Tottenham Hotspur and Leicester City are believed to be ready to battle for the signature of Monaco midfielder Youri Tielemans, while Newcastle United have also emerged as a shock potential destination for the Belgium international.
With the January transferwindow set to slam shut on Thursday evening, the race is on for Premier League sides to bolster their squads for the last time this season. Spurs have recently lost Dele Alli to injury and sold Mousa Dembélé, so could do with a new midfielder, while the Foxes and the Magpies are both in dire need of marquee signing to placate their fans.
According to the Daily Telegraph, Spurs are looking to hijack the Foxes' initial interest in Tielemans, and meet Monaco's asking price of £20m.
However, L'Equipe contends that the Foxes still have the upper hand, as they will look to offer the Ligue 1 side - who deem the player surplus to requirements - Adrien Silva in a player plus cash deal.
The same publication also boldly suggests that Newcastle United could also be in the running to sign Tielemans, with the Magpies reportedly 'ready to invest' the £20m being demanded by Monaco. However, with the club seemingly willing to allow the player to leave on loan, a temporary deal is realistically more likely given the Magpies' lack of spending power.
In summary, Leicester appear to be the frontrunners, with their added offering of Adrien Silva likely to be of great interest to Monaco.
However, the lure of joining Spurs could tempt Tielemans away from the Foxes. Newcastle are definitely the outsiders here, but you never know, Mike Ashley might have an Ebenezer Scrooge-esque transformation and seal the deal.
The 23-year-old's contract expires in the summer, which will allow him to leave on a free transfer, with Liverpool and Chelsea believed to be interested.
