Davinson Sanchez’s agent is attempting to clear up the confusion surrounding his failed switch from Tottenham Hotspur to Spartak Moscow while explaining the role the Premier League and Daniel Levy played in the collapsed deal.
Before swapping North London for Galatasaray over the summer, Davinson Sanchez appeared to be on his way to Russia. Tottenham Hotspur had accepted a £13 million bid from Spartak Moscow in June, with a departure seemingly imminent at the time.
Oleg Malyshev, Spartak’s sporting director, admitted earlier this week that the ‘deal fell through’ despite Sanchez being ‘ready’ to pack his bags and swap the English capital for the Russian one.
And, in conversation with Sport Express, one of the defender’s representatives has shed more light on a rather strange situation.
Tottenham Hotspur saw Davinson Sanchez sale blocked
“The real reason is that the transfer simply could not take place,” Fernando Villarreal explains. “The Premier League and the English government did not allow transfers to Russia.”
Villarreal’s comments coincide with what The Guardian reported six months ago. The Premier League, they said, were strongly discouraging top-flight clubs to make deals with Russian clubs at the time, a by-product of the ongoing political situation in Ukraine.
“Davinson and his wife were completely ready to move,” Villarreal adds, the Tottenham chairman allegedly confirming to Spartak that the deal would no longer be going ahead.
“At the moment, when we made the decision, we received a call from Spartak and were told that Daniel Levy informed them that the transfer was impossible.
“There was no problem for the footballer to go to Russia.”
Now at Galatasaray instead
Sanchez has, at least, made a positive start to life in Turkey. Well, more positive than Tanguy Ndombele has, anyway.
While a foot injury has kept Sanchez out of the Galatasaray team in recent weeks, the Super Lig challengers have won seven of their seven top-flight games with the Colombia international at the heart of their backline.
Tottenham, meanwhile, have moved on three of their central defenders from last season, Sanchez, Eric Dier and Clement Lenglet all departing to be replaced by Radu Dragusin and Micky van de Ven.
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