Following our piece on our Italian import by Christian Gross back in 1998, here is an update on his whereabouts from John Crockett.

Remember Paolo Tramezzani ?  Just a bit … well, it is difficult.  After all, the Italian defender did only turn out in 6 matches in the 1998-99 Premiership season and none in the following one before finally joining Pistoese in January 2000. 

Even then, he only played 12 games from January to the end of the season, although he did score two goals (a pleasure that Spurs fans never savoured).  After that, he went on to Piacenza and Atalanta, with whom he got relegated last season. 

So, what’s he up to now ?  The 33 year old defender had the chance of playing in Serie A again, this time with Empoli.  However, having signed a contract with the 12^th placed side, our former defender tore it up and is now a free agent.  This might seem a bit mad, but there is a reason behind it and quite a tender-hearted one too. 

The reason behind his actions ?  His 7 year old daughter. 

The problem is that Paolo is divorced and his ex-wife made it clear that if he moved away from Milan, he would lose certain rights as regards to access to see his daughter.  So, now he has decided he will only play for a club from the Lombardy region.  This might seem like limiting his options, but it should not be forgotten that between Serie A and Serie B, AC Milan, Internazionale, Brescia, Atalanta and Piacenza are all Lombardy clubs, although there are others.

To be near his daughter, Tramezzani has admitted that he chose to be operated on in Italy while at Tottenham.   You might recall that this was when George Graham put his foot down and said he had to have his surgery in London, not Italy.  This was the beginning of the end of his Tottenham career.  However, it is not just Spurs he has turned his back on, as he spurned a move to Benfica for the same reason. 

Despite all the summer spending Tottenham have done, one player who they won’t be buying back now is Paolo Tramezzani, for whom Lombardy is the only place to be.