Heading into the January transfer window, Antoine Semenyo has widely been viewed as the main dream target for Tottenham Hotspur to upgrade their attack, specifically that pesky left wing position that has been vacated by club legend Son Heung-min, who is now plying his craft in Los Angeles.
In the previous summer transfer window, Semenyo was an early winger transfer target for Spurs alongside Bryan Mbeumo, though Tottenham ended up signing Mohammed Kudus instead. So far, Kudus has paid dividends over on the right hand side of the formation, but even in the weeks after signing the West Ham star, Spurs were monitoring another top Premier League winger in Savinho.
Spurs never really made a serious approach to Manchester City for Savinho, as it turned out the Citizens were not all that interested in selling the Brazilian standout to begin with, especially with another Brazilian standout, Rodrygo Goes, unwilling to leave Real Madrid.
Antoine Semenyo could make things interesting
Semenyo makes the Savinho situation more interesting. Right now, Semenyo looks more likely to join the mighty Manchester City rather than the struggling Spurs, and if he were to choose Man City over the likes of Liverpool and Manchester United, then you would think that would make Savinho more readily available for Tottenham.
After all, Savinho has only been a bit player in the Manchester City offense this season, especially with another former Tottenham target, Rayan Cherki, unsurprisingly blowing it up in his first season at the Etihad Stadium now that he is finally healthy.
But Savinho is not the only highly talented winger who has not been playing as big of a role as expected for Man City in 2025/26. Omar Marmoush was the best player in the Bundesliga - yes, even above Harry Kane - in the first half of the 2024/25 Bundesliga season before making the big switch to the Premier League to play under Pep Guardiola.
While Marmoush's initial time with the Citizens got off to a flying start, he has since cooled off and is pretty much buried. He does not really fit what Man City are trying to do, and his skills in transition and eye for spectacular finishes have been curtailed, as the offense runs through playmakers and the ultimate finisher, Erling Haaland.
Marmoush is someone who could be available if Tottenham are able to submit the right financial package to Manchester City, which, of course, was not the case in the summer with Savinho. But that is how Man City have always operated. With the exception of a select few like the Haalands and Rodris, everyone is available at the right price. Marmoush should be included in that, given he has started just two Premier League games this season And if Tottenham want goals of the left wing, Marmoush is much better suited for that than Savinho.