Tottenham is looking to hijack the move for M. Fernandes, with reports revealing why Manchester United is delaying their pursuit. Signing Tchouaméni from Real Madrid is currently unlikely.

David Ornstein of The Athletic confirmed that Tottenham are keen to join the competition for West Ham's holding midfielder Matheus Fernandes, while also pursuing Newcastle's Sandro Tonali. Following their successful fight against relegation, Spurs have been the most active Premier League club in the summer window. Manager De Zerbi is eager to strengthen his squad, particularly in midfield, where the club has already terminated the contract of Yves Bissouma and signed three new players.

Tottenham are actively working to secure the 26-year-old Italian international Tonali, but still face competition from Manchester City, who are also considering signing Tonali and Nottingham Forest's Elliot Anderson. De Zerbi hopes to bring in 21-year-old M. Fernandes as a separate move independent of the Tonali deal—they are not linked and both could join simultaneously. However, the cost would be massive, with reports suggesting a total of £170 million!

As is well known, Manchester United have already held negotiations over the transfer fee and wages for M. Fernandes, considering him a top priority target. The Red Devils have completely abandoned their pursuit of Forest's Anderson, who is deemed too expensive after Manchester City's £121 million bid was rejected.

Last season, M. Fernandes made 42 appearances for West Ham, scoring five goals and providing five assists. He was initially a strong candidate for Player of the Year, but due to his desire to leave, fans voted instead for defender Konstantinos Mavropanos. Besides Manchester United, European champions Paris Saint-Germain and Real Madrid—now under José Mourinho—are also interested in M. Fernandes, though he is not the top priority for either club.

After West Ham's relegation to the Championship, the club needs to raise £150 million this summer, and M. Fernandes is one of their most valuable assets. He joined from Southampton in August 2025 for a £42 million transfer fee, with Southampton entitled to a 15% sell-on clause. His contract does not contain a release clause and runs until 2030.

M. Fernandes made his senior debut for Portugal in April but was not included in Roberto Martinez's final 26-man squad for the World Cup. Therefore, the slow progress of his transfer is not due to tournament-related issues. There have been ongoing rumors that Manchester United will make their first bid this week, but no concrete action has been taken yet.

Laurie Whitwell of The Athletic believes that because M. Fernandes favors joining United, the club is deliberately delaying their offer to pressure West Ham into lowering the price. As the financial year closes on June 30, the "Hammers" may be forced to sell before the deadline to avoid breaching financial fair play rules.

Whitwell explained: "Regarding the possibility of Manchester United signing M. Fernandes for £80 million, I think they won't spend that much. Perhaps they can negotiate a better price—say, £60 million fixed plus £10 million in add-ons, totaling £70 million. West Ham might accept that. But £80 million is too high, and that might be why negotiations are progressing slowly. M. Fernandes didn't play in the World Cup, so that's not an obstacle. Generally, United may be deliberately stalling, waiting for West Ham to make the first move rather than initiating talks themselves."

From West Ham's perspective, they are also waiting to see if other clubs will enter the bidding. However, given their situation, the £80 million asking price may ultimately be difficult to maintain. Since M. Fernandes has already decided to leave, forcing him to stay could cause unrest in the dressing room.

Transfer expert Ben Jacobs says that if Manchester United cannot lower the price for M. Fernandes, they have other options. "M. Fernandes is definitely United's top target right now," Jacobs said. "But if they can't get him, I still think Carlos Baleba could be an option, and they could also look at Sander Berge. Manchester United have discussed the Fulham midfielder in recent weeks."

Spanish media like Marca have recently stirred rumors about Real Madrid possibly selling Tchouaméni, and claimed that Manchester United might consider him again. However, this scenario is unlikely at the moment. Unless United give up on M. Fernandes or sell Ugarte, they do not have enough funds to sign both. Interestingly, it is rumored that if Mourinho sells Tchouaméni, he would demand that Real Madrid buy M. Fernandes; and he is not keen on selling Tchouaméni to Manchester United.

Jacobs said: "If Tchouaméni faces direct competition for his position, or if Real Madrid need to raise funds for a major transfer like Enzo Fernández, then watch for possible changes. A transfer fee of around £70 million could make Real Madrid reconsider and ultimately decide to let him leave rather than offer a new contract."