Tottenham and Everton ignite the transfer market with a huge deal

Tottenham Hotspur have reached a preliminary agreement to sign Senegalese striker Elman Ndiaye from Everton during the current summer transfer window, while Brazilian Richarlison is close to returning to his former club.According to The Athletic, the two deals are completely separate and unrelated, and each still needs to agree on personal terms and undergo medical examinations before the transfer can be officially completed. Ndaye had attracted the interest of a number of clubs during the summer transfer window, after rejecting several offers to renew his contract with Everton, despite having a contract with the club that extends for three more seasons. The Senegalese player joined Everton from Marseille in 2024 for £15 million, and since then has played 73 games for the team, scoring 17 goals and making 4 assists. Tottenham's move for Ndaye came after the club failed to secure the services of Cody Gakpo, who opted to move to Manchester City despite interest from Spurs and several other clubs. Manchester City had also expressed interest in signing Ndaye, given Everton's previous desire to make a deal that would bring Jack Grealish back to the club after his loan spell with the club ended last season. But Manchester City's shift in focus towards Gakpo changed the calculations of the transfer market, giving Tottenham the opportunity to advance in their negotiations to acquire Ndaye. In contrast, Richarlison is close to returning to Everton, four years after leaving Goodison Park and joining Tottenham. The Brazilian striker moved to Tottenham in 2022 for a fee of £60 million, and made 134 appearances for the team, scoring 32 goals. Richarlison previously delivered outstanding performances during his first stint with Everton, scoring 53 goals in 152 appearances for the club. The player was absent from Tottenham's squad during the match against Newcastle United, which ended in a 2-0 defeat for the Spurs on Saturday, after De Zerbi confirmed that Richarlison had requested to leave the club before the transfer window closed.