Watford enter talks to sign Tottenham midfielder Moussa Sissoko

Watford enter talks to sign Tottenham midfielder Moussa Sissoko as Hornets chase replacement for Will Hughes who is set to join Crystal Palace for £10m

  • Watford have begun negotiations with Tottenham for midfielder Moussa Sissoko
  • Spurs are desperate to offload the 32-year-old Frenchman – but not on a free 
  • The Hornets want to sign a replacement for departing midfielder Will Hughes
  • The Englishman is set to join Crystal Palace in a £10million in the next few days 

Watford have opened talks for Tottenham midfielder Moussa Sissoko after agreeing to sell Will Hughes to Crystal Palace for £10m.

The 32-year-old Sissoko still has two years left on contract but wants a new challenge as he recognises he will have limited game time under Nuno Espírito Santo as the Portuguese takes charge of a re-shaped squad.

The Tottenham boss hopes to make new additions but the club have been rebuffed in their bid to sign Wolves’ Adama Traore. After knocking back Spurs’ £5m loan offer with view to a permanent deal, the Molineux club have re-iterated the winger is not for sale and he could now sign a new contract.

Watford have opened talks to sign Tottenham midfielder Moussa Sissoko this summer

The Hornets are looking for a Will Hughes replacement who is joining Crystal Palace for £10m

The Hornets are looking for a Will Hughes replacement who is joining Crystal Palace for £10m

Tottenham still want to streamline their squad particularly of non homegrown players though are reluctant to let Sissoko go on a free.

Watford have considered a number of defensive midfielders including Rangers’ Glen Kamara and Okan Yokuslu of Celta Vigo but are now talking to Spurs to see if a deal can be struck for Sissoko.

Hughes is close to finalising his move to Palace after a £10m deal was agreed between the clubs. Palace are understood to have offered £6m plus add-ons for the 26-year-old who had turned down the offer of a new contract and also had interest from Burnley.

Spurs are desperate to let Sissoko go but do not want to let him leave on a free transfer

Spurs are desperate to let Sissoko go but do not want to let him leave on a free transfer

Hughes could yet be followed out of the Vicarage Road exit by captain Troy Deeney. The 33-year-old is considering his options after 11 seasons at Watford.

Deeney has twice appeared as a substitute this season and is wary of diminishing game time.

Watford, who have sold Isaac Success to sister club Udinese, will assess all offers for Deeney over the coming days.

Palace, meanwhile, remain keen on Arsenal’s Eddie Nketiah and Reiss Nelson. Red Bull Leipzig’s Ademola Lookman is also under consideration.

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