‘Absolutely perfect’: Spurs tipped to beat Chelsea to a £68m signing

Photo by Lintao Zhang/International Champions Cup/Getty Images

Milan Skriniar to Tottenham Hotspur is a transfer rumour that isn’t going away, even if Chelsea have entered the race to sign him.

According to Calciomercato this week, Chelsea are ready to splash £68 million on signing the Inter Milan defender before the summer transfer window shuts.

Tottenham managing director Fabio Paratici is a huge fan of the Slovakia international, who he’s been chasing for over a year – and continues to do so [Il Messagero].

However, Spurs boss Antonio Conte has worked with the powerhouse at San Siro and Shaka Hislop, speaking to ESPN, believes that although the Stamford Bridge club are also keen, his relationship with the Italian coach puts the Lilywhites in ‘pole position’.

He told ESPN on YouTube: “Skriniar’s also been linked with Chelsea as of a few hours ago. I think it’s a signing that both clubs need. Skriniar makes absolutely perfect sense for Antonio Conte and he’s probably in poll position given the relationship between the two. But you also understand Chelsea’s interest.

The North Londoners have had an excellent transfer window but this, another big-money move, this time for a defender, might put them over the top.

They’ve already strengthened the centre-back position with a loan signing of Clement Lenglet from Barcelona, but adding Skriniar to the mix, with Cristian Romero bound to be even better this season, well the Inter man could give Conte the depth necessary to do big things in the Premier League this season.

Nobody’s tipping Tottenham to win the title ahead of Manchester City or Liverpool, but they’re already considered dark horses and adding the reported Chelsea target to the squad will only strengthen the belief that they can do something unexpected.

Photo by Mattia Ozbot – Inter/Inter via Getty Images

In other news, Report: West Ham nearing deal to land ‘unbelievable’ Newcastle target