Sport Witness

Tottenham Hotspur have now completed Alejo Véliz’s sale to Esporte Clube Bahia, with the final fee coming in below the figures previously discussed in South America.

According to Argentine journalist César Luis Merlo, Bahia agreed to pay around €9m (£7.6m) for the striker and closed the deal directly with Tottenham, who own the player’s rights.

As we covered earlier from Brazilian sources, despite the transfer being finalised, Véliz will stay on loan at Rosario Central until June and complete his current spell in Argentina.

The final numbers add important context to the story. In recent weeks, reports from Argentina and Brazil placed the deal between €10m and €20m, depending on the structure. City Football Group were said to be exploring more complex solutions. Those ideas included compensation payments, buy-back clauses and other mechanisms to force a January exit.

In the end, the clubs did not need any of that. Rosario Central kept the player until the end of the loan and will not receive any fee. Tottenham accepted a lower fixed amount to settle the situation and remove uncertainty. The agreement also confirms that Véliz will sign a contract running until December 2030.

Tottenham can now move on from deal

For Tottenham, the deal brings clarity after months of noise around the striker’s future. Rather than chasing an expensive January solution, Spurs secure a permanent exit and close the file.

From Bahia’s side, the outcome fits a longer-term plan. Operating as Manchester City’s satellite club in Brazil within the City Football Group structure, they secure a striker they have tracked for years while avoiding a mid-season financial battle.

With the fee agreed and the timeline set, the negotiation phase is over. Alejo Véliz’s move is done. Now, it is simply a matter of waiting until the summer.

Fabio Paratici’s second period at Tottenham Hotspur lasted just over three months.

A ban imposed by FIFA cut short the Italian’s first spell at the north London club in April 2023.

After serving a ban, the sporting director returned to Tottenham in October. Towards the end of December, reports in the Italian media started covering Fiorentina interest.

Last month, Tottenham announced the 53-year-old would move to the Serie A side after the winter market. The Italian media made clear he’d already started work for La Viola, with Manor Solomon’s transfer seen as part of that.

Paratici has been speaking to the reporters today and TuttoMercatoWeb have relayed his comments.

Fiorentina are 18th in the table, a point behind 17th placed US Lecce. Thomas Frank’s side are 14th in the league and qualified for the Champions League last 16.

Despite Fiorentina being in the relegation zone, he insists the decision to leave Tottenham for them wasn’t reckless. The director also explained when the Italian club first made an approach.

“I’ll immediately get some more questions out of the way. I chose and decided to come to Fiorentina on December 15th or 16th. Fiorentina had six points, Ferrari came to London to meet me, and there I decided to come to Fiorentina,” he said.

“It might have seemed reckless, but it was actually just courageous. A reckless person doesn’t know what they’re doing; a courageous person evaluates and weighs things.”

“I thought Fiorentina has a great and very serious owner, it has world-class infrastructure, and a group of people with whom I’ve always felt in symbiosis. And then it has a city that is a super international brand that we must respect and bring to the world, because it gives us visibility. I decided it was the right time to return to Italy.”

Fabio Paratici thanks Tottenham Hotspur

Paratici accepts the club’s current position but insists Fiorentina deserve better. He also backs himself for the big challenge.

“It’s a huge challenge, but I’m facing it with enthusiasm and with a lot of belief,” Paratici explained.

“Florence and Fiorentina deserve a higher level than the current one. That said, we must face reality and accept that for the next four months. We’ll have to put our heads in the tank to save ourselves.”

“We won’t solve the problem in one go. week or a month, from today until the last match of the championship we will have to stay inside the tank, focused and aggressive, then we will think about everything else.”

Another report from TMW has covered additional quotes from Paratici thanking Spurs.

He added: “I’d like to take this opportunity to thank President Commisso and Ferrari for choosing me. I thank the entire Commisso family and congratulate Giuseppe on his new role.”

“I also thank Tottenham Hotspur for giving me this opportunity to enjoy five wonderful years in the Premier League, waiting for me during difficult times.”

Antonio Vergara has emerged as a key player for Napoli over the past few weeks. Tottenham have now been mentioned as a suitor for the versatile attacker.

In a way, the young Italian was never meant to be in Naples. He had never played in Serie A before this season.

The 22-year-old spent loans at Reggiana and Pro Vercelli and could’ve departed Napoli some months ago. But just when the Partenopei were in an injury crisis, he found form.

In 2026, Vergara started regularly in Serie A. He scored against Chelsea and also found the net against Fiorentina at the weekend.

TuttoSport now report that Tottenham tried to sign him in the January transfer window.

An offer came ‘directly’ from London, with Spurs left captivated by the Italian. They put forward €20m for Vergara but the move didn’t go through.

Tottenham were specifically left impressed by the talent’s goal against Chelsea. The attacker had left Wesley Fofana for dead, scoring a delightful strike.

All of this is a dream come true for him, with Napoli keen to keep him.

The report says ‘bye bye Spurs’ with Tottenham now moving away as a suitor. There is a belief that the best is yet to come, with Vergara’s prominence in the side quickly rising.

Tottenham Hotspur’s Luka Vušković has been on loan at Hamburg SV since the summer.

The Croatia international has starred this season and his displays have clearly not gone unnoticed.

Vušković has repeatedly expressed his desire to extend his stay at Hamburg beyond this season to play with his brother, Mario. The latter is currently serving a doping ban. Last week, the Tottenham owned player said he will make a decision on his future after this season.

Sky Deutschland have spoken to Ivan Rakitić, and the interview is aboutthe 18-year-old.

The German press reported last month that Bayern Munich won’t make a move. This was after the defender was offered to them.

Rakitić is currently the technical director at Vušković’s former club, Hajduk Split. He has now urged Bayern Munich to make a move for the Spurs man.

“All of European football is talking about him right now. Bayern Munich needs to step up their game. I believe this lad has to go to Bayern Munich. It’s incredibly exciting to see such a young guy making such a splash in the football world,” he said.

As things stand, the defender has to return to the north London club after this season.

Tottenham step could be skipped

Vušković has a contract at Tottenham until 2030. He hasn’t made an appearance yet for the Premier League side. Thomas Frank’s side will have to make a decision on his future in the summer.

The former Barcelona and Sevilla star is of the belief the defender is ready to leave the Premier League side.

“I’m curious to see if Tottenham will manage to keep him beyond the summer, because in my opinion, he’s already ready for the next step to one of the absolute top clubs. And for me, there are only four or five of those in Europe,” Rakitić explained.

Tottenham Hotspur asked Al-Nassr about forward Ângelo’s situation in the final days of the January transfer window.

That’s according to journalist Eduardo Burgos. He reports that Tottenham asked about the 21-year-old but were quickly rebuffed. According to his information, Al-Nassr see the Brazilian winger as more of a topic for the summer.

Ângelo has only been with them since September 2024. He joined the Saudi Arabian side in a €23m deal from Chelsea in September that year.

He’s a product of Santos’ youth set up, before joining Chelsea for €15m in 2023. He only stayed at Stamford Bridge for a month before being moved on to sister club Strasbourg. He returned to Chelsea the following summer before then moving to the Middle East.

The youngster has since managed six goals and 16 assists in 64 games for Al-Nassr. According to Burgos, that’s enough to have earned Tottenham’s attention. They asked about him in the final days of the January window but were pushed away by Al-Nassr.

We’ll take that with a pinch of salt, though. His numbers alone would make him a strange signing for Tottenham to attempt, particularly after paying big for Mohamed Kudus. There’s also been no mention of them being keen in Brazil, where they’d be all over such a story usually.

That makes us doubt it for the time being. He’s a name to keep an eye on for the summer, with a deadline day move certainly not happening.

Last week, TuttoSport appeared pessimistic about Juventus signing Tottenham’s Randal Kolo Muani.

This was largely because of Thomas Frank’s stance about the player’s future. Spurs’ recent injury crisis was making the Dane use the striker more, and he scored against Eintracht Frankfurt in the Champions League.

The 27-year-old started for Tottenham against Manchester City. That should be enough to prove that Frank increasingly sees Kolo Muani as an important player.

Despite clear of signs of pessimism, journalist Enzo Bucchioni hasn’t given up hope of Juve signing the Frenchman.

He wrote about the striker in a column for Tuttomercatoweb.

The Italian believes Juve will try ‘to the very end’ and haven’t really given up. He cleverly uses Juve’s ‘fino alle fine’ slogan to back up the argument too. One reason why the deal is proving difficult is because of Tottenham’s failure to sign a replacement.

He claims that the Bianconeri have already offered a deal to Kolo Muani’s parent club Paris Saint-Germain. The French club have been given an initial loan with an obligation to buy.

This is actually a better deal than what Tottenham have, as the London side signed the player on a dry loan.

Despite that, the deal has stalled. Juve are likely to keep pushing but are exploring the possibility of signing Atletico Madrid’s Alexander Sorloth.

This clearly seems like false hope. Tottenham have little time to sign a possible replacement and have no reason to let Kolo Muani leave. Unless something very dramatic happens, the striker should stay in London.

Tottenham’s Randal Kolo Muani finds himself on the front page of Sunday’s Corriere dello Sport. Inside the newspaper the Spurs player is also prominent, as Juventus try to secure him before the deadline.

’48 HOURS FOR KOLO’ shouts the Corriere dello Sport headline, and it’s explained – once again – that Tottenham want to keep him. The media around Juventus haven’t questioned that, however, they don’t appear to give it the respect it deserves.

Thomas Frank’s side are battling with an injury crisis, and Kolo Muani is needed. Despite that, it’s believed the 27-year-old’s desire for Juve can help push a deal through.

Similar happened in the summer. Juventus had Kolo Muani on loan from PSG and then spent months trying to lowball the French club. They wanted another loan, with potentially a buying clause dependent on achievements. Juventus were confident that PSG would eventually cave, given Kolo Muani’s desire.

However, that wasn’t the case and the player was sent on loan to Tottenham in September. Such is the Juventus arrogance around the situation that one could believe they think Kolo Muani belongs to them, with PSG and Tottenham simply getting in the way of things.

Not giving up on Tottenham transfer

Corriere dello Sport present the Turin club’s plan as the following: Convince PSG that Tottenham won’t buy the player in the summer. Pitch the idea he’d therefore be better off with them.

This plan has two major flaws.

PSG went through all of Juve’s negotiation games in the summer, so any half promise to buy Kolo Muani probably won’t be believed.

Tottenham have got a big say in this.

Sunday’s Gazzetta dello Sport states there were further talks on Saturday, but Tottenham aren’t having of it. According to their information, Juve and the player aren’t giving up, yet even Gazzetta state they’re ‘deluding themselves’.

Tottenham and PSG hold the power here and without last minute drama, Randal Kolo Muani stays where he is.

With a day of the window left for most European countries, it’s officially the panic stage of transfers. There’s hope deals which haven’t been got over the line for weeks will somehow stutter over in the final hours.

For some, that will be true but for the vast majority it will not. Tottenham will play a part in the final drama for multiple clubs. One of those is Fiorentina.

Fabio Paratici isn’t expected to officially to take up his La Viola role until February. However, the Italian transfer guru has clearly been doing work for weeks. La Viola are in a battle against relegation, 18th out of 20 in Serie A. They’re only a point behind Lecce and safety, so there’s a lot to fight for.

All month they’ve needed a central defender and that remains the case. Radu Drăgușin was targeted at the beginning of January, but at that time the Tottenham player had different plans.

Fiorentina were earlier snubbed by Tottenham player

Back then, the defender’s agent said the following on January 10th: “I’m waiting for Tottenham to say yes to Roma before getting to the heart of the matter.

“There are a couple of offers for him, but Italy is special for Radu. He’s done very well in Serie A. He’s a gladiator, and gladiators thrive in Rome.

“Fiorentina? With all due respect, that wouldn’t be the right path for him. He costs €25m.”

Now on February 1st, Fiorentina may be the only option left.

Sunday’s Corriere Fiorentino reports there’s a ‘glimmer of hope’ for a later deal. Paratici is trying to make the most of it and build a deal with Tottenham. La Viola will try until ‘the very end’ for Drăgușin, but have alternatives ready.

Tottenham Hotspur have closed the door on Mathys Tel leaving this month, despite his agent flying in for talks.

That’s according to Sky Germany. The website reports that Tottenham are uninterested in letting the Frenchman depart in this window. Neither a permanent sale nor a loan is an option for them.

Tel had been the subject of interest from Paris FC. There were also several clubs in England and Spain who had expressed an interest in them. All of that has been turned away by Tottenham, who have refused to release him.

Instead, they’ve held a ‘clarifying conversation’ with Tel. This conversation included manager Thomas Frank and sporting director Johan Lange and happened in the last few days.

Whether it was after Tel’s agent flew in on Monday, isn’t clear. A report this week stated that Tel’s agent had flown in as the forward wanted out. He reportedly made it clear that either Frank was sacked or Tel would depart. It seems that meeting didn’t go as they planned.

Tottenham didn’t agree with their stance and have blocked any exit this month. Instead, Frank has made it clear he’s pleased with Tel’s progress. That’s despite continuing to leave him out of his Champions League squad. The Frenchman did start three of six Premier League games this month.

Whether that’s been enough to slightly change his mind, isn’t clear. But it does appear Tottenham are refusing to budge, and he’ll be staying where he is this month as a result.

Torino have shown serious interest in a move for Tottenham Hotspur’s Callum Olusesi in the winter market.

Earlier this month, we covered claims from Italy that the 18-year-old’s entourage has offered him to Torino. There have been developments in the operation to bring him to Italy.

Five days ago, the Italian media covered the progress made by the Serie A side to sign the Tottenham player.

Alfredo Pedullà reported he’s on the verge of leaving Thomas Frank’s side. He also added Torino have ‘agreed everything’ with Spurs to sign him on loan with an option to buy.

Another Italian journalist, Gianluca Di Marzio, pick up on that and share more updates on this case.

He claims the Turin club are formalising the Tottenham player’s arrival on loan with an option to buy. According to Di Marzio, he has already completed medical tests with Torino.

Toro News, a website focusing their coverage on Torino, backs it up and provides more insight.

Frank had him on the bench in Spurs’ 2-0 Champions League win over Eintracht Frankfurt on Wednesday. After this clash, the Italian club have been able to break the deadlock in their negotiations with Tottenham.

Torino sporting director Gianluca Petrachi’s plan was to utilise him both for the U18s and the first team.

Big chance for Tottenham youngster

Juventus entered the race to sign the Tottenham man in this window, after the latter’s trip to Germany. This forced Petrachi to react quickly.

According to the report, the director assured the England U19 international of ‘immediate integration’ into the senior team. This would have finally convinced Olusesi to pick Torino amid a late entry from Juve.

Toro News also report Olusesi already completed his medical tests and is now waiting to officially join them.

He’s in London, completing the visa process. This needs to be resolved for Torino to make his loan signing official. Toro News claim Torino have secured a €10m purchase option.