Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly keen to sign Newcastle United's Sandro Tonali, with the player said to be open to moving to the North London club.
In what would be an incredibly surprising move, Roberto De Zerbi's Spurs have made the Italian their No 1 signing priority this summer, with moves afoot to secure a deal.
Newcastle have not received any bids for Tonali, and are unlikely to sell for anything less than £100m, with strong interest from Arsenal and Manchester City, plus European giants such as PSG and Real Madrid monitoring the situation.
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Manchester United have been linked with the Italian international, but reports suggest they will turn their attentions elsewhere after learning Newcastle's price tag.
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Tonali signed for United in 2023, but missed 10 months of his debut season after receiving a ban for gambling-related offences. However, he has since become a key part of Eddie Howe's side, although with the club needing to sell in order to help fund a squad rebuild, he is one of the names linked with an exit.
United sold Anthony Gordon to Barcelona for £69.3m last month, and there are expected to be more big-name departures in the summer transfer window.
However, if Tonali was to leave, Newcastle would then double down on their intentions to keep rising stars such as Lewis Hall and Tino Livramento.
Spurs are stooges - Chronicle verdict
Let's get this straight. Sandro Tonali is not leaving Newcastle United for any side not playing Champions League football next season, which is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to Spurs.
Not only have the North London side struggled at the wrong end of the Premier League table for two seasons in a row now, but they, like Newcastle, will not be competing in Europe next term. They only avoided relegation on the final day of the season, in case anyone needs reminding.
Then there's the small matter of the price tag. United are not going to let the Italian leave for anything less than the £100m mark, which feels a fair price for one of the best central midfielders in the Premier League. The fact Manchester City and Arsenal like him tells you everything you need to know about his ability and value.
The idea of Spurs being able to afford that sort of fee is fanciful at best. De Zerbi would have to sell half his squad to fund such a move, and while few Tottenham fans would complain at that, it's not going to happen.
Tonali is ambitious. He wants to win trophies and has all the attributes to play at the very highest level. So why on earth would he be attracted to Spurs?
Maybe we're being sceptical, but could this is a ruse to flush out would-be bidders, with transfer talk involving the Italian international going noticeably quiet since the season ended? If City sign Elliot Anderson and Man Utd bring in West Ham's Matheus Fernandes, where does that leave Tonali?
His agent Giuseppe Riso is not usually shy of throwing his name around, but on this occasion, he is perhaps allowing others to stir the pot.
It may well work, but Spurs will be nothing more than the stooges in all this.