Tottenham move for Iliman Ndiaye hijacked by Man City despite deal being agreed

Manchester City have completed the signing of Iliman Ndiaye after Tottenham agreed a deal to sign him, talkSPORT understands.

Enzo Maresca’s side have secured the services of the Everton forward in a £60million deal, with £5m in add-ons.

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This is despite Spurs agreeing a £60m move with the Toffees, however, the player pushed for a switch to City.

Spurs’ move being hijacked also appears to end any hope of striker Richarlison going back to Merseyside.

City pivoted towards Ndiaye having lost out on the signing Liverpool forward Cody Gakpo.

City initially usurped Spurs in the race for Cody Gakpo and were confident they would sign the Dutchman.

But talkSPORT understands Liverpool will only sanction a sale of Gakpo if they can sign another winger before Tuesday’s deadline despite securing the services of Bradley Barcola from Paris Saint-Germain.

Tottenham instigated a deal for Ndiaye, who famously knocked them out of the FA Cup in 2023 with Championship side Sheffield United.

The Senegalese star spent two years with Everton and etched his name in the history books by scoring the final two goals at Goodison Park in 2025.

The 26-year-old appeared in both the Toffees’ games this season and got an assist against Crystal Palace in their 2-0 win in their first fixture.

Across all campaigns he managed a total of 20 goal contributions and Tottenham are now set to land him as they seek to improve their forward line.

He also managed one goal and two assists at the 2026 World Cup with his nation.

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talkSPORT understands Ndiaye has turned down multiple contract offers from Everton over the past 12 months.

Richarlison looked set to go the other way, in a separate transfer and return to the club he left for £60million in 2022.

However, in a statement released on Monday, the player appeared to hit out at the club for the way they acted during the negotiations.

The Brazilian hit 53 goals in 152 appearances for The Toffees, becoming a fan favourite, before securing a move to the capital.

There, though, he spent much of his first campaign limited behind Harry Kane and beset by fitness issues.

This would be a common theme in north London, despite hitting 32 goals in all competitions while moving between centre-forward and left wing.

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Tottenham moved quickly in the summer transfer window after narrowly avoiding relegation.

They brought in Sandro Tonali from Newcastle for £100million, Mateus Fernandes from West Ham for £85m, and Jan Paul van Hecke for £52m.

This was swiftly followed by the free transfer signings of Andrew Robertson, Marcos Senesi, and Martin Dubravka.

After a long saga, Savio and Omar Marmoush then arrived from Man City last week with the former joining for £85m and the latter on loan with an obligation to buy for £60m.

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However, they have lost their first two games of the season in a disappointing start to their new era.

A 4-0 loss to Brentford was followed by a 2-0 defeat to Newcastle.

An number of stars were left out, including Kevin Danso, Pape Matar Sarr, and Richarlison.

And De Zerbi addressed this after the Newcastle game.

“Richarlison, he’s said too many times he wants to leave,” the Spurs head coach said.

“Danso came to me two days ago, and he said he wants to leave.

“The other player, Sarr, is the same but he’s suffered a small injury. But, he’s almost ready to train.”

He added: “I love these players, and they are great guys,” the Italian explained. “I have very good relationships.

“But, if they want to leave, they have to bring the economic solution to the club and they can go, and we’ll find other players.”