Only two players in recent football history – Carlo Cudicini and Gus Poyet – have made the direct switch from Chelsea to Tottenham Hotspur.
Axel Disasi had no interest in becoming the third.
The French defender, who joined Chelsea from AS Monaco for £39 million in 2022, is currently spending the remainder of the 2024/25 season at Aston Villa, having sealed a late loan move to Villa Park on transfer deadline day.
Before completing his switch to the West Midlands, however, Disasi was linked with a move to Spurs, who were searching for cover for the injured Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven.
At the time, reports suggested that Tottenham ended their pursuit of the 26-year-old to instead move Austrian defender Kevin Danso, who arrived on loan from RC Lens.
However, transfer expert Fabrizio Romano has now provided further insight, revealing that it was actually Disasi who rejected the move.
While discussing Joao Felix's late loan move to AC Milan on the Viva El Fútbol podcast on Monday, Romano explained: "Chelsea had a limited number of spaces for loans: there were two slots left for players who could leave on loan outside England."
“One was [Carney] Chukwuemeka who went to Dortmund and the other was feared to be Disasi who continued to refuse Tottenham," he said. "Instead, during the night Disasi got the final OK to go to Aston Villa and stay in England. Then Milan had the chance to really go for Felix."
Disasi previously addressed his decision to join Villa over Tottenham, citing manager Unai Emery as the key influence.
“He played a big part, because he explained to me the way that he sees things with me,” the defender told Villa TV, per the Shropshire Star. "When I spoke with him, he trusted in me. Straight after I hung up the phone, on my mind it was clear that I wanted to come here."
The opportunity to play in the Champions League also factored into his decision.
Villa are competing in the tournament for the first time since the 1982/83 season and have already secured a spot in the last 16 after finishing eighth in the new league phase.
“It will be my first time that I play Champions League, so I’m very excited about it,” Disasi said.
“I know also that the club is very ambitious, and me as well, so I hope that we will do something great. That’s why also I signed here. I’m ambitious as well."
Are you saying Tottenham aren't ambitious, Axel?! We would never...
Comments