Tottenham Hotspur‘s Alejo Véliz will leave the Premier League club permanently and move to Esporte Clube Bahia in the summer.
The Argentine arrived at Tottenham from Rosario Central in August 2023 and struggled for regular minutes in England.
The north London club sent him on loan to Sevilla in January 2024 and later that year to Espanyol.
He failed to impress regularly at these two clubs and last summer, Spurs let him return to Rosario Central on a season-long loan deal.
In the winter market, Bahia wanted to sign the 22-year-old permanently and the English club were in favour of a sale. Tottenham even agreed the Brazilian club’s bid, but Rosario Central refused to cut short his loan stay.
In February, Sport Witness relayed news that Tottenham agreed a €9m deal for the striker to join Bahia in the summer.
On Tuesday, Véliz scored in Rosario Central’s 4-0 home win over Universidad Central de Venezuela in the Copa Libertadores.
Tottenham player said goodbye
After the match, the Tottenham Hotspur man appeared emotional. On Wednesday, Sport Witness covered claims from Argentina he has played his last match for his current club.
La Capita now state Alejo Véliz ‘bid farewell to the Gigante de Arroyito stadium before his loan from Tottenham ends, with the latter expected to finalise a sale to Bahia of Brazil’.
The frontman spoke to Rosario Central’s official channel, and the outlet have relayed his comments.
His club teammate, Marco Ruben, interrupted the interview to heap praise on the Spurs owned player. Ruben talked about Véliz’s exit and wished him luck for the future.
“It’s a very special night. He’s saying goodbye to the Gigante for the second time. It certainly won’t be the last, so we’ll be waiting for him here again,” he said.
“He’s going to continue his career, and I and all the Rosario Central fans wish him the greatest success, that he continues to grow as a footballer and enjoy playing football, so he’ll come back.”
“I’ve known him since he was a kid, we were together in 2021 when I returned for the first time, and we’ve been through a lot together. I’m thrilled to have been able to share this match with him, even though we weren’t on the pitch together.”
On his second spell at Rosario Central, Véliz explained: “Since Marco left, I’ve had a huge responsibility with the nickname they gave me and with wearing the number nine, which was a heavy burden.”
“I always tried to contribute to the group. To the team, to give everything for this jersey, to put everything aside for this jersey. The day I return, I’ll continue doing so.”
Spurs will soon part with player
Tottenham Hotspur reportedly paid £13m [€15m] to buy the Argentine three years ago.
He ended up playing 45 minutes from eight matches for Spurs, who will collect €9m from his sale.
Although it’s a loss for the English club, the upcoming exit will see them get rid of Alejo Véliz permanently.