Tottenham might have been handed an unlikely boost in their efforts to sign Rafael Leao, with AC Milan worried that the Portuguese international might inflate his contract demands after scoring at the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
According to Corriere dello Sport, the reigning Serie A champions are sweating over what the 23-year-old could request in talks over a new deal with the San Siro side, with Milan eager to keep Leao in Italy despite mounting transfer interest in the superstar attacker.
CalcioMercatoWeb has recently reported that Tottenham are interested in signing Leao, along with the likes of Arsenal and Chelsea. And this latest update could play well into Antonio Conte’s hands as the Italian coach prepares to add another world-class forward to the ranks of Harry Kane and Heung-min Son.
With a release clause of €120m (£105m), Leao will be no cheap signing for Tottenham. However, with the attacker’s contract demands to remain at Milan set to skyrocket after the World Cup, the north London side might not get a better chance than this to bring the Portuguese international to the English capital.
Indeed, a good argument could still be made that Tottenham won’t move for Leao unless one of Kane or Son was to leave in 2023. However, with interest simply failing to go away, the 23-year-old forward could actually leave Milan if his form continues to improve in Qatar.
As we know, the World Cup has the potential to inflate any player’s valuation depending on what they do in the tournament. And whilst Leao’s price tag is already as high as it could possibly go, there’s simply no telling what could happen to the Portgual star if he continues to shine for the European nation in the Middle East.
Tottenham signing Leao will come down to more than just World Cup form
As mentioned, Leao joining Tottenham will have to take more than just the winger rejecting a new contract with Milan, with the futures of Son and Kane arguably more central to this story than the youngster’s form in the World Cup for Portugal.
After all, whilst there is a way that Conte could fit the attacker into Tottenham’s system with their current options, the risk of unbalancing the squad is simply too great for Spurs. Meaning that signing the attacker will have to be factor other aspects than Leao just being available in January.
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