Tottenham Hotspur striker Richarlison received surprise interest from Al Ittihad ahead of the Saudi Arabian transfer deadline.
Al Ittihad turned their attention from Mohamed Salah to Tottenham Hotspur attacker Richarlison in recent days.
That is according to The Telegraph’s Mike McGrath, who reports that Al Ittihad were making late moves for Richarlison.
It’s stated that Al Ittihad held talks through intermediaries in an attempt to bring Richarlison to Saudi Arabia.
However, the Saudi Arabian side ran out of time and couldn’t progress a deal before the Saudi Arabian transfer deadline on Thursday.
Al Ittihad failed with Mohamed Salah move
Al Ittihad were seemingly trying to land a Premier League attacker one way or another in the final days of the Saudi Arabian transfer window.
The notes claims that Al Ittihad offered a huge £150million deal for Liverpool attacker Salah but the Reds said no.
That meant Al Ittihad switching their focus and turning to Tottenham hitman Richarlison instead.
Going from targeting a natural right winger to more of a central striker is slightly strange, but Al Ittihad wanted the Brazilian.
No official offer was made, unlike in the Salah case, with Al Ittihad ultimately unable to sign either player before the deadline.
Nuno Espirito Santo could have landed Richarlison
If a move had gone through, Richarlison would have been joining a former Tottenham Hotspur boss at Al Ittihad.
Nuno Espirito Santo is in charge of Al Ittihad right now and won the Pro League title last season.
Al Ittihad would love to repeat that success and Nuno seemingly thought that Richarlison could help achieve another title.
Nuno and Richarlison never crossed paths at Tottenham; the striker arrived in North London months after Nuno’s sacking.
The pair could have joined forces though and, with Al Ittihad clearly willing to spend, they could yet link up in Saudi Arabia down the line.
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