Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly approached Barcelona about signing midfielder Franck Kessie.
After his contract with AC Milan expired, Kessie joined Barcelona at the start of the 2022/23 season. Despite this, Barcelona is looking to offload the Ivorian in the summer transfer window in order to earn finances to recruit new players and comply with financial fair play standards (FFP), and Spurs are interested in bringing him to north London.
Tottenham were already interested in January, and Sport reports that they have asked Barcelona how much Kessie will cost in the forthcoming transfer window. According to the article, €25 million would entice the Blaugrana, with the club preferring any trnsaction to take place by June 30 in order to avoid falling behind schedule.
Inter Milan is also interested, with Kessie reportedly preferring a return to the Italian capital and Serie A.
However, Barcelona are apparently dubious that an Italian club will pay the asking price for Kessie, implying that a move to Spurs is imminent.
Kessie has made 39 appearances in all competitions for Xavi’s side this season, with more than half of them coming off the bench. With Pedri, Gavi, and Frenkie De Jong above of him in the pecking order, the 26-year-old is ready to depart Camp Nou in quest of more consistent first-team minutes.
Surprisingly, Kessie agreed to a four-year contract extension with Barcelona until June 2026, including a €500 million buy-out provision. However, the club’s administration is willing to waive that cost in order to get him off the books.
Spurs are looking for more creativity in central midfield, which has been badly lacking this season. Kessie would have had more freedom to push forward and join attacks with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, Yves Bissouma, Oliver Skipp, and Rodrigo Bentancur all deeper in midfield.
Kessie, a box-to-box midfielder, would nonetheless do his defensive duties with zeal at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
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