Athletic: Tottenham hesitant to meet Milan’s Piatek transfer fee demands

Twelve hours ago, the internet was buzzing with reports that Tottenham Hotspur had made offers to AC Milan for the purchase and/or loan of Polish striker Krzysztof Piatek. There were even breathless reports (from, uh, dubious initial sources) that a fee had even been agreed for the striker in the area of £21m.

Nope. It’s not happening now, and may not happen unless Milan decides to come down from their valuation of Piatek. According to the Athletic (£), Milan wants to break even on the amount they paid for Piatek a year ago, and as of now Tottenham aren’t willing to spend that much money in January.

Milan are looking to recoup the £30 million they paid for Piatek last January, which could price Spurs out of a deal – despite the clamour for the club to bring in a striker in the absence of Harry Kane.

Spurs are one of a number of clubs currently looking at Piatek, but the indications are that a deal will not happen unless Milan lower their valuation.

— The Athletic

It makes sense. The last time Spurs spent anywhere close to that amount of money in January was the £24m they paid to land Lucas Moura, and that was a deal they felt they couldn’t turn down at the time. Overpaying to land what would essentially be a long-term back up to Harry Kane doesn’t feel like very smart business sense, especially for a striker that has statistically been underachieving at a struggling Milan side this season. It’s highly likely he’s closer to the 30 goals he scored in 2018-19 than the four goals he has scored this season, but it’s still a risk.

There’s also a perfectly reasonable argument to make that, even with Kane injured, striker is the least of Tottenham’s problems at the moment. Much more pressing would be another DM, or a right back to challenge/supplant Serge Aurier. But the silly season is called that for a reason — this might still be a thing and Milan could blink before the close of the window, but don’t expect an announcement anytime soon.