Tottenham transfer hopes revived as manager rejects rumours Conte target has reached Barcelona agreement

Tottenham still have the chance to sign Evan Ndicka after his current manager pushed back claims an agreement is already in place with Barcelona for a summer move.

Ndicka is poised to leave Eintracht Frankfurt on a free transfer in July. He has run down his contract with the German Bundesliga side and will therefore become a free agent at the end of the season.

Under the Bosman ruling, the centre-back has been able to sort out a pre-contract agreement with foreign clubs since January 1. And recently there were reports he has come to an agreement with Barca.

On Monday, German journalist Christopher Michel tweeted: ‘FC Barcelona and Ndicka agree. However, a change is not yet fixed. Barcelona must decide by early March. Ndicka is waiting, should come as a backup first. Contract at Eintracht expires in the summer.’

This came as a major blow to Tottenham. Antonio Conte is known to be looking for centre-half reinforcements, and Ndicka is high up on his list of potential summer additions.

Luckily, it seems Ndicka is not as close to joining Barca as Michel has made out.

During a recent interview, Frankfurt boss Oliver Glasner downplayed the Barca links. The manager believes Ndicka is yet to make a final decision about his future. However, if the 23-year-old does opt to leave, then Glasner wants to be told first.

“I keep in touch with them [Frankfurt’s out-of-contract players]. But, so far, I haven’t found out from anyone that they signed anywhere,” Glasner told German source Fussball Transfers.

Eintracht Frankfurt boss discusses Tottenham target’s future

“Should he [Ndicka] say that he wants to play somewhere else next year, then I hope and I expect that we’ll find out beforehand before it’s written anywhere.”

Conte and Spurs will be happy to hear that Ndicka is still available and considering his options. If they truly want to sign him, then now is the time to enter negotiations and put a lucrative contract to his agent.

Barca will still be in the mix, despite rumours of their agreement being shut down by Glasner. As such, Spurs will need to put on a charm offensive to get Ndicka to choose them over the La Liga leaders.

The Frenchman would be a solid signing to improve Conte’s defence. He has been a reliable performer for Frankfurt since moving to the German side in July 2018.

Ndicka possesses good European pedigree too, having represented Frankfurt in both the Champions League and Europa League. This means playing for Spurs in those competitions would not be too daunting for him.

Conte’s need for a new centre-back stems from the fact Clement Lenglet will return to Barca once his loan ends in June. Conte is also unsure about the quality of fellow defenders Davinson Sanchez and Japhet Tanganga.

Ndicka is not the only centre-back on Conte’s list of potential signings. He also admires Bayer Leverkusen star Piero Hincapie.

The Ecuadorian recently penned a new contract with Leverkusen, leading to rumours he will now cost Spurs £50million to sign. But trusted reporter Ben Jacobs has still given a positive update on Spurs’ chase for Hincapie.