- Spurs have accelerated talks to signed former Chelsea forward Timo Werner
- Spurs have agreed to pay his salary of around £4.5m for the rest of the season
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Tottenham accelerated talks to sign former Chelsea forward Timo Werner on loan from Red Bull Leipzig on Friday.
The former Chelsea misfit had interest from other Premier League sides but quickly agreed to join Spurs as he sees a chance to fit in well with Ange Postecoglou’s style of play.
Spurs have agreed to pay his salary of around £4.5million for the rest of the season and have an option to buy the 27-year-old for £15m.
Werner flew back to Germany from Leipzig’s La Manga training camp on Sunday and is expected in London to begin training with his new teammates once given the all-clear to travel.
Spurs will be without Son Heung-min for around a month as he represents South Korea in the Asia Cup while Alejo Veliz has suffered a knee injury and there is interest from Saudi Arabia in Richarlison, though that is likely to be rebuffed until the summer.
Manchester United and Aston Villa were understood to be among the clubs who had sounded out about Werner’s availability but talks with Tottenham accelerated on Friday.
The move raised eyebrows as Werner’s stint with bitter rivals Chelsea was not viewed as a success. However, Tottenham coach Ange Postecoglou views Werner’s pace and selfless work ethic as ideal qualities to suit his tactics and his squad.
For Werner’s part, he will be determined to prove himself in the Premier League this time around. He arrived at Chelsea from Leipzig for £47.5m with a reputation for being a prolific goalscorer but he struggled to adapt and a series of missed chances saw his confidence wane.
He still managed 23 goals in 89 games but it wasn’t enough to justify Chelsea’s outlay and they took a huge hit by selling him back to Leipzig for £18m plus add-ons in 2022.
Although his return started with promise he has since struggled to nail down a starting place with Leipzig adding Benjamin Sesko and Lois Openda to their squad.
Now he is hoping he can rebuild his reputation under Postecoglou and earn a recall to the German national side.
Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
