In a recent report, Gazzetta dello Sport stated that Tottenham Hotspur would have to pay at least €15m for Atalanta ace Ruslan Malinovskyi. It has been mentioned that Spurs have been told to cough up no less than €15m for the Ukraine international.
Malinovskyi’s Inconsistent Form In Italian Football
Malinovskyi is having an up-and-down season in Italy as he has struggled to earn regular first-team starts for Atalanta. Still, the Ukrainian talent has performed well by scoring one goal and securing a couple of assists in 14 matches for the Italian club during this campaign in league football.
The 29-year-old has caught the eye on the attacking end of the field by averaging 1.0 tackles, 1.4 shots and 0.9 key passes per 90 minutes in Serie A. He has even been excellent when distributing the ball in the final third after completing 79.5% of his attempted passes in the Italian first division (stats via whoscored).
His current contract at the Italian club is set to run out at the end of this campaign. Thus, it makes little sense for Spurs to meet Atalanta’s demands when he has just over six months left to run in his deal going into this January transfer window.
Should Tottenham Hotspur Boss Antonio Conte Snap Malinovsky Up?
Malinovskyi doesn’t shy away from making a tackle and can strike the ball purely from long range. He can even create some decent openings for his teammates on the attacking end of the field. Malinovskyi is also quite intelligent with his movements in and around the opponent’s penalty box However, the Ukraine international has to figure out a way to be more consistent with his offensive numbers if he wants to taste success in top-flight football.
We can expect Malinovskyi to add some goals to Antonio Conte‘s attack and increase the overall depth of Tottenham‘s match-day squad. He mainly operates in the number ten position but can also operate as a box-to-box or play alongside someone as a secondary striker if asked to do so. However, there are some concerns over whether he would be able to make a smooth transition to life at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
At 29, Malinovskyi might still have a few good years left in him to play at a high level. However, he is on an expiring contract and is simply not worth €15m. Therefore, Spurs should not snap him up this winter unless they can find a way to reduce Atalanta’s asking price for their prized asset.
