Tottenham target two transfers before deadline as Xavi Simons' Chelsea hijack stance emerges

Tottenham are going head-to-head with Chelsea for Xavi Simons after RB Leipzig gave the Dutch attacker permission to fly to London for face-to-face discussions over his future. Simons has been holding out for a move to Stamford Bridge after verbally agreeing personal terms with the Blues earlier this summer.

However, Chelsea have been focused on player sales and making room within Enzo Maresca's squad which has seemingly provided Spurs with a window of opportunity.

Having missed out on both Morgan Gibbs-White and Eberechi Eze, Tottenham are only likely to submit a formal bid if they receive encouragement from Simons that he wants to move to N17 to avoid facing further transfer embarrassment.

Crucially, Chelsea have now agreed to sell Christopher Nkunku to AC Milan for an initial £32.85million plus a further £4.3m in bonuses which is expected to accelerate their plans to bring in further attacking reinforcements.

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A move for Manchester United's Alejandro Garnacho remains advanced and a case of when - not if - as the Argentine has already snubbed multiple approaches from the Premier League, Bayern Munich and Saudi Arabia to prioritise a switch to the newly-crowned world champions.

Barcelona's Fermin Lopez has also emerged as a serious target following initial conversations with the 22-year-old Spain international but any deal would likely be at the expense of signing Simons.

Super-agent Ali Barat is handling Simons' future alongside the Dutchman's brother and advisor Faustino Simons. Barat, in particular, has strong connections at Chelsea and was recently spotted in the director's box for their friendly win over Bayer Leverkusen.

He was also involved in the deal that saw the Blues sell Noni Madueke to Arsenal and additionally, has been involved in the process of finding wantaway striker Nicolas Jackson a new club.

German sources have intimated that Simons has been in London since Wednesday and additionally, it's believed Leipzig are yet to have received any formal offers despite suggestions Spurs have tabled a bid.

When Spurs made checks on Simons just a matter of weeks ago, they were told he was focused on sealing a move to Chelsea but in the past few days, there appears to have been some fluidity in his situation as he wants to get out of Leipzig.

Meanwhile, Tottenham have also held initial discussions with the representatives of West Ham attacking midfielder Lucas Paqueta, who is viewed as a potential alternative to Simons.

Spurs are yet to rule out making two marquee additions to their frontline before Monday's deadline and they would also consider strengthening their central defensive options if the right opportunity arose after allowing Luka Vuskovic to join Hamburg on loan.

West Ham remain optimistic they will keep hold of the Brazilian as the prospect of selling a second star player - after Mohammed Kudus - to a direct rival in Spurs seems incomprehensible given the current state of affairs at the London Stadium.

A sizeable offer would seriously test that stance, however, particularly after the Hammers wrapped up a £42m deal with Southampton for Mateus Fernandes. Graham Potter's side value Paqueta at around £60m and his agents remain in contact with Spurs.

Thomas Frank's side had also held strong interest in Manchester City attacker Savinho but a move was blocked by the Etihad Stadium hierarchy even though Tottenham were prepared to put big money on the table.

A swoop for France U21 international starlet Maghnes Akliouche also looks difficult as his current employers Monaco are already in talks with Bayer Leverkusen over the possible sale of fellow forward Eliesse Ben Seghir.

Leipzig want to sign Harvey Elliott if they agree a deal to sell Simons but Liverpool are already light on the ground where attacking numbers are concerned.

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