Spurs winning race for Sneijder, but Moutinho remains better option
Published:Wesley Sneijder will be moving from Milan in January if comments from wife Yolanthe Cabau are to be believed and the latest reports indicate that it is Tottenham that are ahead in the race for his signature.
Italian football correspondent Tancredi Palmeri has suggested that Spurs have already agreed a deal with the player, although nothing has been confirmed with Inter Milan as yet.
Sneijder has not played for Inter since September after stalling on signing a new deal and it would be a major surprise if he did not depart the San Siro in January.
Manchester United have been linked, but with Shinji Kagawa already at Old Trafford and Wayne Rooney having a positive impact in a deeper position, Sir Alex Ferguson may struggle to accommodate the Dutchman.
PSG are another club that may be tempted to make an offer, alongside Germany’s Schalke, but a switch to London and the Premier League is most on the cards.
Sneijder was valued around the £25m mark last year, but given his current contract developments an offer of closer to £10m may tempt Inter to sell.
This would be around half the sum that it would cost Andre Villas-Boas to land Joao Moutinho, who he has already failed to sign in the summer.
A creative attacking midfielder is certainly what Spurs lack, with Clint Dempsey and Gylfi Sugurdsson more likely to score goals than provide them.
The problem for Sneijder is that his form has arguably been on a downward slide since guiding Inter to the 2010 Champions League and he is not best known for his workrate, which is something that Villas-Boas will demand.
Villas-Boas has also shown at Chelsea that man management may not be his best asset and this is something that Sneijder craves.
Therefore, despite Sneijder being the bigger name, Moutinho will be a better fit into Villas-Boas’ management style and will adapt easier into Spurs’ current formation and tactics.
All Odds and Markets are correct as of the date of publishing.
