Emerson Royal dismisses dad's claims that he's leaving Tottenham for Real Madrid

Tottenham defender Emerson Royal has had his say on whether he will be swapping North London for Real Madrid this summer following comments from his father.

Back in 2021, the 24-year-old defender joined Tottenham from Barcelona for a reported £25.8 million transfer fee. After signing in the summer, he made his Premier League debut in a 3-0 loss to Crystal Palace and has since only kept 11 clean sheets in 53 league appearances. In total, he’s made 73 appearances for the club in all competitions.

However this year, the Brazilian international has only made 11 appearances for Spurs, having essentially been replaced by January signing Pedro Porro. The latter was snapped up in a £40 milllion deal and has left Royal on the outskirts of the team since his arrival. Royal further solidified his time away from the field in March when he sustained a knee injury while on international duty.

This lack of game time had recently led his father and agent, Emerson Zulu, to speculate on his son’s future at Tottenham and state that his sights may be set somewhere a little sunnier.

Appearing on the Charla Podcast, Zulu claimed that his son wanted to play for a team that would go on to ‘fight for titles’ — name-checking Carlo Ancelotti’s Real Madrid in the process.

He said: “There is a great possibility that Emerson will leave Tottenham. We believe it’s time for him to take a bigger leap and go to a team that fights for titles. I think he fits a giant like Real Madrid.”

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However, while Royal’s father wants to see him shoot for stardom, the defender says he’s more than happy with his current situation at Spurs. Furthermore, he also denied ever speaking to his father about a potential transfer to Real Madrid.

In response to Zulu, Royal said: “Although he is entitled to his own opinion, I have never spoken to him about it and I have always made it clear that I am happy at Tottenham.

“As a professional athlete, I am proud to represent the team that believed in me and gave me the opportunity to showcase my skills.”

Emerson’s most recent appearance for Spurs came in the 3-3 draw against Southampton on March 18. This was also Antonio Conte’s final game before being removed from his post as Tottenham's head coach.

Following Conte’s dismissal, Cristian Stellini stepped in as caretaker manager. However, in the wake of Spurs’ 6-1 trouncing by Newcastle United last weekend, chairman Daniel Levy relieved relieved Stellini of his duties and has ‘accepted ultimate responsibility’ for the club’s defeat. Stellini’s caretaking stint lasted just 29 days. As of now, Ryan Mason has been installed as the new interim boss.