West Ham eyeing £15.5m Spurs target likened to Virgil van Dijk – Sky journalist

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West Ham United have been credited with an interest in Tottenham Hotspur target Jonathan Tah.

The Hammers and Spurs are both looking to bolster their ranks in wake of underwhelming seasons.

Although West Ham are in the Europa Conference League final, they battled relegation from the Premier League.

Meanwhile, Tottenham ended up trophyless and, by finishing eighth, won’t even be playing in Europe next season.

Sky Sport Germany journalist Florian Plettenberg has tweeted saying West Ham are one of the clubs eyeing Tah.

German outlet BILD recently claimed that Tottenham are also in pursuit of the Bayer Leverkusen defender.

Plettenberg says “many clubs” are eyeing Tah, who reportedly has an €18million (£15.5million) release clause.

Will West Ham or Spurs win race for 6ft 4in colossus?

Tah is an outstanding defender who would be a great addition to the West Ham and Spurs ranks alike.

At 27, the 6ft 4in colossus is very much in his prime, and he has considerable experience at the highest level.

Tah has over 300 senior appearances for Leverkusen and has also won 16 caps for Germany.

He is a very talented player, and his height and physicality would stand him in good stead in the Premier League.

Indeed, there have been comparisons to Virgil van Dijk and Dayot Upamecano, two of the best defenders around.

Picking up a player like Tah for less than £20million is a no-brainer.

However, both West Ham and Tottenham can’t waste any time, as there are so many clubs in the race.

In addition, BILD reported that Tah’s release clause won’t run all summer.

The clause ‘must be triggered by the beginning of July’, otherwise his price becomes freely negotiable.

Tah’s contract runs until 2025, so Leverkusen wouldn’t be especially desperate to sell up this summer in that case.