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Antonio Conte has made first move to bring ‘warrior’ to Tottenham Hotspur

Photo by VINCENZO PINTO/AFP via Getty Images
Photo by VINCENZO PINTO/AFP via Getty Images
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MILAN, ITALY - JANUARY 17: Antonio Conte Head coach of Internazionale shakes hands with Arturo Vidal after substituting him during the Serie A match between FC Internazionale and Juventus at Stadio Giuseppe Meazza on January 17, 2021 in Milan, Italy. (Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images)
Photo by Jonathan Moscrop/Getty Images

Tottenham Hotspur are showing a real interest in signing Inter Milan midfielder Arturo Vidal with Antonio Conte now believed to be keen on a reunion.

That’s according to La Tercera back in Vidal’s native Chile, who made the claims in a report on Tuesday.

It’s stated that Vidal already has his bags packed and ready to leave Inter; a metaphor we assume, given that the transfer window is closed.

Either that or Vidal is living out of a suitcase for the coming months.

Anyway, Vidal’s contract expires this summer but Inter do have a one-year option on the deal and could keep Vidal for another year.

That seems unlikely given that Vidal has started just one league game under Simone Inzaghi this season.

Vidal allegedly dreams of playing in the Premier League and the most likely way to make that happen is by joining Tottenham.

Antonio Conte is a big fan of Vidal, coaching him at Juventus and Inter. The Tottenham boss has allegedly made contact with Vidal’s entourage to thrash out a potential deal.

Galatasaray and Marseille also want Vidal, but he wants to head to England – and joining forces with Tottenham boss Conte has to be appealing.

COMO, ITALY - SEPTEMBER 22:  Head coach FC Internazionale Antonio Conte and Arturo Vidal of FC Internazionale chat during a training session at Appiano Gentile on September 22, 2020 in Como, Italy.  (Photo by Claudio Villa - Inter/Inter via Getty Images)
Photo by Claudio Villa – Inter/Inter via Getty Images

Is this really what Tottenham need though?

Yes, on his day, lives up to his nickname of ‘The Warrior’, producing energetic and committed displays in midfield.

The problem is that those days are growing less and less frequent, with Vidal approaching the age of 35.

Tottenham shouldn’t be sinking money into players of that age profile, with players like Rodrigo Bentancur and Dejan Kulusevski making much more sense.

Conte may be a big fan of Vidal, but we just can’t see Tottenham deciding to sign Vidal at this stage of his career.

PARMA, ITALY - NOVEMBER 02:  Juventus FC manager Antonio Conte shakes hands with Arturo Vidal of Juventus at the end of the Serie A match between Parma FC and Juventus at Stadio Ennio Tardini on November 2, 2013 in Parma, Italy.  (Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images)
Photo by Marco Luzzani/Getty Images