Highlights
- Tottenham Hotspur are in talks to sign Fulham centre-back Tosin Adarabioyo in a potential swap deal, with an out-of-favour player going the other way.
- Spurs have cooled their interest in Bayer Leverkusen’s Edmond Tapsoba due to the asking price.
- Adarabioyo could be a good fit and has caught the attention of Monaco, but a swap deal with Spurs is now being discussed.
Tottenham Hotspur have now opened talks to sign Fulham centre-back Tosin Adarabioyo, in what could potentially be a swap deal, with an out-of-favour player going in the opposite direction, according to a report.
Are Tottenham signing a defender?
In the final week of the summer transfer window, Spurs are still keen on making a number of additions to their squad, with 90min reporting they want to sign another defender, and they have several targets in mind, including Bayer Leverkusen’s Edmond Tapsoba.
However, Football Insider report the German club’s asking price of £50m is proving to be prohibitive, so Spurs have cooled their interest, and they could instead make a move for Torino defender Perr Schuurs, according to journalist Ben Jacobs.
Speaking on Last Word on Spurs (via The Boy Hotspur), Jacobs said:
“Perr Schuurs I think is still being discussed internally, and he could be a player at a little bit more value than some of the other names being discussed.”
Adarabioyo has been a target for the Lilywhites for much of the summer, with it previously being reported he would be keen on a move to north London, however, there has been a great deal of competition for his signature, namely from AS Monaco.
Fulham boss Marco Silva has confirmed Monaco have already made an offer for the centre-back, but it was “not even close to the value of the player”, so it was knocked back by the Cottagers, in what was an “easy” decision.
As such, the door could be open for the defender to move to north London this summer, and Tottenham have now opened talked with Fulham over a swap deal, with Eric Dier plus cash going in the opposite direction, according to a report from Football Insider.
Dier has been out of favour ever since Ange Postecoglou’s arrival, so Spurs are now willing to part ways with him, in order to get a deal for the Fulham colossus over the line before the September 1st deadline.
The Cottagers may be forced to sell the Englishman this summer to avoid losing him for free in 2024, with his contract set to expire in less than a year’s time.
How good is Tosin Adarabioyo?
Lauded as a “magnificent defender” by football writer Muhammad Butt, the 6 foot 5 colossus is adept at winning aerial duels, ranking in the 77th percentile for aerials won per 90 in the past year, while also placing in the 99th percentile for clearances.
Although he was a part of the Fulham team that was relegated in the 2020-21 season, the 25-year-old has since gone on to establish himself in the Premier League, making 25 top-flight appearances last season, and putting in some top performances to boot.
The £37k-per-week defender managed to catch the joint-third highest number of opponents offside of any Premier League player last season, indicating he is capable of playing a high line, which could make him a good fit in a Postecoglou system.
With Dier clearly not in Postecoglou’s plans, it could make perfect sense to send the 29-year-old in the opposite direction, and it may well be a deal that suits all parties.
