Emmanuel Adebayor to Aston Villa: Spurs striker close to Tim Sherwood reunion with loan move

Manager moves to replace Christian Benteke who was sold to Liverpool earlier this month

Emmanuel Adebayor has one year left on his deal with Tottenham (Getty Images)

Emmanuel Adebayor is to be reunited with his former Tottenham Hotspur manager Tim Sherwood at Aston Villa on loan, having finally been persuaded that his future lies away from Spurs in the final year of his contract at the club.

The 31-year-old striker visited Villa’s Bodymoor Heath training ground to see Sherwood, whose team later drew 2-2 with Wolves in a friendly at Molineux. Adebayor will undertake a medical on Wednesday. There has been interest in a loan deal for him from Crystal Palace and although it has always been his preference to stay in London, it would appear that Sherwood has persuaded him to move to Villa.

The deal is in the final stages of being completed. Spurs are currently in Denver for their game against MLS All-Stars in the early hours of Wednesday morning, British time. Most of the directors, including chairman Daniel Levy, are in the United States for the game. Under the terms of the move Villa will take sole responsibility for Adebayor’s wages. There is also a loan fee involved in the deal for the player.

Adebayor salutes Tim Sherwood, who was able to get the best out of the striker during his spell in the Spurs dugout (Getty) (Getty Images)

Adebayor has one year remaining on his contract but figured for the Spurs first team only five times after the turn of the year and last scored in the Premier League in October. He resisted all attempts to take a pay-off from the club and vowed to see out the last year of his contract. Mauricio Pochettino, the Tottenham manager, has never been a fan of the striker but Adebayor was a major figure during Sherwood’s time in charge of Spurs when he took over from Andre Villas-Boas for the end of the 2013-14 season.

For Sherwood it is another step along the road to replacing Christian Benteke, sold to Liverpool this month. He has also signed the 23-year-old Ghana striker Jordan Ayew from Lorient in France for £8.5m. The Villa manager has been busy in the market, with Adebayor his seventh major signing of the summer. The club announced they have also signed full-back Jose Angel Crespo from Cordoba for £500,000.

Although Adebayor was always likely to leave this summer, his departure will highlight the shortage of strikers at Spurs. The club have been keen to offload Roberto Soldado but may have to revise that plan if they are unable to sign another forward. Saido Berahino remains a consideration but West Bromwich Albion’s £25m asking price is seen as too high. Otherwise, there is only Harry Kane left among their recognised strikers, and while he was prolific last season, the Englishman will not be able to bear the load alone.

With Manchester United and Arsenal also looking to sign a striker, the market for that kind of player is squeezed. Spurs have been more successful at offloading players, with Adebayor potentially the sixth to be trimmed from a big squad this summer.

On the signing of Crespo, 28, a former Spain Under-21s international, Sherwood said: “He is an experienced player who has played in La Liga and Serie A – two of the strongest leagues in the world.”

Troubled Togolese: Adebayor timeline

2007 Sent-off for punching Chelsea midfielder Frank Lampard in Arsenal’s League Cup final defeat.

2009 Runs length of pitch to celebrate in front of Arsenal fans after scoring for Manchester City. Three-game ban after stamping on Robin van Persie.

2011 Restrained by team-mates after fight with Kolo Touré in training. Left out of pre-season tour and fined £300,000 for refusing to train with reserves.

2013 Banished to Spurs reserves by Andre Villas-Boas.

2014 Criticises Spurs fans’ negativity after home defeat to Stoke City.