Tottenham Hotspur’s move to sign Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace took a fresh twist on Sunday after he was named in the Eagles starting XI to face Chelsea, despite reports he would be left out, although the transfer is still on course to be concluded.
The England international playmaker has an expired release clause in his contract which was worth an initial £60million, plus a further £8m in add-ons.
It is understood Tottenham are negotiating an offer slightly below the total release figure in their hopes of getting a deal over the line for Thomas Frank.
Multiple reports on Saturday evening suggested that Eze would not be included in the Palace squad, given how close the two clubs are to agreeing a deal for the 27-year-old.
However, there is still some work to do in that regard, with Eze and Tottenham and Liverpool target Marc Guehi both in Oliver Glasner’s side to face their London rivals at Stamford Bridge.
And while that may suggest that a deal is potentially further away from happening, The Athletic‘s David Ornstein reports that Tottenham’s ‘pursuit’ of the attacking midfielder is ‘ongoing’ and that Palace are continuing to ‘work on replacements’.
Add in the fact that Eze has already agreed personal terms and is actively pushing for the deal to happen and it just leaves Tottenham keeping their fingers crossed that Eze comes through the Chelsea test unscathed.
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What about Savinho to Tottenham?
Despite seemingly closing in on a deal for Eze, Spurs continue to be in talks to also secure a deal for Manchester City winger Savinho.
Savinho’s move to Tottenham remains finely poised, even though the player is fully on board with the move from The Etihad, with TEAMtalk revealing how much more the north London outfit will need to pay to secure his signature.
Spurs are having to consider how high they can realistically go as Man City wait for them to make a new offer that tempts them to sell.
Tottenham’s initial £60million approach fell beneath the level City are happy with selling him for – and he is not a player Pep Guardiola had been looking to move on this month.
There is an element of surprise that he is so open to the move, but City will not stand in his way if Spurs come forward with a satisfactory new offer.
As of Saturday night, a deal for Savinho was still considered possible, but it is understood that Tottenham had been told they need to raise the offer by at least £5m.
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