Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy wants to sign two high-quality players to help lure Mauricio Pochettino in as Antonio Conte’s replacement, with one of them also on Liverpool’s radar.
Conte is coming to the end of his tenure as Tottenham’s boss. His contract expires in the summer and he is unlikely to agree on an extension after failing to get the north London side challenging for major trophies.
The 53-year-old is also hoping to return to his native Italy, where his family still lives.
Plenty of managers have been linked with the role, including Thomas Tuchel, Ruben Amorim, and Marco Silva. Transfer insider Graeme Bailey has told TEAMtalk that Spurs fans should ‘keep an eye’ on impressive Premier League coaches Robert de Zerbi and Thomas Frank. They have done very well at their respective clubs Brighton and Brentford this season.
But the man seemingly at the top of Levy’s wish list is Pochettino. This is because Levy has a great relationship with the Argentine, he still lives in England after his first spell with the club, and the fact he is willing to return.
But with Spurs facing another trophyless campaign and a fight to achieve Champions League qualification, Levy might need to show Pochettino some ambitious transfer plans in order to fully convince him on joining.
And German outlet Bild has provided some big information on which two signings Levy could make to lure Pochettino in.
They claim Spurs are firmly involved in the chase for RB Leipzig star Josko Gvardiol. The 21-year-old is arguably the highest-rated center-back in the world right now, even if he did fail to contain Erling Haaland in the UCL on Tuesday night.
Tottenham must fight Liverpool, City for a world-class player
Gvardiol is a target for the likes of Liverpool, Manchester City, Chelsea, and Real Madrid. But Levy is hopeful of transforming the Spur’s defense for Pochettino and getting to Gvardiol first.
The defender has a £98m release clause which becomes active next summer, according to The Athletic. But Bild state that Leipzig will consider offers worth €100m (£88m) later this year.
Clearly, this would be a big stretch on Spurs’ finances. But this is the kind of transfer needed if Spurs want to begin challenging for league titles and other silverware under Pochettino.
Gvardiol is not the only top-class Bundesliga man in Spurs’ sights. Bild adds that Borussia Dortmund midfielder Julian Brandt is also of interest to them.
He should be far cheaper to capture than Gvardiol given the fact his contract expires in June 2024. If transfermarkt’s valuations are to be believed, then Spurs could sign him for €28m (£25m).
Dortmund wants to prevent the playmaker from leaving and has asked his camp to begin renewal talks. They are willing to offer him a pay rise worth up to €7m (£6.1m) per season. That works out to around £120,000 a week.
However, Brandt is going into the discussions with an ‘open mind’. This is because he is attracted by the prospect of playing with Spurs in the Premier League.
It will be very hard for Spurs to sign both Gvardiol and Brandt this summer. Gvardiol is wanted by some of the richest clubs in the world, while Brandt is on the radar of Spurs’ local rivals Arsenal.
But Levy will push hard to make the double move a reality, and it would be a huge help to Pochettino if he did.
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