Tottenham and AC Milan were involved in a strange deal during the summer transfer window.
Somehow, Tottenham convinced AC Milan to spend £13m on Emerson Royal – despite his incredibly underwhelming three years in N17.
In fact, Emerson Royal is already receiving scathing reviews from the Italian media for his wobbly start at the San Siro.
Now – after offloading a piece of deadwood onto the Italian giants – Tottenham are set to frustrate AC Milan again in 2025…
AC Milan want Johnny Cardoso – but Tottenham can block move
A story from Calciomercato now states that AC Milan want to sign Johnny Cardoso from Real Betis.
The Serie A side are keen to bring a new midfielder to the San Siro after Ismael Bennacer suffered a serious injury, and believe they have a good chance of signing the United States international, having built a strong relationship with his agent.
However, Calciomercato seem to ignore the fact that Tottenham have already effectively pre-ordered the Real Betis No.4 ahead of a move in 2025.
In case you were unaware, Spurs have agreed a deal to sign Cardoso – who has been called a “rare” footballer – for £21m if those in N17 decide they want to push ahead with that move, which was negotiated as part of the £3.3m sale of Giovani Lo Celso to Real Betis.
Tottenham have basically secured first dibs on the Real Betis No.4 in case he develops into a superstar.
Therefore, even if AC Milan submit a good bid for Cardoso, Real Betis are obliged to let Spurs know about it, and give the north Londoners the chance to decide whether they want to activate the £21m option, or allow the 22-year-old to join another club.
Spurs relying on Mauricio Pochettino
Interestingly, the midfielder is now being managed by Mauricio Pochettino on the international scene, after the Argentine was appointed Head Coach of the United States Men’s National Team.
A story from Give Me Sport states that Spurs hope Pochettino can improve Cardoso ahead of his potential move to north London in 2025 – thus making that £21m agreement into a bargain.
Hopefully, that does turn out to be the case, as Tottenham’s initiative to secure a pre-agreement over the Real Betis maestro could turn out to be a masterstroke if so.