Fabrizio Romano reveals Spurs were put off by defender’s price tag this summer

Tottenham Hotspur explored the possibility of signing Villareal defender Pau Torres in the summer, but were put off by the Spanish side’s valuation of the player.

Despite a busy summer in North London, with seven new faces joining Spurs, it has been perceived by some that Antonio Conte’s side are still lacking depth in the central defensive area.

Spurs signed French defender Clement Lenglet on a season-long loan from Barcelona to strengthen their options, and the 27-year-old has impressed so far this season with his ball-playing abilities.

Those around the club were hoping for a more high-profile signing though. It is now expected that Spurs will ‘go big’ on a centre-back in a future transfer window (Ryan Taylor via GiveMeSport).

Over the summer, the Lilywhites did look into the possibility of securing a deal for Villareal’s highly rated Spain international Pau Torres though. Reports from Marca suggest Spurs even tabled a bid, but the move failed to materialise.

It has now emerged that Spurs, along with fellow London rivals Arsenal and Chelsea, all seriously considered snapping Torres up, but were deterred by Villareal’s price tag for the defender.

In his exclusive Caught Offside column, Fabrizio Romano claims there was plenty of interest in Torres over the summer, but financial aspects proved to be the stumbling block.

He said: “Chelsea, Arsenal, and Tottenham also explored this possibility but didn’t want to spend €40-45m.

“I think it’s a very good opportunity on the market; he has experience, quality, left-footed. A very good centre back.”

Spurs Web Opinion

Pau Torres is a great talent, and an assured ball-playing defender, which is perfect for Antonio Conte’s system. There are certainly better options out there – such as Milan Skriniar and Josko Gvardiol – but they proved difficult targets to acquire this summer.

Personally, I don’t think the valuation for Torres was too excessive and I would have been tempted to make the move for a 25-year-old who has Champions League and international experience.

But, there’s a lot to be said for biding your time and getting the right player rather than rushing into a move, so let’s see what Spurs come up with in the next transfer windows.

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