Antonio Conte has described Dejan Kulusevski as a shrewd investment for Tottenham Hotspur.
The Swede moved to north London in the latter stages of the January transfer window on loan until the 30th of June 2023 from Juventus which saw Spurs pay a €10 million (£8.3million) fee. €3 million (£2.5 million) of which is for season just gone, and a further €7 million (£5.8milion) for the current campaign.
Tottenham have the option to make the deal permanent for €30million (£26.3million) up until next summer unless the second clause – a €35million (£31million) mandatory buy clause – comes into play. That will be activated at the end of the 2022-23 season if two conditions are met during the campaign: that Kulusevski plays in 50% of the team’s Premier League matches for at least 45 minutes, and Spurs qualify for the Champions League (Fabrizio Romano).
Conte believes that the 22-year-old has the hunger to improve and is focused on becoming a key player within his side.
He told Sky Italia: “He is a crack and has a great desire to improve, he aims to become an important player. It was an excellent investment for Tottenham.”
SpursWeb Opinion
Some would argue that Kulusevski has already proven his worth of being an important player with his absence in recent matches having seen Conte’s side struggle for creativity in the final third of the pitch.
£31million in today’s transfer market represents something of a bargain and credit must go to Fabio Paratici.