In his latest Q and A session with Spurs fans for Football.london, Alasdair Gold has discussed Spurs’ chances of signing Benfica centre-back Ruben Dias in the summer transfer window.
The journalist was asked by a Spurs fan if he could see Spurs offering Juan Foyth plus a fee for the Portuguese centre-back in the summer window. Gold replied, saying (per Football.london):
“Ruben Dias is a player that Mourinho likes and he’s clearly one of Europe’s highly-rated young defenders.
“You’re probably looking at a player similar in price to Davinson Sanchez in Dias, around the £40m mark, a price that could be too much in the current financial climate.
“If Foyth and [Jan] Vertonghen both move on, Tottenham will look at Dias but it has to be an achievable price.”
Would Dias be a good signing for Spurs?
Yes
No
TIF Tactics:
Vertonghen is, of course, out of contract in the summer, so you could argue that Spurs will need to bring in a centre-back as his long-term replacement. Dias has impressed in his performances in Liga NOS this season; averaging a 7.06 rating across his 24 appearances in the Portuguese top-flight (per WhoScored).
However, with the 22-year-old currently valued at £27.45 million by Transfermarkt, you imagine it would be an expensive transfer for the club, which is perhaps why the fan suggested offering out Juan Foyth as part of the deal. The Argentinian was signed by Spurs in 2017 but has made just 32 appearances for the Lilywhites in nearly three years there. He has also been linked with a move away in recent months, so perhaps it would make sense for Mourinho to offer out the 22-year-old in the hope of securing Dias’ signature ahead of next season.
Considering that the North London club have kept just four clean sheets in the Premier League this season; you might argue that defensive reinforcements are required if they want to push on next season. Dias could prove to be the man to help them to do just that.