London’s Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly frozen talks over Radu Dragusin’s move to AS Roma. The club have decided to hold off on a final decision until the very end of the January window. Tuttomercatoweb (TMW) claims that even though the basic deal is ready, Spurs’ bosses want to stall for now.
Radu Dragusin’s Roman Holiday on Hold as Tottenham Hit the Brakes
Word got out earlier that the Romanian defender was right on the verge of leaving. He has already agreed on personal terms with the Giallorossi. Dragusin’s team apparently stepped in to push for this move, especially after his agent turned down an offer from Fiorentina.
While La Viola reached out before Roma, their struggle near the bottom of Serie A made them a tough sell. The player wants stability with a team near the top of the table. As a result, Roma became the clear favourite. They have stepped up their efforts lately to take advantage of Dragusin’s refusal to join a relegation battle.
Only a €5m gap originally stood between what each club wanted. However, TMW, via Sport Witness, says Tottenham has now moved the deal to a pending status. The Premier League side are obviously holding out for a permanent sale or a better cash offer. They don’t want to take Roma’s current offer: a loan with a €25m option to buy that isn’t mandatory.
This delay has plainly annoyed Dragusin’s camp. They expected things to wrap up quickly after speaking out publicly. Even so, Tottenham are not budging. They are waiting to see if a bigger bid shows up before the deadline hits.
Are Tottenham right?
Tottenham’s plan to wait it out is a big gamble. Still, it fits Tottenham’s usual style of trying to get every penny possible for their players. By hitting the pause button, the North London club are betting that a desperate buyer, maybe one facing a late injury crisis, will show up with a permanent offer closer to their asking price.
Taking a loan with just an option to buy gives Spurs no guaranteed money down the road. It basically let Roma try the player out for free while Tottenham take all the risk if Dragusin struggles or gets hurt again. Looking at just the money, saying no to a loose loan deal makes sense. This is especially true if the club think they can still get good money for Dragusin in the summer.
However, this high-stakes game could end badly if no better offers come in. Dragusin only wants Roma and won’t look at bottom-tier teams like Fiorentina, which really limits Tottenham’s power. Keeping a frustrated player who already has one foot out the door doesn’t help the manager or the mood in the locker room.
Plus, if Roma move on to someone else because Spurs waited too long, Tottenham could get stuck with an extra defender and his salary for six more months. While the board’s push for a guaranteed sale makes sense, being too stubborn in a fast-moving market can lead to missed chances. A middle ground, like a loan that turns into a permanent move after a few games, would probably work better for everyone than this standoff.