Tottenham Hotspur sent a £75 million bid to Newcastle United to prove how serious they were about signing Sandro Tonali.
The bid was rejected by Newcastle United, although Spurs were expecting it, and negotiations remain ongoing over a deal.
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Tonali is open to joining Tottenham this summer as he is keen to become a part of Roberto De Zerbi’s team in North London.
The Lilywhites will now continue to work on a deal for the Italian midfielder after seeing their first offer turned down by the Tyneside club.
Tottenham are ‘very serious’ about signing Sandro Tonali
Fabrizio Romano is making it clear that Tottenham Hotspur are ‘very serious’ about signing Sandro Tonali this summer.
Despite suggestions that the noise around Spurs’ interest was to get other clubs to speed up their pursuit, it is just not true.
Speaking on his YouTube channel, Romano said: “I told you Tottenham entered the race strongly for Sandro Tonali, who is open to joining Tottenham.
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“Now, someone suggested that Tottenham are being used by those involved in this deal to wake up other clubs. My understanding is that this is not the case.
“Tottenham are real contenders for Sandro Tonali. Tottenham are strong contenders for Sandro Tonali. Tottenham are very serious.”
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“The bid mentioned by the press in the last 12 hours. It’s a bid that was sent three days ago. I told you four days ago that Tottenham entered the race strongly for Sandro Tonali.”
Tottenham wanted to show Sandro Tonali they are ‘serious’
Tottenham knew that their £75 million offer would not be enough for the midfielder; however, it was made to show Tonali they are serious.
“After 12 hours, Tottenham sent an official bid to Newcastle. £75 million rejected by Newcastle. They want more. It’s part of the plan,” added Romano.
“Why? Because the first bid is never getting accepted. It’s normal and common knowledge in football. When you negotiate for a top player with a big transfer fee, the first bid never gets accepted unless it’s a release clause.
“So, it’s part of the plan because for Tottenham, the message sent to the player and to Newcastle, but especially to the player, was to show the serious send an official bid immediately.
“So, that’s what happened, but it’s an old story. It got immediately rejected, and it’s not the bid that we need to talk about now.”
Talks between the player’s agent and the two clubs remaining ongoing to find an agreement for the 26-year-old.
“Tottenham remain in conversations with those close to Tonali, and Tottenham remain in conversations to make a new bid to Newcastle,” said the Italian journalist.
“Tottenham are still working very hard and very strongly to get Sandro Tonali. So that’s the situation.”