Roma boss Jose Mourinho is reportedly ready to step up his raid on his old club Tottenham as they close in on a deal for Genoa central defender Radu Dragusin.
The Romanian international is thought to be on the brink of a move to north London, with Spurs ‘agreeing personal terms’ with Dragusin over a ‘long-term contract’, although negotiations are still ongoing with the Italian club.
According to reports there remains a discrepancy between the figures each side wants to include in the deal.
Genoa apparently want to receive £26million, while Spurs don’t currently want to go above £21.7million – although it’s expected that some common ground will be reached.
And if Dragusin does get through the door soon, it was almost certainly signal the end of Eric Dier’s near 10-year stay at Tottenham.
Calciomercato reports that Roma are hopeful Ange Postecoglou will let Dier leave once they complete a deal for Dragusin.
The report adds that the Serie A side are in the process of playing a waiting game and will strike for Dier as soon as they can.
Former Tottenham boss Mourinho has reportedly been promised by the Giallorossi hierarchy that a centre-back will arrive through the door this month, given that Evan Ndicka is going to the Africa Cup of Nations.
However, the outlet explains that Roma do not have much money to spend, which is why Dier would be a good solution – given that his contract runs out this summer
Roma are confident that Dragusin’a rival Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven for a starting spot in north London will ‘pave the way’ for the Spurs defender to reunite with Mourinho.
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Dier could yet be released by Tottenham
Calcio also believes that Roma club could even land Dier without paying any compensation to Spurs, given that the former Sporting star only has six months left on his contract.
Dier may not be the only experienced player to leave Tottenham in January either, with Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg also expected to follow Hugo Lloris out the door.
The veteran French stopper has joined Los Angeles FC after ending his lengthy stint at Spurs and it could well be Dier and Hojbjerg on the way out next.
But if Hojbjerg does leave, Postecoglou is known to want Chelsea skipper Conor Gallagher as his replacement.
The Blues will likely to have seel the England man to satisfy FFP demands, especially if they plan to add any more players to Maurico Pochettino’s squad this month.
Tottenham are back in action on Friday evening when they host Burnley in the FA Cup third round.
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Olivia Martin is a dedicated sports journalist based in the UK. With a passion for various athletic disciplines, she covers everything from major league championships to local sports events, delivering up-to-the-minute updates and in-depth analysis.
