---
title: "Tottenham Hotspur: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg wanted to move to Spurs and work with Jose Mourinho amid interest from Everton"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/pierre-emile-hojbjerg-tottenham-hotspur-transfer-jose-mourinho-latest/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Thomas Ward"
section: "Opinion"
published: "2020-08-13T17:20:58Z"
modified: "2020-08-13T17:20:58Z"
---

# Tottenham Hotspur: Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg wanted to move to Spurs and work with Jose Mourinho amid interest from Everton

**Christmas came early for Jose Mourinho after he finally got what he wanted all along.**

Tottenham Hotspur signed Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg from Southampton for a reported fee of around [£17m](https://theathletic.com/1991728/2020/08/13/hojbjerg-tottenham-mourinho-bayern-southampton/) on Tuesday.

![](https://cdn.footballtransfertavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/THE-BREAKDOWN.png)

For years Spurs have been accused of having a soft under-belly and being “[too nice](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8062633/Mourinho-accuses-Spurs-players-nice-defeat-Wolves.html)” after Mourinho lamented the lack of “aggression or ruthlessness” when their Champions League hopes were dealt a huge blow in defeat by [Wolves](https://www.dailymail.co.uk/sport/football/article-8062633/Mourinho-accuses-Spurs-players-nice-defeat-Wolves.html) on home soil last season.

Standing at 1.85m (6 ft 2), Hojbjerg is an enforcer who does not shy away from launching himself into a crunching [tackle (or two)](https://www.whoscored.com/Players/101859/Show/Pierre-Emile-H%C3%B8jbjerg).

[\[freshpress-poll id=”313673″\]](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/[freshpress-poll%20id=%22313673%22])

According to [The Athletic](https://theathletic.com/1991728/2020/08/13/hojbjerg-tottenham-mourinho-bayern-southampton/), as per [@TranSPURS](https://twitter.com/TranSPURS/status/1293813804049072129), the [33-cap](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/pierre-emile-hojbjerg/profil/spieler/167799) Denmark international attracted attention from Ajax, Everton and Monaco, but the midfielder wanted to move to Spurs and work with Mourinho despite being offered higher wages elsewhere.

The 25-year-old scored five goals and supplied six assists in more than 100 appearances for [the Saints](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/pierre-emile-hojbjerg/leistungsdatenverein/spieler/167799) after arriving from Bayern Munich for [£12.8m](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/36764528) in 2016.

![](https://cdn.footballtransfertavern.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/Verdict.png)

Mauricio Pochettino put his faith in [his philosophy](https://www.independent.co.uk/sport/football/premier-league/mauricio-pochettino-tottenham-hotspur-playing-philosophy-a8548476.html) to play an exciting brand of football at Tottenham, but the ability to [play ugly](https://www.bbc.co.uk/sport/football/51826717) is a dark art that shouldn’t be ignored anymore.

Hojbjerg is someone who can do precisely just that. The box-to-box destroyer topped the charts for recovering the ball [326 times](https://www.skysports.com/football/news/11675/12046253/pierre-emile-hojbjerg-tottenham-complete-signing-of-southampton-midfielder) for Southampton last term.

In stark contrast to Spurs’ record signing [Tanguy Ndombele](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-transfer-rumours/pierre-emile-hojbjerg-tottenham-hotspur-transfer-spells-end-tanguy-ndombele-latest/), the Danish midfielder could make an immediate impact by doing all the dirty work that often goes unnoticed. Once tipped as Sergio Busquets’ successor during his time at [Bayern Munich](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-transfer-rumours/pierre-emile-hojbjerg-tottenham-hotspur-transfer-spells-end-tanguy-ndombele-latest/), Hojbjerg has the tenacity to hit the ground running and is a player who pays close attention to [positional awareness](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-transfer-rumours/pierre-emile-hojbjerg-tottenham-hotspur-transfer-spells-end-tanguy-ndombele-latest/).

At £17m, he may turn out to be the bargain deal of the summer, and he could be a regular starter for the next decade.

***Tottenham fans, do you think Hojbjerg will prove to be a good signing for Spurs? Let us know your views in the comments below!***