Tottenham Hotspur
Premier League • England
Tottenham to receive improved new bid for key star, and Spurs have signalled whether they’ll accept
Tottenham have already rejected a bid worth roughly £21.45m for versatile defender Emerson Royal, though with an improved bid readied, a top source has signalled whether Spurs will accept.
Emerson, 25, cost £26m when signed from Barcelona back in 2021.The Brazilian’s early days in north London left a lot to be desired, though he did show signs of improvement towards the back end of last season.
Those rays of hope have continued to grow since Ange Postecoglou took charge and Emerson has now developed into a vital and versatile squad player.
Indeed, while Emerson is firmly behind Pedro Porro at right-back, he showed his usefulness when adequately covering at centre-half during Cristian Romero’s absences through suspension and injury.
Emerson now counts centre-back among the positions in his repertoire. Per the Sun, Emerson is also one of the three best trainers at Spurs along with Ben Davies and Oliver Skipp.
As such, it came as no surprise to learn Tottenham rejected a roughly £21.45m bid from Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr over the weekend.
Al-Nassr count Sadio Mane and Cristiano Ronaldo among their ranks, though hoped to sign a high profile star in Emerson to help strengthen their defence which is led by Aymeric Laporte.
Spurs rejected the bid, though the Sun as well as trusted reporter Ben Jacobs both confirmed the story won’t end there.
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Tottenham telegraph whether they’ll accept improved bid
Al-Nassr are fully prepared to bid again and an improved offer is in the works. Now, according to Jacobs, whether Spurs will accept the new bid has been strongly hinted.
Taking to X, Jacobs revealed that upon rejecting the initial bid, ‘Spurs did not counter with any specific number.’
Refusing to put a number on Emerson’s value could be done for two reasons. The first is to not limit the figure they could receive from a club with bottomless wealth. The other is simply because they have no intention of selling – regardless of how much is bid.
Per Football London, the second of those theories appears to be in play. They claimed that with fellow versatile defender Ben Davies sidelined with a hamstring injury, Tottenham are doubly determined to retain Emerson beyond the February 1 deadline.
The arrival of Radu Dragusin from Genoa may lay waste to Emerson’s hopes for game-time at centre-back.
Nonetheless, Emerson is clearly viewed as crucial depth piece by Postecoglou and co and it’ll take something extraordinary for Spurs to cash in so late in the window.
Elsewhere, Sky Germany revealed Juventus retain an interest in signing Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg in the final days of the window.
Spurs will only consider an exit if Hojbjerg leaves in a permanent deal or on loan with an obligation to buy. A loan with an option to buy will be instantly rejected.
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