Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino looks set to do a bit of business in Italy with the hopes of finding the ideal replacement for the injured Mousa Dembélé, and it is reported that two 21-year-old starlets could be the target.
According to the Sun, the North London club are planning a £35m move for Cagliari midfielder Nicolo Barella, while a Calcio Mercato report, via Team Talk, indicated that Napoli wonderboy Amadou Diawara’s interest in playing in the Premier League could also very well tempt Spurs to stick an offer in front of him.
Dembélé suffered a painful ankle injury in Spurs’ 3-2 victory over Wolverhampton Wanderers last weekend and has been ruled out action until the New Year. The Belgian is also out of contract at the end of the season and the recent injury blow could possibly trigger the club to not offer him a new deal.
But Pochettino, who is surely expected to receive the full backing of the club’s board after making no signings in the summer transfer window, looks set to find Dembélé’s replacement in January already in order to finish the season with a full squad after what has been an injury-prone start to the season for Spurs.
Barella has played almost every minute of the season for his boyhood club Cagliari and has captained the team on three occasions already. His consistent form in the midfield earned him his debut for the Italian national team in a 1-1 draw with Ukraine last month and he has been included in Roberto Mancini’s 27-man squad for this week’s fixtures against Portugal and the U.S.A.
Diawara, on the other hand, has had a frustrating start to the season as he struggles to get the nod in Carlo Ancelotti’s Napoli team. With only four starts since August, the Guinean international has mostly been watching on from the sidelines and is interested in broadening his horizons in order to get more game-time under the belt. Diawara’s versatility could make him a perfect fit for Pochettino as he has the ability to play as either a central or defensive midfielder which is very similar to Dembélé’s style of play.
