Tottenham Hotspur are now pushing to sign Fulham defender Tosin Adarabioyo, however he has his sights set on a move to AS Monaco, with an agreement over a move to the French club now close, according to a report from Foot Mercato.
Who are Tottenham signing this summer?
Tottenham are now close to completing a deal for Wolfsburg defender Micky van de Ven, with Fabrizio Romano reporting the Dutchman flew into London on Sunday, ahead of his medical tests, which are due to take place at some point today.
The deal is done and set to be announced early this week, but Ange Postecoglou remains in the market for another new centre-back, with Football Insider reporting a deal has been agreed for Blackburn Rovers' Ashley Phillips, although it is yet to be confirmed.
Spurs are also still in negotiations for Bayer Leverkusen defender Edmond Tapsoba, but they are some way off the Bundesliga club's £40m valuation, and it appears as though he will not be brought in if the Van de Ven deal is confirmed.
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According to a report from Foot Mercato, Monaco are now very close to completing a move for Adarabioyo, who is being targeted as a replacement for Axel Disasi, but the Lilywhites are still in the running, and they are now pushing for his signature.
Fulham are said to have actually "instructed agents to take the defender to Tottenham", which indicates Spurs could still have a chance of overtaking Monaco in the race for the centre-back, but it does not appear likely.
The £41k-per-week defender has expressed his desire to move to Monaco, and both parties continue to be confident about completing a deal.
As such, it appears as though Tottenham may have to turn their attentions elsewhere, but they are blessed with alternative options, with Phillips and Van de Ven poised to move to north London.
How good is Tosin Adarabioyo?
The Fulham ace ranks highly across some key defensive metrics over the past year, placing in the 76th percentile for aerials won per 90, when compared to his positional peers, and the 99th percentile for the number of clearances he has made.
In the Cottagers' 2022-23 Premier League campaign, the "magnificent" Manchester-born defender made 25 appearances, during which time he received an average Sofascore match rating of 6.89, the highest figure of any centre-back in the squad.
That said, the 25-year-old only has very limited experience in the top flight, considering his age, and it will not be too disappointing if Tottenham do miss out on his signature, as they have so many other defensive targets in mind.
With Van de Ven close to completing a move, Spurs are well-stocked at centre-back, as Postecoglou already has Cristian Romero at his disposal, while Phillips could be a fantastic back-up option, having been lauded as "amazing" by former Blackburn boss Tony Mowbray.
Adarabioyo would no doubt provide the Lilywhites with depth at centre-back, but if he does complete a move to Monaco in the coming days, it is unlikely to phase Postecoglou.