Sky Sports, via Football Daily, have now revealed the asking price after Tottenham Hotspur's bid for Bologna defender Takehiro Tomiyasu.

The Lowdown: Spurs eyeing defenders...

Tottenham's talks to sign the Japan international have emerged over this last week as the Lilywhites finally take to the transfer market.

Spurs are on the hunt for new central defenders as managing director Fabio Paratici and chairman Daniel Levy look to reinforce a problem position.

Tomiyasu comes as one of the cheaper alternatives but football.london correspondent Alasdair Gold believes that Tottenham want to preferably bring in two new defensive faces.

The Latest: Sky Sports drop Tomiyasu claim...

Sky Sports News made the latest claim involving Tomiyasu and Spurs after the club reportedly lodged a bid.

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Talks are ongoing for the 6 foot 2 colossus but Sky say that Tottenham's opening bid of £12.9 million plus an extra £2.6 million in add-ons has been rejected.

"It is close to the Italian club's valuation, which is at least €20m, which is £17.2m," explained the broadcaster (via Football Daily).

"They are a couple of million away at the moment, we're told, but talks remain ongoing."

The Verdict: Get it done...

Amid Tottenham tough financial circumstances the club will have to play hardball in a difficult market, but the Lilywhites must surely pay the extra few million for Tomiyasu.

Spurs have already wasted precious time during their two-month search for a new manager, which finally ended when they announced Nuno Espirito Santo as Jose Mourinho's heir.

We therefore urge them to get Tomiyasu done as soon as possible and move on to other more prestigious targets who may present a bigger challenge.

In other news: 'I'd be excited, Spurs fans'...Stan Collymore thrilled by major news out of N17, find out more here.