Tottenham are finally set to complete the transfer of Middlesbrough's Djed Spence, with the full-back due at Hotspur Way for a medical today.
The clubs have agreed a deal worth an initial £12.5m which could rise to £20m with add-ons, and Spence will sign a long-term contract with Spurs after rejecting interest from other clubs, including Nottingham Forest where he spent last season on loan.
Spence will be Spurs' sixth summer signing after Ivan Perisic, Fraser Forster, Yves Bissouma, Richarlison and Clement Lenglet, taking their spending close to £100m.
They have recouped £27m for Steven Bergwijn and hope to offload Tanguy Ndombele, Giovani Lo Celso, Harry Winks and Sergio Reguilon, which would significantly reduce their net spend.
Head coach Antonio Conte still wants an attacking creative player and has said the club remains open to opportunities to improve the squad before the close of the transfer window.
Spence, 21, helped Forest to promotion last season and will compete for the right wing-back berth in Conte's side, casting the futures of Matt Doherty and Emerson Royal into uncertainty.
Speaking on the club's pre-season trip to South Korea this week, Doherty insisted he is settled in north London and wants to flight for a place in Conte's side, while Emerson has been linked with a return to Spain.
“I haven’t been told [I'm not staying]," Doherty told reporters in Seoul. “My plan is to stay and fight for my place. We’ve got an exciting season ahead. Why would I want to go anywhere else?"
Conte refused to comment on Spence at a press conference in Korea on Friday morning where he was speaking ahead of tomorrow's friendly against Sevilla.
Spurs will be without Forster and Bissouma, who are isolating in a Seoul hotel after testing positive for Covid, while Perisic is still not ready for a debut as he recovers from a calf problem. Dejan Kulusevski and Ben Davies are fit after missing the 6-3 win over a K-League XI on Wednesday.
Conte has revealed that he is yet to decide whether Pape Matar Sarr, who joined Spurs a year ago but spent last season on loan at former club Metz, will be part of the squad for the coming campaign.
“He's a young player, a good prospect," Conte said of the 19-year-old Senegal international. “[He] will be the future for Tottenham. We have Sarr and other young players and we will try with the club to take the best decision for them. It will be very important to take the best decision about whether to stay at Tottenham or go out on loan and play with regularity."
