Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with the Leicester City youngster.
According to a report from the Daily Mirror, Tottenham Hotspur have no intention of bidding for Leicester City’s Riyad Mahrez this summer, while they have balked at the £22million release clause in Demarai Gray’s contract despite being interested in the youngster.
If Spurs chairman Daniel Levy can convince the Foxes to take less for the latter, it would be a superb piece of long-term business.
It would be easy to look at the two Leicester wingers’ contrasting numbers and suggest Tottenham should go all out for Mahrez. But Gray has the potential to become one of England’s most exciting wide men and he is exactly the type of player Spurs have made a habit of signing in recent years.
Young, full of potential and destined for great things, Gray may not yet be worth £22million, but if Tottenham can knock Leicester down to around £15million it could go down as another masterstroke from their chairman Daniel Levy.
Mahrez scored 18 goals and 10 assists in Leicester’s title-winning campaign, and while he put in some superb performances he has slipped off his footballing pedestal more recently.
With Leicester struggling a year on, Mahrez went missing alarmingly regularly, finishing the season with 10 goals and seven assists, and as he approaches his 27th birthday one wonders if he will ultimately be remembered for one great season.
Only time will tell, but Gray has years ahead of him and with the right coaching he could be exactly what Tottenham need.
Mahrez would be the short-term fix but Gray would be the investment that could be paying off for the next decade.
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