Tottenham Hostpur have been handed a huge boost in their pursuit of a deal to bring Ruben Neves to the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium this summer.

What's the talk?

That's according to a recent David Ornstein article for The Athletic, in which the transfer insider claimed that, after five years of service for the club, Wolverhampton Wanderers could be open to parting with the central midfielder at the end of the current campaign - should an acceptable offer be lodged.

Ornstein went on to state that, despite Barcelona currently looking to be the most likely destination for the 25-year-old, a number of Premier League teams are also in discussions with the Portugal international's intermediaries regarding a potential summer swoop - one of whom could well be Tottenham.

Indeed, just last August, Fabio Paratici was reported to be negotiating a long-term contract with Neves prior to a £40m (£34m) move to north London, however, in the end, no agreement between the player and Spurs was reached.

In his article, Ornstein wrote: "There is an acceptance that after five years of fine service, Neves may be sold if a suitable offer arrives and gives him a chance to play Champions League football.

"Discussions are taking place between intermediaries and, at present, the most likely destination is said to be Barcelona, though Premier League teams are known to be keen and Wolves would gladly sign him to a new contract."

Neves can replace Lo Celso

Considering just how impressive Neves has been since his £15.8m move to Wolves back in 2017, in addition to the fact that both Giovani Lo Celso and Tanguy Ndombele - currently on loan at Villarreal and Lyon respectively - appear as if they could be on their way out of north London this summer, it would be surprising if Paratici does not reignite his interest in the 25-year-old in the coming months.

Indeed, over his 28 Premier League appearances this season, the £36m-rated midfielder has been in electric form for Bruno Lage's side, scoring four goals, registering two assists and creating three big chances for his teammates, as well as taking an average of 1.4 shots and making 0.7 key passes per game.

The £58k-per-week maestro has also impressed in metrics more typical of his position, making an average of 1.3 interceptions, 2.3 tackles, 50 passes and winning four duels per fixture.

These returns have seen the player who David Edwards claimed was Wolves' "biggest signing of the window" after keeping him at Molineux last summer average a quite breathtaking SofaScore match rating of 7.20, not only ranking him as Lage's best performing outfielder but also as the joint 25th-best player in the division as a whole.

In comparison, over Lo Celso's nine Premier League outings in the current campaign, the £25m-rated midfielder was in rather less spectacular form, scoring no goals, providing no assists and creating two big chances, in addition to making an average of 0.1 interceptions, 0.9 tackles, 13.9 passes and winning 2.6 duels per game.

These returns saw the £100k-per-week Argentina international who John Wenham dubbed "unacceptable" earlier this season average an extremely disappointing SofaScore match rating of 6.72, ranking him as Antonio Conte's sixth-worst performer in the top flight of English football.

As such, it is clear for all to see that Neves would be a significant upgrade on Lo Celso, leading us to believe that Paratici simply must do all to move the 25-year-old on this summer, before reinvesting the fee received for the Argentine - as well as his hefty weekly wage - into a move for the Wolves destroyer.

Consequently, a swoop could just turn out to be the deal of the window, something Edwards alluded to last summer.

AND in other news: Paratici plotting £59m bid for 24 y/o "appreciated by Conte", he's "perfect" for Spurs