Tottenham Lining Up Move For Barcelona's Rafinha After Planned Inter Move Appears to Stall
Tottenham Hotspur are understood to be preparing a move for Barcelona's Rafinha, after the Brazilian's proposed move to Inter on a permanent basis stalled.
The 25-year-old spent the second half of the 2017/18 campaign with Inter, helping the Nerazzurri qualify for Champions League football once more, after finishing fourth in Serie A.
The combative midfielder scored twice and provided three assists from 17 league appearances, and had looked set to complete a permanent switch to San Siro.
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However, despite the Italians seemingly being keen on signing the loan star, a permanent switch looks to have hit the rocks. Subsequently, Spurs are lining up a move to snatch the Brazilian from under Inter's noses, as reported by Spanish news outlet Sport.
Inter were reportedly in line to secure a deal for Rafinha, but are reluctant to pay the €35m price tag agreed upon between Inter and Barcelona in January. Negotiations with the Serie A outfit have stalled as a result, allowing a number of other clubs to enter into negotiations with the Blaugrana for the Brazilian midfielder.
Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino is reportedly a great admirer of Rafinha, and would be keen on bringing the Barcelona man to north London next season to add further quality to a midfield already featuring the likes of Christian Eriksen and Dele Alli.
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Should a move to Inter not come to fruition, Spurs could be an excellent choice for both the club and the player, with Rafinha likely to play regular first team football, and Spurs not being forced to pay too high of a price in order to secure a top-class player.
