The Liverpool Echo reporter Joe Thomas has now revealed that Everton would still likely have to pay Tottenham as a result of if they decide to offer Dele a new contract this summer.
Dele moved to Goodison Park on a free transfer in January of 2022 but as part of the deal, it was agreed that Everton would have to pay Spurs £10m if the attacking midfielder made 20 appearances for the club before the end of his two-and-a-half-year contract (Football.London).
However, injuries meant that the former Spurs man could not make the required number of appearances, having featured just 13 times for the Toffees since his move.
The midfielder’s deal at Goodison Park has now run out and it is unclear what the future holds for the Tottenham man.
Thomas has now explained that it is not straightforward for Sean Dyche’s men to offer Dele a contract as Spurs would then be owed compensation by the Toffees as per the deal agreed between the two clubs back in 2022.
The journalist said on The Royal Blue Mersey YouTube channel: “Whilst he’s out of contract with Everton, it’s not as simple as there’s no deal there so he can just sign for whoever he wants to for free. If it was Everton, I think there is an obligation on Everton to pay something to Spurs.
“I don’t know how much it is, but the terms of the original deal make it difficult for Everton to go back for Dele Alli without triggering something that is prohibitive for them. It’s not a free hit if they just offer him a contract and that’s part of the problem at the moment is trying to work their way through that.
“The reality is and this remains the case now, is the terms of the deal that took him from Tottenham to Everton make it very difficult for Everton to contemplate giving him a proper chance of signing a new deal to get into the Everton first team.
“It’s not a free hit, it’s not as straightforward as he’s now out of contract, if he was to accept token wages or something could he end up signing for Everton again? It’s not the free hit that we’d all expect it to be.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Given Everton’s financial situation, they likely would not want to pay any fee or add-ons for Dele. If Tottenham do not waive the fee they are owed, the midfielder might thus end up at a different club this summer.
It would not be the worst idea for the 28-year-old to drop down to the Championship and help a club like Leeds win back promotion.
The likes of Joe Rodon, Harry Winks and Japhet Tanganga have revived their careers by dropping down a division.
The post Journalist explains why an Everton deal for Dele is not a ‘free hit’ due to Tottenham appeared first on The Spurs Web - Tottenham Hotspur Football News.