Who: Leandro Damiao
Where: Internacional
Who’s interested: Tottenham Hotspur, Napoli, Southampton, Marseille
The Brazilian club have already seemingly accepted that their star man will be on his way this summer, though they have warned potential suitors they will have to pay handsomely to get him, which is probably why he is still at the club.
Southampton led the chase early on, but their interest now appears to have cooled, whilst Marseille have insisted that they would not be able to afford him, instead turning to Evian striker Saber Khlifa, leaving just Spurs and Napoli in the hunt.
Spurs have come close to losing out on the Brazilian attacker on several occasions already. However, he is still with Internacional where he bagged 24 goals in 43 appearances last term and is largely expected to make the Brazil squad for next year’s World Cup.
A deal for the player was almost completed on the deadline day of the January transfer window, but a cavalier attitude with getting the paperwork signed and sent off caused the deal to fall short before the clock struck midnight. Damiao has become one of football’s hottest properties after breaking into the Internacional side in 2010. He has made 143 appearances for Colorado, scoring 82 goals. In his short career he’s already added a Copa Libertadores title to his name and was crowned as the top scorer during last year’s Olympic Games. He’d also provide company for fellow new Spurs recruit Paulinho, helping each other to settle into life in England.
With that said, A number of high profile players have already snubbed a move to the Premier League and Napoli’s buying power has been through the roof following the sale of star striker Edinson Cavani.
Where he’ll end up: Napoli