Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit of Savinho appears to have taken a significant step forward after Manchester City edged closer to signing the Brazilian’s replacement.
Fabrizio Romano has repeatedly described Savinho as Tottenham’s priority attacking target this summer as Roberto De Zerbi looks to reshape his forward line.
The Brazilian winger was already on Spurs’ radar last summer, but Manchester City refused to sanction a sale and instead rewarded him with a new contract.
However, after struggling for regular opportunities over the past season, Manchester City are now open to selling the winger and are also believed to have lowered their asking price by around £10m compared to a year ago.
With personal terms already agreed between Tottenham and the player, the only major obstacle has been City’s desire to sign a replacement before approving Savinho’s departure, as Romano recently confirmed. There has now been a promising update on that front.
Manchester City move closer to Savinho replacement
According to Football Insider, Tottenham’s move for Savinho is now closer than ever after Manchester City made significant progress in their search for a replacement.
The report states that City are now finalising a deal for the player they want to bring in before allowing the Brazilian to leave, a development that could clear the way for Tottenham to complete the transfer.
While Football Insider did not reveal the identity of City’s target, Foot Mercato claim the player in question is Paris Saint-Germain youngster Ibrahim Mbaye.
Interestingly, the same report adds that Tottenham have also been keeping a close eye on the Senegal international, with Spurs expected to recruit another wide attacker alongside Savinho before the transfer window closes.
Although more clarity is still needed regarding City’s negotiations and the timeline of the proposed replacement deal, Tottenham remain confident they can strike an agreement worth around £60m for Savinho.
Savinho continues to fuel Tottenham speculation
Savinho has also done little to quieten speculation surrounding a move to North London through his activity on social media.
Last month, Xavi Simons shared an old photograph of the pair together from their time at PSV Eindhoven. A few days later, the Tottenham midfielder added to the rumours by replying with the eyes emoji after a Spurs supporter asked on TikTok whether Savinho would be joining him in North London.
The Brazilian has also engaged with several Tottenham-related posts, liking Mateus Fernandes’ announcement after the midfielder completed his move to Spurs before commenting on Pedro Porro’s Instagram post following Spain’s World Cup quarter-final victory over Belgium.
More recently, Savinho uploaded an Instagram story featuring a picture of his gym and images from his former clubs. Supporters noticed that photographs of him in a Man City shirt were missing, and that he seemed to be training at his home gym rather than at City’s training facilities.