Tottenham Hotspur have now reportedly accepted an offer to sell an experienced player who didn't want to put pen to paper on a new contract in North London this summer.
Tottenham transfer news
The Lilywhites have under a month until the Premier League campaign gets underway and they've arguably still got plenty of work to do. After failing to qualify for the Champions League last season, those in North London could certainly do with further additions on top of the young Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall. And rumours certainly suggest that they're well aware of that.
Recent reports have linked Spurs to the likes of Jacob Ramsey and Federico Chiesa in the last week in two deals that would undoubtedly hand Ange Postecoglou's side a major boost. A potential deal to sign Ramsey is particularly heating up, with rumours that Spurs are set to submit a bid worth £19m in an attempt to secure the Aston Villa midfielder's signature.
As the Lilywhites weigh up moves for reinforcements, however, negotiations to free up some room on their wage bill are reportedly already well underway. According to Fabrizio Romano, Spurs have accepted Marseille's €13.5/14m (£11/12m) offer to sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg this summer after the Dane decided that he did not want to extend his current contract in North London.
The midfielder struggled for starts in Ange Postecoglou's debut campaign and the emergence of Gray and reported interest in Ramsey may of increased his game time problem, making this summer an ideal time to move on.
"Excellent" Hojbjerg needs Tottenham exit
After making just eight Premier League starts last season, there are not many in the current Spurs squad who need a move away more than Hojbjerg. At 28 years old too, now is a better chance than ever to seal another big move in the form of Marseille. It's in Ligue 1 that the Dane can consistently show the form that earned him the praise of Postecoglou when he was on punditry duty for ITV at Euro 2024.
The Spurs boss praised his midfielder following Denmark's closely-fought 2-0 defeat against Germany at the last 16 stage, saying via HITC: “Denmark definitely would have got encouragement as much as what they did when they had the ball.
“They were always going to have to defend in periods. At the start, they were finding it really difficult to get out their half. Then they were making a lot more progress in the front third. Pierre Hojbjerg has been excellent in breaking up play and initiating it. “
That praise seemingly wasn't enough to keep hold of Hojbjerg, however, who looks destined to complete a move to Marseille before the summer transfer window slams shut at the end of next month.