Tottenham Hotspur winger Dejan Kulusevski has certainly made a big impact since moving to North London.
The 22-year-old joined Antonio Conte’s Spurs side in January on an 18-month loan deal from Juventus, with an obligation to buy him for £29.3 million (Sky Sports) if certain sporting conditions are met.
But the Swede could have ended up playing for the other team in North London, with the Athletic reporting that Kulusevski’s representatives thought Arsenal were his most likely destination in January, right up until just days before the window closed.
The winger settled into the Spurs team quickly after joining in January and played a big part in the club getting back into the Champions League. He has linked up brilliantly with Harry Kane and Heung-Min Son.
The Swedish international put up superb numbers in the Premier League as he scored 5 times and registered 8 assists. But beforehand at Juventus, he had struggled to nail down a starting place at the Allianz Stadium.
Kulusevski did make 20 appearances in Serie A for the Old Lady in the first-half of last season, but 15 of them came as a substitute.
And maybe that was the reason Arsenal didn’t push for the ‘sensational’ winger despite reports suggesting he was closer to joining them.
Gunners boss Mikel Arteta may have some regrets about seeing Kulusevski play a vital role in Spurs gaining Champions League qualification. Especially considering it came at the cost of his own side.
The Athletic also reports that Arsenal had followed Rodrigo Bentancur and of course, he also joined their bitter rivals and played a key role in Conte’s midfield.
TBR’s View: It might not have gone so well for Kulusevski at Arsenal
Of course, hindsight is wonderful, but Kulusevski has fitted in perfectly to Conte’s Spurs team. The Swede supplements Kane and Son perfectly with his unselfish style of play.
There was also an opening for the winger at Spurs as Lucas Moura had failed to put up brilliant numbers under Conte. And at Arsenal, he may have found his path blocked on the right-hand side with Bukayo Saka occupying that place in Arteta’s team.