Corriere Dello Sport have revealed that Tottenham Hotspur are leading the race to sign Alessandro Bastoni this summer but add that Inter Milan are asking for a mammoth fee for the centre-back.
It was previously reported that Bastoni was one of the options on Spurs’ radar, with the North London club prioritising signing a left-sided centre-back this summer (The Athletic).
Calciomercato.it claimed earlier this week that Tottenham could face competition from Manchester City for the Inter star.
According to Corriere’s latest update, while Man City and Man Utd do have their eyes on Bastoni, it is Spurs who are currently the frontrunners for the 23-year-old’s signature.
The report reveals that the Italy international is Conte’s number one defensive target in the summer, with Tottenham ‘ready to throw themselves’ at the centre-back.
It is said that Conte ‘will order’ Fabio Paratici to ‘go on the attack’ for Bastoni and Inter would be willing to cash in on the defender.
However, Corriere add that the Nerazzurri value the Bastoni at around €60m-€70m (£50.7m-£59.1m), given that Spurs paid €55m (£46.4m) including add-ons to sign Cristian Romero from Atalanta last summer.
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Inter allegedly feel that Bastoni is worth more than Romero since the Italian has already won three trophies at the San Siro.
Spurs Web Opinion
A key difference between the Romero deal last summer and Tottenham’s rumoured pursuit of Bastoni is that while the Argentine had a long contract with Atalanta, the Italian only has two years left on his deal at the San Siro.
So, Bastoni’s value is going to plummet over the next 12 months, which means Inter have to sell him this summer if he does not sign a new deal. So, I do not expect the 23-year-old to cost upwards of £50m.
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