Nicolo Zaniolo was the subject of serious interest from Tottenham over the summer, the Roma star’s agent has claimed.
After two transfer windows without spending any cash, Spurs set about making some exciting additions to their squad following their Champions League final disappointment.
Tanguy Ndombele joined for £54million from Lyon, Ryan Sessegnon was a £24.3million addition from Fulham, and Giovani Lo Celso was also brought in on loan from Real Betis.
Zaniolo’s agent Claudio Vigorelli told the Daily Mail that Spurs were looking at the Roma midfielder before opting to sign Argentina international Lo Celso.
He said: “He renewed with Roma and is fine at Roma but obviously we enjoyed the great interest of Tottenham, who were the runners up in the Champions League.
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“Their concrete interest in him shows how good the boy’s season was.
“Spurs thought a lot about Nicolo before taking Lo Celso, they focused their attention on him seriously, more than any other club even beyond the Premier League.
“I can say that only Mauricio Pochettino’s club has carried out such in-depth market analysis in England.
“The boy has a mild character despite what is written and sometimes is said in Italy.”
Zaniolo is still just 20 and had a good first season with Roma following his 2018 move from Serie A rivals Inter.
His performances have even earned him his first call-ups to the Italy national side.
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“He is a serious professional on whom Italy will rely on in the future,” Vigorelli added. “He was born to be a footballer and wants to do football at great levels.
“Fonseca has designed an important role for him and Fonseca has trained young talents very well in the past.”
Comparisons were even drawn with Tottenham and England legend Paul Gascoigne by Zaniolo’s agent.
He said: “Zaniolo resembles Gascoigne very much for his physical qualities but he has a much milder character.
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“Now Fonseca is playing him in central midfield, a position he likes, where he can render and become just like Gascoigne: devastating with his technique and quality.
“He is a creative player who has pace and muscle, which is a rare commodity in Italy.”