Tottenham Hotspur have held talks with Bayern Munich centre-back Jerome Boateng over a free transfer this summer.
Bayern have already confirmed that the German will bring his ten-year association with the club to an end this summer once his contract expires, and there have been plenty of rumours suggesting a return to England - where he spent one year on the books at Manchester City - could be on the cards.
The first mention of Spurs in this transfer saga came from Christian Falk, who noted that Jose Mourinho's side were interested in Boateng, alongside Barcelona.
Since then, however, things have stepped up a little bit.
In an article squashing rumours of a potential move to Borussia Dortmund, Sky Deutschland give a nod to Spurs and say that 'concrete talks' have already been held with the 32-year-old over a potential move.
Barcelona's interest is also acknowledged, but a move to Camp Nou is seen as unlikely. In this report, Spurs are the only side whose interest is taken seriously.
The idea of firm negotiations hasn't made it to the English press just yet, but The Times did confirm reports of Mourinho's interest in Boateng.
It's understood that Mourinho plans to revitalise his defence this summer after months of publicly throwing his current crop of defenders under the bus for not being good enough to play in his archaic system.
The Daily Mail state that a centre-back, right-back and goalkeeper are all high on Spurs' shopping list, although before Daniel Levy can start buying, it is expected that the chairman will have to offload a couple of players.
Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris, defenders Serge Aurier and Juan Foyth and midfielder Erik Lamela are all named as potential casualties, while the futures of English duo Harry Winks and Dele Alli could rest on whether Mourinho is still in the dugout next season.
With money seemingly tight at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, it's not hard to see why a free move for Boateng is being explored. He's a World Cup winner with a decade of elite-level experience, and to this day he is still a core part of the Bayern side that are on track to win another Bundesliga title.
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Source: 90min
