Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte failed in January attempt to sign Inter Milan midfielder Marcelo Brozovic
According to the Italian publication Calciomercato (h/t The Express), Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte failed in an attempt to secure the services of Inter Milan midfielder Marcelo Brozovic in January. The Spurs boss wanted to reunite with one of his dependable players during his time at San Siro.
Spurs “tried” to get Brozovic on behalf of Conte, but the enquiry was a failure in the end. There were initial talks regarding the interest, but the attempt never made it to an advanced stage, indicating that they were never close to landing him.
The Croatian looks likely to extend his current deal, dealing a further blow to Tottenham if they had intentions of pursuing him at the end of this season. It remains to be seen if he would pen a contract extension or not in the coming months ahead of the summer transfer window.
Damning blow!
Missing out on someone like the 29-year-old is hard to take in, considering how he would have uplifted our midfield instantly. There is no information available on the reason why our attempt to get him was unsuccessful. The circumstances at Inter could be a factor since they are in a better position to compete for titles.
The Nerazzurri are leading the Serie A table with four points while having a game in hand. They have also qualified for the Champions League round of 16 and we cannot blame the central midfielder for opting to stay if success on the pitch was his reason.
A powerhouse in the centre of the pitch, the Serie A star could have been a commanding presence offensively and defensively as well if we had succeeded in signing him. We eventually did end up getting Rodrigo Bentancur, but the Croatian international is at a different level altogether right now.
Bentancur is a good prospect looking at the years left in his playing career and the €19 million transfer fees we paid for him. Despite that, the Inter superstar would have been a great option as well since we had three outgoings in midfield last month. So it would not have hurt us if Fabio Paratici and co had bought another midfielder.
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As a result of the departures of Dele Alli, Tanguy Ndombele and Giovani Lo Celso, we need to add more depth and quality, even if we can manage it in the short term. The Croatian midfielder could still be a possibility as his contract is set to expire next summer.
However, with a renewal likely to happen, we would need some luck to turn the tides in our favour. Only time will tell whether that is the case or not next summer.