Tottenham are exploring a January deal for Real Betis midfielder Johnny Cardoso
Ange Postecoglou has admitted that Tottenham Hotspur “need to reinforce” their squad in the January transfer window.
Spurs had a productive summer transfer window, bringing in new players such as Dominic Solanke, Lucas Bergvall, Archie Gray and Lucas Bergvall. They also re-signed Timo Werner on a season-long loan from RB Leipzig whilst agreeing a deal with Gangwon FC for South Korean talent Yang Hyeok-min, who has arrived at the club but will only be able to play from January.
However, Ange Postecoglou’s side have not lived up to the expectations of the fans this season and currently lie in the bottom half of the Premier League table. Given the North Londoners’ hugely inconsistent displays over the last two months, with injury issues one of the major mitigating factors behind it, the Australian head coach would be hoping to do some business in January to steady the ship.
According to an exclusive report from TBR Football, Tottenham are currently in dialogue with Real Betis to bring the Johnny Cardoso agreement forward in January.
Back in the summer, Tottenham sold Giovani Lo Celso to Real Betis for a paltry £8.4m fee, although they made a deal to sign Johnny Cardoso for a sum of €25 million in what seemed like a pre-agreed move. The defensive midfielder was expected to spend the ongoing 2024/25 season with the Spanish side, before Spurs decided whether to trigger his buyout clause in the summer.
The 23-year-old has been in and out of the Betis side, starting only eight of 13 La Liga games thus far. The USA international has recently denied any rumours of a winter move linking him away from Betis.
Now, however, the aforementioned report adds Spurs are speaking with the LaLiga side to sign Cardoso much sooner than the summer, with a January deal being explored.
They have scouted the holding midfielder five times in the last six weeks, including his last two appearances which were against Villarreal and Rayo Vallecano. The North Londoners have to pay a £20.7m fee if a January agreement does come to fruition.
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Cardoso arriving in January would be a huge boost to Postecoglou’s midfield unit, which has been underperforming in recent months. Due to the Lilywhites lacking a natural defensive midfielder and Rodrigo Bentancur being suspended, Big Ange has been forced to use Yves Bissouma in that role in recent weeks.
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Bissouma has failed to repay the manager’s faith, and sensing the position requires urgent addressing, Tottenham want to sign Cardoso from Betis during the winter transfer window itself. It will be interesting to see whether our club chiefs can negotiate with Betis for the American and get a deal done.
