Tottenham 'closing in' on transfer hijack for Man Utd target after 'verbal agreement' reached with Aston Villa
Tottenham Hotspur are closing in on a shock deal for a former Chelsea and Crystal Palace man
Tottenham Hotspur are ‘closing in’ on a deal to sign former Chelsea and Crystal Palace man Conor Gallagher, according to David Ornstein.
Spurs had watched Premier League rivals Aston Villa reportedly verbally agree a deal with Atletico Madrid late on Monday afternoon. The Villa Park outfit were looking at a loan with an option to buy but Spurs have made a permanent offer.
That is according to The Athletic’s Ornstein, who provided an update on the shock twist on Monday evening.
He reports that the North London club have made an offer of €40million (£34.7m), which is expected to be accepted by the Spanish club. Gallagher himself is keen on the move.
Manchester United had also been interested in the former Chelsea and Crystal Palace man, with Spurs exploring a move in recent days after Rodrigo Bentancur picked up an injury.
Thomas Frank’s side are already without James Maddison after a season-ending ACL injury and have made a firm move to secure Gallagher ahead of both United and Aston Villa.
Reports in Spain last month said United had been lining up a £26m bid for the midfielder. Gallagher has been a regular in terms of appearances for Atletico this season, playing in 19 La Liga games, but he has only started four of those.
A move to injury-stricken Tottenham could bolster his hopes of playing for England at the World Cup. He is familiar with the Premier League having played for Palace and Chelsea. Speaking about Gallagher back in April, Atletico boss Simeone said: “He's a person, first and foremost, that's why sometimes he's better and other times not so much.
"He knows he needs to improve and we've talked about it several times. When you give a lot of good things, then you're asked for more. He gives us a lot of options offensively, he has the speed to finish things off and he's also fast enough for everything defensively. We have to support him so he can continue giving us everything he's already given us."