Tottenham have agreed a club-record fee with West Ham for Mateus Fernandes.
After weeks of speculation, Tottenham Hotspur have finally agreed an £85m deal for West Ham midfielder Mateus Fernandes.
Spurs saw off competition from Manchester United, who were unwilling to meet West Ham’s exorbitant £85m asking fee. The North Londoners did, though, which is a guaranteed £85m without add-ons. The one-cap Portuguese international was viewed by Roberto De Zerbi as a primary midfield target, alongside Newcastle United star Sandro Tonali.
Regardless of back-to-back top-flight relegations, Mateus Fernandes has been a coveted commodity across Europe this summer, with Paris Saint-Germain showing interest as well. But the young midfielder had given the green light to joining Spurs by agreeing on personal terms last week. He had also reached personal terms agreement with Manchester United, which left both clubs battling it out to thrash out a deal with the Hammers.
Eventually, Tottenham matched West Ham’s valuation and won the race for the midfield talent’s signature.
Sky Sports reporter praises Tottenham for showing ambition with Mateus Fernandes deal
Fernandes is set to become Tottenham’s fifth signing of the summer, following the arrivals of Andy Robertson, Marcos Senesi, Jan Paul van Hecke and Martin Dubravka. Roberto De Zerbi reportedly played a key role in convincing the 21-year-old to join his project at White Hart Lane, having had several telephone calls with the player.
Sky Sports reporter Michael Bridge feels Tottenham paying a guaranteed £85m without add-ons for Fernandes is a “mega statement of intent”.
“It is quite incredible news – we knew Spurs had gone head to head in the last few weeks with Man Utd for the transfer of Fernandes from West Ham, who were insistent they wanted £85m for a player they believe is going to be one of the best midfielders in world football,” Michael Bridge said.
“There was original interest from Man Utd, Spurs, we know have been interested in Sandro Tonali, but what we do know is that Fernandes was then interested in Spurs – so it was a straight fight between Spurs and United.
“And it looks like Spurs are now going to win the race to sign Fernandes. This is a humongous deal – Spurs’ previous record transfer was Dominic Solanke for around £65m. At the end of last season, they said they were going to spend big in the next two windows, and this is a mega statement of intent.”
Exciting times for Tottenham fans
It has been refreshing to watch ENIC show ambition and back the head coach in the transfer market this time around. There is quite a lot for the fans to be excited about by the manner in which the recruitment has been handled so far. After narrowly escaping relegation on the final day of the last season, this is the least the fans would have expected from the Spurs hierarchy.
Of course, there is palpable excitement within our fanbase over the signing of Fernandes. The rising Portuguese star is set to become the Lilywhites’ club-record signing, and he will strengthen De Zerbi’s options in central midfield. He will add energy, bite, creativity and technical quality to our team.