Euro Paper Talk: Postecoglou in dreamland as Tottenham agree first January deal for €30m defender; Liverpool tipped to sign AC Milan star in record deal

Tottenham are on the cusp of a £26m defender deal following injury to Cristian Romero, Liverpool are being linked with a club-record swoop on AC Milan, while Manchester City are tracking a former Reds target as Kalvin Phillips’ replacement.

RADU DRAGUSIN CLOSING ON MOVE TO TOTTENHAM

Tottenham have stepped up their hunt to sign Genoa defender Radu Dragusin and are believed to be on the cusp of a deal after agreeing a fee for his services, per reports in Italy.

Ange Postecoglou’s side have returned to form and will be looking for a fourth successive win at Brighton on Thursday after something of a mid-season blip brought on by a series of worrying injuries and suspensions.

As those bit Tottenham hard, Postecoglou was forced to field a makeshift central defensive pairing of Emerson Royal and Ben Davies, with the unwanted Eric Dier in reserve, for the 3-3 draw at Manchester City at the start of the month.

As a result, Postecoglou has made no secret of his desire to further strengthen his defensive options in January, knowing his side can ill-afford another setback.

Sadly for the Aussie, another setback has indeed arrived with World Cup winning defender Cristian Romero suffering a hamstring injury that will likely sideline him for the next four to five weeks.

However, some welcome relief is closing in with Gazzetta dello Sport claiming Dragusin is ‘close to Tottenham’ with a move now expected to go through in the early days of the January window.

They claim Spurs have agreed to pay a fee of €30m (£26m) for the 21-year-old, who stands 6ft 3in and is regarded as one of the best young defenders in Serie A.

And the paper dismiss as a ‘market trick’ that Barcelona are also apparently in the running to sign the 13-times capped Romania international, stating that is just a ploy to try and get more money from Spurs.

As a result, a deal is now expected to go through quickly, with Genoa reportedly already earmarking Valencia’s 19-year-old defender Cristhian Mosquera as a replacement.

Dragusin, previously of Juventus, has made 56 appearances for Genoa, scoring five times and helping them achieve promotion from Serie B last season.

DON’T MISS: Postecoglou has ‘made mind up’ and will sanction Tottenham transfer with bargain deal closing for 49-cap international

MAN CITY WANT ANDRE AS KALVIN PHILLIPS REPLACEMENT

Manchester City are keen on a deal for Fluminense star Andre with Kalvin Phillips due to leave and with Mateo Kovacic and Matheus Nunes failing to hold down a regular place. Barcelona are also keen. (Mundo Deportivo)

Chelsea could turn their transfer focus to AZ Alkmaar’s Greek striker Vangelis Pavlidis after drawing blanks on a number of other targets. (Sport 24)

Arsenal have flown officials to France to negotiate the signing of Stade Rennais’ versatile left-sided star Ibrahim Salah. (Le360 Sport)

PSG are on the brink of winning the transfer race to sign Corinthians youngster Gabriel Moscardo, with Liverpool and Chelsea among those tracking the midfielder.

Inter Milan are keen to bring in Iran international Mehdi Taremi, 31, from Porto in January but have Manchester United’s Anthony Martial and Chelsea striker Armando Broja as alternatives. (Gazzetta dello Sport)

Raphael Varane is open to leaving Manchester United to return to Lens, where he started his career, at the end of the current season. (L’Equipe)

Tottenham target Gleison Bremer is set to end speculation linking him with a Premier League move by signing a new deal at Juventus in the coming days. (Calciomercato)

Manchester United are among a series of clubs chasing a deal for Atalanta’s Giorgio Scalvini amid claims Erik ten Hag sees him as a replacement for Raphael Varane. (Fabrizio Romano)

TOTTENHAM EYE ARSENAL, MAN UTD TARGET ARTHUR VERMEEREN

Tottenham are ready to pay as much as £25m (€28.75m) for Arthur Vermeeren but loan him back to Royal Antwerp for the remainder of the season. Arsenal and Manchester United are also on the 18-year-old midfielder’s trail. (various)

Inter Milan are targeting a January deal to sign Napoli midfielder Piotr Zielinski and look set to beat West Ham to his signature. (Corriere dello Sport)

Arsenal are best positioned to sign top Liverpool target Goncalo Inacio with the Gunners ready to pay the €60m clause in his Sporting Lisbon contract. (A Bola)

Inter Milan are closing in on an initial €10m deal to sign right-sided Club Brugge star Tajon Buchanan, with the Canadian also linked with Manchester City. (Gazzetta dello Sport)

Atletico Madrid forward Antoine Griezmann is adamant that the Rojoblancos will be his last club in Europe  – and has repeated his wish to make a move to MLS next. (AS)

Roma are ready to cut short Renato Sanches’ loan move after deciding they have no intentions of triggering their €15m option on his permanent signing from PSG. (Calciomercato)

Flamengo are open to the idea of bringing Luiz Henrique back to the club in January after the Brazilian winger’s falling out at Real Betis. (Estadio Deportivo)

EXCLUSIVE: Chelsea have learned that Viktor Gyokeres has no plans of returning to England, despite claims Mauricio Pochettino could look to exploit the €100m exit clause in his Sporting Lisbon deal.

LIVERPOOL ON TRAIL OF MILAN SUPERSTAR RAFAEL LEAO

Liverpool are reportedly on the trail of AC Milan winger Rafael Leao, though any deal will likely cost the Reds an eyewatering €110m (£95.6m). (various)

Theo Hernandez, Federico Chiesa and Rafael Leao during AC Milan vs Juventus

Manchester City are close to signing a deal for River Plate sensation, Claudio Echeverri, with the 17-year-old due to make the move to the Etihad in summer 2024. (ESPN)

Toni Kroos is open to signing a new deal at Real Madrid – but wants assurances over a his playing time next season. (Estadio Deportivo)

Atletico Madrid have rejected an approach by Juventus for Argentina midfielder Rodrigo de Paul, 29, once a target for Leeds United. (Mundo Deportivo)

Man City striker Julian Alvarez has expressed his happiness at life at the Etihad amid fresh speculation linking the Argentina international with a move to Real Madrid. (various)

Villarreal are looking to Osasuna’s David Garcia as a replacement for Matteo Gabbia, amid plans for the Italian defender to return to AC Milan just a matter of months into his loan move. (various)

Arsenal and Chelsea have been told RB Leipzig have no intentions of selling Benjamin Sesko in January, but a summer deal may be on the cards for the powerful Slovenian striker. (Fabrizio Romano)