Report: Spurs Ready To Spend More Than £50m On Premier League Duo

Mauricio Pochettino is keen to add to his defensive options over this summer transfer window, and is reportedly ready to spend more than £50m on these two Premier League defenders, with the Daily Star claiming that Spurs have ‘cash to splash’. 

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The Daily Star report that Spurs are keen on signing two English defenders in the next couple of months, with their eyes on both Alfie Mawson and Ben Gibson and Mauricio Pochettino looks to improve squad depth at Spurs.

In order to make room for these two potential new additions, Tottenham are looking to offload outcast Kevin Wimmer. However, clubs interested in Germany have been put off making a move due to the £20m price tag that has been slapped on the Austrian by chairman Daniel Levy. Southampton have also been linked with a move for Wimmer.

Alfie Mawson is the first player that Spurs will reportedly look to bring to the club. The Englishman made 27 appearances in the Premier League for Swansea, the majority of those coming under Paul Clement after he took over after he was appointed in the New Year. In these games, the 23-year-old was yellow carded just once and scored on four occasions.

Ben Gibson is set to be another defender that the Lilywhites will target over the summer. The 24-year-old was a mainstay in the Middlesbrough team that failed to beat the drop last season, appearing in every single game in the Premier League last term, scoring on one occasion.

Both players are fairly young and have plenty of potential to improve, but you would certainly have to question how much game time the pair would be getting if they made the move to Hotspur Way. Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen formed a formidable partnership at the heart of the Spurs defence, conceding just 26 goals in the Premier League last season, the best defensive record in the league.

It would be stupid for Mauricio Pochettino to break up this partnership, but it might be wise to add to the squad depth in this area, adding more options for rotations with a back four and perhaps a defensive alternative to Eric Dier in a back three.

However, the likelihood is that Mawson and Gibson would not be playing every week if they were to make moves to Spurs, and upwards of £50m would seem rather a lot of money to bring in two backup defenders. Having seen Jordan Pickford move to Everton for £30m and Michael Keane make the same move for the same price, it is clear to see that young English talent does not come cheap. After seeing these deals go through, you would expect Burnley and Swansea to ask for at least £25m for their respective defenders. It seems a lot of money for me to spend on two backups.

Do you think Mawson and Gibson would be good signings given their high price tags?