Alderweireld Linked with Roma Move
Toby Alderweireld
Spurs fans have been resigned to losing Toby Alderweireld at some point in the not too distant future but will that departure come more quickly than most of us feared? The thought of a sale to another Premier League club brings an unwelcome prospect so, is a switch to another European division a more logical suggestion?
Toby had previously hinted at a possible return to former club Ajax at some stage in his career but, before he makes it back to the Netherlands, will Serie A come calling?
Destination Italy?
As the weekend began, rumours of a bid for Alderweireld from Roma began to emerge. It’s always tough to assess any transfer story but they have persisted over the last two days so we should take a closer look.
We were all aware that there was a buy-out clause in Toby’s contract and it’s believed to have been set at £25 million. That seems low enough for a 30 year old at the top of his game but various reports have started the Roma bid from as low as 20 million Euros.
There are potential tweaks to that deal: In some quarters it’s been suggested that Roma have put together a package of add ons as a supplement to that initial 20 million bid. Another potential twist puts forward a player plus cash deal involving Roma’s 20 year old Nicolo Zaniolo.
Zaniolo is a midfielder who only established himself in the Roma team at the start of last season but he’s already won 2 caps for the senior Italian national side and has been marked down as a huge prospect.
What Next?
As always, there is some way to go if this type of deal gets over the line. Firstly, it seems unlikely that Spurs would want to sell their best defender for less than the asking price so an improvement on that offer would surely be needed before anything happens. You’d also have to ask whether Toby wants to take a step back at this stage.
The Zaniolo link also has a long way to travel with reports that Juventus are lining up a deal for the youngster. Further stories also claim that Moussa Sissoko may also be part of any deal that takes Nicolo Zaniolo to the new White Hart Lane.
As always, there’s lots to work through but this is one of the bigger transfer rumours from the weekend so it’s worth putting all aspects under the microscope.
