Tottenham continue to be linked with all and sundry in the summer transfer window as Roberto De Zerbi looks to improve the squad he inherited from Igor Tudor at the end of March.

De Zerbi managed to save the club from relegation to the Championship with a 1-0 win over Everton on the final day of the season ensuring it was West Ham who made the drop into the second tier.

Andy Robertson has already arrived, signing on a free transfer from Liverpool, while it is expected that Marcos Senesi will follow him following his exit from Bournemouth.

Tottenham have so many attacking players injured

Both of those are defensive signings, with the Lilywhites also having a bid rejected for another defender in the form of Jan Paul van Hecke from Brighton.

De Zerbi will look at attacking reinforcements this summer too, having been unable to call upon the likes of Dejan Kulusevski, Wilson Odobert or Mohammed Kudus since arriving in north London, and only briefly able to name Xavi Simons in his side.

Marcus Rashford has been linked with a move to N17, because of the confusion around his future.

The England international, currently on duty with the Three Lions in the United States of America ahead of the start of the 2026 World Cup, has spent this season on loan with Barcelona in La Liga and has had a successful spell at the Camp Nou.

Rashford, after falling out of favour with former United boss Ruben Amorim, scored 14 goals and laid on 14 assists in 49 appearances for the Catalans, who hold an option to buy him from Manchester United for around £26million.

However, having signed Anthony Gordon from Newcastle United for £69million, Barca are keen to negotiate the terms of that option to buy deal with United, looking to either bring the price down or spread the payments across another loan deal and then a purchase after the 2026/27 campaign.

Rashford’s future looks like it is at Barcelona or Manchester United

Rashford will return to United after the World Cup, if a move away is not completed, but his future at Old Trafford appears to be over.

Tottenham are one of a number of Premier League teams to have enquired about his availability and the potential to complete a transfer, but have been rebuffed in their attempts to sign him this summer.

According to Sport in Spain, Rashford has made it clear that he does not want to make the move to Spurs, or any other Premier League team for that matter, and his sole interest is in re-signing for Barcelona.

That may lead to United having to cut their losses and re-negotiate the terms of their deal with the Catalan side, or hold firm and make Rashford have to return to Old Trafford if Barca do not want to spend £26million on him.

Rio Ngumoha has made a blistering start to his senior career with Liverpool and England, but he has yet to share a dressing room with the likes of Mohamed Salah, Virgil van Dijk, or Harry Kane. The English teenager only made his Premier League debut in August 2025 when he came off the bench and scored a stunning last-gasp winner in the Reds’ 3-2 win over Newcastle United.

The 17-year-old signed his first professional contract during the 2025/26 season, committing his future to the club until the summer of 2028. He has now also been handed his first England cap, becoming the fifth-youngest player for the Three Lions as he made his debut against New Zealand.

Ngumoha’s meteoric rise has come amid a steady integration into the Liverpool first team, which reportedly included the removal of clips of the English starlet catching the eye in training. But he also has yet to even prepare for a matchday with the senior squad in Anfield’s dressing room – and it’s the same with the Three Lions.

Why Rio Ngumoha Isn’t Allowed in Liverpool or England’s Dressing Room

Ngumoha hasn’t looked out of place whenever on the pitch alongside high-profile names such as Salah, Van Dijk, Dominik Szoboszlai and Ryan Gravenberch, and he was arguably the brightest spark on the pitch for England on debut against New Zealand. But he’ll have to wait until August 29 to start using a changing room with either team’s senior troops.

An FA guideline stipulates that players under the age of 18 are legally defined as children and cannot change alongside adults. That means Arsenal attacker Max Dowman also won’t be sharing the facilities with the Gunners’ first team for another few years, despite the 16-year-old being part of Mikel Arteta’s main squad.

It is a guideline that some Premier League clubs have grown familiar with. Indeed, Arteta was put in a similar scenario last season before Ethan Nwaneri turned 18, and he said it was “unbelievable” that the player was still so young that he “needs to get dressed somewhere else, even on match day” and yet was already making an impact in the team

Ngumoha is still benefitting from joining the senior camp and suggested during pre-season that fellow teen Trey Nyoni, 18, had helped him “really settle in”. The new England international also said that Salah was one of his idols and that it’s “really big learning from him”.

Who Is Rio Ngumoha’s Mentor?

One would imagine that some of Liverpool’s most exciting attackers would want to take Ngumoha under their wing and impart as much knowledge as possible at this stage of his career. But it seems that Andy Robertson was the one member of the Reds’ senior team who has played somewhat of a mentorship role.

Ngumoha discussed being bedded into the first team during pre-season and touched on Robertson (via Liverpoolfc.com): “Robbo has really helped me a lot. He’s so experienced and one of the best left-backs in the world. I feel like having him behind me, I can’t really ask for anything more. He’s experienced and teaches me a lot.”

Robertson was one of Liverpool’s longest-serving players, having been at Anfield since the summer of 2017. The Scottish left-back joined the Merseyside giants from Hull City at the age of 23 and went on to win every major trophy, making 378 appearances.

Ngumoha will now have to adjust to life without the Scottish mentor, as Robertson has left Anfield to join Tottenham Hotspur.

With just 11 days to go until their World Cup Group L opener against Croatia on 17 June, England took on New Zealand in a pre-tournament friendly. This was a chance for certain squad members to impress Thomas Tuchel, with just one more friendly against Costa Rica to go before the summer competition begins.

The German decided to go with one starting XI and then change the entire team at halftime, to get a good look at all the players in his 26-man squad. It was a dull first half as the players struggled to dominate the All Whites, but Harry Kane’s class managed to shine through, as he headed home just before half-time. This proved to be the winner.

After the break, as promised, an entirely new set of England stars took to the pitch. One notable change was Ivan Toney on from Kane, and there was a big difference in quality.

England Star Struggles in World Cup Warm-Up

As Kane had started with Ollie Watkins, Tuchel only had one man he could bring off the bench as a striker. That man was Toney, who was making his first England appearance since coming on as a substitute during the defeat against Senegal in October 2025.

Having spent the last two seasons in the Saudi Pro League with Al Ahli, some were surprised to see him make the squad, and his 45-minute cameo did little to convince. His best moment came when he threw himself to ground easily to win a penalty, but the officials correctly flagged that he was offside in the build-up.

Beyond that, he struggled to make an impact and even missed a big chance at the death when unmarked in the box, although he was once again called offside, which summed up how off the pace he seemed.

Toney finished the game with no shots, as per SofaScore, having been caught offside twice, and managed just five passes. In total, he had only 11 touches, losing the ball three times in his 45 minutes on the pitch. In comparison, Kane had three shots at goal, all on target and completed 15 passes, losing the ball twice from 21 touches.

Fans Unimpressed With Toney vs New Zealand

One key thing fans noticed in the game was the slow pace. One supporter spoke about Toney as he suggested some of the players looked ‘dreadful’ in terms of their sharpness. They said:

“Some of these players are so out of shape it’s dreadful, James makes Luke Shaw look like he hasn’t had a meal for 3 months and Toney looks like he hasn’t run in a 12 month, how the hell are they out there?”

On Toney, another added: “Toney so far off the pace and that’s against New Zealand!!!!” While someone else echoed that, writing: “Toney is miles off it. Dreading this World Cup already. Miss you Gareth.” Another said:

At one point, the English striker looked to latch onto a ball but looked worryingly slow. A fan noticed this and said: “Ivan Toney is about as quick as me and I’m 59 yrs old.”

One supporter brutally wrote: “Ivan Toney is making Emile Heskey look like prime Maradona.” While a final fan summed up the mood, noting: “Horrifically lazy game from the England lads. Toney, Burn and Gordon especially poor with 80min gone.”