Transfer Centre

RB Leipzig's Timo Werner opens door to Tottenham Hotspur stay

By Ben Knapton, Senior Reporter | 08 April 2024

Timo Werner opens the door to a permanent move to Tottenham Hotspur from RB Leipzig this summer, having made a bright start to his loan spell in North London.

German attacker Timo Werner has opened the door to staying at Tottenham Hotspur beyond the end of his current loan spell with RB Leipzig.

The 28-year-old is now three months into his Premier League return with Ange Postecoglou's side, and he has made a strong impression during his earliest days in North London.

From 12 matches in a Tottenham jersey, Werner has chipped in with two goals and three assists from the left-hand side, and it was his cross which Murillo diverted into his own net during Sunday's 3-1 win over Nottingham Forest.

Eight of the attacker's 11 Premier League appearances for Tottenham have come from the first whistle - including each of his last three - and Spurs possess the option to sign him permanently for around €17m (£14.6m) in the upcoming window.

Spurs captain Son Heung-min recently expressed his approval for Tottenham to keep Werner at the club, and the ex-Chelsea man has now opened up on his happiness in the Lilywhites jersey.

Tottenham Hotspur's Timo Werner warms up on January 14, 2024 © Reuters

Werner 'loving' life at Tottenham amid speculation

"I'm enjoying it a lot. Playing with this team, these teammates, in this style and in this stadium... I love it here!" Werner told reporters after Tottenham's triumph over Nottingham Forest at the weekend.

While Werner is content to remain in North London, Spurs have not yet made a final call on whether to trigger the German's permanent option as Postecoglou's side focus on the race for Champions League football.

Werner did not set the world alight during his two years at Chelsea, culminating in the 28-year-old rejoining Leipzig in the summer of 2022, where he has also failed to regain the form he displayed in his first spell at the club.

However, the attacker's contributions have been pivotal in helping Tottenham assume control of the top-four race, and the Lilywhites are now above Aston Villa in the rankings on goal difference with a game in hand.

What has Postecoglou said about Werner's future?

Werner's praises have unsurprisingly been sung by his manager during his bright start to life in a Tottenham shirt, and Postecoglou was quizzed on whether the German could stick around in a recent press conference.

However, Postecoglou refused to give too much away on the future of Werner - still under contract at Leipzig until 2026 - only affirming that the decision would be made "at the appropriate time".

Following Sunday's success over Forest, Postecoglou again spoke highly of Werner's performance, saying: "Yeah I thought Timo was good. Worked hard, always a threat. He ran at the opposition really well, contributed to our first goal.

"At the moment he's doing everything well. He didn't start a few weeks ago. But we brought him in because we knew we'd need him, and that's how it's proved. We also knew we were getting a player who'd already played at this level so he wasn't really a risk for us and he's been a good contributor."

Werner will be expected to make his fourth Premier League start in a row when Tottenham take on Newcastle United at St James' Park in next Saturday's lunchtime kickoff.