Barnes is no longer on their shortlist following their transfer breakthrough
Leicester City star Harvey Barnes is no longer on Tottenham Hotspur’s radar, according to journalist Ben Jacobs who spoke to Give Me Sport.
This comes following Spurs’ signing of Fulham’s Manor Solomon, with the Israeli joining following a productive season at Craven Cottage.
Ange Postecoglou has already conducted some transfer business with Spurs this summer, with James Maddison heading to the English capital and Harry Winks making the move to the King Power Stadium.
With this in mind, a deal for Barnes looked to be a possibility considering the relationship the two sides have already struck up a relationship, although they would have faced a real battle for his signature with Newcastle United, Aston Villa and West Ham also being linked with him.
Football League World understands Barnes would prefer a move to the English capital this summer – but it’s Newcastle who seem to be at the front of the queue for him at this stage as they seem to be the ones making the most effort to get a deal over the line.
With Declan Rice looking set to finalise a move to Arsenal though, that could free up funds for the Hammers to make a move for the Leicester man if they wished to.
What is the latest on Harvey Barnes’ move to Newcastle United?
Barnes has been heavily linked to Newcastle for a while now and it was previously unclear whether genuine progress had been made in their quest to secure his signature.
But Jacobs has revealed that negotiations are advancing and in a further boost for the Magpies’ supporters, he also revealed that Tottenham are now out of the running.
He said: “Things are progressing. The Newcastle position has been to make sure that they get value on this.
“Leicester want about £40million and they can push for that number because, over the last month or so, they’ve had interest from quite a lot of clubs.
“Although Tottenham’s interest has ended because Manor Solomon has come in, West Ham and Aston Villa have also looked at making a move. Leicester feel like they can get quite a good price for Barnes.”
Are Tottenham right to have ended their pursuit of Harvey Barnes?
Considering they have already strengthened their wing area, it wouldn’t make sense for them to spend a sizeable amount on Barnes.
He still has two years left on his contract in the Midlands and that means Leicester are likely to demand a huge amount for him.
Although Spurs and Leicester have already worked together this summer, it would be difficult to see the Foxes giving Spurs any form of discount.
Leicester reportedly value the winger at around £40m and with Spurs already spending £40m on Maddison, the North London outfit need to be careful not to spend too much in the transfer market.
Newcastle’s interest may only go on to push his valuation up, so they may not have won the race for his signature even if they were firmly in the race.
And this is why it may be wise for them to focus on alternative targets as they look to enjoy a reasonably successful 2023/24 campaign.
