Nottingham Forest and Newcastle Want Him: Why Does the 20-Year-Old Midfielder Insist on Staying at Tottenham?

This summer, Tottenham's approach in the transfer market changed significantly. In the past, they often kept unhappy players, which led to a decline in their market value, but over the past six months, CEO Vinai Venkatesham has repeatedly stated publicly that the club needs to change its strategy. Luka Vuskovic, Pape Matar Sarr and Kevin Danso wanted to leave, and Tottenham allowed them to go; Vicario, Spence and Romero also moved to Juventus, Inter Milan and Atletico Madrid respectively. Throughout the summer window, Tottenham recovered more than £130 million through player sales.

But there was one exception — Lucas Bergvall. The Swedish international had already expressed a desire to leave before Tottenham made their record-breaking signings of Mateus Fernandes and Sandro Tonali. Nottingham Forest and Newcastle both submitted offers for the 20-year-old midfielder, with Forest at one point highly confident of completing the deal. However, with the Premier League transfer window now closed, Bergvall will remain at Tottenham until at least January next year.

From the 'two-year project' to early success

Bergvall joined Tottenham from Swedish club Djurgarden in the summer of 2024 for £8.5 million. His father Andreas told The Athletic that it was a 'five-year contract, but we discussed it as a two-year project.' At the time, he was still a teenager and mainly received playing opportunities in cup competitions, until an injury crisis midway through the season led then-manager Ange Postecoglou to give him more time. After making his first Premier League appearance in a 5-0 win over Southampton in December, he never looked back.

Bergvall's influence grew rapidly, and he signed a new six-year contract in April. Although an ankle injury caused him to miss the Europa League final against Manchester United the following month, he still won Tottenham's Player of the Season award voted by fans — an incredible achievement considering his age.

Last season's setback and this summer's decision

The 'two-year project' appeared to have been completed early, but last season brought a setback. Bergvall started four of Tottenham's first six league matches of the season and scored his only Premier League goal so far in a 3-0 win over West Ham United. However, Thomas Frank, who replaced Postecoglou in the summer, continued to try him in different midfield roles, including on the left wing.

It was against this backdrop that Forest and Newcastle made their offers. However, Tottenham ultimately did not approve Bergvall's departure, and the 20-year-old midfielder will travel with the team to the City Ground today (Saturday) to face Nottingham Forest as an opponent after they had been determined to sign him.