"Conte’s stance will be…" – Journalist drops big Spurs transfer claim with message sent to Levy

Tottenham Hotspur manager Antonio Conte will demand to be backed over his demands for a ‘key position’ to be strengthened in the summer, according to journalist Dean Jones.

Spurs are believed to be in the market for a pair of new wing-backs ahead of next season, with Juventus’ Juan Cuadrado tipped to make a surprise return to the Premier League.

According to The Athletic, the main focus for Tottenham when the market reopens will be to sign a left-sided centre-back, but the ‘next priority’ will be two wing-backs, one for each flank.

These positions are vital to how Conte sets up his team, and the likes of Achraf Hakimi, Marcos Alonso and Stephan Lichtsteiner have played pivotal roles in the Italian’s success at his previous clubs.

Spurs, though, are currently without viable options in the long-term on both the left and right-hand side.

Summer signing Emerson Royal has largely been unable to impress, scoring once throughout his 36 appearances to date and providing just one assist, leading to the return of Matt Doherty from the wilderness.

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While neither Ryan Sessegnon nor Sergio Reguilon have been able to put a consistent run of form together either, leaving Conte wishing for improvements in both areas of the pitch.

And Italian reporter Rudy Galetti recently revealed that Spurs ‘got in tough’ with Cuadrado’s agent over a potential move before stating that director of football Fabio Paratici would ‘be glad to welcome’ him to the club.

Tottenham brought in Dejan Kulusevski and Rodrigo Bentancur from Juve in January to improve their attack and midfield and could return to the Turin giants to bolster their backline.

And Jones