Tottenham Hotspur’s hopes of signing RB Leipzig defender Josko Gvardiol could be damaged with Chelsea now desperate to sign him.
Tottenham are spending big on a defender in Cristian Romero but may still want another big addition at the back.
Ben Davies isn’t exactly a natural as a left-sided centre back but has been deployed there for Antonio Conte’s back three.
It’s likely that Tottenham target a left-sided centre back this summer to fill that role.
The Daily Mail reported in March that Leipzig star Gvardiol has become Tottenham’s top target for that position.
Gvardiol is understood to be above Lille star Sven Botman in Tottenham’s transfer wish list after shining in Germany.
Hailed as an ‘extraordinary’ player by compatriot Ivica Olic, Gvardiol is really turning heads over in the Bundesliga.
Quick, aggressive and able to play out from the back, Gvardiol is everything you would want in a left-sided centre back.
Football Observatory CIES have named Gvardiol as their top Under-23 rookie in a top five league this season, suggesting that he should be worth £80million.
Tottenham surely won’t be paying anywhere near that for any player this summer – and Gvardiol could end up elsewhere in London.
Sky Germany now report that Chelsea have picked out Gvardiol as the player they want to replace Antonio Rudiger.
Rudiger has confirmed to Thomas Tuchel that he will be leaving Chelsea when his contract ends this summer.
That means Chelsea will be looking for a new centre back this summer and Gvardiol is aware of Tuchel’s interest.
The problem for Chelsea is that Roman Abramovich is still under government sanctions and the Blues can’t makes offers for new players.
Until that situation changes, their interest in Gvardiol is somewhat futile.
Still, with a takeover expected in the near future, Tottenham must be aware that they risk missing out on Gvardiol.
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