Club ‘faced with the harassment’ of Tottenham – Spurs in contact over 21-year-old midfielder

On September 23rd, we covered claims from Portugal which stated Tottenham Hotspur had made contact over signing Manuel Ugarte from Sporting.

He was described as a ‘diamond’ and it was claimed his value was rising quickly.

Then on Monday of this week there were fresh claims of Spurs having made contact, with the Lisbon club looking to protect themselves by getting the 21-year-old to commit to a new contract.

Ugarte had been promised a new deal, and Sporting have been keen to reward his progress whilst also increasing his release clause from €60m to €80m.

Friday’s edition of Jornal de Noticias takes a look at the situation again, and it’s explained Sporting are so keen for a renewal because they want to ‘warn interested parties’. The Uruguayan has a contract lasting until June 2026, and a new deal would see that extended by just one year, but it’s the €80m release clause which is key for the Portuguese club.

Jornal de Noticias state Sporting are ‘faced with the harassment’ for Tottenham and PSG for their player, which may be putting things a little strongly. Nevertheless, they want to protect themselves and to do so before the World Cup.

Should Sporting get the renewal and subsequently the €80m clause, it’s unlikely they’d set that as their firm asking price at this stage. However, it would give them a higher basis to start negotiations from, and mean that they’re better protected if a club arrive in the January window.