English midfielder Conor Gallagher is heading back to London. The 25-year-old is seeing his 17 month stint at Atletico Madrid come to an end, as Tottenham Hotspur are signing him to a permanent deal, worth €40m.
Indeed the January transfer window is starting to get warmed up now, as this is really only the second major money deal that we have seen thus far.
🚨💣 Conor Gallagher to Tottenham, here we go! The player has just informed Atléti about his decision to join #THFC.
Spurs set to pay €40m fee, permanent deal to beat Villa.
Aston Villa agreed deal with Atlético today but leave race as player didn’t give final green light. pic.twitter.com/Xm5mreDa9M
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) January 12, 2026
Antoine Semenyo moving from AFC Bournemouth to Manchester City, for £64 million, was the first. Gallagher, after a very tedious and extremely protracted transfer saga, moved to the Spanish capital from Chelsea in August of 2024.
Things just weren’t working out for him at Atletico, and a change of scenery is probably for the best.
He only made four starts in La Liga this season.
Aston Villa were interested as well, but Gallagher chose Spurs intead. And that’s an interesting choice considering how much better of a season Villa are having right now.
After all, they just knocked Spurs out of the FA Cup, in the third round, on Saturday.
Who knows, maybe the addition of Conor Gallagher will make a difference in North London?
They’re already out of both cup competitions, and buried on the second page of the Premier League standings.
At least they are doing alright in Champions League though. They are currently in position to advance to the UCL playoffs.
Paul M. Banks is the Founding Editor of The Sports Bank. He’s also the author of “Transatlantic Passage: How the English Premier League Redefined Soccer in America,” and “No, I Can’t Get You Free Tickets: Lessons Learned From a Life in the Sports Media Industry.”
He currently contributes to USA Today’s NFL Wires Network, RG.org and Ratings.org. His past bylines include the New York Daily News, Sports Illustrated and the Chicago Tribune. His work has been featured in numerous outlets, including the Wall Street Journal, Forbes and the Washington Post.