Premier League Eve
Well, it's Premier League Eve for Tottenham, anyway. The league got underway on Friday and I'm already annoyed about a last-minute Manchester United winner, so all is as it should be in the universe.
The last pre-season action for Spurs Men involved two one-goal friendly losses to Bayern Munich, including one match at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Harry Kane only looked mildly harrowed to be back in his old stomping ground, as pictured above, staring off into the distance as the trumpeter played "When the Spurs Go Marching In." He and Eric Dier were both recognized for their Spurs careers before kickoff with a presentation from Ledley King.
While pre-season is in the rearview for the Men's team, the transfer window has been heating up for both Spurs teams. Two new forwards have joined the Men's team ranks, while Spurs Women gained a new defender.
In this issue: Transfer Talk | News from around the Lane | Leicester City preview
Let's get into all the news first, then I'll wrap things up with a quick preview of the opening matchday.
Transfer talk
There wasn't much warning for most of the club's transfer business over the last week, with the exception of the new Men's team striker. But better a surprise announcement than a long, drawn-out saga!
I tried to keep these in chronological order, to give y'all the full transfer window experience.
Transfers in
• Dominic Solanke was the one addition that we did have some prior notice of, but it's an exciting transfer all the same. He joins on a contract until 2030. Last season with Bournemouth, he was tied for the fourth-highest goal tally in the PL with 19 goals. Beyond his attacking output, he should also prove to be an asset on defensive set pieces.
• Clare Hunt joins on a three-year deal from PSG and increases our Matildas count to two. She'll provide much-needed depth at centerback and potentially be challenging for a starting spot from the get-go. Despite the fact that I've watched a lot of the Australian national team in recent years (including one live game, which she wasn't involved in), I can't say that Hunt has particularly stood out to me—but sometimes that's a good thing with defenders, a position for which we as spectators are much more likely to remember mistakes than moments of brilliance. Either way, there hasn't been enough competition in the squad at her position, so it'll be good to have a new option. Plus, she's fairly tall!
• Wilson Odobert's signing was completely out of left field, in a good way! The French winger joins us from Burnley on a five-year contract. At 19 years old, he represents another investment in the youth project under Ange. He's already played a decent amount of senior football, both at Burnely and Troyes previously. It's hard to say how much time he'll be getting in the Premier League at Spurs with so many experienced players ahead of him in the pecking order, but we'll definitely see him feature often in the cups until then.
Transfers out
• Barbora Votíková did indeed depart, but not to Juventus as rumored. Instead, she heads back to her home country of Czechia to play for SK Slavia Prague. Her clean sheet at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium against Arsenal was the most memorable appearance of her short Spurs career. She earned the Player of the Match award and sealed her status as a cult hero in Spurs Women history.
• Nile John is headed to the Portuguese second tier with CD Feirense on a permanent transfer. He made two senior appearances for the club and was a trusted mainstay in the Academy.
• Alejo Véliz is going on loan to Espanyol in La Liga after a frustrating lack of minutes on his previous loan to Sevilla. Hopefully he has a bigger part to play at Espanyol and gives himself a fighting chance to get back in the Tottenham squad next season.
• Emerson Royal is joining AC Milan after three seasons with Spurs, and over 100 appearances. He wasn't a great fit for Angeball, but there was never a dull moment.
• Dane Scarlett got a reprieve from a permanent departure but is still going out on loan this season. He'll be with Championship side Oxford United for the full campaign. Like Véliz, he didn't have the best time on his previous loan (at newly promoted Ipswich Town), but a strong loan season could put him back into the striker mix at Spurs—or lead to a better transfer out than he would have found this summer.
• Jamie Donley is following in Harry Kane's footsteps and going on loan to Leyton Orient at a pivotal moment in his development. It would have been nice to see him earn more minutes with Spurs in the cup campaigns, but it's probably a better strategy at this point for him to be a starter week in and week out at a lower-division side to help him adapt to the rigors of a senior football season. He did pick up an injury near the end of the previous Academy season, however, so hopefully they keep a close eye on his fitness.
Best of luck to everyone at their new clubs and on their loans!
There's one other departure that (for now) is only rumored and is a bit sad to think about, so let's save it until it becomes official.
Contract updates
• Mikey Moore signed his first professional contract with the club upon turning 17. The contract is for three years, the most allowed for a player of his age under FIFA regulations. He's already made two PL appearances and looked very bright in pre-season, but Ange has highlighted the need for caution when developing such a young player, particularly one who has had some injury issues in the past. It's been reported that the club offered him the largest salary to date for such a young player, so clearly, everyone involved in the decision was keen to ensure that such a promising talent continues his development at Tottenham.
News from around the Lane
• Spurs Women confirmed the provisional dates and times for our WSL fixtures this season. It was disappointing to see that there aren't any matches currently scheduled to be played at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, especially as other clubs are moving a majority (if not all) of their WSL fixtures to their clubs' main stadia. It would be nice to see Spurs lead in this area, but we look poised to fall behind this season. Let's hope the increased buzz around the Women's team after the FA Cup final will translate into better attendance at Brisbane Road at least.
• In other frustrating news regarding Spurs Women, all of the pre-season games will be held behind closed doors and, as far as we know, not streamed. The first friendly was a 6-1 win over London City Lionesses, which included a brace from Lenna Gunning-Williams and Wang Shuang's first goal in a Spurs shirt. You can read the full match report here, but it sure would be nice to be able to watch and get absurdly worked up over pre-season games for the Women's team as we do for the Men's. The last three friendlies will be against Southampton, Feyenoord, and Manchester United.
• I guess they finally chose a name for the "NewCo," because apparently, Women's Professional Leagues Limited (WPLL) has taken over control of the WSL from the FA, along with the second-tier Championship. The press release notes that WPLL will engage with all relevant stakeholders and "will work collaboratively with these groups to develop comprehensive strategies that support the sport’s growth and sustainability." The proof will (hopefully) be in the pudding. Not to be a grumpy American, but from my perspective, the WSL has been lagging far behind the NWSL in many areas, including a lack of expansion and lukewarm support from broadcasters. At the end of the day, I love both leagues and want them both to thrive—especially the players who make them what they are.
• In Spurs alumni news, Grace Clinton was nominated for PFA Young Player of the Season for her breakout campaign on loan with Spurs.
• There will be a few tweaks to the Premier League rules this season. This article from The Athletic has a good rundown.
Dan Sheldon
The most salient bit for Spurs fans to know is that goalkeepers should (I repeat, should) get more protection from referees this season. Good news for Vicario for sure! I'm also interested to see how the new practice of not slowing down replays (unless it's to determine point of contact) will affect VAR outcomes.
Previewing PL Matchday 1 — Leicester City
This is not the Leicester City side that last graced the Premier League, far from it.
Steve Cooper is now in charge after Enzo Maresca jumped ship to manage another ship that is quickly taking on water, Chelsea. Key players like Jamie Vardy and Patson Daka are injured to start the season and won't be featuring tomorrow, while several mainstays left as free agents (Kelechi Iheanacho, Marc Albrighton, and Dennis Praet) and Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall left for... also Chelsea.
One positive move they made this summer was to bring in Bobby De Cordova-Reid from Fulham, although he is not the most consistent player. Facundo Buonanotte also joined the Foxes on loan from Brighton but is still relatively inexperienced.
There's always the Harry Winks wildcard factor, but let's not manifest a wonder goal into being.
Spurs, on the other hand, are largely fit to start the season; Richarlison will need to be eased in, but Destiny Udogie is expected to be available.
Yves Bissouma is suspended because he lacks maturity and common sense, so the #6 role is a big question mark in the starting lineup. Another player who probably should be suspended as well for his summer slip-ups, Rodrigo Bentancur, is nevertheless available and will probably get the nod, but Postecoglou could throw a curveball and start newcomer Archie Gray instead. If both Gray and Lucas Bergvall don't make their Premier League debuts on the first matchday I will be shocked.
It seems like a given that Dominic Solanke will get his first start for Spurs on opening day, and not just out of necessity—Richarlison has only recently come back into training and didn't get any pre-season minutes. Ange Postecoglou has made no secret of his intention to throw Solanke straight into the fray:
I have always felt that if you get the recruitment right then whoever it is hits the ground running. We signed Micky van de Ven three days before the first game last year, against Brentford, and we threw him straight in. He literally hit the ground running. We are trying to identify players who fit into our style of football. There will be a bit of adjustment but hopefully they will already have those qualities to come into the group and contribute straight away. That is my expectation when we sign someone - they will be ready to contribute from the moment they arrive.
Coming off such a strong pre-season from an attacking sense, I fully expect Spurs (and Son Heung-min in particular) to make Wout Faes beat the ground in frustration again. Our own defense is still a work in progress, so I shouldn't cast too many stones, but it will help that we'll (almost certainly) have our preferred back-four starting.
Perhaps it's silly to say a season opener against a newly promoted team is a must-win, but if we want to be serious about achieving lofty goals this season (and keep pace with the other top teams that already got their business done this weekend), it kind of is! So here's to a three-point start to the PL campaign.
See y'all on the other side of the final whistle!
COYS
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