Tottenham could be on the verge of summer transfer number six going off a Clement Lenglet prediction made by Barcelona president Joan Laporta. The French defender joined Spurs on loan for the 2022/23 campaign and went on to make 26 Premier League appearances before his temporary spell expired, although negotiations continued in an attempt to make the switch permanent.
New Spurs boss Ange Postecoglou has already overseen the arrivals of Dejan Kulusevski, Guglielmo Vicario and James Maddison with the obligation to purchase Pedro Porro from Sporting CP activated over the weekend. Arrival number five could also come soon with Manor Solomon agreeing a deal to join the club on a free transfer, as football.london understands.
With key areas strengthened, Tottenham are now looking at options in the centre of defence with Micky van de Ven and Edmond Tapsoba emerging as the top two candidates. With one addition unlikely to be enough, transfer guru Fabrizio Romano has claimed that Spurs are exploring the acquisition of both.
That could end up being a costly double swoop, but Spurs do have an alternative and much cheaper option in Lenglet and Barca chief Laporta's own admission indicates that move is on the cards.
“I think that with Tottenham we will reach an agreement for Lenglet," he said. "This almost never goes fast. It depends on the other party.” The 28-year-old could be available for just £5million this summer, but with Barcelona desperate to get his lucrative wages off their books, a bargain deal worth less than that price may end up being agreed.
According to Spanish outlet AS, Tottenham are firmly aware of Barcelona's want to lower their wage bill and are therefore hoping they terminate his contract so that Spurs can sign him on a free transfer.
READ MORE: Mikel Arteta eyes shock £57m Tottenham transfer hijack to gift Arsenal dream summer window
In terms of outgoings in defence, Davinson Sanchez is expected to depart with Galatasaray starting negotiations for his transfer. Elsewhere, Eric Dier is determined to fight for his place under Postecoglou and is therefore likely to stay despite enduring a turbulent few years at the club.
