AS Roma’s Nicola Zaniolo was willing to take a pay cut in order to leave the club, with AC Milan and Tottenham Hotspur his preferred destinations during the January transfer window, according to his mother.
Zaniolo had been with Roma since the summer of 2018 when he joined from Inter Milan. The midfielder accumulated 128 appearances in all competitions for Giallorossi over the years, contributing 24 goals and 18 assists along the way (Transfermarkt).
The 23-year-old was heavily linked with a move to Spurs in January (90 min) but no such move materialised. The player actively attempted to faciliate a move away from Roma, leaving Jose Mourinho to publicly claim he does not want players at the club who do not want to be there (Gazzetta).
It was thought Bournemouth had also made an approach for the player last month (Fabrizio Romano). The Italian club later announced that Zaniolo had been sold to Turkish side Galatasaray, in a deal thought to be worth €16.5 million (GOAL).
Things could have been very different had the player gotten his own way with his mother explaining he was prepared to sacrifice his earnings to secure the move he wanted, only for both clubs to fail to come to an agreement with the Serie A outfit.
Francesco Costa, Zaniolo’s mother, told Corriere dello Sport: “We had the chance to change (in the summer of 2022). We spoke to the club, who said he could leave for 50 or 60 million euros,”
“He didn’t receive such offers, so he remained at the club and he was happy about it. However, he expected a contract extension.
“It wasn’t about the money. Nicolo realised he was no longer part of the project. Roma told him they wanted to sell in June, so he felt he had been pushed aside.
“It was said that he refused to play for Roma, that he is a traitor. People don’t know he played with injections because of a shoulder injury.”
She added: “Nicolo would have lowered his wages or asked for the same money he earned at Roma (if he had joined) AC Milan or Tottenham. However, these clubs didn’t reach an agreement,”
“Then there was Bournemouth, who did not offer 5 million euros per season. That is not true.”
“It was almost an immediate choice (to join Galatasaray) because they made us feel trust. They wanted Nicolo, and it wasn’t difficult to find an agreement.”
Spurs Web Opinion
I think Zaniolo acted poorly in this situation and whether he wanted to leave Roma or not, he essentially burned his bridges there and didn’t even get the big move he wanted anyway.
It says a lot that he would have reduced his wages for us, but sometimes things just don’t work out. Unfortunately, Spurs are now in a predicament with injuries to key midfielders and are unable to do anything about it until the summer window opens.