Tottenham Hotspur may still be interested in Inter Milan defender Alessandro Bastoni after sending scouts to study the Italian international several times in recent seasons, according to veteran scout Mick Brown.
Spurs apparently tracked the 25-year-old while he was still playing for Italy’s U21s, thanks to their contacts in the Italian market, and continue to hold him in high respect.
According to Brown, Bastoni was’very highly thought of’ at Spurs a few seasons ago, having impressed with his defensive prowess and confidence on the ball since a young age.
Although their curiosity persisted, Bastoni appears to be settled at Inter; the ‘elite’ 25-year-old has established himself as one of the world’s top centre-backs in recent seasons, and he signed a new five-year contract 18 months ago.
Tottenham target Alessandro Bastoni
‘They kept an eye on him.’
Brown feels Bastoni is still well-regarded at Spurs, after the club shown real interest in the 25-year-old a few years ago:
“[Bastoni] is an animal defensively, not afraid to jump in, and he’s very aggressive, but he’s also comfortable on the ball and can play out.
“I always anticipated he would make the switch to the Premier League. I expected him to join the Spurs.
“They were keeping an eye on him and had sent spies out on several occasions.
“This was due to their contacts in the Italian market with the previous Juventus director who was present.
“How far they got towards signing him, I’m not sure, but I know they wanted him and he was very highly thought-of there, so I expect he still is.”
Tottenham would greatly benefit from another central defender at this point in the season, especially someone of Bastoni’s caliber, given they are currently without Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven.
The duo, who have been out since December due to injury, are likely to return ‘around the back end of January’, leaving Ange Postecoglou without his first-choice centre-backs for at least the next two Premier League games.
Tottenham are set to want a central defender in January due to continued injury problems, with Borussia Monchengladbach’s Ko Itakura surfacing as a possible candidate.
According to GIVEMESPORT sources, Spurs are considering resuming their pursuit of the Japan international in the coming weeks, having previously considered a move for him in 2023.
