Yunus Malli isn’t exactly having the greatest of times since swapping Mainz for Wolfsburg. Moving during the January transfer window, Malli thought it would be a good step in his career, not too much of a jump.
Interest from Tottenham had been claimed, and just over a week ago Malli confirmed that. SportBild put it to Malli that he’s ‘had requests from clubs such as Dortmund, Tottenham or Valencia in recent years’, to which the player replied: “Yes, that’s true. In recent years, clubs from other categories have shown interest. This is not the case now. This shows me that I am still far from such top clubs. Wolfsburg is therefore a great opportunity.”
The 25 year old seemed to see Wolfsburg as a stepping stone, and then maybe he’d be ready for a club like Tottenham. A good first half of the season with Mainz saw Malli score 6 goals and add 6 assists in 15 Bundesliga games.
Mauricio Pochettino interest would only be encouraged by such form, but since moving to Wolfsburg, Malli hasn’t added to that tally. German newspaper Bild explain he’s struggling to play in his favoured position, as a No. 10, as Max Arnold is playing there.
Even with a good half of the season, any move to Tottenham could have only been as a back-up. Malli can play on the left or attacking through the middle, but he’d have come up against players such as Dele Alli and Christian Eriksen at Spurs.
The Turkish international will hope he can kick on next season, but even if there was a previous Tottenham approach, as the player says, it’s probably unlikely the club remain as interested.
