Ivan Perisic has revealed he watched Tottenham’s run-in and says it was “obvious” his new club would finish above Arsenal and clinch Champions League football after winning the north London derby on May 12.
Spurs unveiled Perisic as their first signing of the summer on Tuesday, with the 33-year-old signing a two-year deal after leaving Inter Milan on a free transfer.
He suggested the move had been in the pipeline for several weeks, saying he was watched Spurs’ run-in as they completed a six-point swing on rivals Arsenal in the final three matches to finish fourth.
“I’m really excited to start with the Spurs family,” Perisic said. “When I got a call from the coach and sporting director, I said I really wanted to play in the Premier League since 2009 when I starting to play professional football in Belgium. This is the moment and I can’t wait.
“I was waiting [in] the last two to three games, I was watching. After the victory against Arsenal, it was obvious Tottenham would go in the Champions League and it was good for me because I want to play the best games, do a great job in Champions League and Premier League and both cups.
“It was always my dream to play in the best five leagues in the world and the Premier League was a missing puzzle [piece]. Now I’m here and my hope is it’s going to be perfect.”
Perisic will be reunited with Antonio Conte after winning the Serie A with the Italian’s Inter side last season.
“It’s a privilege to work with a coach like this,” he said in the interview with SpursTV. “He’s living football, every minute, ever hour, every day. When he’s sleeping, he’s thinking about football. I like his character and I know he’s going to do a great job here.”
Asked what he would bring to the club, he added: “I’m going to bring a lot of hard work, I like to work a lot, for the team. I can play several positions in the system Tottenham is playing now. I’ll bring also a lot of experience, I used to play for a lot of great clubs.”
