Roberto De Zerbi wants to further bolster his squad, but higher-ups at Tottenham Hotspur appear to be waiting for a green light from Chelsea before making their next move.
Roberto De Zerbi in Spurs training
Roberto De Zerbi wants to make more additions to his Tottenham Hotspur squad(Image: Chloe Knott/Tottenham Hotspur FC/Shutterstock)
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Chelsea could stop Tottenham Hotspur from finally signing Savinho. The Manchester City winger has been heavily linked with a move to the Lilywhites for a while now as Roberto De Zerbi looks to bolster his frontline, but a deal appears to hinge on whether Enzo Maresca can draft a replacement before the transfer window slams shut.
football.london understands that Spurs are interested in signing Savinho, whose contract at the Etihad Stadium expires in June 2031, and they've already held talks with Manchester City over a potential fee. When Pep Guardiola was still in charge, it was said that higher-ups blocked a transfer to Tottenham because they viewed the Brazil international as a promising talent.
But, despite having been given a chance to impress his new boss in pre-season, Savinho has since communicated his desire to leave in pursuit of regular game time. Speaking to reporters earlier this month, Maresca refused to rule out the Brazilian's departure, claiming anything can happen'.
"In this moment, there is many speculation about our players – Savi is not the only one," said the former Chelsea boss. "While Savinho is here, we’re going to try and do our best to help him how he can improve and then unfortunately we said many times with the transfer window open anything can happen we need to be ready for that."
In the meantime, Manchester City appear to have been preparing for Savinho's potential departure. It is claimed that Maresca has identified Pedro Neto as the ideal replacement for the Brazilian.
But it would take a substantial fee to tempt Chelsea into selling the 26-year-old winger, whom they signed from Wolves for £54m a couple of years ago. Neto was one of the first names on the teamsheet under the Italian at Stamford Bridge, helping the Blues win the Conference League and the Club World Cup.
Romano reckons that there's currently a 'huge gap' in valuations between the two clubs, and it remains to be seen whether a compromise can be reached. If Chelsea take negotiations with Manchester City down to the wire, Tottenham could be left with little to no time to sign Savinho.
Tottenham Hotspur want to sign Savinho, who has impressed in pre-season for Manchester City
Tottenham Hotspur want to sign Savinho, who has impressed in pre-season for Manchester City
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Although the transfer window doesn't shut until 11pm on Tuesday, September 1, Alonso, Maresca, and De Zerbi will each want to finalise their squads before the opening weekend of the new Premier League season. Unless Neto requests to leave, though, the Blues will be in no rush to knock down the first domino.
If the Blues dig their heels in, Tottenham could be left in the dark with plenty of work still to be done. Speaking recently on the Men in Blazers YouTube channel, the Spurs boss announced that he and Johan Lange have unfinished business in the transfer market.
De Zerbi said: "In the transfer market, we're not finished yet. We're looking forward to start another season with different ambitions and results. We have to find the condition to build a strong team, than the last seasons to compete again for the top of the table.
"I usually think about the soul, passion, spirit and mentality of the team and then the improvement we can do in the future, because I can't stay with the focus just on the present."