“I was close to coming, very close” – Tottenham star Ivan Perisic reveals 2 Premier League clubs he almost joined in the past

Tottenham Hotspur left-wing-back Ivan Perisic has revealed that he was "very close" to moving to the Premier League to join Manchester United and Arsenal in the past.

Perisic, 33, joined Spurs this summer on a free transfer after the expiration of his contract with Inter Milan.

The Croatian wing-back has played for various clubs like Bayern Munich, Inter Milan, Wolfsburg, and Borussia Dortmund, among others.

He will now ply his trade in the Premier League with Tottenham. However, he came close to joining Manchester United in 2017 and Arsenal in 2019.

Speaking on Stadium Astro's YouTube channel, Perisic said:

“I’m so excited to be in the Premier League. I wanted to come to the Premier League so many years ago, but always something happened. Can’t wait to start. I was close to coming, very close [to coming before]."

He added:

“With Manchester United in 2017, and then Arsenal in 2019. A lot of other clubs too, but always something happened in the last moment. But okay, we don’t look at the past. I just want to focus and do my best with Tottenham.”

Perisic played 48 matches for Inter last season across all competitions, scoring ten goals and providing nine assists. He won the Serie A title with the club in 2020-21 under current Tottenham manager Antonio Conte.

He will look to help the north London side win a trophy in the upcoming season.

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Tottenham Hotspur's injury update ahead of their first 2022-23 Premier League clash

Spurs will face Southampton at home on August 6 in their first 2022-23 Premier League encounter. The Lilywhites lost this fixture 3-2 last season, while they drew 1-1 at St. Mary's Stadium.

Antonio Conte will hope to get revenge for the defeat and kick off the new campaign on the right note.

He shared in a pre-match press conference that midfielder Oliver Skipp is the only player certain to miss the clash due to injury. New signing Yves Bissouma is also in doubt, but a decision will be made after the final training session.

He said (via Football.London):

"In this moment, we have only one player that I'm sure will miss against Southampton which is Oliver Skipp. Bissouma we have another day to check very well his physical condition."

He added:

"Nothing serious but I don't want to take any risks for the next games, but tomorrow we have another training session to make an evaluation about the team. The other players are all available."

New signing Richarlison will also miss Tottenham's clash against Southampton due to suspension. He was handed a one-game ban after throwing a flare back into the crowd in Everton's 1-0 win over Chelsea in May last season.