Tottenham have been doing great business this summer with some shrewd transfer moves ahead of the 2025/26 Premier League campaign.
The Lilywhites are set to embark on a new era under the leadership of Thomas Frank, who is looking to drive the club forward, after a underwhelming 2024/25 domestically.
The North London outfit have already signed Mohammed Kudus, Kevin Danso, Mathys Tel, Kota Takai and Luka Vuskovic this summer.
However, that list has now been increased following a swoop for Bayern Munich midfielder Joao Palhinha who joins on a season-long loan from Bavaria.
Following the Portuguese midfielder’s return to Premier League, Tottenham boss Frank revealed he was surprised of Bayern’s stance and how easily they allowed Palhinha to depart.
“I was a bit surprised. Bayern went hard for him for two years and for whatever reason, which I actually don’t care about because we can get him, it was an opportunity for us,” Frank told Football.London.
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“At this moment in time, there are not many clear No.6s in the market, so we’re quite lucky to get him. I think he’s a top player. Whatever the reason [Bayern let him go] maybe it’s the coach, the culture, the club, himself. Sometimes it’s difficult to say. My focus is that he wanted to come and we wanted him to come,”
Interestingly, Tottenham are all set to face Bayern Munich on August 7 in a friendly clash where Palhinha may go up against his former team.
Why did Bayern Munich allow Joao Palhinha to join Tottenham?
Bayern Munich were desperate to sign Palhinha from Fulham a couple of seasons ago during the reign of Thomas Tuchel as the German manager wanted the Portugal international in his ranks.
Despite their best efforts, the Bundesliga giants failed to land the 30-year-old in 2023, but they signed him a year later for a whopping €56m [$64.7m].
However, things changed drastically – as Tuchel was already out of Bavaria – and Vincent Kompany replaced him with no natural place for Palhinha in the Belgian’s preferred playing style.
The 30-year-old failed to cement his spot in the starting eleven and continued to remain as a backup to Joshua Kimmich, Aleksandar Pavlovic, Konrad Laimer and Leon Goretzka.
Palhiinha had previously set out his goal to stay and fight for his spot for another season, but he was also open to a move back to the Premier League.
So, when Tottenham came calling, Bayern Munich didn’t stand in his way and allowed him to join Spurs on loan with a reported purchase option for 2026.
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