Mauricio Pochettino confirms interest in Inter Milan attacker

Tottenham Hotspur manager Mauricio Pochettino has confirmed that the club had attempted to sign Keita Balde during his time with Italian side Lazio.

Back in the summer of 2017, Spurs had expressed an interest in signing Balde with him keen on a move away from Lazio but he decided to join AS Monaco instead on five-year deal.

Since then, the attacker has made the return to the Serie A with Inter Milan on loan and he was a second half substitute for the Nerazzurri during Spurs' 2-1 Champions League defeat at San Siro on Tuesday night.

Speaking after that game, Pochettino confirmed that Balde was indeed on his radar and happened to praise the attacker's qualities, he said via Calciomercato: "Yes it is true.

"I have been following him since he was growing up at Barcelona while I was at Espanyol. He has always been a player of interest for us, but then he chose Monaco. He remains an excellent attacker."

Balde has yet to contribute a goal or an assist for Inter since making his loan switch during the summer but the club are said to have the option of turning his deal into a permanent one when his temporary stint concludes.