Manchester City have swooped in to seal a deal worth up to £65 million for Everton winger Iliman Ndiaye, derailing Tottenham Hotspur's plans to sign the Senegal international just days before the transfer window closes.
The agreement, structured as £60 million upfront with a further £5 million available in add-ons, sees City move decisively after their pursuit of Liverpool's Cody Gakpo collapsed. City had opened talks with Liverpool over the Netherlands international, but the Reds ultimately opted to retain Gakpo after completing the signing of Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth up to £123 million, leaving them short of a like-for-like replacement to sanction Gakpo's exit.
With City turning their attention elsewhere, Ndiaye emerged as their preferred target, and the deal has now overtaken an agreement Tottenham had reached with Everton on Friday. That arrangement had been expected to include Richarlison moving to Merseyside as part of the transaction, but talks stalled after the Brazilian forward and Everton failed to agree personal terms, with the Toffees said to have offered around £35 million for the striker.
Richarlison, who had been left out of Tottenham's matchday squad for their 2-0 home defeat to Newcastle, addressed the situation in an emotional post on Instagram. Manager Roberto De Zerbi had suggested his omission stemmed from the forward having