Tottenham's Exciting Double Signing: Savio and Marmoush
Roberto De Zerbi did not bother to hide his excitement. Tottenham, already the Premier League’s biggest spenders of the summer, have landed what their head coach calls two “bomba” signings – and he is not ruling out one last hit before the window slams shut.
Spurs have wrapped up a double deal with Manchester City, finally prising long-term target Savio away in a package worth £85million and adding Omar Marmoush on a season-long loan that will become permanent. With Marmoush’s fee potentially climbing towards £60m, Tottenham’s outlay for the summer has surged past £350m.
For a club that once agonised over every cheque, this is a different era entirely.
De Zerbi’s “bomba” duo
De Zerbi, speaking before Newcastle’s visit to north London on Saturday, could barely disguise his satisfaction with the club’s work.
“I think Savio and Marmoush are bomba,” he said. “I don’t know what name or how you can call them but players of a high level, for sure.”
He admitted the scale of the rebuild has even surprised him.
“I didn’t expect one transfer market and one window like we have done,” he said, before hinting that Spurs are not quite finished. One more signing, in one “specific position”, remains on the agenda before Tuesday’s 11pm deadline.
The Italian described a dinner summit with the ownership group and senior executives Vinai Venkatesham, Johan Lange and Enrico Venturelli, underlining a rare sense of alignment at Tottenham.
“We spoke about this, but we have all of us on the same page and there is a very good connection,” he said.
The message is clear: the club is backing the manager, and the manager is driving the club.
Marmoush to lift the attack
Marmoush arrives as the eighth signing of a ferocious summer, and his role could be pivotal. He offers De Zerbi another option up front and a different type of number 10 at a time when creativity and goals from midfield are under strain.
James Maddison is not yet at full tilt. Mohammed Kudus is only just returning from a tendon injury that has kept him out since January. De Zerbi needs someone who can both score and stretch defences. Marmoush has been doing exactly that.
Across a prolific 18-month spell at Eintracht Frankfurt, the attacker hit 37 goals, then added 16 more at Manchester City. Those numbers explain why Spurs were willing to commit to a deal that could eventually reach £60m. They also explain the manager’s enthusiasm.
“A great signing for us. A great player, another great player and every one of us loves him as a player,” De Zerbi said. “We hope he can do what he is able. I think he can give more solutions in attack. We need players in attack capable to score goals, to play well with the ball also, a very fast player, great qualities and we are all happy.”
De Zerbi views him as both a central striker and an advanced playmaker, but of a very different profile to Maddison or Conor Gallagher.
“I think he can play as a central striker. He is a different number 10 than Gallagher or Maddison, more of an attacker, but he is a player of big qualities. The most important thing is to have players with qualities.”
Marmoush may have to wait for his first start, though. With Newcastle in town and competition fierce, he could begin his Spurs career from the bench on Saturday.
New faces, new hierarchy
The reshaped squad is already taking on a new hierarchy. Micky van de Ven, now the new club captain, and Pedro Porro both featured in Wednesday’s 5-1 Carabao Cup demolition of Charlton and are pushing to start again in the league.
Savio, the headline arrival in that £85m package, is lined up for his full debut. Kudus, sidelined since January, is finally close to a return and could be included in a Premier League squad for the first time this year.
The spine is changing quickly. The tempo of Tottenham’s rebuild matches the urgency of their spending.
One player still in limbo is Pape Sarr. He remains available for selection, but his longer-term future is far from settled as the final days of the window tick down.
“Pape? No, he’s good. We have to see in the last day of the transfer market what can happen with him,” De Zerbi said.
Then came the blunt edge that defines his management.
“If you want to leave and you have not found the offer, it’s your problem, not my problem. I give respect, I kiss you, I hug you, but at the end have to stay calm inside the dressing room.”
It was a reminder that amid the fireworks of a record-breaking window, the standards inside the dressing room will not soften. The squad is growing, the stakes are rising, and De Zerbi has his “bomba” signings.
Now comes the real question: can this new-look Tottenham turn all that money and momentum into something that actually lasts?
