Tottenham have overtaken Liverpool in the race for Brazilian attacking midfielder Willian after making their move to try and bring him to White Hart Lane.
Liverpool were reported to be in advanced talks with the Russian club over a £30m move and they could still land the 25-year-old, but bookies have now rated Spurs as favourites to land Willian having nearly signed him back in January of this year.
Spurs' chairman Daniel Levy travelled to Ukraine to negotiate a deal with his former club Shakhtar Donetsk, but talks broke down and he instead headed to Russia to sign for money-rich Anzhi Makhachkala.
But the club's billionaire owner Suleyman Kerimov has lost patience with the underachieving squad and no longer wishes to bankroll the high spending any more, having put up the entire squad for a transfer.
Willian put Premier League clubs on alert when he commented on his desire to move to England, but Manchester United dropped their interest in the Brazil international over the weekend in light of their interest in Everton's Marouane Fellaini.
That seemingly left Liverpool as the favourites for his signature, but Spurs renewed their long-term interest in him and they are hopeful that the attraction of living in London and playing under manager Andre Villas-Boas will lure him to the capital.
Spurs have already been one of the most active clubs in the transfer window this summer, with the acquisitions of Roberto Soldado, Paulinho, Nacer Chadli and Etienne Capoue taking their spending to just shy of £60m already.
The transfer saga surrounding Gareth Bale's move to Real Madrid is also yet to be resolved, although it remains unclear whether their spending spree is on the assumption that Bale will leave or whether they have all been brought into the club to play alongside the Welshman.
Villas-Boas has remained defiant that he wants to keep Bale at the club, and should he remain with the Lilywhites after the September 2 deadline, their transfer activity will have been a significant sign of intent from the north London club in their quest to break into the top four and clarify their position as Premier League contenders.
Liverpool are also hopeful that the signing of the midfielder will boost their chances of returning to European competition, and the two clubs appear to be ready to 'battle it out' over his signature.
Source: The Independent
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