da dobrowin： Tottenham Hotspur boss Jose Mourinho seemingly loves a defensive midfielder and he could well land himself another one in the summer if latest reports are to be believed…
What’s the word?
da poker： According to the Mirror, Spurs hold an interest in Leeds United lynchpin Kalvin Phillips and it could spark a transfer tussle next summer, with Premier League rivals Liverpool also monitoring his progress.
A fee of £50m is mooted as it is claimed that both Mourinho and Jurgen Klopp are hugely impressed by the newly-capped England international.
The 24-year-old signed a new long-term contract at Elland Road last year, raking in wages of around £30k-per-week, which is an amount that Spurs could more than double.
Mou’s next Matic?
Spurs may have already signed Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg this summer, but one anchorman may not be enough with Moussa Sissoko the wrong side of 30 and Eric Dier now a permanent fixture in central defence.
Over the years, the Special One has signed millions of pounds worth of defensive midfielders – ranging from Michael Essien and John Obi Mikel during his first spell at Chelsea to Sami Khedira at Real Madrid, and Thiago Motta in Milan.
Mourinho has also signed Nemanja Matic twice, so perhaps he’s aiming to land a player in a similar mould and that’s exactly what Phillips is. He’s just far younger with bags of potential.
“Nemanja is a Manchester United player and a José Mourinho player. He represents everything we want in a footballer: loyalty, consistency, ambition, team player,” said Mourinho when he last signed him.
The veteran has averaged 2.4 tackles and 3.5 long balls per game throughout his career whilst in his maiden Old Trafford season, he managed 4.9 long balls and 1.9 tackles each appearance, via WhoScored.
Similarly, Phillips has recorded 2.5 tackles and 3.6 long balls across his career to date, which is almost indistinguishable from Matic.
After Leeds’ defeat to Arsenal in the FA Cup, Phillips’ former teammate Ben White claimed the midfield powerhouse “had [Mesut] Ozil in his back pocket” whilst former Whites boss Neil Redfearn labelled him a “powerful player” who is a “perfect build” for the anchorman role.
Even with Hojbjerg playing superbly so far in his debut campaign, Spurs would be silly not to make a move for Phillips next summer. £50m could be an absolute steal.
AND in other news, Levy dodged a HUGE bullet with £25m flop after recent transfer revelation…