On the latest episode of the Last Word On Spurs podcast, Ricky Sacks, Jamie Brown and Sky Sports’ Lyall Thomas have been discussing the summer transfer window and some of the deals that the north London club could do ahead of next season.
One topic of discussion on the recent episode, which was titled ‘Summer Transfer Window (Ft. Lyall Thomas)‘, was Lille right-back Zeki Celik. The Turkish international has been linked with a move to the north London club in recent weeks, which is unsurprising given fellow right-back Kyle Walker-Peters has already departed, whilst Serge Aurier continues to be linked with AC Milan.
Here’s what Thomas had to say about Celik and Spurs’ chances of signing him this summer:
“He’s one they’ve looked at, but how far that interest goes, I’m not so sure. There’s been a lot of rumours of Lille players and lots of links with Lille players with Spurs and I think there’s an obvious reason for that, which is obviously Jose’s connections there with the sporting director and with his assistants having worked there before, so I think that was always going to happen.”
TIF Thoughts…
As Thomas suggests, it is perhaps unsurprising to hear Spurs being linked with a Lille player such as Celik, when you consider Mourinho’s strong relationship with Luis Campos, and with two members of his backroom staff, Joao Sacramento and Nuno Santos, having joined Spurs from Lille when Mourinho was appointed (per Football.London), which suggests they will have a good understanding of the players on offer at the French club.
Would you like to see Spurs sign Celik this summer?
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From what Thomas says, it seems as if the 23-year-old has been ‘looked at’ but that is the extent of Spurs’ interest thus far, so we may perhaps have to wait to find out the conclusion of Aurier’s possible move to AC Milan before we find out whether the Lille man is a genuine target for Mourinho’s side this summer.