Spurs stars Kane and Son, Liverpool’s Szoboszlai, Mac Allister set for S’pore friendlies
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Tottenham Hotspur's Son Heung-min (left) and Harry Kane are in the squad for the match against Lion City Sailors at the National Stadium on July 26.
PHOTO: REUTERS
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SINGAPORE – Despite rumours swirling over their future, Tottenham Hotspur’s biggest stars Harry Kane and Son Heung-min – targets of Germany’s Bayern Munich and Saudi Arabia’s Al-Ittihad respectively – are in the 31-man squad who will be in town for the Singapore Festival of Football Driven by CDG Zig.
Similarly, Liverpool’s talisman Mohamed Salah is also in their 32-man side who are bound for the Republic.
The Saudi Pro League has been making waves with a raft of high-profile signings, and dropped a stunner when Al-Adalah announced the acquisition of Mo Salah in June, only to reveal that he is a Saudi left-back with the same name.
However, Fabinho is not in the squad currently in Germany for a 10-day training camp, fuelling talk that the Brazilian could join Karim Benzema and N’Golo Kante at Al-Ittihad.
Curiously, Liverpool captain Jordan Henderson is still involved in the pre-season friendlies, despite having agreed personal terms with Al-Ettifaq, as both clubs have not worked out a deal yet.
Reds fans will also be able to catch a glimpse of the future with new signings Dominik Szoboszlai and Alexis Mac Allister.
Henderson and Salah scored in the 2-0 win over Crystal Palace when the clubs visited Singapore last July and Liverpool will defend their Standard Chartered Singapore Trophy at the National Stadium when they play Leicester City on July 30, after an open training session a day earlier.
Jurgen Klopp’s men will then face Bundesliga champions Bayern in the Singapore Trophy presented by Audi and Standard Chartered on Aug 2.
Meanwhile, Spurs will play one match each in Perth (July 18) and Bangkok (July 23) before taking on the Lion City Sailors at the National Stadium on July 26. They will also hold an open training session on July 25.
New Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou will be glad to be able to work with his key players, at least for the time being.
At a press conference in Perth on Monday, he said: “The reality of it is we’ve got a month or so before the season starts, a bit less actually. And the transfer window’s still on for a while, so we’ll see how it all transpires.
“There are a lot of people who know Harry better than me, but he’s not going to get fazed by anything. He’s here and while he’s here, he’s totally committed to what we’re doing.”
Likewise, the commitment shown from Son would be music to the Australian’s ears.
The South Korean sensation said: “Probably if I wanted to go there (Saudi Arabia) I would be out there, not here. Obviously money is also important, but I dream of playing in the Premier League and there are still a lot of things to do. Especially last season, I suffered physically. This is not the Sonny that I know. So, I want to prove this season that I’m the Sonny that we all know.”
The 31-year-old added: “I want to prove that to myself and I want to give back to the club where I belong. Saudi, obviously many people are going at the moment which is really, really interesting. But the Premier League is still a dream for me to play in and I’m looking forward to this season.”
Tickets for the Singapore Festival of Football are available at
