Yesterday, Corriere dello Sport went rather big with their Keita Baldé to Tottenham claim, explaining that Lazio were expecting a fax either on Wednesday or Thursday with a €30m offer from Daniel Levy for the Senegalese forward.
After rejecting moves to Everton and West Ham, as well as Napoli and AC Milan, the 23-year-old was said to be intent on playing for Juventus and no one else, even if a move to Tottenham could have tempted him.
L’Equipe then backed up the Tottenham offer claims in their Thursday edition.
However, Il Messaggero seem to refute these claims, reporting that the origin of the story seemed to come from England (even if it actually was from Corriere), and, barring a brief enquiry back in May, Spurs weren’t really interested.
Lazio, down their end, are still asking for €30m and are actually a bit afraid of offering the Senegal international a new contract as they are worried he will just turn it down just to prove a point that he wants a move.
With a week left in the transfer window, time is running out for Lazio, and they might have to lower their demands if they want to get rid of Keita for a fee, unless they accept he will go on a free next summer.
This is going to be one of the big stories in Italy in the next seven days, and you can fully expect a few Premier League clubs, most likely including Tottenham, to be chucked into the mix.