Erik Lamela 'not in Napoli's transfer plans'

Tottenham Hotspur midfielder Erik Lamela is not a transfer target for Napoli, their president has revealed.

The former Roma man, who joined Spurs last summer for a club-record fee of £30m, has struggled to adapt to life in the Premier League and was linked with a loan switch during the January transfer window.

Inter Milan and Juventus were reportedly tracking the Argentine, who excelled in Serie A, but Aurelio de Laurentiis says that Napoli are not planning an attempt to take him back to Italy.

"He's not in our plans. We have reinforcements in that role and we will not play checkers with some of our own players," De Laurentiis is quoted as saying by Fox Sports.

Spurs manager Tim Sherwood recently said that Lamela was a "long-term" signing.