Soccer:Moussa Dembele has joined Tottenham on a five-year contract from Fulham for a fee understood to be in the region of €18.8 million (£15m). It was reported last night that a fee had been agreed for the Belgian international after he was left out of the Fulham squad for their Capital One Cup defeat at Sheffield Wednesday.
And Dembele, who is viewed as a replacement for Luka Modric after his €37 million sale to Real Madrid, has now passed his medical and agreed personal terms.
The Belgian international midfielder added on Twitter: "Happy to confirm I signed a new contract with Tottenham FC!"
"I would like to thank all the Fulham fans for their support! You were amazing."
Earlier Tottenham said in a statement: "We are delighted to announce that we have reached agreement with Fulham for the transfer of Moussa Dembele."
Dembele joined Fulham in the summer of 2010 in a €6.3 million move from Dutch club AZ Alkmaar and has built a star reputation in that time.
Fulham said in a statement of their own: "The club can today confirm that it has reached an agreement with Tottenham Hotspur for the transfer of midfielder Moussa Dembele.
"The 25-year-old Belgian international has successfully completed a medical and will sign for an undisclosed fee. Following two full seasons at Craven Cottage, the club would like to thank Moussa for his contribution and wish him well throughout the rest of his career."
The news followed a declaration by Hamburg that they would do everything possible to re-sign Rafael Van der Vaart from Tottenham before the transfer window closes.
Van der Vaart has been strongly linked with a return to his former club but the Bundesliga side’s chairman, Carl-Edgar Jarchow, has admitted time is running out to convince Spurs to sell.
“There is not a lot of time — it is really up to Tottenham Hotspur,” he told Deutsche Presse-Agentur. “If we have a chance to sign him, we will do everything we can to make that happen.”
That opportunity could present itself now Tottenham have successfully begun to sign some of their own targets during what looks set to be another frantic final 48 hours of a summer transfer window at White Hart Lane.
New manager Andre Villas-Boas has also renewed the interest he showed while Chelsea boss in Shakhtar Donetsk forward Willian. Shakhtar chief executive Sergei Palkin today claimed he had rejected a bid of just under €15 million for the Brazilian and that Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy had also made an enquiry about two other players.
“Mr Levy, the chairman of Tottenham Hotspur FC, personally flew to Donetsk to negotiate over Willian,” Palkin told his club’s official website, www.shakhtar.com. “But his latest offer was 15 million euros, which we, of course, did not accept.
“Levy, by the way, hinted that besides Willian, Villas-Boas was interested in Douglas Costa and Fernandinho, but he mentioned that just casually, without any specifics.”
Spurs have been heavily linked for some time with France goalkeeper Hugo Lloris and there are reports they could be on the brink of agreeing a deal with Lyon in the region of €16 million.
Van der Vaart is said to be valued at around €17 million by Levy, almost double the figure Tottenham paid Real Madrid for the 29-year-old two years ago. The Holland star joined Real from Hamburg, where he became a cult hero during his three-year spell at the club, while his wife, Sylvie, still works in Germany.
Spurs have also been linked with Internacional striker Leandro Damiao and Rennes midfielder Yann M’Vila but the chances of them moving to White Hart Lane appear to have receded.
Time is also running out for Villas-Boas to offload players, with doubt having reportedly been cast on the futures of several big names, including Michael Dawson, Jermaine Jenas, Aaron Lennon, David Bentley, Heurelho Gomes, Giovani dos Santos and Jermain Defoe.
Tom Huddlestone appeared to have completed a loan move to Stoke, although that has been complicated by a medical that prompted concern over the midfielder’s long-standing ankle problems.
