Official: Tottenham Hotspur Agree £100m Transfer For Sandro Tonali from Newcastle United
Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United have agreed a high-profile transfer worth up to £100m for midfielder Sandro Tonali.
Tottenham Hotspur and Newcastle United have officially announced an agreement for the high-profile transfer of Italian midfielder Sandro Tonali for a fee of up to £100 million, including add-ons. This is more than Spurs' previous £80 million offer which was rejected by Newcastle. In the new deal, Spurs will pay a £92.5 million upfront fee and a further £7.5 million in add-ons.
Manager Roberto De Zerbi has long eyed Tonali as a target, ever since he was in charge of Sassuolo when Tonali was still playing in Serie A. Now, De Zerbi's dream of bringing his compatriot to Spurs to strengthen the team's midfield will finally come true.
This transfer is second only to the previous record of £85 million for Mateus Fernandes from West Ham, which was also surpassed by Tonali's transfer. Apart from Spurs, Manchester City and Arsenal are also interested in Tonali's services, but there has been no formal approach from those teams.
<figure style="margin:2rem 0;overflow:hidden;border:1px solid #e2e2e2;background:#f9f9f9"><img src="https://ichef.bbci.co.uk/ace/branded_sport/1200/cpsprodpb/f221/live/7d136f60-7582-11f1-a627-714adb4eed6e.jpg" alt="Image" style="width:100%;height:auto;object-fit:contain" loading="lazy" /></figure>De Zerbi said after Spurs saved their Premier League spot with a 1-0 win over Everton, he clearly plans to build his "dream team" before the start of pre-season. Spurs also confirmed the arrival of defenders Andy Robertson and Marcos Senesi for free, while spending big on their new recruits Jan Paul van Hecke, Fernandes, and now Tonali.
Although Spurs have finished in 17th place for two consecutive seasons, they are now taking advantage of their solid finances to bounce back. Meanwhile, Newcastle seem to have to sell to get funds for new players, especially after the departure of their key players Alexander Isak, Anthony Gordon, and now Tonali within a year.
In addition, Newcastle missed out on Victor Munoz who went to Liverpool, and only 20-year-old goalkeeper Ewen Jaouen was officially acquired, as a backup with no top-flight experience yet. The pre-season is just around the corner so their margin for error in recruitment is small.
