Arsenal
Aston Villa
Chelsea
Crystal Palace
Everton
Fulham
Leeds United
Liverpool
Manchester City
Manchester United
Newcastle United
Nottingham Forest
Sunderland
Tottenham Hotspur
West Ham United
Wolverhampton Wanderers
Transfers
How Thomas Frank really feels about Tottenham signing Kota Takai, Johan Lange is convinced about one thing
Tottenham Hotspur are closing in on their second summer signing with Kota Takai being signed from J1 League club Kawasaki Frontale.
TBR Football understands that Tottenham are close to signing Takai and have fended off strong competition to land his signature.
Liverpool, Newcastle United, Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Bayern Munich have all been to watch the Japanese international, however, Spurs are set to win the race.
Reports suggest that Tottenham have agreed to break the J1 League transfer record by paying £5 million to sign the talented defender.
The 20-year-old is now expected to join Thomas Frank’s first-team squad next season and the Dane’s stance over the transfer has now been revealed.
Thomas Frank green-lights Tottenham’s Kota Takai move
New head coach Frank gave his stamp of approval for Tottenham Hotspur to sign Kota Takai, according to Alasdair Gold.
Meanwhile, Spurs’ sporting director Johan Lange pushed for his signing and he believes that the defender is already well-equipped to make the step up to the Premier League.
Gold told his YouTube channel: “From what I understand, Johan Lange and his staff identified him as one they felt who could step into the Premier League.
“They think he can follow in the footsteps of Bergvall, Udogie, and Sarr, players the club have signed over the years and Thomas Frank gave it the green light.”
There is already excitement from Tottenham fans about Takai, who they believe is going to be a huge player in the future for them.
Japanese football expert, Sam Robson, told TBR Football that Takai is similar to Takehiro Tomiyasu, who is currently playing for Spurs’ bitter rivals, Arsenal.
Kota Takai looks ready to make step up to Premier League
Despite only being 20, Takai already has a vast amount of experience under his belt, having made 78 appearances for Kawasaki Frontale.
The player has already broken into the Japanese national team, in which he made his debut back in September 2024.
He has already shown his ability at the highest level of Asian football, playing a key role in Frontale reaching the final of the AFC Champions League.
Takai was part of the team that defeated Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al-Nassr in the semi-final of the competition in what was a major upset.
Spurs will now be hoping that the defender can follow in the footsteps of the recent young players who have broken into the first team.