Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino says that he wanted to sign AS Monaco-owned Inter Milan forward Keita Balde.
Pochettino has revealed that he has been following Balde since the 23-year-old was at the Barcelona academy.
The Tottenham boss has also said that he wanted to sign the Senegal international forward in the summer of 2017 before he moved to Ligue 1 outfit Monaco from Lazio for a transfer fee reported by Sky Sports to be worth £27.9 million.
Calciomercato.it quotes Pochettino as saying regarding trying to sign Balde: “Yes, it’s true. I’ve been following him since he was growing up in Barcelona while I was at Espanyol.
“He was always an interesting profile for us, but then he chose Monaco. He remains an excellent striker.”
Bullet dodged?
Tottenham manager Pochettino’s aforementioned comments suggest that he rates Balde highly, but perhaps the North London outfit have dodged a bullet.
The Senegal international failed to make a massive impact at Monaco last season, and scored eight goals and provided five assists in 1484 minutes of Ligue 1 football, according to WhoScored.
The former Lazio forward moved to Inter Milan on loan from Monaco in the summer transfer window.
Interestingly, Tottenham will face Inter in Milan in the Champions League this evening.
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