Tottenham offer Tonali £86m deal to lure Newcastle midfielder in record-breaking move

Tottenham Hotspur have offered Sandro Tonali an £86 million, six-year contract in a bid to prise the Italy international away from Newcastle United, with personal terms of £275,000 a week already agreed with the player’s agency, GR Sports.

Spurs made Tonali their primary summer target after an initial £80 million bid was rejected by Newcastle earlier this month, with the Magpies instructing them to return with a higher offer. Newcastle are holding firm at a figure in excess of £100 million — close to double the £55 million they paid AC Milan for Tonali in 2023.

Should the deal reach that valuation, it would shatter Tottenham’s transfer record. Their current benchmark stands at the £51.8 million paid for Xavi Simons from RB Leipzig last summer. When salary, bonuses, signing-on fees and the transfer fee are combined, the total outlay could approach £200 million.

Unlike the parallel situation involving Newcastle midfielder Bruno Guimarães and Arsenal — where interest has largely emerged through third-party leaks — Spurs have made a concrete, formal approach to the club.

Newcastle remain determined to conduct their transfer business on their own terms. Head coach Eddie Howe and sporting director Ross Wilson operate within a structured process, but the club has acknowledged that a sufficiently large sale could create room to reinvest. CEO David Hopkinson addressed the possibility three months ago, saying: “If an Isak-like scenario presents itself again, any player under contract is going to leave on our terms and we’re going to maximise the opportunity that might represent for the club.”

Tonali’s agent, Giuseppe Riso, has previously spoken openly about the midfielder’s ambitions. In March, when asked about reported interest from Arsenal and Manchester City, Riso said: “That was the goal from the moment he went to England — to try to make him a star player. I think he’s the Italian footballer with one of the highest values in the world. The deal came about because a club like Newcastle, with unlimited financial resources, had decided to invest in Sandro. We considered the idea of having the player play in a higher-level league.”

Adding an intriguing dimension to the pursuit, Spurs manager Roberto De Zerbi is understood to have a close relationship with Riso, which may have helped facilitate the swift agreement on personal terms. Whether Tottenham can now meet Newcastle’s asking price will determine if the move becomes one of the summer’s defining transfers.