At one point, it seemed like Joao Palhinha was for sure staying at Tottenham Hotspur. The experienced Portuguese midfielder had an option to buy clause in his loan contract between Spurs and Bundesliga giants Bayern Munich for 25-30 million euros, and new manager Roberto De Zerbi had made it seemingly clear that he 100 percent wanted Palhinha back for the 2026/27 season and purchased permanently on loan.
And that's because Palhinha had some massive performances to help keep Spurs afloat in the Premier League relegation battle, including a goal from a corner as part of an overall midfielder monster class in a 1-0 win over Everton on Matchday 38 to ensure that the Lilywhites would survive the drop after all.
But when the summer transfer window actually started, Spurs did absolutely nothing to keep Palhinha around, going incommunicado with Bayern Munich while Sporting CP showed significant interest in bringing Palhinha back to Portugal.
Aston Villa are very close to a deal
Tottenham Hotspur fans will not complain about signing compatriot Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali instead to overhaul their midfield, but now Palhinha has a real chance to take a shot back at Tottenham in 2026.
After Fabrizio Romano reported of rivals Aston Villa being interested in Joao Palhinha this summer, Portuguese outlet A Bola is reporting, via iMiaSanMia, that the 31 year old defensive midfieler is indeed on the verge of joining Aston Villa.
A Bola report that Palhinha is expected to finalize the transfer agreement shortly and that Aston Villa had begun talks with Bayern Munich over the Portuguese midfielder even before Fabrizio said they did, as they were looking for a replacement in the squad for Amadou Onana after the Belgian international tore his ACL at the 2026 World Cup.
Palhinha feels right at home in the Premier League, and although many were wondering if the veteran No. 6 could choose two of the giant clubs in his home country in Benfica or Sporting in order to make a return and pick them over Spurs, it looks like he is staying in Englamd but Spurs are the ones rejecting him in the end.
Tottenham made a heartfelt statement to Palhinha after letting him go back to Bayern, so there will still be love between both parties in the 2026/27 season. But you have to believe that if Palhinha is going to Villa, he has that juice in him that he wants to embarrass Spurs head to head and show them that they made a mistake letting him go. Tottenham would have wanted him anywhere but back in the Premier League to haunt him.
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