Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly pressing ahead with a move for another impressive Serie A talent, as the club prepares for the return of former sporting director and transfer guru Fabio Paratici.
The Italian’s two-and-a-half-year Fifa ban for alleged financial irregularities dating back to his spell at Juventus is due to end in July, with Paratici poised to return to north London and take up a new role as soon as he officially can.
The 52-year-old has played his part in bringing a number of players to Tottenham from his homeland over the years, most of which had proved to be a major sucess.
Indeed, the likes of Cristian Romero, Dejan Kulusevski, Rodrigo Bentancur, Destiny Udogie and Gugliemo Vicario were all brought to the club from Italy under the guidance of Paratici.
And it now appears that another impressive Serie A talent could be Spurs bound in the shape of Lazio centre-back Mario Gila, although they will have some major rivals to deal with to win that particular race.
While TEAMtalk have previously revealed Chelsea’s firm interest in the player, a fresh report from Italy has named Tottenham among a list of illustrious suitors for the 24-year-old talent.
Indeed, Il Messaggero states that PSG and Real Madrid have also targeted a player who has come on leaps and bounds over the last couple of seasons.
Tottenham’s interest in bringing in another quality central defender is no great surprise given Romero’s reported desire to join Atletico Madrid this summer.
The Argentine is unhappy at the club’s decision to sack Ange Postecoglou, as was evidenced by the timing of his tweet on the matter, which came straight after the announcement of Thomas Frank as the Australian’s successor.
To that end, it’s very likely that Paratici has used his extensive knowledge of Italian football to single out the impressive Gila as a suitable alternative to the World Cup winner.
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Gila price tag set amid Tottenham links
Both Chelsea and Bournemouth have already signalled their interest in the Lazio man and have had offers already turned down.
Indeed, it’s been reported that the Cherries made a proposal of €40m (£34m), while the Blues offered €35m (£30m) for the Spaniard.
Both of those offers were knocked back due to Maurizio Sarri’s return to the club, with the Italian coach making it clear that he wants to keep Gila on board.
The 66-year-old has reportedly told the Rome-based outfit that he intends to fix the minor ‘flaws’ in Gila’s game and has urged them not to sell the player as a result.
However, it’s thought that a bid in the region €50m (£42.5m) would be hard for Lazio to turn down for the former Real Madrid academy graduate.
The former Spain Under-21 international, who is under contract until 2027, made 43 appearances in all competitions for Lazio during the 2024/25 campaign, scoring twice.
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