Everton Sign Hackney as Spurs Break Record for Fernandes
Everton’s summer rebuild has its midfield cornerstone. Tottenham’s has its statement signing.
Two clubs on very different financial planes, both moving decisively for players they believe can reshape the heart of their teams.
Hackney chooses Everton after drawn‑out chase
Everton have finally prised Hayden Hackney away from Middlesbrough in a deal that could reach £25m, ending a pursuit that dragged on for weeks and tested the patience of all involved.
The fee starts at £16.5m and climbs through add-ons, including clauses tied to the 24-year-old breaking into the England senior side. For a player with only a year left on his contract, Middlesbrough held firm. They rejected several bids, stuck to their £25m valuation and used interest from Crystal Palace as leverage.
Hackney, though, only had eyes for Goodison’s future.
“As soon as I spoke to the manager, as soon as I knew Everton were interested, it was always going to be Everton,” he said after signing a five-year deal.
He talked about the “big club,” the lure of the new stadium, the direction of travel. He talked about David Moyes’s record with Championship players making the leap.
That track record matters. Moyes wanted Hackney last summer before other priorities took over. He kept watching as the midfielder drove Middlesbrough’s season and took the Championship’s player of the year award. Hackney then added an international flourish as part of the England side that lifted the European Under-21 Championship in 2025.
Now, Moyes has his man.
“Hayden is a promising young player who we’ve been tracking for some time, and I’m looking forward to working with him,” the Everton manager said.
“We’ve had a track record over the years of identifying players in the Championship who have gone on to do really well for us and been good investments. We hope that will be the case with Hayden, too.
“He’s an England Under-21 international who will provide greater competition in midfield, which is something I wanted going into the new season.”
Competition is exactly what Hackney expects to embrace. He described himself as a midfielder who can “do a bit of everything” – carry the ball, contribute defensively, arrive late in the box and chip in with goals. The Premier League will be new ground, but he sounded impatient rather than daunted.
“Once I get used to that I think I can kick on from there,” he said. “I think there’s plenty more to come from me.”
Everton are not stopping there. They are close to adding Chelsea winger Tyrique George, another sign that Moyes is intent on lowering the age profile and injecting energy and resale value into a squad that has creaked through recent seasons.
Hackney, though, feels like a flag in the ground: a player at the peak of his Championship powers, backing himself to become the next success story in a familiar Moyes blueprint.
Spurs go big for Fernandes
While Everton hunted value, Tottenham went for shock and awe.
Spurs have completed the signing of Mateus Fernandes from West Ham in a deal worth £85m – a club-record outlay on a 21-year-old midfielder who has rapidly climbed English football’s ladder.
The Portugal international came through at Sporting, took in a season at Southampton in 2024-25, then joined West Ham last August. One year on, he walks into a dressing room with Champions League ambitions and a head coach who has built his game model around brave, technical midfielders.
Roberto De Zerbi has wanted Fernandes for some time. Now he has him at the centre of his project.
“I’ve admired Mateus for a long time because he combines quality on the ball with the intensity and intelligence that are so important in the way we want to play,” De Zerbi said.
“Despite his age, he already has good experience in the Premier League and has shown quality and consistency at this level.”
That blend – experience without the scars, talent with a clear identity – is what persuaded Spurs to break their transfer record. Fernandes, for his part, made it clear the head coach was pivotal.
“I’m very excited for this next step. Spurs is a massive club and the head coach was a key part of why I have decided to join,” he said. “When we spoke it was very special. We look at football in the same way – going on to the pitch as a strong team, with fight and energy, to try and win every game.”
The words could have come straight from De Zerbi’s playbook. High tempo. Aggression. Courage on the ball.
“Mateus is comfortable under pressure, can progress the ball, works hard for the team and has the courage to make things happen in difficult moments,” De Zerbi added. “I believe this is the ideal environment for him to continue his development and I’m excited to start working with him.”
For Fernandes, the challenge is clear: justify the price tag and become the heartbeat of a side expected to impose itself in every game. “I can’t wait to get started, to meet the fans, to meet everyone, and give everything for the club,” he said.
Two midfielders. Two very different routes. Hackney climbs from the Championship, backing his all-round game to translate at the highest level. Fernandes arrives as an £85m centrepiece, dropped straight into the glare.
The Premier League has a habit of testing such convictions quickly.
