Paratici now closing in on "unreal" £15m Spurs signing, it'll give Arteta nightmares - opinion

Tottenham are closing in on a deal to bring Djed Spence to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

That’s according to a report by The Sun, who claimed that Spurs are set to steal the Nottingham Forest loanee from under the noses of Arsenal, with the north London rivals both believed to be interested in a £15m move for the wing-back this summer.

The report added that Antonio Conte has made the 21-year-old his primary target to replace Emerson Royal – who the Italian is said to be happy to offload in the coming weeks – while Tottenham’s qualification for the Champions League is thought to have given them the edge in the race for the England under-21 international.

Considering just how exciting a talent Spence has proven to be this season, it is easy to see why Fabio Paratici is targeting the defender in a bid to improve Conte’s options at right wing-back.

Indeed, over his 41 Championship appearances for Forest this season, the £7.2m-rated full-back has been in sensational form, bagging two goals, providing five assists and creating six big chances for his teammates, in addition to making one key pass, taking 0.6 shots and completing 1.8 dribbles per game.

The £4.4k-per-week talent has also impressed in defensive metrics, making 1.5 tackles, 1.6 interceptions and 0.2 blocks and winning 5.8 duels per game. These returns saw the player who Danny Green dubbed “unreal” average a WhoScored match rating of 7.06, ranking him as Steve Cooper’s sixth-best player in the league.

Furthermore, Spence also proved his ability against top-level opposition in Forest’s 1-0 FA Cup victory over Arsenal in January, a game in which the 21-year-old made one key pass, four interceptions, two tackles and three clearances. He also completed six dribbles and