Future of Napoli star Amadou Diawara unclear as Tottenham get mixed messages

As first ever league goals go, Amadou Diawara’s late winner against Chievo was fairly spectacular. With Napoli going a goal behind with two minutes of normal time to spare and equalising a minute later, a stoppage-time corner fell to Diawara in the box before the Guinean midfielder curled home past Stefano Sorrentino and sent the ball rippling beautifully across the back of the net.

Though he has made almost 100 senior appearances since his debut for Lega Pro side San Marino back in 2014, it was only the second time Diawara has scored in his career. His goal may well have kept Napoli’s title fight alive this season, with the Partenopei in danger of going six points behind a resurgent Juventus with a draw at the Stadio San Paolo. Still only 20 years old, the young midfielder has done enough this season to suggest he has an impressive career ahead of him. While over half his appearances this term have come as a substitute, his passing range, accuracy and talent for timely interceptions has seen him marked out as an influential presence in Napoli’s title-chasing campaign.

“I did not imagine I’d score my debut goal like that, but the ball came to me and I went for it,” Diawara told Mediaset Premium afterwards. “After the goal, all my teammates, the coach and the staff gave me a pat on the back.” While Diawara might not be the most prolific midfielder – not that he is necessarily expected to score bucketloads of goals given his reputation as a disruptor and defensive-minded player – he clearly knows how to find the net when his team need him most. “I work hard in training, put myself at the disposal of the coach and am so very grateful every time I am given the opportunity to play and show what I can do,” he added.

Gambit for game time?

Playing time has been a bone of contention recently as far as Diawara is concerned. Having been linked with a move to the Premier League earlier in the season – Tottenham were the main club mentioned as a possible destination, with Mauricio Pochettino reportedly considering Diawara as a long-term replacement for Mousa Dembele – his agent implied that game time could be a deciding factor in his future.

Speaking to Tuttomercatoweb back in February, as reported by Talksport, agent Daniele Piraino said: “There are some Premier League clubs interested, but it’s premature to talk about this. It’s not easy to find the right tempo in a match situation if you only play every couple of months, especially considering his role in midfield. As soon as he gets to play more consistently, we’ll see the same world-class player as last season.” Diawara made 28 appearances last season and is on course to surpass that total comfortably, but his representatives clearly feel that he could accelerate his development even further with more opportunities.

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Piraino seems to have done a U-turn of sorts since he was quoted as claiming there was interest in Diawara from England. According to Football Italia, Piraino said last week of a mooted €25m transfer to Spurs: “I don’t know who’s putting out such destabilising rumours at such a delicate moment in Napoli’s season. I don’t know who’d be interested in doing that.

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“A release clause? It doesn’t exist, not for Italy nor for foreign countries. It hasn’t been looked at and there’s no negotiation with Tottenham, with English teams or any team in Europe. Diawara is very happy at Napoli, he has three years on his contract and he’s focused. He’s very happy with the city, with the fans, with the environment and indeed everything, he’s totally focused on Napoli and the fight for the Scudetto, he hopes to find space in the final sprint.”

With another pointed reference to his number of starts under Maurizio Sarri thrown into the mix, it’s possible that talk of interest from the Premier League was mainly a gambit for game time. That said, especially after Diawara’s headline-grabbing goal at the weekend, it would be no surprise if Tottenham and others were monitoring his progress.

While a move for Diawara may not be immediate and reports of a concrete transfer fee seem to have been a bit hasty, there are few players so young with as much experience. Having made sure Napoli remain in contention for the Serie A title with a well timed intervention against Chievo, he may well find himself in high demand this summer and promised all the starts he could want elsewhere.