Tottenham are reportedly weighing up whether to hijack Crystal Palace’s pursuit of Bilal El Khannouss. The versatile forward has been heavily linked with a move away from Leicester City since their relegation to the Championship, and a move appears to beckon in the final few days of the transfer window.
Spurs have endured a rollercoaster of a window so far, missing out on top targets for a number of reasons – though, in particular, moves being hijacked by Premier League rivals has been a running theme.
Bryan Mbeumo snubbed a move to Tottenham in favour of joining Manchester United, Eberechi Eze opted to head to the other half of north London, and most recently, Piero Hincapie looks to have decided he would rather join Arsenal over Spurs as well.
But GiveMeSport report that Tottenham are keen to make their mark on the window themselves with a late swoop for El Khannouss. Following initial contact, the forward is now considering making an ‘eleventh-hour U-turn’ and snubbing Palace in favour of heading to Hotspur Way.
The 21-year-old is weighing up his options and expected to make a decision on his next move in the coming days, having only been alerted to Tottenham’s admiration of him after they failed to get a deal over the line for Eze.
A fee in the region of £32million is expected to be enough to secure the signature of the Morocco international, and Palace are working on a deal for that figure at present. They also have the best offer on the table as it stands, with Tottenham still considering firming up their initial interest.
El Khannouss is said to be determined to prove himself for a club competing at the very top level, and thus the prospect of playing Champions League football for Tottenham is likely to prove particularly enticing.
The 21-year-old has therefore rejected a number of sides already this summer, including West Ham, as he wants to join a side that can ‘match his ambition’ – and Thomas Frank will therefore be hopeful that his project is enough to trump Palace’s offer at the negotiating table. If not, Spurs have just days to dip back into the market for a new No. 10 following a further disappointing setback.