Fabio Paratici wants Tottenham Hotspur to sign Cagliari midfielder Nahitan Nandez to add greater reliability to Nuno Espirito Santo’s current options, according to Gianluca Di Marzio.
Spurs are now on the Uruguayan’s trail after Nandez handed in a transfer request. He also penned an open letter to Cagliari’s supporters on Instagram last week, apologising for any hurt caused by asking the Gli Isolani to honour their agreement to sanction a transfer.
Nandez had attracted the interest of Inter Milan already this summer after producing an emphatic campaign last term. The 25-year-old scored twice and offered three assists over 32 Serie A appearances, as he helped carry Cagliari to safety.
But Inter Milan were unable to agree to terms with Cagliari, so Nandez’s best hopes of a transfer now reside in the Premier League. Tottenham are ready to make a serious play to sign Nandez after making initial contact with his Serie A side.
Paratici is the one driving Tottenham’s interest in Nandez, having observed his displays for Cagliari while Juventus’ Sporting Director. The Italian believes Nandez can offer Nuno a more reliable option in the engine room than the Portuguese’s current options.
Nuno utilised Oliver Skipp, Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg and Dele Alli as his central three against Manchester City on Sunday. But Alli is not best-suited to the deeper position and struggled to show his creativity while occupying a defensive role.
Cagliari specialists Centotrentuno had already cited Spurs as entering the race for the 41-cap international, adding Gli Isolani value him at €36m (£31m). Tottenham, though, hope to sign Nandez on a season-long loan deal that carries an obligation to buy next summer.
Cagliari could accept Tottenham loan approach for Nandez
While Inter’s pursuit of Cagliari midfielder Nandez failed, the Nerazzurri came close and left a blueprint for Tottenham to follow. Gazzetta dello Sport reported last month that the two Serie A sides had agreed on a temporary deal that carried a purchase clause for next year.
Inter agreed to pay Cagliari €5m (£4m) for a season-long loan, but seemingly failed to settle on the purchase terms. The San Siro giants even had personal terms sewn up, with a €3m-a-year (£49k-p/w), three-season contract in place.
Tottenham should be able to match both the fee Inter offered Cagliari and personal terms agreed with Nandez. Thus seeing Paratici land the midfielder, who is also capable of playing out wide, he wants to bolster Nuno’s squad.
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