Tottenham have been quoted £48m if they wish to sign Ajax defender Matthijs de Ligt this summer, according to the Sun.
Meanwhile, they would have to pay £45m to beat Chelsea to the signature of Newcastle centre-half Jamaal Lascelles, as per the Evening Standard.
What’s the latest, then?
The Sun report that for just £3m more than the quoted price for uncapped Englishman Lascelles, Tottenham could land 6ft 2in Dutch international starlet de Ligt in the transfer window.
They also point out that fee would be a club record if they were to sign the Ajax man to replace Toby Alderweireld, who is expected to depart for Manchester United this summer.
They claim that the fee is elevated by interest from genuine European superpowers such as Manchester City, Barcelona, Juventus, Bayern Munich, Manchester United and Paris Saint-Germain.
De Ligt is a better bet than Lascelles
The monster fee for Lascelles is evidence of the premium placed on English players and the importance that Premier League experience has when valuing transfer targets.
De Ligt is six years younger, already has international and European experience while Lascelles – rightly or wrongly was excluded from the England squad for both the March friendlies and the World Cup despite the relative dearth of central defensive options on offer to Gareth Southgate.
Spurs have seen how taking a punt on a young defender – from Ajax, where Alderweireld, Jan Vertonghen and, most recently, Davinson Sanchez, have all played – can pan out successfully and Lascelles is successful within the structure of Rafa Benitez’s strict, defensive Newcastle side but would struggle to adapt his game in a more expansive side with aspirations of winning silverware.
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