Liverpool

Liverpool

Premier League • England

Liverpool, Tottenham learn prospects of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia deal as Fabrizio Romano reveals transfer truths

Khvicha Kvaratskhelia of Napoli prior to the Italian Serie A match between Napoli and Spezia at Stadio Diego Armando Maradona

The form of Khvicha Kvaratskhelia at Napoli this season has seen a number of clubs sit up and take notice – and now Fabrizio Romano has clarified speculation suggesting the Serie A giants could sell the Georgian amid links to Liverpool and Tottenham.

The winger has emerged as a player of genuine quality this season after moving to Gli Azzurri. His talents have placed him on the radar of a number of clubs for some time, with the likes of Leeds, Tottenham and Bayern Munich watching him earlier in his career.

However, it was Rubin Kazan who moved for the 6ft tall winger, a move which yielded a fine return. But with war breaking out in Ukraine, UEFA allowed Kvaratskhelia to declare his contract at the Russian Premier League club void.

And after making a short-term move back to his homeland, it was Napoli who took a chance and signed Kvaratskhelia for a modest £9.75m deal.

That investment already looks money extremely well spent. Kvaratskhelia already has seven goals and six assists for Luciano Spalletti’s side from just 14 appearances. And with Napoli riding high at the top of Serie A with eight wins and two draws from their 10 games, the club look well placed to end their 33-year wait for the title.

It’s also going well for Napoli in the Champions League too. With Kvaratskhelia leading their charge, Napoli are already through to the knockout stages with four wins from four games. And Gli Azzurri have also blasted in an impressive 17 goals to underline their incredible start to the season.

Indeed, Kvaratskhelia is yet to taste defeat in a Napoli shirt and his form has not gone unnoticed elsewhere.

Fabrizio Romano reveals Napoli stance on Kvaratskhelia sale

To that end, Liverpool are among those reportedly keeping tabs on his progress. That’s after Jurgen Klopp’s side were named as the logical next step in the Georgian winger’s career.

Tottenham, too, also remain on his trail. That’s amid claims that their boss Antonio Conte has been left dismayed by the club failing to take their chance to sign the star when the opportunity first presented itself. Seemingly, that is a situation that Conte wants Tottenham to put right.

However, it seems Napoli are in no mood to make a quick profit on the 21-year-old star.

And trusted transfer guru Romano is adamant he will not be leaving Naples in the January window.

“Napoli have no plans to sell Khvicha Kvaratskhelia. They’re really happy with him at this moment after an excellent start to the season,” he told Caught Offside.

Given his age, Napoli also expect Kvaratskhelia to get even better Romano is adamant that there have been no discussions over his sale.

“All the top European clubs are following him at the moment but there are no talks or advanced discussions. Tottenham wanted to sign Kvaratskhelia back in 2020 but the price tag was €30m before the war in Ukraine,” he added.

Fee likely to be much higher now

Napoli, of course, will want to keep their squad together for as long as possible. They are European football’s form side and look genuine contenders to go deep in the Champions League competition. On current evidence, they will take some stopping.

Furthermore, with over a quarter of the season gone in Italy, they look far and away the strongest challengers for the Serie A title.

Should Spalletti’s side win it, they will become the fourth side in four seasons to win il Scudetto. Indeed, after Juventus’ long reign was ended by Inter Milan, it was AC Milan who wrestled the title in 2021/22.

Now Napoli look extremely well placed to secure the crown this time around. It will be a moment for the Neapolitans to celebrate wildly; their passionate fans have been starved of success for so long.

As a result, there will be no major departures from the Diego Maradona Stadium in the winter window.

If and when they do come to sell Kvaratskhelia, it will be for considerably more than the £26m (€30m) Spurs were quoted just two years ago.

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