“He didn’t want to leave”- Serie A boss makes big claim over Ange Postecoglou signing at Tottenham Hotspur
Loyalty or London? Genoa CEO reveals Tottenham star Radu Dragusin wasn’t keen to leave Italy
Tottenham Hotspur’s winter songAccording to Andres Blazquez, CEO of Genoa, Radu Dragusin had desired to remain in Italy with his previous employers before to his relocation to North London.
The twenty-two-year-old was having a great season at Genoa prior to the Lilywhites attempting to sign him during the January transfer window. Romanian international Radu Dragusin was acquired by Tottenham from Genoa in a £26.7 million (€31 million) agreement, defeating a hijack attempt by Bayern Munich.
The Romanian international strongly objected to a transfer to North London, even if the German powerhouses’ financial offer was greater than Tottenham’s.
Since his transfer, he has not played as much because he is Romero and Micky van de Ven’s second fiddle. Tottenham has deliberately brought Radu in for these situations to ensure that, should someone pull up again this season, Levy is not left out in the back.
Dragusin seems to have decent ball handling skills and doesn’t hesitate to carry the ball out of press coverage, which could be advantageous given Spurs’ current playing philosophy in the future. Although he is not yet a polished player or a crucial component of Tottenham’s defense, Ange may make him both.
Genoa CEO Blazquez revealed Radu didn’t want to leave in January
Genoa CEO Blazquez has spoken about the transfer in an interview with CaughtOffside, where he insists that he wanted to continue his development with the Italian side and was committed to staying at the club; however, the pressure from Bayern and Tottenham to conclude a transfer led to him leaving.
When asked about the transfer fee, Genoa’s CEO said, “It was a bit higher than that, but overall up to €31 million (£26.7 million) with a base of €26 million (£22.4 million)” (via Football.London).
“We were aware of his talent; he had the wrong experiences and, in my opinion, the wrong career path. When he first arrived, he expressed his desire to play and be a starter.
“He made some blunders early on, but he had time to grow and is now a highly intelligent player. He was able to fix those errors right away, so we knew we had an incredible skill.
“Our idea was not to sell; he didn’t want to leave in January because he was so committed to the team. He wanted to make sure that Genoa basically meets their goal for the year, and he said, ‘OK, let me stay until the end of January’. But it was not possible because there was too much pressure from Bayern Munich, from Tottenham, and from additional teams as well.
Blazquez went on, “We want to be a club that treats its employees and players, who are employees, differently.” “We told Dragu that it’s your career and that, at the end of the day, even if we will essentially be in a worse financial position there, it’s your option, even though the offer from Bayern was much larger.
Although we won’t, we might essentially say, “You don’t come here; you sit down, and we never see you later,” in silence. But we’re also quite open about the fact that we want to work with our players to make sure they have successful careers and satisfying lives.
“And we told them, ‘you do what you want,’ within appropriate bounds. And that was all. Naturally, both teams put some pressure on us, but I suppose Dragu believed he had committed to joining Tottenham. The football team’s astute and experienced CEO, Daniel Levy, was essentially successful in persuading everyone to make a deal.
Radu is anticipated to have a bright career at Tottenham, thus his move to the N17 must be the beginning of a significant adventure, regardless of Bayern’s desire or their willingness to pay more.
