Reported Everton, Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal target Joaquin Correa could leave Serie A giants Lazio this month but he certainly won’t be sold on the cheap, president Claudio Lotito has told Rai Sport, via Corriere.
You’d imagine Daniel Levy would get on well with the 64-year-old, Rome-born entrepreneur.
Because, like Spurs’ chairman, Lotito is as stubborn as they come.
Trying to sign one of Lazio’s star players would make a hip replacement feel more like a check-up at your local GP, to borrow one of Sir Alex Ferguson’s most famous phrases, with some of Europe’s biggest clubs running for the hills after enquiring about Ciro Immobile, Luis Alberto and Sergej Milinkovic-Savic.
And while Correa has made no secret of his desire to leave a Lazio side he joined from Sevilla in 2017, the skilful winger finds himself sharing a two-man boat with a glum-faced Harry Kane, desperate for a fresh start but unable to force the chairman’s hand with three years left on his contract.
Is Joaquin Correa stuck at Lazio or can Everton or Tottenham snap him up?
“At the beginning of my presidency, I said: ‘Pay the money and see the camel,’” says Lotito.
Swap “camel” for “Argentina international” and you realise what the Lazio president is aiming at.
“The deal will be done when someone makes a clear offer and we are satisfied with it. We don’t have to sell to buy players, let that be clear.”
In July, Tottenham offered £25 million for a player Fabio Paratici tried and failed to sign for Juventus, while Arsenal were willing to let forgotten man Lucas Torreira seal a dream return to Italy as part of a player-plus-cash swap deal.
With just one week left before the transfer window closes, however, Everton appears to be the most likely destination for Correa if the 27-year-old is, indeed, on his way to the Premier League.
According to The Mirror (22 August, page 67), the Toffees are confident of sealing a deal having made an offer of about £32 million.
Correa, meanwhile, is expected to earn almost £80,000 a week at Goodison Park. If a deal to leave can be agreed with the president, of course.
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