Romano says Tottenham target Malinovskyi is joining Marseille next week

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Tottenham Hotspur appear to have missed out on Ruslan Malinovskyi, with Fabrizio Romano giving the Ukrainian’s move to Marseille the here we go treatment on Twitter this lunchtime.

Malinovskyi’s future has been a talking point for some time. His contract with Atalanta expires at the end of the season. And it has appeared for some time that he was unlikely to stay in Italy.

Tottenham have been key protagonists in the battle to land the attacking midfielder. Reports from Tuttomercatoweb last month claimed that Spurs have always been in the race to sign Malinovskyi.

Tottenham target Malinovskyi set for Marseille move

It was actually suggested in that report that Marseille were no longer in the race. The Ligue 1 side were reportedly only ready to pay transfer fees for younger targets. And Atalanta were holding out for a £12 million fee for the 29-year-old this month.

But it would seem that that may not have been Marseille’s stance after all.

Romano has suggested that Malinovskyi will seal his move to Stade Velodrome next week. He has already agreed personal terms. And talks with Atalanta over a permanent move are in the home straight.

Crucially, Romano has used that very significant phrase to describe how close the deal is…

Some Spurs fans may not be happy to see Malinovskyi move elsewhere. It does appear that Antonio Conte’s men need further reinforcements in this window. And his contract situation opens the door for a potential bargain. Admittedly, he has not been in the best form this season.

He has been an ‘extraordinary‘ talent. And it would be no surprise if he proved to be a very smart signing for Marseille in the coming months.

Tottenham fans will hope that the club have something better up their sleeve after being in the mix for so long.