Former Brazil striker Hulk has revealed that he came quite close to joining Tottenham Hotspur a few years ago but the move fell through due to complications in acquiring a work permit.
During his time at Porto, Hulk was one of the most feared forwards in European football with his lightning pace, incredible strength, and prolific record in front of goal.
The versatile striker, who could operate as a number nine, a number ten or a right-winger, was also a regular in the Brazilian national team at the time and it looked inevitable that he would make a switch to one of the biggest sides in Europe at the time.
However, such a move never came for one reason or another, with the forward instead choosing to move to Russian side Zenit Saint Petersburg in 2012 before joining Shanghai SIPG in the Chinese Super League in 2016.
Hulk came close to joining Mourinho’s Tottenham
Hulk has now revealed that he did have a chance to move to the Premier League later in his career when Jose Mourinho came calling but he revealed that his move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium fell through since he could not get a work permit.
The 37-year-old, who now plays for Brazilian side Atletico Mineiro, told Trivela: “Mourinho even got in touch with my agent about taking me to Tottenham, but then they realised I couldn’t play in England. I had offers from Turkey, Portugal and England.
“But I couldn’t play in England, because I’d been in China for four and a half years, and I couldn’t play in English football, because there’s a rule there that you have to be either in the Brazilian national team for a short period of time, or in the five leagues they select.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Tottenham likely approached Hulk in January of 2020 as Mourinho was dealing with a major injury crisis at that point with Harry Kane and a number of other forwards sidelined with injuries.
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