Tottenham Hotspur will almost certainly be in the market for a new central midfielder or two this summer, with special attention paid to a player who excels in the No. 6 role — a defensive mid who plays in the deepest midfield position. Spurs have already taken a step towards one signing in January when, as a condition of Giovani Lo Celo’s return to Betis, Tottenham received a purchase option of €25m with a right of first refusal for American-born midfielder Johnny Cardoso.
We wrote about Cardoso at the time, noting that reports also suggested if Spurs pass up the chance to sign him this summer, they’ll maintain a sell-on clause, something that at the time seemed very weird for a player Spurs don’t technically own.
There hasn’t been much news since, though now there’s a report from a couple days ago in Releveo that suggests Betis are already “resigned” to losing Johnny this summer, even if it’s not Spurs, and are preparing for life without him next season. Spurs are still the most likely option due to the purchase clause, and notes that Betis rejected a €18m bid from Wolverhampton Wanderers last January, along with other unknown clubs in England and Italy.
Interestingly, the report also states that despite the agreement with Spurs, Betis also gave Cardoso a new improved contract, just in case, to tempt him to either stay at Betis or push his value up even higher. Here’s the relevant paragraph, run through the Google machine:
However, the verdiblanco club awarded Johnny Cardoso with a contract improvement last January. The Betis wanted to recognize both the performance and the commitment exhibited by the midfielder, who had a low salary in the face of the importance he has acquired in the team. The leaders also wanted to keep a card under their sleeve in case the Tottenham did not finally exercise the purchase option, so it could raise a possible sale or even opt for the footballer to continue for another season.
I still think the most likely scenario is that Spurs opt to purchase Johnny this summer when his purchase clause kicks in — he’s been a little up and down this season at Betis but has also shown to have the potential to be a very good #6. But we won’t know until Spurs reach the end of the season and decide how they want to approach the transfer market this summer.
