Fabrizio Romano confirms that Spurs did try to hijack £52m striker deal

Fabrizio Romano has confirmed that Tottenham did explore the possibility of hijacking Vitor Roque’s move to Barcelona.

Roque is widely viewed as one of the best-attacking talents to emerge from Brazilian football over the last few years.

The striker has found the back of the net 16 times and provided six assists in 32 appearances across all competitions this season for Athletico Paranaense (Transfermarkt) and has already been capped by the Selecao despite turning 18 just a few months ago.

Two weeks ago, Mundo Deportivo claimed Spurs, Manchester United, and Paris Saint-Germain were looking to hijack Roque’s move to Barca as the Catalan giants were delaying sending over the papers for the transfer despite striking a deal with Paranaense.

However, in the end, Barcelona managed to wrap up the deal for the center-forward, signing him for an initial fee of £26m, which could rise to £52m if some performance-related add-ons are achieved, with the youngster set to link with the La Liga side next summer (The Daily Mail).

Roque’s agent claimed last week that Tottenham and Man Utd were even willing to pay over €100m (£85.6m) for his client but the striker had his heart set on a move to Barca (Charla Podcast via The Mail).

Romano confirms Tottenham wanted Vitor Roque

While Romano admitted that he is unsure about such an offer from the North London side, he confirmed that the Lilywhites did show interest in the Brazilian starlet.

The Italian journalist told The Debrief Podcast: “I think there are many options on the market, many top clubs in Europe are working on strikers. Tottenham will try to keep Harry Kane until the end of the window, but if he does leave I’m sure they will enter the striker’s domino. 

“At the moment nothing is close with any player. What I can reveal is that I’m hearing what the agent said about Vitor Roque in public about Tottenham, I can’t confirm the €100m bid, but I can confirm that Tottenham tried to explore that possibility when the deal wasn’t closed with Barcelona.”

Spurs Web Opinion

Roque is seen by many as the next breakout star from Brazil, which might be why Tottenham were keen on snapping him up.

The club’s interest in the 18-year-old might not have been related to Harry Kane’s future as they would likely want a more readymade option to take the England captain’s place if he does depart.