Tottenham & Newcastle ‘locked in January transfer battle for £25m Ligue 1 star’

Tottenham and Newcastle will reportedly battle it out for a Ligue 1 centre-back worth £25m as the Premier League clubs look to resolve their defensive issues in January.

Spurs' injury list is long and the north London side have been hit particularly hard at the back, with Micky van de Ven facing another few weeks on the sidelines with a thigh injury and Cristian Romero yet to return after an ankle injury. three weeks ago.

Indeed, this meant Ange Postecoglou had to shift left-back Ben Davies to the heart of the defense for the memorable 4-0 win over Manchester City last month and Sunday's 1-1 draw with Fulham.

Newcastle, meanwhile, has been sidelined by Sven Botman's knee injury, meaning he has not played all season and will remain on the sidelines until at least the new year.

Both sides' respective defensive crises mean they are likely to assess their options in the upcoming January transfer window, with both sides showing early interest in Lens centre-back Abdukodir Khusanov, the Telegraph reports.

The 20-year-old has been one of the surprise stars of the French league this season. He started nine of his club's 13 games in a solid start to the season that has them sitting in seventh place.

He made the move from Belarusian side Energetik-BGU Minsk to northern France 18 months ago for just £83,000, but has already packed scouts from across Europe into the stands to watch him play.

Spurs and Newcastle face competition from five other Premier League clubs for Khusanov's signature, while Paris Saint-Germain are also interested.

Tottenham are keen to strengthen their defensive options, while the Magpies view the Uzbek international as one of the best young talents.

And for good reason too. Khusanov has put in a series of confident performances this season for a strong Lens side, who have scored just 12 goals in 13 games. Only leader PSG, with eleven, has conceded less than them.

Lens is currently managed by Belgian-born Briton Will Still, who was hired in the summer to replace old boss Franck Haise, who left the club at the end of the season to manage Nice.

At 32 years old, Still is one of the youngest managers in Europe. He left Reims by mutual consent in May, with the team languishing in eleventh place.

Despite Khusanov's youth, the boss has shown great confidence in his talent and has picked him wherever he can, including in last weekend's victory over Reims when he returned from suspension.

The Uzbekistan can also fill in in defensive midfield if desired, but has only played at the back this season.

After the draw against Fulham, Postecoglou took on his side's Premier League rivals as he praised his players for the way they stepped up for injured stars.

'I've seen so much violin playing [other teams having] One central defender, but we just have to keep going,” Postecoglou told reporters.

He added, “Benny [Davies] and Radu [Drăgușin] have been excellent throughout this period. I mean, there aren't many teams in the league that have both centre-backs out. The great thing about it is that these guys are, and I love that.

'I love the characters they show. I love that they don't make excuses or want me to take them into consideration.

'But at some point I also have to recognize the enormous effort that all these guys put in. Radu and Ben were excellent again today.'