Tottenham Set to Sign Savinho from Manchester City

Tottenham Hotspur are moving back into territory they know well: a high‑stakes fight for an elite winger. This time, though, it looks like they’re going to get their man.

Spurs are in the final stages of agreeing a deal with Manchester City for Savinho, with the fee understood to be around £65million, according to Simon Jones of the Daily Mail. It is the culmination of a pursuit that started last summer, stalled, and has now roared back to life.

Back then, Tottenham were prepared to go to £60m for the Brazilian. The answer from City was blunt. Not for sale. Savinho, frustrated at his lack of minutes under Pep Guardiola and keen on becoming a central figure in north London, was ready to jump. City, wary of losing a talent they had only just begun to integrate, instead put a six‑year contract in front of him. He signed. The noise died.

Only briefly.

Spurs never quite let go. Their interest simmered in the background, waiting for an opening. In recent months, that door has creaked open again, and this time Tottenham have pushed hard.

On Thursday, transfer specialist Fabrizio Romano cut through the swirl of names around Ange Postecoglou’s winger search. Reports had linked Spurs with Napoli prospect Antonio Vergara, but Romano dismissed that talk outright.

“Vergara is not a target for Tottenham,” he said, explaining that the 20‑year‑old is instead signing a new contract at Napoli with an improved salary. The rumours, he stressed, were never grounded in reality — not in May, not in June, and not now.

Savinho, he insisted, is the one. The winger Tottenham want. The winger they are actively trying to sign.

City, for their part, are already working on the next move.

Jones reports that Pep Guardiola’s side have turned their attention to Paris Saint‑Germain’s Ibrahim Mbaye as they prepare to close the Savinho sale. The 18‑year‑old, who caught the eye with Senegal at the World Cup, is being tracked by Manchester City, Aston Villa, Tottenham and RB Leipzig as he weighs up his future.

Mbaye is expected to push for a move this summer. With competition for places at PSG intensifying, the teenager wants regular senior football and has now joined the stable of super‑agent Jorge Mendes, a clear sign that his next step will be carefully choreographed.

For City, Mbaye is one of several winger options on the table. They sounded out Real Madrid’s Rodrygo last year as a possible replacement for Savinho, but nothing advanced and Rodrygo stayed put in Spain. The Brazilian remains a reference point in their planning, yet the market has shifted, and so have City’s priorities.

Tottenham, though, are not waiting around for anyone else’s plans.

If Jones’ information stands up, Spurs have nudged their bid from last summer’s £60m to £65m and are now on the brink of landing Savinho. The player’s stance is clear: he wants the move. Personal terms are not expected to be an obstacle, which should keep the process brisk once the clubs finalise the structure of the fee.

This is not a decision taken in a vacuum. Tottenham have tested the water with a series of winger targets in recent months, only to see some doors slam shut and others swing invitingly open.

Cody Gakpo was one of the names under discussion, but Liverpool made their position plain on Wednesday. They are not selling. With their own wide options needing reinforcement rather than depletion, Gakpo is staying at Anfield.

Rafael Leao has been a different story. On July 5, it emerged that the AC Milan star had given the green light to a potential move to Spurs in a deal worth around €50m (£42m). On paper, that is a cheaper route to a marquee name, a player already proven at the sharp end of Serie A and the Champions League.

Yet Tottenham appear to have made their choice. They are pushing harder for Savinho.

It is a bold call. Leao brings profile and pedigree; Savinho offers upside and the promise of a long‑term cornerstone in Postecoglou’s attacking structure. Spurs are betting that the Brazilian’s ceiling, combined with his hunger to step out of City’s shadow and into a starring role, makes him the better fit for what they are building.

If the deal lands as expected, Tottenham will have wrestled a prime attacking talent away from the Premier League champions and reshaped the dynamics of their forward line in one stroke. The only question now is how quickly Savinho can turn that long‑running pursuit into production on the pitch — and how City’s response in the market will reshape the battle at the top next season.