Tottenham Hotspur are likely to be busy in the summer transfer window as Ange Postecoglou looks to bolster his ranks.
Spurs will be aiming high in the market, hoping to bring in top players to help them kick on in pursuit of cup glory and a top-four finish next term.
Things can change quickly in the transfer window as certain targets become available – or perhaps unavailable – and clubs then have to pivot.
Sometimes, clubs rekindle their interest in players they were monitoring in previous transfer windows.
However, Tottenham won’t get the chance to do so with one player they were being linked with last summer, as he has reportedly joined a London rival.
Tottenham miss out on 2023 target Daichi Kamada
The player in question is Lazio and Japan midfielder Daichi Kamada, who has reportedly sealed a move to Crystal Palace instead.
A year ago, The Express claimed that Tottenham were long-term admirers of the 27-year-old, who was set to become a free agent after his Eintracht Frankfurt contract was not renewed.
Kamada ultimately joined Lazio on a reported one-year contract, as per OneFootball, and now he’s on the move again.
Romano has taken to X to report that Kamada has signed a two-year contract at Palace as a free agent after completing his medical.
Palace are planning to announce the player’s arrival at the beginning of July, added Romano.
Kamada would have been good cover for James Maddison at Tottenham
Kamada’s signing would have made sense for Spurs last year, but then they signed James Maddison, which obviously was a great signing and meant they didn’t need Kamada any more.
However, in wake of Maddison’s injury issues and drop in form by the end of the season, Kamada may well have been a good shout for Spurs as competition and cover for the England international.
Sadly it doesn’t look as though that will be the case. Kamada looks set to reunite with Oliver Glasner, who managed him at Frankfurt and sung his praises.
“I’ve only rarely encountered such an intelligent player out on the pitch,” Glasner told the Bundesliga website in 2022.
“Daichi’s sense of anticipation for where dangerous spaces will open up is excellent. I trust him to find the spaces opposing teams give us.”