Football: Spurs priced out of Moutinho deal

CHIGWELL: Tottenham Hotspur have dropped their interest in signing Porto’s Joao Moutinho because the Portugal midfielder is too expensive, said the Premier League club’s new manager Andre Villas-Boas. Spurs are looking to replace playmaker Luka Modric, who is likely to join Real Madrid later this month, but Moutinho is not an option despite having worked under Villas-Boas at Porto. “The level of expectation of Porto over [the price] is difficult,” said Villas-Boas at the Tottenham training ground ahead of today’s league opener at Newcastle United.

Published in The Express Tribune, August 18^th, 2012.