TBR Football

Once upon a time, Tottenham and Real Madrid had a fleeting and rather one-sided partnership. Now, the Spanish giants could indirectly affect the future ownership of Daniel Levy’s club.

Levy personally owns a 29 per cent stake in Spurs and has been looking for fresh investment in the club for some time, although the search was only officially confirmed in April last year.

How much equity, if any, the divisive chairman is willing to sell is not entirely clear, although it looks like minority investment in Tottenham is the more likely option at this stage.

There has been relatively noise since the North London club enlisted the Rothschild bank to sound out potential buyers.

Amanda Staveley’s PCP Capital Partners are the only group known to have had contact with the club, but the status of those talks is not known.

The fact that the mergers and acquisitions market in Premier League football is especially competitive at present probably isn’t helping Levy and ENIC’s search for would-be partners.

Dan Friedkin’s takeover of Everton is now complete, but West Ham, Wolves, Brentford, Bournemouth and Crystal Palace are all involved talks to sell minority stakes.

Spurs are in a different weight class to those clubs financially, with annual revenues of £550m at the last count, but the current malaise that has set in in N17 isn’t exactly helping their cause.

Ange Postecoglou’s side are in freefall. Their defeat to Everton by a flattering 3-2 score line at the weekend was their sixth league match in a row without a win.

Ordinarily, the manager might be under more pressure than he currently is. While the Aussie is by no means in the clear, it was Levy who was the subject of derisory chants at Goodison Park on Sunday.

Levy, an omniscient presence at Hotspur Way in Enfield, has transformed the club in his quarter-century in charge but there is growing consensus that he has taken the club as far as he can.

A former private equity chief and investment banker who was initially only supposed to take the chairman role on an interim basis, the 62-year-old is the face of Tottenham.

That is in the landscape of modern football, where players and managers are supposed to be the superstars. However, it isn’t a unique situation…

Florentino Perez throws spanner in the works as Daniel Levy seeks minority investment

Real Madrid president Florentino Perez is one of the most powerful men in football.

He and Levy know each other well. As well as working together on the European Super League rebellion, they have had some tough negotiations on the sales of Luka Modric and Gareth Bale to Real.

Perez, a billionaire who earned his fortune in construction, has even said that Levy has texted him after Real Madrid’s Champions League triumphs to say ‘congratulations on winning it with my players’.

But the word in the football finance industry is that any ribbing between the two is good-natured and that they enjoy a strong professional relationship.

Perez is the president of a member-based club as opposed to a private company. That means that, unlike Levy, he does not have the power to court private investment in the club.

However, it emerged in November last year that the 77-year-old was standing for re-election on a manifesto that included potentially opening the club up to landmark outside investment.

Speaking exclusively to TBR Football, Liverpool University football finance lecturer and Price of Football author Kieran Maguire suggested that Perez’s plans were not good news for Levy.

“Real Madrid basically have guaranteed participation in the Champions League, whereas Spurs don’t. So they are much more de-risked than Spurs,” he said.

“I admire Spurs and I think they perhaps have a higher upside than Real Madrid. But if I was advising someone who wants a high-profile, low-risk investment opportunity, I would go for Real Madrid.

“I’m no fan of Florentino Perez, but I think there is more potential to leverage the international appeal of Real Madrid more.“

Now, Real Madrid have announced that Perez has won re-election for a fifth terms as president, opening the door to forge ahead with his plans to court private investment in the 15-time European champions.

There are only ever a handful of elite football clubs in whom equity is for sale at any one time, and the presence of another on the market is further competition for Spurs.

Could Tottenham’s next co-owner come from Ligue 1 mass exodus?

While the Perez situation may have shut one or two doors in the investment world, events in France could potentially lead to a stampede to invest in clubs outside Ligue 1.

There is a crisis in French football at present, with the league’s chiefs having wildly overestimated the value of their TV rights, which are by far and away the biggest income stream for its clubs.

Ligue left it until the eleventh hour to secure a broadcast deal for 2024-25 and, even then, it was less than half of the £1bn deal they wanted.

To make matters worse, DAZN, the broadcaster who bought most of the TV rights, now wants to revise the deal down to less than £340m.

And what’s more, Ligue’s other broadcaster beIN SPORTS have slashed the sponsorship guarantee from their contract with the league, meaning it too could potentially fall in value by around 20 per cent.

The mood music in the summer when news of the crisis was at its most apocalyptic suggested that this could cause a mass exodus of owners from France to elsewhere in Europe.

If that is the case, it could potentially widen the pool of investors with an eye on Spurs.

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Tottenham are 15th in the Premier League, and, in the past, managers have been sacked for much less than this.

Indeed, Daniel Levy hasn’t been shy about sacking managers at Tottenham, even when they’re in the top-half of the table.

Ange Postecoglou is in a perilous position, and questions are starting to be asked of the Tottenham manager.

Indeed, Tottenham’s players aren’t happy with training, while some Spurs players are questioning Postecoglou’s tactics.

Of course, there has been tons of speculation about Postecoglou’s future, and speaking on his YouTube channel, Alasdair Gold has been discussing the Australian’s job status.

According to Gold, Tottenham are sticking by Ange Postecoglou, and there’s no truth in the idea that Spurs are planning a meeting to decide the manager’s fate.

Tottenham not planning Ange Postecoglou meeting

Gold shared what he knows about Tottenham’s manager and his job security.

The journalist says that the feeling coming out of Spurs is that Postecoglou will be backed, and no board meeting to decide his fate is currently planned,

“You know, that’s the feeling coming out that they’re going to stick with him for now, great, but you have to back him,’ Gold said.

“There’s some rumours going around like a board meeting that will decide his fate over the next couple of days. From what I understand, that’s just not true, that’s not planned to do that whatsoever.”

Tottenham fixtures analysed

Tottenham are going to stick by Postecoglou, but, as we’ve seen so many times in football, it only takes one or two bad results for things to change.

Manchester United gave Erik ten Hag a new contract in the summer, but he was sacked just a few weeks into this season, and football boardrooms can be fickle places.

Tottenham’s upcoming fixture list does look kind, but the scary part about playing these winnable games is that the consequences are so much worse if you don’t win.

Leicester, Brentford, Manchester United and Ipswich are all teams that Tottenham can beat. In fact, Spurs have taken eight points from those sides already this season.

However, with such an injury-hit squad and terrible form at the moment, it’s so hard to head into any Spurs game with confidence right now.

If Postecoglou doesn’t take a respectable points total from his next four matches or so, Daniel Levy could be left with no choice but to get rid of the Spurs boss.

Tottenham’s injury situation is an absolute mess right now.

The north London club are in the mire at the moment with a number of their first team stars currently out injured.

Postecoglou is under pressure at the moment, but the injuries within his squad certainly aren’t helping

Dominic Solanke missed the Everton game this weekend with a knee injury, and while, on the surface, that sounds serious, according to Alasdair Gold, speaking on his YouTube channel, Solanke’s injury may not be as serious as it perhaps could have been.

Gold shared what he knows about Solanke’s injury.

The journalist provided a positive update, claiming that his belief is that Solanke’s injury isn’t an incredibly serious issue, despite the fact knee injuries can be complicated.

“Of course, Solanke he said that he would miss a few weeks, that was his exact expression. I don’t think it’s as serious as a knee injury could be, but we will have to see with him. Sometimes you see people with knee injuries coming back a little bit earlier if it’s not a serious one and there’s no risk of it becoming one.”

What is Ange Postecoglou doing in training?

With all of these injuries piling up, you can’t help but wonder what Ange Postecoglou is doing in Tottenham training.

Reports suggest Spurs’ players believe training is too intense, but according to Gold, Postecoglou’s training has actually been lighter recently.

“As news of the injuries started to filter out it was like ‘oh it’s Postecoglou’s fault.’ It’s a training thing. It wasn’t, it was just a normal thing, he was just taking a shot in training and twisted his knee,” Gold said.

“I’m not denying that some of the injuries over this season and last have been a part of the Postecoglou wheelhouse that happens, but there’s this thing that his training sessions are mad, mad, mad and all this and cause continued injuries. They haven’t been training like that , they haven’t been able to, because of two things, there’s so many games, and because he’s not an idiot, he’s not pushing these players to extremes when they’re looking knackered already.”

Postecoglou isn’t pushing his players to their limit right now due to the fact he can’t afford to, but, despite lessening the workload on his players, these injuries keep piling up.

There’s only so much you can do to help avoid injuries, but, at the end of the day, luck plays its part here.

Tottenham’s injury crisis isn’t subsiding anytime soon, and things could get worse before they get better at Spurs.

One of the main reasons why Tottenham Hotspur are having one of the toughest seasons in their recent history is due to the constant injuries they have suffered this season.

Ange Postecoglou has been given the tall task of ensuring Spurs get results on the board despite missing some of his most trusted men.

James Maddison understands Tottenham fans’ frustrations as they sit in 15th place in the Premier League table and were well-beaten in their latest 3-2 defeat against Everton.

But the number of key players the Lilywhites were missing against David Moyes’ side cannot be ignored.

In total, 10 Tottenham players were sidelined through injury against Everton.

The status of Yves Bissouma’s injury has now been revealed.

Yves Bissouma ruled out after suffering hamstring injury

Bissouma has come under criticism as his form has been unconvincing this season.

Tottenham could be ready to sell Bissouma, whose time in a Lilywhites shirt since making a £25 million (The Athletic) move from Brighton & Hove Albion in 2022 has been a mixed bag.

Now, journalist Paul O’Keefe has confirmed that the Malian midfielder has suffered a “slight hamstring strain.”

Tottenham are awaiting more results from scans to determine the full extent of Bissouma’s injury.

Paul O’Keefe went on to reveal to a fan in his comments section that Tottenham do not think the Spurs midfielder’s injury is a “major”, claiming that he could return to action in two to three weeks.

“They don’t think it’s major – or at least hope. Maybe two to three weeks.”

O’Keefe added: “I was actually told at the weekend. Been checking and told hammy issue.”

Tottenham’s players have complaints about Postecoglou’s training demands and these noises might not die down as Bissouma is set to spend a few weeks on the injury table as well.

The six games Yves Bissouma could miss for Tottenham after latest injury

It goes without saying that Bissouma is certainly set to miss Tottenham’s next game in the Europa League against Hoffenheim.

If the former Seagulls technician takes three weeks to get back to full fitness, he could miss Spurs’ next two league games against Leicester City and Brentford,

In his absence, it will be interesting to see whether Ange Postecoglou persists with a double pivot of Lucas Bergvall and Pape Matar Sarr.

Bissouma could also miss crucial fixtures against IF Elsborg, Aston Villa in the FA Cup and Liverpool in the second leg of the Carabao Cup semi-final.

However, if the Tottenham stalwart is injured for just two weeks, he would only be sidelined for four matches in all competitions.

Ange Postecoglou would be hoping that Bissouma is fit as the job of getting wins under his belt as injuries mount up in such an unprecedented manner is a virtually impossible task for any manager.

Ange Postecoglou must find a way to turn around Tottenham Hotspur’s poor form and one of the ways he could do that is by starting one of the club’s biggest young talents.

TBR Football understands that Tottenham have no immediate plans to replace Postecoglou with Daniel Levy feeling that the injury crisis has been the catalyst to their dire campaign.

But the Australian head coach needs to start switching things up at Tottenham given their shocking form and he has been told what he must do with the 17-year-old in the next two games.

Mikey Moore must start Tottenham’s next two matches

Ange Postecoglou has been told that Mikey Moore must start Tottenham’s next two matches by Spurs journalist Alasdair Gold.

Moore made his long-awaited return to Premier League action from illness against Everton as he was given 17 minutes off the bench at Goodison Park.

Moore’s cameo against Everton impressed Tottenham fans as the winger claimed his first senior assist with an incredible cross for Richarlison.

He told Gold & Guest Talk Tottenham: “Mikey Moore has to start against Hoffenheim for me and probably if he’s able to fitness-wise he has to start against Leicester as well.

“They just need someone who is going to do something unpredictable because everything else at the moment is that little bit predictable.

“They need some width and he is very good at getting past his man and getting that ball across which the system relies on. He was one of the few shining lights on a day where there were so few.”

Mikey Moore’s superb assist vs Everton

Moore announced his return with his first-ever Premier League assist with Jamie Carragher labelling it ‘absolutely outstanding’ from the teenager.

The 17-year-old produced a wicked cross into the Everton penalty area which Richarlison got on to the end of at the back post to poke home.

Postecoglou’s squad has been decimated by injuries this season and having an exciting talent like Moore back available is huge for the manager.

Tottenham Hotspur are not having a good season in the Premier League.

Spurs have won just two of their last 10 games in the league and have dropped down to 15th in the table, just eight points above the relegation zone.

A few wins on the bounce could change things for Ange Postecoglou, but the players are all lacking confidence at the moment and things could easily go from bad to worse.

Now, in what is more disappointing news, one of Tottenham’s key players is said to be ready to leave the club at the end of this season.

Cristian Romero is open to leaving Tottenham and clubs are keen to sign him

Cristian Romero is one of Tottenham’s most important players.

The Spurs vice-captain has had a very difficult season so far. He has suffered four different injuries and has missed a total of 29 games in all competitions this term.

Romero is closing in on a return now, but there is a possibility that the coming months will be his final few as a Tottenham player.

That’s according to the Daily Mail, who have claimed that Romero ‘open to leaving’ Spurs in the summer.

The report also says that clubs in Spain are keeping tabs on the Argentina international and could make a move to sign him before the start of next season.

TBR Football exclusively revealed in September that Tottenham are aware of Real Madrid’s interest in Romero. Spurs have been in talks with the defender over a new contract, but no agreement has been reached yet.

Romero’s current deal at Spurs will expire in the summer of 2027.

What is Romero’s salary at Tottenham?

Daniel Levy has a reputation for not paying big salaries to his players at Tottenham.

Not a single Spurs player earns £200,000-a-week or more. That is a shock as there are multiple players in every other top-six club who pocket more than that.

Son Heung-min is the highest earner at Tottenham, while James Maddison comes second. Romero is only joint-third – same as Timo Werner, who is currently on loan.

If Romero does get an opportunity to sign for a club like Real Madrid, his salary will increase significantly.

To add to that, the Argentine’s chances of winning silverware are a lot higher at the Santiago Bernabeu than it is at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

That makes negotiations over a new contract very difficult, but Tottenham cannot afford to lose Romero this summer. Levy has to find a way to keep him at the club.

Tottenham are currently enduring a crisis in the centre-back department.

Ange Postecoglou was even forced to name a defensive duo of Archie Gray and Yves Bissouma during the 1-0 defeat at Bournemouth in December, both of whom are naturally central midfielders.

Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven have been missing since the 4-3 defeat against Chelsea in December due to thigh injuries, while Radu Dragusin has struggled to shine in their absence.

Now – however – Tottenham fans think they have spotted another Van de Ven in the academy.

Tottenham fans are all saying the same thing about Pele Arganese-McDermott

Spurs appear to have cloned the Netherlands international in the form of Pele Arganese-McDermott.

The 19-year-old has got Tottenham fans talking on X (previously known as Twitter) after an U21 Premier League clash between Spurs and Norwich, in which he looks to move exactly like Van de Ven, who Ally McCoist thinks would start for Arsenal.

One Tottenham fan wrote: “Oi why does the #4 (Pele Arganese-McDermott) have the exact same gait as VDV.”

A second Spurs fan joked that Tottenham are cloning senior players amid the current injury crisis, posting: “Injury crisis so bad that we’re experimenting with cloning our injured players.”

Two other Tottenham fans commented on the footage, with both puzzled by how Arganese-McDermott is not Van de Ven.

One wrote “how is #4 NOT Van De Ven???” before another added “there’s no way that’s not VDV” – the similarities are uncanny, in all honesty.

A fifth Spurs supporter posted: “How does he have the EXACT same build.”

Last but not least, a sixth Tottenham fan wrote: “Number four looks like VDV? Close enough get him in the first team NOW!”

Who is Pele Arganese-McDermott?

Arganese-McDermott is relatively new to Tottenham.

The 19-year-old was in Luton Town’s Academy until 2021 before moving to Spurs in July 2022, and made a strong impression in N17 as he signed a professional contract just months later in September 2022.

Born in Marbella before moving to England at the age of four, Arganese-McDermott is eligible to represent either Spain or the Three Lions at international level.

It really does feel like panic stations at Tottenham Hotspur right now.

Spurs have lost five of their last six matches in the Premier League, and they sit 15th in the Premier League table.

Tottenham are in big trouble, and Ange Postecoglou’s job is under threat.

Tottenham could look at Edin Terzic to replace Postecoglou if he does go, and Postecoglou was heavily criticised at the weekend after the loss to Everton.

Speaking on the Sky Sports Back Pages Podcast, Ian Ladyman has been discussing the idea of Spurs sacking Postecoglou, and he’s backed the Australian.

Ladyman says that the Spurs players do still like Postecoglou and aren’t resisting his methods just yet.

However, he says that there are some within the camp who have doubts about playing so gung-ho all the time.

The question some Tottenham players are asking about Ange Postecoglou

Ladyman shared what he’s hearing about Postecoglou and his squad.

According to the journalist, the players still like Postecoglou, but there is one small doubt creeping in.

“Well, because they can still see signs of a really good manager in there. There’s not the toxicity around the club, that there was when they got rid of Antonio Conte, when they got rid of Jose Mourinho, famously a few days before League Cup final. Those two managers have got to a point where the building was about to burn down if they didn’t get them out, in terms of the players and relationships with staff, for example,” Ladyman said.

“And it’s not like that with Postecoglou. The players like him. The players aren’t resisting him yet. Some of the players I think do have some doubts about whether maybe occasionally they could play in a slightly more restrained manner, but overall they are supportive. And also Tottenham, I think, for once, are being smart. They look at their situation.

“They’re not going to get into the Champions League. That has gone. They’re not, but equally, they’re not going to go down.

“So they’re essentially going to finish somewhere between 15th and 8th, I would imagine. Okay. Now, apart from a few million quid in terms of prize money for where you finish, it’s not a massive deal.

“So, Daniel Levy and the Tottenham board, if they’ve got a shred of belief left in hand, which I think they have, they may as well see how he goes in the hope that when players come back, and I’m told that they are going to try and support him with a couple of players in the next 10 days, if he can get them moving, then it’s worth the risk.”

Tottenham’s current injury crisis

Tottenham’s results have been terrible as of late, there’s no getting away from that.

Indeed, Spurs’ results are enough to get any manager sacked.

However, Postecoglou does have an excuse in that he’s working with an incredibly depleted squad right now.

Tottenham have a horrific injury crisis on their hands right now, and it’s hard to blame the manager when he’s working with such a skeleton squad.

Spurs only have a handful of their key players available right now, and you can use that to excuse Postecoglou’s poor performances.

That said, the remaining Spurs players should still be able to be higher than 15th in the table, so the manager shouldn’t be fully absconded from any criticism.

Daniel Levy certainly has a big decision to make about Postecoglou in the coming weeks as he ponders making yet another managerial change in north London.

As well as doing the North London Derby double over their rivals on the pitch, Arsenal are also thought to be causing Tottenham Hotspur issues in the transfer market right now.

Both Arsenal and Tottenham are looking to add quality to their squads before January ends, a window which is quickly evaporating for sides other than Manchester City.

Pep Guardiola’s side are moving fast and effectively, leaving fans of both Arsenal and Spurs perhaps feeling slightly anxious.

Arsenal need better firepower in order to realise their ambitions to win a trophy this season.

And in Spurs’ case, Ange Postecoglou would benefit from an addition in all areas of his faltering squad.

Tottenham need to add to their backline, but there’s also space for improvement up top too, especially given that Dominic Solanke has suffered a knee injury, albeit one that won’t keep him out long-term.

Bukayo Saka still causing Tottenham problems even when injured

That being said, Mail Sport are now reporting that Tottenham’s efforts in the transfer market this month have now been ‘complicated’ by their north London rivals.

The report explains that injuries to Bukayo Saka and Gabriel Jesus have indirectly caused Spurs issues in terms of their own desire to sign a forward before the window ends.

Prior to Mikel Arteta’s side losing the duo to injury, Arsenal weren’t expected to enter the market to sign a new forward, a situation that has now changed.

Therefore, that has caused ‘difficulties’ for Spurs according to the report, a line that might seriously frustrate some supporters in N17.

Given their respective situations, it doesn’t seem as if the two rivals would be seeking the same player this month.

Tottenham shouldn’t be prioritising a new forward for Ange Postecoglou

With the greatest respect, Tottenham are unlikely to be able to tempt someone like Dusan Vlahovic or Benjamin Sesko to their half of north London given their 15th in the Premier League.

That’s the calibre of player that Arsenal are seeking, even if that still might be very difficult to achieve this month.

Of course, a lot of Spurs fans may just be frustrated that the club are focusing on improving their defence, Postecoglou’s squad seems to be crying out for a new centre-back.

Thus far, the club’s acquisition of Radu Dragusin hasn’t been a success, he’s arguably performed worse that Archie Gray at the heart of Spurs’ defence recently, an 18-year-old playing completely out of position.

Arsenal definitely don’t need to recruit in that department, and therefore Spurs’ rivals really shouldn’t be causing them any issues right now, an excuse that seems very convenient.