Tottenham have completed the £85million signing of Brazil winger Savio from Manchester City, and fans were left confused as the 22-year-old arrived under a different name.
Spurs wrapped up the signing of the player from Manchester City, where he was known as Savinho for two years. However, the Brazilian has arrived in north London sporting the name ‘Savio’ on his new No.17 shirt.
Name change mystery
Neither Tottenham nor the player have given a reason for the switch, with no mention of the change in the club’s announcement.
For those who know the winger as Savinho, his full name is Savio Moreira de Oliveira, and ‘Savinho’ is the Portuguese diminutive of that, translating to “little Savio.”
During his time at Troyes and Girona, the Brazilian wore Savio on the back of his shirt. The decision to change his name came when he joined City in 2024, after Troyes, a team in the City Football Group, signed him for a club record £10.7million in 2022.
City struggles
Following a breakout loan spell at fellow City Football Group side Girona, Savinho completed a £30m move to City, where he announced he would be sporting ‘Savinho’ on the back of his shirt.
Speaking to the club website when he signed, he said he hoped “the Savinho name brings me some good luck”.
It clearly didn’t, though, as he started just over half of the 84 games he played for City. In those two years he scored just one Champions League goal, against Club Brugge, and just one Premier League goal in each of his two campaigns — the first against Leicester City and his second in stoppage time of a 3-0 win over Crystal Palace in May.
Return to Savio
Spurs have been convinced to spend £85m on the winger, who will seemingly go back to using his real name Savio, which was given to him by his dad after former Brazil and Real Madrid winger Savio Bortolini.
Speaking on his move to north London, Savio said: “It’s taken a while, but I’m very happy to be here.
“It’s a wonderful opportunity at a brilliant club with one of the best managers in the world. As soon as I spoke to the head coach I knew I had to come.
“He told me he wants to help me reach the highest level. And I believe we can do that together, as a team.”
