Control the Controllables
That's a friendly recommendation to Spurs and Spurs fans, but also to myself.
I was very tempted not to write an issue this week, and I even thought about giving up writing this newsletter entirely. I've been very disgruntled with the general environment around men's football for quite some time now, and the lousy vibes of transfer season haven't helped when it comes to finding motivation to talk about Spurs at any length.
But I don't like to quit things, especially something I've devoted so much time and passion to already, and I suspect I would miss writing about Spurs sooner rather than later. Plus, thanks to the generosity of Spurs Across the Pond readers who contributed to my Ko-fi goal, the newsletter is already funded through the end of the calendar year, so I'll at least try to keep it up until then and reassess around the new year.
My compromise to myself is that I'm going to keep things pretty light on the Spurs Men side of things for the time being. So: shorter match recaps, no match previews (y'all know where to find the injury reports anyway), and only a modicum of transfer news. It's always been my policy to limit my transfer talk segment to confirmed news anyway, so that's not actually changing.
Hopefully, my love for the men's side of the sport will be renewed and I will find the fan discourse side of the equation more tolerable sometime soon.
In this issue: Super Cup recap | Burnley recap | Sevilla recap | Transfer talk | News from around the Lane
In the meantime, Spurs Women are kind of, sort of ramping up for the new season. The first pre-season friendly is complete and two more have been scheduled. The squad is still ripe for some new transfers, however, so there's plenty to do before our WSL season kicks off on September 7.
I think I'm going to have to let the Academy coverage fall by the wayside because, frankly, I don't find myself able to devote enough time to do it justice.
So that's the SatP status quo for the foreseeable future: back to basics, and back to my preference of big picture takeaways over granular stats. My original vision for the newsletter was to provide an alternative to existing Spurs media and be more accessible to the average fan, so hopefully a return to simplicity will resonate with all of you as well.
If you're still with me, read on for recaps and a roundup of club news.
Paris Saint-Germain 2 - 2 Tottenham
Lee 85', Ramos 90+4' | Van de Ven 39', Romero 48'
PSG win 4-3 on penalties
For a match in which we were the decided underdogs, I thought we put in a very respectable effort, albeit with a noticeable dropoff from the substitutes. It would have been easy for the team to be distracted in the wake of Son Heung-min's departure or the surprise disciplinary suspension of Yves Bissouma, but the starting XI locked in and managed to earn a 0-2 lead by the beginning of the second half.
Thomas Frank opted for a back-3 and front-2 formation (only briefly seen during pre-season), and it will be interesting to see if this is a strategy we see repeated against other top clubs with high attacking threat. It did mean that our best opportunities ended up coming from set pieces, with two of the three centerbacks getting on the scoresheet, and the third nearly converting. The clear improvement on attacking set pieces is one of the early indicators that the team has already improved under Frank.
Unfortunately, we lost control of the game when both sides started to bring in reinforcements, with PSG having a much stronger bench to draw from. Dominic Solanke showed some rust from his pre-season injury layoff, and the other subs showed their lack of experience in finals. My only real criticism of the tactical approach for the second half was the decision to bunker in rather than push for a decisive third goal.
On that note, I will say that I was genuinely disappointed that we didn't manage to hold onto the lead and start the season off with another trophy. Still, a penalty shootout loss wasn't the worst outcome, and it certainly didn't seem to have an effect on team morale heading into the Premier League opener. I think in the long run, having a competitive match to cap off the pre-season will have benefited the team by spurring them (no pun intended) to start off the Frank era motivated and already looking for new solutions to old problems.
Tottenham 3 - 0 Burnley
Richarlison 10' • 60', Johnson 66'
After the surprising formation choice in the Super Cup, Thomas Frank switched things up again with his team selection. He opted for an extremely young midfield of Archie Gray, Lucas Bergvall, and Pape Sarr, eschewing the double pivot we had seen for most of pre-season in favor of a more traditional 4-3-3. It was the perfect setup to throw everything into the attack against a conservative Burnley side.
Sarr carried his strong pre-season form into the league campaign, but it was the forward line that truly shone, and none more so than Richarlison. His brace was completed with great flair, including an overhead kick that was reminiscent of his famous goal for Brazil in the last World Cup. It's somewhat ironic that, for once, his relative fitness is giving him the edge over Dominic Solanke for gametime, but this can only be a positive for the team considering his efficiency in front of goal. Just knock on wood that his fitness holds out longer this season.
New signing Mohammed Kudus has not needed any time at all to get up to speed with his new teammates. He's already established great chemistry with Richarlison, contributing the assists for both of the Brazilian's goals. Having a winger of his quality ready to go immediately at the start of the season has softened the blow of losing Sonny.
Speaking of decisive third goals, we pulled it off this time with a superb effort from Brennan Johnson, who beat Dúbravka one-on-one. Frank and the players got the game management just right this time.
Notable & quotable:
• This was the first clean sheet for Spurs in Premier League play since February (h/t Lauren).
• Richarlison has scored 13 goals in his last 16 starts in the Premier League (h/t Match of the Day
• Richarlison became the inaugural PL Player of the Week by fan vote.
• Thomas Frank remarked on the early-season squad rotation:
We need the squad. Hopefully we’ll play 60-plus games. That’s the dream. If we do that, we’ll need the squad.
• Brennan Johnson spoke about his mindset heading into the 2025/26 season off the back of winning the Europa League:
I want to be like the players who are serial winners, winning so many competitions, because I'm sure the feeling doesn't get any worse. I think it gets better every time, so, yes, I want to replicate it. I want to come back, work hard, and I want to do it again with Spurs.
Sevilla 0 - 0 Tottenham
Spurs Women went on a brief trip to Spain for a pre-season training camp, including a friendly against Sevilla. On the positive side, Spurs finally heard our cries and made the match available to stream on Spurs Play. On the negative side, kickoff was delayed due to intense heat in Sevilla. The game was definitely more sluggish than we would have hoped for due to the weather, but at least the players got some minutes in the legs to build fitness, and we got our first glimpses of new signing Tōko Koga and new manager Martin Ho's tactical approach.
Koga was undoubtedly the highlight for me. Much like Kudus on the men's side, she doesn't seem to require much of a bedding-in period with her new team. She looked very comfortable in the centerback parternship with Molly Bartrip, making forays into the midfield while Bartrip held down the fort. It will be exciting to see what her strong passing ability can create for the attack this season, knowing that the midfield is still a work in progress. Her physicality was also a welcome sight; one of the key highlights of the game happened when she drew a foul after a dribbly run through Sevilla's midfield and refused to be brushed off the ball.
As for the established players, I was glad to see Jess Naz and Matilda Vinberg looking more like the talents we know they can be. Others, like Martha Thomas and Amanda Nildén, were still showing some of the frustrating issues from last season. Ho is going to have a big task on his hands to improve the team tactically, but he also has a challenge in boosting overall team confidence after a disappointing season.
It was too soon for Kit Graham to appear as she continues her return from an ACL injury, and Ash Neville, Maite Oroz, and Olivia Holdt also missed out with either illness or knocks. Ella Morris and Luana Bühler are longer-term absences.
Transfer talk
As I'm sure y'all are well aware, there haven't been any notable incomings or outgoings since last writing, but there have been two new contract extensions for Spurs Men:
• Djed Spence re-signed on a long-term contract, though the club did not disclose the exact length of the deal. He had previously reupped his contract in the middle of last season.
• Cristian Romero also extended his deal on the same day, until 2029 according to Sky Sports.
He reflected on the reasons that have kept him at Spurs:
The people here, inside, a top manager, I’m very happy with the club. My children were born here. My family is very happy here. It was special for me to walk onto the pitch with my son [against Burnley on Saturday]. I love football, I love this club. It was special for me to be with him.
Romero was also named captain by Thomas Frank, prior to the announcement of the contract extension. Frank will be waiting until the close of the transfer window to name Romero's co-captains.
News from around the Lane
• Spurs Men finalized the squad numbers for the Premier League campaign.
• Spurs Women confirmed that Lenna Gunning-Williams is switching to #18.
• Spurs Women announced two more pre-season friendly fixtures:
Neither friendly will be streamed live, but both are open to fans.
• In Spurs Women alumni news, Esther Morgan has joined Bristol City, who we will play in the League Cup group stage.
• Another date for your calendar: the Men's Champions League league phase draw will take place on August 28.
• A quick Spurs Men loan army update (I surely won't keep up with this, but there was some fun stuff across the first couple of weeks of the season):
- Damola Ajayi scored in his first start for Doncaster Rovers in their League Cup win over Middlesbrough
- Jamie Donley scored a penalty in Stoke's PK shootout win over Walsall, also in the League Cup, and made an assist in Stoke's first Championship win of the season
- Will Lankshear scored his first Championship goal for Oxford United in matchday two.
I will end with a heartfelt congratulations to Erik Lamela on his retirement from professional football. He will now join Sevilla's coaching staff. Go well, Coco! I will always remember the NLD rabona with fondness.
COYS
Thank you for reading!
If you’re enjoying the newsletter, make sure to sign up for a free subscription to receive new issues in your inbox. You can also buy me a Ko-fi to support my writing with a one-time tip. Your support keeps Spurs Across the Pond running and is much appreciated!
You can also find me on Bluesky and podcasting at N17 Women and The Tottenham Depot.
Member discussion