Tottenham could sign new ‘Mousa Dembele’ as advanced talks reported – pundit
Alan Hutton has claimed Tottenham may have finally found a replacement for Mousa Dembele in AC Milan midfielder Franck Kessie.
The former Spurs defender, speaking exclusively to Football Insider, suggested the 25-year-old would be excellent competition for the midfielders already in north London.
As reported by The Express on Monday (27 December), Tottenham are in advanced talks to sign Kessie on a pre-contract deal.
Spurs are reportedly leading the hunt to sign the midfielder, with Manchester United and Arsenal also interested.
Kessie is out of contract at the end of the season and is said to have rejected a new deal with AC Milan.
Hutton suggested the Ivory Coast international could fill the void left by former Spurs favourite Dembele back in 2019.
Hutton told Football Insider’s Russell Edge: “I don’t think they ever replaced Mousa Dembele, to be quite honest.
“Kessie, I’ve always liked him, I’ve always liked watching him perform. He’s so aggressive in how he gets about the pitch, just like Dembele.
“He does a lot of that kind of dirty stuff. People think that it kind of goes under the radar a little bit.
“I think it shows you the style and the profile of player that they’re actually looking for. It’ll be interesting to see. Of course, he’d come in and play.
“Hojbjerg and Kessie sounds decent but does Skipp then have to take a back seat and learn from these guys?
“It shows you the type of squad Conte is looking to build, with competition all over the pitch. You have to have that to compete at the highest level.”
Kessie has played 21 times for AC Milan this season, with five goals under his belt.
The 52-cap international initially joined the Italian giants on loan in 2017 before turning the move permanent in 2019.
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