Tottenham close in on Ajax star after £40m package is accepted

Rob McCarthy

Tottenham have reportedly had a bid accepted by Ajax for defender Davinson Sanchez that could be worth up to a club-record £40m.

The highly-rated central defender was Ajax’s Player of the Year in 2016-17 and was also a target for Inter Milan, Barcelona and more latterly Real Madrid.

The 21-year-old scored six goals in 43 appearances for the Dutch giants in his first season at the club, having moved from Atletico Nacional last summer.

Ajax had made it clear that they wanted to keep the player but Sanchez missed the club’s first game of the season as his management team claimed he was not in the right state of mind to play, due to Spurs’ interest.

It would now seem that Ajax have decided to cut their losses and sell a fourth player to Spurs, following Jan Vertonghen, Christian Eriksen and Toby Alderweireld’s moves to the north London outfit in recent years.

Sanchez’s potential arrival is likely to mean an exit for Austrian defender Kevin Wimmer, who has had limited opportunities at Spurs, with West Brom said to be keen on the 24-year-old.