Tottenham bid has "been met with silence" as a price war now looks nailed on

Another twist in the tale for Tottenham fans as the Claret & Hugh reports that Spurs have finally placed a bid for Mateus Fernandes.

As I told you yesterday, personal terms were agreed between Spurs and the player, and so now a bid of £70 million has gone in.

Meanwhile, Matteo Moretto reports that in the last few hours, there have been new contacts with the player, and Manchester United are now willing to improve their contractual offer to convince him to sign.

Manchester United also plans to hold direct talks with West Ham. Which means the player has agreed terms in principle with the Old Trafford side.

Tottenham remains in the race and has pressed hard in recent days, but now United is trying to get ahead.

What joy. However, this is hardly a surprise, as West Ham were always likely to take the biggest offer, given their reduced circumstances. The Hammers value the 21-year-old Portuguese midfielder at around £80-85 million and have made it clear they’ll sell to the highest bidder.

Fernandes reportedly prefers Manchester United (Champions League football is a big pull), though he’s open to Spurs.

THFC pushed hard recently, offered higher wages, and some sources say they’ve reached a verbal agreement with the player or are “confident.” Spurs appear willing to pay closer to West Ham’s asking price, which makes a change.

This will likely come down to who offers the most money overall (fee + structure) in the next few days/weeks, especially with West Ham reportedly needing funds before June 30. So watch the clock on this one. One or two good sources gave a referenced the deadline of the 30th.

United have the player’s leaning, but Spurs’ aggression on finances makes it very competitive. If we don’t get this over the line, then the aggression wasn’t really there, one might argue.