Tottenham Hotspur had been following the midfield duo of Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali for years, and new manager Roberto De Zerbi finally gave the club the ambition and impetus to spend 185 million pounds and secure these two pivotal signings above interest from other elite clubs in European football.
Tonali, in particular, is a huge get. This is a former Serie A winner with AC Milan - a guy who is captain's material and was once compared to Andrea Pirlo as a prospect. Newcastle United failed to get the most out of him, and while the 100 million pound price tag is hefty, Tonali can be worth every penny to Tottenham under the tutelage of De Zerbi.
Tottenham were able to bag him ahead of significant interest from Premier League title contenders Arsenal and Manchester City this year, and while the rumor mill still tried to bring them up as options for the Italian international, everyone knows that he and Spurs were locked in on each other after De Zerbi made the pitch.
Sandro Tonali is 100 percent COYS
Tonali confirmed as much, mudding Tottenham's bitter rivals Arsenal in the process by confirming that the Premier League champions were actually nowhere near the transfer race for his signature; he clearly only wanted Spurs.
The 26 year old star center midfielder said in his official unveiling on the club's site, "I'm very happy to be here. When I arrived at the Club today, it felt fantastic. People said about there being four or five clubs - there was only one."
Arsenal were absolutely one of those four or five clubs linked, and he was actually their top target during the 2025/26 season. But this time, for a change, instead of poaching a Spurs player like they did with Eberechi Eze last summer transfer window, it was the Gunners who backed off and decided to go after Sandro Tonali's Newcastle United teammate Bruno Guimaraes instead.
The Gunners missed out on one of the best midfielders on the Premier League transfer market, as Tottenham, unlike the others, sold Tonali on their dream, excited the player with the version of football they will play under Roberto De Zerbi, and then finally put their money where their mouth is to make sure Newcastle could not say no to the sale.
Tonali confirming all of this and that Tottenham were always the ones who had his heart over the North London rivals will only get Spurs fans more pumped. This man is fully COYS.
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