Former Inter Milan ace Daniele Adani is not buying claims that reported Tottenham and Liverpool target Nicolo Barella is one of the best midfielders in European football, speaking to Christian Vieri on his official Twitch channel.
With Inter flying high at the top of the Serie A table and closing in on a first Scudetto since Jose Mourinho’s heyday, a fiery pocket-rocket is the talk of the town right now.
The legendary Fabio Capello believes Barella is ‘without a doubt’ one of the continent’s top three central midfielders, Marcelo Lippi described him as ‘world-class’ while ex-Inter president Massimo Moratti sees shades of a young Paul Scholes in the Inter enforcer.
But Adani has broken ranks, claiming that, for all his qualities, Barella still has a lot to learn before he can be placed in the same category as a Toni Kroos or a Kevin de Bruyne.
“He improved after the first lockdown, now he is a complete player,” says Adani, the former Nerazzuri ace who spent two years at Inter between 2002 and 2004 (Sempre Inter).
“But if we want to talk about the best midfielders on the continent, we need to think about the likes of Ilkay Gundogan, Frenkie de Jong, Toni Kroos and Kevin de Bruyne.”
According to Calciomercato, Jose Mourinho’s Spurs tried to sign Barella in January and may be back on the blower next summer, with Inter yet to tie one of their key men down to a new, long-term contract.
InterLive, meanwhile, believe that Liverpool are willing to pay £55 million for a man who has a touch of the Steven Gerrards about him.
But if Adani is right and Barella would struggle to get into Manchester City’s starting XI, is he really the man to kick-start Liverpool’s trophy charge?
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