Jose Mourinho claimed that he would not swap Giovani Lo Celso for any other player in the world when questioned about whether he was disappointed that Tottenham missed out on Bruno Fernandes.
Spurs were heavily linked with a move for Fernandes last summer (Evening Standard) but ultimately failed to agree on a deal with Sporting Lisbon for the midfielder.
The club instead managed to secure the loan signing of Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis, before making the deal permanent in January.
Fernandes has hit the ground running since his move to Manchester United in
January, and has since admitted that he came close to joining Spurs last summer.
Football Insider reported last week that Mourinho believes Lo Celso is destined to become a star in the Premier League and wants to build a team around the Argentine.
From the way the Spurs boss answered the question about Fernandes, it certainly looks as if there may be some truth to that report.
When asked by Sky Sports if had any regrets that Spurs failed to get the deal for Portugal international over the line, Mourinho said: “I don’t know anything about that [Tottenham’s failed approach for Fernandes].
MORE SPURS STORIES
“But if that is true, and if Giovani Lo Celso was the player that came to Spurs [instead of Bruno Fernandes], then I would say I wouldn’t change Giovani Lo Celso for any player.
“[I wouldn’t swap Lo Celso] for any player. It’s not just for Bruno, but for any player.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Jose is obviously not in a position to give any other answer here but it is clear from the way he talks about Lo Celso that he rates the Argentine very highly. I expect the former Real Betis man to the mainstay of our midfield for many years to come. I personally do not believe we will come to regret the decision to go for him over Fernandes.
Keep up to date with all the latest Tottenham news and opinion by following SpursWeb’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
