Yesterday, Taylor Twellman reported that Tottenham Hotspur were the leaders in the race to sign DeAndre Yedlin. Now, Goal is reporting that Spurs are in the final stages of finalizing a deal between $2.5 million and $3.5 million deal for the Seattle Sounders right back.
The plan is for Spurs to loan Yedlin back to the Sounders for the remainder of the MLS season, the decide what they want to do with him in January. At that point, they can either bring him into the team and see if he can earn playing time or they can loan him out again.
MLS rules state that teams have to have submitted a transfer certificate request by Wednesday for any foreign players, which could complicate Yedlin's loan back to Seattle. To make it work, they would have had to have submitted the request yesterday, which is possible, or they may not have to submit a transfer certificate request at all because while his contract would go to Spurs, he wouldn't play for them so Tottenham won't need the certificate and then to transfer it back to the Sounders.
Spurs are an interesting fit for Yedlin because they have a 24-year-old right back in Kyle Walker, who is considered one of the Premier League's better fullbacks. It is possible that they see Yedlin as a winger, which would fit with Mauricio Pochettino's pressing style. It is also possible that they look at is as a chance to buy a player at a bargain price and if he develops as they hope, in a year or two they have two good right backs and can sell one for a tidy profit.