Tottenham’s asking price for Ashley Phillips has now come to light as Middlesbrough plot a second raid of the Premier League side in a matter of days.
Boro agreed a deal worth £20m, including add-ons, for Lankshear, who will now lead the line for the Championship side next term and look to spearhead their push for promotion.
It has emerged over the last 24 hours that Kim Hellberg’s men want to raid Tottenham for another 21-year-old, who has vast experience in the Championship.
BBC Sport claimed Boro have set their sights on Ashley Phillips, and that they are exploring both a loan and a permanent move for the centre-back, whose stock has risen considerably on the back of two excellent seasons on loan at Stoke City.
Middlesbrough stepping up Ashley Phillips pursuit after Tottenham name price
TEAMtalk have now confirmed that the Championship club are stepping up their pursuit of the Tottenham defender.
The report claims Boro are currently in talks with the Lilywhites over a deal for the England U21 international, who has not made a single senior appearance for Spurs.
While the two clubs initially began talks over a loan deal for Phillips, Boro are now pushing to land the youngster permanently.
The report claims that the Championship side would have to spend around £12m to secure the former Blackburn Rovers academy player.
Is £12m a fair price for Phillips?
While Phillips may not have made his debut for Spurs, he is vastly experienced for his age, having more than 100 Championship appearances under his belt already.
The Tottenham man was nominated for the Championship Young Player of the Year award last season, owing to his solid displays for Stoke.
The 21-year-old is getting better and better each season, and if anything, one can argue that £12m may be an underestimation of his value, considering that Lankshear fetched £20m (including add-ons).