Tottenham Hotspur is still a potential destination for Roma star Nicolo Zaniolo, with Leggo claiming that the Serie A giants will be forced to sell if a £53 million offer arrives at the Stadio Olimpico this summer.
Francesco Totti is not an easy man to please.
But, after another season in which has continued to establish himself as one of the most exciting young midfielders not only in Italy but in Europe as a whole, a Giallorossi legend had nothing but gushing praise for a 20-year-old who many have deemed ‘Totti’s heir’.
“Zaniolo is a great player: young, promising, he has a wonderful future,” the Stadio Olimpico legend said during an Instagram Q&A. “He has enormous potential. He is one of the strongest young people around.”
That ‘enormous potential’ has not gone unnoticed from some of Europe’s biggest and best.
With Roma director Gianluca Petrachi fully aware that he may be forced to cash-in for the right price, particularly if the capital club miss out on Champions League qualification again, Jose Mourinho will be licking his lips in anticipation.
A powerful yet technically-gifted attacking midfielder who belies his rangy 6ft 3ins frame when floating through challenges at will, Zaniolo shares plenty of similarities with some of the greatest players ever to shine under a Portuguese tactician.
There are shades of Frank Lampard, of Mesut Ozil, of Paul Pogba.
Zaniolo’s agent, Claudio Vigorelli, thinks the enigmatic Paul Gascoigne is a more accurate comparison. He told The Mail last year that Spurs had shown serious interest in signing the ‘Italian Gazza’ before landing Giovani lo Celso instead.
However, with a Christian Eriksen-shaped void in need of being filled, do not rule out the prospect of Zaniolo and Lo Celso shining together in north London next season.
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