Tottenham Hotspur has joined Arsenal in the race to sign Raphinha, with the Brazilian’s future with Barcelona looking uncertain heading into the summer transfer window.
That is according to a report from AS in Spain, which claims that a host of sides are interested in offering Raphinha a route back to the Premier League one year after he left Leeds United.
According to AS, Barcelona has publicly suggested that Raphinha will not be leaving this summer. However, that stance could change if one of his admirers makes a significant offer.
Tottenham joins Raphinha race
They did snub a big bid in January. Reports from Sport claimed that Arsenal offered £62 million for Raphinha before they managed to bring Leandro Trossard to the Emirates.
It was recently suggested that the Gunners remain in the running for Raphinha. And AS has also claimed that Mikel Arteta’s side still want the 26-year-old. But the report adds that Tottenham are also in the race to land the Brazilian.
Newcastle are also admirers.
It is hard to see Spurs competing for Raphinha’s signature this summer. Barcelona are surely going to want more than the £62 million they turned down in January.
Meanwhile, Arsenal, and potentially Newcastle, could offer the Brazilian Champions League football next year. It is still possible for Tottenham to finish in the top four in the Premier League. But their recent form suggests it is unlikely.
So convincing Raphinha to move to Tottenham Hotspur Stadium is not going to be easy. Of course, Spurs are also still on the lookout for another manager. That uncertainty may not do their case any favors either.
But it is interesting that they are now being linked with Raphinha ahead of the summer. Hopefully, for Tottenham fans, it is not the last ‘unbelievable‘ name mentioned in connection with the club before the window arrives.
READ MORE: While we were waiting: Journalist shares exactly what he saw Daniel Levy do after Spurs’ loss to Newcastle
Speaking on the Gold and Guest Talk Tottenham Podcast, Rob Guest has shared what he saw Daniel Levy doing after Tottenham lost 6-1 to Newcastle at the weekend.
Somewhat strangely, it was reported that Levy headed into the Spurs dressing room after the embarrassing defeat to Newcastle on Sunday, but according to Guest, that wasn’t the case.
Indeed, the journalist stated that he actually saw what Levy did after the match, and apparently, rather than heading into the dressing room, he headed straight through the tunnel and through the exit door at St James’ Park, making a swift escape from the stadium.
Levy left quickly
Guest shared what he saw Levy doing.
“You saw Daniel Levy, didn’t you? Just as you were going into the mixed zone,” Guest was asked.
“Yeah, we were waiting by the side of the pitch to see if any players would come out to speak to the media, which wasn’t the case. While we were waiting by the dugout Daniel Levy walked down the steps with another Tottenham official and he walked into the tunnel. It was put into the media that he was walking into the Tottenham dressing room, but that wasn’t the case. He was heading for the exit, he very much made an exit from St James’ Park,” Guest said.
Time to calm down
Levy leaving the stadium as quickly as possible was the right call. After watching his team lose 6-1, we can’t imagine that the squad would have gained anything from being berated by their chairman.
Indeed, Levy won’t have been happy after the game, and his best bet was to just get out of the ground and give himself some time to calm down and think about his next step.
Ultimately, Levy did decide to get rid of Cristian Stellini after this game with a statement that had a slightly strange tone, but at least that was a better call than going into the dressing room to air his frustrations personally.
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