Tottenham face a race against time if Roberto De Zerbi is to have Omar Marmoush and Savinho in his Tottenham squad to face Brentford on Saturday.
Spurs are trying to pull off an audacious double swoop for the two Manchester City attackers, which could be worth up to or even over £140million, to inject pace, dribbling ability and firepower into De Zerbi's front line. Talks have been progressing between the two clubs as Tottenham look to strike an agreement and provide their head coach with the attackers he has called for.
football.london reported last month that the Italian was a big fan of Marmoush, who fits his system perfectly with his speed, finishing ability, movement and the fact that he is a renowned presser of the ball from the front. The 27-year-old Egyptian can play as a central striker, off a main forward or drift inside off the left wing.
Marmoush dazzled in the 2024/25 season with 45 goal involvements in 51 matches for Eintracht Frankfurt and then City after his £59million January move to the Premier League. Despite his strong start in English football, the Egyptian became more of a bit part player under Pep Guardiola last season, often used as Erling Haaland's understudy.
He made just eight Premier League starts and two in the Champions League and had to settle for 11 goal involvements across his 36 appearances, most of them from the bench.
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De Zerbi's affection for Marmoush coincides with Spurs having tracked the player for some time. Former striker Mido has also claimed he told ex-Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy a couple of years ago to sign his compatriot.
"A year and a half ago, I sent a message to Daniel Levy, and told him to follow Omar Marmoush, and that he will be one of the best players in the world, but I do not think the club moved to include him," Mido said on OnTime Sports earlier this year.
Spurs have also had a long-standing interest in Savinho and football.london reported that there was a growing hope within the club during the pre-season tour to New Zealand and Australia that a deal could be struck for the 22-year-old Brazilian and there were suggestions that the 'bomba' De Zerbi spoke of on that trip could be a double move for the two City attackers. Now that could come to pass.
Savinho recorded 13 assists in a bright first season in the Premier League but had an injury-interrupted campaign last time out.
Both De Zerbi and Tottenham believe the speedy young dribbler, who can play on either side, can flourish within his system and the north London side could spend £85million on Savinho, a record City sale fee, due to their belief in what lies ahead for him. The Manchester club were reluctant to part company with the player last season because of their own belief in his potential.
Cody Gakpo remains another on De Zerbi's wishlist and the theme continues this summer of Tottenham looking to sign Premier League experienced players to ensure the club hits the ground running in a season with fewer fixtures to spare.
If Tottenham can reach an agreement for both City stars then they will need to be registered by midday on Friday if De Zerbi is to have them both available for the trip to the Gtech Community Stadium to face Brentford on Saturday evening.
Both players have been involved in City's pre-season games under new boss Enzo Maresca so will have decent levels of fitness, although Savinho missed the Community Shield defeat to Arsenal through illness according to the Italian. There is also the question of whether Maresca will want replacements on their way first or at least at an advanced stage, particularly with Jeremy Doku said to have picked up an injury which will see him miss the start of the season.
"In the transfer market when I want one player I become like a shark, No chance to say no! The transfer market, it's not finished for sure, but we completed 60 per cent of our project in the transfer market. Now we have another bomba!" the Italian told football.london with an excited look in his eye out in Sydney on the tour.
Three weeks on, with more money in the bank from sales, and the shark might finally get two of his top attacking targets and that 'bomba' could just be a huge double deal to transform Tottenham's attack.