Man Utd, Chelsea and Tottenham’s Alessandro Bastoni hopes already over?
FT Desk
- Updated: 8 Jun 2022 17:14 BST
- 3 min read
Tottenham, Chelsea and Manchester United’s hopes of signing Alessandro Bastoni this summer may already be over.
The Premier League clubs have made the signing of a top-class centre back a priority this summer.
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Spurs coach Antonio Conte has requested a left-sided centre back for his three-man defence, with Bastoni his preferred choice having launched him at Inter between 2019 and 2021.
And Bastoni is also on Man Utd’s centre back shortlist together with the likes of Jurrien Timber of Ajax and Pau Torres of Villarreal.
As for Chelsea, they need to sign two centre backs as they will lose Antonio Rudiger and Andreas Christensen on free transfers at the end of this month.
The hopes of all three clubs signing Bastoni had increased in recent days as it has become clear that Inter need to sacrifice one of their high-valued stars this summer in order to balance the books.
Reports in the Italian media suggested that a bid of around €70 million would be enough to force Inter’s hand.
However, Bastoni’s agent Tullio Tinti was adamant on Wednesday that the defender is definitely staying.
What did Bastoni's agent say?
“Bastoni will certainly remain at Inter,” Tinti told reporters as he exited the club’s headquarters on Wednesday following a meeting about his client’s future.
“He has a contract with Inter, he is happy to play at Inter and there’s no problem.”
Tinti was then asked by reporters if Bastoni may now get a new contract, with his current deal expiring in 2024.
“I respect contracts. If they call me, there’s no problem,” he added.
Tinti’s words mean that Man Utd, Chelsea and Tottenham may already have to look elsewhere for a new centre-back.
However, public statements from agents – or clubs and players for that matter – can never be taken as gospel when it comes to the transfer market.
The fact remains that Inter need to sell a player who will bring in a big capital gain this summer, and Bastoni is one of only a few players who can do that.
The others realistically are Lautaro Martinez, Nicolo Barella and Milan Skriniar.
