Tottenham Hotspur have been tipped to make a move for Nicolo Zaniolo in the summer transfer window.
What’s the talk?
That’s according to Virtus Entella sporting director Matteo Superbi, who claimed in a recent interview with Calciomercato (via Sport Witness) that the Serie A side could be tempted into selling the 22-year-old this summer.
Superbi went on to state that, despite the Italy international having suffered a number of injury setbacks in his career, the likes of Tottenham, Manchester United, Manchester City and Juventus would all be interested in a move for the versatile winger – for whom Roma could demand a figure of around €50m (£42.5m).
Speaking about Zaniolo’s future, the 53-year-old said: “I think a [player born in] ’99 of that level could be worth €50m; I don’t think I’m saying the wrong thing. It will be more a choice of Roma, who will decide what to do with Zaniolo – but that’s the value.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if he was bought by a top English team; the real unknown is that despite being very young, he has already had two major operations. I wish him well and that he has given his all in terms of injuries.
“Nicolo has excellent technique but great physicality. The ball is in Mourinho’s court and Roma’s court. I wouldn’t be surprised if there were clubs like Juve, Tottenham or Manchester interested. It’s still an investment for big teams.”
Forget Dybala
While it is true that, despite clearly possessing an enormous amount of ability, Zaniolo’s career has started to stagnate at the Stadio Olimpico somewhat, should Antonio Conte believe he can be the manager to help the 22-year-old go on to fulfil his undoubted potential, the Italian would be a fantastic signing for Spurs.
Indeed, after making a €4.5m (£3.8m) move to Roma back in 2018, the £29.7m-rated forward went on to score four goals and provide three assists over his 27 Serie A appearances in 2018/19, before following this campaign up with returns of six goals and two assists over 26 league outings in 2019/20.
This level of performance led to the youngster being showered with considerable praise, none less so than from Giallorossi legend Francesco Totti, who said of the attacker back in 2018: “Zaniolo is explosive and he plays with an unusual ease. If he continues this way he could become a great player.”
However, a cruciate ligament rupture saw the £75k-per-week Italian miss the entirety of Roma’s 2020/21 campaign, with Zaniolo only returning to the pitch at the beginning of this season.
And, despite still struggling with the odd injury here and there, the player who Mourinho claimed “there are few out there with this amount of potential” has started to show glimpses of his talent over his 23 Serie A appearances in the current campaign, scoring two goals, providing two assists and creating three big chances for his teammates, as well as completing an average of two dribbles per game – the joint fifth-most of any player in the top flight of Italian football.
As such, while Spurs have been heavily linked with a move for another Serie A sensation in the form of Paulo Dybala in recent weeks, it would appear extremely advisable for Conte to first consider a move for the Roma starlet this summer.
Indeed, not only would Zaniolo’s impressive positional versatility make him a much better fit for the 52-year-old manager’s system at Spurs, but the fact the nine-time capped international is six years Dybala’s junior also means he is a player with a much higher ceiling, not to mention a much more sellable asset further down the line.
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