Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham Hotspur

Premier League • England

‘Doesn’t want to go’ – Agreed Tottenham transfer crumbles, but three viable alternatives emerge

Tottenham manager Ange Postecoglou

An agreed Tottenham transfer could be torpedoed by their own player, while questions over the morality of the move have been asked.

Among the key issues new boss Ange Postecoglou hoped to address in his first window in charge was overhauling a leaky defence.

Spurs shipped an eye-watering 63 goals in the Premier League alone last season. That was despite playing a back five for much of the campaign and one and perhaps two new centre-halves are wanted.

To clear the way, a series of defender exits are expected for the likes of Joe Rodon, Ben Davies and Davinson Sanchez.

Regarding the latter, Russian side Spartak Moscow recently saw an offer worth €12m (approx. £10.4m) accepted by Tottenham.

That news was broken by Colombian journalist Pipe Sierra and subsequently confirmed by Fabrizio Romano and the Athletic, though the Athletic stated the fee was actually €15m (approx. £12.9m).

In any case, the deal hinged on Sanchez agreeing personal terms and greenlighting a move to Moscow. On that front, the Athletic revealed there are growing concerns Sanchez won’t say yes to the move.

The trusted David Ornstein noted the ongoing conflict in the region, Russian clubs being banned from European competitions and the frequent racist abuse black players suffer in the country were making Sanchez pause for thought.

Now, a fresh update from Sky Sports News has poured more cold water on the move. Per their chief reporter Kaveh Solhekol, Sanchez “doesn’t want to go” to Russia or Spartak Moscow.

What’s more, Solhekol detailed the moral ramifications Tottenham might face if doing business with a Russian club given real world events.

Sanchez to Spartak on the brink; three alternative destinations named

“Tottenham defender Davinson Sanchez’s proposed move to Spartak Moscow is controversial if it were to happen,” said Solhekol. “There’s no indication so far that the player wants to move to Russia.

“Premier League clubs have been discouraged from doing business with Russian clubs since the country’s invasion of Ukraine.

“They were banned from Qatar 2022 and have been thrown out of UEFA competition. It’s very surprising that Spurs would accept an offer from Spartak because morally and legally it raises a lot of questions.

“Would they be allowed to raise such money from a club that is effectively under sanctions from UEFA? Where would the money being used to buy Sanchez be coming from? Would banks be allowed to use that money from Russia?

“At the moment though, it doesn’t look like the deal is going to happen as the player doesn’t want to go.”

In the event Sanchez’s switch to Spartak Moscow does collapse, the Athletic claimed Galatasaray and LaLiga pair Sevilla and Real Betis could swoop instead.

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