Tottenham Hotspur are getting down to business. After sorting out the whole managerial fiasco, the Spurs front office have moved quickly to close a deal with young, talented forward Mathys Tel:

Great pun work, Spurs’ Twitter admin.

This is effectively Tottenham Hotspur’s third signing of the summer, following young defender Luka Vuskovic officially joining the club and Kevin Danso’s loan becoming permanent. We wrote just yesterday on Spurs’ negotiations with Bayern Munich; though there was an option to buy in Tel’s original loan deal, the £50 million clause was considered high for a player who is still quite raw, albeit talented. The reality is though that Bayern didn’t see any future for Tel at the German club, and Tel clearly enjoyed his time in London.

This therefore represents a fantastic piece of business for Tottenham Hotspur. Though £50 million was undoubtedly too high, the £30 million reported is much more palatable: still a slight gamble, but one worth taking with chances high that Tel is worth much more in the next couple of seasons. I wrote in our Loan, Keep, Sell: The Wingers piece how encouraging Tel’s underlying numbers were (0.54 xG+xA), and if he can turn that into actual production, Spurs have a gem on their hands.

It’s impressive as well how quickly negotiations proceeded; clearly, the relationship between the two clubs is in good stead (even after the messy media campaigns of the Harry Kane saga, which I would rather forget). It also allows the club’s front office to now pivot to more pressing matters (such as a midfielder, and potentially an additional winger and defender).

Tel’s deal runs until 2031. Welcome (back) to the club, Mathys. It’s good to have you with us for the long haul!