SPURS SIGN CENTER BACK RADU DRAGUSIN FROM GENOA FOR €30 MILLION, ERIC DIER LEAVES ON SIX-MONTH LOAN TO BAYERN MUNICH
Tottenham Hotspur have confirmed the signing of young center back Radu Drăgușin from Serie A side Genoa on Thursday, subject to international clearance and a work permit. Drăgușin was Spurs’ primary target at a position the club felt they needed to strengthen in this transfer window, and in less than two weeks after the window opened, Chairman Daniel Levy has his man.
“Obviously, we knew that position was a priority position for us,” said Spurs head coach Ange Postecoglou on Friday. “Going into the January window, we kind of went through the first half of the year, you know, we let Davinson Sanchez go after the [summer] window closed, so we kind of knew if the right opportunity came in January, that we had to try to bring somebody in.”
As first reported by European journalist, Fabrizio Romano, the move is worth €30 million, with €25 million in fixed fees and up to €5 million in achievable add-ons. If all add-ons are triggered in the next six years, Drăgușin will become the third-best sale ever in Genoa’s history. Drăgușin was only signed for a fee worth up to €7.3 million by Director Johannes Spors in August.
Drăgușin was also coveted by defending German champions, Bayern Munich, but chose to join Tottenham instead, an interesting fact that manager Ange Postecoglou expanded on. “Part of the key for me, is that they [the players] want to come to this football club,” said the Australian head coach. “I’m not going to bend their arm or try and convince them. Part of it is them having to buy in, to get excited about coming to us.”
“The reason we wanted Radu [Drăgușin] in is because, we know that, it’s not just injuries but there’s certain games we want to change things and we need more than two top center backs [Micky Van de Ven and Cristian Romero]. Bringing Radu in gives us that opportunity now to have three top center backs. Different games call for different things, [and] allows us to manage the playing time of those players so we don’t get as many injuries as we’ve had, so that was really important.”
The 21-year-old has enjoyed multiple positive loan moves over the past two years but had his most successful stint last season when he moved to Serie B Genoa ahead of the 2022/23 campaign. Drăgușin played all of Genoa’s league games at just 20-years-old that season, missing only 45 minutes and scoring 4 times on the way to earning the club an instant return to Serie A.
A former Juventus man, Drăgușin was signed by the North West Italian club mid-season and now signs with the North London Lilywhites only 18 months after joining the club on loan. The new deal with Spurs will keep the 6-foot-3 defender in the English capital until June 2030 after inking a huge six-and-a-half year deal.
The Romanian international, who is one of the more durable players in the modern game, has played every minute of the current campaign so far, scoring twice, as Genoa have enjoyed a rejuvenated start to life back in the top flight. Drăgușin will don the no. 6 jersey at Spurs, who also acquired former Chelsea forward Timo Werner on loan from RB Leipzig this week.
Spurs manager Ange Postecoglou told reporters on Friday that Drăgușin is expected to have his international clearance and work permit by the weekend and should play a part for Tottenham on Sunday in their match against Manchester United at Old Trafford.
Tottenham also confirmed on Thursday that long-term center back Eric Dier has departed the club on loan to German giants Bayern Munich.
Dier, 29, has been a key player for Spurs over the past nine years, and will join Bayern until the end of the season. The six-month loan deal includes an option for Bayern to make the move permanent after the season. The English international now joins former club and international teammate Harry Kane, who signed with the Bavarian club in the August.
“This move is a dream come true for me, because as a kid you want to play for clubs like FC Bayern one day,” said Dier. “Bayern is one of the biggest clubs in the world and has an incredible history. I want to help the team with my versatility in defence. I’m really looking forward to my new teammates and the fans at the Allianz Arena, which in my eyes is the one of the best stadiums in the world.”
Bayern Munich have been shopping for players in this winter transfer window and are expected to sign another right back this month before the window closes on January 31st. The team has defensive needs that need to be addressed before then, especially with superstar center back Kim Min Jae leaving this month to play in the Asian Cup with the Republic of South Korea.
FC Bayern sporting director, Christopher Freund said about signing Dier on Thursday: “We’re pleased [that] we’ve been able to sign Eric Dier. He’s long been in our thinking for this transfer window. Eric will be a valuable part of our defence. His sporting abilities and international experience will help the team both on the pitch and in the changing room.”
The England international, whose career first began in Portugal with Sporting Lisbon, made an impressive 365 appearances in all competitions for Tottenham, and is now on the club’s all-time top 25 list in terms of appearances. Dier is also one of only eight players to have played over 50 times for Tottenham in Europe and has won 49 caps for England, scoring 3 times for his country.
Spurs also confirmed that they sent young full back Djed Spence on loan to Genoa on Thursday.
-Maher Abucheri
Twitter: @pabloikonyero
Photo: Chris Monahan. This file is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 2.0 Generic license.