Recent Tottenham departure turned down Premier League stay offer in ’emotional’ decision | OneFootball

Lucas Moura bids farewell to Tottenham fans on his last game

Former Tottenham forward Lucas Moura had an offer “on the table” from Wolves to remain in the Premier League, but turned it down, according to his agent.

Moura spent five-and-a-half seasons in the Premier League with Tottenham. The Brazilian made 221 appearances for the north London outfit after joining from Paris Saint-Germain for £25million in January 2018.

His first full season saw him score 10 league goals, alongside one assist. His standout moment, though, was in the 2018/19 Champions League semi-final against Ajax, when he bagged a hat-trick against Ajax to send Spurs to the final.

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Big performances were few and far between, though, and when his contract ran out at the end of last season, he decided to return to his native Brazil, signing a contract with the side he entered senior football with: Sao Paulo.

However, had he wanted to, he could have apparently remained in the Premier League, as per his agent Junior Pedroso, but not with Spurs.

“Wolverhampton Wanderers, Monterrey and Los Angeles FC were on the table. [But] Lucas began to see requests from Sao Paulo fans for him to come back. And he went with the crowd,” Pedroso told UOL.

“Lucas is very happy to have returned to Sao Paulo. The love he has for the club is impressive. We went to the training ground and, when we got there, he started to shake with emotion.”

It’s of little surprise that Lucas opted to return to Sao Paulo. Indeed, they gave him his start in professional football, and he might not have had the career he has without their faith in him as a youngster.

With performances slipping, it might have been the right time to leave England, though that’s not to say Brazil is a massive step down in level.

For some players, remaining in the Premier League, or opting to join the MLS may have been tempting. However, it’s nice to see a player follow their heart.

What’s more, it’s not difficult to see why a move to Wolves might not have been overly tempting. While they finished 13th in the Premier League, they scored just 31 goals all season – the lowest tally in the league – and have since sold main striker Raul Jimenez.

Manager Julen Lopetegui is at the top end of a lot of lists of managers that might soon be out of the door at their respective clubs, and he does walk soon, things could go south quickly.