The Telegraph

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Oliver Skipp has attracted interest from all three of the clubs promoted to the Premier League last season — Leicester City, Ipswich Town and Southampton.

Skipp is expected to leave Spurs by the time the summer transfer window closes at the end of this month and is being eyed by a number of clubs.

The 23-year-old made 24 appearances for the north London club last season but will be allowed to leave in search of more regular first-team football.

Skipp has been at Spurs since the age of eight and spent a successful season on loan at Norwich City in the 2020/21 campaign.

Winks reunion

Leicester sold midfielder Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall to Chelsea earlier in the transfer window and signing Skipp would enable him to link up with another former Spurs player, Harry Winks.

Ipswich, whose manager Keiran McKenna played and coached at Tottenham Hotspur while Skipp was at the club, are looking to strengthen their squad for the forthcoming season, as are Southampton.

Spurs are still looking to sell a number of players, with AC Milan hoping to seal a deal for Emerson Royal and Richarlison still linked to a move to Saudi Arabia.

Solanke interest

As reported by Telegraph Sport, Spurs are working on trying to sign striker Dominic Solanke from Bournemouth, who have told clubs they want the full £65million in his contract paid.

Solanke is thought to be open to the move and keen on having another go at a so-called big club, having previously played for Chelsea and Liverpool.

Spurs want to negotiate a lower initial price than Solanke’s buy-out and are also interested in Wolverhampton Wanderers star Pedro Neto, but are yet to make a bid for the winger.

Wolves are not in the market for a new midfielder, so there is currently no prospect of Spurs offering Skipp as part of a bid for Neto.

Tottenham Hotspur are attempting to make progress in a move for Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke.

Solanke is high on Tottenham’s list of striker targets and the club have held talks regarding a move for the former Chelsea and Liverpool man.

The 26-year-old has a high buy-out in his Bournemouth contract, thought to be around £65 million, which clubs have so far been unwilling to match.

Tottenham could try to strike a deal under the clause by offering Bournemouth favourable payment terms, but the London club have work to do to make significant progress.

Head coach Ange Postecoglou has made it clear that he wants to add a striker to his squad and Solanke is seen as a good fit for his style.

Solanke scored 21 goals in all competitions for Bournemouth last season and just missed out on a place in England’s squad for the European Championships.

Heung-min Son top-scored for Tottenham last season, with 17 goals, and played most of the season through the middle.

But Postecoglou would like to have the option to move Son back out to the left, where he is arguably more effective, by signing a recognised striker.

Richarlison scored 11 league goals in a campaign interrupted by injuries and the Brazilian has interest from Saudi Arabia.

Having started his career at Chelsea, before moving to Liverpool, Solanke would like another opportunity at one of the Premier League’s biggest clubs.

Solanke’s former club Chelsea have also shown an interest in re-signing him this summer, but have so far been put off by Bournemouth’s valuation.

Tottenham did not follow up their long-standing interest in Atletico Madrid-bound Conor Gallagher with a firm offer for the midfielder.

Chelsea’s preference was to sell Gallagher overseas and Atletico have offered the England international a package that would have potentially placed him among Tottenham’s highest earners.

“I thought we played pretty good. They are a good team and we knew this. They are one of the best teams in Europe.

“We tried to play good football and stick to our principles. There are things we can work on. We had a great time here in Korea, we felt welcome and appreciated here

“I was excited to come back to meet the guys and the staff and start training.”

On the heat in Korea:

“Its normal for it to be hard, we train at the highest level. But this is the nicest part of football - when you train hard you have good results. We have a couple of weeks left until the premier league and we will go full throttle.”

On Romania’s amazing performance in the European Championships:

“It was an incredible tournament for us as a team and a country. We tried to give our best and achieved something very important for us. We want more and we will try to build on this tournament and try to go onwards.”

On Tottenham’s pre-season:

“I feel the guys are in a great condition. I am trying to reach this condition too and am working every day. We are going to be 100% when the season starts to try to achieve something good here.

“The love they give us here [in South Korea] is unbelievable. There’s no better place to train and get in shape than here - they’ve been incredible.”

That’ll do it here and Spurs couldn’t find the equaliser. They had a couple of chances to tie it up but Bayern were good value for the win and had the vast majority of quality shots.

Postecoglou will be impressed by the efforts of his younger stars when they came off the bench. In particular Bergvall was fantastic. He was physical and calm on the ball which gave his side a foothold in midfield which they lacked in the first half.

Irankunda looked very dangerous off the bench for Bayern as he continues his fine form in pre-season.

Telegraph Sport has revealed that Ange Postecoglou will feature on the FA’s list of potential replacements for Gareth Southgate following his resignation announcement.

The Australian has had a successful start to life in England and his dry, sarcastic approach to media engagements has endeared him to much of the Premier League community.

His positive, attacking style of football will surely be a key reason for FA technical director John McDermott’s interest in him; England fans have been crying out for a manager to entertain them and Ange would do just that.

Despite the interest, Tottenham Hotspur is confident they will be able to hold onto their manager especially considering he only signed his four-year contract last summer. It is thought that the only job he would consider would be Manchester City, provided Guardiola decided to call it a day.

Many will have picked this fixture out as an opportunity to see former Tottenham talisman Harry Kane line up against his former comrades. However, we will have to wait as he has been given an extended break following England’s deep run in the Euros.

Disappointing as this is we should get another chance to see him in action when Bayern make the trip to North London for the Visit Malta Cup next week.

This won’t be Kane’s first time back in town – as Spurs fans will gleefully remember the German heavyweights knocked Arsenal out of the Champions League back in April. Harry featured heavily, scoring a penalty at the Emirates taking his tally up to 14 - the most by any player against the Gunners.

There will, however, be a familiar face in the Munich dugout. Vincent Kompany was a Premier League mainstay and the cornerstone of Manchester City’s original dynasty. Having retired just two years ago, he made his return to England’s top flight and our televisions by leading his plucky Burnley side as their manager.

Despite the task of survival proving too challenging, his style of play and man-management skills convinced the powers at be that he would be the perfect fit to succeed Thomas Tuchel as head coach of Bayern Munich.

Eric Dier should also feature this game despite being named on the substitutes bench. He played for a decade at White Hart Lane, making over 250 appearances and should be warmly received by the Tottenham faithful.

Having failed to sign the Portuguese international last summer as well as in January, Bayern pushed hard to complete his signature early in the window.

The fee represented a club record sale for the Cottagers who will have to learn to live without their tough tackling midfield anchor. Palhinha is one of the most physical players in world football and showed off his excellence in one-on-one duels in the Euros.

He was a bright spot in an underwhelming Portuguese side once again overshadowed by the antics of a certain number seven.

João will provide secure protection for Bayern’s defence as well as a keen eye for a cross-field pass which should suit their other new signing, Michel Olise, nicely.

A stronger Bayern Munich side will face Spurs this afternoon, with a couple of their stars returning from their post-Euros break.

Manuel Neuer will start between the sticks. At 38 years old he is as imperious as ever and shows no signs of slowing down. He’s joined by fellow Bayern stalwart Thomas Müller who announced his retirement from international football following Germany’s unsuccessful Euros campaign.

Both performed well as their country hosted the competition for the first time since 1988, but ultimately couldn’t hold back relentless eventual winners Spain.

Former Arsenal winger Serge Gnabry will man the right flank. He scored against his old team in the Champions League quarter-finals back in April helping to knock them out.

Youngsters Mathys Tel, Aleksandar Pavlović, and Gabriel Vidović, will all get an opportunity to impress whilst relative veterans João Palhinha, Conrad Laimer, Leon Goretzka, and Eric Dier, should all feature off the bench.

Starting XI: Neuer (GK); Minjae, Kimmich, Guerreiro, Stanišić, Boey; Müller, Pavlović; Gnabry, Vidović, Tel.

Subs: Ulreich (GK), Schmitt (GK), Goretzka, Dier, Palhinha, Bryan, Laimer, Irankunda, Ličina, Fernández, Mazraoui, Aseko, Aznou

Tottenham Hotspur have completed the signing of Leeds youngster Archie Gray for a fee of £30 million.

The versatile Englishmen had a release clause implemented into his contract which could be activated if Leeds failed to gain promotion to the Premier League and Spurs have pounced.

He is only 18 years old but the potential is plain to see. His performances in the Championship suggest he could be Premier League-ready right away and thus he should feature heavily in Postecogelu’s squad.

“When Spurs came and I had the opportunity to play in the Champions League eventually and Europa League this year I couldn’t really say no,” said Gray. “I know so many players that are here, not so much the first team but the young lads and another thing is that it’s a massive project under Ange and it’s something that I want to be a part of.

“I’m not going to lie to you, I’m a massive Celtic fan so I love him and my whole family loves him. I haven’t really said this to be fair. He’s also a massive factor because playing under a really good manager is really important for me as well. I’ve still got loads to learn because I’m only 18 so it’s really important.”

Good morning and thanks for joining us for another pre-season contest. This time Tottenham Hotspur will take on Bayern Munich in Seoul as part of the Coupang Play Series 2024

This will be Tottenham Hotspur’s fourth time visiting the South Korean capital and none will be happier than fan darling Heung-min Son.

It will no doubt be a special moment for him to play for his club in his home country – the adulation he receives from his compatriots is clear to see. An unlikely bond has built between North Londoners and South Koreans and is a driving force behind their return to the country having competed in the same pre-season tournament in 2022.

The fixture is taking place in the Seoul World Cup Stadium which holds up to 66,704 and is the second largest football-specific stadium in Asia.

Tottenham have had an eventful pre-season thus far, playing against a range of more local competitors like QPR, Newcastle, and Hearts, before beginning their tour of East Asia. This began in Japan with the J.League World Challenge game against Vissel Kobe which saw a dramatic 88th minute winner from Mikey Moore.

Spurs played their first of a doubleheader in Seoul against the K-League XI. Enjoying his time back home, Son scored a brace in the first half which was enough to see off a second-half comeback, with the game finishing 4-3 in his favour.

Bayern Munich will be treating these warm-up fixtures with an enhanced degree of professionalism after their first trophyless season in over a decade.

They drew their opening match against regional German side FC Düren, with Australian international Nestory Irankunda scoring their only goal of the game.

Arsenal are close to selling midfielder Emile Smith Rowe to Fulham for £35 million, with former Tottenham Hotspur winger Ryan Sessegnon also heading back to Craven Cottage.

Smith Rowe was left out of Arsenal’s latest pre-season friendly against Bournemouth, a 1-1 draw in California.

Negotiations between Arsenal and Fulham are continuing, but there was a breakthrough in talks after a previous bid of £30 million was increased.

Should the deal proceed as anticipated, Smith Rowe will become Fulham’s club record signing, surpassing the £27 million it cost to sign Jean Michael Seri in 2018.

Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta confirmed that Smith Rowe was left out of the warm-up match because of the ongoing talks, although he did not reference his likely next club.

‘Best to keep him away from game’

“There are things happening in the background at the moment and we decided the best thing to do was keep him away from the game,” said Arteta.

The 23-year-old’s transfer would end a frustrating period in his career which has been undermined by injury. Smith Rowe was touted as a future Arsenal and England star when he broke into the side, but as he has struggled with fitness the team has evolved without him and his starting opportunities have become limited.

Last season he played just 346 Premier League minutes. A relaunch at a new club might enable him to find the consistency and match fitness which propelled him to senior England international duty three years ago.

Fulham are one of many Premier League clubs who have expressed an interest – Crystal Palace among them.

A deal for Smith Rowe would continue a proactive few days for Marco Silva as his club is close to re-signing their former youth player Sessegnon, another one who was also pursued by Palace.

Sessegnon, 24, is a free agent following the end of his contract with Tottenham Hotspur. Once one of the most highly rated teenagers in the country, Fulham sold him to Spurs for £25 million in 2019.

But Sessegnon’s career has stalled since, with injuries interrupting his progress. He made just 57 appearances and scored only three goals in his five years at Spurs and could not convince the club or manager Ange Postecoglou he was worth a contract extension last season.

The man who will lead the search for Gareth Southgate’s successor, if this is indeed the end of the road for the England manager after eight years in the job, is John McDermott, an experienced academy coach and player developer in his first role with a senior team.

McDermott, 55, is close to Mauricio Pochettino whom he knew from his days at Tottenham Hotspur where the former spent 15 years – which coincided with the Argentinian’s time at the club. It was McDermott who was in charge of the academy through its most successful years, in particular the breakthrough of Harry Kane 10 years ago. Now, with the Football Association facing its first major decision around the senior men’s team since it sacked Sam Allardyce almost eight years ago, it is McDermott who is in charge.

He has kept a low profile since rejoining the FA in March 2020, in his third spell at the organisation – although now he will be thrust into the spotlight whether he likes it or not. The roles of FA executives have many elements although in the public view their success or otherwise tends to be dominated by the England managers they appoint.

Allardyce, for instance, was hired primarily on the recommendation of the FA chief executive of the time, Martin Glenn. Allardyce’s departure was advocated one game later chiefly on the word of the new FA chairman at the time, Greg Clarke. In 2012, Roy Hodgson was appointed by an FA board of four that styled itself as ‘Club England’ and resisted the temptation to give Harry Redknapp the job. Another former FA chief executive, Brian Barwick, thought he had appointed Luiz Felipe Scolari in 2006 only to end up with Steve McClaren.

McDermott and Mark Bullingham, the current FA chief executive, are likely to reach a decision on the successor to Southgate, should it come to that, and then present that to the FA board. Debbie Hewitt, the first woman to chair the FA in its history, will have to approve that decision – although it would be some surprise were the board to reject it.

McDermott’s first spells at the FA came before the building of St George’s Park and the revolutionising of the junior and senior team under one of his predecessors, Dan Ashworth, and Southgate, in the early part of the last decade. Then McDermott was academy director at Spurs, one of the more prodigious developers of players for England’s junior teams. McDermott was known for a degree of scepticism towards the FA at the time.

It caused some surprise when he chose to rejoin them in 2020, first as assistant to Les Reed, the immediate successor to Ashworth as technical director, and then later as Reed’s successor. The FA was in the midst of difficult Covid cuts and that presented major challenges to an organisation that had invested heavily in its junior teams and the support staff around those.

European Championship success with the Under-21s

Unlike Ashworth, who oversaw the men’s and women’s game, as well as coach education, McDermott’s responsibilities are only for the men’s senior team and junior sides. His greatest success thus far was last summer when the Under-21s men’s team winning the FA’s first European championship in that age group since 1984 in Georgia. Lee Carsley’s team won the tournament without conceding a goal and beat Spain in the final. Two of the players, Cole Palmer and Anthony Gordon, made Southgate’s Euro 2024 squad one year later.

There is no doubt that Carsley has done a good job but it remains highly unlikely the Birmingham-born former Republic Of Ireland international follows Southgate as the manager of the senior team. The Football Association of Ireland has tried to appoint Carsley but he remained with the Under-21s this season. The Under-21s job has to be one possible pathway to the senior team job – with Southgate having walked that path himself.

Bullingham has said that the FA will consider a non-English candidate as manager of the team, despite a determination in the England DNA document launched by Ashworth that future managers, post Fabio Capello, be native coaches. McDermott has given just one interview since taking the job, to The Telegraph and others in May last year, in which he said that he had built on the original Ashworth plan, with “DNA Plus”.

England senior men play Ireland in the first Nations League game in Dublin on Sept 7, which means that if Southgate does quit this week, there is limited time to get a new man in place unless the FA are prepared to appoint an interim. The World Cup 2026 qualifying campaign begins in March.

Archie Gray has completed his £30 million move to Tottenham Hotspur and has admitted being a Celtic supporter played a role in him choosing to work with Ange Postecoglou.

Gray, the great nephew of Leeds United legend Eddie, has left Elland Road with the club saying they are “heartbroken at his departure” but added that the sale will help them keep within financial regulations.

Spurs triggered a release clause in the 18-year-old midfielder’s contract that became active when Leeds failed to get promoted back to the Premier League. Wales centre-back Joe Rodon has moved in the opposite direction.

“When Spurs came and I had the opportunity to play in the Champions League eventually and Europa League this year I couldn’t really say no,” said Gray. “I know so many players that are here, not so much the first team but the young lads and another thing is that it’s a massive project under Ange and it’s something that I want to be a part of.

“I’m not going to lie to you, I’m a massive Celtic fan so I love him and my whole family loves him. I haven’t really said this to be fair. He’s also a massive factor because playing under a really good manager is really important for me as well. I’ve still got loads to learn because I’m only 18 so it’s really important.”

Leeds were expected to sell some of their assets after losing in the Championship play-off final to Southampton, with Gray among their exciting young prospects.

“Whilst we understand that supporters will be hugely disappointed to lose such a home-grown talent, and a family name so synonymous with Leeds United, the move improves the club’s chance to compete for automatic promotion next season by increasing our ability to build a competitive squad within the league’s financial control regulations,” read a statement from Leeds.

“Everyone at Leeds United is heartbroken to see one of our own depart and would like to thank Archie for all his efforts and professionalism. He leaves with the very best wishes for his future career and in the knowledge that Leeds will always be his home.”

New low for Leeds supporters after another figure of hope sold

Sometimes it seems that “Here we go again” would be a more appropriate motto for Leeds United than “Marching on Together”. Just as supporters think this particular cycle of despair reached its nadir with a broadly acquiescent defeat in the Championship play-off final by Southampton, it was revealed that Archie Gray, their 18-year-old midfielder of uncommon poise, skill and immense promise, was the subject of a release-clause triggering offer from Brentford.

On Saturday night the club was assailed by a tempest of spiky recrimination, a despondency akin to grief and threats to cancel season tickets and membership subscriptions unassuaged by the next morning’s announcement that the deal was off. Everyone knew that this was no respite and indeed it soon emerged he would be joining Tottenham instead for a gross fee of £40 million, a transfer concluded on Tuesday morning.

In their official confirmation of the sale, Leeds say “they are heartbroken to see one of our own depart”. No doubt the ownership group, 49ers Enterprises, are being sincere. There is a hard-headed rationale behind it, too. “The move improves the club’s chance to compete for automatic promotion next season by increasing our ability to build a competitive squad within the league’s financial control regulations,” they add. Balance sheet trumps sentiment, they stress, sounding like the Shadow Chancellor. Jam tomorrow, gruel today.

The transfer, obviously, is a direct result of Leeds’ failure last season to go up, four defeats in their final six games costing them first top and then second place during the run-in. But it is also a consequence, presumably unintended, of the league’s profit and sustainability regulations which yield pure and greater profit on the sale of the best home-grown players rather than those that came at a cost. The good of the game is best served by development rather than speculation but these rules, as they currently apply, do not prevent clubs going to the casino, it means that when you lose, the house, in this case the Premier League’s rich six, literally take your kids.

While it is also a repercussion of two poor Premier League transfer windows in the summer of 2022 and January 2023 which saddled Leeds with ‘assets’ bought at top prices whose performances did not match their value and then left only on loan upon relegation, the club’s long-term issues stem from a history of underinvestment. Ever since its foundation in 1919, the club has tried every kind of financial instrument going from share issues to mortgages to debentures to loans to complex transfer financing to getting the begging bowl out to compensate for the absence of sustained investment by an individual or group. In 1961, the chairman Harry Reynolds, did just that and provided the bedrock for the team who twice became champions and had a 10-year run of top four finishes. When Don Revie left the club in 1974, Elland Road had been radically upgraded, his side had just won the title and had £2 million in the bank. Within 10 years it had been relegated and the ground sold, not for the last time, to ward off collapse.

Accountancy will always trample over romance

It’s a tale of squandering a leading position in the European game for want of financial stability. Yes, directors have put money in but they have all had their return once the club has been sold various times over the past 40 years. And yet the only credible way to try to build a sustainably higher income stream, the redevelopment of Elland Road which sells out every week and has a season-ticket waiting list said to be more than 10,000, is always postponed. “Spades in the ground,” we are told, will come when Leeds are established in the Premier League. Listen to the people kicking that can down the road and one would assume it was illegal or impossible to build in the Championship as if they had never seen Field of Dreams, nor remembered that Sunderland’s Stadium of Light and Middlesbrough’s Riverside were built when in the second tier. Countless others have rebuilt stands in situ during a season, too.

Without that solid foundation, you become a selling club of your best home-grown talents. In 1957 they sold John Charles, eight years after his debut as a 17-year-old, to Juventus to help pay for a new West Stand. In 1994 they sold David Batty to Blackburn Rovers to meet a payment on the East Stand and subsequently, since relegation in 2004, they have cashed in on James Milner, Aaron Lennon, Danny Rose and Lewis Cook, who all became England internationals away from Elland Road and had years delighting fans of other clubs.

That is Archie’s fate, too and whoever comes next, which is likely to be his younger brother Harry, a 15-year-old striker, unless they can break this cycle. Accountancy will always trample over romance in this scenario. It was inevitable that Archie would go at some point. It is the reason he had a release clause in his contract and his family, with ties to Leeds going back seven decades, are clear-eyed enough about football to make a nonsense of speculation that they will be devastated. His career progression is as well planned as Mark Bellingham’s for Jude and Alf-Inge Haaland’s for Erling.

The shame is that unlike Charles or Batty or Kalvin Phillips, Leeds fans had only a year to watch him grow. They also know that if a 17-year-old Billy Bremner came along now to make his Leeds United debut as he did in 1960, or a 15-year-old Peter Lorimer two years later, they would be sold long before Billy could play 772 matches or Peter score 238 goals. And that truly stinks.

The new Premier League fixtures are out, with Liverpool facing a difficult run-in if they are to compete for the title in 2025. Arne Slot, the new Liverpool manager, can look forward to a final five games of the season against Spurs, Chelsea, Arsenal, Brighton and Crystal Palace.

Elsewhere on the final day of next season a potential highlight is Manchester United v Aston Villa.

Long before then, the 2024-25 season will get under way with Manchester United at home against Fulham on Friday, Aug 16. The opening weekend also features Manchester City against Chelsea on Sunday afternoon.

The games selected for television on the opening weekend are Manchester United v Fulham, Ipswich Town v Liverpool, West Ham United v Aston Villa, Brentford v Crystal Palace, Chelsea v Manchester City and Leicester City v Tottenham Hotspur. See details below.

Arsenal, meanwhile, face a difficult opening five fixtures of the season, against Wolverhampton Wanderers, Aston Villa, Brighton & Hove Albion, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City.

What are the opening weekend fixtures?

Friday, August 16

Manchester United v Fulham (8pm - Sky Sports)

Saturday, August 17

Ipswich Town v Liverpool (12.30pm - TNT Sports)

Arsenal v Wolverhampton (3pm)

Everton v Brighton (3pm)

Newcastle United v Southampton (3pm)

Nottingham Forest v Bournemouth (3pm)

West Ham United v Aston Villa (5.30pm - Sky Sports)

Sunday, August 18

Brentford v Crystal Palace (2pm - Sky Sports)

Chelsea v Manchester City (4.30pm - Sky Sports)

Monday, August 19

Leicester City v Tottenham Hotspur (8pm - Sky Sports)

When are next season’s big local derbies?

Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal: Sept 14

Everton v Liverpool: Dec 12

Manchester City v Manchester United: Dec 14

Arsenal v Tottenham Hotspur: Jan 14

Liverpool v Everton: April 2

Manchester United v Manchester City: April 5

The games that will decide the Premier League title race

Manchester City

Opening day at Chelsea is a tasty starter, but Pep Guardiola will be looking at the run-in and salivating. The champions always sprint to the finish line, and of their final 11 games of 2024-25, only three sides finished in the top 10 last season. Aston Villa (4th), Manchester United (8th) and Crystal Palace (10th). The message to the rest? If City are top at the end of their tough February the title race is over.

Arsenal

Mikel Arteta’s most demanding fixtures come in packs with back-to-back league games against Spurs and Manchester City in September, and trips to Newcastle and Chelsea in November immediately following Liverpool’s trip to the Emirates. The Anfield meeting on May 10 will be one every Arsenal fan will be circling in the belief they can win the league on Merseyside again.

Liverpool

Liverpool have an uncanny ability to be paired with a newly promoted side on their opening day, Ipswich Town the sixth such opponent in eight seasons. Arne Slot’s first marquee fixture is at Manchester United on matchday three. The run is daunting with Spurs, Chelsea and Arsenal to play in late April/early May, but Slot will be thrilled if his side is still in the title hunt by then.

Aston Villa

Unai Emery will be analysing the fixtures around what is sure to be an emotional return to the Champions League. He should be reasonably happy with the early schedule because Villa are at home after the first three Euro match days. Then it gets tougher with trips to Anfield, Stamford Bridge and a midlands derby at Nottingham Forest directly after Euro midweeks, testing the squad’s strength in depth.

Tottenham Hotspur

Ange Postecoglou sprinted out the traps in his first season. If he does so again the timid end to last season will be forgotten because he must prepare for a north London derby on matchday four. That could be a blessing or a curse depending on the outcome. Postecoglou is among a handful of managers who you feel must hit the ground running, but it’s a tough first few months, also including trips to Newcastle and Manchester United.

Chelsea

The bad news for Enzo Maresca is he meets his idol on day one, champions Manchester City being the most demanding opponent possible. The good news is Chelsea’s next six games are those which – traditionally – they would be expected to win. Mauricio Pochettino never recovered from an indifferent start. Maresca will need plenty of points before a daunting October and November to ensure history doesn’t repeat itself.

Manchester United

Many will be circling the international break in mid-November as critical in determining if Sir Jim Ratcliffe was right to retain Erik ten Hag. Nobody is in greater need of a good start. Liverpool’s visit to Old Trafford in August is the perfect chance to set a positive tone. By the time Chelsea head to Manchester on Nov 2, the Ten Hag era will either be revitalised or taste like the same soup reheated.

The title run-in for last season’s top three

Man City’s five-match title run-in

April 26: Manchester City v Aston Villa

May 3: Manchester City v Wolverhampton

May 10: Southampton v Manchester City

May 18: Manchester City v Bournemouth

May 25: Fulham v Manchester City

Arsenal’s five-match title run-in

April 26: Arsenal v Crystal Palace

May 30: Arsenal v Bournemouth

May 10: Liverpool v Arsenal

May 18: Arsenal v Newcastle United

May 25: Southampton v Arsenal

Liverpool’s five-match title run-in

April 26: Liverpool v Tottenham Hotspur

May 3: Chelsea v Liverpool

May 10: Liverpool v Arsenal

May 18: Brighton v Liverpool

May 25: Liverpool v Crystal Palace

The Premier League Boxing Day fixtures in full

Thursday, December 26

Bournemouth v Crystal Palace

Arsenal v Ipswich Town

Brighton v Brentford

Chelsea v Fulham

Liverpool v Leicester City

Manchester City v Everton

Newcastle United v Aston Villa

Nottingham Forest v Tottenham Hotspur

Southampton v West Ham United

Wolverhampton v Manchester United

A gang posing as selfie hunters attacked the 27-year-old and his girlfriend in a hotel in Cannes on Sunday