According to a report by The Athletic, Tottenham Hotspur decided against making a move for Liverpool centre half Virgil van Dijk, back in the summer of 2015.
It is claimed that Van Dijk was the second option on Spurs’ radar in the event they had failed in their bid to land Toby Alderweireld.
The Belgian international moved to Tottenham from Atletico Madrid for a deal worth £11.4m deal (Guardian) after impressing on loan at Southampton during the 2014-15 season.
The Saints signed Van Djik from Celtic the same summer as a replacement for Alderweireld and the Dutch international went on to have a couple of outstanding seasons at St. Mary’s before completing a £75 million move to Liverpool in January 2018 (Telegraph).
The 28-year-old has gone from strength to strength since moving to Anfield and is now widely recognised as one of the best central defenders in the world.
The Athletic reveals that the former Celtic man was on Tottenham’s radar for a while, with the Lilywhites continuing to monitor him closely after his move to Southampton.
Spurs Web Opinion
While Van Djik is certainly head and shoulders above most central defenders in world football at the moment, very few Spurs fans will regret the signing of Alderweireld considering the fee we signed him for. The Belgian has been a crucial player for us over the years and one hopes he is able to get back to his best soon and turn around the poor form he has been in since the turn of the year.
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