Tottenham are the latest club to register an interest in signing Chelsea centre-back Levi Colwill this summer, according to reports.
Ange Postecoglou has made strengthening his defence his priority so a move for the 20-year-old would fit his transfer strategy.
Liverpool and Brighton and Hove Albion are both keen to sign Colwill on a permanent deal. However, Chelsea are very reluctant to let him leave.
Colwill recently played in the under-21 European Championships, playing a key role for England as they won the competition without conceding a single goal.
Chelsea have reportedly offered the 20-year-old a new contract to secure his long-term future. However, it remains unsigned and the Stamford Bridge outfit have already shown that they have been ruthless with players who refuse to put pen to paper this summer – moving on from both Mason Mount and Mateo Kovacic.
As mentioned, Liverpool are particularly keen on Colwill with Jurgen Klopp scouring the market for a new up-and-coming centre-back. In fact, some reports have suggested the Reds are ‘confident’ they can sign him this summer.
There is no doubt that Mauricio Pochettino would prefer to keep Colwill and build his defence around him, though.
The Blues academy graduate spent last season on loan with Brighton, here he made 17 Premier League appearances.
Roberto de Zerbi was clearly impressed with Colwill’s performances, as the Seagulls have already made a £30m offer for him, which was turned down.
Therefore, anyone trying to sign Colwill this summer will have to offer in excess of that amount, with some outlets claiming that Chelsea value him at £68m.
Now, according to the Evening Standard, Tottenham are ‘keeping tabs’ on the youngster. It remains to be seen whether they will come forward with an official proposal.
Interestingly, the report notes that Manchester City could also move for Colwill, but only if their move for Josko Gvardiol collapses.
It’s no secret that Postecoglou is looking to bring in new centre-backs this summer. This is no surprise, given how poor Tottenham were defensively last season.
Spurs conceded 63 Premier League goals – the sixth-worst record in the entire division. That was ultimately the key reason why they finished in a disappointing eighth place in the table.
Postecoglou is now working hard on trying to fix that issue. For instance, Tottenham are currently in talks with two Bundesliga centre-backs: Wolfsburg’s Micky van de Ven and Bayer Leverkusen’s Edmond Tapsoba.
However, Spurs allegedly ‘fear’ that Liverpool could hijack their move for Van de Ven so they seem to have identified Colwill as an alternative.
With that in mind, it will be interesting to see if Tottenham make an official bid for Colwill in the near future. With a reported valuation of £68m, Daniel Levy will have to put his money where his mouth is to get a deal done.
READ MORE: Tottenham: European giants ‘optimistic’ over €100m transfer after holding ‘secret meeting’ with Levy