Spurs suffer setback in pursuit of £20m “absolute machine”, Levy must act quickly – report

Tottenham Hotspur’s pursuit of Lille centre-back Gabriel Magalhaes appears to be dead in the water, but not if Daniel Levy acts swiftly to clinch him from the grasp of another club.

According to Foot Mercato, Serie A outfit Napoli have an agreement with the Ligue 1 side over a €22m (£20m) move for the coveted Brazilian defender.

However, the deal isn’t ‘set in stone’ just yet as Lille are stalling until more is known about this summer’s transfer window, which appears likely to be moved by FIFA.

This delay means they can listen to further offers with Spurs one of several teams said to be keen on the 22-year-old. It’s claimed that they have ‘interfered’ and could ‘try their luck’ with a bid.

Levy is going to have to be quick if he wants to land him, and he’d be wise to do so given the imminent problems Jose Mourinho will face defensively this summer.

The Portuguese chief is set to lose veteran Jan Vertonghen following the expiry of his contract and there are doubts over the future of Juan Foyth.

Spurs have conceded 41 goals this season, which puts them joint-worst in the Premier League’s top ten clubs, so clearly there’s a problem at the back.

Adding Gabriel would help matters substantially. The 6 foot 3 colossus has been dubbed as an “absolute machine” by Lille president Gerard Lopez, who also tipped him for a ‘big move’ abroad sometime soon.

Per WhoScored, the young central defender has averaged 3.3 clearances, 1.8 tackles and 3.5 long balls per game and comes with experience in the Champions League having played London rivals Chelsea, Valencia and last season’s semi-finalists Ajax in the group stage this term.

The centre-back pairing of Eric Dier and Davinson Sanchez against Man Utd on Friday night gave us a glimpse of what’s to come, so there can be no harm in bolstering Mourinho’s options by signing Gabriel.

Levy should pay that £20m if he wants to help his manager bring success sometime soon to north London.

What do you think? Should Levy act quickly to secure the Brazilian?…