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Spurs make their move on £27m Barcelona striker Eto'o with Berbatov set for Nou Camp switch
Last updated at 18:55pm on 07.05.08

Tottenham have started negotiations with Barcelona for striker Samuel Eto'o.

Spurs manager Juande Ramos has made Eto'o his No.1 target and it is understood the club have already met Barca officials to talk about his transfer to White Hart Lane.

The London Evening Standard reports that a Tottenham official went to Spain after the Catalan side's defeat by Manchester United in the Champions League semi-final last week to open discussions and the Spanish giants will listen to offers for the Cameroon international.

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England here I come? Samuel Eto'o could become a Spurs player after Barca lost to Manchester United in the Champions League

Barcelona will not sell for anything less than £27million but Tottenham are ready to cash in on Dimitar Berbatov and are thinking of using him as bait to secure a swap deal.

Barcelona are planning a mass clear-out following their failure to win a trophy for a second successive season and Eto'o angered the club by getting booked against Valencia at the weekend, which sees him suspended for tonight's game against Real Madrid.

Eto'o is believed to be happy about the prospect of a move to White Hart Lane and admitted earlier in the season that if was to quit Spain he would only move to the Premier League.

Ramos has been promised funds to build a squad capable of challenging for a top-four place and has already signed Croatia international Luka Modric for £15.8m, but Eto'o will be a real statement of intent.

More talks are planned next week with Barcelona but AC Milan have also registered their interest in the Bulgaria striker.

The Italian giants have turned to Berbatov after giving up any hope of buying Chelsea's Didier Drogba.

Milan have helped their cause by overtaking Fiorentina in Serie A to move into the top four and the final Champions League place, with just two games to go.

It looks set to be a summer of fervent activity at White Hart Lane as boss Juande Ramos bids to build on this season's Carling Cup victory.

Spurs slumped in the Premier League after their win at Wembley over Chelsea and can now only finish as high as 10th — a position Ramos will not accept next year.

The Spanish manager is also preparing to raid his former club Sevilla for their brilliant left winger Diego Capel. In addition, Spurs may also renew their interest in Portsmouth midfielder Lassana Diarra, having missed out on him during the January transfer window.

Berbatov is desperate to play in Europe's premier club competition and was noticeably absent from the official launch of Tottenham's new kit last night and didn't play at Reading at the weekend, although the club insisted that was due to a groin strain.

Ramos will move for 20-year-old Capel as soon as the season ends and could capitalise on the buy-out clause in his contract. That clause is directly linked to Capel's wages and how many times his contract has been re-negotiated. The buy-out price began at £9.5m but once he'd played 40 first-team games, a target he reached against Murcia last month, the price rose by £2m.

Spurs can pay the fee directly to the Spanish league and then negotiate with Capel and his agents without ever involving Sevilla.