Tottenham are preparing to bring Juventus star Paulo Dybala to north London, as director Fabio Paratici reshapes Antonio Conte's squad.
The Lilywhites' team lacks obvious star quality aside from the axis up top of Harry Kane and Son Heung-min – and though Conte is determined to fix the defence in his side, the opportunity to bring Dybala to the Premier League seems one too tempting to miss for the former Inter Milan boss.
Sources in Italy have recently claimed that talks between Dybala and Juventus have broken down over an extension to his seven-year career in Turin – with La Repubblica reporting that the 28-year-old will have the choice of whether to link up with Conte or move to Inter in the summer.
Dybala was very close to moving to Tottenham under Jose Mourinho, if reports are to be believed. Though the Argentinian has fluctuated in and out of favour with managers of the Old Lady, he has maintained a respectable record in Serie A.
Dybala has 111 goals in 197 Italian top-flight matches since joining Juve. A creative player as much as a goalscorer, he could well function in a side that already houses Kane and Son, playing slightly ahead of the midfield.
And given that Dybala has played under Max Allegri, Spurs will be confident that he can adapt to a tough, pragmatic style of play.
The only stumbling block might be the wages. Dybala was rumoured to have been demanding close to £200,000 a week to stay in the north of Italy but with Tottenham apparently keen on rebuilding the squad, they may well cave to the no.10's demands – especially as he would be joining with no transfer fee to pay out. Given that the player relies on his relatives as agents, there should be hope in keeping the commission down, too.
Dybala is valued at £45m on Transfermarkt.
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