Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly leading Manchester City in the race to sign Bologna midfielder Mattias Svanberg.
According to iNews, Tottenham Hotspur are in pole position to sign Mattias Svanberg in the upcoming January transfer window. The Bologna midfielder is likely to leave the club next month after recently rejecting a contract extension offer. His current deal in Bologna runs until 2023.
In addition to Spurs, Manchester City are the other club involved in the pursuit of Svanberg. But thanks to the presence of Antonio Conte and Fabio Paratici at the helm at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, the North London giants have the upper hand, and it could only be a matter of time before they finalise a deal for the talented midfielder.
Svanberg has been a part of Bologna since 2018. He was brought in from Malmo as a young prospect with loads of potential. It did not take him long to get going, either, with the youngster featuring in 23 league games in his debut season in Serie A.
Since then, the Swede has become an integral part of Bologna’s midfield unit. He has notched up over 100 competitive appearances for his team, making quite an impression with his work ethic in the middle of the park. He is quite versatile as well, as the youngster is capable of operating in both offensive and defensive midfield roles.
Svanberg’s quality in the middle of the pitch has now made him an ideal target for Paratici. The former Juventus director had witnessed his development closely during his time in Italy and is keen on making him Tottenham’s first signing of the upcoming January transfer window.
The potential addition of Mattias Svanberg could help Spurs add some much-needed competition for Oliver Skipp and Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg. It may also allow Tottenham to finally part ways with Harry Winks, who has been linked with a move to Newcastle United.
Even Tanguy Ndombele is expected to leave Spurs in January after being deemed surplus to the requirements by new coach Antonio Conte. Svanberg, therefore, could be a logical addition to the first-team setup at Tottenhan as the new management looks to filter out the squad after a couple of disastrous seasons.
As for Manchester City, they are unlikely to be fazed by the prospect of missing out on Svanberg. The Bologna midfielder was not on the top of Pep Guardiola’s shortlist, with the Catalan holding out for a more experienced option like Sergio Busquets, who was recently linked with a move to the Etihad.
