Tottenham manager Mauricio Pochettino has given the green light for the club to pursue a raid for Ukrainian sensation Viktor Tsyhankov as they leave their Premier League rivals in the dust for his capture, according to TEAMtalk.
The online news source claim that the likes of Liverpool, Manchester United, Manchester City and Arsenal, as well as European heavyweights Barcelona and Bayern Munich, have all been tracking the 20-year-old’s progress as he becomes a star for club and country, with nine international caps already under his belt.
However, it is said that Spurs are some way ahead of the other interested suitors and are at an advanced stage of negotiating a deal for the £15.9million (€18million) rated attacking talent, with Pochettino, a big fan of the youngster, giving the green light for a move to go ahead.
Good move for Tottenham?
You just have to look at the names involved in the hunt for the youngster to see that he is one of the highest rated future talents on the scene today, and Tottenham beating all of them to his capture would be a real coup.
Spurs were actively hunting another attacking talent in the summer and his versatility to play on either wing or in an advanced playmaker role makes him perfect to fill the gap that Pochettino feels there is.
Five goals and five assists this season, as well as Champions League and Europa League games under his belt, makes him an obviously talented player as well as being vastly experienced for a man of his age, and Spurs could flourish with him as part of the team.
This is Futbol rating: 8/10
Likely to happen?
It sounds as though Spurs have been working on this one for some time and as such there could well be a realistic expectation that the club will seal his signature over their rivals.
Pochettin has obviously acted fast to snap up his signature and it seems to have paid off, with the other interested parties left standing still while the Lilywhites act.
Nothing is certain in football, but this move looks like it could be Spurs’ first signing for nearly a year.
This is Futbol rating: 8/10