Football.London’s Alasdair Gold has poured cold water over reports suggesting that Tottenham Hotspur could land Philippe Coutinho this summer.
The Barcelona star has been heavily linked with a move to Spurs over the last couple of weeks, with reports indicating that the Catalan giants are desperate to offload the former Liverpool midfielder (Mundo Deportivo via Sport Witness).
Spurs are said to be willing to pay a multi-million-pound loan fee to land the 27-year-old this summer (Football Insider) but reports indicate that Barca prefer to sell.
Coutinho’s agent has already revealed that the midfielder would be keen to return to the Premier League (talkSPORT).
However, Gold believes that most of the rumours about Spurs’ pursuit of the Brazilian are unfounded.
He said: “I struggle to see Coutinho coming to Spurs because of the finances.
“Terrific player but feels like agent talk as Barcelona desperately need funds.”
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There have even been reports suggesting that the Lilywhites could offer Tanguy Ndombele and Toby Alderweireld in a swap deal for Coutinho but Gold has rubbished those claims (Sport).
He suggested that a cut-price deal late in the transfer window or a loan move is the only possible way the North Londoners could land the Barca star.
Gold added: “Spurs don’t want to sell Ndombele this summer and Alderweireld just signed a new deal.
“Only way I can see it happening is if late on, Coutinho and Barca can’t find a suitable destination to satisfy them both & Levy goes in with a late, low bid or loan.”
Spurs Web Opinion
Most of the reports linking us with a permanent move for Coutinho has come from the Catalan press. While it is clear that the La Liga giants want to remove the midfielder from their wage bill, I just cannot see us spending the kind of money it would take for us to sing the 27-year-old. Like Gold, I also believe that a loan with an option to buy is the only deal that we are likely to go for.
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