Tom Bellwood

Tottenham captain Cristian Romero was replaced by Kevin Danso in Spurs’ starting line-up after suffering an injury during the warm-up ahead of the Premier League clash with Aston Villa, which the Villans won 2-1. Romero missed a huge chunk of last season due to injury and it’s another major headache for Spurs boss Thomas Frank, who is already without a number of senior players on the long-term injured list.

Mathys Tel has revealed the pain of being left out of Tottenham's Champions League squad left him fuming, but has vowed to use the snub as motivation and prove his doubters wrong. Spurs' decision was due in part to the club's struggles to meet UEFA's homegrown player quota, which forced manager Thomas Frank to reduce the squad size from 25 to 22, meaning several players had to be excluded, including Tel.

The gap between Liverpool and Manchester United is wider than it has ever been during the Premier League era and Alan Shearer has underlined this by only selecting one United player in a combined starting XI with their fierce Anfield rivals. The old foes face off on Sunday with Arne Slot’s side huge favourites to win the three points and the bragging rights for Liverpool fans.

Under-fire Forest manager Ange Postecoglou launched into a passionate defence of his managerial career and believes he will never be accepted in England, despite his track-record of winning trophies. Postecoglou goes into Saturday's clash with Chelsea knowing another defeat could cost him his job, just weeks after taking over from the sacked Nuno Espirito Santo.

Developing plans for a buy-out of Manchester United could include the return of one of the club's most celebrated former stars after Eric Cantona was named as a potential ambassador if the Glazer family decide to sell-up. And while those planning a mega-money bid haven’t officially announced their interest, talk of Canton’s return has excited United fans.

Ex-Newcastle midfielder Jonjo Shelvey has rejected the notion his former club can’t attract superstar players to the north east after a number of big-name summer signings elected to join rival teams in Manchester and London this summer. Shelvey believes it's a mistake to look down on the region and has spoken of the love players feel from supporters at St James’ Park.

Newcastle star Joelinton has pledged to supply the chances to make new signing Nick Woltemade a goal-scoring success for the Magpies. Toon boss Eddie Howe has endured an erratic season so far, but can move onto the top half of the table with victory over Brighton and his Brazil star is confident Woltemade will help fire them up the table.

Tottenham supporters have continued to vent their frustration as work on a massive hotel springs up next to their ground, which they claim will block the view of their home for those visiting the stadium. The building will also block the skyline view of London’s famous landmarks for fans inside the ground looking south into the capital.

Four key Man Utd stars sat out training just days ahead of the crunch derby clash with Liverpool as boss Ruben Amorim continues the struggle to turn his side’s season around. Bruno Fernandes, Matheus Cunha, Amad Diallo and Casemiro were all absent following their involvement in international fixtures in the past fortnight.

FIFA is redrafting its regulations concerning domestic league games played in foreign countries and seeking legal advice on potentially banning them outright, after UEFA reluctantly approved LaLiga and Serie A matches to be played overseas. The games to be played are Villarreal v Barcelona in Miami and AC Milan v Como in Perth.

Tottenham have joined the list of teams keen on signing Brentford attacker Kevin Schade, with the Bees’ former boss lining up a potential switch. Frank signed Schade from Freiburg in 2023 and now wants to reunite with the Germany international.

Martin Zubimendi has revealed the details behind Mikel Arteta’s charm offensive as the Arsenal boss successfully pursued the Spain star’s signature. Arteta landed Zubimendi, who had been linked with Liverpool, and the determination the Gunners boss showed has paid off following his summer signing's impressive start to life in north London.

Real Madrid have been urged to give up their hopes of forming a breakaway European league and told they will be welcomed back by the “football family” after years of conflict with governing body UEFA. The proposed European Super League (ESL) of 12 clubs collapsed within hours of its announcement in 2021 and Real are now alone in continuing to pursue the idea.

Alexander Isak and Viktor Gyokeres were signed for a combined £185 million ($247m), becoming two of the most controversial transfer stories of the summer, but the pair flopped spectacularly when it mattered most for their country after they failed to hit the target during a damaging 2-0 defeat by Switzerland. The defeat leaves Sweden’s World Cup hopes hanging by a thread.

Thomas Tuchel has told English players they can’t expect special treatment and must earn the right to play for Premier League clubs. The number of homegrown players has dipped alarmingly in recent years, but the Three Lions boss believes domestic clubs aren’t to blame as players must fight harder to earn a place in their team.

Ivan Toney could make a sensational return to the Premier League in a last-gasp bid to be included in England manager Thomas Tuchel’s World Cup plans. Toney left Brentford last year to join Al Ahli in the Saudi Pro League, but has dropped down the Three Lions’ pecking order and could make a dramatic move to force his way back in.

Portugal remain focused on landing the greatest prize in world football after Bruno Fernandes vowed the team are playing to win the World Cup for the entire nation. Portugal have a 100 per cent record heading into the Group F qualifier clash with Ireland, and Fernandes has spoken of the emotion he and his team-mates feel ahead of the tournament.

Kylian Mbappe’s stunning solo goal helped France ease to a comfortable 3-0 victory and take another giant step towards qualifying for next years’ World Cup with victory over Azerbaijan in Paris. Adrien Rabiot and Florian Thauvin were also on target, but there were worrying scenes towards the end as talisman Mbappe signalled to come off with what looked like an ankle injury.