Tottenham could land Josko Gvardiol and smash the world record for a defender, activating the Croatian's £96 million release clause.
That's the incredible claim from one report that suggests that the Lilywhites – whose fans have been rather vocal of late about the lack of investment into Antonio Conte's playing squad – are one of a number of clubs looking to land Gvardiol, who starred at the World Cup in Qatar last month.
The defender is still just 20 years old and was rumoured to be the subject of an eye-watering £75m bid from Chelsea last summer. Since then, he's signed an extension to his RB Leipzig deal, keeping him in the Bundesliga until someone activates a mammoth release clause of around €100m.
BILD claims that despite interest from more frivolous spenders, Tottenham are surprise contenders to land the Croatian centre-back – but that Antonio Conte's future remains key to any move.
Transfer insider Dean Jones believes the current uncertainty around how long the manager will remain at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium could scupper the chances of Gvardiol moving, with Jones telling GiveMeSport,“Essentially, we need to see how this season plays out first.”
“See whether Antonio Conte stays in charge.” he says. “See whether Fabio Paratici is still pulling the strings and can make something like this happen.
“It’s always been a case that Tottenham have had an interest in him.”
It would seem unlikely that Tottenham would spend quite so much on a player but with rumours of Middle Eastern investment, the north Londoners could be set to spend more to overhaul their squad under Conte.
Gvardiol is valued at €75m by Transfermarkt.
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Three England stars are on the radar for Spurs. Tottenham have been linked with a shock swoop for Harry Maguire, who could leave Manchester United this year. James Maddison could be about to leave Leicester, meanwhile, according to their manager Brendan Rodgers. Jordan Pickford has also been touted for a transfer.
Piero Hincapie is being linked with a big summer move and Pedro Porro could be on his way. In terms of outgoings, however, the big rumours are linking Harry Kane with an exit – this time to Real Madrid.
In other news, there have been rumours recently that PSG's Qatari ownership are interested in investing in Spurs.
