Aston Villa boss Tim Sherwood has revealed that he came close to signing Fabian Delph for Tottenham, but was sacked before a deal could be reached, according to The Sun.
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However, Sherwood has stated his relief at the deal not going through as he says the player is even better now than he was this time last season.
“I remember bumping into Fabian’s agent in London last year and saying I would like to take him to Tottenham,” he said.
“I tried my best with Fabian. There was a place for him at Spurs where he could have slotted in either side of Mason and Bentaleb.
“He would cost too much now but he would have been a bargain then.”
Sherwood then went on to reveal how much he admires the 25-year-old.
“Fabian is the type of player I need at this club. He resisted the temptation to move as the club stood by him when he was injured. He wanted to repay Randy Lerner’s loyalty to him.
“As an outsider you do question his ambition. But I didn’t know the boy’s character before. I do now.
“He’s shown there is still loyalty in the game. That’s the sort of character I need.”
“I’ve told Fabian he could be on the verge of something with England. Roy will stumble across a team that will win the Euros. He will, I tell you.
“You’ve got players like Raheem Sterling, Jordan Henderson, Fabian. Get them together and we’ve got a really good chance.”