Can Tottenham succeed where Liverpool failed last summer?
Tottenham Hotspur hope to agree a deal for Lyon’s Tanguy Ndombele, with SkySports reporting Lyon have set a £63 million asking price.
The problem with Lyon is, it’s never quite that easy.
Chairman Jean-Michel Aulas marches to his own beat and is notoriously hard to negotiate with. Just ask Liverpool.
The Reds thought they had agreed a deal for Nabil Fekir last summer at £52 million, The Telegraph reported.
But then on the eve of the World Cup, days later, Lyon pulled the plug, with no explanation, saying Fekir was not on the market.
Fekir remains at Lyon, and Aulas got his way.
Put Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy at the other end of negotiations, and the Ndombele transfer will not be easy.
Spurs and Lyon have concluded one deal, back in 2012 for Hugo Lloris. Tottenham will agree it was worth it.
Aulas may reflect that he made an error not selling Fekir last year, with the playmaker’s performance dipping this past season and his transfer value along with it.
But he also cares what the fans think, and does not want to be seen to be selling the club’s key players.
Tottenham must put the financial package together to convince Aulas he is making the right decision, and succeed where Liverpool failed.
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