Tottenham sign Manor Solomon on a free transfer despite looming legal threat

Tottenham Hotspur have signed Manor Solomon on a free transfer and he will join the club on a five-year deal.

Solomon joins Spurs after a successful spell on loan at Fulham after leaving Ukraine due to the Russian invasion of his homeland.

He scored four goals in 24 appearances and made a solid impression for the Cottagers last term.

However, Tottenham have pipped Fulham to the signing of the Israeli international despite Shakhtar Donetsk CEO Sergei Palkin threatening to sue them.

Palkin is unhappy with FIFA’s decision to amend Annex 7 of the Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players after the outbreak of the Russia-Ukraine war.

The regulation change allowed foreign nationals employed in either country to suspend their contracts to leave the region.

Solomon suspended his contract to join Fulham on loan. With six months left on his deal with his parent club Shakhtar, he has signed for Spurs.

Palkin has furiously argued that the rule change cost Shakhtar transfer fees on their foreign assets. They were willing to sell players and maintain there was no need for the ruling.

It is unclear what Palkin will do next as he seeks compensation for the winger he signed from Maccabi Petah Tikva in 2019.

Solomon made his professional debut for the Israeli club as a 17-year-old in November 2016. He scored eight goals in 73 appearances before earning a move to Shakhtar.

He becomes Tottenham’s third summer signing after James Maddison and Guglielmo Vicario.

They signed Maddison for £40 million from Leicester City and Vicario from Empoli for £17.3m. 

Spurs need to sign a centre-back or two and have Edmond Tapsoba, Tosin Adarabioyo and Micky van de Ven on their radar.

They will also consider signing Clement Lenglet permanently from Barcelona for a small fee.