Tottenham 'approach Angel Di Maria over a stunning free transfer'

Tottenham have made an approach to sign Angel Di Maria on a free transfer this summer, according to reports.

The PSG star's contract will expire this summer and should set trigger a scramble from a host of top clubs across Europe as one of the most highly rated midfielders in the continent.

The Ligue 1 outfit are hoping to keep hold of him after failing in negotiations over a new deal last year, but Spurs have made first contact with the 32-year-old, as reported by L'Equipe, in a move that would see him reunited with his former Real Madrid boss Jose Mourinho.

PSG attempted to agree fresh terms with Di Maria at the end of 2020, the report adds, but the Argentinian rejected the offer because they did not satisfy his demands after the club proposed a cut to his current wage of £220,000 per week.

Di Maria is also looking for two more years on his contract to convince him to finish his career in the French capital and currently 'feels good' in the city along with his family, it continues. However, a superior offer from Spurs could tempt him to move to the Premier League.

Mourinho managed Di Maria for two seasons at the Bernabeu during a successful period for Los Blancos and the midfielder has previously raved about the impact the Portuguese boss had on his career.

'Mourinho made me a better player,' he told Diario Ole in 2013. 'He showed me many things and made me grow as a footballer. He helped me to move into a different position, to sacrifice myself more for the team.

'I'm very grateful to him. He told me that, at Real, I was a forward that could also defend and that I couldn't rest when they were on the attack.

'As I was performing under him for the three years he was at Madrid he put me in the starting line-up. The Di Maria playing down the middle compared to the one now is a different player, both technically and tactically.'

Di Maria, who has only just started working under former Spurs boss Mauricio Pochettino, would arrive in England with some pedigree having won LaLiga and the Champions League with Madrid and eight trophies with his current side.

He will be remembered in the Premier League for a disappointing spell at Manchester United in the 2014-15 season after signing for £60million, but he struggled to adapt to the top flight and his surroundings - with his wife slamming the city as 'horrible'.

He signed for PSG after just one season and has managed to recapture his best form - scoring 85 goals for the Parisiens and leading them to the Champions League final last season.

Tottenham are in need of an advanced playmaker after failing to properly replace Christian Eriksen last year following his move to Inter Milan, and despite Di Maria moving into his thirties, he still has more than enough quality to continue at the highest level.