Tottenham had approached Barcelona over the possibility of signing highly-rated Fermin Lopez in the summer

Tottenham Hotspur boss Ange Postecoglou was successful in re-tooling his squad over the summer by making exciting signings and offloading the majority of the deadwood.

Over the summer transfer window, the North Londoners were able to sign five players, but two of those were Timo Werner on loan and Yang Min-hyeok, who will not arrive from FC Gangwon until January.

However, there were a couple of summer transfer targets that Spurs missed out on. It looks like one of them was Barcelona starlet Fermin Lopez.

According to a report from Spanish outlet Relevo, Tottenham had made an approach to Barcelona over the possibility of signing Fermin Lopez. The Lilywhites had asked about the 21-year-old’s price as they were willing to splash a lot of money to lure him to N17. However, Barcelona were not at all interested in any operation and ‘closed the door’ on the player’s exit.

-> Tottenham Hotspur confirmed signings, transfers in, out, loan exits, releases for 2024/25

Fermin Lopez has enjoyed a meteoric rise in his career since he broke into the Barcelona first-team setup last season. A product from the famed La Masia academy, the midfielder enjoyed a solid debut campaign with the first team with whom he scored 11 goals in 40 appearances across all competitions. This resulted in him being called up to the Spanish national team squad for the 2024 Euros.

The young gun was a part of the Spanish side that beat England 2-1 in the Euro 2024 final in Berlin to lift the coveted piece of silverware. He had no time to rest on his laurels; Lopez was selected for Spain’s Olympics squad and he played a key role in helping his nation win the Gold medal by scoring six goals in as many games.

Such was the kind of performances and impact that resulted in Spurs making an enquiry to Blaugrana over the prospect of signing Lopez. The aforementioned report adds the attacking midfielder has a whooping €400 million release clause in his contract which runs until 2027 (Transfermarkt).

There is no way Barcelona would have entertained Spurs’ approach for the talented Spaniard, especially given his dramatic rise in stock in just over a year. Plus, as he is protected by a crazy €400 million release clause, it isn’t practical for any club to trigger that buyout clause, let alone Spurs.

Spurs’ ambition to sign Lopez may have been dashed in the summer but it did suggest that the club is constantly on the lookout for young, hungry and dynamic talents who are not only ready to make an immediate impact but also provide rich dividends in the future.

-> Tottenham’s 5 best PL opening day wins

Just like Barcelona have unearthed a gem in Lopez from their academy, we hope to see Big Ange, his coaching staff and our academy trainers raise one talent from our famed youth ranks.