Tottenham's Emerson Royal reveals he NEVER wanted to leave Barcelona

Tottenham’s new £25.7m buy Emerson Royal reveals he NEVER wanted to leave Barcelona, even when bosses told him they had to sell for financial reasons – and says they wanted him out from the moment they signed him

  • Right back Emerson Royal was officially unveiled by Tottenham on deadline day 
  • Emerson, 22, put pen to paper on a five-year deal after a £25.7m fee was agreed 
  • But it has now been revealed he never wanted to leave Barcelona this summer 
  • He has admitted to telling chiefs he wanted to stay, but was forced out anyway
  • Emerson has accused the hierarchy at Barcelona of leaving him feeling ‘hurt’ 

Tottenham summer signing Emerson Royal has revealed that he never wanted to leave his former club Barcelona, and accused them of wanting him out from the moment they brought him in.

The right back’s arrival at Spurs was officially announced on deadline day, after an agreement over a €30million (£25.7m) fee was thrashed out, and he has put pen to paper on a five-year contract.

But soon after joining his new team, Emerson has now admitted to wanting to stay in Catalonia, and has opened up on feeling ‘hurt’ by the way he was told he would be heading to the Premier League instead. 

Tottenham summer signing Emerson Royal has revealed he never wanted to leave Barcelona

Emerson was officially unveiled by Spurs on deadline day, and he has penned a five-year deal

‘When I arrived I was sure that Barcelona did not want to sell me, but seeing what happened I am clear that when they signed me they already had the idea of ​​selling me in mind,’ Emerson told Marca.

After speaking with the hierarchy at Barcelona, £25.7million buy Emerson has also said that, despite telling them he was against an exit, he was instead forced out with ‘very good words’ due to financial reasons.

‘I met the leaders of the club,’ he added. ‘They began to tell me that the club’s situation was not good, that it was going through a difficult time and that it was better for them to sell. 

Barcelona handed Emerson an unveiling of his own last month before then pushing him out

‘I repeated to them that my intention was to stay because I had the illusion of playing here and contributing things to Barcelona. I knew that if I was in my best shape I was going to succeed here. 

‘I am smart and there came a time when I realized that they were telling me to go yes or yes. They were kicking me out with very good words.’

It was while he was preparing to train that Emerson first discovered the links to Tottenham, and the 22-year-old then found himself packing his bags for England.

‘I thought the club wanted me to stay. I played on Sunday as a starter, the next day I woke up and went to train quietly,’ he said.

Emerson said club chiefs at Barcelona told him he would be sold despite him wanting to stay

‘There I already began to see that a lot of things were coming out; that Tottenham were talking to Barcelona, ​​that they had almost done it… I didn’t understand anything about what was happening because I didn’t know anything. 

‘In the afternoon the club called me to go to the Ciudad Deportiva because they wanted to talk to me and there I already found out that they wanted to sell me.’

In total, Emerson was paraded as a player at Barcelona from August 2 until August 31 this season. He returned to the club after a three-season spell on loan with Real Betis, where he excelled under Manuel Pellegrini.

Barcelona have banked a £25.7million fee from Emerson’s (left) departure to north London

Now at Spurs, he will provide competition for Matt Doherty and promising youngster Japhet Tanganga at right back.      

Announcing the signing, a Tottenham statement said: ‘We are delighted to announce the signing of Emerson Royal from Barcelona, subject to international clearance and a work permit. 

‘The right back has signed a contract with us until 2026 and will wear the No12 shirt.’




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