Italian media has now claimed that Tottenham Hotspur boss Antonio Conte attempted to sign Inter Milan star Nicolo Barella in the summer.

The Lowdown: Spurs' statements of intent...

Fabio Paratici and the Lilywhites' hierarchy helped to orchestrate a serious summer overhaul at Hotspur Way amid the exciting and optimistic era of Conte.

Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison, Clement Lenglet, Djed Spence and Destiny Udogie all confirmed moves to Spurs, whilst the club also completed a permanent deal for star defender Cristian Romero following his loan spell in 2021/22.

The Spurs manager also managed to rid the north Londoners of arguable deadwood, at least in his eyes, with Steven Bergwijn, Joe Rodon, Giovani Lo Celso, Tanguy Ndombele, Sergio Reguilon and Harry Winks all completing moves away, either on loan or permanently.

Their bright start to the Premier League season is a reflection of Spurs growing more and more into a Conte team, but a report has now suggested that the Italian attempted another major coup.

The Latest: Conte tries to sign Barella...

According to Corriere dello Sport (via L'Interista), Conte made a move for midfielder Barella from his former club Inter, with Spurs even making contact in the form of an enquiry.

However, having already lost elite wing-back Ivan Perisic to their former manager, the Nerazzurri 'immediately' put a stop to any attempted move for the Italy international.

The Verdict: Would've been huge...

Reports suggest that Inter value the Italy international at up to £100m, so persuading them to let him go for a more reasonable valuation would've been a mountainous Paratici task.

Called 'world class' by former Azzurri national team coach Marcello Lippi, Barella would undoubtedly have injected some real quality into the Spurs midfield.

The 25-year-old is among Inter's top-performing by players by average match rating already this season, even attracting the joint-most fouls per 90 out of all his team-mates (WhoScored).

Time will tell if Spurs and Conte make another attempt to land the Euro 2020 winner in future transfer windows.