Tottenham Hotspur were hoping to sign Fiorentina striker Dusan Vlahovic this summer – and it sounds like his contract situation is becoming a real saga.
Tottenham had to look for striking options this summer just in case Harry Kane did end up leaving the club amid strong interest from elsewhere.
One of Fabio Paratici’s targets was Fiorentina hitman Vlahovic, but no deal materialised with Kane deciding to stay put.
Vlahovic, who sees himself as being like Zlatan Ibrahimovic, has become a star in Italy.
Tottenham’s interest in Vlahovic
Vlahovic hit 21 goals in 37 games for Fiorentina last season, and already has four goals in six league games this season.
The 21-year-old looks like a star of the future, and Alfredo Pedulla reported in August that Tottenham were waiting on a decision from Fiorentina having made a move for Vlahovic.
Fiorentina didn’t sell in the end, but Tottenham’s interest in Vlahovic isn’t over.
Calciomercato claimed just last week that Tottenham are planning to make a new Vlahovic bid in January.
That could be the ideal time to strike. Vlahovic is out of contract in 2023 and fast approaching the final 18 months of his deal.
Paratici may sense a bargain for Tottenham with Vlahovic’s contract becoming a huge concern for Fiorentina.
Commisso comments on Vlahovic contract
Fiorentina owner Rocco Commisso has now spoken about Vlahovic to Tuttomercatoweb.
Commisso claims he has offered Vlahovic a deal to become Fiorentina’s highest-paid player. More than Gabriel Batistusta, more than Rui Costa – that’s how much Fiorentina want to keep Vlahovic.
The number are €40million over five years – around £130,000-a-week. That’s an eye-watering sum for Fiorentina to be offering.
Unfortunately for them, Commisso is being given the runaround. Vlahovic says to speak to his agents, his agents say to speak to Vlahovic.
Commisso feels Vlahovic is ‘taking a big risk’ at the moment, because he is turning down life-changing money.
“I do not know if he will sign, we are calm,” said Commisso. “We have been working on it for months, one day we are positive, others less. But I am neither positive nor negative.”
“I talk to Dusan and he tells me that he only thinks on the pitch and that I have to talk to his agents, then I talk to the agents and they tell me that I have to talk to the player. We in Florence are professionals and we do everything seriously. The agent comes here to negotiate, he has to negotiate. The thing I say is that it would be the largest figure ever given to a Fiorentina player, including Batistuta and Rui Costa.”
“He’s taking a big risk, I told him. We offer him a 5-year contract at 40 million euros gross. I was working a year to take what it would take in two or three days,” he added, as well as admitting that he is a ‘little bit’ annoyed with the situation.
If Tottenham do want Vlahovic in January, they may have to make him quite a considerable offer to make the deal happen.
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