Speculation continues to surround Inter defender Milan Skriniar, who has been linked with a late move to Tottenham.
Spurs could still make a move for the centre-back before the close of the transfer window as Jose Mourinho looks to further improve his squad following the addition of striker Carlos Vinícius.
Bringing in Skriniar will require negotiations with his agent, Mithat Halis, a partner at Stars & Friends, the company that represents the player.
Like most agents of high-profile players, Halis has spoken publicly in the past about potential destinations for his client.
Back in November last year, he claimed Skriniar was “worth €100m” and suggested he could move to one of Real Madrid or Barcelona.
That hasn’t materialised, though Halis is clearly keen to hype up the 25-year-old. And he is certainly amongst the most in-demand defenders in Europe at the moment.
To get to the stage where discussions are held with Skriniar’s agent, Spurs will first need to have a bid accepted. It remains to be seen what Inter’s asking price is, but there is a talk of an imminent offer before the deadline on Monday.
As mentioned, Halis is a partner of Stars & Friends. The company represents a host of players, some well-known and others less so.
The most reputable is probably Wolfsburg forward Wout Weghorst, who was also linked with Spurs earlier in the window.
Borussia Mönchengladbach midfielder Laszlo Benes and Fulham goalkeeper Marek Rodak are clients of Stars & Friends, too, and other familiar faces include former Watford defender Sebastian Prodl and ex-Liverpool man Martin Skrtel.
Establishing a relationship with the company and with Halis wouldn’t do Spurs any harm. Skriniar’s agent appears to operate in a similar way to super agent Jorge Mendes, though he is not quite as renowned yet.
If reports from earlier in the month are to be believed, Tottenham have already met with Halis, who appears an uncompromising character, fairly typical for modern-day agents.
The hope will be that negotiations go smoothly if they reach an advanced stage over the next few days.
