Spurs: Tottenham hit Ashley Phillips roadblock

The centre-back is a very exciting prospect.

Tottenham Hotspur thought they had a “deal in place” with Blackburn Rovers to sign defender Ashley Phillips, but there’s now a problem with the move.

Who will Spurs sign?

New manager Ange Postecoglou has been backed with a significant transfer outlay so far this summer, having sealed moves for goalkeeper Guglielmo Vicario, midfielder James Maddison and winger Manor Solomon most recently.

Permanent deals for both Pedro Porro and Dejan Kulusevski take Spurs’ total spend to around £117 million, but according to reliable media sources, they’re far from finished.

After conceding a woeful 63 league goals last season, more than any other side in the English top flight above 15th, defence is a key issue chairman Daniel Levy must address with major signings.

Tottenham want to sign two new centre-backs for Ange, not including Phillips from Blackburn, with Postecoglou recently admitting that they’re chasing cover.

“That’s definitely our intention, absolutely,” said Postecoglou on signing potential new defenders.

“We’ve been working on it for a while and we’ll definitely try to get it done as quickly as possible.

“I don’t think it’s any secret about some of the areas we needed to strengthen. Some of it I identified early on. The goalkeeper was one and central defence is another.

“In terms of the other boys, we’ve got a big squad but my view is I wanted to bring them along and just work with them, get some clarity in my head and give clarity to them.”

Wolfsburg’s Micky van de Ven, Edmond Tapsoba of Bayer Leverkusen, Fulham’s Tosin Adarabioyo, Barcelona outcast Clement Lenglet, Galatasary’s Victor Nelsson and Juventus star Gleison Bremer have all been linked with moves to north London in the last month.

Phillips, who was apparently set for a Spurs medical last week, was thought to be very close to joining Postecoglou’s side – but there’s now a bit of a roadblock.

According to The Athletic and journalist Charlie Eccleshare, Tottenham they had a “deal in place” to sign the 18-year-old for around £3 million plus another £2 million in add-ons.

However, due to their financial struggles, Blackburn have since increased the asking price for Phillips to around £5 million plus £4.5 million in add-ons – meaning his transfer to Tottenham has been delayed.

In some good news for Spurs supporters, though, the Lilywhites remain confident they can strike a deal with Rovers for their starlet defender.

Who is Ashley Phillips?

The teenager is highly-rated at Ewood Park and beyond, with Blackburn handing Phillips some senior Championship appearances over the 2022/2023 season.

An England Under-19 international, the central defensive gem has been praised for both his physicality and sky high potential by former Blackburn Rovers boss Tony Mowbray.

“He’s an amazing footballer and he is going to be a mega footballer I’m pretty sure, but he’s a very young boy,” exclaimed Mowbray in 2021.

“He’s a 6’3, 6’4 magnificent cut of a guy, fast as lightning, composed with the ball, aggressive. I think this football club have a footballer on their hands, and we have to manage his introduction into our team as best we can. I just brought him to give him some experience.”