LONDON: Tottenham are showing a surprising reluctance to sign on-loan striker Mido, the Egyptian forward s agent claimed on Wednesday. Mido, whose loan deal from Roma expires at the end of the season, has made it clear he wants to put his stay at White Hart Lane on a permanent footing. But his agent, Mino Raiola, says other clubs have now moved above Spurs in the race to sign the striker, who has netted 11 goals for the London club this season. Even Roma are back in the frame, with coach Luciano Spaletti, who was not in charge when Mido left, looking for a striker in his mould. We are talking to Tottenham, we are talking to Roma and we are talking to some other clubs, Raiola confirmed. Although we have not excluded Tottenham, other clubs are ahead of them now. We are standing still with Spurs and nothing is concluded. I am disappointed we have not concluded a deal with Tottenham and I find it strange. I am not so confident that Tottenham are willing to invest the money they need to invest to get Mido. He is not a free transfer and there are other teams, as big and even bigger than Tottenham, who have an appetite for Mido both in England and in Europe. Tottenham have not expressed a willingness to conclude the deal and that has surprised me. Mido s future is now becoming a long-running saga at White Hart Lane, although Dutch coach Martin Jol has been more than impressed with the player s performances since he joined them on an 18-month loan from Roma in January 2005. Mido has done very well at Spurs and that has attracted attention from other big clubs, admitted Raiola. He is a strong player and works very hard for the team. He is the perfect kind of striker for the English game and he is perhaps one of the players who is stronger with his head than with his feet. Mido is very grateful to Spurs and his teammates for the chance they have given him but a number of clubs have seen what he has done in England and have become very interested. Mido is set for a recall against Newcastle on Saturday after inspiring a lackluster Spurs to victory when he came off the substitute s bench against West Brom on Monday. The Spurs fans will be dismayed if the club cannot reach a deal with Roma who are alleged to want around 5 million pounds for Mido, who is serving a six-month suspension from the national side after showing dissent and calling the coach a donkey during the African Nations Cup. AFP
Spurs drop off pace in race to sign Mido: agent
