The Irish Times

It has, you’ll have noticed, been a difficult old season for Spurs, the threat of relegation looming large. At times like this, especially in the closing stages of an agonisingly awful campaign, supporters need all the pick-me-ups they can muster. And fair dues to Spurs, they have provided one for their faithful – they have launched a “marketing collaboration” with Peppa Pig.

Baseball caps, bucket hats, scarves and schoolbags festooned with Spurs’ crest and Peppa Pig characters, you can buy them all in the club shop, perhaps the most common reaction to the announcement from supporters: “Is this for real?”

But, as has been pointed out, Spurs have won every single one of their games (two) since signing Peppa. You can insert your own gags here about their transfer work.

A goalkeeper, an own goal and awkward questions in Panama

Panamanian goalkeeper José Calderón has had 16 clubs in just over 20 years, so there’s a bit of wanderlust about the fella. And there’s a very reasonable chance that he’ll be on the move again after an unfortunate incident at the end of a recent game for his latest club, Sporting San Miguelito.

Let’s just say, his own goal, which gave Alianza FC a 3-2 victory, was rather unusual, not least because he diverted the ball into his own net with his chest. The upshot is that the Panamanian Football League have launched an investigation into the incident, with accusations of match-fixing swirling in the air.

Calderón apologised for the goal, but insisted that it was “a strictly sporting error of an involuntary nature”.

“I categorically reject any attempt to link this play to conduct contrary to the integrity of the sport. I reserve the right to pursue the appropriate legal actions against any person who seeks to damage my honour and reputation.”

Who was he referring to? Well, it might possibly have been his team-mate Gustavo Herrera who took to social media after the game and somewhat hinted at his disappointment in his colleague.

“I’m naming names: José Calderón is a damn match-fixer ... a highly experienced player who once represented the country involved in this crap. Those who are tarnishing the sport should step aside and dedicate themselves to something else, and have the guts to admit what they’re doing.”

You’d guess Herrera won’t be providing a character reference to the investigative team.

Quote of the Week

“How s**t must you be, we’ve just scored a goal.” – Chelsea fans serenading the Liverpool faithful after they scored just their second goal in seven games at Anfield on Saturday.

Number: 70,000,000

That’s how many people have (allegedly) signed an online petition calling for Real Madrid to get rid of Kylian Mbappé. The way things are going there, you’d guess he contributed 69,000,000 of the signatures himself.

World of Mouth

“Sometimes I think football is taken too seriously. The news says: Iran did this, the Israelis did that, and by the way, Lennart Karl injured his muscle. All that’s missing is for that to be in first place.” – Bayern Munich honorary president Uli Hoeness suggesting a little bit of perspective is required when talking football matters.

“If people from Queens and Brooklyn and all of the people that love Donald Trump can’t go, I would be disappointed.” – Yes, Donald Trump expressing some concern about the price of World Cup tickets.

“If somebody buys a ticket for the final for $2 million, I will personally bring them a hot dog and a Coke.” – A chuckling Fifa president Gianni Infantino. Give us strength.

“I said after 35 minutes, Uefa must intervene. They need to call London: get both teams off the pitch and let the final be between Bayern Munich and Paris Saint-Germain.” – How much did Wesley Sneijder enjoy that Champions League game between Arsenal and Atletico Madrid? Not a lot.

“Arteta deserves a statue – he simply doesn’t have any top players.” – Sneijder again, this time stopping short of lauding Arsenal’s quality.

“It looked like we were still in our nice hotel for the first five minutes. The start of the game was atrocious. Some of them have got to go, it’s been embarrassing.” – Apart from that, Wolves gaffer Rob Edwards was happy with his players after their 3-0 defeat by Brighton.

The new Tottenham Hotspur head coach, Roberto De Zerbi, has issued an apology for his past comments on Mason Greenwood and said he would never intentionally downplay violence against women.

The Tottenham Hotspur Supporters’ Trust (THST) strongly criticised the Italian’s appointment on Tuesday, releasing a statement that expressed “serious and far-reaching concerns” soon after he was confirmed to have signed a five-year deal in replacing the interim manager Igor Tudor.

De Zerbi also faced opposition from the fan groups Proud Lilywhites, Women of the Lane and Spurs Reach, with the THST’s statement calling on the club and the 46-year-old to publicly reassert their “commitment to the values that fans hold dear – chief among them equality, respect and integrity”.

De Zerbi responded in his first interview with the club’s in-house media on Thursday, stating that he wanted to answer in Italian “because I want to be clear”. “I have never wanted to downplay the issue of violence against women or violence against anyone more broadly,” he said.

“In my life, I have always stood up for those who are more vulnerable, more fragile. I’ve consistently fought and taken a stand to be on the side of those who are most at risk. Those of you who know me well, will know that I am not the kind of person who makes compromises to win more games or to win an extra title.

“I am sorry if I offended anyone’s feeling with this subject matter – I have a daughter and I’m very sensitive to these things, and I always have been. I hope that over time people will get to know me better and will understand that, at that moment, I didn’t mean to take a stance.”

Greenwood was charged in 2022 with attempted rape, controlling and coercive behaviour and assault occasioning actual bodily harm. The Crown Prosecution Service discontinued the case in February 2023 after key witnesses withdrew their involvement and “new material came to light”.

The player had denied the charges. Greenwood, the former Manchester United forward, joined Marseille on a permanent deal in 2024 when De Zerbi was in charge of the French club. The head coach described the former England forward as a “good person” and said that “it saddens me what happened to him because I know a very different person from the one portrayed in England”.

Spurs are believed to have carefully considered the comments concerning Greenwood with De Zerbi during negotiations before deciding to appoint him. It is understood that there is no break clause in the former Brighton manager’s contract if Tottenham are relegated for the first time since 1977 and De Zerbi – who has more than a week to prepare for his first game at Sunderland next Sunday – said he is committed for the long term.

“I signed five years of contract because, for me, it is a big challenge and I will be the coach of Tottenham next season, no matter what,” he said. “It’s a difficult moment for everyone at Tottenham but I think we have the right qualities to come out of this moment. I believe in the players. I think we have to remember who we are and who the players are, because we have very big players and we have to work on their confidence and qualities.” – Guardian

When Atletico Madrid’s fourth went in after 22 minutes, it seemed prudent to reach for the bookshelves. Just what is Tottenham Hotspur’s record defeat?

It turns out it was surprisingly recent – 1995. Tottenham were 4-0 down by minute 37. It was also in a European game, in Cologne.

But any similarities with Madrid on Tuesday end quickly. This was July 1995, pre-season, and the competition was the Intertoto Cup. Spurs wanted so little to do with it, manager Gerry Francis did not even attend. Chris Hughton took a ‘Tottenham XI’ consisting of youth team players and others drafted in on short-term contracts such as Alan Pardew. FC Koln took it rather more seriously – Toni Polster played – and won 8-0.

The bible of English football, Rothmans Football Yearbook, did not even register the match, but the result has entered the club’s history as its worst-ever loss. Tuesday night in the Champions League knockout phase is of different importance altogether.

Prior to the 1995 Intertoto Cup, the records state Spurs’ worst afternoon on a football pitch came, again, relatively recently. In 1978, they lost 7-0 in a First Division (top flight) match away to Liverpool. Terry McDermott’s finish from Steve Heighway’s cross, which made it 7-0, is considered among the greatest Anfield goals.

On Sunday, Anfield is where Tottenham’s wounded, demoralised squad and their unsteady interim coach, Igor Tudor, go next.

Spurs do not do well at Liverpool – they have not won there since 2011 and conceded five there last April, when Ange Postecoglou was in charge. At that stage, Tottenham had won one of their previous seven league games. It became one in eight and as attention focused ever more on the Europa League and the Champions League prize of winning it, Spurs’ league season ended with one win in 12. The victory was against relegated Southampton.

Spurs won only 11 league games last season and lost 22. They finished fourth-bottom. It’s worth recalling.

You might think here are too many statistics, yet there are others. As Tudor absorbs them, he could point out the house of Tottenham Hotspur has been on fire for some time and he has been asked to quell it with a water pistol. Tudor could remind everyone, for example, of Tottenham 2-7 Bayern Munich under Mauricio Pochettino in the Champions League in 2019, or the alarming fact Spurs have not won a Premier League game in 2026. Sunday is the Ides of March. Soon it will be April.

It seems Tudor will be left to walk alone into Anfield, while Tottenham defender upon Tottenham defender disappears into the treatment room. Even this riddle of a Liverpool team should have enough to breeze past broken Spurs.

Inevitably, the camera will pan to the man in the away dugout as if Tudor is responsible for the 65 league goals Tottenham conceded last season at a rate of 1.7 per game; and the 46 so far this season, at a rate of 1.6. He is not, but professional football’s capacity to blame one man for an institution’s failings is as unceasing as it is laughable.

Tudor did not buy a single player at Tottenham, nor did he sell Brennan Johnson in January. Tudor did not appoint Postecoglou or Thomas Frank. Crucially, he did not appoint Igor Tudor.

He is not culpable on the lengthy injury-list, which sees difference-makers such as Mohammed Kudus and Dejan Kulusevski missing. Maybe his two permanent predecessors could be asked if they feel their training – too intense, not intense enough – had anything to do with that. Tudor is also not responsible for an attitude among some Spurs players mixing arrogance, complacency and escalating panic.

This is Tudor’s inheritance, a dismal situation caused by the decisions of others. But it is his role to address it all.

He made an error on Tuesday in Madrid in trusting stand-in goalkeeper Antonin Kinsky. Presumably Tudor was considering Anfield and next Sunday’s almighty relegation match against Nottingham Forest. It is likely Guglielmo Vicario will start both of those games.

Tudor said as much on Monday when he stressed the priority of Premier League survival. He will have thought Kinsky sufficiently reliable to step in, but that notion slid away like Kinsky’s footing and Tudor removed him after only 17 minutes. It was understandable – nothing dissolves a gameplan like a faulty keeper – but he should have consoled Kinsky publicly.

Tudor also should have played 4-5-1, or something akin, in order to grind out a draw or a narrow defeat. It would have been good practice for Anfield.

Unnervingly for Spurs fans, though, is that Tudor has a Ruben Amorim-like attraction to 3-4-3 even if he surely must have noticed how much opponents like this Tottenham formation. In Tudor’s four games – four losses – Spurs have conceded two against Fulham, three against Crystal Palace, four against Arsenal and five against Atletico.

A nil-nil at Liverpool would, in the circumstances, be greeted like the return of a lost relative.

It feels far-fetched, however. What seems plausible is that Tudor will be given Anfield, then removed so someone else can try to galvanise the squad for the crucial home game against Forest. Even at this distance, it is the match that must not be lost.

But this version of Tottenham Hotspur could lose any game. It is bewildering to those inside and outside the club how it has unravelled. Less than a year ago, Spurs won a European trophy, albeit after a dreadful final, and the prestige and finance that came with Champions League qualification.

November 2023 is not that long ago either. Tottenham began the month top of the table, having won eight and drawn two of Postecoglou’s first 10 league games. Players such as Vicario, Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven, Pedro Porro, Pape Sarr and Richarlison were all prominent – in a positive way.

But all those players were involved in Madrid and all is now negative. Postecoglou is gone, so too successor Frank and escaping a hammering in the second leg against Atletico is high on the Spurs agenda. It is a measure of how bad things are that a Champions League tie can be regarded as a nuisance before the serious stuff – a relegation battle against Forest – can be prepared for.

Last August, Spurs-Forest in March will have been considered to be of potential European consequence. Now, it is of Championship relevance. The possibility Tottenham could be hosting Lincoln City next season in a league game, for the first time since 1949, is real.

Strategically, financially, emotionally, it could all get worse for Tottenham. Relegation would smack like a wrecking ball and there is no guarantee recovery would be immediate.

If Arsenal do go on to win the Premier League title then Declan Rice should probably win Player of the Year. If it’s Manchester City, then it will be hard to look past Erling Haaland.

Haaland, though, will probably finish out the season without experiencing the misery Rice must have suffered in the middle part of this north London derby on Sunday.

In the build-up to the game, Rice had done an interview with Sky where he spoke of his admiration for Steven Gerrard. Rather trying to specialise in any one area of midfield play, Rice aims to become the best all-round midfielder in the game, as Gerrard was for a few years.

Yet in this high-pressure derby, Rice looked to have re-enacted Gerrard’s worst moment. When Eberechi Eze lashed in Arsenal’s first against Tottenham, the Arsenal players formed a joyful huddle, which was quickly taken over by Rice, who appeared keen to make sure his team-mates’ minds were quickly back on the job.

In the last two league matches, against Brentford and Wolves, Arsenal had conceded within minutes of scoring. This was the theme of the impromptu team-talk Rice now delivered, re-emphasising the message by pointing repeatedly to his temples are he urged the Arsenal players to focus. “This does not slip!” as someone once said.

Fate callously decreed that Rice would give away the equaliser within 24 seconds of the restart, his poorly judged attempt to dribble in the right-back position gifting the ball to Randal Kolo Muani who ran into the box and slammed it past David Raya.

When Gerrard’s slip let Demba Ba in to score towards the end of that 2014 title race, he spent the rest of the match trying to redeem his mistake with a series of wild shots from increasingly outlandish positions.

Rice is nearly seven years younger than Gerrard was that day, but his reaction to his own error was more mature. He focused on the simple stuff, winning his battles, dominating the centre and trusting his team-mates to come up with the goals Arsenal needed.

Two of those goals came from an unexpected source. Viktor Gyökeres’ first season in the Premier League has not been a success. You could dress it up and say that in all competitions, he has 15 goals and two assists in a little under 26 matches worth of playing time.

You could also say he’s only scored in seven of 26 league appearances, and that he has managed only one goal and three shots on target against the other sides currently in the top half.

The fact is Gyökeres looks short of the required standard, not fast or powerful enough in the Premier League context to compensate for his technical limitations.

The main effect of his signing has been to massively enhance the centre-forward reputation of the persistently injured Kai Havertz.

But if Gyökeres got to play against Radu Dragusin every week then he would be rivalling Rice in the Player of the Year stakes. In the first half he had fired a dangerous-looking shot past the far post after cutting inside Dragusin. This was the kind of thing he did every game in Portugal and has hardly produced in the Premier League.

At the start of the second half Spurs gave Gyökeres five yards of space to control and hit a shot from 20 yards. He buried it past Vicario. His second goal of the game made it 4-1 and came after he shrugged aside Archie Gray on a run down the inside-left channel: Primeira Liga Gyökeres in full flow, as Arsenal charged to their biggest away win at Tottenham since 1978.

Probably only Spurs can make Gyökeres look this good. Many home fans flooded from the stadium, others stayed on to abuse a team that now looks at serious risk of relegation.

This is a club where the accumulated mistakes of several years are starting to tell. Maybe the moment it all went wrong was not parting company with Mauricio Pochettino after the defeat in the 2019 Champions League final.

The relationship had obviously broken down, but Spurs and Pochettino hung on like a 1970s married couple who think having another kid (Tanguy Ndombele) is going to save the marriage.

When Pochettino inevitably left a few months later, Spurs made a drastically unsuitable appointment in José Mourinho, who not only favours a completely different style of football from Pochettino, but doesn’t like using young players – an unfortunate trait for the coach of a club whose model at that time was based on buying and building young players.

Next came Antonio Conte, who, after rebelling at the financial restrictions imposed by owners such as the Agnelli family and Roman Abramovich, was never going to last long working with Daniel Levy.

Throughout this time Harry Kane kept scoring 30 goals a season to disguise the wider institutional decay, but he departed as Spurs embraced another radical change of direction in the form of Ange Postecoglou.

The Australian would at least play young players, but his inability to organise a Premier League defence nearly got the club relegated last season.

Spurs replaced him with Thomas Frank, who it turned out had no idea how to organise an attack, especially one where the five top scorers from last season – Brennan Johnson, Dominic Solanke, James Maddison, Son-Heung Min and Dejan Kulusevski – were either sold or suffered long-term injuries.

Now comes Igor Tudor, the “fixer” who hardly ever manages a full season in the same place. It appears he has arrived at Spurs on the recommendation of a sporting director who no longer works at the club.

“These are good players, with bad habits,” Tudor said after the game. You feel this team will soon knock that optimism out of him.

In an interview on the Overlap last week, Postecoglou made the point that Spurs are not a “big club” – in that they don’t take the financial risks other members of the so-called big six are prepared to take to secure the kind of players who can keep you up at the top of the Premier League.

The irony is that in financial terms, Spurs’s place as one of the big six has never been so secure. Deloitte reported Spurs’ income in the 24-25 season at €672 million, placing them fifth in the Premier League (ahead of Chelsea), and 11th in the world.

They made 2½ times as much money as their current relegation rivals West Ham, and more than three times as much as Nottingham Forest, Burnley or Wolves.

This season their income will most likely surpass Manchester United’s, due to participating in the Champions League and playing more home games.

Sports Briefing

Latest news from the world of sport, along with the best in opinion from our outstanding team of sports writers

Premier League: Manchester City 0 Tottenham Hotspur 2 [Johnson 35; Joao Palhinha 45+2]

How to rally Tottenham after the Eberechi Eze farrago: turn up at Manchester City and mastermind a dominant 2-0 triumph that takes your side to the top of the Premier League, for a few hours at least.

Spurs missed a number of chances but were far more cut-throat than their hosts, as Brennan Johnson and João Palhina’s first-half goals took them back to north London with the points.

City were just not allowed to enjoy any rhythm. Instead they were a discordant bunch who kept finding a Spurs player rushing up to undermine their composure.

Towards the end, Jérémy Doku wriggled through and found Phil Foden but Micky van de Ven chopped the ball away. Moments after Bernardo Silva, at a tight angle, headed on to the roof of the net.

“Good vibes” was Guardiola’s description of the mood as City hoped to banish the spectre of last November’s 4-0 humiliation here by Spurs, though an ill augury came early in a Rico Lewis-James Trafford mix-up. Hesitation between the right back and the new goalkeeper, preferred to Ederson, allowed Richarlison to pounce. While City escaped, Trafford’s performance was one to watch.

Before this Pedro Porro committed a howler for the visitors: the right back’s header back for Guglielmo Vicario was weak, Oscar Marmoush took over and shot, but the Spurs goalkeeper saved.

Marmoush was fashioned another opening when Erling Haaland lit up the contest with a bulldozing run that splayed those in black. After a lucky ricochet when challenged, the centre forward slipped in the Egyptian: he took a glance and unloaded but Vicario repelled.

Guardiola always enthuses about Frank’s managerial smarts and 35 minutes in the Dane showed how he already has Spurs drilled. Along the right Mohammed Kudus outfoxed Rúben Dias and put Richarlison through. The Brazilian ran forward, squared for Johnson, and the Welsh international beat Trafford: the shot was close to the goalkeeper but was hit hard so may claim mitigation if Guardiola scolds him about it.

The flag went up but the semi-automatic offside technology showed Richarlison had been onside. The goal stood, and Spurs’ celebrations were soon to double.

Now, Trafford’s shakiness came home to roost. The goalkeeper dawdled when playing out from his goal, finally plumping for Nico González. He did not want it delivered close to his penalty spot anyway but Trafford passed only to Pape Matar Sarr, the ball went to Richarlison. He tried to shoot but failed, though the excellent Palhina did, driving the ball home on his full debut.

City were a mess and Guardiola’s decision to choose Trafford over Ederson cast as quaint, however the Brazilian views his future (he may leave for Galatasaray) – he is still an employee, after all.

The disarray of those in blue was summed up by two moments at the other end. Attack is supposed to be their forte. But first Rayan Cherki aped a pub player by hitting the first defender from a corner; then Haaland headed the same player’s delivery to the heavens with Vicario’s goal gaping.

City’s backline had been disrupted by the 23rd-minute injury to Rayan Aït-Nouri but he was replaced by Nathan Aké, a treble-winner, so this offered no mitigation for the first-half horror show.

The next time Trafford took the ball with Spurs at close quarters he coolly (and advisedly) launched a 50-yard pass for Marmoush, but the wide man slipped and Guardiola spun away in disgust. The reaction showed how bitty his side’s patterns were. At play in Spurs’ ascendancy was City’s greater ball share (60-40) not transmitting into the relentless pass-and-move of their finest years.

Instead of fluency, Guardiola’s men hoped to prosper on scraps and moments. One came when Vicario did an unwitting impression of Trafford: the goalkeeper passed sideways and near goal to Van de Ven, who must have cursed the Italian as he had Oscar Bobb for company. The Norwegian pilfered possession and tapped to Haaland, who passed to Cherki; at close-range the Frenchman went to pull the trigger but Palhinha, Spurs’ star act, snuffed out the danger.

Guardiola began the day with no Foden, Rodri, Silva, Doku and Ederson (all substitutes), plus Manuel Akanji (left out completely for tactical reasons), yet could still field Haaland, Cherki, Marmoush, Tijjani Reijnders, and Bobb.

In the 74th-minute Foden and Rodri wandered on – the Spaniard for his first action since being injured in City’s 4-3 Al-Hilal Club World Cup knock-out in early July.

Instantly, Rodri leapt to meet a corner and headed only into Vicario’s gloves.

It was towards the end of June when it became clear that Tottenham were considering a move for Eberechi Eze, one to install him as the centrepiece of their new project under Thomas Frank. Or, at least, when it became public knowledge. And it was the prompt for two things to happen.

Firstly, it would be reported a few days later that Arsenal were also on the case. The club’s new sporting director, Andrea Berta, had put the feelers out for the Crystal Palace forward. Call it a declaration of interest, albeit Berta was having a lot of conversations about a lot of potential targets at the time. His idea was to have plenty of options on the boil before deciding which to prioritise.

Then, there was a subtle change to the mood music at Spurs, a kind of step back into a holding pattern. Agent talk, was the word inside the club. Eze was more likely to stay at Palace. It would be wrong to get too far ahead of anything on this one. But it was impossible to ignore the alternative reading: Spurs did not want to be drawn into a battle with their rivals over one of the most exciting talents on the market.

Spurs were fearful of that, and for good reason. They had to know that, given the choice, Eze would go for Arsenal over them. There were the emotional reasons. He had supported Arsenal as a kid and played in their academy until his release as a 13-year-old; the line about how he cried for a week after is a well-known part of his story. Yet it would not only be about dreams and unfinished business. Eze would surely look at the Premier League table from last season. At which club would he stand the better chance of winning the title?

At this point it is worth introducing Mikel Arteta, who let it be known just how highly he rated Eze and how perfectly he would fit into his team. Eze’s head was turned. So Spurs entered territory in which the reward was tantalising, almost irresistible, but the risk was extreme. It was as if they were shadow boxing with Arsenal, their every move over Eze likely to come right back at them. Arsenal were a devil on their shoulder; watching, waiting.

Spurs would pivot to Morgan Gibbs-White in July only to run into the immovable object that is Evangelos Marinakis. No deal, the Nottingham Forest owner said. There would be a new one for Gibbs-White at Forest and, sadly for Spurs, egg on their face after they believed they would be able to exploit a £60 million release clause in his old contract.

The Gibbs-White episode has been a climate-shaper in Spurs’s summer and then there was the moment when James Maddison ruptured his anterior cruciate ligament in the preseason game against Newcastle on August 3rd; a shattering blow for him and his team.

Dejan Kulusevski, the club’s other key central attacking midfielder, underwent knee surgery in May and is out until around the turn of the year, so the need to act in the market was obvious and urgent. Why not move straight away for Eze; give him and Palace a decision to make by meeting the £68 million release clause in his deal, which was in place until August 15th?

Spurs’s hesitation was to do with the fact they considered the number to be too high for a 27-year-old with 12 England caps and no experience of European football at club level. It is not the only detail in terms of optics that has hurt them as Arsenal prepare to pay pretty much that amount to take Eze to the Emirates, with Spurs themselves having ended up ready to do likewise.

There has been the idea that Spurs had a clear run at Eze because Arsenal, after spending around £200 million on six other signings, would need to raise money via sales before they could make a bid. Well, they have sold nobody and still pushed the button. Unless Arsenal have a sale or two lined up, could it be that they have more financial headroom than they have let on?

It is easy to pick over the curiosities. Eze is represented by CAA Base, the influential firm of agents who have close links to Spurs. Should that have given Spurs an edge? It must be said that Base will always put the wishes of their players first. And why did it seemingly take Kai Havertz feeling a knee injury after Sunday’s win at Manchester United for Arsenal to move on Eze? There are similarities in the profile of both players but there is a fundamental difference: Havertz can play as a number 9, Eze cannot. With Gabriel Jesus a long-term injury casualty, the loss of Havertz ought to have seen Arsenal look for a number 9 to provide support for the new signing, Viktor Gyökeres. Not take Eze.

The reality is that Spurs were never going to win this fight. We will never know what would have happened if they had offered to pay Eze’s release clause. But it feels fair to assume that it would have led Arsenal into following suit. Spurs eventually reached an agreement with Palace on Wednesday and they believed they had one with Eze, too.

If Arsenal were not an option, Eze would have joined Spurs. At this stage of his career, after giving everything for Palace across five seasons, he is ready for a change; the chance to play in the Champions League. But Arsenal were an option; they never went away. It took them a matter of hours to slide in for the steal. The bad news for Spurs is that the very thing they feared has come to pass. The memes are out, an Eze mural has appeared in the tunnel outside the Emirates and the time is tighter to provide Frank with a new number 10.

Have Spurs built on the momentum of their Europa League triumph from last season? They have added João Paulinha and Mohammed Kudus for the starting XI, while it was a tonic to tie the new captain, Cristian Romero, to a long-term contract. But when their supporters look around, they see that Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester United and Arsenal have spent £200 million or significantly upwards on signings. Manchester City, meanwhile, have invested £150 million.

The mood at Tottenham is back to being edgy. Arsenal have made a statement of intent. – Guardian

The mood of Spurs’ fans would, you’d imagine, have picked up a bit after Saturday’s 3-0 win over Burnley, but they’ve been less than content with the club’s work on the transfer market during the summer, especially after losing their captain Son Heung-min to Los Angeles FC and James Maddison being ruled out for most or all of the season through injury.

So when the club started a tweet with “we are delighted to announce ...”, little wonder that said fans got excited. Except? They were announcing a partnership with premium pet food brand Frontier Pets which would become it’s “Official Pre-Season Tour Sleeve Partner” and “Official Partner of our groundbreaking Supporters’ Club for dog-owners, Tottenham Hotspaw”.

Alas, we can’t repeat the gist of most of the replies from deflated supporters, most of them a bit obscene. There was one, though, from a West Ham fan by the name of ‘Big Dave’: “Well it was never gonna be Winalot, was it?” Unkind.

Quote

“I really like him. He churns the games out, reads the game really well. He’s got a physique that makes him look like SpongeBob, but I think he’s a real talent.” Stuart Pearce on his admiration for Nottingham Forest defender SquarePants Murillo.

That’s how many million Euros Liverpool have spent in the transfer window, making them the biggest spenders in world football this summer. And that’s before they nail down Alexander Isak and Marc Guehi.

Word of Mouth

“I’m going to stop after this stage with City because I need to focus on myself. I want to watch the cows go by when the train goes by. My grandfather used to say, ‘you look at me like cows watch the train go by’.” Pep Guardiola on career breaks and cow-watching.

“He’s a decent player, nothing more. He’s no Marco van Basten.” Arrigo Sacchi tries to contain his excitement over AC Milan’s interest in Rasmus Hojlund.

“In medical terms, the operation succeeded but the patient died, so not that good in the end.” Thomas Frank on Spurs giving up a two-goal lead with five minutes to go against PSG in the Super Cup, before being laid to rest in the penalty shoot-out.

United fan sets up GoFundMe to try to send Baleba

It’s always touching to see supporters try to help out their clubs when they’re in desperate financial need, and another such example arose last week when a man who identified himself only as ‘Ian M’ set up a GoFundMe page to help his club buy a very badly needed midfielder.

“We need this to happen we need this to happen we need this to happen we need this to happen,” was all Ian wrote.

His target figure is £120 million (€139m), but unfortunately he’s only raised £506 so far. All of which means, Manchester United have to find another £119,999,494 to buy Brighton’s Carlos Baleba. Just Google ‘Baleba to Man Utd fund’ and donate what you can.

More Word of Mouth

“Saudi Arabia is a country where there’s no alcohol, there’s no nightlife. There are no distractions. He only has one option: to play and rest and be with friends and family.” Al-Nassr coach Jorge Jesus confident that new signing Joao Felix will focus on his football, seeing as he’ll have nothing else to be doing in Riyadh.

“Italy continues to be an elephant’s graveyard – before it was [Cristiano] Ronaldo and [Franck Ribery], now it’s De Bruyne and Modric.” Paolo Di Canio suggesting that Kev (Napoli) and Luka (AC Milan) are over the hill.