Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly in a battle with Arsenal over a deal to sign Shakhtar Donetsk star Georgiy Sudakov this summer, as per Caught Offside.
After finishing fifth in Ange Postecoglou’s debut season as the manager, the Lilywhites are reportedly planning to reinforce the squad in the upcoming transfer window to continue the rebuild under the Australian’s guidance.
It has widely been suggested that Tottenham are willing to sign a new striker and a centre-back, but strengthening the engine room by purchasing a new midfielder is on their wish-list as well.
According to the report by Caught Offside, Tottenham are interested in Sudakov and they are currently monitoring his situation before making a potential swoop this summer.
The report further claims that the Ukrainian has a £128m release clause included in his current contract but Spurs won’t need to spend that much as Shakhtar Donetsk could accept a fee of around £68m to sell their star man.
Battle
However, Caught Offside states that purchasing Sudakov won’t be easy for Spurs as Arsenal are also keen on signing him and in addition, Juventus, Napoli, Borussia Dortmund and SL Benfica are also plotting a swoop for him.
It has been reported that Arsenal or Tottenham aren’t likely to spend a fee of around £68m to sign Sudakov and they would only make a move should the Ukrainian side decide to lower their valuation.
After narrowly missing out on winning the title this term, Arsenal are reportedly keen on strengthening the squad this summer to bridge the gap with Manchester City.
The Gunners are also plotting a swoop to sign a new striker to reinforce their attack but purchasing a new midfielder is also on Mikel Arteta’s agenda. However, Arsenal are reportedly willing to sign a defensive-minded midfielder while Sudakov isn’t the ideal option to play in that position as he likes to play a more advanced role.
Additionally, considering Arsenal already have enough firepower in their attacking midfield position, they don’t need to sign another option to beef up that position. So, Sudakov would be better off joining Tottenham over Arsenal if he eventually leaves Shakhtar Donetsk in the upcoming transfer window.
