Djed Spence’s decision to prioritise a move to Italian champions Inter Milan has seen Tottenham Hotspur accelerate talks, with TEAMtalk able to exclusively reveal that a deal is now on the cusp of being agreed.
Spurs and Spence had already reached an understanding before the summer’s World Cup finals that he would be allowed to leave this summer, with head coach Roberto De Zerbi believing a transfer would be the best outcome for all parties.
Spence subsequently enhanced his reputation with a starring role for England, but his future in north London remained unchanged.
A host of Premier League clubs were offered the chance to sign the 26-year-old, including Liverpool, Manchester United, Chelsea, Newcastle United, Aston Villa and Everton. There was interest, but Tottenham‘s ‘ initial asking price of around £45million was viewed as too high and no deal materialised.
Inter, however, had been interested from the outset as they looked for a replacement for Denzel Dumfries and their interest has now accelerated.
The Serie A champions explored a number of options and came close to signing Anan Khalaili, only for the deal to collapse over medical issues and he has since agreed to join Crystal Palace.
That forced Inter back into the market and Spence’s name was presented to them again during their discussions with Tottenham over Cristian Romero.
Those talks helped establish strong lines of communication between the two clubs. Tottenham and Inter had actually reached an agreement over Romero, only for the Argentina captain to prioritise a move to Spain, where he is now set to join Atletico Madrid.
The discussions nevertheless proved valuable and negotiations over Spence have progressed rapidly.
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Tottenham agree to lower Spence exit price
TEAMtalk understands Inter made it clear they had a strict budget and ceiling for their new right-back, with €30million (£26m) the maximum they were prepared to pay.
That figure has now been agreed with Tottenham, with Inter also preparing a substantial contract for Spence as they move towards completing the transfer.
Spence’s preference has played a major role in the acceleration. He has already experienced football abroad with Rennes and, most recently, Genoa in Serie A, and the opportunity to return to Italy and join Inter at San Siro is understood to hold huge appeal.
The England international is now on course to become the second English player to join Cristian Chivu’s Inter side this summer, following John Stones.
And Inter are not finished with their Premier League recruitment.
The Nerazzurri remain intent on trying to bring Liverpool midfielder Curtis Jones to Milan, meaning Spence could be followed by another England international before the window closes.
For now, though, the focus is on completing Spence’s move, with Tottenham and Inter closing in on an agreement that could see the right-back begin the next chapter of his career in Italy.