The Italian has joined in a £100million package deal from Premier League rivals Newcastle, and he follows Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi, Jan Paul van Hecke and Mateus Fernandes through the entrance at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
It has already been a busy window for the north Londoners, who are looking to strengthen their squad in head coach De Zerbi’s vision after they escaped relegation by the skin of their teeth on the final day of the campaign.
Tonali’s move is another huge expenditure from the 2025 Europa League winners, who already spent £85m on prying Fernandes from West Ham.
Tonali, 26, hailed manager De Zerbi as a key reason for his wanting to move to the capital, labelling a two-hour conversation with the former Brighton boss as “like magic”.
Now, the Italian has learned the shirt number he will sport for this upcoming season at his new home.
He has been handed the No16 at Spurs, which was worn by outgoing defender Luka Vuskovic, who is close to joining Brighton, in pre-season last term before the young Croat moved on loan to Hamburg.
Before that, Gareth Bale wore it upon his arrival from Southampton, before switching to No3 and then No11.
Kieran Trippier, Tonali’s ex-team-mate at Newcastle, also wore it during his time in north London, followed by Kyle Walker-Peters, Arnaut Danjuma and Timo Werner.