Back in the summer, Arsenal and Tottenham enjoyed decent transfer windows, in our view.
The Gunners solved a number of issues in their squad, mainly through the £16m acquisition of Takehiro Tomiyasu.
In Tottenham’s case, they also brought some good players to north London, with the £21.6m Bryan Gil a standout purchase.
However, Estadio Deportivo seem to think Real Betis used both Arsenal and Tottenham to their advantage in the transfer market.
What’s the story?
Well, Real Betis did business with both north London clubs in the summer.
It was the Spanish side who received €9m (£7.7m) as part of the £25.7m deal which saw Emerson Royal join Spurs, as part of a dual ownership agreement.
They also pocketed another €5m (£4.3m) due to a sell-on clause.
To replace him, Real Betis signed Hector Bellerin from Arsenal on a season-long loan, to provide competition for Youssouf Sabaly.
Estadio Deportivo claim Bellerin was their first-choice target.
So, how did Real Betis come out on top?
Estadio Deportivo sum up the situation by explaining that Real Betis secured their first choice in Bellerin, landed €14m (£12m) in the process, and now have two quality right-backs to battle for a starting role as well.
When you look at it that way, Real Betis really did use the market to their advantage, partly at the expense of Tottenham and Arsenal.
Nevertheless, Arsenal won’t mind, as Tomiyasu has started the season excellently at right-back.
In Tottenham’s case, Emerson Royal has looked a little shaky at times, but he has the potential to become a top Premier League performer.
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