Cartilage Free Captain - Tottenham Hotspur January 2023 Transfer Deadline Day: All the StoriesA 100% Serious Ridiculous Tottenham Hotspur bloghttps://cdn.vox-cdn.com/community_logos/48355/cartilagefree-fave.png2023-01-31T23:48:52+00:00http://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/rss/stream/233434662023-01-31T23:48:52+00:002023-01-31T23:48:52+00:00Summarizing Tottenham Hotspur’s January 2023 transfer window
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<p>The window is closed! Here are all the comings and goings.</p> <p id="3ei15p">Well, I’ve certainly seen busier transfer deadline days as a <a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur</a> fan. (I’ve also seen... several... substantially less busy days.) The January window has slammed shut and we did have some movement — a couple of players in, a few players out on loan, and one player weirdly waived entirely (<a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23580366/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-rumors-matt-doherty-contract-terminated-foreign-loan-atletico-whoops">and possibly for a hilarious reason</a>)</p>
<p id="cEe8r2">In a lot of ways this window clarifies a few things, especially as we look to what could be a VERY consequential summer 2023 <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/transfer-rumors">transfer window</a>. We have a better idea of who’s in Antonio Conte’s plans and who isn’t, what areas need more addressing and what players may soon be out the door permanently. </p>
<p id="w6fn3z">But then again, we still don’t know if Antonio Conte will even be Tottenham’s manager past this spring, so who knows!</p>
<p id="zA1WuW">Anyway, here’s the summary of all of Spurs’ transfer dealings in January.</p>
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https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23580070/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-rumors-january-window-summaryDustin George-Miller2023-01-31T22:55:20+00:002023-01-31T22:55:20+00:00DONE DEAL: Pedro Porro finally joins Tottenham
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<img alt="Pedro Porro Signs For Tottenham Hotspur" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/AZVYulSVLjYx-fVTaaHdgpWAabk=/102x0:5796x3796/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71927246/1461175384.5.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tottenham Hotspur FC/Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Now he’s Antonio Conte’s son </p> <p id="bcmfsB">After a few months of hearing how many wanted to see Sporting CP’s Pedro Porro play for <a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur — </a>even playing against them twice in the <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/champions-league">Champions League — </a>Porro is joining the North London club. </p>
<p id="aOhizP">It took a month's worth of waiting to see the two clubs agree on a €45m total fee to allow the Spanish right-wing-back to come to the Premier League.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">AI really is taking over <br><br>Transfer announcements will never be the same again... <a href="https://t.co/jJzXI34iRz">pic.twitter.com/jJzXI34iRz</a></p>— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpursOfficial/status/1620555034478911488?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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<p id="4MtDik">Obligations of course stood in the way before an official announcement today, with Sporting seemingly moving the goalposts earlier in the week on Spurs. But, agreements came to be as Spurs even gave a 15% reduction on Marcus Edwards’ sell-on clause to make the two clubs come to terms.</p>
<p id="fncNBU">Joining Spurs on an initial €5m loan fee for the remainder of the season, Porro signed a five-and-a-half-year deal. </p>
<p id="dUJKbJ">Not even stepping foot on the pitch with his new team yet, Porro already has the supporters' eyes. Maybe it's his stunning looks and crisp smile, or his ability to deliver deadly balls into the box that's racked up six assists in the Primeira Liga. Fans now can picture those deliveries for Harry Kane and company.</p>
<p id="jJgweN">Antonio Conte seems to have his right-wing-back on lock now as Porro ensures the Italian that the style of play he wants can be delivered to cause more havoc on opposing defenses. </p>
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https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23579465/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-pedro-porro-finally-joins-tottenhamsebastianemanuel52023-01-31T22:41:43+00:002023-01-31T22:41:43+00:00Tottenham, surprisingly, cancels Matt Doherty’s contract instead of loaning him out
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<figcaption>Photo by Marc Atkins/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>And BOY do we have a theory as to why!</p> <p id="iFKISP">The biggest shock of <a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur</a>’s January <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/transfer-rumors">transfer window</a> just took place in the last half hour when the club announced via social media that it had mutually agreed with right wing back Matt Doherty to terminate his Tottenham contract, allowing him to sign with another club as a free agent in this window. That club is expected to be <a href="https://www.intothecalderon.com">Atletico Madrid</a>, but it is as of yet not confirmed.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">We have mutually agreed to the termination of Matt Doherty’s contract to enable him to join another club.<br><br>Thank you for everything, Doc </p>— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpursOfficial/status/1620541327162150921?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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<p id="nFRP50">The text of Tottenham’s official release is short, succinct, and doesn’t explain a damn thing.</p>
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<p id="CZzoW0">We have mutually agreed to the termination of Matt Doherty’s contract to enable him to join another club.</p>
<p id="Rj0qFj">Signed from Wolverhampton Wanderers in August, 2020, the Republic of Ireland international made 71 appearances for us in all competitions, scoring three goals.</p>
<p id="lktUvd">We should like to thank Matt for his service and wish him well for the future.</p>
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<p id="wvPQNj">So this is weird, right? After all, the news coming out of the rumor mill today, and it was all reliable, suggested that Doherty had already agreed to join La Liga side Atletico Madrid on a straight loan, with no purchase obligation or option. And then... nothing. Crickets. It was as if something was wrong.</p>
<p id="Jf0Cnb">And we have a pretty amazing theory as to why!</p>
<p id="4mtwXd">It starts, crazily enough, in Cartilage Free Captain’s writer’s Slack channel. Ryan Rosenblatt, former Carty Free author and Friend of the Blog™, noticed something that caused a great deal of discussion among all of us — new FIFA regulations that were enacted in June state that clubs are now only allowed to have eight incoming and eight outgoing loans at any one given time. Tottenham currently have eight foreign loans — Destiny Udogie, Giovani Lo Celso, Tanguy Ndombele, Harry Winks, Sergio Reguilon, Joe Rodon, Bryan Gil, and Djed Spence. And that’s before Doherty’s proposed loan!</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Tottenham are reportedly loaning Doherty to Atletico Madrid, but already have Gil, Lo Celso, Ndombele, Reguilón, Rodon, Udogie, Spence and Winks on international loans, putting them at FIFA's limit of 8.<br><br>How would they make Doherty work without going over the limit?</p>— Ryan Rosenblatt (@RyanRosenblatt) <a href="https://twitter.com/RyanRosenblatt/status/1620526052845195264?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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<p id="UkRRkh">The new rules were designed to curtail the creation of Chelsea-style “loan armies” by which rich clubs can hoard players and potentially flip them for profit, sometimes without them ever playing a single match for the club. It’s a pretty good regulation, and there are even exceptions, but the player has to be both 21 years of age or younger AND be club-trained in order for that exception to go through. None of Spurs’ foreign loans met that criteria.</p>
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<p id="jidh4S">It’s also worth noting that the foreign loan limit drops to seven in 2023-24, and to six the year following. FIFA is serious about stopping player hoarding and loan abuse.</p>
<p id="UVK0WZ">Surely, we thought, Tottenham wouldn’t be so foolish as to not think about this, right? Surely there’s a loophole! Surely they’ve thought of this already! So we all started digging into the FIFA regulations, and couldn’t find any way that Matt Doherty’s loan to Atletico Madrid wouldn’t fall afoul of these regulations. </p>
<p id="KLr8kc">Ryan took it to Twitter, and Joel Wertheimer and I even took it to the Extra Inch Discord of which we’re both members... nobody could make heads or tails of it. It didn’t seem possible that Spurs would be able to complete the loan... at least legally.</p>
<p id="7DUcWm">And then Tottenham tweeted the above. </p>
<p id="hITPU6">So here’s our theory, and it should be noted that this is <strong>100% pure speculation</strong> but it’s now part of my head canon so I’m going to assume it happened exactly this way.</p>
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<li id="4kQBYh">Tottenham fully intended to loan Matt Doherty to Atletico Madrid as per the previous reporting, and all of the work had been done to complete a standard loan with no option or obligation.</li>
<li id="ho7hKf">Someone at Spurs had an OH SHIT moment when they realized that Spurs would be over the foreign loan limit. (I’ll never be able to prove it but I’d LOVE to think that the club didn’t realize this until after we had brought it up on Twitter and other Spurs forums and various people and/or journalists had contacted the club asking for comment)</li>
<li id="PJHxat">The long delay in announcing Doherty’s loan was precisely because Spurs had to figure out a way to either find a loophole that would allow the loan, another domestic club that would take Doherty on loan, or figure out how Atletico could purchase Doherty straight.</li>
<li id="tvdm7P">The mutual termination of Doherty’s contract was the easiest way as it allowed Spurs to get Doherty’s wages off their books and allow him to sign with Atletico on a Bosman.</li>
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<p id="bDh44G">I think this theory is (at least mostly) accurate because of the way that Tottenham’s tweet is worded —<em> We have mutually agreed to the termination of Matt Doherty’s contract to enable him to join another club. </em>It’s a weird wording, and oddly specific, right? It implies that there was a plan ahead of time, and that this is a kinda bizarre way of allowing Matt to join Atletico.</p>
<p id="uq0UAE">Going from a loan to cutting Doherty doesn’t really hurt Spurs financially, or if it does it’s pretty minimal. Doherty is 31 years old and wouldn’t have had much of a long term future at the club. It’s probable that the club would’ve tried to sell him this summer regardless of what happened tonight. This is a way that Spurs could have gotten out of a (hypothetical) pickle with a minimum of embarrassment, and without causing disgruntlement to a player who was ready to leave, and Spurs also gets out of paying his salary for another year. It’s not a bad end result for all involved!</p>
<p id="jRgZ6e">I want to state again —<strong> I have no proof that any of the theory above is true or accurate.</strong> But holy crap does it make a lot of sense. I almost think Occam’s Razor explains it. We may not ever know, but it sure is fun to think about, right?</p>
<p id="MnGDOo">I’ve just written 1000 words and haven’t really addressed Doherty leaving. He never really hit the ground running but he was a good servant to the club in the years that he was here and formed a solid and fun relationship with Harry Kane and Eric Dier. I like him. I hope he has a good rest of his career.</p>
<p id="LJhoCa">And the transfer window isn’t yet closed!</p>
https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23580366/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-rumors-matt-doherty-contract-terminated-foreign-loan-atletico-whoopsDustin George-Miller2023-01-31T20:35:02+00:002023-01-31T20:35:02+00:00DONE DEAL: Harvey White heading to Derby County on loan
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<p>Good, he needs one badly.</p> <p id="DNHvQg">It’s transfer deadline day so we here at Cartilage Free Captain tend to lower our standards a little bit when it comes to <a href="http://www.sbnation.com/transfer-rumors">transfer rumors</a>. I don’t often use Football Insider as a primary source, but in this case I’d like for this to happen so I’m writing it up — In an EXCLUSIVE, <a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur</a> academy grad and midfielder Harvey White is set to head to Derby County on loan for the rest of the season.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr"> EXCLUSIVE! <br><br>- Derby County have agreed to sign 21-year-old Tottenham midfielder Harvey White on loan. ✅✍️<br><br>- The Rams had to fend off interest from West Brom, Luton, Oxford United and Barnsley to complete the deal. ⚔️ </p>— Football Insider (@footyinsider247) <a href="https://twitter.com/footyinsider247/status/1620465215425880087?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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<p id="wupBpd">Honestly, I can’t believe White hasn’t already been on 2-3 loans by now and it’s kind of ridiculous that he hasn’t. Conte LOVES this kid, and that could be why he’s stuck around for so long — Antonio has praised his coachability and ability to play in a variety of positions on several times this season. White notably played as a false nine in the two post-World Cup friendlies before Harry Kane returned to training and is seen as a player with a solid future in professional football.</p>
<p id="IAdZC8">Derby would also be a good landing spot for him — they’re near the top of the League One table and likely will finish in a playoff spot. I think I’d have preferred he go to a Championship club if I had any say in the matter, but at least he’s heading out to play regular football. West Brom, Oxford, Luton, and Barnsley were the other clubs reportedly interested in taking him.</p>
<p id="CJhWVJ">As always, wait for the official announcement because Bat Country flags fly forever.</p>
<p id="1IjHpg"><strong>UPDATE: </strong>it’s official!</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Harvey White has joined League One side Derby County on loan for the remainder of the season.<br><br>Good luck, Harvey <a href="https://t.co/3l89g5ztzi">pic.twitter.com/3l89g5ztzi</a></p>— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpursOfficial/status/1620520527361081348?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23579814/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-rumors-harvey-white-derby-county-league-one-loanDustin George-Miller2023-01-31T17:20:51+00:002023-01-31T17:20:51+00:00DONE DEAL: Djed Spence completes loan to Stade Rennais
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<img alt="Tottenham Hotspur v Aston Villa - Premier League" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/iJYR32s6RR_CzRBJqPGeeANoEEs=/327x0:3978x2434/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71925698/1453665468.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tottenham Hotspur FC/Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Djed will get some playing time but not in England.</p> <p id="f5d5Kj">Djed Spence will get some minutes for the second half of the season, but it will not be with <a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur</a>. The fullback is headed across the English Channel to France to play for Ligue Un side Rennes. The deal is a straight loan until the end of the season with no option to buy.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Djed Spence has joined Ligue 1 side Stade Rennais for the remainder of the 2022/23 season.<br><br>Smash it, Djed </p>— Tottenham Hotspur (@SpursOfficial) <a href="https://twitter.com/SpursOfficial/status/1620470896321339393?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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<p id="Mao0pv">This might seem like a weird deal, but with the proper context, it makes a lot of sense. Sky Sports, BBC, and other outlets were reporting much of the same thing: Premier League clubs were practically tripping over themselves for Spence’s services, but they wanted an option or even an obligation to buy at the end of the season. Spurs management balked at this, which shows that there is still belief in Spence’s future at the club.</p>
<p id="gZOv4O">It is a tad strange that not a single Premier League club, especially ones that are relegation threatened like <a href="https://fosseposse.sbnation.com">Leicester City</a> didn’t back off on those demands and at least try to get him in for the remainder of the season to try and avoid going down to the Championship. Their loss is Rennes’ gain as the French side are currently fifth on the table and only six points out of a <a href="https://www.sbnation.com/champions-league">Champions League</a> place. Spence will potentially get not just quality minutes, but minutes with a good side fighting for European football.</p>
<p id="bE0rlK">Spence will be back after the season is over. Hopefully by then we know what the club has in store for him. Best of luck in France, Djed! We’ll see you soon.</p>
https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23578447/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-djed-spence-loan-stade-rennais-ligue-unSean Cahill2023-01-31T13:49:53+00:002023-01-31T13:49:53+00:00Report: Sarr, Skipp will not be loaned before window closes
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<img alt="Tottenham Hotspur Training Session" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/HxUqOfBzmyRn6rTjrq2ZfuWHpHE=/0x39:3688x2498/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71924897/1438995666.0.jpg" />
<figcaption>Photo by Tottenham Hotspur FC/Tottenham Hotspur FC via Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Conte wants to keep both central midfield options around.</p> <p id="OYhwIs"><a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur</a> have several outgoing irons in the fire on deadline day, but according to Dan Kilpatrick in the Evening Standard, those irons do not include Pape Matar Sarr or Oliver Skipp.</p>
<p id="jkbCeP">There was some thought that one (or both) of them could be loaned out for the second half of the season — Skipp in order to build up match fitness and Sarr to gain first team experience in a season where he hasn’t played much. But while there were reports Skipp was willing to leave, Antonio Conte is seemingly not willing to let them go.</p>
<p id="ggMzVT">Kilpatrick notes that Conte is impressed with Sarr, especially since the World Cup, and wants to keep him as part of the squad going forward. Skipp is ostensibly Tottenham’s fifth choice central midfielder, but Conte would like to keep him around to bolster the squad as he’s a homegrown player</p>
<p id="NqTZdu">If I’m honest, I think I’d prefer to send Skipp out to regain match fitness — the “homegrown quota” isn’t really a quota and instead just a cap of 17 foreign players. Skipp is unlikely to see significant time this spring and has looked pretty rusty in his short cameos since returning from injury. But I suppose I won’t quibble too much, and we’ve already seen this year what can happen if Spurs end up in a midfield injury crisis. Fingers crossed that doesn’t happen again.</p>
<p id="ul6zsw">Harvey White is another young Spurs midfielder who has been tipped for a loan this spring, but we haven’t heard anything about him for a couple of days now.</p>
https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23579402/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-rumors-oliver-skipp-pape-matar-sarr-no-loans-januaryDustin George-Miller2023-01-31T12:31:03+00:002023-01-31T12:31:03+00:00REPORT: Matt Doherty heading to Atletico Madrid on loan
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<img alt="Tottenham Hotspur v Arsenal FC - Premier League" src="https://cdn.vox-cdn.com/thumbor/ZjSoAU2w2yW9pFGFfoI8wmHIU8o=/0x0:8192x5461/1310x873/cdn.vox-cdn.com/uploads/chorus_image/image/71924638/1246263500.0.jpg" />
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<p>Dohberto Carlos is following Djed Spence out the exit door.</p> <p id="n6TjW2">Matt Doherty is taking his sexy little goatee to Spain. According to Relevo journalist Matteo Moretto, the Irish wingback is not long for <a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur</a>’s squad and is set to join <a href="https://www.intothecalderon.com">Atletico Madrid</a> on loan for the rest of the season.</p>
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<p lang="es" dir="ltr">Matt Doherty al Atlético, cesión simple. <a href="https://twitter.com/relevo?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@relevo</a> <a href="https://t.co/UE9NnGQXRm">https://t.co/UE9NnGQXRm</a></p>— Matteo Moretto (@MatteMoretto) <a href="https://twitter.com/MatteMoretto/status/1620393088891101184?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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<p id="fq4Uu7">Moretto calls this a “simple loan” which implies that it’s straight out and straight back this season with no purchase obligations or options. It makes sense — with the addition of Pedro Porro, Tottenham had four right backs on the books which is two too many. Atletico was previously interested in bringing in Djed Spence on loan, but the young “club signing” opted to head to Stade Rennais in order to maximize his playing time — that signing will be announced soon, no doubt. </p>
<p id="TcoPAT">Dohertinho was the next most likely wing back to leave — he’s 31 years old and never really established himself as a regular attacking wingback option, though he’s certainly had his moments and proved to be a very good teammate. His departure will mean that Spurs will be rolling with Porro and Emerson Royal for the rest of the 2022-23 season, and you know what, that just makes a lot of sense, probably the most sense. My guess is that Spurs will try and offload Doherty permanently this coming summer.</p>
<p id="wzBSZO">We’ll wait for more information and/or an official here-we-go from Fabrizio Romano, but this looks likely.</p>
https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23579347/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-rumors-matt-doherty-atletico-madrid-loanDustin George-Miller2023-01-31T12:13:41+00:002023-01-31T12:13:41+00:00Pedro Porro’s Tottenham signing will be a loan with purchase obligation
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<figcaption>Photo by Jose Manuel Alvarez/Quality Sport Images/Getty Images</figcaption>
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<p>Well, of course it is.</p> <p id="3wbnWI">Pedro Porro is now reportedly in London to conduct his medical at <a href="https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com">Tottenham Hotspur</a> ahead of finalizing a transfer from Sporting CF in a deal that is said to be worth €45m-48m. Only it won’t be a full transfer at all, at least not initially. Alasdair Gold is reporting this morning that the deal taking Porro to North London is instead a loan, with a purchase obligation.</p>
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<p lang="en" dir="ltr">Spurs' Pedro Porro deal will be a loan with an obligation to buy. Expected to cost around 45m euros (£39.5m).</p>— Alasdair Gold (@AlasdairGold) <a href="https://twitter.com/AlasdairGold/status/1620361044261769217?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 31, 2023</a>
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<p id="DHvBI3">Now, there are lots of reasons why Spurs might want to do that. For starters, it’s just kind of what Spurs <em>do</em> right now, especially under Fabio Paratici. The deals for Dejan Kulusevski and Giovani Lo Celso were notably loan-to-buy arrangements, and I know that there are more in the recent past that my coffee-deprived brain isn’t thinking of at this precise moment. </p>
<p id="2ILzuw">A loan with a purchase obligation is basically just a payment plan for a player that has some positive accounting benefits, particularly for the buying club. It’s almost certainly what Spurs have spent the past week or so negotiating with Sporting about; <a href="https://www.football.london/tottenham-hotspur-fc/transfer-news/pedro-porro-tottenham-loan-sporting-26115533">in an accompanying article</a>, Gold states that the loan-to-buy structure was done at the request of Sporting so that the purchase fee is represented in the following fiscal year rather than this current one. </p>
<p id="yUPJnc">Everything is expected to be done today with a formal announcement of Porro’s signing coming this afternoon. But considering the twists and turns that have already taken place in this deal, I probably won’t feel good until I see him holding the shirt in a “WELCOME TO TOTTENHAM” tweet.</p>
https://cartilagefreecaptain.sbnation.com/2023/1/31/23579329/tottenham-hotspur-transfer-news-rumors-pedro-porro-loan-purchase-obligation-sportingDustin George-Miller