Spurs now have a much better chance of signing player who is faster than Bale – Our View

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According to Alasdair Gold, Tottenham Hotspur will now target Pau Torres after missing out on Alessandro Bastoni.

Spurs are in the market for a new left-sided centre-half and with both Josko Gvardiol and Bastoni looking unattainable, the London club are now turning their attentions towards Torres.

The Spaniard would be a fantastic addition to Antonio Conte’s side, but we’ve been here before.

Indeed, this time last summer it was a similar story for Spurs., They were in the market for a new defender and Torres had worked his way to the top of their shortlist.

However, the Spaniard turned down a move to Tottenham down because he wanted to play in the Champions League.

“The pull of playing the Champions League with the team from my town was bigger,” said Torres.

“I was clear from the start. This is only the fourth time Villarreal reached the Champions League, which shows how hard it is and it was a dream to play the competition with my lifelong club.”

Spurs had reportedly agreed a deal in principle, but due to their lack of participation in UEFA’s top competition last year, Torres couldn’t be tempted with a move to north London.

However, things are very different now.

The shoe is very much on the other foot these days. Villarreal haven’t qualified for the 2022/23 Champions League campaign, while Tottenham will be entering the competition in the group stages after securing a fourth-placed finish in the Premier League.

Factor in that Spurs now also have one of the best managers on the planet in Antonio Conte rather than Nuno Espirito Santo, and it’s fair to say that a move to north London is a lot more alluring than it was 12 months ago.

Torres will surely be more tempted by Spurs than he was this time last year, and, in our view, Tottenham have a much better chance of getting this deal over the line now.

So, what type of defender is Torres?

Well, standing at 6 ft 4 he’s aerially dominant, but he also possesses great pace, ranking as the fifth-fastest player in La Liga in 2019/20, and in a league full of speedsters such as Ousmane Dembele and Gareth Bale, who were both in the La Liga at that point, that’s an incredible feat.

Factor in that he’s a ball-playing left-footer and you have a perfect defender for Conte’s system.

Will Tottenham get this deal done? That remains to be seen, but they seemingly have a better chance than they did this time last year.