Tottenham face 'difficulty' to sign £31m star at Hotspur Way

Tottenham Hotspur have targeted Atletico Madrid midfielder Rodrigo De Paul this summer and the Argentinian has likely already made up his mind on the potential transfer, according to Dean Jones.

Antonio Conte has been a busy man this summer, already signing Richarlison, Ivan Perisic, Yves Bissouma and Fraser Forster ahead of the new campaign but he is seemingly not finished yet.

De Paul burst onto the scene with Udinese in the 2020-21 Serie A season, sparking a transfer race for his signature, but it was Diego Simeone’s side who came out on top.

The 28-year-old was a regular for Atletico last term and contributed three goals and four assists from predominantly central-midfield.

But the relationship between De Paul and Simeone became strained towards the end of the season. De Paul was benched for a stretch of the season after he was confronted about his personal life, leading to speculation that a move could be on the cards with after signing for Ateltico for £31 million just a year ago.

However, despite interest from Spurs, Fiorentina and a number of other clubs, according to Tuttomercatoweb, he is eager to remain in the Spanish capital.

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Jones has backed that up after speaking to someone in Spain, telling GIVEMESPORT: “In terms of Rodrigo de Paul, I don’t know if he’s got enough appetite to push for a transfer like this. I spoke to a contact in Madrid and he said he seems pretty happy to stay where he is for right now. So I think that’ll also be a difficult get for Spurs.”

Conte is a man on a mission this summer but having already brought in Yves Bissouma from Brighton earlier in the window, do they really