Tottenham will have to smash their transfer record if they want to sign Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis this summer.
Lo Celso is one of Mauricio Pochettino’s top targets and the Argentine international is reportedly keen on linking up with his fellow countryman in north London.
According to reports last week, Spurs have already had one bid of around £55m for the 23-year-old rejected, but they are expected to go in with a higher offer.
The bad news for the Lilywhites is that Lo Celso has an £88m release clause.
But the good news is that, according to Sky Sports, Betis are likely to accept an offer in the region of £70m for the playmaker’s services.
That would almost double the Premier League club’s current transfer record – the £38.4m they spent on Davinson Sánchez in 2017 – but the market has changed quite dramatically in the last two years.
Spurs are also said to be in negotiations with Lyon for the transfer of Tanguy Ndombele, who is also likely to cost a pretty penny.
But Pochettino has money to spend after not making a single signing in the last two transfer windows and accruing revenue by guiding his team to last season’s Champions League final.
Players are likely to leave this summer too, and the north Londoners are also thought to be interested in Fulham’s Ryan Sessegnon and Marseille’s Hiroki Sakai.