---
title: "Tottenham Hotspur: Insider says Stefan de Vrij is a ‘realistic signing’"
canonical: "https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-hotspur-insider-says-stefan-de-vrij-is-a-realistic-signing/"
type: "post"
language: "en-GB"
author: "Emilio Galantini"
section: "Premier League"
published: "2021-11-17T17:40:19Z"
modified: "2021-11-17T17:40:19Z"
---

# Tottenham Hotspur: Insider says Stefan de Vrij is a ‘realistic signing’

**Speaking to [Football Insider](https://www.footballinsider247.com/insider-tottenham-will-demand-15m-de-vrij-discount-as-source-shares-very-keen-news/), Tottenham Hotspur ‘insider’/club source John Wenham has shared his thoughts on a recent development involving Inter Milan star Stefan de Vrij.**

### The Lowdown: de Vrij emerges as Conte target…

As per numerous claims from Italian, Spanish and English media, Nerazzurri defender de Vrij is very much on new manager Antonio Conte’s list of targets.

\[freshpress-quiz id=”375567″\]

The 29-year-old is apparently one of many Serie A big names who could be targeted by the Spurs boss and managing director Fabio Paratici, with[Calciomercato.it](https://www.calciomercato.it/2021/11/01/calciomercato-conte-tottenham-de-vrij-chiesa-de-ligt-brozovic/) listing him among six others in Federico Chiesa, Matthijs de Ligt, Marcelo Brozovic, Alessio Romagnoli, Dusan Vlahovic.

Meanwhile, [Fichajes](https://www.fichajes.net/noticias/tottenham-antonio-conte-cerca-cerrar-primer-refuerzo-2022-stefan-de-vrij-20211109.html) believe that things are slightly more advanced – claiming last week that the Dutch international is edging ‘closer and closer’ to signing for Spurs as Conte seeks to solve his major defensive problems.

Last but not least, [Football Insider](https://www.footballinsider247.com/sources-de-vrij-tells-friends-latest-on-tottenham-move-with-january-a-possibility/) have the most recent development, stating de Vrij is personally open to the idea of a Spurs move – wanting more information and telling friends he is ‘very keen’.

### The Latest: Insider backs realistic Spurs chance…

Speaking to [FI](https://www.footballinsider247.com/insider-tottenham-will-demand-15m-de-vrij-discount-as-source-shares-very-keen-news/), in reaction to these developments, insider Wenham believes that the centre-back is indeed a ‘realistic signing’ if the Lilywhites can negotiate a reasonable fee – certainly not his reported £40m valuation.

*“He’s clearly a player Conte trusts. if he does want De Vrij then that is a deal I can see us doing,”* said the Spurs source.

*“He’s an international player with 55 caps, he’s a trophy winner and he’s an instant improvement on Ben Davies.*

*“The £40million fee is a bit steep for a player who doesn’t have that long left on his contract.*

*“I think Tottenham would look for a discount there, a £25million deal seems fair to me.*

*“Especially if you look at his age as well. He is a more realistic signing.*

*“If Conte really wants him then the club have to back that decision.”*

### The Verdict: Get it done…

If Tottenham can indeed whittle his price down to around £25m, even despite his age, we believe it is certainly a deal worth pursuing.

Racking up over [half a century of caps](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/stefan-de-vrij/nationalmannschaft/spieler/111196) for the Netherlands, de Vrij has not only played in two major international tournaments, but also possesses lots of Champions League and Europa League appearances at club level.

Making [44 cameos](https://www.transfermarkt.co.uk/stefan-de-vrij/detaillierteleistungsdaten/spieler/111196) across the continent’s most elite European competitions since 2010/2011, de Vrij’s wealth of experience on the biggest stages in football could be invaluable to Conte and Spurs.

A remarkable ball-playing centre-back, de Vrij averaged a higher pass accuracy ([93.8%](https://www.whoscored.com/Players/82399/History/Stefan-de-Vrij)) than any Tottenham player last season as Inter ended Juve’s stranglehold on the Scudetto ([WhoScored](https://www.whoscored.com/Teams/30/Archive/England-Tottenham?stageId=18685)).

We believe his composure and assurance would complement Cristian Romero to superb effect and potentially educate Tottenham’s relatively young defender in the process.

Lauded as a [‘worldbeater’](https://www.footballinsider247.com/de-vrij-can-be-a-tottenham-legend-after-source-reveals-january-transfer-latest-pundit/) by pundit Noel Whelan, this could be one major potential coup for Spurs.

***In other news: ‘Understand’, ‘In recent weeks’…Alasdair Gold shares exciting development out of Hotspur Way, find out more [here.](https://www.footballtransfertavern.com/tottenham-hotspur-news/alasdair-gold-ndombele-news-fitness-conte/)***