Tottenham look to have been handed a boost in the race for Marc Guehi at Crystal Palace.
The Lilywhites have been linked with a number of high-profile deals at this stage of the window, despite not yet landing a deal.
This has seen rumours surround Bryan Mbeumo, although he looks set to join Manchester United in a £60million move to Old Trafford.
As a result, Spurs have to turn their attention to other targets, with positivity emerging over a deal for Guehi at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Guehi to remain patient for Tottenham transfer
After securing Champions League qualification, there was a hope that key players would then stick around for the foreseeable future in N17.
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That may not be the case with Cristian Romero, still potentially on his way to Atletico Madrid before the end of the summer.
This would certainly leave Thomas Frank’s squad light for another busy season, and as a result, new centre-back options could be a requirement.
There are few options available right now who will be a better option than Guehi as his contract ticks down at Crystal Palace.
Former Brentford and Leicester City boss Martin Allen believes this could end with the England international seeing out his contract before joining Tottenham for free on a sizable signing-on fee.
Speaking exclusively to Tottenham News, Allen said: “With Guehi, his contract is up in a year’s time.
“He could play for Crystal Palace in the Premier League and in Europe for another year.
“He’s probably worth about £45m as a centre-back.
“If he has another good season, next summer he could say to any club, ‘I’ll sign for you, but you’ll have to pay me £40m.’ So the player can pick up that money himself, rather than it being a transfer fee.
“If I were him, I could stay at Palace, play there and then ask for crazy amounts of money from clubs, like Tottenham, who are getting a good deal, not paying a fee.“
Tottenham could land Guehi bargain next summer
It is fair to say that bringing in the Englishman to partner Micky van de Ven would be an excellent pairing for the Lilywhites.
To have that duo with someone like Kevin Danso playing backup in N17 can only be seen as positive depth moving into the new season.
That could hinge on whether Tottenham are willing to meet Palace’s demands or are willing to delay a deal by 12 months to complete a free transfer.
It will certainly be interesting to see how this saga plays out and what that means for Oliver Glasner’s side ahead of a European football campaign.