Illia Zabarnyi transfer wanted as Bournemouth board sent Tottenham message
Tottenham have been told to turn their January attention elsewhere with Bournemouth set to “play hardball” over Illia Zabarnyi’s future, according to GiveMeSport.
It was reported on 31 December that amid widespread Premier League attention in both Zabarnyi and Milos Kerkez, the Cherries board are under no pressure to sell this month.
Zabarnyi has been an ever-present for Bournemouth so far this season and is seen as an option to provide centre-back cover for Spurs, with Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero both out injured.
With seventh-placed Bournemouth making clear that they intend to keep their star pair beyond 3 February’s transfer deadline, Chelsea and the Lilywhites may have to pay over the top for Zabarnyi.
Illia Zabaryni transfer would solve problems aplenty for Tottenham
It’s hardly surprising to see several of the Premier League’s most monied clubs raiding Bournemouth for their star defenders like Kerkez and Zabaryni, particularly in Spurs’ case for the latter.
Match-fit central defenders have been hard to come by in recent weeks for Ange Postecoglou, with Van de Ven and Romero’s absences forcing a huge reshuffle which has certainly backfired thus far.
Radu Dragusin – who is the latest player struck down with injury – hasn’t been able to provide the same level of quality as the pair, while his regular partner Archie Gray is 18 years old and not a centre-back.
As a result, the Lilywhites are in desperate need of central defensive reinforcements this month, and a player of Zabarnyi’s quality would certainly be a better candidate than Gray to step into the breach.
Bournemouth will do their best to keep hold of Zabarnyi, Kerkez and the rest of their key players before the deadline, and Spurs may have to break the bank if they’re to bring the Ukrainian to North London.
In other Tottenham news, one under-fire Spurs man could be on his way out amid interest in a leading Championship stalwart.
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