Tottenham close in on signing Toby Alderweireld amid Chelsea and Southampton interest

Tottenham are reportedly confident that they can beat Southampton to the signing of Atletico Madrid defender Toby Alderweireld, who is also a target for Chelsea.

According to the London Evening Standard, the Belgian defender favours a move to White Hart Lane, where he can link up with fellow countrymen Jan Vetanghen, Nacer Chadli and Moussa Dembele.

Mauricio Pochettino is keen to bolster his defence and has identified the Atletico defender as the perfect candidate due to his ability to play either at centre-back or as a full-back.

Alderweireld, who spent a successful season on loan with the Saints last season, has also caught the attention of the Premier League champions, according to the Mirror, with Jose Mourinho prepared to let former Atletico player Felipe Luis move back to the Vicente Calderon in order to land the Belgian defender.

However, the report claims that the north London club are currently in pole position to sign the defender, despite Ronald Koeman hoping that the defender will want to remain with the St Mary's outfit after a successful 2014/15 campaign with the club that saw them finish in eighth place and qualify for the Europa League.

"The player likes to stay, we like to keep the player but it's a little difficulty at the moment with Atletico Madrid, I have a good hope he will stay for Southampton," Koeman said, as quoted by the London Evening Standard.

The report claims that the Spanish capital club will demand a fee in the region of £14m ($21.8m) to part with the player, who is considered to be surplus to requirements by Diego Simeone.

However, according to a more recent London Evening Standard report, Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy is set to fly into Spain later this week to negotiate a £10m ($15.6m) transfer for the in-demand defender, which will come as a big blow to Chelsea and Southampton.