Marinakis Delivers Defiant Message as Forest Keep Gibbs-White

Evangelos Marinakis has delivered a clear message to Tottenham and their chairman Daniel Levy following the conclusion of the Morgan Gibbs-White transfer saga on Saturday night.

Gibbs-White drew interest from Spurs a couple of weeks ago, leading to Tottenham apparently triggering the £60 million release clause in the 25-year-old’s contract. A medical was set up for the proposed transfer, but just as that was happening, Nottingham Forest halted all communication and claimed that there had been an illegal approach. They threatened legal action, reaching out to both Spurs and Gibbs-White’s agent.

For two weeks, there was no resolution, leaving Gibbs-White in limbo and Tottenham fans anxiously anticipating a deal. Spurs remained hopeful that the transfer would still materialize. Meanwhile, Forest were working behind the scenes to persuade Gibbs-White to stay, ultimately succeeding with a Saturday night announcement that he had extended his contract with the club.

Marinakis has now issued a severe warning to Tottenham and any other teams that want to play Forest. “I repeat, all these actions and approaches should take place in an appropriate manner as long as I am in charge of Nottingham Forest,” he said. I would never permit someone from another team to attempt to acquire a player from us or take any action [that we disagree with]. In particular, as I indicated with players who are members of our family.”

After signing the new deal, Gibbs-White expressed his feelings: “I’ve felt at home at Forest from the moment I arrived. The support from the fans, my teammates, and everyone around the club has been unbelievable. I believe in what we’re building here – and with the backing of Mr. Marinakis and his enormous ambition, I want to be part of making something special. I’m excited for what’s to come.”

With this turn of events, Tottenham will now need to shift their focus elsewhere as technical director Johan Lange works to find a player for the No.10 role that new head coach Thomas Frank desires.