Tottenham report: Spurs to beat Arsenal to big Serie A transfer, in a move that could enrage Gunners owners

Tottenham Hotspur are hoping to get one over on Arsenal with a transfer target that they're hoping to land in January. 

The two north London rivals have often gone up against one another for players in the last few years, with Brazilian forwards Richarlison and Gabriel Jesus both admitting that there was interest from the other club when they made their respective moves this summer.

Last year, Emerson Royal and Takehiro Tomiyasu were both targets for either side, while Spurs' January buy, Dejan Kulusevski, was on Arsenal's radar, too. 

Recently, Arsenal have been linked with Juventus star Weston McKennie, according to Calciomercato (opens in new tab), with the Old Lady said to be interested in making a swap deal with the Gunners' young midfielder, Albert Sambi Lokonga. 

Now, the same source claims (opens in new tab) that Tottenham director Fabio Paratici – who has links to former club Juventus – is a noted fan of McKennie. 

McKennie, who has been likened to former Spurs man, Edgar Davids, is perhaps more likely to choose the white side of north London, with more of a guarantee of playing time, should Antonio Conte stick with the 3-5-2 formation he has recently favoured. 

Arsenal's ownership, however, may be peeved at missing out on this deal. The Gunners have recently signed Matt Turner and Austin Trusty – both Americans – with an eye to recruit more from the United States in the future. Signing an established US international like McKennie would be seen as a big coup for the Colorado-based Kroenke Sports Entertainment.

Juventus are said to be keen to sell in order to make room for a permanent transfer for Leandro Paredes. The Argentine controller is on loan from Paris Saint-Germain at current. 

McKennie is valued at around £22.5 million by Transfermarkt (opens in new tab). 

More Tottenham Hotspur stories

Antonio Conte has told his Tottenham squad that there is no one "undroppable" this season. 

New star Richarlison has told FFT exclusively that he joined Spurs because Everton "lacked ambition", while confirming that there was interest from Chelsea. Tottenham apparently want to sign Jan Oblak and are bracing themselves for Bayern Munich reviving interest in Harry Kane. 

Conte has denied that he could return to Juventus, meanwhile, and hit out at refereeing in the Premier League.