Tottenham ready to break their transfer record again

By Rucker Haringey | Jan 20, 2018

SAO PAULO, BRAZIL - AUGUST 12: Malcom of Corinthians celebrates scoring the third goal during the match between Corinthians and Sport Recife for the Brazilian Series A 2015 at Arena Corinthians on August 12, 2015 in Sao Paulo, Brazil. (Photo by Friedemann Vogel/Getty Images) /

Malcom may be headed to Tottenham this summer

Tottenham fans love to criticize Daniel Levy for lacking ambition in the transfer market, but Spurs are poised to break their transfer record for the second consecutive window. This summer it was Davinson Sanchez, but this January Malcom could become the club’s most expensive signing ever.

Various reports claim that Tottenham are willing to pay somewhere between £40 and £50 million for the talented Brazilian. Ideally, Levy would only pay Bordeaux £30 million up front. The remainder of the fee would be paid in installments over the next several years.

As you’ll recall, Sanchez moved from Ajax for a reported £42 million. That, combined with the rising stadium costs required to fund the club’s new ground seemed to indicate that Spurs would be relatively quiet this January. In fact, just a couple of days ago it seemed Malcom was headed t North London to play for Arsenal.

A funny thing happened when the player’s entourage visited both Tottenham and Arsenal though. Suddenly, Malcom had a change of heart. He went from being ready to join the Gunners to having his heart set on playing for Mauricio Pochettino.

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In truth, it seems obvious that Arsenal have dropped their interest. Arsene Wenger’s club seems determined to add more experienced players this January. Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang and Henrikh Mkhitaryan top the Frenchman’s shopping list. Even so, losing out on such a talented starlet will rub many people the wrong way at the Emirates.

From the Tottenham perspective, signing Malcom is quite a coup. Even if he doesn’t arrive until the beginning of the 2017-18 campaign, he could serve as the missing link for Pochettino’s attack. His tremendous pace and ability to break down opponents off the dribble could make him invaluable at Spurs.

The concern, of course, is that Tottenham haven’t had much luck acquiring wingers from Ligue 1 in recent years. Neither Clinton N’Jie or Georges-Kevin N’Koudou was able to make his way into Pochettino’s starting XI. Malcom is a different sort of prospect though. He would arrive at Spurs with a significantly more accomplished resume than either of his two predecessors.

Next: Arsenal are steering star to Spurs

The ink isn’t try on Malcom’s deal with Tottenham yet, but if Levy pushes it through it will be another clear sign of the club’s heightened ambition. Breaking Spurs’ transfer record two windows in a row is a clear departure of Levy’s previous philosophy.

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