Zenit St Petersburg striker Artem Dzyuba has claimed that Tottenham Hotspur attempted to sign him in the January transfer window, per Russia 24 via The Daily Mail.
What’s he said?
Spurs were seeking a striker in the January transfer window after Harry Kane sustained a ligament injury that could rule him out until the final two games of the season, per manager Jose Mourinho.
Sources told Football FanCast that there was interest in signing a number of forwards, including Chelsea’s Olivier Giroud, Real Betis’ Willian Jose, and AC Milan’s Krzysztof Piatek, who eventually joined Hertha Berlin.
And Dzyuba has now claimed that Spurs also initiated contact with him.
He said: “This winter, I see someone saying something. But nobody knows anything. Indeed, when Harry Kane at Tottenham broke down, people contacted me. From Jose Mourinho, as I understand it. But it was the New Year holidays, so Zenit said no. And that's all.
“If Tottenham really wanted me, then I think they would be more insistent. That said, the interest was really there.”
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Not the worst idea
This was not at all a bad idea.
The 31-year-old, of course, does not really fit the profile of prospective Spurs signings due to his advanced age.
But with his contract set to expire at the end of the season, this could have been a cheap, easy deal for Spurs to pull off.
He is a full Russia international with 42 caps, has scored a total of 65 goals in 165 appearances for Zenit, and has 13 goals to his name this season in 26 games. He has also registered 11 assists.
While he is perhaps right that, were Spurs serious, they would have pulled out all the stops, this does not feel like it would have been a bad signing at all, particularly as a short-term fix.