Good evening, Spurs fans. Here are your evening headlines for Saturday, September 19.
Zidane insists there is no bad blood with Bale
Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane insists there is no bad blood between himself and Gareth Bale.
The Wales international has agreed to rejoin Tottenham on a season-long loan from the La Liga champions, partly due to his reportedly difficult relationship with Zidane.
Despite admitting he did not say goodbye to Bale earlier this week, Zidane outlined his admiration for what the 31-year-old achieved for the club.
Zidane said: "I did not speak to him… but I know what he has done for this club. He always proved his quality and what he has achieved with the club cannot be argued with.
“There will always be things that happen. Now he's making a change, all we can do is wish him the best.
"These things happen in football, but I've always said he was a spectacular player."
Mourinho on why Kane is yet to reach full fitness
Tottenham boss Jose Mourinho has revealed why Harry Kane has struggled to reach full match fitness for this season's opening fixtures.
The Portuguese coach's attack looks set to be improved with the arrival of Bale from Real Madrid, but Kane’s lack of sharpness remains an issue to solve.
On Kane, Mourinho noted: “[Harry] didn’t have pre-season at all, he went direct from lockdown to the national team, no training.
"He didn’t have a week of training so, at this moment, his preparation has been just the minutes he’s been on the pitch.
"Of course he’s not prepared, but it’s the way he’s finding his form, his sharpness, his movement, his intensity.
"So we will have to try to take care of him but at the same time we want to win matches."
Hoddle's reservation over Bale’s return
Former Tottenham midfielder Glenn Hoddle believes Spurs fans will see a very different Bale to the one that left for Real Madrid seven years ago.
While supporters are understandably excited about the Wales international returning to north London, Hoddle outlined an important consideration over his comeback.
He told SpursWeb: “I think it’s a really bold move from Daniel Levy and it’s one that Jose will be delighted with. One, because of the way Spurs and Jose wants to play is to counter-attack teams and I think that is right down Bale’s alley.
“I think we’ll see a slightly different Gareth Bale in a more experienced player. Not one that may go box to box with the ball and be as flying as he used to when he was at Tottenham.
“But, there is a big but, if Gareth was a Formula 1 car, he hasn’t had much on the clock in the last couple of years. He hasn’t played 80 games in the last two seasons.
"So, he’s got a little bit under the bonnet, he’s got a little bit of weight in there. It’s not like he’s knackered, he’s now just got to make sure that the engine is running full-on.”
