Spurs agree personal terms to sign £85m “superstar”

Ange Postecoglou may have complained earlier this year about the fact Tottenham Hotspur signed him three teenagers instead of Premier League-proven talent but of all the things to go wrong at Spurs in recent years, youth recruitment is not one of them.

In that regard, the Lilywhites have done a brilliant job. They could be set to make an exceptional profit on Lucas Bergvall if he leaves this summer while Archie Gray is only getting better.

Then, there’s also Luka Vuskovic. Regarded as one of the best young defenders in the world, they could also make a huge profit on him with Brighton very interested in prising him away from north London.

All that said, Ange did have one thing right; Spurs need proven top-flight talent. Thankfully, they are making strong headway on that.

Spurs move closer to mega-money signing

After finishing 17th in the Premier League last term, the Londoners knew they had to do something special in the transfer market and that’s precisely what they have done.

At the back, they have already concluded a deal to sign Jan Paul van Hecke for £52m, as well welcoming Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi to the club on free transfers.

Yet, Tottenham are set to go even bigger with two midfielders, in particular, right at the top of their wishlist this summer.

One of them is Sandro Tonali. Spurs are making a huge play to land the Italian and would appear to be confident on doing so. That said, recent reports this week indicate that if Arsenal were to come calling, the Newcastle star would choose them instead.

When it comes to Spurs, they are always worried about a potential hijack. Just see the Eberechi Eze saga from a year ago.

It explains why Roberto De Zerbi and Co have other irons in the fire. Alongside Tonali, they are pushing incredibly strongly to sign Mateus Fernandes from relegated West Ham.

TEAMtalk have the latest on their pursuit of the player, revealing on Thursday that Tottenham are accelerating their push to sign the Portuguese star.

It’s further revealed that they are close to sealing an agreement in the region of £85m, a club-record fee, to take him from the east end of London to the north of the capital.

With advanced club-to-club discussions now in play, it is thought that a full agreement on personal terms has now been reached with Fernandes who has greenlit a move.

Manchester United have also been in the race to sign the Hammers star but Spurs have offered a significantly higher salary to secure the player’s services.

An offer of £65m up front has been made to the Irons, with potential add-ons taking it close to that magic number of £85m.

Why Fernandes could follow Dele’s path to stardom at Spurs

When Tottenham agreed a deal to sign Dele Alli from MK Dons in a deal worth just £5m back in 2015, there wasn’t so much as a shrug of the shoulders from supporters.

This was not a marquee move but it was a smart play. Dele was playing in the Football League at the time and at the age of 21, was still young but was no longer a mere up and comer.

Yet, he took to life in the Premier League like a duck to water. While the former England international’s playing days have petered out in very sad circumstances, in his prime, he was a remarkably good talent.

Dele had this fearless attitude. He had an ego that helped him stand out compared to his peers. He had a main character energy. “Give me the ball and I’ll make something happen for you.” He duly did.

During the attacking midfielder’s first season at Spurs, he was invovled in 21 goals before taking his game to even greater heights as he approached his mid 20s.

So, how is Fernandes similar we hear you ask? From a positional sense, Dele was undoubtedly more attacking than the West Ham midfielder.

That said, they do share similarities, notably in their technical and mental attributes. Fernandes has that same main character vibe that Dele had in his prime.

That’s abundantly clear in Fernandes’ powerful ball-carrying ability. In that regard, they are rather alike. The Portuguese sensation loves driving forward with possession and was actually up there with Declan Rice as far as ‘ground eating’ was concerned in 2025/26.

No two players in the Premier League last season had a higher ratio of progressive carry distance to turnover per carry. Like Dele, it is really difficult to get the ball off Fernandes.

There’s more to it than that, however. Both capable of playing punchy balls forward and arriving on the edge of the penalty area with a late run, there is something about the way in which they both thrived in the top-flight at such a young age.

While Dele was 22 when he moved, Fernandes will only be 21. It’s easy to forget just how young he is given the level of performance we have seen in the Premier League from him already. That said, age was no barrier to the former and is clearly no barrier to the latter.

Both possessing supreme confidence from a young age and thriving in transitional and possession-based systems, splashing a club-record fee on the “superstar” midfielder, as he was dubbed by football writer Joost van der Leij, will surely be worth it. They may not replace Dele’s box-crashing ability here, but they would find a natural successor as far as mentality on the pitch is concerned.