Tottenham Hotspur right back Emerson Royal is still poised to leave the club during the current transfer window, according to The Athletic.
The arrival of Djed Spence from Middlesbrough has further bolstered Antonio Conte’s options at right wing-back with the Italian having also played Lucas Moura in the role in the past two pre-season friendlies.
Royal started yesterday’s pre-season victory against Rangers at Ibrox and featured for forty-five minutes before being replaced by Moura at the half time interval.
Matt Doherty was the only outfield player not to feature in the match in Glasgow, with Conte instead deciding to operate the two Brazilians on the right flank.
Royal, who only joined Spurs from Barcelona for a fee of £25.8million last summer on a five-year contract (BBC) has also been the subject of interest in La Liga, with the Daily Mail reporting last month that Atletico Madrid were keen to bring him back to Spain.
(Photo by ANDY BUCHANAN/AFP via Getty Images)
Our View
Emerson had made a name for himself in La Liga with his excellent performances at Real Betis. In fact, he was one of the best right-backs during his time with them and has struggled at times to adapt to the role of right wing-back and provide the quality of service in the final third which Antonio Conte demands.
The 23-year-old has just one goal and an assist to his name from 41 appearances across all competitions while donning our shirt so far (Transfermarkt). That is a disappointing return compared to his five goals and ten assists from 79 matches during his time with Betis (Transfermarkt).
The South American’s attacking presence has been quite questionable, as his crossing skills and decision-making ability have been questioned on several occasions. Now with Spence joining Doherty on the right-hand side of the defence, Emerson’s time in N17 may be coming to an end.
