Tottenham Hotspur chairman Daniel Levy is often in the news.
The 63-year-old has been at Spurs since 2000, and a lot has been said about him over the last two decades – both good and bad.
Levy deserves enormous credit for the business side of Tottenham, but almost every fan of the club will point the finger at him for the lack of silverware.
The Europa League was just the second trophy won under Levy, which is not good enough considering he has been at the club for nearly a quarter of a century.
However, one thing Levy is incredible at is negotiations.
What Daniel Levy demanded from Real Madrid when they tried to appoint Mauricio Pochettino in 2018
Even though Mauricio Pochettino didn’t win any trophies at Tottenham, he took the club to a whole new level.
The Argentine is adored by Spurs fans even to this day, and many at the club would take him back in a heartbeat if that were possible.
Back in the summer of 2018, after Zinedine Zidane unexpectedly left his role at the Santiago Bernabeu, Real Madrid were keen to appoint Pochettino.
But, Daniel Levy had just extended his then-manager’s contract, allowed no release clause to be put into his deal, and had complete control over his future.
The Athletic revealed in 2024 that Pochettino was open to speaking to the Galacticos at the time, so Real Madrid president Florentino Perez picked up the phone and called Levy.
The Tottenham chairman laid out his demand – Marco Asensio, Mateo Kovacic and £100 million!
That outrageous demand brought an end to negotiations right away, and Real Madrid appointed Julen Lopetegui as the manager soon after.
Tottenham need Daniel Levy’s negotiating skills more than ever before this summer
Levy’s demand to Real Madrid to stop them from luring Pochettino away from the club is one of many examples that prove that he is the best negotiator in the game.
The Tottenham chairman will have to be at his best again this summer, as Spurs have a lot of work to do in the transfer market.
All eyes will be on incomings, but the Europa League winners have the big job of convincing Cristian Romero to stay as well.
Atletico Madrid are expected to make an offer to sign the Argentine. If Levy is as strong as he was with Pochettino seven years ago, Diego Simeone’s side will give up.
Then, the Spurs co-owner can focus on persuading Romero to sign a new deal at the club.