Atletico Madrid set to challenge Tottenham Hotspur for 23-year-old La Liga star

Atletico Madrid have set their sights on signing Tottenham target Johnny Cardoso

During the last summer’s transfer window, Tottenham Hotspur sold Giovani Lo Celso to Real Betis for £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.

Johnny Cardoso has been one of La Liga’s best midfielders this season, playing a key role in Real Betis finishing sixth in the league and qualifying for the UEFA Europa League conference final, where they will face Chelsea on May 28 in Poland. He has made 45 appearances, netting four goals and registering an assist.

Since the turn of the year, Spurs have keeping close tabs on the USA international’s performances for Real Betis with the aim of bringing him to N17 in the summer transfer window. The 23-year-old’s fine displays at the heart of the Spanish side’s midfield have surprisingly gone unnoticed, which suggests Tottenham could face obstacles in signing him.

According to a report from Spanish newspaper Marca, Cardoso is ‘gaining traction’ from Atletico Madrid after they ended their pursuit of Arsenal midfielder Thomas Partey. They were exploring a move to re-sign Partey, but his high salary and financial demands make a transfer unfeasible.

This has seen Atletico Madrid turn their attention towards Cardoso, who recently expressed his happiness and desire to continue at Betis for “many years”. To make things interesting, Betis would require a sale before June 30th to help balance this year’s financial books, regardless of the result of the Conference League final against Chelsea.

However, the decision would rest with Cardoso. He could decide to stay at the Benito Villamarin or join another club when the transfer window reopens in June. So, Tottenham’s best opportunity of convincing the American enforcer to become a part of their project is by beating Manchester United in the Europa League final in Bilbao and qualifying for next season’s Champions League, the aforementioned report adds.

At this moment, Atletico Madrid are guaranteed to play in the Champions League. This could be a tempting proposition for Cardoso, unless Spurs win the Europa League on May 21 and persuades him of joining them. It is a tricky situation to be in for Tottenham and once again demonstrates how crucial it is for Ange Postecoglou’s side to win the European competition. A lot is riding on the showpiece event at the San Mames Stadium.

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That said, Spurs faces an uphill task to beat Atletico Madrid to Cardoso’s signature and Champions League qualification via the Europa League could help matters in the summer.