Tottenham sign goalkeeper Gollini on loan from Italian club Atalanta
LONDON: Totenham signed goalkeeper Pierluigi Gollini from Italian club Atalanta on a season-long loan with an option to make the move permanent, the Premier League team said Saturday.
The 26-year-old Gollini will be expected to challenge stalwart Hugo Lloris. The 34-year-old Frenchman has been with Totenham since the 2012-13 season but his contract expires next June.
“I’m here to show that I can be the future of Totenham,” Gollini told club media. “Obviously, now I’m here with Hugo. I have huge respect for him. He’s a legend of this club. ... He’s a world champion. So for me, it’s a privilege, it’s an honor to work with him, to train with him. I’m sure I can learn a lot from him.”
Gollini, who was part of Manchester United’s youth system, played 32 games in all competitions last season for Atalanta, which finished third in Serie A.
“As a team we have to be really ambitious,” he said of his new team. “We should try to win something because it’s a big team, it’s a big club. Winning has to be the goal.”
Gollini has also played in the the second-tier Championship with Aston Villa.
He made his international debut for Italy off the bench in a European Championship qualifying match against Bosnia and Herzegovina in November 2019.
Totenham, under new manager Nuno Espirito Santo, hosts Premier League champion Manchester City for its season opener on Aug. 15.
The team’s seventh-place finish in 2020-21 means its only European involvement this season will be in the less lucrative and new third-tier Europa Conference League.
Son Heung-min signed a four-year contract extension Friday to keep him at Totenham through June 2025. But their other star forward, Harry Kane, is hoping to leave even though he’s under contract with the north London team until 2024.
Earlier, Son Heung-min signed a four-year contract extension Friday to keep him at the Premier League club through June 2025.
Harry Kane’s future is another question. He’s under contract with the north London team until 2024 but has indicated he wants a change of scenery.
Not so for South Korea captain Son.
“It was already a big honor to play here for six years,” he said in a team statement. “The club have showed me massive, massive respect and obviously I’m very happy to be here.”
The 29-year-old Son has compiled 107 goals and 64 assists in 280 appearances in all competitions since joining Totenham from Bayer Leverkusen in August 2015.
“It’s like home, especially with the fans, the players, the staff,” Son said. “There was no decision. It was easy. I’m so happy to be here and will be so glad to see the fans again soon.” No financial details were given. Totenham tweeted: “He’s here to stay.” “Everyone can see the real positive impact he has on the club, both on and off the field, and we are delighted that he will play a part in what we are trying to achieve in the coming years,” football managing director Fabio Paratici said.
With Son’s future seemingly set, new manager Nuno Espirito Santo can now turn his atention to Kane. Last week, Nuno affirmed that he expects Kane to return.