Tottenham transfer news: £54m target who 'Conte's worked with' has 'gone up another level' | OneFootball

Journalist and Italian football expert Conor Clancy believes Inter defender and Tottenham Hotspur target Alessandro Bastoni has 'gone up another level' since working under Simeone Inzaghi.

Bastoni has made the vast majority of his senior appearances under current Spurs boss Antonio Conte during their time together at San Siro and has been linked with a reunion in north London.

What is the latest news involving Bastoni?

According to Italian outlet Calciomercato back in November, the 52-year-old tactician has requested defensive reinforcements, with Juventus gem Matthijs de Ligt and his former Inter star identified as the two key targets.

In 2020/21, Bastoni featured in 33 Serie A games as the Nerazzurri romped to their first top-flight title in 11 years, forming a formidable partnership alongside Milan Skriniar and Stefan de Vrij.

The Italy international is, therefore, already familiar with Conte's famed back three formation and could prove to be an extremely astute acquisition for the north London outfit.

Unlike Tottenham's current options at centre-back, Cristian Romero, Joe Rodon, Eric Dier, Japhet Tanganga and Davinson Sanchez, Bastoni is naturally left-footed, something which may be extremely appealing to Conte.

And he has already shown his top-class credentials, contributing heavily to the best defensive record in Serie A last term, and Clancy believes the 6 foot 3 gem has elevated his game to new heights this time around.

Bastoni has started 18 of Inter's 20 league games to date, helping Inzaghi's side climb to the top of the table as they look to defend their crown.

What has Clancy said about Bastoni?

The defender - who is valued at £54 million by Transfermarkt - has averaged 2.1 clearances, 1.6 tackles and 1.1 interceptions per league game this season.

Those figures place him in the top three for each metric amongst his teammates who have started three or more games, highlighting why Clancy has been so full of praise for Bastoni.

He told GiveMeSport: “He's worked with Conte before. Conte kind of took him from being this promising Serie A defender to being the player he is now, and since Simeone Inzaghi’s come in at Inter, he's gone up another level again.”

Do Tottenham need another centre-back?

As previously mentioned, Bastoni's left-footed nature may make him a very attractive option to Spurs, allowing Conte to field a more natural option on the left-hand side of his defensive unit.

Although Ben Davies has been filling in there in recent weeks, the Wales international is more comfortable at full-bac rather than in the middle.

Coupled with the fact that the capital club are reportedly willing to let Rodon depart this month in search of regular game time, it's easy to understand why Tottenham are in the market for defensive reinforcments.