The print edition of El Periodico Mediterraneo (11/07/22 – as relayed by Sport Witness) have claimed that Tottenham midfielder Giovani Lo Celso wants to join Villarreal ‘no matter what’ this summer.
Lo Celso has been left out of Tottenham’s pre-season tour of South Korea (Charlie Eccleshare), which is seemingly a confirmation that he is not in Antonio Conte’s plans for the upcoming season.
Marca reported this week that Spurs want to recoup as much of the €40m (£33.7m) they paid for the Argentine as possible this summer but suggested that Villarreal would need to sell players before making an offer for the midfielder.
AS subsequently revealed that the Yellow Submarine hope to take advantage of the midfielder’s desire to return to the El Madrigal this summer to push through a favourable deal.
According to El Periodico Mediterraneo’s latest update, Lo Celso has his heart set on linking up with Unai Emery’s side once again on the back of his successful loan spell at the club.
This is because the midfielder is allegedly keen to play regularly in order to keep himself in Argentina’s starting eleven ahead of the World Cup.
The report asserts that Tottenham are likely to demand between €25-€30m (£21.1m-£25.3m) which could be ‘prohibitive’ for Villarreal.
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It is explained that the La Liga club could help fund a move for Lo Celso by selling the likes of Pervis Estupinan and Arnaut Danjuma, or they could sign him on a loan deal with an obligation to buy, thereby delaying the payment until next summer.
Spurs Web Opinion
Lo Celso might be desperate to return to Villarreal but Tottenham would not want to sell the midfielder below his market value. The 26-year-old is not likely to have any shortage of suitors.
I expect Spurs to hold out for their valuation to be met by the La Liga club just as they did during their negotiations with Ajax for Steven Bergwijn.
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