On the one hand you have Chelsea, who have spent north of £1 billion over the previous three transfer windows and don't look any closer to challenging for a top-four finish in the Premier League.
Then you have Tottenham, whose wage bill is significantly lower than their London rivals, and yet seem to be in decent shape.
Spurs finished fifth in the Premier League last season – above Chelsea – despite losing their premier player, Harry Kane, to Bayern Munich last summer.
Ange Postecoglou enjoyed a largely satisfactory season as manager. So much so that there were talks of him being considered as a replacement for Gareth Southgate as England boss.
Spurs should be optimistic about their chances this season after signing Dominic Solanke from Bournemouth, adding much needed bite to their attack.
The 26-year-old striker, capped once for England, enjoyed a good 2023/24 season, scoring 19 goals in the English top flight to help Bournemouth achieve their highest points total in the Premier League era.
"We have got [Dominic] at a really good time in his career," Postecoglou said. "He has had to work his way back up, which I always think is a good thing."
Spurs struggled in attack after Kane's move to the Bundesliga. They resisted the temptation to sign a striker 12 months ago but now hope Solanke can fire the team back into the Uefa Champions League.
Also, Spurs have extended Timo Werner's loan spell from RB Leipzig until the end of next season. The German made 14 appearances in all competitions and scored twice for Spurs after joining them on a temporary basis in January.
Tottenham had the option to sign the 28-year-old forward permanently for £15m. However, the new deal contains an £8.5m option to buy.
There were more moves made in the transfer market. Spurs signed South Korean winger Yang Min-hyeok from K League 1 side Gangwon FC on a six-year deal, but the 18 year old is set to join only in January.
Yang was Tottenham's second signing of the summer following highly rated 18-year-old Archie Gray from Leeds United.
The South Korean will be eager to work with compatriot Son Heung-min, who remains a top performer and the highest-earning player of the Spurs squad. Below is the list of the best-paid players at Tottenham. Data collected from capology.com and spotrac.com.
Highest earning players at Tottenham for 2024/25
1. Son Heung-min - £190,000 per week
2. James Maddison - £170,000 per week
=3. Cristian Romero - £165,000 per week
=3. Timo Werner - £165,000 per week
5. Dejan Kulusevski - £110,000 per week
6. Richarlison - £90,000 per week
=7. Radu Dragusin - £85,000 per week
=7. Pedro Porro - £85,000 per week
9. Ben Davies - £80,000 per week
=10. Rodrigo Bentancur - £75,000 per week
=10. Archie Gray - £75,000 per week
=10. Destiny Udogie - £75,000 per week
=10. Fraser Forster - £75,000 per week
=10. Guglielmo Vicario - £75,000 per week
=15. Giovani Lo Celso - £70,000 per week
=15. Pape Sarr - £70,000 per week
=15. Brennan Johnson - £70,000 per week
18. Manor Solomon - £60,000 per week
19. Yves Bissouma - £55,000 per week
20. Sergio Reguilon - £53,000 per week
21. Micky van de Ven - £50,000 per week
22. Oliver Skipp - £40,000 per week
23. Djed Spence - £25,000 per week
=24. Brandon Austin - £15,000 per week
=24. Ashely Phillips - £15,000 per week
26. Alfie Whiteman - £7,500 per week
Note: Salary of Dominik Solanke, Yang Min-hyeok not revealed.
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre 4-cylinder petrol
Power: 154bhp
Torque: 250Nm
Transmission: 7-speed automatic with 8-speed sports option
Price: From Dh79,600
On sale: Now
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Director: Hwang Dong-hyuk
Stars: Lee Jung-jae, Wi Ha-joon and Lee Byung-hun
Rating: 4.5/5
Scoreline
Chelsea 1
Azpilicueta (36')
West Ham United 1
Hernandez (73')
Zayed Sustainability Prize
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
SERIE A FIXTURES
Friday Sassuolo v Benevento (Kick-off 11.45pm)
Saturday Crotone v Spezia (6pm), Torino v Udinese (9pm), Lazio v Verona (11.45pm)
Sunday Cagliari v Inter Milan (3.30pm), Atalanta v Fiorentina (6pm), Napoli v Sampdoria (6pm), Bologna v Roma (6pm), Genoa v Juventus (9pm), AC Milan v Parma (11.45pm)
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Winners
Ballon d’Or (Men’s)
Ousmane Dembélé (Paris Saint-Germain / France)
Ballon d’Or Féminin (Women’s)
Aitana Bonmatí (Barcelona / Spain)
Kopa Trophy (Best player under 21 – Men’s)
Lamine Yamal (Barcelona / Spain)
Best Young Women’s Player
Vicky López (Barcelona / Spain)
Yashin Trophy (Best Goalkeeper – Men’s)
Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City / Italy)
Best Women’s Goalkeeper
Hannah Hampton (England / Aston Villa and Chelsea)
Men’s Coach of the Year
Luis Enrique (Paris Saint-Germain)
Women’s Coach of the Year
Sarina Wiegman (England)
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The burning issue
The internal combustion engine is facing a watershed moment – major manufacturer Volvo is to stop producing petroleum-powered vehicles by 2021 and countries in Europe, including the UK, have vowed to ban their sale before 2040. The National takes a look at the story of one of the most successful technologies of the last 100 years and how it has impacted life in the UAE.
Read part four: an affection for classic cars lives on
Read part three: the age of the electric vehicle begins
Read part one: how cars came to the UAE
Mohammed bin Zayed Majlis
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Emergency
Director: Kangana Ranaut
Stars: Kangana Ranaut, Anupam Kher, Shreyas Talpade, Milind Soman, Mahima Chaudhry
Rating: 2/5
How to watch Ireland v Pakistan in UAE
When: The one-off Test starts on Friday, May 11
What time: Each day’s play is scheduled to start at 2pm UAE time.
TV: The match will be broadcast on OSN Sports Cricket HD. Subscribers to the channel can also stream the action live on OSN Play.
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EEngine%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.0-litre%20twin-turbo%20V6%20and%20electric%20motor%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20power%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20700hp%20at%207%2C500rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EMax%20torque%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20720Nm%20at%202%2C250rpm%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETransmission%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Eight-speed%20dual-clutch%20auto%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3E0-100km%2Fh%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%203.0sec%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3ETop%20speed%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E330kph%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EPrice%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20From%20Dh1.14%20million%20(%24311%2C000)%3Cbr%3E%3Cstrong%3EOn%20sale%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%20Now%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
Other workplace saving schemes
- The UAE government announced a retirement savings plan for private and free zone sector employees in 2023.
- Dubai’s savings retirement scheme for foreign employees working in the emirate’s government and public sector came into effect in 2022.
- National Bonds unveiled a Golden Pension Scheme in 2022 to help private-sector foreign employees with their financial planning.
- In April 2021, Hayah Insurance unveiled a workplace savings plan to help UAE employees save for their retirement.
- Lunate, an Abu Dhabi-based investment manager, has launched a fund that will allow UAE private companies to offer employees investment returns on end-of-service benefits.
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
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How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
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World ranking: 15 (will rise to 5 on Monday)
Date of birth: October 8, 1993
Place of birth: Caracas, Venezuela
Place of residence: Geneva, Switzerland
Height: 6ft (1.82m)
Career singles titles: 4
Grand Slam titles: 2 (French Open 2016, Wimbledon 2017)
Career prize money: $13,928,719
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What are the influencer academy modules?
- Mastery of audio-visual content creation.
- Cinematography, shots and movement.
- All aspects of post-production.
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CHATGPT%20ENTERPRISE%20FEATURES
%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Enterprise-grade%20security%20and%20privacy%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Unlimited%20higher-speed%20GPT-4%20access%20with%20no%20caps%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Longer%20context%20windows%20for%20processing%20longer%20inputs%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Advanced%20data%20analysis%20capabilities%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Customisation%20options%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Shareable%20chat%20templates%20that%20companies%20can%20use%20to%20collaborate%20and%20build%20common%20workflows%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Analytics%20dashboard%20for%20usage%20insights%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%E2%80%A2%20Free%20credits%20to%20use%20OpenAI%20APIs%20to%20extend%20OpenAI%20into%20a%20fully-custom%20solution%20for%20enterprises%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
