Tottenham Hotspur tried to sign Kim Min-jae before Napoli transfer this summer, reveals advisor
As per Calcio Napoli 24 via Sport Witness (h/t Football.London), the advisor to Kim Min-jae revealed in a documentary about Korean footballers that Tottenham Hotspur wanted to sign the defender before his move to Napoli.
The South Korea international recently grabbed headlines after his stellar showing in Napoli’s 4-1 thrashing of Liverpool in the UEFA Champions League. International teammates with Son Heung-min, Min-jae was linked with a move to Spurs this summer.
However, nothing materialised and he ended up moving to Serie A side Napoli after his €19.5 million release clause was triggered. His current deal at the Stadio Diego Armando Maradona contains a €45million buyout clause.
His advisor, Ho Lee, revealed recently:
“Inter, Juventus, Tottenham, Rennes and Roma have tried to sign Kim, and many clubs have held meetings on video, but we wanted Kim to be able to play in a good team with a certain continuity, and that team was Napoli.”
If teams like Spurs, Inter Milan, and Juventus wanted to sign a player, then there must be something special about him. Min-jae stands at a height of 1.90m and his intimidating physique is a boon on set-pieces at both ends.
With 40 caps for his country, the 25-year-old has already become one of the mainstays for club and country. Surely Son’s presence at Spurs would have been a factor to consider in any potential deal but evidently, it wasn’t enough to bring him to N17.
Napoli lost Kalidou Koulibaly to Chelsea this summer while Axel Tuanzebe left Naples after his loan spell ended. There was clearly a space to fill in Luciano Spalletti’s backline, which Min-jae has done.
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Spurs themselves signed a centre-back in Clement Lenglet, but the French defender is only here on a season-long loan deal from Barcelona.
