Tottenham Hotspur have come to a pre-contractual agreement to sign Manchester City academy forward Herbie James on a three-year deal. Spurs saw off competition from Premier League rivals Everton and Wolves to secure the youngster's signature, football.london understands.
The Lilywhites have a wealth of attacking talent in their current squad with Harry Kane, Richarlison, Son Heung-min and Dejan Kulusevski. City are renowned for their brilliant academy prospects with Southampton poaching Romeo Lavia from the Etihad Stadium last summer in a £12million deal.
James is thought to be highly-regarded within the game as a whole and within the City Football Academy system. The deal to sign the 16-year-old represents a smart piece of business by Spurs and is likely to be seen as a major coup by one of Manchester City’s Premier League rivals.
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City signed James as an 11 year-old from Port Vale’s academy system back in the summer of 2018. The young talent originally spent just two days a week at Manchester City’s academy, and upon joining the club five years ago, told the Biddulph Chronicle: “It is very exciting.
"I am really ready for the long, hard journey ahead. My whole family support Manchester City so it has been a dream to play in the academy since I started playing football.
"I appreciate the support of my teachers, coaches, my big brothers, my dad, and most of all, my mum for getting me to training. I am looking forward to playing at the 2026 World Cup.”
Daniel Levy would be smart to employ a manager who is skilled in developing young players into world-class talents after taking the decision to sack Antonio Conte during the international break. Mauricio Pochettino had these credentials and is being linked with a shock return to N17, whilst former Bayern Munich manager Julian Nagelsmann has also been linked with the vacant managerial position at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
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