Fabrizio Romano says Tottenham target Nicolo Zaniolo rejects Bournemouth ‘once again’

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Tottenham Hotspur seem to have moved on from their interest in Nicolo Zaniolo, but it looks like the Italian is still hoping for a move to Spurs.

That’s according to Fabrizio Romano, who revealed last night that the AS Roma star has turned down a move to Spurs’ Premier League rivals Bournemouth once again, after rejecting them for the first time just a few days ago.

Fabrizio Romano says Tottenham target Nicolo Zaniolo rejects Bournemouth ‘once again’

Tottenham have long been linked with a move to sign Nicolo Zaniolo, and the North Londoners even held talks with Roma over signing him on loan with an option to make that permanent in the summer.

Those talks didn’t lead to anything as Jose Mourinho’s side would rather get rid of the 23-year-old permanently this month (Fabrizio Romano via TBR Football).

As talks over this continued, Bournemouth jumped out of nowhere and offered a little over £26 million to Roma to sign Zaniolo (Di Marzio via TBR Football). That offer was welcomed by the Italian outfit, but the 23-year-old has no interest in joining the Cherries.

Romano has now shared the latest on the situation. He has revealed that the Bournemouth executives flew over to Italy to change Zaniolo’s mind over a move this month, but once again, the Italian rejected them. He only wants to join Tottenham or AC Milan.

Romano tweeted: “Bournemouth board decided to travel to Rome in order to discuss with Nicoló Zaniolo — but once again, the player has not accepted.

“Zaniolo wanted AC Milan or Tottenham — no intention to accept Bournemouth despite AS Roma decision to approve €30 million (£26.35m) deal.”

Do Spurs even need him now?

Zaniolo has been linked with a move to Tottenham for months now, and he has always been viewed as a solid option for Antonio Conte’s side thanks to his versatility.

The Italian can play as a number 10, on the wings and also as a right-wing-back if required.

Spurs could still do with an attacking midfielder, but they’ve brought in Arnaut Danjuma to bolster their attack, while it looks like Pedro Porro will be coming in to solve their woes at right-wing-back.

That all but eliminates the need for someone like Zaniolo, but it looks like he’s really keen to join Spurs. It will be interesting to see if he’ll get his wish in the coming days.