Tottenham Hotspur have moved towards clinching a £5m deal for the Manchester City central defender Richard Dunne and signing Giovani dos Santos from Barcelona as they strengthen their squad for an assault on the top four places in the Premier League next season.
Dunne flew into London with the Republic of Ireland squad yesterday, played in the friendly against Colombia at Craven Cottage last night and is expected to have further talks with Spurs today.
Juande Ramos, the manager, has been unconvinced by Michael Dawson and Younes Kaboul, his young central defenders, and the concerns over Ledley King's fitness are well documented. Ramos signed Jonathan Woodgate for £8m from Middlesbrough in January but wants a tough and experienced partner for him and Dunne fits the profile.
The arrival of the attacking midfielder Dos Santos appears imminent after Tottenham negotiators yesterday shook hands on a deal with Barcelona which will bring the Mexican Under-17 World Cup winner to White Hart Lane for a fee of about £12.5m.
Daniel Levy, the Tottenham chairman, is determined to break the Big Four monopoly and qualify for the Champions League and he has been told by Ramos that he must speculate on players to accumulate. Levy appears to be heeding the Spaniard's advice to ignore making profits in the short term, having already completed the signing of Luka Modric from Dinamo Zagreb for £16.5m.
Personal terms for a four-year contract have been agreed for the 19-year-old Giovani, who counts Ronaldinho and Zinedine Zidane among his fans. He has been swayed in his decision to join Spurs despite interest from Internazionale, Chelsea and Manchester City because of Ramos's faith in him.
Giovani has been widely monitored since he orchestrated Mexico's Under-17 World Cup victory three years ago but the Spurs manager's personal experience of the player proved the key. The then 18-year-old handed victory to Barça against Ramos's Sevilla a month before the coach took over at Spurs, turning the tide of the match and winning a vital penalty.
