Alasdair Gold has been speaking on his latest YouTube video about Tottenham Hotspur’s January transfer window, including their pursuit of Luis Diaz.
It was reported during the final week of the window Spurs had made their move for the now-former Porto winger, with a bid believed to be in the region of £37.6m rejected by the Portuguese side.
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And as the club continued their pursuit of the Colombian winger, it is believed Liverpool were forced to act on their long-term target in order to prevent Spurs from taking their man.
Jurgen Klopp’s side reportedly had Diaz on their shortlist for the upcoming summer window, however, Tottenham’s interest forced them to bring their approach forward.
The Reds secured the 25-year-old in a deal that could reportedly rise up to €60m (£49.9m), and Gold believes Daniel Levy was left incensed by the leaked reports which saw Liverpool forced into hijacking the deal.
Gold said: “We know he wanted to go to Liverpool, who’d had a long-term interest in him. And it almost felt like Spurs were played slightly in terms of trying to flush out those interested teams to actually make a move – and both did.
“You know, it really wasn’t that great at all. Spurs were furious about the Diaz stuff, they really were. From what I understand, within that club, they were blaming everyone. They were blaming leaks, they were blaming that, they were blaming like leaks to the media, but the story originally broke in Portugal. No one from Spurs is leaking that to the Portuguese media.”
TIF Thoughts on Diaz to Spurs…
We think had Spurs signed Diaz, not only would it have shown their willingness to back Antonio Conte, but it would’ve put them in a great position to clinch a spot in the top four.
The winger has been in exceptional form this season for Porto having netted 14 goals and provided five assists in just 18 league appearances in Portugal (via Transfermarkt).
However, it seems the player preferred a move to Liverpool, and who can blame him? Klopp’s side sit in a much more promising position for any potential new signing.
Perhaps this should act as a reality check for the Spurs board given it was just a matter of years ago since Spurs inflicted a heavy 4-1 defeat on Klopp’s Liverpool at Wembley – how things have changed since.
In other news: Tottenham outcast sends big message to Antonio Conte ahead of FA Cup clash