Although Tottenham Hotspur's loan acquisition Joao Palhinha was a forgotten man for much of the 2025/26 Premier League season, manager Roberto De Zerbi brought the Portuguese defensive midfielder back to the fore at the end of the season when Spurs needed him most, riding the player and other veteran midfielders to help guide the Lilywhites to relegation safety.
Palhinha was one of the stars of the team in the final weeks of the campaign, putting everything on the line defensively and on the ball to draw fouls. He even scored the winning goal on Matchday 38 against Everton to fire Tottenham to safety once and for all.
But while De Zerbi told reporters that Palhinha was 100 percent in his plans, he and Tottenham ended up with different ideas. They realized they did not want to spend 25-30 million euros to sign Palhinha permanently from Bayern and felt like, even with interest from Sporting CP and FC Porto in Palhinha's home country, they could bring the former Fulham star back at a discount.
Joao Palhinha is available again
Bayern Munich balked, but they have since regretted it. The Portuguese giants pulled out of the race, and now the Bavarians are left holding the bag with a player they do not want and do not have any plans for in the 2026/27 Bundesliga season.
Recently, Bayern's sporting director Max Eberl told reporters that Joao Palhinha is one of three unwanted players with no future at the club, via Fabrizio Romano, “They have no future at Bayern. If they want to stay with us, it will be tough because we are not planning with them. Then they won't play a role”.
That is as clear of a statement as it gets, and it opens the door for Tottenham Hotspur to go back in for Palhinha for a lot cheaper if Roberto De Zerbi still wants the cult hero for a little defensive grit and veteran leadership in a backup role.
Tottenham are probably going to have to hold onto Conor Gallagher after Spurs acquired him last winter, and De Zerbi still loves him. Rodrigo Bentancur may also be another player De Zerbi wants to keep around. But Pape Matar Sarr is expendable for sure, while Lucas Bergvall seems to be requesting a transfer still. So there is room for a Palhinha reunion as depth behind the main trio of Matues Fernandes, Sandro Tonali, and Archie Gray.
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