Premier League outfit Spurs made an attempt to lure Gennaro Tutino away from Napoli but they were always fighting a losing battle.
Gennaro Tutino is still hoping to make a name for himself at Napoli after rejecting a move to Tottenham Hotspur in his formative years, the Italian winger has admitted to CalcioNapoli24.
It seems that Poland striker Arkadiusz Milik is not the only member of Gennaro Gattuso’s squad who missed out on the chance to join a North London giant right at the start of his career.
23-year-old Tutino had caught the eye of Spurs with his electrifying performances at youth level, but the lure of the Premier League was not enough to convince this Naples-born forward to turn his back on his boyhood club.
“Before signing my contract with Napoli, (Tottenham) tried to take me to England,” the former Italy U17 international admits. “But I didn’t feel like leaving Naples.
“My dream is to play at the Stadio San Paolo, wearing the shirt of my city. Napoli is my favourite team. I am working hard to make it one day.”
As anyone who witnessed Asif Kapadia’s gripping Diego Maradona documentary will tell you, Napoli fans are like no other in the game. Theirs is an unbridled passion, bordering on the obsessive, that seems to either captivate or alienate all who come across their path.
So no wonder Tutino is desperate to make his mark with the Partenopei before it’s too late.
He has been farmed out on a series of loan deals in recent years, currently plying his trade in Serie B at Empoli.
But, with long-serving Spaniard Jose Callejon out of contract in the summer, Tutino can still harbour some hopes of making his dream come true.
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