Tottenham vs Aston Villa LIVE: Harry Kane completes turnaround to put Spurs 2-1 ahead
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Your support makes all the difference.Follow live updates from the Premier League as Spurs begin their campaign against newly promoted Aston Villa at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Villa come up with plenty of ambition having made a raft of new signings in the transfer window to bolster a side that already contains the quality of Jack Grealish and John McGinn.
Spurs have added quality of their own through the likes of Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele and will hope they can do something special in the first full season at their shiny new stadium. Follow it live:
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How to watch on TV, plus channel and online stream info...
The game will be shown live on Sky Sports main event and Premier League channels, and you can follow it live on the Sky Go app.
Prediction...
Villa to give Tottenham a really good game but fall short, losing 1-0.
Welcome along to live coverage of Tottenham vs Aston Villa – Callum will be along shortly with all the build-up and team news...
The anticipation at Tottenham is palpable. For the first time in a long time, it has been a busy summer in north London: midfielders Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele have arrived from Real Betis and Lyon respectively, while youngster Ryan Sessegnon has made the switch from Fulham for £24m.
There is, then, plenty of expectation from supporters. Spurs begin their campaign today against newly promoted Aston Villa, hoping to get off to a quick start and avoid losing any early ground at the top. But, despite their new acquisitions, Tottenham will have a couple of notable absentees this evening. Dele Alli is injured and Heung-min Son, so influential last season, is suspended.
Villa, meanwhile, may be feeling quietly confident ahead of their season opener. After winning the Championship play-off final against Derby, they have invested significantly in their squad. Eleven players - amongst them record signing Wesley Moraes and Egyptian winger Trézéguet - have been brought in. But the focus will be on key man Jack Grealish, an integral part of Dean Smith's team.
Spurs are the strong favourites for this one, but Villa, newly promoted and determined to make their mark in the top flight, are something of an unknown quantity.
There's no sign of Lo Celso in the Tottenham squad today. Sessegnon, still struggling with a hamstring injury, is also absent. But Ndombele makes his debut alongside Moussa Sissoko and Harry Winks in midfield.
Villa, as expected, hand debuts to several players, including Wesley and Trézéguet. Defender Bjorn Engels is another new addition included in today's team, while Tyrone Mings makes his first appearance since joining the club permanently.
Mauricio Pochettino and his Tottenham side were rightly lauded for their achievements last season. A Champions League final and a top four finish was another significant step forward for Spurs. But defeat against Liverpool in Madrid meant another campaign without a trophy. The goal for Pochettino this season, then, is clear.
My personal feeling is that starting my sixth season I need to lift a trophy," he said. "Carabao Cup, FA Cup, Premier League or Champions League. I am not saying it is time. I don't want to put pressure on the team or the club.
"But if you ask me personally, this season is not about finishing in the top four to be successful - although of course maybe that matters for the club.
"But for me, it is about winning some title - the Carabao Cup, the FA Cup, the Premier League of the Champions League.
If not, after last season's final, to be again in the top four and reach the semi-final of the Carabao Cup, it is like, 'Come on!'
"You are always there but you cannot touch the glory. That is personally - me. My personal target, objective, aim to be successful this season is to lift a trophy."
The big question, for Villa, will be whether or not their multiple new additions can come together to form a cohesive and functioning team. They have spent close to £140m over the summer, but such investment did not help Fulham last season. Villa look to have gone about things more wisely, though. They will, no doubt, hope to replicate Wolves' first campaign back in the Premier League.
The players are out at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium! Kick off is just a couple of minutes away now...
After a minute's applause in memory of former Spurs defender Justin Edinburgh, Villa get things underway.
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