Tottenham prepared to increase offer for Pau Torres
By Tom Gott
Tottenham are willing to increase their offer to Villarreal centre-back Pau Torres in an attempt to convince him to join the club.
Villarreal boss Unai Emery recently confirmed that the 24-year-old had rejected the chance to join Spurs, with his desire to play Champions League football thought to be the main reason behind the decision.
Spurs have found themselves in this boat already this summer, with Sevilla's Jules Kounde snubbing a move to the club for similar reasons, but they hope this one will end differently and AS (via Sport Witness) claim they are readying an improved offer.
A fee of €55m (£47m) has been agreed with Villarreal, so it is just a case of being able to convince Torres to make the move, but Spurs know they are facing an uphill battle as their initial offer to the centre-back was 'rejected without hesitation'.
Spurs hope that some extra money on the table may change his mind, although Torres' stance seems clear: when he leaves Villarreal, he wants to join a team playing Champions League football.
With a move for Torres looking unlikely, Spurs are considering other options to bolster their back line and are speaking with Fiorentina about a possible deal for West Ham target Nikola Milenkovic.
The club also have interest in Bologna's Takehiro Tomiyasu, who was one of Spurs' earliest targets, but talks with the Japan international have been put on hold while director Fabio Paratici continues to explore other options.
Tomiyasu's chances of moving to Spurs may have taken a hit after the excellent performance from young Japhet Tanganga in Sunday's 1-0 win over Manchester City.
A centre-back by trade, the 22-year-old was deployed at right-back to deal with the threat of Raheem Sterling and Jack Grealish, putting in an outstanding showing as he suffocated the expensive English pair en route to victory.