Crystal Palace and Everton are reportedly keen on signing Tottenham outcast Lucas Moura ahead of the winter transfer deadline day.
According to The Sun, Premier League rivals Crystal Palace and Everton are interested in signing out-of-favour Tottenham Hotspur winger Lucas Moura before the end of the winter transfer window. However, Moura is said to be seeking around £150,000 per week in wages, which has made the prospective suitors hesitant.
Lucas Moura joined Tottenham from Paris Saint-Germain for £25 million five years ago and has been a good servant for the north London outfit, racking up over 200 appearances and scoring 38 goals while assisting a further 27 in the process.
Selfless, skilled, hard-working, and a proper dribbler who is equally happy to do the dirty jobs and get stuck in, Moura has been a huge favourite among the Lilywhites’ fanbase. The attacker was a key player for Tottenham under former manager Mauricio Pochettino. And his most famous moment came when he scored a hat-trick in the second half against Ajax to fire Tottenham into the Champions League final in 2019.
But the forward has been plagued with injuries in recent times and has fallen down the pecking order at Tottenham since the arrivals of Richarlison and Dejan Kulusevski. He has struggled to hold down a regular starting berth at Tottenham, with his only starts coming against Sporting CP and Marseille in the UEFA Champions League.
As things stand, the former PSG winger will be a free agent in July. Although Tottenham does have the option of triggering a 12-month extension clause in his contract, the Lilywhites have decided against doing so. Spurs have already landed an upgrade in the form of Arnaut Danjuma on a loan deal from Villarreal and would prefer to offload the Brazilian maestro this month rather than wait until the summer for his contract expiry.
The 30-year-old can now speak to foreign clubs over a pre-contract agreement for next season and has been linked with a return to his homeland with Sao Paulo lately. But several Premier League clubs are interested in Lucas Moura, with Everton, Crystal Palace, and Southampton all in the frame. He could potentially postpone his Sao Paulo homecoming if he is offered the opportunity to extend his Premier League career.
Everton, for one, were left shell-shocked when Danjuma made a dramatic U-turn at the last minute and ditched the Toffees in favour of a move to Tottenham. Now, his arrival at Spurs could allow the Toffees to make a move for Moura, who was offered to them a couple of weeks back.
Now, with the appointment of new boss Sean Dyche, the Toffees are looking to strengthen their attack for the second half of the season, especially after Anthony Gordon’s transfer to Newcastle United. Moura would bring a wealth of top-level experience to the team and has the ability to make things happen at the top end of the pitch as the club looks to strengthen its push to avoid relegation.
Like Everton, Crystal Palace have also struggled immensely in front of goal in recent weeks, implying that attacking reinforcements should be a priority for Patrick Vieira before the deadline. Lucas Moura has emerged as a low-cost temporary solution. But his hefty wage demands will be a stumbling block in any deal.
