Tottenham want a decision on Savinho before the weekend and before August 1. They have reportedly made progress on a package worth around £60 million, and the winger was their preferred left-sided target throughout the year. Personal terms were understood to have been agreed as early as January. If Manchester City do not move quickly, Jadon Sancho has emerged as the lower-risk fallback.

Tottenham's Savinho deadline

The timing is the key point. Tottenham are not treating this as an open-ended chase, which is sensible given how long Savinho has sat at the top of their list. A firm deadline before August 1 gives them a clean line: either City respond, or Spurs shift their attention elsewhere.

Savinho’s recent output for Manchester City helps explain why Tottenham have stayed on him. He has a 7.0 rating in one of his latest Premier League appearances, and also posted a 7.7 rating and a goal in another recent league game. That is a live target, not a name being floated for the sake of it.

Sancho's open market

Sancho’s position is different. He is now a free agent after his Manchester United contract expired in June, and he has been training at Flixton FC to keep his fitness sharp. Christopher Garcia, the club owner, said: "Jadon was not on trial with the club and was not involved in any transfer discussions. He simply used our facilities for a private training session to maintain his fitness while preparing for the next chapter of his career."

The wider market is still circling. Al-Rayyan, Borussia Dortmund and Saudi clubs have all been mentioned as possible destinations, but none of that has hardened into certainty. Sancho’s own words to Mirror about the session at Flixton were simple enough: "You've got a nice layout here. It's my first time around this area, and it's the first time I've seen a nice pitch apart from United or City."

The appeal for Tottenham is obvious. He costs no fee, unlike the £60 million move they are trying to push through for Savinho, and his recent club minutes at Aston Villa were uneven. Sancho featured in only 18 of his 39 appearances across all competitions there, which is not the profile of a locked-in starter.

Tottenham finished 17th in the 2025 Premier League, so the attacking rebuild cannot hang on one deal. Savinho remains the preferred route, but if City stall before the deadline, Sancho looks like the kind of compromise Spurs can move on quickly.

Written by Jack Mercer with AI-assisted research, cross-checked against 4 outlets. How we work →