There are two parts to this transfer rumor story, involving three clubs, two of which are not Tottenham Hotspur. The first part, which doesn’t involve Spurs at all, is this: Manchester United is apparently very close to the signing of Inter Milan’s goalkeeper Andre Onana, who would take over for David De Gea if the deal goes through.
Manchester United are now really close to signing André Onana! Positive round of talks, final bid to arrive soon then done deal. #MUFC
Told deal will be SEALED by the end of next week.
Personal terms agreed.
✈️ Man United want Onana to travel for USA pre season tour. pic.twitter.com/f4lRQ0L1Ir
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) July 7, 2023
Interesting, I know. But what does that have to do with Tottenham? Well, that’s the second part — according to a report in Footmercato, Inter are currently advancing talks with one of their preferred option to replace Onana, and it’s… Hugo Lloris.
EXCL : #Mercato #SerieA
◉ André Onana n’a jamais été aussi proche de signer à Manchester United
◉ l’Inter Milan a accéléré sur Hugo Lloris et des discussions ont été entamées entre les différentes partieshttps://t.co/kwjPUeXFf2— Sébastien Denis (@sebnonda) July 7, 2023
The report claims that discussions have taken place with Hugo over the past day or so, and that they see him as an experienced keeper who could instantly step in and replace Onana in the starting lineup.
This is, to put it mildly, unexpected. In my mind, and likely a lot of others’ as well, I anticipated Hugo leaving for a quiet farm upstate some medium-sized club in France like Nice or Reims or something, perhaps a hop across the pond to MLS. I didn’t anticipate him potentially landing at the club that went all the way to the Champions League final this past season.
Even more interesting is this — Guglielmo Vicario’s other potential suitor in the transfer market was Inter Milan. Spurs signing Googly Elmo and Inter ending up with the guy Vicario is replacing is a little bit funny.
It’s the Italian media so we should always take these reports with a grain (or several grains) of salt. That said, if Inter really is Hugo’s destination, then I’d be less inclined to void Hugo’s contract so he can sign there on a free. Let’s try and get a little cash out of the club that bounced us from the Round of 16 yeah?
