Former Manchester City starlet set for England return with Tottenham Hotspur

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By Martin Graham | 30th Jan 2023

Pedro Porro is close to an England return after Manchester City let him go in 2021 with Tottenham Hotspur close to an agreement with his current side, Sporting Lisbon.

Porro, 23, has emerged as one of the most promising fullbacks in Europe and has a lot of eyes on him. Sporting have had to shrug off interest in the past but the pressure and the offers have shifted their stance on the youngster, who has proven to be a key man in their fight for the Primeira Liga title this season.

Spurs are reported to have beaten several clubs to an agreement for the 23-year-old, and will pay €45 million to make him their second winter signing of the season.

The North London side had previously signed Arnaut Danjuma on loan from Villarreal after hijacking the transfer from relegation-bound Everton. The Dutchman scored in his debut for the club in their fourth round FA Cup tie against Preston North End, giving the fans a glimpse of what could be.

Porro’s signing hit a couple of roadblocks, according to reports. Sporting and the player’s representatives were claimed to have stalled proceedings quite a bit. However, things are looking up according to transfer insider Fabrizio Romano, who believes that the transfer will be completed by Tuesday’s deadline.

Romano tweeted just before Spurs clashed with Preston on Saturday: “Tottenham reach full verbal agreement with Sporting to sign Pedro Porro, here we go! It will be sealed in the next 24h, if all goes to plan.

Pedro Porro will say goodbye [to his Sporting teammates] tonight and then sign with Spurs until 2028.”

Spurs are reported to have met their January transfer window objectives with Danjuma and Porro, as both positions – attacker and right fullback – were the two positions which Antonio Conte demanded reinforcements for.

Porro himself was said to be keen on the move after speaking with the Italian manager and the club, but the talks with Sporting are what left the transfer so late.

He will provide competition for Emerson Royal and Matt Doherty, whose forms have been shaky this season.

He will especially be desperate to prove a point to City, who failed to give him a chance despite signing him as a promising youngster from LaLiga side Girona and keeping him on their books for two years.

Conte’s side are struggling in the league defensively, which also puts some pressure on the 23-year-old’s shoulders. He will relish the opportunity to bring some stability to the side while also contributing his quota in attack as he will be deployed mostly as a wingback in Conte’s system.