Manchester City defender snubs Tottenham move to join German side Borussia Dortmund instead

Tottenham had been hopeful of securing the services of 22-year-old Brazilian full-back Yan Couto, with the departure of compatriot Emerson Royal from the north London club seemingly imminent.

While Pedro Porro is Ange Postecoglu’s first choice right-back, it was thought that Couto could compete for a place in the starting XI. But those hopes seem to be more or less up in flames.

According to SportBILD, Couto has turned down Spurs’ offer in favour of a move to Bundesliga side Borussia Dortmund. The German side has a reputation for cultivating young players into global superstars, then selling them to the giants of world football for a mega profit.

Reports indicate that Dortmund will be paying £21m for the South American defender, who spent the past season on loan at Spanish outfit Girona.

Writing for CaughtOffside, Saikat Chatterjee said: “It will be interesting to see if Tottenham decide to move for other targets in the coming weeks. They will need to add sufficient depth and quality to the squad if they are serious about securing Champions League qualification next season and doing well in the domestic trophies.”