Tonali’s Agent: Ahanor’s Chelsea Transfer Is a Great Piece of Business

When discussing this summer’s transfer window, Tonali’s agent Riso said that Ahanor’s transfer to Chelsea was “a great piece of business.”

Tonali’s agent Giuseppe Riso described Ahanor’s transfer to Chelsea as “a great piece of business.” Chelsea signed the 18-year-old defender for £40 million on deadline day, but before he officially moves from New Balance Stadium to Stamford Bridge, Ahanor will spend a season on loan at Crystal Palace.

According to Premier League rules, a club cannot immediately loan a player it has just signed to another Premier League club in the same transfer window. Therefore, Chelsea reached an agreement with Ahanor in advance. Due to this arrangement, Ahanor is still nominally an Atalanta player and is expected to officially join Chelsea in the summer of 2027.

football.london understands that Chelsea’s hierarchy plans to closely monitor the Italian international’s development at Crystal Palace and decide his future at the end of this season. Depending on Ahanor’s progress, he could also be loaned out again.

In an interview with Tuttosport, Riso discussed the importance of the transfer. He also represents several Italian players, including Tonali. Riso said: “For Atalanta, this is undoubtedly a great piece of business. But if a young player can reach such a valuation, it also shows that even in today’s Italy, we still have talent and know how to develop talent.”

“Keeping them in Italy is not the key point, especially if their next destination is the Premier League. I often describe the Premier League as the NBA of football, and such a league can certainly play a decisive role in their development. The Premier League is extremely challenging, and players become stronger because of it, returning to the national team in better condition. The real challenge for Serie A is creating the conditions for these players to grow here first, and then eventually being forced to sell them.”

Riso also represents Tonali. Tonali left Newcastle United this summer and joined Tottenham Hotspur for £100 million, which is also a record transfer fee for an Italian player. Speaking about the deal, Riso said: “There are many years of work behind deals like this. I did not break the record; Tonali deserved this record through what he has done on the pitch. At most, I just made a few more phone calls (laughs). Tottenham Hotspur know exactly what kind of player Tonali is. When a club makes it clear that a player is a priority target, everything becomes easier.”

Discussing the transfer window as a whole and whether the increasing use of loans, conditional purchase options and resale clauses reflects financial creativity or a lack of liquidity, Riso said: “To complete transfers today, you need to be flexible in thinking, well prepared and have a considerable amount of imagination. To achieve sustainable balance, the football system has set some restrictions for itself, and clubs sometimes need to go through longer and more complicated processes to comply with them. I would call this financial creativity in a positive sense, aimed at rebalancing the system in the medium and long term, but it cannot happen overnight.”