Ratcliffe ‘will not stop’ £35m Man Utd target from signing for Tottenham in ‘top priority’ transfer

Sir Jim Ratcliffe will reportedly ‘not’ prevent Manchester United target Jean-Clair Todibo from moving to Premier League rivals Tottenham Hotspur.

Spurs have been a major surprise package in the Premier League this season as Ange Postecoglou has successfully overhauled their style of play.

Centre-backs Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven struck up a brilliant partnership at the start of this season but Postecoglou has been without the Dutchman, who has been ruled out for a couple of months with a serious hamstring injury.

It’s been heavily reported that Van de Ven’s injury could force Postecoglou into the transfer market for a new centre-back in January and Spurs are being heavily linked with Todibo. 

The OGC Nice star has emerged as one of the best young defenders in Ligue Un in recent years and he is also being monitored by Man Utd. Interestingly, the French club are currently owned by British billionaire Ratcliffe, who is on the brink of becoming a 25% stakeholder in the Red Devils.

Some may feel that Ratcliffe’s new allegiance to Man Utd will make them more likely to land Todibo, but The Evening Standard are reporting that the owner ‘would not stand in the way of Todibo joining Tottenham in January’. The report adds.

‘The impending [takeover] is not expected to complicate Spurs’ pursuit of Todibo, provided the London club meet Nice’s asking price for the 23-year-old, believed to be north of £35million.

‘Spurs have entered talks with the Ligue 1 club over the France international defender and are currently thought to be ahead of United in the race for his signature.

‘Spurs have also held discussions with Todibo’s representatives and are understood to have guaranteed him he will have a prominent first-team role alongside Micky van de Ven and Cristian Romero.

‘Todibo, however, remains of interest to a host of other top European clubs, and Spurs could still face fierce competition from the likes of United, Liverpool, Bayern Munich and AC Milan for his signature in January. Spurs have made a centre-back their top priority in January and Ange Postecoglou has called on the club to change tack and do their business at the start of the month.’

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Earlier this month, Tottenham boss Postecoglou joked during a press conference that he has asked Santa for January signings.

“I wrote my letter to Santa. Like my kids, now I’ve just got to see whether I’ve been naughty or nice and see what I get mate,” Postecoglou joked to reporters.

He added: “Obviously with where we’re at injury-wise, the players we’re going to miss, we’ve got some significant games in January and signing somebody late in January could mean they haven’t been able to make an impact in those other games.

“We’re pushing hard but you need all parties to agree to that.

“Other clubs, particularly if it’s players they want, will be wanting to hold on them for as long as possible for their own reasons through January.

“It is a challenge, I get that, but everyone at the club is working hard to get the best outcomes for us and we’ll see how it goes.”