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Tottenham has finalized the acquisition of center-back Radu Dragusin from Genoa, clearing the path for Eric Dier to transfer to Bayern Munich.
Romania international Dragusin has put pen to paper on a six-and-a-half-year deal at Spurs and is the club’s second addition of the January transfer window after Timo Werner’s arrival on loan on Tuesday.
Tottenham have reportedly signed Dragusin to strengthen their defense, which was a top concern for manager Ange Postecoglou. The deal is said to have a potential value of up to £25million.
The 21-year-old has officially joined in time to potentially play for Manchester United on Sunday, signaling a change in the club’s transfer approach.
In the past, Spurs have consistently waited until the end of January to finalize their winter deals. In 2022, they signed Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur on the final day of the transfer window, and last year they secured Pedro Porro’s services just minutes before the deadline.
Postecoglou openly expressed his intention to acquire another central defender and prioritize early signings to allow them to adapt to his football philosophy as soon as possible.
The Australian’s desire has been fulfilled as Dragusin aligns with the type of player Tottenham is monitoring under his leadership.
Dragusin advanced through the youth program at Juventus and appeared as a substitute in December 2020, entering the game against Dynamo Kyiv before making his Serie A debut later that month against Genoa. His future teammates, Kulusevski and Bentancur, were also on the field at the same time.
- 62 appearances
- 60 starts
- 6 goals
- 4 yellow cards
In 2022, the player’s loan experience with Sampdoria and Salernitana in the top division of Italian soccer proved successful. However, it was his full-season loan with Genoa that propelled his career to new heights.
Dragusin was a standout player for Genoa, helping them earn promotion to Serie A. He played in 38 matches and scored four goals before officially joining the team in July.
Dragusin has maintained his impressive performance, but he will now be playing in England after making 22 appearances this season.
Tottenham increased their efforts to acquire the center-back last week. However, they faced competition from Bayern Munich on Tuesday, as they had already come to terms with Genoa. Ultimately, Dragusin chose to join the Premier League club on Wednesday.
He will bring valuable support in the center of the defense, playing alongside vice-captain Cristian Romero, new addition Micky van de Ven, and Ben Davies.
Meanwhile, Djed Spence has gone on loan for the remainder of the season while Dragusin’s arrival has further solidified Dier’s expected departure.
Last week, Bayern expressed interest in Dier. However, even though they made a last-minute attempt to sign Dragusin, Tottenham beat them to securing the Romanian player. As a result, Thomas Tuchel’s team has had to look for alternative targets.
The Bundesliga titleholders, Bayern, are actively pursuing a deal to acquire Dier. He has been granted permission to go to Germany on Thursday morning for a medical examination, following a 4 million euro (£3,440,000) agreement between the two teams, according to sources at PA.
The upcoming move of Dier to Bayern will increase his slim chances of returning to Gareth Southgate’s England squad and also give him the opportunity to reunite with former teammate Harry Kane, who joined Munich for £100m in August.
Source: independent.co.uk
