Here is your Tottenham morning digest on Sunday, January 8.
Tottenham chief Fabio Paratici has targeted Atalanta boss Gian Piero Gasperini if Antonio Conte leaves (Photo by Claudia Greco/Getty Images)© Claudia Greco/Getty Images
Coaching preference
Tottenham Hotspur director Fabio Paratici has earmarked Atalanta boss Gian Piero Gasperini as his number one managerial target if Antonio Conte leaves N17, according to Italian outlet CalcioMercatoWeb. Spurs centre-back Cristian Romero has previously played under Gasperini and the Argentine has made it no secret of his admiration for the talented coach.
Speaking to Football Italia about Gasperini, Romero previously said: “I think he was the best coach I have had in my career. I improved a lot with him, I thank him for everything.
“When I learned that Atalanta were looking for me, I didn’t hesitate to move to Bergamo. He’s a coach who, if he sees that you want to grow and improve, he will stay with you until death.
“It’s been like that since the first day I arrived. He’s a great coach and he is showing it in a club that wasn’t, but that has improved thanks to him.”
Gvardiol transfer value admission
RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol, who has previously been heavily linked with a move to the Lillywhites, has insisted he does not believe he is worth the €75million (£66million) quoted for his services. Speaking about Leipzig’s valuation to Croatian outlet Danas, Gvardiol said: “I don’t bother with numbers,” he said in an interview.
“Half of that is probably not true because I am in contact with people at the club and I don’t think there have been any negotiations. I have a manager who deals with it and I am maximally focused on the work on the field.”
Gvardiol also hinted that he will remain at Leipzig for the rest of the current campaign, ruling out a January transfer.
He added: “I am also happy for the club to achieve something big. I’m not in a hurry, I’m in Leipzig, we still have six months to finish the season properly and to win something. And then we will look further to the future.”
Stellini’s comments
Tottenham assistant boss Cristian Stellini has spoken about his players’ availability following yesterday’s 1-0 win over Portsmouth in the third round of the FA Cup. When asked about Yves Bissouma pulling out in the warm-up, Stellini replied: “It’s an injury that came from the last match. Bissouma has an ankle problem. He tried to push himself and we worked to have Bissouma on the pitch, but he was mature to say the truth and he was not 100%.
“It’s very good when the player speaks and tells us they are not 100% and it’s better to use a player that is available 100% as Skippy [Oliver Skipp] was and he played a good match. We are happy that Bissouma spoke the truth and we could make the right choice.”
When asked if Bissouma would be fit to face Arsenal next week, Stellini added: “Yeah, absolutely.”
The Italian was also asked if Rodrigo Bentancur, Dejan Kulusevski and Richarlison would be available for the north London derby, to which he responded: “Well, not for all the players we are so confident but we are confident we’ll recover someone.”
Source: Football London
