Transfer News: Conor Gallagher signs for Spurs

The England midfielder returns to the Premier League with Thomas Frank’s Tottenham following a spell in Spain with Atletico Madrid.

Tottenham have made their first major signing of the 2026 January Transfer Window, with Thomas Frank’s side having completed the signing of former Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher. Confirmation of this eye-catching transfer came on the afternoon of Wednesday (14th January), and it was revealed that he will be wearing the number 22 shirt at Spurs.

Gallagher has joined the North London outfit after plenty of interest from other clubs, including fellow Premier League club Aston Villa. The Lilywhites ended up securing the England international’s signature for a reported transfer fee of £35 million, with him signing a reported five year contract that is due to expire in 2031.

The midfielder has returned to English football following a spell overseas in Spain with La Liga giants Atletico Madrid, who are under the stewardship of Diego Simeone. Gallagher originally signed for the Rojiblancos (The Red-Whites) back in August 2024 after deciding to leave Tottenham’s London rivals Chelsea, with Atleti paying what was a reported £34 million for his signature.

This season (2025/26), Gallagher made 19 La Liga appearances for Simeone’s side, scoring twice.

During the 2024/25 season, which turned out to be his only full season at the club, Conor Gallagher made 47 appearances in all competitions, with 32 of them coming in the league with him scoring 3 goals and getting 3 assists in La Liga last term, helping Atletico Madrid to what was a 3rd place finish with 76 points, finishing behind runners-up Real Madrid and Champions Barcelona who had 84 and 88 points respectively following 38 games.

In the Champions League, he made 9 appearances, scoring once with one assist, with him being part of the side that was able to reach the Round of 16, where they were beaten by their fierce cross city rivals Real Madrid 4 – 2 on penalties at the conclusion of the second leg, after the two sides had drawn 2 – 2 on aggregate.

Gallagher also played 6 times in the Copa del Rey, the Spanish FA Cup, 6 times, where he got 2 assists for the club, with Atleti reaching the semi-finals, where they were knocked out after losing narrowly 5 – 4 on aggregate, with the first leg ending in an extraordinary 4 – 4 draw.

Prior to his time at Atletico Madrid, Conor Gallagher began his career at Chelsea, whose academy he joined at the age of 6 after playing some grassroots football for the likes of the Bookham Colts, the Leatherhead Predators, and the Epsom Eagles. It was then, in October 2018, that he signed a new contract with the Blues.

In the 2019/20 season, he was initially sent out on loan to Charlton Athletic, for whom he impressed during what turned out to be a short spell with the Addicks, scoring 6 goals and getting 4 assists in 26 appearances in the Championship. He was then recalled in January 2020 by Chelsea, who sent him back out on loan, this time to promotion chasing Swansea City.

Despite impressing again, getting 7 assists in 21 appearances, he was part of the Swans side who were knocked out of the Championship’s promotion play-offs by Brentford over two legs in the semi-finals.

Then, in the 2020/21 campaign, Gallagher was sent out on loan again, this time in the Premier League with newly promoted West Bromwich Albion. Making 32 appearances in all competitions, with 30 coming in the Premier League, he was unable to prevent the Baggies from getting relegated in 19th place. He did still impress whilst collecting 2 goals and 2 assists.

This was followed by another temporary spell away from Chelsea, this time with Crystal Palace, during the 2021/22 season.

For the Eagles, he caught the eye once again in the Premier League, scoring 8 goals and getting 3 assists in 34 appearances in the English top flight, being part of the team to finish in a respectable 12th place with 48 points from their 38 games. They were 8 points adrift of qualifying for European football.

Conor Gallagher then became a regular starter for Chelsea in the Blues’ first team from the 2022/23 season, during which he made 35 appearances in the Premier League, scoring 3 times and getting 1 assist to boot.

The West London outfit finished 12th that season with 44 points, whilst reaching the Quarter Finals of the UEFA Champions League 4 – 0 on aggregate against Real Madrid. During that Champions League campaign, he made 8 appearances.

The 2023/24 season was his last at Chelsea, during which he was a regular again, making 37 appearances in the Premier League alone, scoring 5 goals and getting 7 assists whilst only missing one top-flight game. By the end of the campaign, the Blues had ended in 6th place with 63 points, 5 off the Champions League places. Then came his move to Atletico Madrid shortly after this campaign had concluded.

All eyes will be on how Conor Gallagher plays under the stewardship of Thomas Frank at Spurs, with there being plenty of excitement amongst the fanbase as they look forward to seeing the impact that he has on their team.

It is also being reported that Santos’ Brazilian left back Souza is having a medical with Tottenham, with the 19-year-old seemingly set to join the Lilywhites soon.

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