Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham will be fresh from their training camp in Marbella and we are about to find out if it worked.

If they don't beat Coventry and get their first win of the season, then they will probably have to go back out there next week as well.

Being serious, they do look like they are improving already and they played well against Manchester United last week.

Coventry are a dangerous counter-attacking team, and their pace in forward areas will cause problems, but this is going to be Tottenham's night.

Sutton's prediction: 2-1

Read the full predictions and have your say here

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Hearing about Tottenham's team-bonding trip to Marbella last week made me think about the similar methods I used as a manager to build team morale.

While some things have changed from my day, the idea behind taking your players away to a new environment where they will benefit from spending a lot of time together has not.

Roberto de Zerbi needed time with his players on the training pitch after their poor start to the season, to bed them in and build a proper team.

He will have used their warm-weather camp in southern Spain to do more of that, getting to know what is almost a new squad of players.

With De Zerbi being cut from Italian cloth, I'm sure the players will have been working mornings and afternoons to drill in the manager's principles in respect to team shape and direction.

But that's not the only purpose of taking them away - he will have been able to also monitor the different personalities within the group away from the grass.

If the trip has worked then, as well as getting them ready to face Coventry City on Monday night, I'm sure he will now understand the strengths and weaknesses of each individual, on and off the field, for the very first time.

A few eyebrows were raised about Tottenham going away so early in the season, but it makes perfect sense to me when you consider so many new players arrived there this summer.

When I was Stoke manager, I often took my teams away to Austria in our pre-season for the same reasons De Zerbi and Tottenham have gone to Spain.

Those trips were not only set up to test the players' fitness, but also to see how the group worked together.

I've always believed in building a family togetherness within the dressing room, with a commitment from every player to the benefit of the team.

The extreme tests that we asked our players to do over that 10-day period brought out an inner determination to fulfil the tasks given to them and, in my opinion, helped us through some tough times early on in our Premier League campaigns.

Watching the lads slowly bond together on the training pitch and at meal times was great to see - and I found out a lot about all of them, good and bad.

Read Tony Pulis' full column here

Tottenham are continuing to monitor Eintracht Frankfurt's German forward Younes Ebnoutalib, 23. (TeamTalk), external

Tottenham are interested in signing Japanese midfielder Yuito Suzuki, 24, from Freiburg as Roberto de Zerbi looks to strengthen his squad. (Fussball News via CaughtOffside), external

Arsenal and Tottenham are keeping an eye on Barcelona youngster Xavi Espart, 19, but they could be held back by the Spanish defender's significant release clause. (CaughtOffside), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Monday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Paul Birch
BBC Sport journalist

Tottenham go in search of a first league win of the season against a Coventry City side who have roared into form with back-to-back victories. BBC Sport takes a look at some of the key themes going into Monday's fixture.

Can Tottenham banish home woes to record a first victory?

In the wake of their draw with Manchester United, Tottenham headed to Marbella for a few days of warm weather training and, more importantly, squad bonding. "The target is to build the team," head coach Roberto de Zerbi explained. "We are a great group of players, but we are not a team yet."

His side certainly looked like more of a cohesive unit at Old Trafford, but their slick approach play was squandered by yet more profligacy in front of goal as their winless start stretched to six league matches.

Only two top-flight sides have completed more passes in the final third than Spurs' 770 and just three teams have had more touches in the opposition box than their 182. Yet a shot conversion rate of 3.6% is the worst in the league and De Zerbi's side have underperformed their xG by 3.6 goals.

Three goals after six league matches is the second lowest tally in their history, beaten only by the two scored at the start of 2006-07.

They are still yet to lead in a league match this season or score a goal before the 86th minute.

One thing they still cannot count on is home comforts. They have managed a paltry five wins in their past 36 league matches at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, dating back to November 2024.

Moreover, they have fallen behind in a remarkable 52 of their 79 home league games since the start of 2022-23.

Sky-high Sky Blues looking to make it a hat-trick of wins

Coventry travel to north London on the crest of a wave having made it back-to-back wins in style with a 4-1 thrashing of Newcastle. Six points from six games is the same as Manchester United have mustered and is a long way from the zero points and zero goals they had taken from their opening four matches.

These crucial - and potentially season altering - victories over Nottingham Forest and Newcastle mean the Sky Blues have the chance to become only the fourth top-flight side to lose their opening four matches to a season then win three in a row after Derby County in 1899-00, Arsenal in 1923-24 and Aston Villa in 1997-98.

A victory would also mark the first time they have won three Premier League matches in succession since a run of five between January and February 1998 under Gordon Strachan.

Although their most famous win of all came against Tottenham in the 1987 FA Cup final, their past five meetings have all ended in defeat and they last won away at Spurs in 1997.

However, that victory was particularly memorable as their 2-1 win on the final day of the season helped secure their top-flight status in highly dramatic circumstances.

In 19th position at kick off, goals from Dion Dublin and Paul Williams helped them leapfrog both Sunderland and Middlesbrough to finish one place and one point above the drop zone.

One man who does knows how to avoid defeat against Tottenham is head coach Frank Lampard.

During his playing days he won more matches against Spurs than he did against any other opponent and lost just eight of 41 encounters. As a manager, he has been beaten in only two of six meetings with the Lilywhites.

George Booth
BBC Sport journalist

Tottenham boss Roberto de Zerbi has been speaking to the media before Monday's Premier League game against Coventry City at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium (kick-off 20:00 BST).

Here are the key lines from his news conference:

• Forward Savio will be ruled out "for some weeks" after suffering a "muscular problem" after the 1-1 draw at Manchester United.

• De Zerbi also confirmed Swedish midfielder Lucas Bergvall will miss Monday's game after feeling "pain" in his knee. The Spurs boss added: "The day after Manchester on Sunday, he came to the training ground to our medical staff and I think [he is out for] two weeks."

• Midfielder Dejan Kulusevski will make a return to the matchday squad after being sidelined since May 2025. The Spurs boss said the 26-year-old's return was "great news" and that Kulusevski "deserves to feel emotion on the pitch".

• Pedro Porro will continue to recover from a hamstring injury, and the Spain defender may return against Chelsea.

• On Richarlison playing with the under-21s, De Zerbi said: "It's not my problem anymore" and that he has "no problem with nobody".

• He added: "You have to ask Vinai [Venkatesham] (chief executive) and Johan [Lange] (sporting director). I know as a coach I have to accept, to support, to take responsibility, even if it is not my responsibility. If he wants to speak about me, he knows where he can find me. I don't want to speak anymore because my focus is on the Coventry game and the focus is for us to improve my team."

• On facing Coventry: "Coventry is a good team. They played a fantastic Championship last season. They deserved to win the league and to play in the Premier League this season. They played with energy and quality. We want to show ourselves to be good and win the games, especially if we deserve to win the games."

• Spurs' training camp trip to Marbella "worked well", and it allowed players to make "connections".

• He added: "I think we have to improve in the result, not in the quality of the performances, but you have to find all the ways to improve. Ways to be better, ways to become stronger as a group. The players spent time together, and they stayed together a lot."

Image source, Getty Images

Tottenham fan Kish Patel has been discussing Roberto de Zerbi's options at centre-back for Monday's match against Coventry.

"[Marcos] Senesi and [Jan Paul] van Hecke played very well against Manchester United. They cut through United's press with ease and broke multiple lines at once to get us back to front very quicky.

"I thought that was a great plan that worked well, but the Coventry game is a whole different proposition. They will be very compact and look to block the central spaces, not allowing Spurs to cut through as easily as they did against Manchester United. I don't think the direct pass is going to be on.

"The trade-off is not worth it to drop [Micky] van de Ven because I don't think those centre-backs are going to have as much relevance in the game as they did against Manchester United.

"It will be about playing shorter passes, going around the block and playing through the flanks a bit more. For that reason, I think Van de Ven has to come back in because he is such a good recovery defender.

"Personally, I would like to see Senesi partner Van de Ven and is slightly better defensively than Van Hecke."

Listen to the full discussion on BBC Sounds here or by pressing play below

Image source, Getty Images

Can James Maddison be the missing piece of the puzzle for Tottenham?

Former Coventry City academy coach Richard Stevens believes the midfielder has the ability "to connect everything together" for Roberto de Zerbi's side, who remain winless in the Premier League after six matches.

Maddison, who is coming back from injury, came off the bench at Manchester United on Saturday for a fifth time this season and made an impact as Spurs fought back to leave Old Trafford with a point.

"His driver is, 'am I playing 90 minutes and can I go and score some goals and ignite the fans?'," said Stevens. "Even in a 10-minute spell, when he comes on he takes the ball and he makes things happen.

"He makes things tick and he gets the team playing forwards. He gets the team moving up the pitch.

"And, good grief, Tottenham have had a tough time. They're an unbelievable football club and you know the players they have, maybe he's the bit that's going to connect everything together.

"I hope he's going to return and he's going to connect everything together for Tottenham because I think he has that ability to do that."

Maddison will face his boyhood club Coventry City on Monday for just the third time since being sold on transfer deadline day in 2016 aged 19.

"Everybody's really proud and Coventry will be proud as well," added Stevens. "They'll be looking forward to playing against him, I'm sure."

Keifer MacDonald
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Tottenham loanee Mikey Moore says the success of Jadon Sancho and Jude Bellingham in the Bundesliga influenced his decision to join FC Koln.

The 19-year-old became the latest English talent to move to the German top flight after completing a season-long loan move to the RheinEnergieStadion last month.

Speaking on Thursday's Euro Leagues podcast - which will be broadcast on BBC Radio 5 Live at 21:00 BST - before Friday's Bundesliga match with Eintracht Frankfurt, Moore revealed that the success of his fellow Englishmen had inspired him to turn down offers from England in favour of a move to Germany.

"I think over the years you've seen so many young players come out here, and there are some really good examples of world-class players like Jude Bellingham and Jadon Sancho doing really well," Moore said.

"It's a really attractive place to play football, especially for a young attacker. It's a great platform to play, and that was sold to me by the people at the club and the manager.

"They've put real trust in me, and the amount of game time I've played so quickly in my Koln career has been nice. It's been good to have that trust from all the staff and people at the club.

"I'm already happy with my decision. Now I can really kick on, make my own story and build my own path in German football."

Although Moore only turned 19 in August, he is no stranger to stepping outside his comfort zone.

Last season, he made 47 appearances in all competitions, including the Champions League qualifying rounds, during a loan spell at Scottish Premiership side Rangers.

It was the first time Moore had left his boyhood club Tottenham, and he rose to the challenge, scoring six goals and providing two assists in 28 Scottish Premiership appearances.

The experience offered a different test to the one he now faces in Germany, but it provided valuable exposure to the demands of first-team football.

"I had options to stay in England and maybe stay somewhere a little more comfortable," Moore said.

"But the conversations came down to me picking a team, and I wanted to take myself a little bit out of my comfort zone to test myself in a big league and one of the top five leagues.

"When we were speaking, everyone said they thought it would be a really good experience for me to experience this type of football.

"It's really intense, and there are some great teams in the league.

"For me, it was a no-brainer. I made the decision early that I wanted to come out here, and now I just need to push on."

Read the full article here

Keifer MacDonald
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Less than four years after representing Brazil at the 2022 World Cup, Richarlison's downward spiral was laid bare as he scored in front of a couple of hundred supporters for Tottenham's under-21s against Cheltenham Town in the EFL Trophy.

The Brazilian, who cost Spurs £60m from Everton and was rubbing shoulders with Neymar Jr and Vinicius Jr on international duty not so long ago, looked almost embarrassed to celebrate his thumping half-volley against the League Two outfit.

He also notched a penalty in a shootout that Spurs' reserves lost 7-6 after a 2-2 draw.

The 29-year-old was making only his second appearance of the season, and his first since the end of August against Brentford, having been left out of Tottenham's Premier League squad.

Roberto de Zerbi insisted the decision to omit him from the club's 25-man squad in September was not his, following the forward's failed move back to Merseyside at the end of the summer transfer window.

But Spurs are the top-flight's lowest scorers this season with just three goals, so the decision to leave last season's 12-goal leading scorer out of their league plans looks increasingly difficult to justify.

For a couple of hours on transfer deadline day, it seemed only a matter of time before Richarlison left Tottenham.

He was closing in on an idyllic return to Everton, more than four years after swapping Merseyside for North London.

But, after expressing his desire to depart, a proposed move to Hill Dickinson Stadium fell through, leaving both the player and the club with few alternatives at such a late stage in the window.

A proposed move to Brazilian side Vasco da Gama also fell through after Richarlison failed to agree personal terms.

He was also ruled out of Spurs' Carabao Cup tie against Liverpool last month, with only players registered in their club's respective league squads eligible to feature in the competition.

The ex-Watford forward may now have to get used to the surroundings of English football's lower leagues, with the EFL Trophy's group stage offering him a rare opportunity to gain competitive minutes before January.

Read the full article here

Pedro Porro's time at Tottenham is drawing to an end, with Barcelona keen on the 27-year-old defender. (Sport - in Spanish), external

Tottenham, Manchester United and Evertonare keeping tabs on 6ft 5in Dinamo Zagreband Croatia striker Dion Beljo. (Teamtalk), external

Tottenham, Brighton, Juventus, Atletico Madrid and Borussia Dortmund are among the teams interested in Benfica's 18-year-old Portuguese right-back Daniel Banjaqui. (4-4-2.ch - in German), external

Want more transfer stories? Read Wednesday's full gossip column

Follow the gossip column on BBC Sport

Dale Johnson
Football issues correspondent

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Imagine a world where Manchester City had not used "sham contracts" to build a team capable of winning three Premier League titles, one FA Cup and three EFL Cups.

If City were the winners, then there had to be losers - and not just those teams who finished runners-up or lost cup finals.

The potential impact runs much deeper and includes missed Champions League qualification, relegation and Premier League prize money.

"We have lived through a period of deception," former Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino said last month. "No type of punishment will make it possible to repair what was done."

You can see his point. Spurs finished one place outside the Champions League positions in four (although one only was under Pochettino) of the eight seasons in which City qualified for Europe's elite competition.

BBC Sport took City's earnings from the Champions League in the following season, and deducted Tottenham's Europa League prize money.

Over the four seasons Spurs missed out, Manchester City earned £148.2m from the Champions League, with Tottenham taking £29.9m from the Europa League.

The 2014-15 campaign led to the biggest deficit, as City finished second in the Premier League and Tottenham came fifth. City received £71.2m for reaching the Champions League semi-finals in the following season, but Spurs were only paid £17.7m from the Europa League - a difference of £53.5m.

Spurs also finished behind City in the Premier League table six times, with the cumulative prize money difference worth £6.6m.

The north Londoners did benefit in the 2013-14 season, as they only qualified for Europe because City beat Sunderland in the final of the EFL Cup.

Spurs gained £5.1m from their 2014-15 Europa League campaign which would not have been possible without City's success.

Taking into account all competitions, that produced a net financial loss for Spurs of £119.9m.

Learn more about how the numbers were calculated here

Emma Smith
BBC Sport journalist

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Leaping high, six yards out, to nod in Tommy Conway's cross from the left wing, Will Lankshear notched his ninth goal in 12 games for Middlesbrough.

It is that positioning, finishing and poacher's instinct, earning Boro a 1-0 win against Wolves on Saturday, that has made Lankshear an instant hit at Riverside Stadium – and a cause of lament at Tottenham Hotspur.

Lankshear joined Boro from Spurs in the summer on a five-year contract in a deal that could rise to a club record buy of £20m.

Since then, he has scored as many goals in all competitions as Spurs' combined team. His old side, despite snatching a draw at Manchester United a few hours after Lankshear's latest winner, remain in the Premier League relegation zone while Boro sit in the Championship's automatic promotion places.

Dominic Solanke's last-minute goal at Old Trafford was the first league goal scored by a Tottenham forward in five months.

It is enough to make Spurs fans despair.

"A lot of fans are wondering why he was sold," Ali Speechly, co-chair of the Women of the Lane supporters' group, told BBC Sport.

"It was likely to do with money - his sell-on price is relatively high, so let's cash in on him.

"I was definitely disappointed. Given how badly we have started this season, as a fan it feels like the wrong decision."

Amid a multi-million pound summer splurge, Spurs allowed Lankshear to leave for an initial fee worth about £10m, with an additional £10m due in add-ons based on various clauses.

Lankshear scored 23 goals for Tottenham's U23 team in the 2023–24 Premier League 2 season and played for the senior side in the 2024-25 Europa League campaign – most notably scoring then getting sent off against Galatasaray.

A 6ft 2in English striker with a deadly finishing touch, who came through at Spurs before learning his trade in the Football League. Remind you of anyone?

"I can understand the comparisons with Harry Kane," former Spurs goalkeeper Paul Robinson told BBC Sport. "He has headed down a similar career path to Harry and, physically, he has a similar stature as well.

"Like Kane, he looks like a player who is developing a little later, compared to others who are Premier League regulars before the end of their teens."

Tottenham do not have the right to immediately bring Lankshear back next summer. Clauses in the deal give them the right to be notified of and match any future accepted bid that Middlesbrough receive, and Spurs will get 20% of any profit on any future sale.

They have first refusal rather than a guaranteed, pre-set buy-back, but there remains a feeling Boro are enjoying Lankshear while they can.

Read more on Lankshear here

Nizaar Kinsella
Football reporter

Image source, Getty Images

Shakhtar Donetsk chief executive Sergei Palkin is seeking an amicable agreement with Tottenham over compensation for winger Manor Solomon.

The Ukrainian champions previously threatened legal action after losing the Israel international in 2023.

Following Russia's invasion of Ukraine, a Fifa ruling allowed foreign players at clubs in both countries to suspend their contracts immediately.

It meant Spurs were able to sign Solomon on a free transfer, despite Shakhtar believing the forward had a market value of 20m euros (£16.9). The club had paid 6.5m euros (£5.5m) to sign him from Maccabi Petah Tikva in January 2019.

Asked whether Shakhtar were due compensation after Spurs sold Solomon to West Ham for an initial £5m this summer, Palkin said: "We had arguments and discussions with Tottenham.

"Verbally we agreed that when they sell the player they will pay us part of the sale. Now we will come to them officially with our suggestions and our view of the situation.

"If we have problems in these discussions and negotiations we will go to some intermediaries."

Asked who those intermediaries would be, Palkin added: "I don't know yet. Maybe the European Club Association or Cas (Court of Arbitration for Sport). It depends.

"If they are friendly and we agree, then this issue is closed. It's better to do it in a friendly way."

Spurs have been contacted for comment.

Meanwhile, Mykhailo Mudryk, now on loan at Spurs from Chelsea, began his career at Shakhtar and remains the club's record sale after moving to west London for an initial £61m in 2023.

Palkin remains in close contact with the Ukraine international, who is looking to get his career back on track in north London under his former Shakhtar coach Roberto de Zerbi.

Palkin added: "I told him that Tottenham was the best solution for him.

"De Zerbi knows him very, very well. When we signed De Zerbi, the first player he called was Mudryk. He knows everything Mudryk can do.

"Mudryk gave everything to become fit and train at a high level. He's a hard worker. I believe he will be rewarded for that."

We asked for your thoughts after Saturday's Premier League game between Manchester United and Tottenham.

Here are some of your comments:

Man Utd fans

Steve: It's plainly obvious that Tielemans is not the right midfield partner for Mainoo. Man Utd need someone with a bit of pace and energy to accompany Mainoo to have an effective midfield platform. Baleba or Santos would both provide this and I am not sure why Carrick doesn't see this.

Dave: Only one team in this game and it wasn't United. Absolutely rubbish, embarrassing, everything too slow. I think it's time for Carrick to walk.

Chris: Some big changes are needed from Carrick in the next games. Martinez is a liability in defence with both goals in the last two games a result of his poor defending. Tielemans shouldn't be in midfield as he got caught out too many times. Yoro needs to start in the centre to add more composure and presence - he had a good game versus Spurs. Baleba was bright and positive when he came on so he should start with Mainoo in midfield. Big games ahead for Michael Carrick!

Hugo: Very poor performance. We had no control in first half. It was lucky they were not four goals down by half time. Total lack of quality in the play. It was slow, with no drive or energy and poor passing all over the pitch. Is it lack of confidence? Or bad tactics and understanding of what they are doing.

Tottenham fans

Errol: I thought we dominated the first hour of the game and could have scored five goals if we had taken our chances. We showed plenty of character and determination too after going a goal down and then down to 10 men. Hope we can take this performance into our next game and finally get three points.

Chris: An encouraging performance by Spurs. We now need to start scoring more goals.

Geoff: Gritty to get the equaliser, but poor finishing after a promising and dominant start... again.

Martin: We should have been two or three up at half time. The game should have been over. We were so dominant but it's goals that count. We should have won that game.

Rogers: Good performance first half but incapable of scoring. Except for the Brentford game we have dominated large parts of every game but we have no goalscorer and it's difficult to see how that is going to change.

Emily Salley
BBC Sport journalist

Image source, Getty Images

Despite the late elation sparked by Dominic Solanke's 92nd-minute equaliser, Tottenham remain in the relegation zone with just three points from their opening six matches.

It is just the fourth time the club have failed to win any of their opening six games of a league season, after 2008-09, 1955-56 and 1912-13.

Spurs have often looked lively in attack this season, but they have lacked conviction in front of goal and only 19th-placed Coventry have scored fewer goals than Tottenham's three.

However, Tottenham fans can take belief from their overall performance at Old Trafford as they ran Manchester United ragged in the opening half with fluid, high-tempo football.

"For the first time this season we showed we are a team," boss Roberto de Zerbi said.

"We played for the team-mates, we played together, we stayed inside of the game in every situation and we attacked as a team and defended as a team."

The Italian manager added on Sky Sports: "I'm very happy because I've seen the right spirit, the right character and I want to start from this character, this reaction, this behaviour."

Tottenham spent more than £250m on new talent over the summer - adding 10 players to their squad.

But their poor start has prompted the club to organise a warm-weather training camp in Spain in the hope it will provide a chance for their new-look squad to bond.

"Now the target is to build the team," De Zerbi said.

"We are a great group of players but we are not a team yet; to be a team is to play for the team-mates, suffer together, attack together."

Spurs face newly promoted Coventry on 19 October before making the short trip to Chelsea the following Saturday.