Former Tottenham defender Alan Hutton is confident that his old club will complete the transfer of Pedri Porro without having to pay his £40million release clause.
Spurs have been chasing the Sporting Lisbon wing-back for the last couple of months. However, Daniel Levy is reluctant to pay the exit clause while the Portuguese outfit continues to stand firm over the price.
Porro will give Antonio Conte a major upgrade on the right-hand side. Indeed, he’s had 12 goal involvements in 23 games so far this season.
However, Tottenham have already had an offer knocked back which included a set amount plus a player in return.
Conte is desperate to get another wing-back on board, having been unimpressed with what Matt Doherty, Emerson Royal and Djed Spence have to offer.
And with negotiations still ongoing over Porro, Hutton is convinced Spurs will eventually be able to get Sporting to agree to a £30m transfer in the end.
He told Football Insider, when asked if the north London club will splash out and meet the release clause: “Not that much. I think they can get a deal done at around the £30m mark for him.
“He is an attacking wing-back. It has probably been a problem area for Tottenham this season and Conte looks to want to bring somebody in.
“He is an attacking full-back, wants to get forward, fits the bill and fits the formation.”
Tottenham in flux over Conte future
If Porro does arrive in north London, he could become the first of a number new signings – if Conte commits his future to the club.
Indeed, that is where the problem lies at the moment. Conte is stalling until he knows that new signings are imminent, while Tottenham want the Italian to commit to staying before they spend.
Either way things need to get sorted fast, with the window closing on January 31 and Spurs currently in freefall.
Conte’s men are fifth in the Premier League table, five points behind fourth-placed Newcastle United.
However, they head into Thursday night’s daunting clash with Manchester City off the back of a 2-0 home defeat to Arsenal in the north London derby.
