Football London

It's a big week for London's football clubs with two cup draws taking place. All eyes are of course on Thursday's draw for the Champions League as Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham wait to discover their league phase opponents in the 2025/26 edition of the competition.

Before that all gets underway at 5pm at the Grimaldi Forum in Monaco, the aforementioned clubs will be in the hat for the Carabao Cup third round draw which is due to be held after Manchester United's game away at Grimsby Town on Wednesday evening. Due to the expansion of UEFA club competition, the third round of the Carabao Cup will once again have a slightly different look about it with the games spread across two weeks.

Scheduling means that teams competing in Europe (apart from Crystal Palace in the UEFA Conference League) will not be able to face each other in the third round. Therefore, two separate bowls will be used for the draw, with the eight European teams in one and the remaining 24 clubs in the other.

A pre-draw will then take place to find out if the European teams are playing home or away. The draw will be conducted live on Sky Sports before the game between Grimsby and Manchester United at Blundell Park.

The first eight ties will then consist of one of the European teams drawn against one of the teams in the other bowl. The remaining eight games will then be drawn from bowl 2 solely.

The third round of the Carabao Cup is due to be played week commencing September 15 and September 22. As Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham will be in Champions League action between September 16-18, they will play their Carabao Cup ties the following week.

So who can London's big guns get in the third round draw and what are the ball numbers? You can find out all the information below:

Arsenal, Chelsea and Tottenham Carabao Cup round three potential opponents

Lincoln City

Doncaster Rovers

Wigan Athletic

Bradford City

Burnley

Port Vale

Wrexham

Barnsley

Sheffield Wednesday

Reading

Brentford

Millwall

Wolves

Swansea City

Wycombe Wanderers

Cardiff City

Cambridge United

Southampton

Crystal Palace

Huddersfield Town

Everton or Mansfield Town

Grimsby Town or Manchester United

Oxford United or Brighton & Hove Albion

Fulham/Bristol City

Ball numbers

Chelsea could be prepared to break their long-standing rule in the transfer market, with the club reportedly open to selling players to Tottenham Hotspur.

The Blues face a busy end to the window, still looking to offload several stars deemed surplus to requirements. They've already collected impressive fees for Carney Chukwuemeka, Renato Veiga and several others this month, but plenty more futures need to be resolved before deadline day.

Nicolas Jackson and Christoper Nkunku are two of the first-team stars that Chelsea are looking to axe before adding to Enzo Maresca’s squad, with RB Leipzig’s Xavi Simons keen on a move to Stamford Bridge. Nkunku has attracted interest from Leipzig and Bayern Munich, with Jackson also reported to be closing in on a loan deal to Bayern.

However, Chelsea are claimed to regard no club off-limits when it comes to selling players, potentially opening the door to doing a deal with Spurs for the first time since 2001. The Daily Mail reports that while Chelsea once refused to do transfer business with their London rivals, that is no longer the case.

The club's preference is not to sell to a competitor, but it is suggested that Chelsea would be open to talks with Tottenham, who have been tentatively linked with Jackson and Nkunku this summer. The same report states that Chelsea value Jackson at £80million while Nkunku is priced at £40m. However, it remains to be seen whether clubs will be willing to meet their respective asking prices.

The last player Chelsea sold directly to Spurs was Gus Poyet, who joined Tottenham for around £2.2m in 2001. He won the Cup Winners’ Cup, UEFA Super Cup and FA Cup during his four years at Stamford Bridge before ending his career with a three-year stint at Spurs.

Former goalkeeper Carlo Cudicini joined Spurs in January 2009, but was allowed to move as a free agent after spending close to a decade at Chelsea, negating the need for the clubs to engage in direct business. Frode Grodas and Jason Cundy are the only other Chelsea players to have been sold to Spurs in the Premier League era. In terms of moving in the opposite direction, Chelsea have not bought a Spurs player since signing Micky Hazard in 1985.

Despite their previous reluctance to help Spurs, the Blues sold both Noni Madueke and Kepa Arrizabalaga to fellow rival Arsenal this summer, having sanctioned similar moves for Raheem Sterling and Kai Havertz in recent years. Fulham have also seen the likes of Armando Broja and Ruben Loftus-Cheek arrive on loan from Stamford Bridge in the past.

Back in the present day, Jackson has reportedly reached an agreement over a loan move to Bayern, according to German outlet BILD. The striker has fallen down the pecking order following the signings of Liam Delap and Joao Pedro, with Aston Villa and Newcastle United previously credited with interest in the forward.

Nkunku is also expected to leave the club this summer, given the arrivals of Jamie Gittens and Estevao in forward positions, combined with Chelsea’s interest in Simons and Manchester United’s Alejandro Garnacho. The 27-year-old made 48 appearances for Maresca’s side last term and the manager recently provided an update on Nkunku and Jackson’s situations.

"Christo is with us like Nico, but it’s the same answer as Nico,” Maresca explained. “We'll see if they're going to be here. It's always better if they find a solution, as they are going to be more happy - and the club the same.

"But you need someone that is going to buy you. It's not so easy." Meanwhile, Chelsea are also seeking destinations for Raheem Sterling, Ben Chilwell, Axel Disasi, David Datro Fofana and Alfie Gilchrist. All these players spent time away on loan last season, but Chelsea are claimed to largely favour permanent exits.

Arsenal are continuing discussions with both Bayer Leverkusen and Porto over moves for Piero Hincapie and Jakub Kiwior respectively, football.london understands. However, there is still plenty to be done between the three parties for agreements to be found despite claims of initial agreements.

The Gunners are keen to get maximum value for a player in Kiwior, who earned his place in the starting XI at the end of last season. He helped the Gunners navigate a 5-1 win over Real Madrid and reached the Champions League semi-final. There has been no shortage of interest in the Pole throughout the summer, and only after a move appeared as though it would materialise did Arsenal respond.

Kiwior remains under contract for another three seasons with the club. Signed from Spezia for around €20million (£17.6million) plus add-ons in January 2023, the club feel as though the player has improved and gained in value.

Discussions centre around a potential loan move with an obligation to buy that would see a profit returned in terms of a total fee. After the seven signings so far this summer, there is pressure from the UEFA Financial Fair Play restrictions to continue to work comfortably within them sustainably, as the club always aims to do.

The accelerated move for Eberechi Eze, promoted in part by Kai Havertz's injury, has tightened those restrictions. Therefore, the Gunners knew there was pressure to move players on, and any further signings would be challenging.

Hence why discussions with Leverkusen over the signing of Piero Hincapie, a deal the player is keen to see completed football.london understands, also centres initially around a loan that would become permanent next summer. This would help to spread the costs while still benefiting from an immediate addition.

Hincapie is seen not simply as a replacement for Kiwior, who can play left centre-half and left-back, but as a player who could become a potential starter and rival the existing talent in the squad. Riccardo Calafiori, Oleksandr Zinchenko, Jurrien Timber and Gabriel Magalhaes, who have all featured either at left centre-half or left-back, have suffered with considerable fitness challenges during their time.

Kiwior was a reliable part of the group and performed strongly when called upon, never suffering from an injury while with the team. The Ecuador international has an equally impressive track record of availability, a trait always sought after by the club.

He has been on Arsenal's radar for several seasons, in addition to Andrea Berta's while with Atletico Madrid. It could be the pair's combination could finally make it happen but as the clock ticks down to Monday's deadline, there is a lot of work still to do to make both moves happen.

Tottenham have five days to complete their summer transfer business to hand new boss Thomas Frank the best possible squad to compete at the top of the Premier League.

Spurs have started the season well - one of only three teams in the Premier League to have a 100% record from their opening three matches.

After beating Burnley 3-0 on the opening day of the season at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, Frank's side followed that up with an impressive 2-0 victory at the Etihad Stadium, beating Manchester City.

They are one of only two sides in the league not to have conceded a goal yet this season. Keeping Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero fit will be key to that defensive solidity continuing.

While Frank does want to sign another centre-back, a No.10 is more important given injuries to Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison.

Spurs have failed with moves for both Morgan Gibbs-White and Eberechi Eze this summer already and need to get their plans in place to sign an alternative before the window shuts on Monday, September 1.

An experienced Premier League payer would be ideal, given last summer's spend on young talent and here football.london takes a look at who they could sign from other Premier League sides as experienced options.

Arsenal

Spurs are unlikely to do business with their north London rivals for anyone, let alone the player in their No.10 role - club captain Martin Odegaard.

The less said about the other recently signed player who can play in the ten the better.

Aston Villa

Morgan Rogers is a name that has been linked with Spurs, although football.london understands there is no interest in the Villa man at this stage.

Emiliano Buendia wears the No.10 shirt, but struggles to get into Villa's team let alone Spurs'.

Bournemouth

Marcus Tavernier can play in there for the Cherries, while David Brooks wears the No.10 shirt for the south coast club.

It's unlikely Spurs would be interested in either payer to fill the void.

Brentford

Could Frank return to his old club to swoop for a player?

Mikkel Damsgaard is the man in possession of the No.10 role at the Gtech Community Stadium and came on leaps and bounds under Frank in west London.

Brighton & Hove Albion

Matt O'Riley is the one who has started the season as the Seagulls' No.10. He only joined the club from Celtic last summer and has not played an awful lot following an injury last season, and has also been linked with a move to Serie A this year.

Burnley

The Clarets have a number of options in the middle of the park, with Hannibal Mejbri able to play in the 10 or out wide. Then there's Josh Culen and Josh Laurent too.

It would be a surprise to see Spurs go after any of them, though.

Chelsea

Cole Palmer anyone? Like that's ever going to happen.

The Englishman has done wonders at Stamford Bridge so far and will not be sold to Tottenham.

Crystal Palace

Spurs wanted Eze and failed to get him. Palace are now in the market for a replacement and Selhurst Park is not the place to go for Spurs to find a No.10 now.

Everton

The Toffees have just signed Jack Grealish on loan from Manchester City to pay this very role.

The fact Spurs, who have long been linked with a move for Grealish, were not involved in any talks, speaks volumes.

Fulham

Emile Smith Rowe is the preferred option for Fulham in the No.10 position when he is not injured.

His Arsenal connection makes a move unlikely and he may not have the consistency to be right for the role anyway.

Leeds

The Whites haven't really played with a ten as such in their opening two fixtures and it's hard to see Tottenham being interested in the likes of Ilia Gruev, Jack Harrison or Ao Tanaka.

Liverpool

Florian Wirtz has been signed this summer to fulfil this role for the Reds.

But if you look further into the squad there is an option for Spurs in Harvey Elliott. Has played in the No.10 for England Under-21s and shone during the European Championships this summer.

Manchester City

Rayan Cherki has been handed the No.10 shirt and scored on his debut against Wolves on the opening day of the season.

It can be hard to see who exactly plays in the 10 position under Pep Guardiola, but there is one player who sits on the bench a lot who would definitely be of interest that is hugely out of Spurs' reach - Phil Foden.

It would be a surprise approach, for sure, but given what Spurs need, it looks like they're going for the wrong City star in Savinho.

Manchester United

Tottenham wanted to sign Bruno Fernandes when he was at Sporting, but could not get the deal done.

Away from the Portuguese though, there is Kobbie Mainoo. his best position is in the eight, but he wants out of United and he is hugely talented, of that there is no doubt.

Newcastle

Anthony Gordon has been playing up front in the absence of Alexander Isak, but he would be the ideal name for the Magpies in the No10.

And, given Liverpool have been linked with him, it would not be a shock to see Spurs make a move. It would be a surprise for Newcastle to sanction it, however.

Nottingham Forest

Let's not go there, shall we?

Sunderland

Another promoted club who don't necessarily play with a No.10 in their starting lineup. There is not much for Spurs to look at here.

West Ham

Here's a name that stands out - Lucas Paqueta. he's been quite the signing for the Hammers and has been regularly linked with an exit.

Having already sold Mohammed Kudus to Tottenham, the West Ham fans would be livid to see Paqueta leave for north London too!

Wolves

Jean-Ricner Bellegarde would be the obvious choice here, but, given his age, it would be a surprise to see Spurs make a move.

Joao Gomes also plays in the midfield, while Fabio Silva could fulfil the role, but neither would appear to be on Tottenham's radar.

Tottenham Hotspur's PSR (Profit and Sustainability Rules) position could give the club headroom to spend big in future transfer windows.

Spurs' qualification for this season's Champions League via winning the Europa League last season should provide them with at least £60 million.

It's a welcome boost with Tottenham, who have spent some €146m (£126m) this summer bringing in the likes of Mathys Tel, Kevin Danso, Mohammed Kudus, Luka Vuskovic, Kota Takai and the loan of Joao Palhinha, which incurs a loan fee.

Reach PLC's business of football writer Dave Powell understands the headroom the club has could well push past the £350m mark for the current PSR cycle.

While that suggests that it should be 'open wallet time' at Spurs, the big thing is making sure that the club can cashflow new additions and improving their player trading in terms of outgoings, with that being one of the areas where many of their rivals outperform them.

And former financial advisor to Manchester City Stefan Borson has also offered his verdict on outlook on Tottenham's situation regarding PSR and financial fair play compliance.

“I think when Spurs get to the situation they’re in now, where their wage to revenue percentage right now on a run rate for the season must be even below 40 per cent," he told Football Insider.

“They’ve got probably ten Champions League games between now and the end of January because it’s very unlikely that they’re going to finish below 24th in that table, so they’re probably going to have at least the play-off and possibly the round of 16 game.

“So, that’s ten games in the Champions League. The squad is not built for that right now, and so I do expect that they will spend serious money between now and the end of the window.

“It’s not going to be that straightforward to find who those players are if it’s not Savinho. Who are the big players that they’re going to target to get them a squad that they’re happy with, having missed out on Eze and Gibbs-White? I don’t know.

“I still think it’s most likely that you’ve got £150-200m of spend and very significant wage commitment over the next five years.

"Otherwise, it might be financially quite a nice situation for Daniel Levy for this season in terms of presenting his numbers, but the fans would be very unhappy. Moreover, I just think the squad is going to be too thin for the season.”

Thomas Frank's Tottenham squad could potentially be boosted heading into Saturday's Premier League encounter against Bournemouth. Fresh from winning their first two games of the 2025/26 season, Spurs have the chance to leapfrog Arsenal, who are in action against Liverpool 24 hours later, and move to the summit of the league table.

Things are looking very good for Tottenham right now and there is a possibility Destiny Udogie could be back in the matchday squad for the first time since the team's opening pre-season friendly of the summer against Reading. The Italian has not featured since then due to a knee injury sustained in the warm-up the following week when they played Luton Town at Kenilworth Road.

Udogie subsequently missed the pre-season tour of Asia, the Super Cup final against Paris Saint-Germain and then the team's first two league games of the new term. Speaking in his pre-match press conference ahead of last weekend's Manchester City match, Frank provided a fresh update on the 22-year-old and stated that the match had just come too soon for the left-back.

"Destiny is better. He's trained with the team twice, full trainings, and also other trainings. Just too short to be involved for City," revealed the head coach. "We want him to train tomorrow and have another good week next week as well, but he's in a good place. Looks very positive about him."

The hope will be that Udogie is named in the 20-man matchday squad against Bournemouth and then ideally takes to the pitch at some point during the contest. As he only has very few minutes to his name this summer, it is going to be about building up the player's fitness levels to then put him in a position to really kick on after the international break.

Udogie was an undroppable in his first season as a Tottenham player after excelling under Ange Postecoglou having finally returned from his Udinese loan spell. That was very much the case in the first half of last season before a hamstring injury picked up at the turn of the year left him facing a spell on the sidelines and his Premier League minutes after that were managed with the team's full focus on winning the Europa League.

After a rare start against Southampton in December where he showcased that he can be an important player for the club, Djed Spence was a near ever-present after that and played the full 90 minutes in 18 of the team's following 22 league fixtures. Not only did Spence mainly play at left-back and excel in Udogie's absence, he also featured in his natural right-back role on a handful of occasions with Pedro Porro not in the team.

Spence has gone from a Tottenham outcast to a possible contender for the England squad in very little time and it came as no surprise to see him put pen-to-paper on a fresh contract at the club recently. The 25-year-old has impressed in his first couple of outings under Frank and now there is no guarantee that Udogie is assured of a place in the Spurs XI upon his return from injury.

That is only a good thing for Frank and Tottenham, though. Spurs want to be in a position where their undroppables are seriously pushed for a place in the team as that will only strengthen the side in the process. Serious competition is also needed due to the amount of games the team are going to have on the calendar this year as a result of their qualification for the Champions League.

Udogie's upcoming return is only a good thing for Tottenham but he may no longer be an undroppable as was the case in his first two seasons in N17.

Tottenham will be actively pursuing two new signings in the final week of the summer transfer window. Thomas Frank has only been able to welcome one new - and marquee - addition in Mohammed Kudus with Joao Palhinha joining on loan, Mathys Tel returning on a permanent basis and Kota Takai very much signed for the future.

Attempts to further bolster his squad have been made, and rather publicly at that, with failed moves for Morgan Gibbs-White and Eberechi Eze clouding what has been an excellent start to the Premier League season by Spurs.

After beating newly-promoted Burnley on the opening day, Frank's men then put in a terrific performance to beat Manchester City at the Etihad Stadium. A dream scenario would have been Tottenham leaving with more than just the three points - as City's wide forward Savinho is being formally targeted by the Lilywhites.

A switch to north London is currently being blocked however, and it remains to be seen if he will be allowed to make the move. Despite Pape Sarr's blistering start to the season, a new No.10 is also required with West Ham United's Lucas Paqueta the latest name to emerge of interest.

With all of that being said, football.london has rounded up all the latest updates on the duo as Tottenham aim to strike late in the summer window.

Paqueta contact and potential Spurs boost

According to Fabrizio Romano, Tottenham have made some fresh calls to understand the situation surrounding Paqueta. West Ham may be reluctant to do business with rivals, again, but Paqueta could force through a move.

Following on from links arriving, very old photos emerged of the Brazil international wearing a Spurs shirt.

West Ham celebrations

Paqueta scored his second goal of the season in West Ham's 3-2 Carabao Cup defeat to Wolves at Molineux on Tuesday night. After celebrating with his teammates, Paqueta passionately roared into the away end while asking for more noise.

Just four days earlier, he netted a superb strike in the 5-1 defeat to Chelsea with replays showing him firmly tapping the West Ham badge on his shirt.

Based on that and, even with West Ham's current struggles, it looks unlikely he would actively push for a move.

£60m Savinho decision and Man City impact

Tottenham are still at the table for Man City's Savinho, as per Romano. He has also stated that Spurs hope to sign him before deadline day, but that it will depend on Man City signing Rodrygo from Real Madrid.

Just a few days earlier, it was confirmed that Spurs were prepared to offer above £60.1million (€70m) for Savinho.

Real Madrid decision key

Rodrygo has appeared destined to exit the Spanish capital since June with Xabi Alonso preferring other options.

The 24-year-old remaining an unused substitute for their La Liga opener against Osasuna then furthered the likelihood of that scenario. However, reassuring comments from Alonso regarding his future and a first start in seven games under the Spaniard over the weekend may have changed things.

He was taken off after just 63 minutes against Real Oviedo, but the Brazil international may yet still have a role at Real which - in turn - likely impacts Man City, Savinho and Spurs.

Time is running out for Tottenham to salvage a transfer window that has not provided an appropriate squad for Thomas Frank to compete in all four competitions.

The Dane admitted to football.london ahead of the 2-0 win at Manchester City that his squad now was "similar" in terms of numbers to the one he had inherited before the window opened because while Mohammed Kudus and Joao Palhinha have been added as new faces, so Son Heung-min has been sold to LAFC and James Maddison will miss most of the coming season with an anterior cruciate ligament injury suffered in pre-season.

Spurs want to add a number 10, winger and a central defender before the window closes on Monday evening and Manchester City's Savinho is a target for the north London club but the problem lies with Pep Guardiola's side not being able to replace the Brazilian this late in the window. It begs the question of course why Tottenham have left it so late in yet another transfer window.

Other players linked in the wake of Tottenham's Eberechi Eze snub have been Monaco's Maghnes Akliouche, West Ham's Lucas Paqueta and Como star Nico Paz, although the latter is not expected to leave the Serie A club and is likely to return to Real Madrid next summer.

Our Spurs reporters Alasdair Gold and Rob Guest spoke about all of the latest transfers news surrounding the club as well as the impressive victory for Frank's team at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday afternoon in the latest episode of their podcast Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham.

There were mixed fortunes for Tottenham's big group of loan players as they continue their development away from the north London club.

Spurs have sent out 11 young players across the Football League, Scottish Premiership and also one to South America with more set to follow them before the transfer window closes next week. Tottenham head coach Thomas Frank ran the rule over all of the youngsters within his squad over the summer and now many of them are out and about getting first team exposure at various levels of the game.

Some have a bright future at Spurs, some are trying to prove that they should have one while others are simply putting themselves in the shop window for a future move.

Here's how Tottenham's loan army got on at their respective clubs this week.

Alejo Veliz (Rosario Central)

Alejo Veliz continues to get minutes aplenty back in his happy place of Rosario Central. The 21-year-old always would take the chance to return to his Argentinean club during any spare time he had while at Spurs or on his various loan spells and now he is back in the colours of the side where he has made 69 appearances and scored 20 times.

At the weekend the big striker played the full 90 minutes as Rosario won 1-0 at home in their big derby against Newell's Old Boys and it continued a run of six consecutive starts since he came home. Veliz netted last week in the 1-1 draw against Deportivo Riestra with a powerful header from a deep cross.

This loan marks a far more successful period for Veliz after a couple of spells in La Liga which brought mostly moments from the bench.

After the derby win, Veliz posted on Instagram: "Rosario is from CENTRAL. How nice to live these unforgettable moments, eternal thanks @rosariocentral. This is the way, together for everything."

Mikey Moore (Rangers)

Mikey Moore has come to a Rangers side in a big spot of turmoil as they struggle under new boss Russell Martin. For a team that is expected to win all the time domestically, the Glasgow giants have drawn all three games so far in the Scottish Premiership 1-1 and were played off the pitch for much of their 3-1 home defeat to Club Brugge in their Champions League qualifying round first leg tie.

Moore has played in the past three games after having to wait for his 18th birthday to get his international clearance. He grabbed an assist on his debut in the league cup win against Alloa, and then came on for the final 20 minutes of the Champions League tie.

On Sunday, the teenager was brought on at half-time with Rangers 1-0 down at St Mirren and played his part in the visitors at least taking a point from a match they got plenty of criticism for. In most of the player ratings dished out by local media, Moore was handed either a six or a five for his second half showing.

Alfie Dorrington (Aberdeen)

Alfie Dorrington played the first half of Aberdeen's Europa League play-off first leg against Romanian side FCSB, formerly known as Steaua Bucuresti, which ended in a 2-2 draw.

The Dons defended poorly in the first half and even though he was not involved in the visitors' first half goal, the 20-year-old was sacrificed at the break as part of a triple substitution only for the poor defending to continue one minute after the restart when his replacement Mats Knoester was involved in a mix-up that led to a second goal for FCSB.

Aberdeen did get their act together with two goals in the final half an hour to give them something to go into the second leg with on Thursday night.

Dorrington had no match at the weekend as Aberdeen exercised their right to postpone their Scottish Premiership match against Dundee United as it fell between the two play-off legs.

Will Lankshear (Oxford United)

Will Lankshear got another 68 minutes under his belt as Oxford lost 1-0 at Birmingham in the Championship on Saturday.

The Oxford Mail handed Lankshear a six in their player ratings with some praise for his efforts in their review: "Battled hard to hold up the ball and feed off the scraps that came his way against two robust centre halves."

The 20-year-old striker had got on the scoresheet last week with a low volley early in United's 3-2 defeat at Hull City and Oxford are still waiting for their first points of the new season.

Alfie Devine (Preston North End)

Alfie Devine helped Preston continue their strong start to the Championship season with 73 minutes in the midfield as Preston won 1-0 at home against Ipswich.

The 21-year-old was handed a 6.5 in the Lancashire Post's player ratings with the review: "Lively again and some driving runs. Final pass occasionally eluded him."

Devine had netted an excellent goal for North End last week in their 2-1 win against Leicester after rounding the keeper and sending home a curling shot from a tight angle to open his account for his new club.

Yang Min-hyeok (Portsmouth)

Yang Min-hyeok had to watch on once again from the bench on Saturday as Portsmouth drew 1-1 at West Brom in the Championship.

The 19-year-old South Korean has played just 23 minutes in the league so far and has been an unused sub in the past couple of games in the competition.

Yang will be hoping to get a chance to show what he can do as Portsmouth host Devine's Preston this Saturday at Fratton Park.

Ashley Phillips & Jamie Donley (Stoke City)

Both Jamie Donley and Ashley Phillips also had to watch on from the bench as 10-man Stoke City held on for a 2-1 win at Southampton.

The Potters' good form this season with three wins from their opening three games has meant the two Spurs loan stars have had to take whatever limited chances they have been given by boss Mark Robins. With a long season ahead they both will know that opportunities will still come and Donley in particular had this same scenario at Leyton Orient last season before becoming a star in their play-off run.

That could come on Tuesday night with a Carabao Cup second round clash against Bradford at the bet365 Stadium.

George Abbott (Wycombe Wanderers)

George Abbott got taken off at half-time with Wycombe 2-1 down at the break thanks to two goals just before the interval from Reading. The hosts grabbed a share of the spoils though with an 89th minute leveller from James Tilley.

Football League World had given Abbott a six in their player ratings before his exit from the action. The 20-year-old midfielder had played 77 minutes in midweek in the 1-0 home defeat to Exeter City.

He will be hoping for more minutes on Tuesday night as Wycombe travel to Bromley in the Carabao Cup second round.

Damola Ajayi (Doncaster Rovers)

Damola Ajayi was another who had to watch on from the bench as Doncaster won 1-0 at Port Vale in League One.

The 19-year-old winger will be hoping to play in Tuesday night's Carabao Cup second round clash at Accrington after scoring his first goal for Doncaster in the previous round with a deflected low finish in the 4-0 win at Championship side Middlesbrough.

Tyrese Hall (Notts County)

Tyrese Hall got another 29 minutes to his name in League Two as Notts County drew 2-2 at home with Bromley on Saturday.

The 19-year-old midfielder is taking his first steps into the senior game and has come off the bench in four of County's five games so far this season.

It looks like it will once again be another mad rush for Tottenham in what remains of the transfer window. We are now into the final week of the summer market and Thomas Frank is crying out for new signings in a couple of important positions.

Transfer outgoings also need to take place to ensure that the Spurs boss has the perfect squad to contend with Premier League, Champions League, FA Cup and Carabao Cup football in the 2025/26 season. It has been a summer transfer window to forget for Tottenham after seeing high-profile moves for Morgan Gibbs-White and Eberechi Eze fall apart.

It is imperative that Johan Lange finishes the final week of the window on a positive note by concluding a number of deals for Frank. So what do Spurs have left to do before Monday's 7pm deadline? football.london takes a look below.

New No.10

Tottenham are in desperate need of a new No.10 after losing out on the signatures of both Gibbs-White and Eze. Frank's team are so light in the position right now due to Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison's injuries that have left them in the treatment room for a considerable period of time.

Nico Paz, Bilal El Khannouss, Morgan Rogers and Maghnes Akliouche have been in the headlines regarding a transfer to Tottenham. Spurs have to ensure that they get a new No.10 in through the door as a priority or else it could really hurt them with the amount of games on the calendar between now and January.

Savinho or alternative winger

The final week of the transfer window will see Savinho's future resolved one way or another. The Man City winger has been linked with a switch to Tottenham of late and football.london understands the north London club remain intent on trying to sign the Brazilian.

Savinho is said to be keen on a move to the capital but it will all depend on Tottenham submitting a large bid that City deem acceptable. If they cannot come to terms on a deal with Pep Guardiola's team then they will have to shift their attention elsewhere for another winger.

Senior centre-back

Tottenham require a new centre-back in what remains of the transfer window to ensure Frank has sufficient cover at the back. However, a new No.10 and winger are higher up on the transfer priority list right now.

The Spurs boss does switch to a back three at times and it's important that he has another senior option at his disposal amid Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven's injury issues last season and Radu Dragusin working his way back to fitness from an ACL injury.

Dane Scarlett

Dane Scarlett is still waiting to secure a move away from Tottenham as we approach the final few days of the transfer window. The striker was not included in the squad for the pre-season tour of Asia to explore a loan move away but one has not come to fruition just yet.

The player needs to be playing week in, week out and all will be hoping that a deal can be agreed on very soon.

Luka Vuskovic

Luka Vuskovic has been part of the Tottenham matchday squad for all three games so far this season but he is still waiting to make his first competitive appearance for the Lilywhites. A temporary move does look likely before Monday's transfer deadline as he is expected to depart on loan.

Hamburg have been heavily linked with the Croat and a switch to the Bundesliga team would see him link up with his brother at the club. After excelling for Radomiak Radom and Westerlo previously, another spell of regular first-team football is needed to aid Vuskovic's development.

Bryan Gil

Bryan Gil clearly does not have a future at Tottenham having missed out on a squad number for the new season. The Spaniard is currently working his way back to fitness from a knee injury and that could potentially impact a possible move given it's not clear yet when he will be fit to return to the pitch.

Yves Bissouma

Yves Bissouma could possibly be in the headlines over the next few days due to his contract situation at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. The Mali international is now in the final year of his Spurs deal and the club really need to sell him this window to ensure his value does not drop too much.

Tottenham are looking to move on the ex-Brighton & Hove Albion player, who was recently disciplined by Frank and left out of the squad for the PSG game due to poor timekeeping.

Manor Solomon

Manor Solomon is now back in training after injury stopped him from getting a chance to impress Frank earlier in the summer. The Israeli wowed for Leeds United in the Championship last season and a move remains likely for the winger.

Solomon is already down the Tottenham pecking order and he will drop a further place if a new winger comes in before the deadline.