West Ham are reportedly interested in signing Real Betis defensive midfielder William Carvalho.
The Hammers’ move for the Portuguese player could have awful consequences for Tottenham, as the north London club pursue his teammate Giovani Lo Celso.
The worrying report comes from Estadio Deportivo, which states that Manuel Pellegrini’s side are keen on a potential swoop for Carvalho, who they have been monitoring since his move from Sporting Lisbon.
BBC Sport have already reported that Mauricio Pochettino’s side had a £53m bid rejected for Lo Celso with Betis looking for around £88m, which is clearly stated in his release clause.
This could be just a negotiating strategy from the Spanish side, but the reported £88m would be more than double Spurs’ transfer record spend of £42m.
MORE SPURS STORIES
The Lilywhites will face an even more difficult situation if West Ham decides to buy Carvalho. Betis are certainly not prepared to lose both of their midfielders as the gap left in the middle of the park would be unmanageable, despite leaving the side with plenty of cash.
It seems that the only way of getting the midfielder to north London would be by matching his release clause of previously mentioned £88m.
Keep up to date with all the latest Tottenham news and opinion by following SpursWeb’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram accounts.
