Rodrigo Bentancur reveals Luis Suarez transfer advice amid Aston Villa interest & why he chose Tottenham

Rodrigo Bentancur admits the chance to work with serial winner Antonio Conte swayed him in Tottenham Hotspur’s direction.

Uruguay international Bentancur, 24, was among Aston Villa’s targets in the January transfer window. Steven Gerrard is targeting a new midfielder and Bentancur was reportedly on Villa’s radar.

Spurs ended up agreeing a £21m-plus deal with Juventus to sign Bentancur and he made his first start under Conte in Sunday’s 2-0 defeat to Wolverhampton Wanderers.

Villa turned their attention to Yves Bissouma and failed with a late bid to sign the Brighton man. Another bid for Bissouma could be lodged in the summer, while Villa have also been linked with Leicester City enforcer Wilfred Ndidi.

Having penned a contract until 2026 with Spurs, Bentancur’s name has been scratched off Villa’s list.

Explaining his decision to join Spurs, Bentancur told Sky Sports: "The fact that Antonio Conte was here was a massive factor in helping me make up my decision to join Tottenham, and a big motivation.

"I feel that he can dramatically improve me as a player and I'm looking forward to learning from him big time. His track record is amazing. He's won lots of titles and has been successful wherever he's gone."

According to reports, Luis Suarez - who played alongside Gerrard at Liverpool and has been linked with a switch to B6 himself - gave the Villa boss a glowing reference about Bentancur.

Bentancur and Suarez were away on international duty with Uruguay whilst all the drama at the end of the transfer window was unfolding, which gave the latter the opportunity to advise his young compatriot.

Bentancur added: "I was following my situation while on international duty, and as soon as Luis Suarez found out that there