Tottenham Hotspur Failed In Late Bid For Ruud Van Nistelrooy - Report

Ruud van Nistelrooy could have moved to Spurs had he been fit and not wanted so much money...

Sep 2, 2009 9:03:07 AM

Photo Gallery

Zoom

Ruud Van Nistelrooy - Real Madrid (PA)

Teams

Players

Ruud Van Nistelrooy

Tottenham Hotspur failed in a bid to land Ruud van Nistelrooy from Real Madrid and sell Roman Pavlyuchenko on transfer deadline day after concerns were raised about the Dutchman's fitness and price, according to a report.

Manager Harry Redknapp signed Niko Kranjcar from Portsmouth on Tuesday and was linked with various other deals, but the move for the former Manchester United striker only came to light after the cut-off time passed.

Pavlyuchenko voiced his discontent at not having been given many chances so far in a season in which he aims to impress to earn a place in Russia's World Cup squad.

Although Redknapp has stated since that the Russian striker is happy at White Hart Lane and will have a chance, it appears that he sought to replace him with Van Nistelrooy.

However, having spent most of last season on the sidelines recovering from a serious knee injury, there were too many doubts about Van Nistelrooy's fitness levels - and that, claim The Daily Mail, put Tottenham off.

Given that risk - and the Dutchman's alleged demands for around €100,000-a-week in wages - Redknapp chose to keep hold of Pavlyuchenko rather than push through a transfer that could have ended up being a disaster.

Lucas Brown, Goal.com