Florin Manea, who manages new Tottenham Hotspur signing Radu Dragusin, has backed his client to join his dream club Real Madrid in three to four years, suggesting the move to Spurs might only be a stepping stone for the defender.

Tottenham Hotspur Beat Competition From Bayern Munich To Sign Radu Dragusin

Bayern Munich and Tottenham Hotspur were both interested in signing the highly rated Romanian center-back from Genoa but the 21-year-old opted to take his talents to the English Premier League.

According to reports, Spurs have signed Dragusin from the Seria A outfit for a €25 million ($27.4 million) fee plus add-ons. The player has penned a six-and-a-half-year deal, meaning he is contractually tied to the Lilywhites until June 2030.

Manea Risks Angering Spurs Fans With Real Madrid Comment

Spurs fans are eager to see Dragusin take to the field for Ange Postecoglou’s side, but his agent has spoiled the celebrations a bit by disclosing the defender’s Real Madrid dream. Manea said he saw the Romania international leave the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium for the Santiago Bernabeu in three to four years, as Los Blancos were one of his dream clubs.

Speaking to Romanian news outlet DigiSport, he said (via SportsMole):

“I was looking at a picture from when we started together at Juve, I was looking at how skinny he was. We are only at the beginning of the road, we want them to reach the best clubs in the world.”

Manea added that Bayern were close to agreeing a deal with Dragusin, but he snubbed the Germans as Allianz Arena was not his dream destination.

The agent added:

“We were close, Bayern is among the biggest clubs, but his dream is Real or Barcelona. If he was 23-24 years old and had more experience, maybe he would have decided to go to Bayern, but I also took into account the age, and the competition, I took into account many things.

“In three or four years I see him at Real Madrid.”

Dragusin, who scored twice in 22 matches for Genoa before moving to London, has become Tottenham’s second signing of the January window. Shortly before tying the defender to a long-term contract, Spurs signed former Chelsea man Timo Werner on loan from RB Leipzig.