Alan Hutton has advised Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy to reduce the amount he is requesting for Emerson Royal in light of possible transfer ties to AC Milan.
This season, under Ange Postecoglou, the 25-year-old defender has struggled to make a consistent impression, starting just 11 Premier League games as he has fallen behind Pedro Porro in the Australian’s starting lineup.
According to speculations from Fabrizio Romano (May 14), the Brazilian may depart this summer. Serie A powerhouse AC Milan is interested in signing him, but according to reports from La Gazzetta dello Sport (May 10), Spurs are demanding at least £25.7 million (€30 million).
Hutton acknowledges that he thinks Tottenham will take a fair offer if one comes in for Emerson this summer, but he also thinks other teams might not value the Lilywhites at their present price.
Hutton said to Tottenham News, “I know some of the fees nowadays are large, but that is a big one.”
Even while he does offer you something going forward, I’ve never really had the impression that he will consistently be an 8 out of 10.
“When I first saw the clips of him before he signed I thought he would be a hit because he was an attacking fullback and that’s what Spurs expect.
“But again, he’s somebody that if they could get decent money in for, they would take it.
“However, I still think £30million is too large a number.”
Will Tottenham and Ange Postecoglou sell Emerson Royal to AC Milan this summer?
Under Postecoglou, Emerson has swiftly reduced to little more than a rotation option, partly due to Porro’s outstanding play, who is currently maybe one of the Spurs’ most important players.
The Brazilian has played a number of positions this season, but he has never demonstrated that he is ready to play every week, especially against Liverpool when he found it difficult to come close to Mohammed Salah.
With Postecoglou already suggesting he wants to make wholesale changes to the squad when the summer window opens, it would be best for everyone involved if an agreement could be reached as soon as possible.
When the price is set at £30million, that seems unlikely to happen. Somebody is going to have to budge to get this deal over the line and you would be surprised if Milan changed their stance.
