The long-drawn saga of Emerson Royal has finally come to an end, with Tottenham Hotspur agreeing an initial fee of €15million plus €3m in add-ons with AC Milan to sell the right-back. The Brazilian is set to sign a four-year contract with the option of a further 12 months with AC Milan after successfully undergoing a medical soon.
Emerson’s potential departure to Milan would deplete Tottenham boss Ange Postecoglou’s options at right-back. It would leave him with Pedro Porro as the only recognised right-back in the defensive unit. The club have also welcomed Djed Spence back into their first-team squad this summer, but after spending the last 18 months on loan at Rennes, Leeds United and Genoa, the 24-year-old cannot be immediately trusted to replace Emerson in the squad.
Thus, it is feasible for Spurs to look out for Emerson’s replacement. According to an exclusive report from The Boot Room Football, Tottenham are still interested in signing Southampton right-back Kyle Walker-Peters.
Kyle Walker-Peters left Tottenham to join Southampton in 2020, initially on a loan deal before his move was made permanent. Over the years, he has become a reliable player for the Saints, making 167 appearances across all competitions thus far.
The 27-year-old enjoyed a fantastic 2023/24 campaign in the Championship. With three goals and as many assists in 47 appearances, the two-cap England international played a key role in Southampton’s promotion to the Premier League. However, Walker-Peters has entered the final 12 months (Transfermarkt) of his contract at the St Mary’s Stadium.
The aforementioned report says Southampton are open to cashing Walker-Peters in this summer, with the full-back barely featuring in the south coast club’s pre-season as they expect an exit. This should be excellent news for Spurs in their search for Emerson’s replacement.
Emerson has never managed to enjoy the full support of Spurs fans ever since arriving from Barcelona three summers ago. And that love-hate relationship with the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium faithful is finally going to end with his exit in the coming days.
Walker-Peters would be a smart option to potentially succeed Emerson in Ange Postecoglou’s squad. His homegrown status and familiarity at Spurs—having come through the youth ranks—should be of huge appeal to our club. The full-back, who earns £20,000 per week, was praised by his former Tottenham teammate Harry Kane in 2022 for his development at Southampton in the last few years.
“It is great to have new faces in the squad, young faces, I feel like I am getting older and older by the day. It is great to see them. I obviously know Kyle [Walker-Peters] from when he was at Spurs, he is a great lad, he works really hard and he has done really well at Southampton,” Kane waxed lyrical about Walker-Peters.
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At 27 and entering the prime stages of his career, there wouldn’t be a better time for Spurs to re-sign Walker-Peters. The Englishman has the qualities to improve Spurs’ defence, whilst challenging Porro for a spot in the first XI. He is our academy boy and would generally love to return to the club after spending five years down south.