Even a victory may not be enough for Ian Foster to keep his job when New Zealand lock horns with South Africa once again at Ellis Park on Saturday.

Foster was under massive pressure before the Rugby Championship started and a 26-10 defeat at the hands of the Springboks last weekend ensured the writing would appear to be on the wall for the All Blacks head coach.

That loss in Mbombela pushed New Zealand down to their worst ever world ranking of fifth, and they face another almighty battle against the world champions in Johannesburg.

Australia fought back to start the tournament with a 41-26 victory over Argentina, so the Pumas will be hungry for revenge at Estadio Bicentenario in round two.

Stats Perform preview the matches using Opta data.

 

SOUTH AFRICA V NEW ZEALAND

FORM

It is now five losses in six Tests for the wounded All Blacks and three defeats in a row. Only once in the past 70 years have they lost more than three games in a row - suffering five consecutive defeats from July to August in 1998.

South Africa have won six of their past seven home games in the Rugby Championship, including four on the bounce. It is the third time they have won four on the spin at home in the competition and they have never managed five straight wins in such fixtures.

The Springboks have won their past two meetings with New Zealand. The last time they won more in succession against the All Blacks was a three-game streak from July to September in 2009.

ONES TO WATCH

The vastly experienced Duane Vermeulen returns at number eight for South Africa after recovering from a knee injury. He replaces Jasper Wiese and will need to hit the ground running.

A standout selection for New Zealand was the inclusion of Richie Mo'unga at fly-half, with Beauden Barrett dropping to the bench a week after he was involved in a nasty collision with Kurt-Lee Arendse. Foster will look to Mo'unga to provide control and set the tempo, provided he gets the ball to enable him to pull the strings.

ARGENTINA V AUSTRALIA

FORM

Australia have lost only one of their past 14 Tests against Argentina, winning 11 and drawing two. The Wallabies have won their last three versus the Pumas; 10 of the wins being decided by margins of at least 10 points.

Argentina are winless in 10 Rugby Championship/Tri Nations game, losing eight and drawing two. They have lost their last seven in the competition and squandered a 19-10 half-time lead last weekend.

It is now five Rugby Championship/Tri Nations victories in a row for Dave Rennie's Australia side, their longest winning run in the competition.

ONES TO WATCH

Former Australia head coach Michael Cheika has turned to Gonzalo Bertranou to start at scrum-half. The pivot must get Argentina ticking and put the Wallabies on the back foot.

Another cruel injury blow for Quade Cooper has opened the door for James O'Connor to start at fly-half for Australia. The number 10 will know he has a great opportunity to put on a show just over a year before the World Cup starts.

Former Manchester City and Barcelona midfielder Yaya Toure has been appointed as coach of Tottenham Under-16s.

Toure had a spell working with Spurs' academy staff last season and the ex-Ivory Coast international has now landed a permanent role with the Premier League club.

The 39-year-old won three Premier League titles with City, while he also lifted the Champions League, La Liga, Copa del Rey, the FA Cup, League Cup and Africa Cup of Nations in a stellar career.

Spurs also appointed former their former winger Simon Davies as head of coaching methodology in their academy.

The London club earlier revealed that Jermain Defoe has taken up a new role in the academy coaching team and will also carry out club ambassador duties.

Seven-time Ballon d'Or winner Lionel Messi has not been named on the 30-man shortlist for the 2022 award.

Messi – who won last year's award – endured a frustrating first season at Paris Saint-Germain in 2021-22 after arriving on a free transfer from Barcelona, scoring just 11 goals in 34 games in all competitions.

Three goals in two games at the start of the new season were not enough to see Messi make the cut, but great rival Cristiano Ronaldo of Manchester United was included.

Six players from Ronaldo's former club Real Madrid have been named among the 30, including heavy favourite for the award Karim Benzema, while there are also six inclusions each from Premier League duo Manchester City and Liverpool.

The nominees for the prestigious award were announced on Friday, with notable names including Bayern Munich's Sadio Mane and City's Kevin De Bruyne, the latter of whom is also among the three nominees for the 2021-22 UEFA Men's Player of the Year Award along with Benzema and Thibaut Courtois.

Benzema is fancied to take home the prize after a season in which he scored 27 goals in 32 LaLiga games as Madrid won the title, and he also scored 15 in 12 Champions League outings as Los Blancos lifted their 14th European crown in Paris in May.

The Yashin Trophy for the best goalkeeper will be contested among 10 nominees, including Courtois and Eintracht Frankfurt's Europa League winner Kevin Trapp.

The 10 nominees for the Kopa Trophy for the best player under the age of 21 includes six players from the Bundesliga, with Borussia Dortmund's Jude Bellingham and Bayern's Jamal Musiala among them.

Alexia Putellas, last year's winner of the Ballon d'Or Feminin, has been announced as one of 20 nominees despite missing the Women's Euro 2022 with an injury.

Five of Lyon's Champions League-winning side are included, as are three members of the England team who won the Euros on home turf last month.

The winners of each award will be announced on October 17, a month before the men's World Cup, meaning the tournament in Qatar at the end of the year will count towards consideration for the 2023 awards.

Full nominee lists

Ballon d'Or: Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid), Rafael Leao (Milan), Christopher Nkunku (RB Leipzig), Mohamed Salah (Liverpool), Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich), Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool), Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid), Bernardo Silva (Manchester City), Luis Diaz (Liverpool), Robert Lewandowski (Barcelona), Riyad Mahrez (Manchester City), Casemiro (Real Madrid), Son Heung-min (Tottenham), Fabinho (Liverpool), Karim Benzema (Real Madrid), Mike Maignan (Milan), Harry Kane (Tottenham), Darwin Nunez (Liverpool), Phil Foden (Manchester City), Sadio Mane (Bayern Munich), Sebastien Haller (Borussia Dortmund), Luka Modric (Real Madrid), Antonio Rudiger (Real Madrid), Cristiano Ronaldo (Manchester United), Kevin De Bruyne (Manchester City), Dusan Vlahovic (Juventus), Virgil van Dijk (Liverpool), Joao Cancelo (Manchester City), Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain), Erling Haaland (Manchester City)

Ballon d'Or Feminin: Selma Bacha (Lyon), Fridolina Rolfo (Barcelona), Vivianne Miedema (Arsenal), Lucy Bronze (Barcelona), Sam Kerr (Chelsea), Christiane Endler (Lyon), Lena Oberdorf (Wolfsburg), Kadidiatou Diani (Paris Saint-Germain), Catarina Macario (Lyon), Alexia Putellas (Barcelona), Alexandra Popp (Wolfsburg), Aitana Bonmati (Barcelona), Wendie Renard (Lyon), Alex Morgan (San Diego Wave), Beth Mead (Arsenal), Asisat Oshoala (Barcelona), Marie-Antoinette Katoto (Paris Saint-Germain), Millie Bright (Chelsea), Trinity Rodman (Washington Spirit), Ada Hegerberg (Lyon)

Yashin Trophy: Yassine Bounou (Sevilla), Alisson (Liverpool), Thibaut Courtois (Real Madrid), Ederson (Manchester City), Mike Maignan (Milan), Edouard Mendy (Chelsea), Manuel Neuer (Bayern Munich), Jan Oblak (Atletico Madrid), Kevin Trapp (Eintracht Frankfurt), Hugo Lloris (Tottenham)

Kopa Trophy: Karim Adeyemi (Borussia Dortmund), Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund), Eduardo Camavinga (Real Madrid), Gavi (Barcelona), Ryan Gravenberch (Bayern Munich), Nuno Mendes (Paris Saint-Germain), Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich), Josko Gvardiol (RB Leipzig), Bukayo Saka (Arsenal), Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen)

Minnesota Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell announced on Friday that starting quarterback Kirk Cousins has tested positive for COVID-19 and will not travel with the team for Sunday's preseason opener at the Las Vegas Raiders.

Cousins will be required to isolate for at least five days before being allowed to rejoin the team at training camp, provided he tests negative.

The 2021 Pro Bowl selection missed Thursday's practice and was sent home from camp with what the Vikings initially termed an illness.

O'Connell did not reveal who will start under center Sunday, but did say both veteran Sean Mannion and second-year pro Kellen Mond will see extensive action.

"No matter who starts, they'll both play a ton," O'Connell remarked.

Cousins was in the NFL's protocols for unvaccinated players last season and missed the Vikings' Week 17 game at Green Bay on January 2 following a positive diagnosis. Mannion started in his place and threw for 189 yards and a touchdown in a 37-10 Minnesota loss to the Packers.

The NFL has lifted coronavirus protocols for this season, though all players must adhere to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention guidelines if they test positive.

Xavi says Barcelona are "very optimistic" that their new signings will be registered, but they may not all be given the green light for their first match of the LaLiga season against Rayo Vallecano.

Robert Lewandowski, Raphinha, Jules Kounde, Andreas Christensen and Franck Kessie have arrived at Camp Nou since the end of last season, but there is uncertainty over whether they will be able to make their competitive debuts on Saturday.

The Catalan giants have been busy trying to raise funds in order to meet LaLiga's salary limits ahead of the season and activated a fourth economic lever on Friday.

Barca sold a further 24.5 per cent of their production company for €100million, having also agreed a hugely lucrative sponsorship deal with Spotify and sold a percentage of LaLiga broadcast rights, 

They have been able to lower their wage bill by offloading players and more could follow, with Frenkie de Jong and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang reportedly targets for Chelsea.

Blaugrana head coach Xavi says he is prepared for the possibility that some of his new men may not be eligible to play this weekend.

He told reporters: "We are working hard and everyone at the club is very positive. Maybe not 100 per cent, but we are optimistic. We'll see. The club has signed very well, I am very excited about the players we have signed. We have time until tomorrow and now we are very optimistic."

Xavi maintained his plans for the opening match of the season have not been badly disrupted by being unsure over who will be available.

He said: "It has little influence, as at the end of the day we work on different systems, different variants. Either one or the other players, very few things change.

"We pretty much have two players for each position. We work the same, we don't have a different system with the way we play in attack. Not a lot varies and I insist that right now we are very optimistic of registering the players."

Manchester City midfielder Bernardo Silva and Chelsea defender Marcos Alonso continue to be linked with Barca, with just under three weeks before the transfer window closes.

A deal to sign Alonso is reported to have been agreed and Xavi made it clear he is eager to do further business.

"We are still planning ahead, that's a reality," the former Spain midfielder said. "We are going to see what we are going to do until August 31.

"Of course, we need to have players leave in order for others to come, but the transfer market is open until the 31st and there is work to be done for all of us. We'll see."

Xavi also revealed he wanted Nico Gonzalez to stay rather than join Valencia on loan for the season, adding: "[Nico] came to me three weeks ago. I insisted that he continue because he would have minutes. I like Nico.

"But a few days ago he came back and told me that there was a team where he would play. He has been brave and is going to Valencia.

"I hope he comes back more mature because it must be important for the future of Barca. For the midfield we have [Sergio] Busquets, [Miralem] Pjanic, Kessie, Frenkie, Sergi Roberto, and even Christensen, who can play there."

When the P.H.A.S.E.1 Academy’s Elite 1 Caribbean Basketball Summer League (E1CBL) tips off at the National Indoor Arena in Kingston on Saturday, August 13, one of the more highly anticipated match-ups, will be the game between Team Horizon (Red) and Team Rivers (Blue) as it will feature the number-one draft pick Nicholai Brown against the talented Dave Black, who are both looking forward to the contest.

Brown believes his team will be ready and expect to win based on what he believes will be the foundation of Team Horizon’s success.

“Going into this league, just the basic things of basketball, playing defence,” he said.

“I am a good defensive player so I am expecting my team to play good defence because from good defence comes great offence. So I am expecting my teammates to play good defence and each player, whether we are playing zone or man so I am expecting good things from them.”

From a personal standpoint, Brown, Team Horizon’s co-captain, said he is eagerly anticipating going up against Black, who is co-captain of Team Rivers.

“The first match is going to be great. We are playing against Dave (Black). He is a great player. I have always wanted to play against him. I have seen what he can do over the week that I have been playing with him,” Brown said.

“I think all my teammates are looking forward to playing against Team Blue. They are as excited as I am. My teammates are all good competitors so it’s going to be a good game.”

Meanwhile, Black said Team Rivers plans to play exciting basketball that will entertain the fans.

“After the first practice, I think we have good chemistry going into Saturday’s game. We just want to get up and down the court fast and play some exciting basketball,” Black said.

“We have a lot of talent on our team and we just want to go out there and compete. We had our first practice yesterday (Wednesday) and this morning (Thursday) and our expectation is to win the tournament.

“I think we have one of the best teams. In our first game, we’ll be trying to get stops, trying to go on the break and playing exciting basketball not only for the coaches but also for the fans. We want everybody to have fun watching some great basketball.”

The Caribbean’s biggest basketball entertainment event of the season is being hosted in collaboration with the Jamaica Basketball Association.

The tournament starts at 5:00 pm with an opening ceremony, followed by competition between the four teams in the league - Elite 1 Rivers, Elite 1 Waves, Elite 1 Horizon, and Elite 1 Storm. Each team comprises top-tier professional players from Jamaica, Barbados, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Ghana.

The Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) has made the decision to postpone Lyon's Ligue 1 trip to Lorient on Sunday owing to an unsafe pitch at the latter's home ground.

The two sides were due to play their second league match of the new season, having got their campaigns underway last weekend.

But the LFP has elected to delay the encounter after a pitch inspection at Stade du Moustoir deemed the surface to possess a risk to the welfare of both teams.

"The LFP Competitions Committee decided on Friday to postpone the match between FC Lorient and Olympique Lyonnais to a later date," read an official statement.

"The commission noted that the current state of the pitch at Stade du Moustoir did not ensure the safety of the players. As a result, the LFP Competitions Committee decided to postpone the meeting."

Reports suggest that both the ongoing heatwave and drought across Western Europe, coupled with the ground playing host to events for the Inter-Celtic Festival of Lorient contributed to the poor conditions.

Both teams kicked off their campaign with a win last weekend, as Lyon defeated Ajaccio and Lorient scored a surprise victory over Rennes.

The Ligue de Football Professionnel (LFP) has made the decision to postpone Lyon's Ligue 1 trip to Lorient on Sunday owing to an unsafe pitch at the latter's home ground.

The two sides were due to play their second league match of the new season, having got their campaigns underway last weekend.

But the LFP has elected to delay the encounter after a pitch inspection at Stade du Moustoir deemed the surface to possess a risk to the welfare of both teams.

"The LFP Competitions Committee decided on Friday to postpone the match between FC Lorient and Olympique Lyonnais to a later date," read an official statement.

"The commission noted that the current state of the pitch at Stade du Moustoir did not ensure the safety of the players. As a result, the LFP Competitions Committee decided to postpone the meeting."

Reports suggest that both the ongoing heatwave and drought across Western Europe, coupled with the ground playing host to events for the Inter-Celtic Festival of Lorient contributed to the poor conditions.

Both teams kicked off their campaign with a win last weekend, as Lyon defeated Ajaccio and Lorient scored a surprise victory over Rennes.

The National Arena in Kingston comes alive this Saturday, August 13th with the first games of P.H.A.S.E.1 Academy’s Elite 1 Caribbean Basketball Summer League (E1CBL)- the Caribbean’s biggest basketball entertainment event of the season, which is hosted in collaboration with the Jamaica Basketball Association. 

The event starts at 5:00 PM with an opening ceremony, followed by heated competition among the four teams in the league; Elite 1 Rivers, Elite 1 Waves, Elite 1 Horizon, and Elite 1 Storm. Each team comprises of top-tier professional players from Jamaica, Barbados, Canada, the United States, the United Kingdom, and Ghana.  

Spectators will also be treated to entertaining half time shows headlined by some of Jamaica’s most popular artistes. 

The exciting competition continues August 14 starting at 6:00 PM, and on August 17 at 4:00 PM.  It will culminate with a celebrity game, third place playoff and the championship game on August 20th which will start at 4:00 PM. 

CEO and Founder of P.H.A.S.E.1 Academy Wayne Dawkins, says the E1CBL is the consummate family event, and is inviting people to come out and witness basketball like they have never seen it before in Jamaica. 

“We are going be bringing them a professional basketball atmosphere that a lot of people only see on TV. We will have high flying basketball players, dancers, music and entertainment topped off by an energetic crowd. It’s the ultimate family entertainment event,” he said. 

Tickets for the event are available at Emkay Sports at 11 Oxford Terrace in Kingston, and cost $200 for students, $500 for bleachers, and $1000 for VIP. Persons can also reach out to the E1CBL via Instagram @e1caribbeanbasketballleague to purchase tickets. 

The E1CBL is sponsored by the Jamaica Basketball Association, Elite 1 Recruiting Platform, Ribbiz, TurboStats, Global Pipeline Agency, KFC, Phoenix Health Complex and Vision Centre, Athletic Fusion, Suretime Medical, Habliborange, Herbs, Facey Pharmaceuticals, and Confectionery and Snacks Jamaica. 

P.H.A.S.E.1 Academy was founded by Jamaican Canadian and former basketball player, Wayne Dawkins. For the past 25 years, P.H.A.S.E.1 Academy have been organizing and hosting basketball leagues and tournaments in Canada and the US and Africa. These events have contributed substantially to the growth of the youth sports industry. 

P.H.A.S.E.1 Academies are located in Canada, Jamaica, the United States, and Africa. Our student-athletes have access to expert staff, elite training methods, top competition, and exposure to greater opportunities. Over the years, we have assisted in the development of more than 500 athletes in receiving scholarships to study and play post-secondary sports and move on to become professional athletes.

 

Chelsea captain Cesar Azpilicueta has heaped praise on the club's new owners for showing "great ambition" in the transfer market.

The Blues entered the window restricted by sanctions imposed by the UK government on Roman Abramovich, which prevented any new signings from being made or new contracts being offered to players.

Such uncertainty ended with the completion of a takeover led by American Todd Boehly and Thomas Tuchel has been backed at the start of a new era.

Marc Cucurella, Raheem Sterling and Kalidou Koulibaly are among the new signings made by the London club, with Barcelona duo Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Frenkie de Jong potentially on their way to Stamford Bridge.

Azpilicueta signed a new deal after being a target for Barca and the defender is excited about what Chelsea could achieve with the quality of signings they have made.

"It's very important that we keep the ambition high and keep winning trophies - and we have showed that with our transfers and the new players coming in," he told Sky Sports.

"I've seen a great ambition, they [the owners] have been very transparent and honest since the first day. 

"We've seen straight away in the transfer window and it's not easy to step up after just a few months of sanctions where you can't make any movements.

"In football, the competition is really high. You have more teams who want players and it's very difficult. Sometimes you need a bit more time, but we've had a great recruitment until now. 

"They [the new owners] have shown in other sports how successful they have been and I am fully confident that we will have a successful period as a club."

While Azpilicueta would not comment specifically on any names, he did suggest he expects further new arrivals.

"We're still working on more until the last day. There's still some movement around and I'm very excited," he added.

Real Madrid duo Karim Benzema and Thibaut Courtois, alongside Manchester City playmaker Kevin De Bruyne, are the three nominees for the 2021-22 UEFA Men's Player of the Year Award.

The three are joined by bosses Carlo Ancelotti and Pep Guardiola, plus Liverpool's Jurgen Klopp, on the three-man shortlist for the UEFA Men's Coach of the Year Award.

Ahead of this week's Ballon d'Or nominations, France forward Benzema has further enshrined his frontrunner status, after firing Madrid to a continental double last term in La Liga and the UEFA Champions League.

But there is no room for any player from Liverpool, the side who Ancelotti's men vanquished in last season's final in Paris.

Five Reds stars - Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Trent Alexander-Arnold and Fabinho, plus the departed Sadio Mane - made the 15-man longlist, but none made the final cut for the eventual nominations.

Other players included Robert Lewandowski and Luka Modric, who came fourth and fifth respectively, while Paris Saint-Germain forward Kylian Mbappe came eighth, one spot ahead of Madrid forward Vinicius Junior.

Benzema is feted for his superb efforts in helping Madrid bounce back to glory under Ancelotti, with 44 goals in 46 games across all competitions, while Courtois is recognised for his superb feats between the posts.

De Bruyne meanwhile helped City and Guardiola to another Premier League crown, while Klopp steered Liverpool to two domestic trophies, plus a second-place league finish and the Champions League final.

The winners will be announced at the ceremony for the 2022-23 Champions League group stage draw in Istanbul on August 25.

Premier League football returned with a bang last week, and the second round of matches throws up the first clash between two sides anticipated to be right in the thick of the battle for a top-four finish.

Chelsea's first home game of the season hands them a London derby against Tottenham, with both on a high following their opening victories against Everton and Southampton respectively.

On the weekend the Premier League celebrates its 30th birthday, all eyes will be on Stamford Bridge as Antonio Conte faces off against his former employers.

Both Chelsea and Spurs had busy pre-seasons, including the former being taken over by Todd Boehly and Clearlake Capital, and with both playing in the Champions League this season, will be among the favourites to secure their spots in Europe's elite competition once again.

Securing points against rivals in the battle may well be decisive come May, and Chelsea know they have the historic edge.

Spurs' Stamford Bridge struggles

In 2018, Spurs won consecutive Premier League matches against Chelsea – a rare phenomenon for the north London side, who are historically poor in their trips across the capital to Stamford Bridge.

Since losing 3-1 at Wembley in November 2018, Chelsea have returned to form in the fixture, with seven Premier League matches unbeaten against Spurs, six wins and one draw.

During that run, Chelsea have conceded just a solitary goal and not even that was scored by a Spurs player, with Antonio Rudiger netting an own goal in Chelsea's 2-1 win in February 2020.

Spurs' record at Stamford Bridge makes for even worse reading. Their 3-1 win in April 2018 is their only success in their last 37 visits to Chelsea, suffering 24 defeats and sharing the spoils on 12 occasions.

 

Kane's killing edge

Thierry Henry stands as the highest Premier League scorer in London derbies with 43, but Harry Kane (41) is now closing in on the former Arsenal captain.

The England skipper is a reliable threat in front of goal against opponents from the capital but has a poor run of form against Chelsea, having failed to score in any of his last five appearances against the Blues.

In the top-flight, Kane has only had longer goalless runs against Manchester City (seven games between 2017 and 2021) and Manchester United (six games between 2014 and 2016).

Kane comes into Sunday's clash seeking to open his account for the season but will have fond memories of his last London derby, where he struck twice in a convincing win over Arsenal in May.

 

Centurions in wait

Tottenham sit just one victory away from celebrating 100 wins in Premier League London derby matches and, if they beat Chelsea, will become the third side to reach that milestone after the Blues and Arsenal.

Securing a win at Stamford Bridge is difficult enough but Spurs are also edging towards being centurions in Premier League London derbies at the opposite end of the spectrum as they have 97 defeats – only West Ham (112) having more.

Both milestones could be reached during the course of the 2022-23 season, and Spurs will hope to tick off the former first.

 

Home headache

Two of Chelsea's last three home Premier League London derby matches have ended in defeat, having lost to Arsenal and Brentford in April.

In that run, Chelsea suffered as many defeats in three games as they had in their previous 17 – where they had only dropped 12 points from a possible 51.

Those losses to Arsenal and Brentford hit harder, however, with the fact that Thomas Tuchel's side conceded eight goals in total – as many as they had conceded in their previous 16 combined.

Spurs can pack a punch too, with Conte's men winning their last four Premier League matches with an aggregate scoreline of 13-1, which stands as the longest winning run within the top-flight.

Antonio Conte says Tottenham would be "foolish" to spend big in the transfer market and will use "common sense."

Spurs have made six signings during the window, landing Richarlison, Yves Bissouma, Ivan Perisic, Djed Spence, Clement Lenglet and Fraser Forster.

The London club have also been linked with Roma attacking midfielder Nicolo Zaniolo and Barcelona forward Memphis Depay, while teenage wing-back Destiny Udogie is expected to arrive form Udinese and return to the Serie A club on loan.

They are also reportedly set to trigger a £41million release clause to make centre-back Cristian Romero's loan move from Atalanta permanent.

Tottenham head coach Conte has vowed there is no chance the club will be reckless before the transfer window closes on September 1.

He said ahead of Sunday's derby at his former club Chelsea: "We improved in this way but I know I can't have everything quickly, it would be foolish to ask for a lot of players and spend a lot of money.

"We're doing the right things with common sense, not to spend the money on many players. Also, this is not the politics of the club, I understand this. We have to go in the right way, doing the right things."

Conte is pleased with the strength of his squad as Spurs look to make further strides after securing fourth place in the Premier League last season to seal a Champions League spot.

The Italian added: "I'm very happy with our squad because, compared to last season, we improved with Richy but we lost [Steven] Bergwijn. [Bryan] Gil went on loan but now he's in the squad of 20 players. I think in midfield we improved with Bissouma and with [Harry] WInks, and then with Lenglet behind.

"We signed players with common sense, to find players with the right characteristics, to help us have the quality. To have reliable players, players ready to have a good impact."

Tottenham will be without defender Lenglet and midfielder Oliver Skipp for their second Premier League game of the season due to an abductor injury and a hairline heel fracture respectively.

Pep Guardiola revealed Sergio Gomez will compete for a place in Manchester City's first team as he confirmed reports the Premier League champions are set to sign the young left-back.

City have reportedly agreed an £11million (€13m) deal to sign the 21-year-old Anderlecht player, having missed out on Marc Cucurella to Chelsea earlier this month.

Guardiola has been chasing another left-back to compete with Joao Cancelo since Oleksandr Zinchenko departed for Arsenal, with Atletico Madrid's Renan Lodi and Wolves' Rayan Ait-Nouri also touted as potential targets.

Although some have suggested Gomez represents a development project, with a loan move to Girona mooted, Guardiola is confident in his ability to contribute immediately.

"You know the club is always working on many possibilities and chances in all positions, and this one target is a young player," Guardiola said ahead of City's Premier League fixture against Bournemouth on Saturday. 

"In the [2017 Under-17] World Cup years ago, the best player was Phil Foden, and he was the second-best player in this tournament, then he played for Spain's under-21s.

"He was a young talented player from the academy in Barcelona, he went to [Borussia] Dortmund and didn't get many minutes, and the last year he played in the good hands of Vincent Kompany at Anderlecht and played really well.

"We targeted him and could bring him here."

Asked whether Gomez was one for the future, Guardiola responded: "No, for now, he's going to stay with us and will be alongside Joao, for left-back."

Full-backs have a vital role in Guardiola's team, with the ability of Cancelo to drift into the middle of the midfield seen as key.

Playing in this way, Cancelo laid on seven Premier League assists in 2021-22 – a tally only beaten by Gabriel Jesus and Kevin De Bruyne (both eight) among City players – and created 36 chances from open play.

He also topped the club's charts for passes ending in the final third (1,112 – over 300 more than second-placed Bernardo Silva's 769) .

Cancelo and Kyle Walker each impressed as City enjoyed over 75 per cent of the possession in a routine win at West Ham last Sunday, and Guardiola highlighted the way his full-backs must adapt against different opponents.

"It's not the first time I've done it; for many years, I've done it," he added.

"Last season, with a proper striker with Gabriel or Raz [Raheem Sterling] playing that, or with a false nine, we played it, too.

"And in many games, we didn't play it, and many games this season we are not going to play. It depends on the qualities of opponents, especially the shape of how they defend.

"The way we attack depends on how they defend. It's different to attack a four or five at the back, to see how the wingers behave, to defend narrow or wide – this affects your attack.

"You have to adapt. Since, I would say, at Bayern Munich, especially in the second season, I always used it many, many times."

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