Tottenham are unhappy with Atletico Madrid’s interest in two Spurs stars being made public and a report claims they’re weighing up a counter-raid on the LaLiga giants.
Tottenham’s plans for the upcoming summer window will be shaped by how the remainder of their Europa League campaign fares. Spurs face Norwegian minnows Bodo/Glimt in the semi-finals, with either Manchester United or Athletic Bilbao awaiting the winners of that tie in the final.
Should Spurs win the competition, they’ll secure qualification for the Champions League. Aside from the obvious financial boost that would bring, it will also help in convincing the club’s brightest stars to stay and aid their chances of bringing big-name arrivals through the door.
Regarding potential exits, one name hitting the headlines of late is centre-back Cristian Romero.
The Argentine has publicly expressed a desire to play in LaLiga one day and is understood to be on Atletico Madrid’s radar.
Indeed, Spanish reporter, Edu Burgos, reported earlier in April: “Atletico Madrid is speeding up the move for ‘Cuti’ Romero. Simeone’s top priority ahead of the Club World Cup.
“A personal agreement isn’t a problem. Negotiating with Tottenham is. The player likes the idea of living in Madrid.”
However, Romero isn’t the only big-name Spurs star in Atleti’s sights, with trusted reporter, Ben Jacobs, confirming back in March that Rodrigo Bentancur is a player of interest too.
The pair are regular starters in north London and Spurs would rather not lose either player irrespective of whether they qualify for the Champions League or not.
And according to a fresh update from GiveMeSport, Tottenham have not taken kindly to Atleti’s interest in Romero and Bentancur entering the public domain.
The report stated: ‘GMS sources have been told that Atletico Madrid’s intent to land Romero and Bentancur is genuine, but Tottenham are not entirely happy that their interest has been made public and they could make it difficult for the LaLiga side to hold successful negotiations by refusing to lower their demands.’
Furthermore, it was also claimed Tottenham could attempt to put Diego Simeone and co in their place by launching a counter-raid…
Tottenham want Conor Gallagher
Spurs are long-term admirers of Conor Gallagher having earmarked the all-action midfielder as the perfect player for Ange Postecoglou last summer.
Unfortunately for the Spurs boss, Chelsea sold Gallagher to Atletico Madrid in a deal worth approximately £34m.
Gallagher has made 42 appearances across all competitions in his first season with Atleti, though has not been a guaranteed starter.
As such, Spurs sense an opportunity to bring Gallagher back to England and per GMS, they ‘could make a cheeky enquiry to sign Gallagher if Atletico Madrid come knocking for Romero and Bentancur.’
On whether Gallagher would be open to cutting his spell in Spanish football short, the report claimed he is ‘enjoying his time’ in LaLiga.
As such, Spurs could face an uphill struggle to turn the player’s head, with securing UCL football the first step towards doing just that.
On Romero and Bentancur, GMS added it’s Romero who is likelier to leave of the two.
The report concluded: ‘Tottenham have accepted that Romero’s head will be turned by the chance to join Atletico Madrid, but GMS sources understand they remain more hopeful that Bentancur can be convinced to stay in north London, particularly if Ange Postecoglou is replaced in the dugout ahead of next season.’
Latest Tottenham news – One winger out, one winger in?
In other news, TEAMtalk has been informed Leeds United intend to sign Manor Solomon to a permanent deal following his dazzling loan spell.
The Spurs winger has laid waste to Championship defences and played a huge role in helping Leeds to secure automatic promotion to the Premier League.
Tottenham are willing to sell and have no plans to reintegrate the winger into their first-team plans. That is music to the ears of deal-makers at Leeds who now intend to forge an agreement with their counterparts in north London.
Elsewhere, CaughtOffside have offered a clue as to why Solomon has no future back at Spurs, with the report claiming Tottenham have fixed their gaze on signing Jarrod Bowen.
The full details in that story – including how much Spurs are prepared to bid – can be found here.
VOTE: Who should Spurs sign to replace Cristian Romero? ⬇️
