Tottenham and Newcastle holding 'new Sandro Tonali talks' to thrash out agreement

Tottenham Hotspur have been told Newcastle United will demand a fee of at least £100million if they are to sell Sandro Tonali this summer.

The 26-year-old has emerged as a top target for Spurs as Roberto De Zerbi puts ambitious plans in place to strengthen his squad during the summer window.

However, Newcastle remain extremely reluctant to lose the Italy international and have already rejected an offer of £80m from Tottenham in recent days.

As I revealed on the latest edition of Football Insider's Transfer Insider podcast, Spurs are planning to hold fresh talks with Newcastle in an attempt to negotiate a lower fee.

Newcastle hope sticking to their asking price will help to deter some of the growing interest in Tonali, but after seeing an opening bid rejected, Spurs are unlikely to back off.

Talks will now continue between the two clubs, with De Zerbi determined to get a deal over the line and beat their rivals to his signature.

Football Insider revealed in March that Man City were seen as the clear favourites to sign Tonali, while Arsenal and clubs in Italy were also keen to do a deal.

However, Tottenham have now made the first move and hope they can wrap a deal up quickly to avoid too much competition for the midfielder's signature.

Newcastle's demand is clear, and has been reiterated after the opening bid, but Spurs hope ongoing negotiations will allow then to knock down that price tag.

Speaking on the Transfer Insider podcast, I explained: "They have got some encouragement they can do a deal with Newcastle. Newcastle are holding out for around £100m.

"Tottenham will be hoping that they can land Tonali for something cheaper than that and have now stepped up their interest to see if they can get a deal done for the Italian.

"Talks will take place between the two clubs in the coming days and weeks because Spurs want to try to knock down that asking price.

"Newcastle, ideally they don't really want to lose him unless they're losing him for a huge fee. So yeah, they'll be hoping to hold out for as close to that £100m mark as possible."

Tottenham's pursuit of Tonali has stepped up in recent days following sources claims that the midfielder is interested in making the move to North London.

Football Insider revealed on 19 June that Tonali's camp have given Spurs encouragement that the Italy international is keen on the move and there is a deal to be done.

The 26-year-old was originally seen as an ambitious target for Spurs given the level of interest in his signature from rivals and giants in European football.

Man City and Arsenal are among the most high-profile English clubs to have expressed an interest, but Tottenham have now moved ahead of them in the race.

After recieving encouragement from his camp, there is now a growing feeling that De Zerbi's side can get a deal over the line as they remain in talks with Newcastle.