Sports Mole

Still searching for their first win of the calendar year, Tottenham Hotspur welcome Borussia Dortmund to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for a crucial Champions League encounter.

If the highly anticipated fixture was not exciting enough, both sides enter the game with identical records in the league phase after six European outings.

Here, Sports Mole provides everything you need to know about how to follow the game.

What time does Tottenham vs. Borussia Dortmund kick off?

Tottenham's clash with Dortmund kicks off at 20:00 on Tuesday evening later this week.

For German viewers, the game will kick-off an hour later at 21:00.

Where is Tottenham vs. Borussia Dortmund being played?

Spurs' search to return to winning ways will take place at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, a fairly new ground that holds just over 62,000 fans.

Whether or not it will be sold out remains to be seen.

The clubs have faced each other several times in Europe, most recently in 2019 when Mauricio Pochettino's Tottenham won 1–0 in Dortmund on their way to reaching the Champions League final.

How to watch Tottenham vs. Borussia Dortmund in the UK

TV channels

As the pick of Tuesday night's Champions League games, Tottenham Hotspur vs. Borussia Dortmund is being shown live on TNT Sports 1 and TNT Sports Ultimate.

Online streaming

Fans will be able to stream their game on laptops, phones and games consoles through their app Discovery+.

A Discovery+ sports subscription costs a mouthwatering £30.99 per month.

Highlights

For viewers unable to watch live or wanting to watch the action again, highlights will be posted on the TNT Sports Football YouTube channel shortly after full time.

Short clips from this match and others across the Champions League will also be posted on the TNT Sports X account.

What is at stake for Tottenham vs. Borussia Dortmund?

As previously mentioned, Tottenham are still chasing their first win of 2026 and will be hoping to end a poor run of form with a fourth Champions League victory of the campaign.

Thomas Frank's side will be without 11 first team players, meaning he may need to use the depths of his reserve and youth squads to make up a match day squad.

He will however be able to call upon new signing Conor Gallagher, who signed from Atletico Madrid earlier this week.

As for the visitors, they have had a good season in the Bundesliga and sit second after 17 league outings, winning ten, drawing six and losing just one of those.

Niko Kovac’s side are unbeaten in their last six and head to London as slight favourites, although they have never won at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Both Dortmund and Spurs have played six matches in the Champions League league-phase, winning three, drawing two and losing one, placing them 10th and 11th respectively.

All signs point towards a tightly contested affair on Tuesday night.

Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly entered talks with Brazilian club Bahia over the sale of attacker Alejo Veliz.

The 22-year-old is currently on loan at Argentinian side Rosario Central, where he spent the early days of his senior career.

As a result, Veliz is not around in North London to help ease the attacking crisis at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

With Richarlison sidelined due to a hamstring problem for the next two months, Spurs are scrambling for solutions in the market.

Thomas Frank's side could move for a striker target during the remainder of the January window to ease the burden on the returning Dominic Solanke.

Tottenham 'in talks' over Veliz sale

According to The Athletic, Tottenham are still pushing ahead with planned attacking outgoings despite Richarilson's injury.

The report claims that Spurs are exploring a deal to permanently offload striker Veliz back to South America.

It is believed that Brazilian club Bahia are keen on bringing the 22-year-old back to the continent this month.

The two clubs are yet to agree a deal for Veliz, although the negotiations are supposedly moving in that direction.

Consequently, Rosario Central could lose the loan services of the Argentine in the middle of their campaign.

Is Bahia a good fit for Veliz?

After finishing seventh in the Brazilian Serie A last season, Bahia are preparing for the qualification rounds of Copa Libertadores.

Therefore, Veliz would have the opportunity to test himself in South America's equivalent to the Champions League.

Bahia are owned by the City Football Group, meaning that they are a sister team to Premier League giants Manchester City.

Tottenham Hotspur welcome relegation-threatened West Ham United to North London for a Premier League contest on Saturday afternoon.

Spurs lost 2-1 at home to Aston Villa in the FA Cup third round last weekend, while the Hammers won 2-1 after extra time against QPR, and here, Sports Mole rounds up all of the latest team news for the two clubs.

TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR vs. WEST HAM UNITED

SPURS

Out: Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Dejan Kulusevski (knee), James Maddison (ACL), Rodrigo Bentancur (hamstring), Richarlison (hamstring), Pape Sarr (AFCON)

Doubtful: Lucas Bergvall (knock), Yves Bissouma (other)

Sports Mole's predicted XI: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Spence; Gray, Palhinha; Simons, Gallagher, Tel; Kolo Muani

WEST HAM

Out: Konstantinos Mavropanos (neck), Lukasz Fabianski (back), El Hadji Malick Diouf (AFCON)

Doubtful: Lucas Paqueta (back), Mateus Fernandes (unspecified)

It rains and it pours at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, where Thomas Frank's bottom-half battlers have just lost their top scorer for potentially as long as two months due to injury.

Eight-goal attacker Richarlison will miss the rest of January and the entirety of February with the serious hamstring issue he picked up against Aston Villa in the FA Cup, ruling him out of crunch clashes with Borussia Dortmund, Arsenal, Manchester City and Manchester United before the beginning of March.

The under-pressure Frank at least has Dominic Solanke back from a long-term ankle issue to compete with Randal Kolo Muani up front, but Mathys Tel has supposedly become disillusioned with life in North London and could head back to France in search of regular minutes.

Coupled with Brennan Johnson's £35m move to Crystal Palace and Dejan Kulusevski's continued recovery from a knee issue, Spurs fans are crying out for attacking reinforcements, some far-fetched and some whose proposed switches are not beyond the realm of possibility.

Here, Sports Mole looks at four attackers Tottenham could realistically sign to replace Richarlison in the January transfer window.

Karim Adeyemi (Borussia Dortmund)

A versatile attacker is an employable attacker in the modern-day game, and Borussia Dortmund's Karim Adeyemi certainly fits the bill, having frequently occupied both central and wide roles in the early stages of his career.

Still only 23 years old, the Germany international has registered 54 goal involvements in 131 matches for BVB - 32 of his own and 22 assists - but he is now in the last 18 months of his contract.

Adeyemi has mostly made headlines for the wrong reasons this season, from being fined close to £400,000 for illegal possession of weapons to reacting furiously to being substituted in December's Bundesliga win over Borussia Monchengladbach.

Dortmund have supposedly still not ruled out an extension, but the German giants will surely consider a sale in January if it becomes clear that an agreement cannot be struck, potentially pitting Tottenham against all of Manchester United, Liverpool and Arsenal.

Christos Tzolis (Norwich City)

A man who made a fleeting impression in the Premier League with Norwich City, Christos Tzolis made just 14 appearances in the English top flight for the Canaries in 2021-22, failing to register a single goal or assist.

However, the 23-year-old has been nothing short of a revelation for Belgian outfit Club Brugge, amassing 32 goals and 31 assists in 87 games for the Jupiler Pro League side and making his presence felt against Europe's best this season.

Tzolis has had a direct hand in a whopping 26 goals in 31 matches in 2025-26, including an assist in a thrilling 3-3 Champions League draw with Barcelona, and a strike in a 2-1 loss to Atalanta BC in the same competition.

Spurs are rumoured to have taken an interest in the Greece international, who is under contract until 2029, but Club Brugge have never sold a player for more than £32.5m and would be in no position to turn down a similar amount.

Jorgen Strand Larsen (Wolverhampton Wanderers)

Going down the Premier League-proven route, Jorgen Strand Larsen took Molineux by storm with 14 Premier League goals in the 2024-25 season, attracting interest from some of the division's European-chasing outfits.

However, with Wolves' collective fortunes taking a turn for the worse, Strand Larsen has also experienced a dramatic decline on a personal note, managing a mere one goal and one assist in the 2025-26 Premier League in the absence of Matheus Cunha and Rayan Ait-Nouri.

The 25-year-old did come up with a hat-trick and assist in a 6-1 FA Cup pummelling of Shrewsbury Town at the weekend, though, re-lighting the blue-touch paper at the perfect time while Premier League clubs reportedly queue up for his services.

Wolves are supposedly open to a winter sale for the right price - that price being a reported £60m - and Spurs would have an immediate advantage over the likes of West Ham United and Leeds United given their Champions League participation.

The Lilywhites have not got £65m worth of goals out of Solanke yet, though, and fans may have reservations about a similar outlay on another striker, especially one who has not cut the mustard in recent months.

Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus)

Flash back to the winter window of 2022, when Arsenal fans were rolling out the red carpet for Dusan Vlahovic to replace Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, only for the Serbian to snub interest from the current Premier League leaders.

Instead, Fiorentina and Juventus struck a hefty £72.3m agreement for Vlahovic, whose agents were apparently using Arsenal's name to ensure that La Viola could get the best possible deal for the striker four years ago.

Sixty-four goals and 16 assists from 162 games is hardly a disastrous return, but Vlahovic's Juventus career has been plagued by inconsistency, and the consensus is that he has never quite fulfilled his promise in Turin.

Now in the last six months of his contract, Vlahovic can enter talks with foreign clubs before a possible free transfer in the summer, and all the signs are pointing to a departure from the Old Lady in 2026.

Losing a £72.3m investment for nothing would go down as one of Juventus' biggest financial failures - which is saying something - so Spurs could possibly twist the Bianconeri's arm with a £20m-£30m sum for the 25-year-old, who still has a lot to offer.

Thomas Frank has insisted that the culture in the Tottenham Hotspur squad is changing despite negative results.

Spurs were dumped out of the FA Cup last weekend, when they lost 2-1 against Aston Villa, and sections of the home crowd could be heard booing.

Frank has faced significant scrutiny in recent weeks, and there is a feeling that a negative result against West Ham United in the Premier League on Saturday could make his position untenable.

Speaking to reporters ahead of that game, Frank expressed his view that he would be given time, and spoke positively about culture change, saying: "I’m very aware of how this football world works, no doubt about that. I know that we haven’t got enough of the result we want.

"I can just see the small step we’re constantly doing. I still refer to the last six games with more positive, consistent performances. Not perfect, but there’s some good signs. The two second halves against Bournemouth and Villa where it is so easy to fall apart.

"They actually step in together, they add more. I think that’s talking about a culture that’s getting a little bit stronger, more ‘come on, let’s do everything we can to turn this little momentum. In football, sometimes momentum changes like that. I can see the small signs of the culture."

Spurs are currently 14th in the Premier League, so it would be understandable if supporters were sceptical about improvements behind the scenes.

Do Tottenham have the right culture to succeed?

Frank was consistently praised for cultivating a positive environment at Brentford, one that allowed new arrivals to thrive despite significant change.

Tottenham's new signings have struggled to settle in London, with Xavi Simons rarely showcasing the creative spark that made him one of Europe's hottest properties.

There also appears to be a a degree of frustration within the squad, exemplified by centre-back Cristian Romero's social media swipe at figures at the club.

Reports have also suggested that the Danish boss has a strained relationship with players such as Yves Bissouma, and while it is impossible to fully understand the dressing room's culture from afar, the outward signs do not seem promising.

Could Tottenham turn a corner after changes to staff?

Tottenham have lost nine, drawn four and won four of their last 17 games in all competitions, and fans have resigned themselves to another poor season.

However, sporting director Fabio Paratici is set to leave the club at the end of the January transfer window, and that move has been widely welcomed due to his underwhelming tenure.

There are hopes that his replacement can have more success in the transfer market, but there have also been changes elsewhere.

Former Liverpool assistant Johnny Heitinga has joined Frank's coaching staff, and he was credited by Arne Slot for his role in overseeing a significant portion of training sessions in 2024-25.

Perhaps Heitinga can help Spurs improve their fluidity in the final third, and if his methods can get more from the likes of Simons, then Tottenham could quickly move up the table.

Tottenham Hotspur head coach Thomas Frank has delivered a crushing injury update regarding Richarlison, who is set to be out for seven weeks with a hamstring problem.

The Brazilian sustained the issue in the weekend's 2-1 defeat to Aston Villa in the third round of the FA Cup, lasting just 31 minutes before being replaced by Randal Kolo Muani.

Frank could not give a definitive update on Richarlison's concern at the time, but as with any thigh injury, there were immediate fears that the ex-Everton striker could be sidelined for a while.

Addressing the media ahead of Saturday's Premier League showdown with London rivals West Ham United, Frank confirmed that Richarlison's injury was significant and would keep him out for close to two months.

"Richy (Richarlison) unfortunately got a hamstring injury which will keep him out for up to seven weeks," the Dane said at his pre-game press conference.

Spurs games Richarlison could miss with hamstring injury

Richarlison's latest fitness setback deprives Spurs of their top scorer in all competitions this season, one who has found the back of the net eight times in total and on seven occasions in the Premier League.

A seven-week absence from Richarlison's injury date - January 10 - would keep the attacker out for the whole of February, meaning that he should sit out at least eight matches across the Premier League and Champions League.

Tottenham will be missing the 28-year-old for this weekend's game against West Ham, as well as battles with Borussia Dortmund, Burnley and Eintracht Frankfurt before the end of January.

The Lilywhites then face four daunting February fixtures against Manchester City, Manchester United, Newcastle United and North London rivals Arsenal, all of which Richarlison should be unavailable for as he continues his recovery.

If Tottenham progress to the Champions League knockout round playoffs, the first legs of those ties will be played on February 17-18 and the second on February 24-25, meaning that Richarlison may miss 10 matches in total.

However, if all goes to plan in the striker's rehabilitation, he should target a comeback for the Premier League London derby against Fulham at Craven Cottage on March 1.

Thomas Frank confirms quadruple Spurs boost for West Ham clash

Richarlison joins Dejan Kulusevski, James Maddison, Rodrigo Bentancur and Mohammed Kudus in the Tottenham treatment room, while Pape Sarr's Senegal face Morocco in the final of the Africa Cup of Nations this Sunday.

In brighter news, Frank confirmed that Lucas Bergvall and Yves Bissouma could make the squad this weekend, while Destiny Udogie and Dominic Solanke are also in contention for minutes.

"Lucas Bergvall could be available, hopefully be available for Saturday. (Yves) Bissouma is back, so he is available as well," Frank added. "Both Destiny (Udogie) and Dom (Dominic Solanke) are close to finishing a good week of training, so they are a bit closer.

"Both will be involved and available (at West Ham) but they are closer to playing even more minutes, so that’s positive. They look good, both of them."

West Ham United could be without five players for Saturday’s Premier League clash with Tottenham Hotspur in North London.

While El Hadji Malick Diouf is still away on Africa Cup of Nations duty with finalists Senegal, Konstantinos Mavropanos is set to remain sidelined with a neck injury, joining Lukasz Fabianski (back) in the treatment room.

Mateus Fernandes will have an unspecified issue assessed ahead of kickoff, while Lucas Paqueta (back) is also a doubt at a time when he reportedly wants to leave the club amid interest from Flamengo in his native Brazil.

One player who is back and available for selection is defender Aaron Wan-Bissaka, who has finished representing DR Congo at AFCON and has trained with the Hammers this week, so a start at right-back is likely against Spurs.

Max Kilman is expected to replace the injured Mavropanos and start alongside Jean-Clair Todibo at centre-back, as Oliver Scarles continues at left-back an Alphonse Areola starts in goal ahead of Mads Hermansen.

If Fernandes is not fit to start, then Soungoutou Magassa or Freddie Potts could deputise in midfield alongside Tomas Soucek, while January signing Pablo Felipe could start his first PL game in behind fellow new recruit Valentin Castellanos, who scored his first goal for the club in the 2-1 extra-time win over QPR in the FA Cup third round last weekend.

Captain Jarrod Bowen is one of the first names on the Hammers teamsheet and is expected to continue on the right flank, while Crysencio Summerville - another goalscorer against QPR - will likely operate on the opposite wing.

West Ham United possible starting lineup: Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Todibo, Kilman, Scarles; Magassa, Soucek; Bowen, Pablo, Summerville; Castellanos

Tottenham Hotspur are set to be without at least six players for Saturday’s Premier League clash at home against West Ham United.

Head coach Thomas Frank has confirmed that Richarlison set to be out for seven weeks with a hamstring problem, with the forward joining Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Dejan Kulusevski (knee), James Maddison (ACL) and Rodrigo Bentancur (hamstring) in the treatment room.

Pape Sarr is still away on Africa Cup of Nations duty with finalists Senegal, but Spurs have bolstered their squad with the £34.7m January signing of Conor Gallagher who is available to make his debut this weekend.

Frank has revealed that Lucas Bergvall “could be available” to return from a knock, but a start against West Ham is seemingly unlikely, so Gallagher could be thrown into midfield to link up with Joao Palhinha and Archie Gray.

Cristian Romero was suspended for Tottenham’s 2-1 FA Cup defeat to Aston Villa last weekend, but he is available to return on Saturday to play alongside centre-back Micky van de Ven, while Pedro Porro and Djed Spence are the most likely duo to operate as full-backs.

In attack, Wilson Odobert - who scored against Villa - Xavi Simons, Mathys Tel and Randal Kolo Muani will all battle for starts, while it remains to be seen whether striker Dominic Solanke will be fit to start his first match since recovering from a six-month injury layoff.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup: Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Spence; Gray, Palhinha; Simons, Gallagher, Tel; Kolo Muani

Two Premier League teams with managers under pressure butt heads in North London on Saturday, as Thomas Frank’s Tottenham Hotspur play host to Nuno Espirito Santo’s West Ham United on Saturday afternoon.

Spurs are looking to complete the league double over the Hammers for the first time since 2019-20 after winning 3-0 at the London Stadium in September.

Match preview

It is fair to say that there has been little to smile about on the white side of North London since the turn of year, as Tottenham remain winless in 2026 after dropping points in Premier League clashes with Sunderland (1-1) and Bournemouth (3-2) before losing 2-1 to Aston Villa in the FA Cup last weekend.

Wilson Odobert’s second-half strike pulled one back for Spurs after Villa entered hard time with a two-goal lead, but Frank’s men were unable to restore parity and have subsequently crashed out in the third round of the FA Cup for the first time since 2013-14.

Another setback on home soil has piled more pressure on Frank, who is struggling to get the best out of a Spurs side boasting only four wins in their last 24 Premier League games in front of their own fans (D6 L14) - their two home wins this season is their lowest ever after 10 matches in a league campaign.

Languishing in 14th place in the Premier League table and six points behind Frank’s former club Brentford in fifth, Tottenham can at least take some comfort from the fact that they have lost only one of their last eight league encounters with Saturday’s opponents West Ham (D3 L4).

Keeping a clean sheet could be key if Spurs are to prevail this weekend, as six of their seven Premier League victories this season have been without reply. In addition, they have only won one of their last 21 top-flight matches when conceding at least once (D6 L14) - beating Leeds 2-1 in October.

West Ham’s 14-year spell in the Premier League is in serious danger of coming to an end this season, as they sit 18th in the table and seven points adrift of safety following a painful 2-1 home defeat to 17th-placed Nottingham Forest last time out.

The Hammers are now winless in their last 10 top-flight matches (D4 L6) and this miserable run represents their longest streak without a victory since a run of 11 between December 2006 and March 2007 - losing 4-3 against Tottenham in their 11th game back then.

Head coach Nuno Espirito Santo has only won three of his 17 matches as West Ham boss since replacing Graham Potter in September, and the latest of those was a morale-boosting 2-1 extra-time success at home to Queens Park Rangers in the third round of the FA Cup last weekend.

Still, Hammers supporters are right to feel concerned by first-team performances, especially in defence as West Ham have not kept a single clean sheet in their last 19 matches in all competitions. In the Premier League, they have conceded a league-high 11 headed goals this season, with only Arsenal (nine) scoring more headers than Saturday’s opponents Spurs (nine).

West Ham have also shipped more goals from corners than any other PL team this term (12), with no side scoring more than Tottenham (11). On a positive note, Hammers boss Nuno has won three of his previous five away league games against Spurs, including a 2-1 victory with former club Nottingham Forest in April last season.

Tottenham Hotspur Premier League form:

Tottenham Hotspur form (all competitions):

West Ham United Premier League form:

West Ham United form (all competitions):

Team News

Spurs boss Frank has confirmed that Richarlison set to be out for seven weeks with a hamstring problem, with the forward joining Mohammed Kudus (thigh), Dejan Kulusevski (knee), James Maddison (ACL) and Rodrigo Bentancur (hamstring) in the treatment room.

Pape Sarr is still away on Africa Cup of Nations duty with finalists Senegal, but Spurs have bolstered their squad with the £34.7m January signing of Conor Gallagher and he is available to make his debut.

Lucas Bergvall “could be available” to return from a knock, but a start against West Ham is seemingly unlikely, so Gallagher could be thrown into midfield to link up with Joao Palhinha and Archie Gray.

Cristian Romero was suspended for Tottenham’s FA Cup defeat to Aston Villa, but he is available to return on Saturday to play alongside centre-back Micky van de Ven, while it remains to be seen whether striker Dominic Solanke will be fit to start his first game since recovering from a six-month injury layoff.

As for West Ham, El Hadji Malick Diouf is still away on Africa Cup of Nations duty with finalists Senegal, while Konstantinos Mavropanos is set to remain sidelined with a neck injury, joining Lukasz Fabianski (back) in the treatment room.

Mateus Fernandes will have an unspecified issue assessed ahead of kickoff, while Lucas Paqueta (back) is also a doubt at a time when he reportedly wants to leave the club amid interest from Flamengo in his native Brazil.

Aaron Wan-Bissaka has finished representing DR Congo at AFCON and has trained with the Hammers this week, so a start at right-back is likely against Spurs. Max Kilman, meanwhile, is expected to replace the injured Mavropanos and start alongside Jean-Clair Todibo at centre-back.

January signing Pablo Felipe could be handed his first PL start in behind fellow new recruit Valentin Castellanos, who scored his first goal for the club in the FA Cup win over QPR last time out.

Tottenham Hotspur possible starting lineup:

Vicario; Porro, Romero, Van de Ven, Spence; Gray, Palhinha; Simons, Gallagher, Tel; Kolo Muani

West Ham United possible starting lineup:

Areola; Wan-Bissaka, Todibo, Kilman, Scarles; Magassa, Soucek; Bowen, Pablo, Summerville; Castellanos

We say: Tottenham Hotspur 2-1 West Ham United

Saturday’s fixture is an important one for both teams who are desperate to claim all three points for different reasons. While Spurs’ home record leaves much to be desired, they will be regarded as favourites for this one.

West Ham are boosted by the return of Wan-Bissaka and a couple of new attack-minded signings, but their defensive frailties are a concern and we can see the hosts outscoring their opponents on this occasion.

Tottenham Hotspur have announced the surprise appointment of a Premier League winner and World Cup finalist to Thomas Frank's coaching team.

The Lilywhites recently waved goodbye to former assistant coach Matthew Wells, who left in December to take up the position of head coach with MLS side Colorado Rapids.

Spurs also lost Ryan Mason to Championship club West Bromwich Albion - who recently sacked the former midfielder - last year, although Frank still had Justin Cochrane, Andreas Georgson and Chris Haslam by his side.

However, the Europa League winners quickly sought a replacement for North America-bound Wells, and the club have now announced the shock arrival of ex-Liverpool assistant Johnny Heitinga.

The 42-year-old joins Tottenham after a short-lived stint at Ajax head coach from July to November, taking charge of just 15 games for the Eredivisie giants and earning a mere five victories.

Prior to his unsuccessful time at the Amsterdam helm, Heitinga helped Liverpool win the 2024-25 Premier League as Arne Slot's right-hand man, and he also assisted David Moyes at West Ham United in 2023-24.

Johnny Heitinga joins Tottenham coaching team as Thomas Frank reacts

Speaking to the official Tottenham website, head coach Frank highlighted Heitinga's defensive experience and confirmed that his main job will be to shore up a leaky Spurs defence.

"John is a great addition to our coaching staff. His ability, personality and character will add huge value both on and off the pitch," Frank said. "He had an impressive playing career across Europe – including five years in the Premier League – and with the Dutch national team.

“As a former defender, that will be one of his main responsibilities on the training pitch, and he brings great coaching and management experiences from all levels of the game, which will really help us moving forward."

Heitinga joins Spurs with the Lilywhites sat in 14th place in the Premier League table, having won just one of their last six games in the competition, and he will be in the dugout against former club West Ham this Saturday.

As a player, the 42-year-old made 129 Premier League appearances during spells at Everton and Fulham, and he started every game for the Netherlands during their run to the 2010 World Cup final, in which he was sent off in extra time.

Deja vu for Liverpool as Spurs make shock Heitinga appointment

Heitinga's Tottenham appointment may not directly impact Liverpool, but Reds fans have now seen two former assistant managers join the ranks of a Big Six rival after a failed spell as a head coach.

Jurgen Klopp's lieutenant Pepijn Lijnders endured a disappointing spell at Red Bull Salzburg in 2024, before being hired by Manchester City to serve as one of Pep Guardiola's assistants in the summer.

Liverpool and Spurs are unlikely to find themselves in direct competition for European football anytime soon, though, as the Reds are 10 places and eight points better off than Spurs in the table.