Report: Conte wants to sign £42.5m attacking 'genius' and then use him at right wing back for Tottenham

By Ben Evans

Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte has revealed how he wants to use Nicolo Zaniolo if he signs for Spurs.

According to 90min, Tottenham have not given up on signing the Italian international, with previous reports suggesting that a meeting is due to take place this week.

Roma are keen to keep hold of the attacker, who has been valued at £42.5m, and offer him a new contract later in the year.

However, Conte is very keen on making ‘genius’ Zaniolo his seventh signing of the summer, with director of football Fabio Paratici holding talks with the Italian club in recent days.

Should Roma decide to let Zaniolo go, Spurs are likely to face competition from Conte’s former club Juventus to bring in the 23-year-old.

Conte would use Zaniolo at right wing back

Antonio Conte already has one of the strongest attacks in the Premier League, with Richarlison, Dejan Kulusevski and Lucas Moura available to support Harry Kane and Son Heung-min.

Therefore, it would look like Zaniolo would struggle for regular minutes at Spurs.

However, the report from 90min suggests that Conte wants Zaniolo to play right wing-back, a role according to Transfermarkt Zaniolo has never played.

Wing-backs in Conte’s tactical system tend to play in a very advanced role, with the three centre-backs and a holding midfielder, typically Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg, instructed to cover for them.

It would, therefore, be easier for Zaniolo to adapt to this new role than if he was playing for a team whose wide players sat further back.

Conte’s interest in Zaniolo playing this role does raise questions about his trust in Emerson Royal and Matt Doherty.

If the Italian manager would prefer a converted forward to play as a wing-back than his three current options, then it doesn’t speak volumes about his confidence in either of the pair.