Tottenham Hotspur are continuing to push ahead with a move for Sandro Tonali after seeing their opening offer for the midfielder turned down by Newcastle United.
Tottenham launched an £80m offer for Tonali, which would have made the midfielder the Lilywhites’ record signing had it been accepted.
However, the Magpies immediately sent back the offer, which was not deemed to be enough, but an agreement between the two clubs may not be far off.
Some sources say that Spurs and Newcastle are less than £10m apart in their valuations of Tonali, and it appears that the Lilywhites are not giving up on the deal.
Fabrizio Romano reveals Tottenham are still ‘determined’ to land Sandro Tonali
Fabrizio Romano has now taken to social media to reveal that Spurs’ opening bid was around £75m rather than the £80m figure reported by other sources.
He suggests that such an offer was never going to be enough to clinch the deal for Tonali, but adds that Roberto De Zerbi’s side are determined to seal an agreement.
Romano wrote on X: “More on Tonali and Spurs exclusive story. Tottenham bid was sent 3 days ago, rejected by Newcastle. £75m was never gonna be enough but part of the plan; talks have been underway since then, with THFC determined to get the deal done. Spurs keep pushing. De Zerbi wants him.”
Threat of Tonali deal hijack remains very real for Spurs
Reports continue to suggest that Arsenal would be Tonali’s preferred destination this summer, which leaves open the possibility of the Gunners pulling off another Eberechi Eze-style hijack.
Meanwhile, other outlets have said that Man City are confident that they remain the best positioned to win the race for the Newcastle star.
The risk of the Tonali deal being hijacked thus increases substantially the longer the negotiations drag on, which may be why Spurs seem to be in a hurry to get the deal done.