Tottenham Transfer News: Latest on Joao Moutinho and James Rodriguez Rumours
AS Monaco midfielder Joao Moutinhoย has revealed he was only "minutes" away from becoming a Tottenham Hotspur player in a deal to join the Premier League club from FC Porto in 2012.
Anthony Chapmanย of theย Sunย quoted the Portugal international speaking about the failed transfer ahead of his Monaco side's match against Spurs in the UEFA Champions League on Wednesday.
Moutinhoย said:ย
"Itโs true, I was a few minutes from signing for Spurs.
[...]
Here I am at Monaco and the focus is on putting in a performance to help us through to the next stage of the Champions League.
Spurs might be slight favourites but this is a very equal group (with CSKA Moscow and Bayer Leverkusen).
"
According to Chapman, Moutinho was ready to become a Spurs player in a ยฃ24 million deal, but the transfer collapsed at the last moment because the paperwork was not submitted in time. Spurs attempted to revive the deal in 2013, but the playerย opted for a move to Ligue 1.
The 30-year-old played six times for his country at Euro 2016, according toย WhoScored.com, as Portugal swept to a shock success in France.
In other news, Tottenham are reportedly in the race to capture Real Madrid superstar James Rodriguez should the Colombia international exit the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium.
According to Italian outletย Calciomercatoย (h/tย TalkSport),ย Spurs will battle Manchester United and Arsenal for the services of James, who has fallen out of favour with Real managerย Zinedine Zidane.
Here is the star in action for his club:
The 25-year-old scored eight goals and provided eight assists in the Primera Division and theย UEFAย Champions League last term, according toย WhoScored, as the Galacticos collected their 11th European Cup.
Calciomercato reported the attacker could beย availableย for a reduced price of ยฃ42 million as he searches for a newย home in anticipation of departing the Bernabeu.ย
WhoScoredย highlighted James' incredible accuracy from outside the box:
James would be a sensational capture for the north Londoners, and his flair and precision make him the perfect candidate to play for Tottenham managerย Mauricio Pochettino.
The midfielder has failed to impress in recent times after Zidane took over at Real, but he has previously proved himself as a rare talent.
The Premier League would suit his game, and with Harry Kane advanced, James would provide the ammunition that the club needs to challenge for the Premier League title.
