Spurs leading race for “extraordinary” defender available for just £21m

Tottenham have moved into pole position to land an exciting new option at the heart of defence this summer, as they look to bounce back from a tough end to the season.

Spurs’ Champions League hopes hanging by a thread

Defeat in the north London derby in front of their home fans has left Tottenham’s season threatening to fizzle out without the prize of Champions League football at the end of it.

They battled back from 3-0 down to 3-2, but could not find an equaliser in the dying minutes as Arsenal rode their luck to come away with all three points and boost their own hopes of winning their first Premier League title since 2004.

After England’s poor performance in Europe, only the top four sides qualify for the Champions League next season, instead of the widely anticipated five teams. Currently fifth, Ange Postecoglou’s side are seven points behind Aston Villa, but have two games in hand on the Villans.

However, even were they to be perfect between now and the end of the campaign, their fate would be out of their hands, and they face a tricky run of fixtures that includes another London derby against Chelsea as well as games against two sides above them, though they also face an already relegated Sheffield United side and a potentially soon to be relegated Burnley.

But attention is turning firmly to the summer, with the squad rebuild begun 12 months ago after the departure of Harry Kane set to continue ahead of the new season.

Tottenham in pole position for defender

Now, reports in Italy could have handed Spurs a boost, claiming that the Lilywhites are ‘first in line’ to land impressive Bologna defender Riccardo Calafiori, Calafiori has been a revelalation for Thiago Motta and Bologna this season, making 27 appearances to help the Italian side into 4th, a spot currently enough to guarantee Champions League football next season.

Dubbed an “extraordinary” talent in the Italian press, he is an outside bet for Luciano Spalletti’s EURO 2024 squad and his star is firmly on an upwards trajectory.

His form has not gone unnoticed though, with Tottenham and Juventus both having been alerted to his situation. Though Juventus usually have the advantage when it comes to landing Serie A talent, it is claimed that this time round Tottenham are the frontrunners due to the fact that they have more cash available than the Old Lady, who would likely try and engineer a loan deal or part exchange for his services.

Though no price tag is mentioned, he has previously been reported to be available for around 25m euros (£21m) this summer, which could prove to be a bargain should he continue to deliver on his immense promise.