Spurs Edge Closer to Landing Spanish Striker - Report

Barcelona forward David Villa is reportedly close to making a summer move to Tottenham Hotspur.

The Spaniard has been linked with a move away from Camp Nou since January and the north London outfit are now understood to be frontrunners for his signature. According to the Mirror, the 31-year-old has already reached an agreement with Spurs and it is now down to the two clubs to agree on a transfer fee.

The report claims Tottenham are yet to match the £8.6m (€10m) price tag Barcelona have placed on Villa. Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is confident he can drive the fee down as the striker has less than 12 months remaining on his current contract and the Catalans know he can leave as a free agent next summer.

Villa has been deemed surplus to requirement at Barcelona, especially after the big-money summer recruitment of Brazil sensation Neymar. The La Liga club are also keen to get Villa's £110,000-a-week package of their wage bill soon, playing into Levy's hands.

Villa had 10 goals and seven assists to his name from 28 La Liga appearances (17 starts) last season. He remains Spain national team's leading goalscorer with 56 goals from 92 matches.

Dawson: Spurs Ready for Pre-Season

Meanwhile, Tottenham captain Michael Dawson has stated the players are ready for pre-season and are already thinking about their first Premier League game next season, against newly promoted Crystal Palace.

Spurs will head to Asia at the end of July, where they will take on the likes of Sunderland and Manchester City in the Barclays Asia Trophy.

"It will be interesting to go away and play English teams in pre-season. I'm sure it will be good test and the atmosphere will fantastic out there," Dawson told the club website.

"It's all about hard work and preparing for the first game of the season. That's the most important thing. It's pre-season, we'll be focused and all working towards that first game against Palace," the defender added.