Tottenham are considering a move for AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessié during the current transfer window to avoid a bidding war for him this summer, according to a report from The Telegraph.
Kessie is one of the most highly sought-after midfielders playing in Europe right now. He has been superb at AC Milan. And his deal with the Rossoneri runs out at the end of the season.
Currently away at AFCON, Ivory Coast’s midfielder Franck Kessie celebrates scoring his team’s first goal against Algeria (Getty Images)
Kessie scored 13 league goals last season. And he has already another five this time around.
With Tottenham running low of a midfielder that can create since Eriksen exit despite the fact of spending combined £100 on both Lo celso and Ndombele, Antonio Conte is believed to want to sign the attacking midfielder, though he would still be keen to sign a right wingback and a forward.
Adama Traore at Wolves one target but a move is not yet Tottenham could bid for AC Milan’s Franck Kessie in January to avoid a free transfer bidding war this summer, according to reports.
Antonio Conte talking to press in December:
“After only two weeks, I said we need to improve the quality of the squad,” he said. “For sure we need to improve the quality of the squad.
“I was sure after seven days, 10 days, two weeks about this. And then I make the evaluation who are the players I can count on and the players I can’t count [on].
The 25-year-old Ivory Coast international is out of contract this summer and can negotiate a free transfer with a club outside Italy, however Milan may be tempted to sell in the January transfer window to avoid losing him for nothing.
One of the main sticking points has been Kessie’s proposed salary with Milan’s latest offer at €6.5million-a-year, according to ESPN which Spurs have indicated they will surpass that figure with chairman Daniel Levy ready to sanction the deal given there would be no transfer fee involved.
What can Kessie’s addition bring to Spurs?
When Antonio Conte won the Premier League with Chelsea he had N’Golo Kante, Cesc Fabregas and Nemanja Matic; all of them close to their prime.
At Spurs he has Pierre Emile Hojbjerg, Oliver Skipp, Lo celso, Harry Winks and Tanguy Ndombele. They’re all fine, but none of the four would have been close to playing at the base of the 2016/17 Chelsea midfield that the title tilt was built on.
Kessie is a player who can tick a variety of boxes. He is probably best known as a holding midfielder.
However, he has made a significant impact in the final third over the last 18 months and would be a perfect partner in crime for Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg.
Franck Kessie of AC Milan celebrates after scoring the opening goal during the Serie A against Empoli FC (Getty Images)
A Kessie-Hojbjerg midfield axis would make every opposing side pause for thought. At present, Spurs are in with a genuine shout of providing Conte with exactly that.
Spurs are now in the driving seat for the Champions League places. And with that, a deal for Kessie this month would be an amazing bit of business. He has been described as ‘very special‘ this season.
Tottenham have put all of their top four rivals on notice with an amazing win. They beat Leicester 3-2 on Wednesday having been 2-1 down well into stoppage-time and a deal for Kessie in January would be a huge boost after the amazing win.