He’ll face Tottenham in the Champions League at Wembley tonight but Monaco’s Joao Moutinho has admitted a Spurs switch was “minutes” away in 2012, report the Daily Mail.
Spurs have often left it late in transfer windows, signing Moussa Sissoko late on Deadline Day this year but it was nearly Euro 2016 winner Moutinho with a £24 million fee agreed four years ago.
“It’s true I was a few minutes from signing for Spurs,” claimed Moutinho when speaking to reporters in the lead up to this evening’s Group E clash in North London.
With Moutinho’s proposed switch to White Hart Lane falling through due to paperwork not being completed ahead of the deadline, the experienced midfielder remained at FC Porto where he won eight major honours in a three year spell between 2010 and 2013.
Transferring to Ligue 1 giants Monaco in 2013, the Portuguese international has nearly made 100 appearances for the Principality outfit while also winning Euro 2016 with his national side of course.
A key member of Leonardo Jardim’s squad, Moutinho is focused on the job in hand this evening, claiming: “Both sides are good sides and we have to be focused and concentrate if we want to come away with something.”