Tottenham Hotspur could be thinking about making a new approach for a Serie A winger who was on the radar of Antonio Conte before, according to a report in Italy.
Although Conte has lost his job as head coach and managing director Fabio Paratici has stepped aside due to a ban by the Italian authorities, Tottenham are still being linked with some players from Serie A ahead of the summer transfer window.
Their primary task right now will be to work out who their next head coach will be, but there are issues in their playing squad that will need addressing fairly soon after.
Therefore, a report in Italy is predicting that Tottenham could present themselves in the race for Udinese winger Gerard Deulofeu.
Deulofeu was under consideration by Tottenham during the January transfer window. At the time, Conte and Paratici were still making decisions for the club’s future.
They were eager to bring him in before having to settle for a loan deal for Villarreal’s Arnaut Danjuma instead.
According to Mondo Udinese, though, Tottenham could still come back in for Deulofeu even without Conte and Paratici present.
The Udinese-focused website claims that the Serie A side might have to cash in on the former Everton man. By the time the summer comes around, there will only be one year remaining on his contract.
Therefore, they are no longer in a position to be requesting €20million (£17.6m) for him. That was their previous asking price in the summer of 2022, when Napoli were showing an interest.
Any new fee for Deulofeu will be within reach for Tottenham if they decide to revive their pursuit.
Deulofeu could find a role in various systems for Tottenham
Their plans for him may well depend on not only their own off-field changes, but how the player himself recovers from a knee injury that has kept him on the sidelines since January.
Prior to that, Deulofeu had registered 10 goal contributions (seven assists and three goals) from 18 appearances between Serie A and the Coppa Italia this season.
His overall record for Udinese is 68 appearances, 18 goals and 14 assists. The Spaniard has been slightly more effective for them than he was in English football with either Watford or Everton.
But Tottenham could give him a third chance in the Premier League at the age of 29 should they decide a move is still worthwhile.
Deulofeu is a different kind of player to the one that left Watford in 2020. Known as a winger before, he has operated more centrally for Udinese.
Therefore, he could be useful to Tottenham in a variety of different systems. That might be why their interest is still lingering despite the uncertainty about their managerial situation.
