Tottenham boss Mauricio Pochettino to launch £35m bid for Ajax defender Davinson Sanchez
The Dutch international could become Spurs' first signing of the summer, and provide some hope for worried fans
SPURS have targeted Ajax’s £35million-rated brilliant young Colombian defender Davinson Sanchez as their first summer signing.
Mauricio Pochettino has yet to break out Spurs chequebook this summer despite pocketing a hefty £50million following England defender Kyle Walker’s move to Manchester City.
However SunSport can reveal talks have begun in Amsterdam with Ajax over a deal for the twice-capped 21-year-old who was the Dutch giants’ Player of the Year last season and their star performer in their Europa League cup final defeat to Manchester United.
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Spurs can expect stiff competition from Chelsea, Barcelona and Crystal Palace, whose Dutch boss Frank De Boer, managed Ajax and knows all about the youngster’s quality.
However Spurs believe they are in pole position and are ready to push ahead for Sanchez as Pochettino looks to the versatile young powerhouse to strengthen his options at the back.
Sanchez can play at right back or in the centre of defence and is widely regarded as one of the top young defensive talents in the world.
He was a member of Nacional’s 2016 Copa Libertadores winning team before Ajax beat Barcelona to his signature last summer, because the Colombian international did not want to spend time in Barca’s B team.
It proved to be the correct decision as Sanchez was outstanding for Ajax last season, making 45 appearances in all competitions, as they finished runners-up by one point to title rivals Feyernoord.
Ajax paid Nacional £4million to sign their kid defender on a five-year-contract and, despite wanting to hold on to their prized asset, they are aware they could make almost nine times that amount now.
Spurs supremo Daniel Levy is a notoriously hard negotiator and will test Ajax out with a much lower bid of around £25million.
However the youngster wants to move to the Premier League and Spurs have the resources to get the deal over the line for the Caloto born kid who is seen as a major long-term asset.