Tottenham Hotspur’s hope of signing SSC Napoli striker Arkadiusz Milik in the summer transfer window has become ‘complicated’ by a rival pursuit from AS Roma, according to The Times.
Tottenham have long been touted as a potential destination for Milik should the Poland striker depart Napoli this summer, with Spurs said to have become interested after he rejected the proposal of a new contract at the San Paolo Stadium.
Spurs and Napoli reopened a line of communication in July to sound out the potential of a deal, but no agreement was forthcoming as Milik then favoured a move to Juventus who were looking to bolster Maurizio Sarris’ strike force on the back of a ninth-straight Serie A title.
Juve’s position never deterred Tottenham’s intrigue, with following reports in Italy claiming Chairman Daniel Levy was ready to invest but not at the €40million (£36m) asking price Aurelio de Laurentiis was requesting. Juve’s interest was also wavering after a change in leadership, with Andrea Pirlo returning to the Old Lady to replace Sarri.
Now it is Roma who stand the greatest threat to Spurs’ pursuit of Milik, with the Giallorossi making moves to win the race by offering Napoli a deal more to De Laurentiis’ tastes.
Reports have claimed Roma are willing to hand Napoli a €15m (£13.5m) cheque plus the services of Turkey winger Cengiz Under to move onto pole, as the capital side are carefully moving to position themselves best in the event Edin Dzeko decides to leave.
Whether that offer proves to be enough for Napoli to sell remains to be seen, but the progress of discussions between the San Paolo side and Roma could soon be enough for Spurs to find themselves out of the picture if Levy cannot increase Tottenham’s position.
Will Levy sign a striker this summer?
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Jose Mourinho would certainly stand to benefit from the potential arrival of Milik given Harry Kane will be the Portuguese tactician’s only recognised senior centre-forward next term, while the Poland ace proved he can find the back of the net even when not a regular starter for Napoli last season.
Milik opened just 19 of his 26 outings in Napoli’s Serie A fixtures amid a spate of early injuries and the wavering support of manager Gennaro Gattuso following the turn of the year, yet returned 11 goals for a hit rate of one every 159 minutes.
Goals beyond Kane (18), Son Heung-Min (11) and Dele (8) were hard for Spurs to find in the Premier League last season, so adding a striker of Milik’s calibre could be the best decision for Levy though finances will be the determining factor to Spurs edging Juve and Roma.