Tottenham ‘leading the race’ for Benfica star; summer deal depends on €100m Man Utd transfer

Tottenham are reportedly ‘leading the race’ for highly-rated Benfica centre-back Morato as Ange Postecoglou aims to strengthen his defence.

Spurs brought in Micky van de Ven last summer who has proved to be a great addition so far, but Postecoglou still wants reinforcements in that area.

Tottenham’s interest in Morato comes after Eric Dier has left the North London club to join Bayern Munich. Loanee Joe Rodon is also expected to depart permanently at the end of the season.

Postecoglou has several exciting names on his transfer wishlist, with Everton’s Jarrad Branthwaite and Nice’s Jean-Clair Todibo among those admired by the manager.

According to reports from Portugal, however, Tottenham are at the front of the queue to sign Morato as an alternative to Branthwaite and Todibo, but will face competition for his signature from Premier League rivals.

However, there are a number of hurdles to be jumped before the London club are able to complete a deal.

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Tottenham, Fulham and Nottingham Forest all keen on Morato

Portuguese outlet Record state that Tottenham are currently ‘leading the race’ to sign Morato at the end of the season.

The talented 22-year-old broke into the Benfica first team in 2019 and has come on leaps and bounds in the last few years.

He has made 27 appearances so far this term, scoring two goals and helping his team to 10 clean sheets in the process.

It’s claimed that last summer, Benfica turned down a €25m (£21.3m) offer from Fulham and a €30m (£25.6m) bid from Nottingham Forest, despite the player trying to force through a move to England.

The Premier League duo remain interested in Morato so those are the clubs Tottenham must compete with to sign him.

However, Record also note that there is ‘no guarantee’ Morato will be sold this summer due to the fact that their other centre-back, Antonio Silva, could leave.

Silva is a key target for the likes of Manchester United and Chelsea and will command a significantly higher transfer fee than Morato.

Benfica would not be willing to allow both players to leave so Tottenham’s chances of signing Morato depend on whether any club matches Silva’s €100m (£85.3m) price tag.

Nevertheless, Morato is definitely a player for Spurs fans to keep a close eye on over the next few months.

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