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Tottenham agree blockbuster loan signing and star is ‘open’ to joining outright
The full details in the loan deal Tottenham have agreed with a dominant midfielder have been revealed, and the star is ‘open’ to turning the move permanent.
News broke on Thursday of Tottenham seeking to bring Joao Palhinha back to the Premier League. The Portugal international, 30, proved a dominant force in England when starring across a two-year stint with Fulham between 2022-24.
Palhinha regularly topped the charts for successful tackles and chipped in with important goals too. His physicality in the engine room and ability to break up opposition attacks made him an instant hit at Craven Cottage.
Palhinha earned a €56m (add-ons included) switch to Bayern Munich, though struggled for starts in his first season in Bavaria.
Bayern opened the doors to Palhinha’s exit and Tottenham quickly agreed personal terms with the player while holding club-to-club talks over a loan deal.
And according to transfer guru, Fabrizio Romano, Palhinha to Spurs can now be considered a done deal.
Taking to X to provide details on the move, Romano wrote: “Joao Palhinha to Tottenham, here we go! Final green light arrived right now from Bayern.
“Exclusive detail: loan deal includes €30m buy option clause for Tottenham, not mandatory.
“Salary covered by Spurs, Bayern said yes and Palhinha will now travel for medical tests.”
Palhinha signing could be made permanent
Plettenberg noted Spurs are covering 100 percent of the midfielder’s salary during the initial loan, which ‘exceeds €10 million gross per year.’
For context, a gross salary of €10m per year currently equates to around £166,000-a-week.
Furthermore, Jacobs revealed Palhinha is ‘open’ to turning the loan spell permanent at the end of the 2025/26 campaign.
The reporter even went on to state Palhinha was ‘keen’ to complete a permanent switch right now, though Spurs saw fit to go with an initial loan.
While the €30m / £26m buy option could be conceived as a hefty price to pay for a player who’ll be a month away from turning 31 at the time, Palhinha has already proven at Fulham he can be among the Premier League’s elite holding midfielders.
