Spurs seek Aymen Abdennour switch after impressing against Arsenal

Tottenham, 4/1 chances to crash the top four with Coral, hold reported interest in Monaco and Tunisia centre back Aymen Abdennour, with the tabloid press claiming he could cost as little as £5m this summer.

Abdennour, 25, has caught the eye when involved in Monaco’s mean defence, which has conceded just two Champions League goals in seven games so far. This included the last 16 first leg 3-1 win at Spurs’ bitter north London rivals Arsenal.

Playing every minute of Tunisia’s recent run to the Africa Cup of Nations quarter-finals, Abdennour is emerging as a key player for club and country, though has only made 10 Ligue 1 appearances for Monaco so far this term because of that international tournament and injuries.

White Hart Lane has seen a steady stream of North African talents turn out for Tottenham in the last deacade, most notably Morocco centre back Noureddine Naybet and attacker Adel Taarabt, Egyptian pair Hossam Ghaly and Mido, and current first-team player Nabil Bentaleb of Algeria.

Any move made by Spurs head coach Mauricio Pochettino for left-footer Abdennour would lead to further speculation about the long-term future of Belgium counterpart Jan Vertonghen. Barcelona have been previously linked with taking him from Tottenham, especially if they fail to secure Champions League football for next term.

Featuring in eight Monaco matches across all competitions where they have kept clean sheets, Abdennour’s asking price could well rise if Leonardo Jardim steers the Principality outfit to the business end of the Champions League.

Holding a healthy 3-1 aggregate advantage over Arsenal going into their last 16 second leg at home, they are in pole position to have their best run in Europe’s elite club competition since reaching the final in 2004.

At Spurs, Abdennour would compete with the likes of Vlad Chiriches, Eric Dier, Federico Fazio, Younes Kaboul and Jan Vertonghen for a first-team place. Tottenham are also 12/5 to scoop silverware this season by winning the Capital One Cup final against Chelsea.