Alasdair Gold has revealed that he does not expect Tottenham to complete a deal for AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie in January.
Kessie’s future at the San Siro is still up in the air, with the midfielder’s current contract having just six months left to run.
Antonio Conte has reportedly asked the Tottenham hierarchy to snap up the 24-year-old in January. Some sources have even claimed that Spurs have offered a contract worth €10m-a-year (£8.4m) to Ivory Coast international.
According to CalcioMercato, Tottenham face competition from Paris Saint-Germain for Kessie, whose contract demands are a long way off what Milan are ready to offer.
Gold has now sighted Kessie’s involvement in the African Cup of Nations as a reason why clubs will be reluctant to complete a January deal for the midfielder.
When asked about Tottenham’s pursuit of the Milan star in a Q&A on Football.London, the journalist said: “I think January is going to be difficult to sign any players involved in the African Cup of Nations.
“Kessie will be away with the Ivory Coast for much of the month and with his contract up in the summer it’s difficult to see clubs in a cash-strapped post-pandemic world spending money on him sixth months before or for him to leave Milan now and give up the prospect of a bigger signing on fee and potentially wages among the fight for his services.”
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Gold also added that signing a central midfielder is not a priority for Conte in the January transfer window unless some players depart.
He added: “At the moment I can’t see a creative midfielder coming in unless there was a deal that arose on the market that was simply to good to pass up.
“Of course, Conte could return his player evaluation and decide that a playmaker is absolutely essential. Otherwise, yep, I agree that it would be linked to the departure of a current attacking midfielder and replacing them if needed.”
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I suspect Kessie is being lined up as an option for the summer than January. The midfielder might want to leave the San Siro as a free agent in order to get a bumper salary at his next club.
The only issue for Spurs would be that they could face a lot more competition for the 24-year-old in the summer than they might next month.
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