Tottenham report: Spurs to pip London rivals to Ivan Perisic
Chelsea were said to be interested in the Croatia international, but he seems set to reunite with former boss Antonio Conte in North London
Croatia wide man Ivan Perisic has reportedly agreed a two-year deal with Tottenham.
The 33-year-old is out of contract this summer after seven years with Inter Milan and, as such, available as a free agent.
Chelsea and Juventus have also been linked with the 2018 World Cup finalist - but, according to The Independent, sources close to Perisic believe Spurs will secure his services.
Should Perisic move to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, he will link back up with Antonio Conte - under whom he won the Serie A title with Inter in 2020/21.
And he would fill one of Spurs' key needs: an upgrade at right wing-back, a position in which Emerson Royal - who only joined from Barcelona last summer - has not fully convinced.
Signing a player of Perisic's age would be at odds with Spurs' overall transfer strategy in recent years, but the above - along with the fact he clearly knows Conte's system and is versatile enough to also perform a variety of attacking roles - ought to make him an ideal acquisition.
He would also bring Champions League-winning experience to a team who return to the competition next season after three years away; he won it during his 2019/20 loan spell at Bayern Munich, coming off the bench as they beat PSG 1-0 in the final.
Get FourFourTwo Newsletter
The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week.
Another potential reunion (of sorts) is that of Perisic, Harry Kane and Eric Dier; Kane and Dier were on the losing side as Croatia broke England hearts in the 2018 World Cup semi-final, where Perisic equalised before setting up Mario Mandzukic's extra-time winner.
Tom Hancock started freelancing for FourFourTwo in April 2019 and has also written for the Premier League and Opta Analyst, among others. He supports Wycombe Wanderers and has a soft spot for Wealdstone. A self-confessed statto, he has been known to watch football with a spreadsheet (or several) open...