomas Frank. That form earned him a place in Tuchel's latest England squad and the Englishman described playing for his country as an "honour".

“It was amazing, it has been a long time coming,” he said. “I have dreamed about it all my life since I was a kid so it is amazing. It is an honour. H gave it to me when I was in the dressing room.

“I’m a little bit emotional, the journey I have been on. I’m officially an England player now so I am over the moon. He said I was at Tottenham with him a few years ago and he has seen my growth and he knows how hard it is to get to this level. He is just happy for me.”

With Destiny Udogie returning to fitness, Spence's form means the Italian may have to bide his time to get back into the Tottenham starting line-up. Spurs travel to West Ham on Saturday and you would expect Frank to select Spence at left-back once again.

Tottenham Hotspur have agreed a financial deal to hand themselves a huge cash injection after a chaotic last few months at the club.

Back in May, Spurs ended their 17-year trophy drought by winning the Europa League. Having finished in 17th place in the Premier League, Daniel Levy and Co. made the decision to replace Ange Postecoglou with Thomas Frank.

Just three months on from playing a major role in a significant exit, it was Levy departing - with a bombshell club statement confirming his departure after two-and-a-half decades posted last week. Since then, takeover talk has ramped up with Spurs forced to release another statement revealing they had rejected two approaches.

In between exits for Postecoglou and Levy, Spurs endured a transfer window like no other with Xavi Simons and Mohammed Kudus brought in as the big names, but failed pursuits of Piero Hincapie, Eberechi Eze, Morgan Gibbs-White, Nico Paz and Savinho somewhat overshadowed that.

However, just simply being in the conversation for that calibre of player perhaps showed where ambitions lie with football.london having revealed a cash injection, most likely from the club's majority shareholders ENIC, had been pushed into the club.

And now a second big-money figure looks to be on the way with Bloomberg claiming Spurs have raised £90million through a receivables financing deal with Macquarie Group Ltd.

The club have agreed to give the Australian lender income from future broadcasting rights for a lump sum of money, according to sources. It has also been claimed that the rights are tied to money due to the club from the Premier League from December 2025 to May 2026.

This news arrives after CEO Vinai Venkatesham spoke publicly about the changes at the club which included making the stance of the Lewis family clear amid talk of a full sale.

Speaking as part of a lengthy interview posted to Spurs' official channels, he said: "Well, first and foremost, I know the Lewis family really well. I think it's important for our supporters to know that they're very, very passionate about Tottenham Hotspur and they're ambitious for the club.

"And when I talk about their ambition, what they're really focused on is ensuring that everything that we do across the complete breadth of the club really centres back and is focused on giving our men's team and our women's team the best chance to be successful on the pitch over the long term.

"So that's their laser focus, all around being successful on the pitch. They know, of course, that we operate in a very competitive environment and that there are a number of other teams that have the exact same ambitions we have to compete to win the biggest trophies in the game.

"They're also focused on stability. They know there's been lots of change at the club, and now it's time for some calm and for some stability. Finally they believe and trust in the people that we have working in the organisation."

Daniel Levy sacked 13 different managers during his 24 years as chairman of Tottenham Hotspur and one of the assistant coaches let go has recalled the ruthless way it happened.

Levy stepped down on Thursday in the final part of the Lewis family's plans to restructure the hierarchy at Spurs to ensure more sporting success going forward. The 63-year-old departed with two trophies during his tenure across his near quarter century stint as well as that huge new stadium and state-of-the-art training complex being built under his watch.

He also sacked and hired a lot of managers and coaching staff and one of them, former Tottenham player and then assistant head coach Gus Poyet, has remembered the way Juande Ramos and he were dispensed with back in 2008.

"In less than a year - it was clearly two big different parts. In the beginning, Juande made a massive impact because after four or five months being in there, we won the League Cup. And I remember Daniel really feeling how special, you know, it was for the fans to win a trophy. He was absolutely delighted," said Poyet when speaking to oddspedia.com.

"Then before I started the second season, I think that Daniel Levy supported the coach a lot. He gave him money, money, money and I mean money without going too far. Modric came into the club so it was it was really very good negotiations and a quantity of players coming but in the football side it didn't work. Like I said, it's two parts, completely opposite.

"Getting to the maximum of winning a trophy and not being able to win a football game with a lot of money spent. Me, my relationship was professional, very respectful. We didn't have any issues. From day one to the last, he was very honest with me."

He then added: "It was a little bit strange how we left. I don't know if you know. We were sacked the night before of a game. We were at the hotel. We were ready to sleep and play a game the next day, to manage the game, and we were called down after 10pm to be informed that we were leaving.

"It was quite a strange feeling leaving that hotel at 10.30 at night. Which means he was ruthless, proper, OK? But like I said, super professional. Never a problem, never an issue. Everything was spot on. He respected all the contracts."

The Uruguayan admitted that it was a difficult and unexpected moment in his coaching career which knocked him for six.

"I felt miserable. I felt miserable when I was leaving the hotel with my luggage. I was supposed to be thinking about tomorrow and going home," he said. "It was strange. You know, sometimes if it was Monday morning after a game and you get a phone call from the chairman, you're thinking, oh, oh, oh…Maybe we'll get in the sack.

"But you have a phone call in your room at the hotel, to come down. You're thinking, oh, something happened, maybe the game is called off or maybe something, but you will never expect to get sacked the night before of a game at the hotel. That for sure, that was totally unexpected, even if the results were not good enough. I said it at the time and I'm saying it now. Sometimes you deserve to go. It was totally unexpected at that moment of the day."

Poyet now hopes that the Tottenham fans who have chanted for Levy's departure over the seasons do not regret those words.

"I would say to the fans, I hope what is coming in not worse. Because then maybe you're going to have to start singing Daniel Levy’s name to get him back," he said. "The good thing for the newcomers and the new chairman and the new people in charge is that all the magnificent training ground and a stadium is done.

"So, now, I suppose there is going to be more focus on the team, we'll see. Many, many people spend money, and only one or two win things every year. So, let's see if they can do it."

Former Tottenham Hotspur boss Martin Jol believes that Luka Vuskovic is going to become a better player than current Spurs captain Cristian Romero.

The young Croatian centre-back finally arrived at Spurs this summer after signing from Hajduk Split two years ago. He was not able to move to England until he was 18-years-old which meant loans at Radomiak in Poland and Westerlo in Belgium before making the switch the Premier League club in July.

After a pre-season which brought a goal and assist in the opening friendly against Reading, new head coach Thomas Frank felt Vuskovic would benefit from a loan at a higher level than before and the teenager agreed with a move to Bundesliga side Hamburg, where Jol was once the manager.

In an interview with football.london regarding the departed chairman Daniel Levy, Jol made it clear that he believes Levy's chances of sporting success were undone by recruitment failures, but he does not believe Vuskovic is one of the club's poor purchases over the years.

"[Levy was] commercially unbelievable, but 80% of his time, his recruitment staff were terrible. That is what I think, because people keep on criticising him about not spending money but I think they spent £700million or so over the last four or five years," said the Dutchman.

"The amazing thing is, how can you spend £700million, and there's not one player in this squad who can go to Man City, Arsenal, Chelsea. I mean [Mohammed] Kudus went from Ajax, not to Chelsea, not to Man City, he went to West Ham, and of course he's very talented, but he's not better than [Dejan] Kulusevski, 100% not, but I know him from Ajax very well, he's so talented.

"But I mean, he wouldn't go to Chelsea or Man City or Man United or Liverpool. You see Liverpool, they want it, they buy it. But I mean Richarlison wouldn't go to Arsenal or Chelsea or whatever, all these players. How many players are there in the Spurs team now, who would be bought by one of the big four or five?

"[Cristian] Romero could go anywhere but you feel like if he plays for a while at his top level, he will get injured. Romero is a good, decent defender, but I will tell you one thing, the guy they sent to Hamburg now - Luka Vuskovic - will be better."

That's a big statement with Romero being a World Cup and two-time Copa America winner and having been described by international team-mate Lionel Messi as the best defender in the world

Vuskovic has an old head on young shoulders and admitted after his move to Germany that while his time will come in the Premier League, he is not ready yet.

Tottenham midfielder Pape Matar Sarr has decided to donate his international match bonuses this month to help orphaned children back home in Senegal.

The 22-year-old has made the decision to donate his September bonuses for his two appearances for Senegal to the National Office for the Pupils of the Nation (ONPN), a public institution that supports orphans of the armed forces and other victims who died in service to Senegal.

Sarr will be rounding up the amount he would have earned in bonuses for the games against Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo this month to 5million CFA francs (£6,600) to be donated to the children in his homeland.

"These are children who need our support because they no longer have their parents by their side," said the Spurs midfielder. "I have made a commitment to them and I will do my best to ensure they lack nothing. This is only a small gesture. Others will certainly follow through my foundation. In the meantime, I hope this small gesture can bring relief to some of them."

The Pape Matar Sarr Foundation in Senegal looks to help youngsters in his homeland, pushing for better education, sports and health for future generations and this year signed a partnership with the ONPN. Through his foundation, Sarr has visited orphanages, spoken to government officials to discuss key social and educational development issues and has ensured the distribution of food kits to families in his childhood neighbourhood.

On the pitch, Sarr looks set to have a big season at Tottenham ahead of him under new head coach Thomas Frank with the Dane a big fan of the young player after being impressed by him in pre-season.

When football.london asked Frank this summer which Spurs player had surprised him after working closely with him in training, he said: "Pape Matar Sarr is the standout in terms of, I don’t want to say expectations, but he has impressed me. He has done very well. He had a very good season two years ago and then he had a not as good (season) last year. His ability with the ball, his running power is really good."

Sarr has started all four of Frank's competitive matches so far and scored a long-range goal against Arsenal in Hong Kong during pre-season. It appears that the Senegal international has a top mentality both on and off the pitch.

One of the most fascinating aspects of the past week at Tottenham Hotspur has been the repositioning of the Lewis family as the official power behind the club.

In the decades after ENIC bought a controlling stake in Spurs from Alan Sugar in 2001 there was always an acceptance that Daniel Levy was the man steering the ship but one who would turn to his long-time mentor and one of the UK's richest men, ENIC owner Joe Lewis, when the biggest decisions had to be made.

It was never a publicly-stated thing and Lewis' name was only mentioned in passing on the club website under its ownership details, while the only quotes about him would come from managers and players after they had left. Some would speak about having held Spurs meetings in the Bahamas with the billionaire involved or simply met him on his superyacht. Lewis was the most background of owners you could possibly find.

Then a little while after he ceased to have public control of Spurs in 2022, with a family trust of which he is not a beneficiary taking over, Lewis became more of a public figure due to a court case involving insider trading which eventually ended with him pleading guilty and being fined £4million.

For Tottenham fans over the preceding years, the mysterious Lewis was very rarely seen at the club and became part and parcel of their frustration at the lack of success with Levy and a lack of investment. Banners with both men's faces on them were held aloft at protests with ENIC and Levy seen as synonymous in being responsible for Spurs' mediocrity.

Fast forward to these past few days and all of the above has been torpedoed. Levy is gone after 24 years and now the club has for the first time very publicly pointed towards those with the real power behind everything going on.

"This is a new era for the club under new leadership, completely backed by a majority shareholder, the Lewis family, so we can feel optimistic and ambitious for the future as well," Spurs CEO Vinai Venkatesham said on Monday.

It feels like a clear line has been drawn between the previous era and the one to come, even if the Spurs supporters may only see the names ENIC and Lewis still involved and will need to be convinced otherwise.

"I know the Lewis family really well," continued Venkatesham in the most public of statements about the family. "I think it's important for our supporters to know that they're very, very passionate about Tottenham Hotspur and they're ambitious for the club. And when I talk about their ambition, what they're really focused on is ensuring that everything that we do across the complete breadth of the club really centres back and is focused on giving our men's team and our women's team the best chance to be successful on the pitch over the long term.

"So that's their laser focus, all around being successful on the pitch. They know, of course, that we operate in a very competitive environment and that there are a number of other teams that have the exact same ambitions we have to compete to win the biggest trophies in the game, so we know it's not easy and we know that there's hard work ahead, but that is the focus.

"They're also focused on stability. They know there's been lots of change at the club, and now it's time for some calm and for some stability. And finally they believe and trust in the people that we have working in the organisation. Their model is all about empowering the people we have on the ground to deliver against the ambition they have and of course the ambition that we all share."

Publicly and privately there has been talk of investment, a desire to win and a frustration from inside the family that Tottenham's success on the pitch was not good enough during Levy's reign. The 63-year-old would have made a lot of money for the powers-that-be with his development of Spurs as an organisation and a brand, yet the claim is that the next generation of the already mega-rich Lewis family want more than simply financial gains.

The Spurs fanbase will be watching closely to see what comes next. Those who wanted Levy out will be unsure at this point whether that was only half the job or the main obstacle in their eyes has indeed been removed.

It's worth noting that with Joe Lewis now 88 and with the power resting very much in the hands of his children and grandchildren, there are different voices involved.

football.london reported earlier this summer that Lewis' daughter Vivienne is a regular presence at matches, popular around the club and approachable, known as "Viv". The 62-year-old, formerly a long-time partner of ex-Liverpool player Craig Johnston, was spotted last month sat along from Levy in the opening day Premier League victory against Burnley and at the final game of last season against Brighton.

Vivienne and her 61-year-old brother Charles, who set up ENIC with his father and Levy, are both understood to be the driving force behind the family's plans and the new era at Spurs alongside Nick Beucher, who is married to Vivienne's daughter Joanna. The latter is co-CEO of the Tavistock Group, which owns ENIC, alongside Daniel Levy's son Josh. Vivienne and Charles are both senior managing directors of Tavistock.

When the Levy news broke on Thursday, a source close to the Lewis family told football.london: "Generations of the Lewis family support this special football club and they want what the fans want – more wins more often. This is why you have seen recent changes, new leadership and a fresh approach. In Vinai, Thomas and Peter Charrington, they believe they are backing the right team to deliver on this. This is a new era."

Venkatesham was also willing in his club interview on Monday to go into more detail about the Lewis family members backing the new era.

"There's been a big focus on the club from the next generation of the family and to talk you through the key people, so the first is Viv Lewis, who is a very regular attendee at Tottenham Hotspur games and also frequently joins us on pre-season tour. So she was with us this summer for the whole of our tour to Hong Kong and South Korea," he said.

"And going forward around the club, you'll be seeing a bit more of her brother Charlie and also her son-in-law Nick. And the thing that ties them all together is their passion for Tottenham Hotspur and their ambition for the club moving forward."

It's a world away from the lack of public mention of Joe Lewis over the preceding decades and it's a bold move from the family to position themselves front and centre, even if it's with a view to backing rather than running the club. That will be left in the hands of Venkatesham on a day-to-day basis with help at board level from non-executive chairman Peter Charrington, himself a long-standing advisor to the Lewis family.

The new faces at the top of Tottenham will know they need to break away from the perceptions of the Levy tenure if they are to be seen as something fresh. That will begin with investment into the club, which has previously been relatively marginal from ENIC if you spread it across their 24 years in control, for Spurs have been constructed as a self-sustaining entity by Levy.

The current state of the game has moved on though and Tottenham's rivals in the transfer market were spending almost £300million each in the summer with Liverpool topping £400million. Even with Spurs' record-breaking revenue streams from the stadium and commercial activity, they cannot compete without help from their billionaire owners.

It's why Levy was seeking extra cash from ENIC and also outside investment for a minority stake. However, football.london understands that in this new era the Lewis family are not looking to sell the club in part or in whole.

When Venkatesham when asked about investment in the team, he said: "I need to try and answer your question without leading to a whole load of 'transfer war chest' stories tomorrow.

"I think it is very fair to say that we have firm backing from the Lewis family against our ambitions to be successful on the pitch, both on the men's side and women's side.

"They know that's going to require investment and we have their firm backing, but I would also say like all other 20 Premier League clubs, we also need to make sure that we're also cognizant and aware of the financial fair play rules, and that means we need to continue to grow our revenues.

"We need to continue to develop players both from the academy and young players that we buy. We need to make sure that we're selling players at the right time, and we also need to make sure that every time we're recruiting a player we're making smart decisions both from a sporting and a financial perspective.

"If you don't do that because of how the financial regulations work, you can find yourself in a position where you've got money to spend, but the regulations don't allow you to spend it.

"So I guess to summarise, absolutely there's financial backing against the ambition we have and like every other club in the Premier League, we need to do that in line with the financial fair play rules."

The proof will be in the pudding over the next couple of transfer windows. When it comes to financial fair play, Tottenham do have big revenue streams through the stadium and a Premier League low wage to revenue ratio of just 42%, but they have also been dreadful at selling players at the right time as Venkatesham stated.

Key will be the form ENIC's investment takes, along with the sponsorship deals put in place over the coming months and years, with those naming rights yet to be sold six years after the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium opened.

That could be accelerated as a big financial driver to aid Spurs with the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability rules as long as the money gained exceeds the current brand benefits of having the club's name associated with the huge building in the Tottenham High Road.

It's certainly a very different Tottenham Hotspur on the face of it with fresh leadership at all levels. Only the future will provide the answers as to whether Levy was truly the obstacle or the executor. Spurs fans will be hoping it's the start of something bigger.

Former Newcastle United co-owner Amanda Staveley became emotional after hearing a heartfelt tribute from a Magpies supporters' group regarding her tenure at the club. Staveley played a pivotal role in facilitating the PIF-backed acquisition of Newcastle in 2021, securing a 10% shareholding alongside her husband Mehrdad Ghodoussi.

The 52-year-old became synonymous with the club's transformation during Newcastle's remarkable journey from potential relegation candidates to Champions League qualification within just two seasons under the new ownership.

Staveley and Ghodoussi decided to offload their holdings in July 2024, departing as PIF increased their ownership to 85% whilst the Reuben family expanded their stake to 15%. Upon her exit, Staveley declared her lifelong allegiance to Newcastle and expressed what an 'honour' it had been to serve as co-owner, reports Chronicle Live.

Some 14 months later, Staveley featured on the High Performance Podcast to share her thoughts on her Newcastle experience, where presenter Jake Humphrey delivered a message from a Magpies supporters' group that visibly moved her.

The tribute stated: "We are grateful for the investment, for the progress on the pitch and finally being able to see our club compete again but a football club is more than just a business. It is a community, it is a family and families thrive on communication, warmth and understanding.

"Without wor Mandy leading the charge in that regard Newcastle United risks losing a vital connection with its soul - the loyal, passionate black-and-white army. For the club to rediscover its voice, to reconnect with its fans and to bring back some of that much needed warmth that Amanda Staveley so brilliantly provided."

When Humphrey posed the question to Staveley about her feelings, she struggled to contain her emotions. "That's really hard. God, sorry," Staveley responded. "That is really hard because that is really lovely and that is why I went into Newcastle because the fans are just so incredible and they really are.

"Departing was the most difficult decision I have ever made and required considerable time to comprehend and execute what was best for the club, whilst PIF will prove to be an extraordinary partner for Newcastle, alongside the Reubens.

"We entrusted it to extremely capable hands. There are countless exceptional individuals with generous hearts who dedicate themselves enormously to that club, the community, and everything it represents. So for me it was a privilege. Every day I would go to work and think 'God, I am so lucky to do this job'."

Staveley has this week been connected with a potential acquisition of fellow Premier League outfit Tottenham Hotspur, with the Telegraph reporting that her PCP International Finance consortium was unsuccessful in an attempt to purchase the club following last week's announcement that Daniel Levy had stepped down as Spurs' Executive Chairman.

In a statement released on Sunday evening, Spurs confirmed 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 (i) PCP International Finance... and (ii) a consortium of investors led by Dr. Roger Kennedy and Wing-Fai Ng through Firehawk Holdings Limited".

"The Board of the Club and ENIC confirm that Tottenham Hotspur is not for sale and ENIC has no intention to accept any such offer to acquire its interest in the Club."

Harry Kane believes Daniel Levy was a "fantastic chairman for Tottenham" after the departure of the Premier League's longest-serving club chief.

Levy stepped down from his role as executive chairman on Thursday after 24 years at the top. football.london reported that the Lewis family were looking to modernise the structure of the hierarchy at Spurs with a CEO in Vinai Venkatesham after being disappointed at the lack of success on the pitch in recent decades.

Peter Charrington has taken on the role of non-executive chairman on the board with Venkatesham leading the club on a day-to-day hands-on basis.

Kane, who came through at Tottenham as a youngster and knew only Levy as chairman before leaving for Bayern Munich in 2023, admitted that he was shocked at the announcement of the 63-year-old's departure.

"Obviously it was a bit of a surprise, if I'm honest. I didn't expect it, didn't see that coming," he said while on England duty. "Daniel has been a fantastic chairman for Tottenham in the 20-or-so years he's been there. Considering where the club was and where it is now, I think there's been a big change, not just on the pitch but off the pitch as well.

"At any stage there's always going to be change in clubs, and change in the higher positions. Obviously I don't know too much about why or what happened. All I can say is I wish Daniel all the best in whatever's next for him.

"We obviously built a relationship over the time we had together. I'm sure at some stage we'll catch up. Overall for Tottenham it's a new chapter they're trying to create now."

On leaving the club, Levy had said: "I am incredibly proud of the work I have done together with the executive team and all our employees. We have built this club into a global heavyweight competing at the highest level. More than that, we have built a community.

"I was lucky enough to work with some of the greatest people in this sport, from the team at Lilywhite House and Hotspur Way to all the players and managers over the years.

"I wish to thank all the fans that have supported me over the years. It hasn’t always been an easy journey but significant progress has been made. I will continue to support this club passionately."