Tottenham Hotspur were left £13million short of the fee needed to sign Ollie Watkins last summer due to Daniel Levy’s methods.
That’s according to The Times, who claim that Tottenham made a £20million bid to sign Watkins from Brentford in the summer of 2020.
Daniel Levy made a ‘take it or leave it’ offer to Brentford, and the Bees chose the latter option.
They instead sold Watkins to Aston Villa for £33million, with Levy’s stubborn stance leaving Tottenham well, well short of a deal.
Levy’s approach worked once…
The report notes that Levy tried a similar tactic in the race to sign Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg from Southampton last summer.
Tottenham offered £15million, and refused to go higher even when Everton offered £18million. Levy knew Hojbjerg wanted to join Tottenham, and got their man in the end.
It didn’t quite work with Watkins though, and that could cost them going forward.
Watkins now beyond Tottenham?
The Sun did report in May that Tottenham were eyeing up Watkins if Harry Kane left this summer, but they’re not alone in fancying him.
Goal claimed last month that Liverpool love Watkins and have him on their radar for a future move, with Jurgen Klopp a big fan.
Liverpool are a more appealing proposition than Tottenham right now, and after scoring 14 goals in the Premier League last season, Tottenham’s chances of signing Watkins may have vanished with Levy’s stance last year.
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