Double Tottenham midfield exit accelerates as Postecoglou pushes duo to new leagues

Tottenham Hotspur are close to finally allowing Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg to leave for Atletico Madrid and another midfielder could follow him out of the exit door, according to reports.

Hojbjerg has been pushing for a move to Atletico Madrid recently after spending three seasons as a regular starter in midfield for Tottenham. The move to Spain would provide him with a new challenge, also including Champions League involvement.

So far, Atletico have failed to make a bid that Tottenham have found worth accepting. It led to the transfer recently being described as ‘impossible’.

But there seems to have been a breakthrough, since Ekstra Bladet is now reporting that Hojbjerg is ‘close’ to joining Atletico.

To sign him, Diego Simeone’s side will have to raise their €25m (£21.3m) bid closer to €29.5m-€32.2m (£25.2m-£27.5m), which would be a compromise on Tottenham’s €45m valuation.

Atletico’s need for Hojbjerg has heightened after Koke suffered a muscle injury in their most recent match. Therefore, they might be ready to close the gap with Tottenham.

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That said, one factor holding up the deal has been Atletico’s inability to shift some of their excess players too. Therefore, perhaps movement will still be needed before they can commit to a new package for Hojbjerg.

But if the claims from his native Denmark are to be believed, things could be heading in the right direction for his La Liga move.

Ndombele to leave Tottenham (again) as well

And Hojbjerg is not the only player ready to vacate the Spurs midfield, since Tanguy Ndombele is also attracting interest from abroad.

According to Le10 Sport, Rennes have begun talks about signing Ndombele as they aim to fill the void left by Wolfsburg new boy Lovro Majer.

The Ligue 1 side have already taken Nemanja Matic from Roma this month and have added former Chelsea flop Tiemoue Bakayoko to their shortlist too after he became available as a free agent, but are wondering if there would be a chance to take Ndombele on favourable terms.

Per the report, there is still a chance they would be able to sign him on loan, even if Tottenham will want rid of the Frenchman on a permanent basis this summer after previously lending him to Lyon and Napoli.

A move to Rennes would enable Ndombele – who alternatively has admirers in Turkey and Saudi Arabia, it is claimed – to reunite with his former Lyon manager, Bruno Genesio.

With only two years remaining on his contract – like Hojbjerg – Ndombele will likely be hoping for a new challenge that will allow him to revive his career at the age of 26.

Neither Hojbjerg nor Ndombele featured in Tottenham’s draw with Brentford in their first fixture of the new Premier League season. The former was an unused substitute and the latter was out of the squad altogether.

Head coach Ange Postecoglou picked a partnership of Yves Bissouma and Oliver Skipp instead, behind James Maddison in the more advanced midfield role. Pape Matar Sarr came on for Skipp, while Hojbjerg and fellow exit-linked midfielder Giovani Lo Celso stayed on the bench.