Tottenham plot surprise move for Argentine star close to Lionel Messi - Reports
Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly plotting a move to sign Lionel Messi's Argentine teammate Rodrigo De Paul from Atletico Madrid. The midfielder looks destined to leave the Wanda Metropolitano in the summer.
According to Calciomercatoweb, Inter Milan, Juventus and AC Milan are in the running to sign De Paul. He has three years left on his contract with Atleti but is touted to leave. The 28-year-old has made 27 appearances across competitions this season, bagging two goals and providing four assists.
De Paul has been unable to shine for Diego Simeone's side and hasn't replicated the form he managed in Serie A with Udinese. A return to Italian football could be on the midfielder's radar.
However, Tottenham are also in the mix as they look to bolster their midfield options. Antonio Conte's future in the Spurs dugout is increasingly in doubt following an explosive press conference in the aftermath of his side's 3-3 draw with Southampton.
Conte deemed his squad of players selfish and took a swipe at his club's loser mentality. Spurs will be keen to improve their squad even if the Italian is no longer at the helm in the summer when his contract expires.
Tottenham have an excellent relationship with Atleti following the loan move of Sergi Reguilon to Simeone's side last summer. The Premier League club's managing director Fabio Paratici is reportedly prepared to offer €30 million including bonuses to sign De Paul.
The Argentine won the FIFA World Cup with Lionel Messi last December, playing a prominent role in the riumph in Qatar.
Danny Rose on Lionel Messi's demolition of Tottenham in 2018
Lionel Messi destroyed Tottenham in the 2018-19 Champions League group stage. Then at Barcelona, the Argentine wreaked havoc for the Blaugrana, scoring a brace at the Wembley.
Danny Rose, an unused Spurs substitute, has told 90min that it was the best individual performance he had ever seen. He explained how former coach Mauricio Pochettino had instructed his men to try and stop the legendary forward:
"I think I saw one as I saw the best individual performance ever from Messi at Wembley. He hit the post three times doing the exact same move."
The English left-back continued by explaining Pochettino's gameplan to prevent Messi from dominating his side:
"Even before the game, the manager said, 'try your best, don't let him inside; if he comes inside, he is going to do a certain type of ball; don't let him do this'. Two minutes in, and he did it, and it was easier said than done!"