Davinson Sanchez almost became a Barcelona player when he was 17 before deciding to join Ajax, according to his former coach Juan Carlos Osorio.
Tottenham spent a record fee of around £40 million to sign Sanchez from Ajax in the summer, but the defender almost went down a completely different route.
Osorio, who now manages the Mexico national team, told Sky Sports: “I was coaching Nacional in Colombia, who are from Medellin. After winning a title we moved to Cali and I was invited to play football – which enjoy to do so with my friends – and I noticed this guy, and I really liked what I saw.
“So at the end of the day and I asked him, that was Davinson, if he wanted to join National. He was 17. The only thing was he was playing as a central midfielder, and I said to him, ‘I can see you have the qualities to play as a central defender’.
“That is what he decided to do and then he went to Holland. He played a very good season and Tottenham decided to go for him. That’s fantastic to see. When a player can have such an improving career in such a short period of time.”
Sanchez has slotted seamlessly into the Spurs defence since joining. The club and the supporters will be thanking their lucky stars the 21-year-old opted against signing for Barcelona.
