On May 1st, Tuttosport reported Tottenham Hotspur sent an official to follow Bologna’s Riccardo Calafiori and the scout was impressed with him.
The 21-year-old has enjoyed an impressive debut season with the Serie A side and that has resulted in interest from Italy and abroad, where Spurs are in the picture.
A fresh report from Tuttosport states Juventus, AC Milan and Napoli have shown interest in the defender, while from abroad, Tottenham and Bayer Leverkusen have ‘come forward’ to sign him.
In other words, an ‘auction is open’ for the centre-back, and Bologna hope to earn €25m from his sale. This will allow them to make a profit, after investing €4m on the player last summer.
The report states many teams have ‘tested the waters’ for a possible deal in the summer window.
Amid interest from Tottenham, Bayer Leverkusen, Milan and Napoli, Juve are leading the race. Their technical director, Cristiano Giuntoli, has been working on this deal for months and the player is ‘ready to leave’ Bologna for the Turin club.
Tuttosport state the Old Lady are set to offer a five-year deal worth €2-2.5m per season to the Italy U21 international, and the final details need to be sorted out between the two parties. They have also started discussions with Bologna to try and secure an agreement.
Therefore, Tottenham will have to act fast and convince Calafiori, if they are to overcome competition from Juventus in the next window.
