Tottenham star Heung-min Son has turned down a sensational move to Saudi Arabia this summer.
The South Korea international had been the subject of a massive bid from the Gulf state in the latest string of audacious attempts on Premier League stars.
According to ESPN, the Saudi Pro League had launched a bid for Son in a huge £51million swoop from Al Ittihad.
The club have already signed Karim Benzema and are expected to also bring in N’Golo Kante from Chelsea.
As well as the mammoth fee, Nuno Espirito Santo’s side would also offer Son £26m a year in wages.
It’s understood Tottenham were prepared to resist any tempting offers for the 30-year-old.
But they need not fret as Son has since come out and denied that he has any interest in moving to the Middle East.
He said: “I have many things to do in Premier League.
“Money doesn’t matter to me now, and the pride of playing football, to play in my favourite league is important.
“I want to play more for Tottenham in the Premier League, I’ll prepare well when I’m back to Spurs.”Son is a key player at Tottenham where he has 145 goals in 372 games after signing from Bayer Leverkusen in 2015.
However, the forward had a tough season last term as Spurs toiled in the Premier League.
He did still manage to register ten goals and six assists but it was a decline on his previous campaign where he scored 23 and assisted seven.
Nevertheless, new Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou does not want to lose his main stars as he looks to reinvigorate a side that finished eighth in the Premier League.
Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund (PIF) has piled in huge amounts of money into the Saudi Pro League, with four of the top clubs Al Nassr, Al Ittihad, Al Hilal and Al Ahli now owned by 75 per cent of the fund.
It has led to some major transfer moves in recent weeks, including Benzema to Al Ittihad. Kante is expected to join him there while Chelsea trio Edouard Mendy, Kalidou Koulibaly and Hakim Ziyech are also expected to make the move to the Gulf state.
Romelu Lukaku and Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang have also been linked but there is more doubt over whether these transfers will be completed.
And Ruben Neves is set to sign for Al Hilal in a £47m deal from Wolves in a deal that has shocked many.If Son did sign for Al Ittihad, it would see him reunited with Nuno, who had a short stint in charge of Tottenham that ultimately failed, lasting just 52 days.
However, the Portuguese coach has found success in Saudi Arabia where his side pipped Cristiano Ronaldo’s Al Nassr to the title.
