Tottenham miss out on top attacking midfield target

AC Milan have beaten Tottenham to the transfer of Palermo star Franco Vazquez

Tottenham will be forced to look for another top attacking midfield target after beating beaten by AC Milan for Franco Vazquez’s services. The 27-year-old Italian midfielder may not have fit the profile of a player Spurs usually purchase, but he was definitely the most accomplished attacking midfielder on their radar before choosing to remain in Serie A.

Reports from Italy claim that AC Milan were able to acquire Vazquez after meeting Palermo’s full asking price of 25 million pounds. The creative midfielder made it clear he wasn’t going to continue his career in Palermo due to the club’s struggles, but most believed he’d end up in England as opposed to remaining in Italy.

Tottenham, West Ham and West Brom were all quite interested in the player, but none of the three clubs chose to meet Palermo’s asking price. That may prove to be a foolish decision on behalf of the Premier League trio.

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Tottenham, in particular, will have to move on quickly to other attacking midfield targets. Vazquez is much older than the majority of Tottenham’s transfer targets, but his accomplishments in Italy made it clear he could make an immediate impact at White Hart Lane.

It’s a safe bet that Spurs’ hesitancy to meet Palermo’s full asking price came down to the player’s age. Daniel Levy and company likely believed that the price would come down as the transfer window drug on. While I can see the logic behind that thinking, it’s ultimately cost Tottenham the chance to sign a world-class attacking midfielder in his prime.

This transfer miss could have serious implications for Tottenham as the summer goes on. Spurs will either be forced to keep the likes of Nacer Chadli and Son Heung-Min to provide cover for the starting trio of Erik Lamela, Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli, or else they’ll need to reboot their search entirely.

I suspect you’ll see the latter take place. Just because we haven’t seen the club linked with a litany of attacking midfield targets this summer, it doesn’t mean they aren’t keeping tabs on a variety of players. Count on hearing Tottenham linked with a number of new, attacking midfield targets in the aftermath of the Vazquez news.]

Tottenham have missed out on a clear opportunity to acquire a world-class attacker, but his age didn’t make him a great financial purchase for the club. Now we’ll see the next wave of younger, cheaper options that Mauricio Pochettino and Daniel Levy have up their sleeves.

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