Inter Milan central defender Alessandro Bastoni will not leave the club during the January transfer window, according to Fabrizio Romano.
The transfer expert believes that it will not be an easy deal for Tottenham to try to bring the Italian international to north London in the future given the fact that he is under contract at the San Siro until the summer of 2024 (transfermarkt).
Romano claimed that Inter are unlikely to be prepared to sell the 23-year-old for a reported €50-60m (£43.3-£52m) and will hold onto the player despite speculation.
Tottenham were heavily linked with a move for Bastoni during the summer transfer window with reliable journalist Alasdair Gold revealing on his YouTube channel (starting at 10:07) back in late May that the former Atalanta product as the club’s top defensive target.
A move for Bastoni failed to materialise and Spurs were instead forced to switch their attention to adding cover to the left side of defence by bringing in Clement Lenglet on a season-long loan deal from Barcelona.
Romano wrote in his daily email briefing for CaughtOffSide: “Sorry Tottenham fans, but I have no news on Alessandro Bastoni right now; he has a long-term contract with Inter and he won’t leave in January, despite speculation to the contrary. I can’t even give you a clear idea of an asking price as I don’t think Inter would name one, but I’m sure they won’t sell him for the reported €50-60m I’ve seen around.
“Bastoni is a top player and it makes sense that the Antonio Conte link keeps coming up, but, honestly, I don’t see this as an easy deal for Spurs. As I said yesterday, though, I think we will see ins and outs at the club this January as they will try to support Conte in the market.”
SpursWeb Opinion
Tottenham will have to break the bank to bring in a top quality left-sided central defender in the summer with Josko Gvardiol looking as if he is on his way to Chelsea and Inter Milan determined to keep hold of Bastoni.
Lenglet has shown that he lacks pace and has been caught out on a few occasions, notably against Newcastle to prove the deal should not be made permanent.