Veloso & Huntelaar in, Keane & Bent Out as Harry’s Tottenham Rebuilding Continues

Miguel Veloso is reportedly one of two big money signings being targeted by Harry Redknapp in the next few weeks alongside Dutch predator Klaas Jan Huntelaar. A number of Premier League clubs have been chasing the £13m man including Spurs’ North London rivals Arsenal, Man City, Aston Villa and Bolton. However, if Redknapp can offload Darren Bent to Sunderland and Robbie Keane to Aston Villa then he will make his move for his two main targets.

The versatile Portuguese star was limited to just 21 League appearances last season (15 starts) and is finally set to leave his homeland after being continually linked with moves abroad in recent seasons.The player himself told the Portuguese press, “I want to play and be a champion for Sporting.”

However, he left the door open to a move to the Premier League when he said, “I am fine where I am, but I have the dream to play abroad and that is normal in every young player.”

Bolton made a move to sign the Portuguese star back in January which was confirmed by the midfielder’s agent Paulo Barbosa. When asked if Bolton were likely to sign the player, he told Setanta.com, “No, no it is not true. Bolton, no.”

“It is true they were interested in January but Sporting refused an offer for €12 million.

When asked about Tottenham, Arsenal and Man City’s continued interest, Barbosa interestingly revealed, “We will see, we will see soon.”

Barbosa had confirmed that the Premier League was his most likely destination when he revealed, “England is his first choice, and he already speaks good English. Everything is possible at the moment.”

Man City’s interest may have waned after their recent new recruits while Arsene Wenger has suggested he won’t pay a large amount for any new arrivals. Tottenham’s interest in the defender come defensive midfielder makes perfect sense after the injuries sustained by Redknapp’s first choice centre-backs and need for more midfield strength as Veloso is adept at filling both of those roles.

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Veloso had a public fallout with his Sporting Lisbon coach Paulo Bento last season after being made to play left-back against his wishes. However, the player and coach are reported to have settled their differences but still the midfielder is likely to be sold. Bento told SIC Noticias, “Miguel Veloso is a player who is under contract until 2013 and, like everyone else, he could be sold or he could stay.”

“If he stays, he will be treated as he always has been, playing in the position that best serves the team.”

The player’s father Antonio has admitted that the player does want to leave the club. He had this to say concerning his son, “We will speak with the club to resolve everything about his future so that he doesn’t leave the club on bad terms.”

Man City manager Mark Hughes has is known to be a keen admirer of Veloso but after signing Gareth Barry this summer plus Vincent Kompany and Nigel De Jong last season, it remains to be seen where he would feature.

The defensive midfielder can also play at centre-half and has been linked in the past with the likes of Manchester United, Juventus and AC Milan. With the player’s versatility it is no wonder there are a number of English clubs looking to sign the long-haired 23-year-old. This interest is all despite only playing 72 league games (62 starts) for his club though the Portuguese star has impressed in European competition for Sporting.

Veloso is a full international (7 caps) and impressed in the European U21 Championships held in Holland. He was also part of his Portugal’s Euro 2008 squad but only featured in the 2-0 group defeat to the co-hosts Switzerland. He has fallen some way down the pecking order so a move to the Premier League may reignite his international career.

Sporting are likely to want to cash in on one of their most valuable assets especially after Veloso’s problems with his coach and his lack of playing time. Whether his next destination is White Hart Lane is up for debate. His strength, versatility and talented left-foot have led to a queue of potential suitors attempting to attract him to the English top division as well as clubs from Serie A.

His price tag has been quoted at around £12m-13m which has dropped from around the £18m mark during Euro 2008. The fee is unlikely to put off the Premier League clubs for long whilst the young Portuguese star is reportedly keen to make the transition. He would give balance to Spurs midfield as his signing would give Redknapp’s side the licence to use their attacking strengths with the safety net of Veloso and Wilson Palacios operating behind them.

So would you like your club to sign the Portuguese star or is he vastly overrated in your eyes? Let’s hear your views.

Tags: Arsenal, Aston Villa, Bolton, Man City, Miguel Veloso, Portugal, Tottenham

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