Liverpool and Spurs to battle it out in race to sign American youngster

The Jose Moutinho era at Tottenham plummeted to a new low on Thursday evening, as Spurs crashed out of the Europa League at the last-16 stage after a shock 3-0 defeat to manageress Dynamo Zagreb. 

The result, which came courtesy of a stunning hat-trick from Mislav Orsic, means that Spurs’ only remaining chance of silverware is the EFL Cup, where they face Manchester City at the end of April.

With Mourinho’s future being called into question by some fans, it appears that the club are already making plans for the future, with a young striker from Germany top of the club’s list of potential transfer targets for the summer.

According to transfermarkt, Tottenham have joined Liverpool in expressing an interest in Schalke striker Matthew Hoppe.

Hoppe is the top scorer for struggling Schalke this term.

The 20-year-old broke into the first-team earlier this term and has scored five goals in his 15 appearances for the strugglers.

Tottenham are rumoured to be keen on bringing in a striker to provide back-up for talisman Harry Kane, with Brazilian Carlos Vinicius unlikely to stay after his loan ends in June having failed to make a real impact.

Liverpool, meanwhile, are keen to bolster their squad after a disappointing season to date and see Hoppe as a good option considering his age and potential price.

The American was reportedly already being monitored by both Manchester City and Manchester United, but it appears that Liverpool and Spurs have both taken their interest a step further.

It is understood that Schalke have a verbal agreement in place with the player, allowing him to leave if the right fee, reportedly between £6 million to £9 million, is offered.

Hoppe’s modest five goals makes him the Bundesliga’s bottom club’s top scorer this season.

Schalke have had more managers than wins this season and Hoppe is likely to be one of a number of big names to leave the club when their relegation is confirmed.