TBR Football

Everton would be open to a sensational move to bring Richarlison back to the club from Tottenham Hotspur this summer TBR Football exclusively understands.

Richarlison swapped Everton for Tottenham back in 2022, and the Brazilian has gone on to score 18 goals in 80 appearances for Spurs.

The 27-year-old has faced injury issues this season but returned to play against Everton for Spurs at Goodison Park in January.

Richarlison applauded Everton fans at full-time, and it’s always been clear that the striker has kept a good relationship with the club’s supporters.

Everton eyeing Richarlison as Dominic Calvert-Lewin’s replacement

That being said, Graeme Bailey – TBR football chief correspondent, understands that Everton would be interested in bringing Richarlison back to the club if he shows a willingness to do so.

The Toffees are in the market for a new striker as they plan for life without Dominic Calvert-Lewin who is out of contract this summer and has so far shown little desire to stay.

And despite Beto’s fine form under David Moyes, Everton know that they will need extra firepower heading into their new Bramley Dock home.

Everton are doing work on potential options and Richarlison is a player that the club still hold in high regard.

On his part, Richarlison still has strong feelings for Everton, as he demonstrated when he said goodbye to Goodison Park as mentioned.

Tottenham are still open to selling Richarlison

TBR understands that Spurs are open to moving on from Richarlison and they were willing to sell the Brazilian last summer when the Saudi Pro League showed interest, even if the forward decided not to leave.

Tottenham’s stance on Richarlison remains the same – they are open to his exit but it remains to be seen if the player would be willing to leave.

As it stands, Richarlison has two years left on his current deal in north London.

Richarlison is aware that heading into a World Cup year he needs to be playing regularly if he wants to secure a place in Brazil’s squad.

Everton are willing to back Moyes this summer and they want to make impact after moving to their new stadium, leaving the door open for a Richarlison return.

Tottenham Hotspur need to have an impressive summer transfer window.

Indeed, this season hasn’t gone to plan for Tottenham as they sit in the bottom-half of the Premier League table after being eliminated from both cup competitions too.

Luckily, help could be on the way this summer.

Tottenham are favourites to sign Eberechi Eze this summer, while Marc Guehi is a Tottenham target this summer too.

Meanwhile, Spurs have a clause in place that will allow them to sign Johnny Cardoso from Real Betis.

Speaking on Call it What You Want, former USA striker, Charlie Davies, has been discussing Cardoso’s potential move to Tottenham after his starring performance against Real Madrid at the weekend.

Davies reckons Tottenham will sign Cardoso this summer, and what’s more, he thinks this will ultimately be a bargain deal for Spurs.

Tottenham set for Johnny Cardoso bargain

Davies spoke about Cardoso and his potential move to Tottenham.

The pundit reckons that this will be a bargain signing for Spurs, while he pondered how Cardoso would fit into this Spurs team.

“Do you think Tottenham initiate the transfer clause they have for Johnny Cardoso this summer?” Davies was asked.

“I do. I think they do initiate it. When you score against Real Madrid on top of that, that only helps your stock,” Davies said.

“It only shows that you’re capable to play in the biggest matches against the biggest opponents. So, yes, I think it’s probably a clause that is not too crazy either. I absolutely see Tottenham taking this because it’s a bargain, I think, given how he’s been able to play this season in La Liga.

“Yeah, I just wonder how they utilise him. You have a couple players that maybe… I mean, Bergvall, they have Bergvall, who’s been getting a lot of minutes, the 19-year-old Swedish International.

“I like his game a lot. They’re not like for like players, but yeah. I mean, I would love to see him get a crack at the Premier League, but I kind of like the run that he’s on right now with Betis.”

Johnny Cardoso stats vs Real Madrid

Davies spoke highly of Cardoso’s performance at the weekend against Real Madrid, and it’s not hard to see why.

Indeed, Cardoso had a real coming of age performance against Real Madrid at the weekend, and the stats show just how brilliant he was on the day.

Cardoso put in a remarkable performance against Madrid, he was so effective in his defensive work, stopping Madrid from getting their star players into the game, while he also scored a decisive goal at the other end.

Tottenham’s midfield has been a problem this season as the likes of Yves Bissouma and Rodrigo Bentancur have underperformed, and Cardoso may be just what the doctor ordered in north London.

Cardoso could be the next great American star at Tottenham following in the footsteps of Clint Dempsey all those years ago.

Tottenham Hotspur gave their fans plenty of memorable moments in the 2010s under the likes of Harry Redknapp and Mauricio Pochettino.

Redknapp took the reins in 2008 and enjoyed four fruitful years at White Hart Lane, which included some memorable Champions League nights.

Rafael van der Vaart was one of the players Redknapp signed at Tottenham who became a fan favourite and cult hero.

Van der Vaart has now shared his honest opinion on what it was like to play for Spurs, comparing his spell there to some of his stints at other clubs.

The Dutchman also delivered his verdict on Redknapp, who signed him and managed him for two years at White Hart Lane.

Rafael van der Vaart ‘had the best time at Tottenham’ and ‘really liked’ Harry Redknapp

The bulk of Van der Vaart’s playing career was spent at four clubs: Ajax, Hamburg, Real Madrid and Spurs.

Van der Vaart, speaking to talkSPORT, has said that he feels he had the best time at Spurs out of all the clubs he’s played for.

The 42-year-old also said he “really liked” playing under Redknapp as he gave him so much freedom on the pitch.

“I think you have different phases in your career,” Van der Vaart said.

“Of course, Ajax especially in the beginning. Then I moved to Hamburg and I had a great time.

“But when you look at team, quality, talent and potential … I think I had the best time at Tottenham.

“Also with Harry Redknapp of course, a coach that I really liked because he gave me so much freedom on the pitch.”

He added: “At the end, it’s the talent of the group and in my days, we had so much talent it was unbelievable.”

How Tottenham fared under Harry Redknapp

Redknapp took the Tottenham reins in October 2008, with the club then sitting bottom of the Premier League table, and steered them to eighth place on 51 points.

Spurs also reached the League Cup final that season, which they lost on penalties to Manchester United.

The following season, Redknapp steered Tottenham to a fourth-placed finish, which meant they had the chance to qualify for the Champions League.

The Lilywhites eliminated Swiss team Young Boys in the playoffs to reach the 2011/12 Champions League group stage.

Redknapp and his charges went all the way to the quarter-finals, only losing to Real Madrid.

That season, Spurs finished fifth to reach the Europa League, and the following year, Tottenham finished fourth once again.

Cruelly, Tottenham missed out on the Champions League because Chelsea – who finished fifth – won the 2011/12 tournament.

‘To dare is too dear’ is the clever twist on Tottenham’s motto that unhappy fans in North London have aimed the club’s owners, Daniel Levy and ENIC, as they lobby for greater investment.

Spurs are loaded. The 10th richest club in the world by annual revenue last season, they exist at the apex of football’s financial food chain and the game’s governance structures favour them massively.

Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR) are a non-issue for Tottenham. There is only handful of clubs worldwide who have more headroom under the Premier League and UEFA’s spending regulations.

Cold, hard cash isn’t a problem either. In the coming weeks, Spurs will release their accounts for the 2023-24 financial year. Last year, they had almost £200m in the bank. It will be a similar story this time too.

Yes, Spurs have transfer instalments and a £218m wage bill pay for, plus capital expenditure commitments and over £800m worth of stadium debt to clear.

But the Premier League’s lowest wages-to-turnover ratio, amortisation costs that are modest by ‘Big Six’ standards, and the exceptional deal Daniel Levy got on the loans means they always have a cash surplus.

Even if ENIC – whose personal wealth, like their actual league position under Ange Postecoglou, is in the bottom half of Premier League club owners – didn’t have the money to hand, they would have options.

Spurs had a £50m revolving credit facility – an overdraft, essentially – with HSBC that expired in December 2024 which they have not used.

All that is a roundabout way of saying that Levy’s cost control is second to none in an era of wild wage inflation in football. He recognises that once you open the door a crack, the wind can blow it wide open.

But that is exactly what protesting Tottenham fans are unhappy with: the owners’ ultra-conservative approach.

It’s true that spending on recruitment and retention has soared since the move to the money-printing Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, although revenue is rising faster than wages and transfer amortisation.

The counterargument is that Spurs have simply kept their heads while many of their rivals – Chelsea and Manchester United in particular – have lost theirs in football’s financial arms race.

But the lack of silverware speaks for itself – it is the monkey on Levy’s back that, unless Postecoglou’s side can win a hotly-contested Europa League, will not go away in 2024-25.

There are no guarantees that increased investment would deliver the trophies that fans and Levy, as a Spurs fan, crave. But there is a direct correlation between spending (wages) in particular and success.

Where they have spent, they have not done so particularly well. There have been more misses than hits in their top 10 or 15 most expensive transfers.

The consensus therefore is that new ideas and new money are needed in N17. Levy and ENIC appear to agree, at least to an extent.

For several years, Tottenham have been open to investment, either in the form of a full or partial takeover.

Amanda Staveley’s PCP Capital Partners are interested. Qatari investors from the private and sovereign wealth sector have been linked too.

And now, an update has emerged regarding another potential source of investment.

Private equity takeover could be bad for Tottenham, says Kieran Maguire

In a former life, Daniel Levy worked in investment banking and has said he was particularly interested in the private equity sector.

Private equity has invested heavily in football teams, leagues and media rights in recent years.

Chelsea are majority owned by Clearlake Capital, while Liverpool, Aston Villa, Manchester City and a number of other Premier League clubs feature private equity firms in their ownership structures.

It is a divisive model in sport just as it is in the wider business sphere. Critics have pointed at short-term profit focus, high debt to equity ratios, and cost cutting as private equity’s signature brushstrokes.

“The goal of private equity is to maximise returns for investors who put the money into the PE funds,” says Liverpool University football finance lecturer Kieran Maguire, speaking exclusively to TBR Football.

“Those investors are not necessarily interested in football. Their main focus is on getting as much money as possible off the back of their investments.“

Last week in a report on the status of Levy’s search for new investment in Spurs, Bloomberg reported that US private equity firms are among those to have held talks with the club.

What would private equity ownership or co-ownership of Spurs look like?

“They could see Spurs as a model whereby the aim is to increase revenues,” says Maguire, who is well-connected in the mergers and acquisitions business.

“That could be through price rises for fans and increased merchandise price.

“They wouldn’t necessarily invest heavily enough on the pitch for Spurs to win trophies but just enough to make sure they are broadly competitive and getting perhaps a top five or top six position.

“On the back of that, they would get into Europe, which is where the money is.

“Whether that would satisfy the Spurs fanbase, who are becoming increasingly vocal and frustrated with the way the club is being run is open to question.

“Because of the aims of private equity, you could end up with a situation whereby you’re even more unhappy than you are with the current regime under Daniel Levy and ENIC.”

Every name linked with Spurs investment amid Daniel Levy talks

TBR Football understands that one private equity firm, MSP Sports Capital, reached a relatively advanced stage of due diligence for a Spurs takeover a few years ago.

However, the American group eventually pivoted to Everton and, following the sale of the Toffees to US businessman Dan Friedkin, it is not believed they have returned to the negotiating table in N17.

Liberty, the company that owns Formula One and the MLB franchise Atlanta Braves, have also previously been linked, albeit loosely.

As well as Staveley and the supposed Qatari interest in Spurs, Crystal Palace co-owner David Blitzer has been suggested as another potential bidder, although that would require him to sell his Palace stake.

Another Premier League club owner, Todd Boehly, held talks with Levy before he bought into Chelsea.

One of his investment partners, Jonathan Goldstein, is a Spurs fans and, with the American private equity billionaire’s status at Chelsea up in the air, there could theoretically be a chance to return to the table.

However, with Levy’s £3.75bn valuation of Tottenham believed to be a sticking point, the gears are turning very slowly.

Supporters desperate for fresh investment may be waiting a little while longer yet.

Tottenham Hotspur are one of the biggest – and most historic – clubs in England.

The north Londoners can boast two First Division titles, eight FA Cups, four League Cups, two UEFA Cups and many other pieces of silverware – the most recent of which came in 2008 under Juande Ramos.

However, Tottenham Hotspur have not always been known as this – with the side from N17 originally down as Hotspur before a small name change back in 1884.

Why did this happen? Let’s take a look.

How postal confusion led to the birth of Tottenham Hotspur

Back in September 1882, Hotspur Football Club was created by a group of schoolboys – led by Bobby Buckle – who were members of the Hotspur Cricket Club and in need of a different sport to play during the winter.

However – fewer than two years later – the group learned about the existence of another side in London named Hotspur, who were located in Battersea Park but kept having their post delivered to Hotspur Football Club in north London by mistake.

As such, the group of schoolboys opted to amend their club’s name to Tottenham Hotspur.

Why was Hotspur chosen in the first place?

You might question why the name Tottenham wasn’t included in the first place, and may also wonder where the term Hotspur even came from.

Interestingly – as documented on the club’s official website – the name Hotspur was chosen to pay homage to Sir Henry Percy, better known as Harry Hotspur.

The English knight – who fought in wars against the Scottish Army and in the Hundred Years’ War against France – owned land in Northumberland Park and Tottenham Marshes, where the club played their first ever games.

As the story goes, Percy was called Hotspur by the Scottish, who were left in awe at how quickly he could ride his horse. Legend has it, the Scots said he must have had hot spurs on his boots for the horse to move so fast, which is where the nickname originated from.

TBR Football understand that Tottenham Hotspur are the favourites to sign Southampton winger Tyler Dibling, however, they would not entertain paying £50 million for him.

Southampton look set to return to the Championship next season as they are currently 13 points from safety, meaning they are unlikely to be able to keep hold of the 18-year-old.

Tottenham looked at signing Dibling in January, but instead Mathys Tel was the forward they opted to bring to North London instead.

Now, Ange Postecoglou’s team could reignite their interest in the right winger in the summer as they continue to build on their core of young players.

Tyler Dibling tells Southampton he will not sign a new contract

Tyler Dibling and his camp have made Southampton aware that he has no plans to sign a new contract with his current deal due to expire in 2026, sources have told TBR Football chief correspondent Graeme Bailey.

The winger has four goals and two assists in his debut top-flight campaign having featured in 28 matches for the South Coast club.

The Saints have slapped a £50 million price tag on the highly-rated England forward, but Tottenham see him as a player for the future, like with Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall, and because of that feel his value is nearer half that amount.

Dibling will have one year remaining on his deal in the summer and therefore, Daniel Levy could stand a good chance of negotiating a lower fee.

Tottenham are confident of landing Tyler Dibling

TBR Football understands that Dibling, who has been compared to Gareth Bale, would welcome the chance to join Tottenham and is now holding out over signing a new deal on the South Coast.

Meanwhile, the North London are now confident of landing the 18-year-old and are believed to be leading the race.

Gareth Bale is widely regarded as one of the best players to ever grace the Premier League.

The Welshman made defenders look silly during the latter stages of his time at Tottenham – scoring 21 goals in 33 Premier League appearances during the 2012/13 campaign to earn an £85m move to Real Madrid.

Prior to that season, the man from Cardiff had also scored a UEFA Champions League hat-trick against Inter Milan in 2010 to truly announce himself on the global stage.

Before all of this – however – Gareth Bale was actually a much maligned figure at Tottenham, with one remark by Sir Alex Ferguson leaving Harry Redknapp puzzled.

Why Sir Alex Ferguson once told Harry Redknapp he wouldn’t select Gareth Bale

Manchester United actually tried to sign Bale while David Moyes was at the helm, but Ferguson wouldn’t have gone anywhere near the speedy winger once upon a time.

Following a £5m move from Southampton to Spurs in May 2007, Bale endured a dreadfully unfortunate run, in which Tottenham failed to win any of the first 24 games he featured in.

Writing a column for the Telegraph back in June 2016, Redknapp revealed that Ferguson actually suggested he wouldn’t put the forward on the pitch for Manchester United, had this streak of bad luck occurred at Old Trafford instead of N17.

The man from Poplar said: “Gareth had that horrendous statistic hanging round his neck of not winning a game, which ultimately stretched to 24 games, when we went to play Manchester United at Old Trafford.

“After the game, Alex said to me, bloody hell, Harry, it must be difficult for you to put him on the field. Alex was big on superstitions and I am still not sure to this day whether he was joking or not, but it was clearly a huge topic.

“It was not a nice thing for Gareth to deal with and it must have affected him. Whether he started the game or came off the bench, Spurs did not win, and it became a bit of a joke outside the club – and inside the dressing room as well. Gareth just got on with it. Eventually, we won a game with him in the team, beating Burnley 5-0, and he never looked back.”

What Gareth Bale could boast upon retirement after cursed start to life at Tottenham

Redknapp says Bale “never looked back” after shaking off this curse – which is spot on.

Upon retiring from football in January 2023, the Southampton academy graduate hung up his boots with three La Liga titles, five UEFA Champions League successes, two UEFA Super Cups, three FIFA Club World Cups, as well as one each of the Copa del Rey and the Supercopa de Espana.

Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal have often been admirers of the same player with a view to potentially sign them.

One of them is very recent as well, as Tottenham scouted Arsenal target Jobe Bellingham during Sunderland’s 2-1 defeat against Leeds United.

TBR Football revealed at the end of last month that Arsenal and Tottenham asked about signing Charalampos Kostoulas as well as Christos Mouzakitis from Olympiacos as well.

Arsenal were even interested in Tottenham’s Mathys Tel but ultimately pulled out of the race.

As things stand, it is a no-brainer for most players to opt for a move to Arsenal over Tottenham — with Mikel Arteta’s side being in second place while Spurs are 13th in the Premier League.

But the hope for Ange Postecoglou and Spurs will be that this very rationale does not apply to every player.

Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool eyeing Hugo Larsson move

After all, Postecoglou convinced Tel to sign for Tottenham on loan and sold him their project despite some of Europe’s biggest clubs lurking around for his signature.

The former Celtic boss might need to work his charm once again as his side have been linked with another transfer for a talented youngster.

The name is Eintracht Frankfurt midfielder Hugo Larsson, who journalist Florian Plettenburg reports has caught the eye of Tottenham and Arsenal as well as Liverpool among several other top clubs — including those in the Bundesliga.

The positive for all three clubs is that “a summer transfer is possible” for the Swedish international.

However, Eintracht Frankfurt CEO Markus Krosche is demanding at least €60 million (£49.6 million) for Larsson. Arsenal were recently linked with Larsson and it seems like they are seriously interested in him.

Larsson, 20 is under contract until 2029 and this season in particular, he has emerged as one of the best young players in Germany. Hugo Larsson has been likened to Rodri as he is mainly a number six by trade.

Hugo Larsson said he is a “similar” player to Declan Rice

With Yves Bissouma potentially set to leave Tottenham, perhaps the youngster could emerge as a replacement for him.

Similarly, Thomas Partey could exit Arsenal and the Frankfurt technician could also be looked at as a potential heir to the Ghanaian international at the Emirates Stadium.

Larrson compared his style of play to Declan Rice, which would give Tottenham, Arsenal and Liverpool an idea of the tyle of player he is.

“He is a similar type of player to me. He does a lot of things both defensively and offensively, I look up to him.”

Larsson also admitted to idolising Rice and perhaps the chance to play alongside the England international at Arsenal could be a huge source of motivation for him.

Tottenham and Liverpool will be hoping that they can lure him into a move, however.

Some Tottenham Hotspur fans might be surprised by news that the club ever made an attempt to sign Sergio Aguero from Atletico Madrid before he came to the Premier League.

Aguero did make his move to England eventually, but he ended up scoring goals against Tottenham for Manchester City rather than representing the north Londoners.

Of course, it seems as if Aguero is very unlikely to regret his move to Man City today, a club where he won five Premier League titles.

In total, Aguero played for City a remarkable 390 times netting 260 goals and providing 64 assists – a proper Premier League legend.

And in terms of the Argentinian’s record against Spurs, Aguero scored 12 goals in 18 games against Tottenham, winning 11 of those ties.

Daniel Levy was personally pushing to sign Sergio Aguero for Tottenham

That being said, Tottenham actually met Aguero’s release clause whilst he was still playing in Spain back in January of 2011.

The striker ended up joining City six-months later, but towards the end of the January window, a move for Aguero to N17 was believed to be possible.

Back at the time, Mail Sport reported that Spurs had a £38.5m bid rejected for Aguero, even though it met the release clause figure in the striker’s contract.

Daniel Levy was determined to land a marquee signing before the January deadline, and although Tottenham matched Aguero’s buy-out clause, Atletico still wanted add-ons to take the deal higher.

Therefore, Spurs decided to move on, meaning that Aguero was then free to join their Premier League rivals in the summer.

Harry Redknapp actually wanted to sign Diego Forland instead

Interestingly, Tottenham’s pursuit of Aguero was said to be inspired by Levy’s own judgement – Harry Redknapp, who was manager at the time, wanted to sign a different Atletico forward.

Redknapp wanted former Manchester United forward Diego Forlan, who was available for as little as £10m.

However, Levy considered 31-year-old Forlan as too expensive given his age, and the Spurs chairman thought that a deal for Aguero as much better value.

Of course, Levy was right on reflection – Aguero went on to become one of the best strikers that the Premier League has ever seen.

But it is also interesting to consider what an experienced forward like Forlan could have achieved in north London, were Redknapp to have got his wish.

Although, Forlan did leave Atletico six-months after Spurs’ interest to join Inter Milan in Italy, and the striker did only manage to score twice in 20 matches before he was eventually released.

Ange Postecoglou is losing patience with one of his top Tottenham Hotspur attackers who has struggled with injuries this season.

Tottenham’s squad has been hugely impacted by injuries this campaign, which has meant results have been really disappointing for Ange Postceoglou’s team.

The Lilywhites are currently 13th in the Premier League and qualifying for Europe through the league now looks quite unlikely.

Now, one of the players whose season has been hammered by injury issues looks set to be sold in the summer with Postecoglou ready to consider offers for him.

Tottenham ready to sell Richarlison next summer

Tottenham Hotspur are ready to listen to offers for Richarlison next summer, according to Football.London.

The forward has had real issues staying fit and has featured just 14 times across all competitions this season.

Saudi Arabia wanted to sign Richarlison last summer, however, the Brazilian opted to reject interest from the Middle East to remain in North London.

Spurs paid £60 million to sign him from Everton back in 2022 and will be keen to recoup as much of that fee as possible if he does leave.

The arrivals of Dominic Solanke and Mathys Tel has also meant that the North London club are no longer desperate to have the 27-year-old available.

Richarlison’s unfortunate injury record this season

Richarlison, who has been dubbed ‘underrated’, has had four separate injuries only this term and is currently unavailable due to a calf injury he suffered away at Liverpool.

The Tottenham star has had to battle with ten different spells on the sideline since moving to North London and the club are seemingly ready to cash in on him.

Postecoglou is now close to having a fully fit squad though with Solanke, Cristian Romero, Micky van de Ven and Richarlison close to returning from injury.

Richarlison has returned to training and could be included back in the Spurs squad over the next few weeks.