Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly made a breakthrough in their efforts to sign Genoa defender Radu Dragusin.
Since the beginning of the January transfer window, it has been known that the North Londoners are in the market for a new centre-back.
Dragusin quickly emerged as their priority target, with the Romania international starring for Genoa since moving to the Serie A outfit in the summer.
Initially, there was the assumption that Spurs would sign the 21-year-old should they go through the process of agreeing a fee with their Italian counterparts.
However, the representative of Dragusin publicly insisted that his client was focused on remaining at Genoa for at least the rest of the campaign.
© Reuters
In recent days, though, speculation has emerged regarding rival interest from Bayern Munich, who want to add a fourth high-profile centre-back to their ranks this month.
Although the German giants have been linked with Spurs' Eric Dier, Dragusin is a younger option with more potential, something that may prove more attractive in the long term.
Nevertheless, according to Sky Sport Deutschland journalist Florian Plettenburg, Bayern have become outsiders to get a deal for Dragusin over the line.
Spurs have allegedly agreed a fee with Genoa, committing to spending €25m (£21.5m) plus add-ons and agreeing a five-and-a-half-year contract with the player.
© Reuters
Ange Postecoglou will now hope that the North Londoners' hierarchy can finalise a deal in due course in order to bring in competition for Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven.
Plettenberg adds that Bayern are under the impression that they must match Spurs' bid on Tuesday or face watching Dragusin complete a transfer to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
Despite their interest, Bayern are yet to send an official bid for Dragusin, and they seemingly face a pivotal day in their search to acquire one of their shortlisted players.
In the case of Dier, there have been no further developments since last week when Postecoglou insisted that the England international had missed the FA Cup with Burnley due to injury, rather than being in negotiations with Bayern.
Darren Plant
