Sources: Spurs sense “opportunity” to beat Man United to “€100m asset” amid new uncertainty

Tottenham are understood to sense a potential opportunity to rival Manchester United for the transfer of Brighton midfielder Carlos Baleba.

The talented young Cameroon international is going through a bit of a dip in form since Man Utd tried signing him in the summer, and this has led to Spurs joining the race, as first reported here in the Daily Briefing.

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Speaking to sources, it seems Brighton will still insist on their €100m valuation for Baleba, so that could make things complicated for Tottenham.

It’s also still not ruled out that United could move for Baleba as a priority, even if other big names like Elliot Anderson and Joao Gomes are now also being strongly considered as well.

United and Spurs look like the main two teams to watch in the race for Baleba, with sources describing the 21-year-old as someone who’s still highly regarded within the game.

There’s no doubt this season has been a bit trickier for Baleba so far, but it might just be a brief blip for the youngster.

“Brighton don’t see Baleba’s recent performances as a huge concern, they feel they still have a €100m asset there, so any clubs thinking about a cut-price deal can forget about it,” one source said.

“Tottenham are monitoring Baleba’s situation,” another source explained. “They sense there could be an opportunity there if United decide to focus on other targets.”

Baleba is someone we’re hearing a lot about at the moment, as are other names like Anderson, Gomes, and Crystal Palace’s Adam Wharton.

If he gets back to his best, though, there’s a strong case for saying that Baleba is the best of the bunch there, so he could still end up being well worth the €100m investment.

Brighton might make things tough, as they don’t want to sell in January, but in the past they’ve tended to cash in on star names like Moises Caicedo if the money and timing is right for them.

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