The Italian has been one of the most sought-after players this transfer window.
Tottenham Hotspur has been looking to bring in a new midfielder at Hotspur Way in the ongoing summer transfer window as Roberto De Zerbi looks to compound his roster before going into the new campaign.
And the Lilywhites have been looking at a couple of Premier League maestros with links to Newcastle United midfielder Sandro Tonali and West Ham ace Mateus Fernandes going around the rumor mill of late.
But it does look like Roberto De Zerbi will compound on a move for his countryman as Tottenham are backed to seal a marquee move for Sandro Tonali.
Tonali gives greenlight to Tottenham move over Arsenal & Man City
There have been a lot of twists with Tonali’s saga, though. It starts with the fact that Arsenal as well as Manchester City have been interested in his signatures as well. And then, Newcastle United are also holding on to that hundred million price tag for his signing.
According to Italian journalist Nicolo Schira, an advantage for Tottenham is that they do have total agreement with Tonali over personal terms where he would pen down a contract that is set to run all the way until 2032 (if he were to sign for the Lilywhites). But buried within his report is a detail that explains so much of the wider context surrounding his move.
His report fortifies that Tottenham are willing to hand him a £12 million a year contract. Now that figure is enough by itself to provide an answer to the eyebrows that many rival fans raised when there was initial news of Tonali being ready to sign for Spurs over Arsenal or Manchester City.
🚨 Excl. – Total agreement between Sandro #Tonali and #Tottenham for a contract until 2032 (12M/year). #THFC are now confident to reach a deal with #Newcastle to sign the midfielder, who wants to leave #NUFC and has chosen to join #Spurs (Roberto #DeZerbi had a key-role) https://t.co/cDV9xbDhuf
— Nicolò Schira (@NicoSchira) June 26, 2026
This is a figure that matches some of the best in the English top tier.
De Zerbi leading the charge at Tottenham
When we are talking about the business that Tottenham have been doing, the significance of the impact that De Zerbi has had must not be overstated.
Spurs have signed four players in Jan Paul van Hecke, Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi, and Martin Dubravka this summer, with the Lilywhites also looking at Savinho, Marcus Rashford, and Mateus Fernandes on parallel deals. But none of the aforementioned names would carry more weight than Tonali (who is considered to be one of the finest midfielders in the game).
The fact that Tonali decided to give his green light to sign for Tottenham despite being courted by Arsenal and Man City should surely be attributed to more than the finances that Tottenham are ready to offer him. And it starts with playing under Roberto De Zerbi.
Do you think Tottenham are overpaying Tonali on the salary end of things? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.