Antonio Conte is already set to listen to offers for Emerson Royal within less than a year of Nuno Espirito Santo sealing the defender’s transfer to Tottenham Hotspur from Barcelona.
That’s according to The Sun, who claim Conte will be happy to see the back of the Brazilian this summer. Emerson only moved to north London during the last summer sales, as Nuno and Fabio Paratici struck a £26m deal for the right-back in search of a long-sought solution.
Tottenham have continued to spend on right-backs since selling Kyle Walker to Manchester City for an initial £45m in 2017. They paid Paris Saint-Germain £23m for Serge Aurier a year later, before a £15m deal with Wolves for Matt Doherty in 2020 proceeded Royal’s arrival.
Tottenham gave Royal a five-year contract to replace Doherty as their first-choice at right-back under Nuno. But the Brazilian has continued to struggle to adapt to the levels needed in the Premier League. So, Conte has restored Doherty as the number one in recent weeks.
And as Doherty has begun to find a new lease of life in the Italian’s system, he could force his replacement out. Conte wants his wing-backs to offer more going forward and has not seen enough from Emerson, while Doherty has three assists in his last two league outings.
Doherty also scored as Tottenham beat Leeds United 4-0 before the 30-year-old assisted twice in Monday’s rout of Everton. Emerson, meanwhile, has offered just one assist over the 23-year-old’s 30 Tottenham appearances across all competitions since his transfer.
Conte already set to hear bids for Tottenham defender Royal
So, Conte is already set to hear bids for Royal, six-months on from his deadline day transfer to Tottenham. And Spurs’ right-back spending could continue, as the north Londoners are among Nottingham Forest’s on-loan Middlesbrough star Djed Spence’s many admirers.
Emerson can always win Conte back over during the rest of the season and help Tottenham secure Champions League qualification. But the six-cap defender – who Barcelona cannot believe Spurs spent £26m to sign – has drawn strong criticism for his performances so far.
“Emerson Royal looks like he’s in the wrong movie,” Chris Sutton said on BBC Radio 5 Live’s Football Daily Podcast in February following a string of suspect showings defensively.
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