Fabrizio Romano reveals that Tottenham Hotspur failed with a bid for Gerard Deulofeu in the January transfer window
According to the reliable Italian journalist Fabrizio Romano in his exclusive Caught Offside column, North London giants Tottenham Hotspur failed to get a deal over the line for Gerard Deulofeu in the January transfer window.
The 28-year-old came through the ranks at Barcelona’s iconic La Masia before going on to make his senior bow for the Catalans. The Spaniard has struggled to maintain his early promise and has developed into a journeyman of sorts.
Since his first-team debut in 2011, Deulofeu has played for five different clubs (excluding a second spell at Barcelona) without really nailing down a critical role at any of them. Now at Udinese, the 28-year-old finally appears to be rediscovering his best.
A return of two goals and six assists in 16 games is an excellent return for the Serie A side. Deulofeu is the club’s top assist-getter this season and provides a punch in the attack. This caught the attention of Tottenham who were in for an attacker in January.
Antonio Conte has been vocal about the need for reinforcements and Daniel Levy acquiesced. Villarreal star Arnaut Danjuma arrived at the N-17 on loan but it could so easily have been Deulofeu. The versatile attacker was on Spurs’ radar but a deal never came to fruition.
Nicolo Zaniolo was another player on Tottenham’s radar but Deulofeu appears to have been higher up in the Spurs wishlist than the Italian. In fact, it is debatable that the north Londoners could have pushed more had Deulofeu not picked up an injury
A long-running knee issue limited his availability over the last couple of months and it would appear that he will be AWOL for a while from senior action. Tottenham needed a player who was ready to perform and bringing in a player who would be unable to take to the field for an extended period defeats the purpose.
A versatile player, the Udinese ace is capable of playing anywhere along the frontline. He has not just played for illustrious sides like Barcelona and AC Milan but also has Premier League experience to boot. Whether a third spell beckons in the future remains to be seen.
