TEAMtalk

Tottenham could wave goodbye to three high profile defenders in the coming days and weeks, with the biggest deal involving Barcelona, according to reports.

Spurs wrapped up three bumper deals nice and early this summer, spending a combined £237m on Jan Paul van Becke, Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali.

Further big-money arrivals are planned, with Tottenham aiming to sign £60m-rated Savinho from Manchester City, as well as a left winger or striker.

Liverpool’s Cody Gakpo – valued at £70m – remains a target and the Reds would be open to selling if they can get a deal for Bradley Barcola over the line.

Perhaps inevitably given the vast sums Tottenham are spending, exits for major-name players are now ramping up.

Barcelona make contact for Pedro Porro

Firstly, Spanish journalist, Gerard Romero, has brought news of LaLiga champions Barcelona making a play for Pedro Porro, who is reportedly valued at €80m / £68m.

“Contact has been made in recent days with Pedro Porro, with the full-back’s entourage,” Romero revealed (as cited by Goal).

“He is one of the highest paid players at Tottenham, he renewed very recently, but Barcelona have sounded out his entourage in the event that Jules Kounde leaves.

“Kounde has many offers from the Premier League, so far the player hasn’t shown any signs of wanting to leave but it’s a case that’s half open, so anything can happen.”

Kounde is on Arsenal’s radar as The Gunners seek defensive cover amid William Saliba’s back injury and Jurrien Timber’s ongoing groin issue.

Djed Spence heading to Inter Milan

Another full-back could go, with Djed Spence already agreeing personal terms with Serie A champions Inter Milan.

Our insider, Graeme Bailey, reported on Tuesday that a club-to-club agreement is now on the cusp of being agreed.

And per the latest from transfer guru, Fabrizio Romano, the final fee is projected to be in excess of €30m / £26m.

Romano wrote on X: “Inter sent opening official bid for Djed Spence to Tottenham as expected, talks ongoing between clubs at fee over €30m.

“Spence said yes to Inter contract conditions and now club hopeful to reach club to club agreement.”

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Cristian Romero expected to join Atletico Madrid

Finally, Cristian Romero is expected to move to the Spanish capital by way of Atletico Madrid.

Like Spence has with Inter, Romero has approved a move to Atleti and attention is now on finalising the transfer fee and deal structure.

Again taking to X, Romano explained: ‘Cuti Romero and Atlético Madrid, deal close as new bid will be sent soon to Tottenham.

‘Romero gave his green light to Atléti; talks enter final stages. Spurs never considered to sell the player to Arsenal.’

A separate report from The Mirror claims Tottenham and Atletico Madrid have now agreed on a €40m / £34m switch.

If Spurs were to sell all three of Porro, Spence and Romero, they’d stand to bank around €150m / £128m.

Atletico Madrid have launched a €35million (£30m / $40m) bid for highly-rated Lille forward Matias Fernandez-Pardo, TEAMtalk can reveal, while Manchester City and Tottenham consider making moves of their own.

The 21-year-old has emerged as a major target for Diego Simeone’s side as they look to add further attacking options, with Atletico now putting serious money on the table to try and get a deal done.

Lille are under no pressure to sell Fernandez-Pardo, however, with the club set to receive more than €100million (£85m / $115m) from Manchester City for midfield starlet Ayyoub Bouaddi.

Lille are determined to give new head coach Davide Ancelotti a squad capable of challenging for honours.

That has left Lille considering Atletico’s proposal rather than immediately accepting it.

Atletico, meanwhile, insist the move is not connected to the future of Julian Alvarez and point to their long-standing desire to add a player capable of operating from the left as well as centrally – qualities Fernandez-Pardo possesses.

We can confirm Fernandez-Pardo is open to the prospect of moving to Madrid, but Atletico face strong competition from England.

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Man City, Tottenham eyeing moves for Fernandez-Pardo

Man City are among those interested and TEAMtalk understands they have done significant work on Fernandez-Pardo. They like what they have seen and are considering whether to make their own move.

City are looking for a new forward with Savinho pushing for a move to Tottenham.

We understand talks between City and Spurs over the Brazilian have been ongoing for weeks, with Savinho increasingly frustrated by the situation.

Tottenham are also growing frustrated by the Savinho situation and in-turn have been assessing options elsewhere and one of those they are looking at is Fernandez-Pardo, with the Belgian now one of the alternative attacking options.

Spurs like the fact Fernandez-Pardo can play centrally as they are also looking for someone who can help bolsyer those options – with that they are also looking at the likes of Villarreal’s Georges Mikautadze and Monaco’s Falorin Balogun.

From a financial perspective, the 21-year-old is particularly attractive to both Premier League sides, with TEAMtalk understanding that a fee below €40million (£34m / $46m) could be enough to convince Lille to sell.

Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United have all previously made enquiries about Fernandez-Pardo and have now been informed of Atletico’s offer and the developing situation.

Atletico have made the first major move with their €35million proposal, but with several Premier League heavyweights monitoring the situation and Fernandez-Pardo open to a move, the race is far from over.

Paul Scholes has named which north London club has got the better deal this summer, after Tottenham Hotspur’s capture of Sandro Tonali and Arsenal’s recent acquisition of his former Newcastle teammate Bruno Guimaraes.

Brazilian midfielder Guimaraes was unveiled to Gunners fans at The Emirates on Sunday following his £75million switch, with Mikel Arteta identifying the 28-year-old as his top midfield target earlier in the summer.

Arteta certainly has high hopes for Guimaraes and believes the Brazil international can help take Arsenal to the “the next level”.

“I think he describes himself as a warrior,” Arteta said. “I think he’s a warrior with a tremendous quality as well and intuition and leadership and charisma that is going to help us.

“It is going to really ignite something different in the team. I’m delighted to have him.

“We see very clearly – especially the energy that he brought immediately to the training ground – the hunger, the desire to come here and create a big history at the club.”

Meanwhile, Tonali said it took him “just 10 minutes” to decide to join Tottenham in a record-breaking £100m deal for the club, after speaking to new Spurs boss Roberto De Zerbi.

“Honestly, I spoke with another team [also],” Tonali admitted. “When you speak with a team, the first impression is a big thing and my impression was very positive.

“When you are happy after a 10-minute chat, it’s everything, everything is perfect. I understood after 10, 15 minutes that Tottenham would be my next team.”

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Why Scholes rates Tonali as the ‘better player’

Scholes admits that he has never been blown away by Guimaraes, although the Man Utd legend insists he could “make Arsenal a better football team”, as they attempt to retain the Premier League trophy they won for the first time in more than 20 years last season.

“I think Bruno Guimaraes will make Arsenal a better football team,” Scholes said on The Good, The Bad & The Football podcast.

“I don’t think the football we watched from them was great. You need midfield players to make your team play good football – is he going to do that enough for Arsenal?

“I know they won the league but I don’t think they got the midfield right last season.

“Maybe this is the answer to it but I do think Sandro Tonali is a better player, he’s got more legs about him.

“I don’t think Bruno is amazing physically but he might be more suited to Arsenal.”

Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly opened talks with Monaco over a deal for USA striker Folarin Balogun, while another top attacking target Dusan Vlahovic has agreed a move to his next club.

It’s no secret that Spurs have been on the hunt for a new No.9 for much of the summer, although their main focus early in the window was on improving Roberto De Zerbi’s backline and midfield.

With that task very much taken care of, to the tune of over £230million, Tottenham are now looking at adding two new attacking recruits before the window shuts on September 1.

While the search for a new left-winger continues to frustrate, another injury concern regarding Dominic Solanke looks like it’s speeding up that striker hunt.

Solanke missed the friendly draw with Getafe over the weekend with an ankle issue, leaving Richarlison as the club’s only fit senior striker – a player who has already indicated that he is ready to move on.

With all that in mind, a fresh report from France states that Balogun, who joined Monaco in a £35m switch from Arsenal three years ago and has scored 31 goals in 91 games for the Ligue 1 side, could be on his way back to north London.

The 25-year-old also impressed at the World Cup this summer with three goals in four appearances for the United States, although he was at the centre of a controversy over a red card that ultimately got suspended for a year after Donald Trump and Gianni Infantino’s intervention that allowed him to play in the last-16 hammering by Belgium.

But now, according to L’Equipe, Tottenham have now made a move for Balogun ‘in recent hours’ and have ‘laid the groundwork’ for a deal worth €60 million (£51.2m).

The report adds that Newcastle United, who we revealed in July were battling Sunderland for the striker’s signature, and clubs in Spain have also registered their interest in signing Balogun, with Spurs looking to steal a march on their rivals.

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Tottenham target Vlahovic heading to Turkey

Meanwhile, former Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic and his entourage have reportedly given the initial green light to join Turkish giants Besiktas.

A three-year contract worth €10m per season is said to have been verbally agreed, with Vlahovic now needing to approve the paperwork from a legal standpoint, after which the Serbia international could fly to Istanbul within 48 hours.

The 26-year-old has been on Tottenham’s radar since Antonio Conte’s spell in charge in north London, and we revealed last month that De Zerbi was keen on landing Vlahovic.

However, it appears that the prolific frontman has now decided on his future and accepted the Turkish club’s contract offer.

It’s reported that the latest improved offer from Besiktas has proved decisive, with the former Fiorentina star’s move to Turkey virtually done.

Djed Spence’s decision to prioritise a move to Italian champions Inter Milan has seen Tottenham Hotspur accelerate talks, with TEAMtalk able to exclusively reveal that a deal is now on the cusp of being agreed.

Spurs and Spence had already reached an understanding before the summer’s World Cup finals that he would be allowed to leave this summer, with head coach Roberto De Zerbi believing a transfer would be the best outcome for all parties.

Spence subsequently enhanced his reputation with a starring role for England, but his future in north London remained unchanged.

A host of Premier League clubs were offered the chance to sign the 26-year-old, including Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Everton. There was interest, but Tottenham‘s ‘ initial asking price of around £45million was viewed as too high and no deal materialised.

Inter, however, had been interested from the outset as they looked for a replacement for Denzel Dumfries and their interest has now accelerated.

The Serie A champions explored a number of options and came close to signing Anan Khalaili, only for the deal to collapse over medical issues and he has since agreed to join Crystal Palace.

That forced Inter back into the market and Spence’s name was presented to them again during their discussions with Tottenham over Cristian Romero.

Those talks helped establish strong lines of communication between the two clubs. Tottenham and Inter had actually reached an agreement over Romero, only for the Argentina captain to prioritise a move to Spain, where he is now set to join Atletico Madrid.

The discussions nevertheless proved valuable and negotiations over Spence have progressed rapidly.

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Tottenham agree to lower Spence exit price

TEAMtalk understands Inter made it clear they had a strict budget and ceiling for their new right-back, with €30million (£26m) the maximum they were prepared to pay.

That figure has now been agreed with Tottenham, with Inter also preparing a substantial contract for Spence as they move towards completing the transfer.

Spence’s preference has played a major role in the acceleration. He has already experienced football abroad with Rennes and, most recently, Genoa in Serie A, and the opportunity to return to Italy and join Inter at San Siro is understood to hold huge appeal.

The England international is now on course to become the second English player to join Cristian Chivu’s Inter side this summer, following John Stones.

And Inter are not finished with their Premier League recruitment.

The Nerazzurri remain intent on trying to bring Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones to Milan, meaning Spence could be followed by another England international before the window closes.

For now, though, the focus is on completing Spence’s move, with Tottenham and Inter closing in on an agreement that could see the right-back begin the next chapter of his career in Italy.

Tottenham Hotspur may have made a big mistake when selling Tynan Thompson, as the new Manchester United winger arrives with brilliant potential, according to an academy insider.

On July 20, Thompson joined Man Utd from Tottenham for £4million plus a further £4m in potential bonuses. Tottenham have a 15 per cent sell-on clause, should United sell the 18-year-old at some stage in the future.

Thompson supposedly rejected a contract proposal from Spurs in January before opting to sign for United earlier this summer.

There are thought to be numerous reasons for his move, including a lack of first-team opportunities and a wish to relocate with his family.

Thompson is currently training with United U21s, but he could soon get senior action under Michael Carrick based on the exciting verdict of Spurs academy expert, John Wenham.

On the Last Word On Spurs podcast, Wenham questioned the club’s decision not to trust the teenager by saying: “Tynan Thompson wasn’t given a look in at all, he was scoring every week for the U21s.

“Spurs didn’t have a left winger because of injuries and Mikey Moore was at Rangers, Tynan was just completely overlooked.”

Wenham was then asked if he sees a pathway for academy prospects to get into Roberto De Zerbi’s squad. He replied: “Right now, you’d have to say no.”

As per United In Focus, Thompson is a ‘nightmare to defend against’ as he is a left-sided winger who is two-footed. That means he can either cut inside before shooting on his right foot or take on his marker down the wing before crossing with his left.

Tynan Thompson could have big Man Utd future

The England U18 international was seen as one of Spurs’ brighest talents before his departure, having managed an impressive 22 goals and 12 assists in 55 matches for their U18s last season.

Thompson will be hoping to shine for United’s U21s before potentially training with Carrick’s squad at some point in the future, something he already did at Spurs.

There could be an opportunity for the youngster as United have not signed a senior left winger this summer, instead deciding to bring back Marcus Rashford.

Thompson is among United’s latest crop of dazzling young players fans should watch out for.

The likes of JJ Gabriel, Shea Lacey, Jack Fletcher, Tyler Fletcher and Chido Obi all have elite potential, too.

Arsenal have been told it would take an “astronomical” fee for Tottenham Hotspur to sell Cristian Romero to their great rivals, while the Gunners are also considering another Premier League defender.

In the space of 12 months, Romero has gone from being a hero at Tottenham, after helping them win the Europa League, to something akin to a villain following his end to last season with the north London team.

Spurs are ready to move on from the volatile Argentine, who is a walking red card at times due to his reckless challenges, as they have signed centre-backs Jan Paul van Hecke and Marcos Senesi this summer.

Arsenal, on the other hand, will be without influential defender William Saliba due to a back injury, but they still have Gabriel Magalhaes, Piero Hincapie, and Cristhian Mosquera in their ranks.

However, the Premier League champions got to where they were last season by having strength in depth, hence the links with a number of centre-halfs.

Argentina international Romero has been given the green light to leave Tottenham for around £34m this summer, with the 28-year-old still having just under three years left on his current deal.

Reports suggest the defender is keen on a move to the Spanish top-flight, with teams such as Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid credited with interest in his services. Moreover, TEAMtalk revealed that Barcelona are also keeping tabs on the ex-Atalanta man.

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Romero’s move to Arsenal unlikely, as Konsa remains on radar

But a move from one north London club to another seems remote, even if Romero himself is keen on a deal.

That is according to transfer journalist Ben Jacobs, who states that Arsenal would have to move heaven and earth to get that transfer over the line. Meanwhile, they are not giving up on Aston Villa centre-back Ezri Konsa, whose contract expires in 2028.

The 28-year-old, who starred for England at this summer’s World Cup, is said to have a price tag of around £60m which is not to Arsenal’s liking. But if a window of opportunity opens later on in the window, the Gunners could be circling.

When asked about the likelihood of Romero joining Arsenal, Jacobs said on talkSPORT on Monday, “Very slim, unless there’s a clause that we don’t know about, because Tottenham don’t want to do business with Arsenal.

“And as you said, it would take astronomical money to even start a conversation. And Arsenal have been quite disciplined in the market. Romero would be open to Arsenal as one option, but nothing really more to say at this point. And Atleti[co] are the ones working on this deal. They know the number because Napoli have already agreed a €40m fee.

“It’s just a case of being unable, as it stands, to get terms over the line with the player. Because as he said last year, he would be very open to a move to La Liga, which by all accounts would be both a football and a family decision. So as it stands, Atleti feel in control.

“Barcelona could, in theory, with Ronald Araujo going off to Liverpool on an initial loan with a buy option, also look to strengthen in defence. But La Liga is looking like the most likely destination.

“And if Arsenal want to change that, they would likely have to put crazy money on the table and still hope that Tottenham answer that call. Arsenal are also keen on Ezri Konsa. There’s a goal on the valuation with Aston Villa, but they’ve not given up on that as a possible option as well.”

Newcastle United have been left stunned by a dramatic change of heart from Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, with TEAMtalk able to confirm that the proposed move to St James’ Park is currently off.

Newcastle had pushed ahead with plans to sign the former Tottenham Hotspur midfielder after opening talks with his representatives late last week.

The 31-year-old had initially given the green light to a return to England and looked set to make the move to Tyneside.

Newcastle had made significant progress towards an agreement with Marseille and believed they were closing in on a deal after Hojbjerg indicated in the last 48 hours that he was ready to join Matthias Jaissle’s new-look project.

But the Dane has now changed his mind.

Hojbjerg is no longer ready to move to Newcastle, and the Magpies have been left stunned by the U-turn, having believed they were on course to bring the experienced midfielder back to the Premier League.

The situation is particularly significant because Newcastle had prioritised Hojbjerg ahead of Joao Palhinha in their search for midfield experience.

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Newcastle could miss out on TWO ex-Spurs stars

Newcastle had also held talks with Palhinha, but TEAMtalk understands the Portuguese is now set to join Aston Villa after he was given permission by Bayern Munich to leave this summer.

That leaves Newcastle having to reassess their midfield plans after switching their focus towards Hojbjerg.

Marseille sources, however, remain hopeful that the deal could yet be revived and believe there is still a possibility of finding a solution.

But as things stand, the Hojbjerg move is off and Newcastle are no longer expecting the transfer to go through in its current form.

Hojbjerg had been attracted by the Newcastle project under Jaissle and sporting director Ross Wilson, while the opportunity to return to the Premier League was understood to appeal strongly to him.

Newcastle had viewed his experience, leadership and knowledge of English football as major assets as they look to rebuild their midfield following the loss of senior options.

For now, though, the Magpies are back assessing alternatives, with their first-choice experience option having unexpectedly pulled the plug on a move that had appeared to be gathering serious momentum.

There remains a chance the situation could change again given Marseille’s willingness to keep talking, but Newcastle are currently moving forward on the basis that Hojbjerg will not be joining them.

Barcelona and Tottenham Hotspur have both made recent enquiries about Harry Kane this summer, TEAMtalk can reveal, but Bayern Munich are now accelerating talks over a new contract for their star striker.

We understand Bayern are pushing to get Kane’s future resolved as we revealed earlier in the summer, with the club increasingly confident that the England captain is ready to commit his long-term future to the Bundesliga champions.

Kane is due back in Bavaria this week following his World Cup exploits with England and, while there have been options elsewhere, his preference remains to stay with Bayern.

The 33-year-old is now entering the final 12 months of his current contract but is ready to sign a new three-year agreement.

Barcelona have remained in regular contact with Kane’s camp throughout the summer as they prepared for the departure of veteran striker Robert Lewandowski.

They have also continued to pursue Julian Alvarez, but we understand they have simultaneously done significant work on the possibility of bringing Kane to Spain.

Kane has seriously considered what life could look like in Spain, with both Barcelona and long-term admirers Real Madrid having been options. However, we understand leaving Bayern would require something genuinely significant to convince him and, at present, that is not the case.

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Kane not ready for spectacular Tottenham return just yet

Tottenham have also kept the door open to a sensational reunion.

The pull of a return to the club will always exist for Kane and Spurs have made it clear that bringing their record goalscorer back remains something they would like to explore, particularly with Roberto De Zerbi now in charge.

However, despite the interest from Barcelona and Tottenham and Manchester United’s willingness to consider a deal – with co-owner Sir Jim Ratcliffe known to be an admirer – Kane has not been chasing a move.

His commitment to Bayern is clear and the club are equally determined to keep him.

Bayern are prepared to offer Kane a three-year deal despite his age, with sources believing that such an agreement would still leave the door open for a return to the Premier League later in his career.

Indeed, there is a feeling that even if Kane remains in Germany for another three years, he could still have a couple of seasons available to play in England before calling time on his career.

For now, though, Kane’s focus is firmly on Bayern.

We understand negotiations are already progressing and Bayern are hopeful of securing a new agreement before the end of August, keeping their talisman in Bavaria despite growing interest from some of Europe’s biggest clubs.

Ferran Torres has agreed personal terms with Paris Saint-Germain ahead of a move to the French capital, TEAMtalk can confirm, with the Barcelona forward now waiting for the two clubs to finalise an agreement.

The 26-year-old forward has agreed a deal with PSG, and we understand the transfer is expected to be worth around €50million (£43m / $58m).

Barcelona are now working with the French champions to complete the move, with Torres having just one year remaining on his current contract.

Torres heads into the move after enjoying a brilliant summer with Spain, scoring the winning goal in the World Cup final against Argentina as La Roja lifted the trophy.

His performances have further strengthened his reputation and helped attract serious interest from across Europe.

Torres is being brought in to provide central attacking options following the sale of Goncalo Ramos to AC Milan earlier this summer.

There was also genuine Premier League interest in Torres. We can confirm that both Arsenal and Tottenham Hotspur showed an interest in bringing the Spain international back to England, with a return to the Premier League having been a genuine consideration for the player.

However, once PSG made their approach, Torres spoke with head coach Luis Enrique and that conversation proved decisive.

TEAMtalk understands that Torres subsequently made it clear that he wanted to join PSG, with the opportunity to work under Enrique and compete at the highest level in France proving more appealing than a return to England.

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PSG confident of striking deal with Barcelona

The agreement on personal terms means the focus is now on the two clubs, with PSG confident of completing a deal for a player they see as a valuable addition to their attacking options.

Arsenal and Tottenham will now have to look elsewhere after failing to convince Torres, who has chosen Paris despite the Premier League interest.

With the player agreement already in place, PSG and Barcelona are now working towards finalising the transfer and bringing Torres to the French capital.

Torres joined Barcelona from Manchester City in a deal worth around £46million, and he has gone on to notch 65 goals and 23 assists in 207 appearances for the Catalan giants.

Torres has played a key role in Barcelona winning seven major trophies during his time at the club, including three LaLiga titles.

After snubbing a return to the Premier League, he is set for an exciting new challenge with European champions PSG, providing an agreement is struck between the clubs, as expected.