Spurs and Leeds have been linked with a surprising late transfer bid for a proven Premier League striker on deadline day.
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Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly been offered the chance to hijack one of the transfer window’s most surprising deals at the last minute – as have Leeds United, with both Premier League sides linked with a surprising deal involving former Aston Villa striker Jhon Durán.
The Colombian forward is expected to have his time at Fenerbahçe, were he is currently on loan from Saudi side Al-Nassr, cut short and sources in the Turkish media reported that the 22-year-old was set to complete a controversial move to Russian outfit Zenit St. Petersburg – but now Spurs and Leeds could muscle in on the deal, according to several reports including one from TeamTalk’s Graeme Bailey. But will such a deal really happen, and is signing Durán a risk worth taking?
Why Spurs & Leeds could have the chance to sign Jhon Durán
It’s only a year since Durán’s impressive goalscoring form at Villa Park led to his move to wealthy Saudi Arabian side Al-Nassr in a deal worth an initial £64m plus add-ons – but his time in the Middle East did not go according to plan.
Although there were no problems with his goalscoring form (Durán scored 12 goals in just 18 appearances for Al-Nassr), the Colombian forward was loaned out to Fenerbahçe just six months after he joined amid reports of behind-the-scenes chaos at the club and personal issues which prevented him from settling.
Now his current side are happy to terminate his loan agreement early as they undergo a significant mid-season squad rebuild, and while Zenit have offered the striker a chance to move to Russia, he appears to be keen to move to the Premier League instead – understandably – and it seems that his representatives have offered him to potential suitors in order to get a deal over the line.
Spurs have the resources and PSR headroom to be busy on transfer deadline day and have worries about the fitness of Dominic Solanke and the future of Randal Kolo Muani, who has been linked with a return to former side Juventus. Leeds, meanwhile, had been in the bidding for Wolves striker Jørgen Strand Larsen but seem set to lose out to Crystal Palace based on current reporting.
Any deal for Durán would likely be on an initial loan, although it’s not clear exactly what terms Al-Nassr would accept – or whether they would expect a purchase option (or obligation) to be included in the deal.
If either Spurs or Leeds want to strike a bargain, however, it would likely be relatively straightforward for them to do so – the question is whether they want to gamble on a striker who has proven to be lethal in front of goal but whose career has become something of a rollercoaster early on.
Why Jhon Durán could still be a good signing for a Premier League side
Durán may have had a turbulent 12 months since leaving Aston Villa, but also represents a very rare commodity – a proven Premier League goalscorer who is readily available.
Despite being stuck behind Ollie Watkins for much of his time at Villa Park, Durán scored 12 goals in 29 appearances in his third and final season in England even though he started many of those games on the bench, and his combination of lethal finishing and dangerous off-ball movement – as well as his penchant for the spectacular, as Everton will know all too much about – made him appear likely to be worth every penny of his £64m transfer fee.
Things may not have gone quite according to plan since then but the goals came quickly in Saudi Arabia and while his work in Istabul was less prolific (he scored just five goals in 21 games in Turkey) there is little doubt that he could increase the firepower of many Premier League sides, and both Spurs and Leeds are among the teams in need of a little bit of extra threat up front.
Spurs may end up losing Kolo Muani on deadline day (although it appears more likely that he stays put at the time of writing) and are also waiting anxiously on news of Solanke’s health after the forward appeared to hurt his ankle against Manchester City on Sunday. Given how much time the former Bournemouth striker has already missed this season, few would blame for Spurs for adding another striker to the rotation.
Leeds, meanwhile, have been left slightly short-handed up front following Daniel Farke’s switch to a 3-5-2 formation and still need to score more goals to ensure that they steer clear of the relegation battle. With West Ham and Nottingham Forest below them both finding some form of late, Leeds may well be spooked into taking a chance on Durán.
It remains unclear whether such a deal can be struck or whether Spurs or Leeds have any interest – with reports so far only claiming that Durán’s team have spoken to potential suitors in the Premier League. But the opportunity is there for either side to take an intriguing deadline day gamble on a player with plenty of potential and plenty of goals under his belt already.