The Serie A has produced some fine defensive talents over the years with another one catching the eyes of the Premier League’s biggest clubs.

Corriere dello Sport has reported that Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur are both interested in signing Parma centre back Giovanni Leoni in the summer after his breakthrough campaign with them in the Italian top-flight.

As per the report, Leoni is valued at close to £30 million, a fee the English duo are comfortably expected to afford, and featured in most of Parma’s Serie A outings since January.

At six feet, five inches height, he has a towering aerial presence, fantastic reading of the game, exceptional physical prowess and passing ability on the ball with both his feet, thereby making him an ideal option for the Premier League.

Liverpool likely to trump Spurs to Leoni

Giovanni Leoni’s club, Parma, finished Serie A at 16th place last year and have struggled financially, so in spite of how promising he has been, they may let the 18-year-old leave for the right money.

Having said that, a transfer to Liverpool might be a more feasible proposition for the teenager as Tottenham Hotspur already have some fine defenders in the prime of their careers, while Luka Vuskovic, also 18, checked into the club this summer.

Liverpool are looking to replace an ageing Virgil van Dijk, whereas Ibrahima Konate’s contractual situation means they are looking for a new centre back. While Leoni won’t have a key role right from the start, there is a clear succession path at Anfield.

It will be interesting to see if he is receptive to the idea of joining Liverpool ahead of next month’s Deadline Day or whether he continues to ply his trade in the Serie A to continue his development with Parma.

Thomas Frank trials Tottenham midfielder in number 10 role after Morgan Gibbs-White snub

Thomas Frank has turned to one of Tottenham’s standout players from last season as the temporary solution to Tottenham’s failed Morgan Gibbs-White transfer pursuit.

Several areas of the Tottenham Hotspur team need strengthening ahead of the new season, and one of such is the number ten position.

Tottenham have James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski as their main options in that position, but both players are injury-prone and tend to miss games throughout a season.

As a result, one of Tottenham’s priority signings of this summer window is to strengthen their depth in the ten position, with an offer for Morgan Gibbs-White being made.

However, the Lilywhites ultimately missed out on the Nottingham Forest man, as he has put pen to paper on a new deal at the City Ground.