Tottenham Hotspur are set to play their first pre-season friendly against MK Dons today, Wednesday, 22 July. The match, which is being held at the Hotspur Way training centre, marks the return of club football for Spurs. This fixture is part of a series of seven pre-season matches confirmed for the Men’s First Team, which will be available live on SPURSPLAY.
The game is scheduled for a 5 p.m. BST kick-off. As a closed-door friendly, the primary focus for pre-season matches like this is typically on player fitness and tactical development rather than the final score. The club has not released extensive details regarding player participation, though some players, including Pedro Porro, Djed Spence, and Cuti Romero, are not expected to feature as they have yet to return from their post-World Cup break.
Squad and Tactical Preparations
For the match against MK Dons, Tottenham Hotspur will be managed by Roberto De Zerbi, with the team expected to line up in a 4-2-3-1 formation. The opposing side, MK Dons, will be led by manager Paul Warne, who is anticipated to deploy a 5-4-1 formation. These formations suggest differing tactical approaches for the friendly encounter.
The match statistics from the friendly showed Tottenham Hotspur maintaining a significant portion of possession, with 70.7% compared to MK Dons‘ 29.3%. In terms of shots, Tottenham Hotspur registered 9 attempts, with 4 on target, while MK Dons had 5 shots, 3 of which were on target. The goalkeepers made 3 saves for Tottenham Hotspur and an unspecified number for MK Dons.
Pre-season fixtures often involve a mix of young players, Under-23 squad members, and senior players, with rotations expected throughout the game, potentially including wholesale changes at half-time. This allows the coaching staff to assess various players and combinations ahead of the upcoming season.
Upcoming Pre-Season Schedule and Broadcast Details
Following the match against MK Dons, Tottenham Hotspur will embark on a pre-season tour of New Zealand and Australia. Their schedule includes a match against Auckland FC on Sunday, 26 July, followed by a fixture against Sydney FC on Wednesday, 29 July. Another notable pre-season game will see Spurs face Chelsea on Saturday, 1 August.
All seven of the Men’s First Team pre-season matches, including the behind-closed-door friendlies at Hotspur Way, are scheduled to be broadcast live on SPURSPLAY. This platform serves as the club’s dedicated service for live and on-demand video content. Beyond the first team, SPURSPLAY will also feature live coverage of Under-18 and Under-21 home matches, select Under-21 away matches, and Women’s First Team matches throughout the 2026/27 season.
Access to SPURSPLAY is included as a new benefit for One Hotspur+ Members as part of their annual membership. This membership also offers other benefits such as a £20 Spurs Retail Voucher and a £15 Stadium Attraction Voucher. For those who are not One Hotspur+ Members, an annual subscription to SPURSPLAY is available for £45, with a reduced rate of £35 for One Hotspur Members. Existing Season Ticket Holders and One Hotspur+ Members for the 2026/27 season will receive a code for free access, while One Hotspur Members will receive a code for a discounted rate. The platform also provides access to an extensive archive of Spurs video content, including highlights from over 1000 games from the last 17 years.
The referee for the Tottenham Hotspur versus MK Dons friendly is Constantine Hatzidakis.
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Source: bbc.com
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Charlie Bradshaw is the Senior Football Correspondent at News-GB, covering the Premier League, the EFL and the England national side with ten years of reporting experience. He covered Merseyside football before going national. He holds a degree in Sports Journalism from Liverpool John Moores University and completed an NCTJ diploma. Based in Liverpool, he watches non-league sides and collects old match programmes. “The back page is only ever half the story.”