Tottenham have agreed an £85m deal to sign Portugal midfielder Mateus Fernandes from West Ham.

The north London club saw off competition from Manchester United, who were unwilling to match the fee agreed by Spurs – which is a guaranteed £85m without add-ons.

The 21-year-old was viewed as a primary target for Tottenham after their £80m bid to sign Sandro Tonali was rejected by Newcastle.

Tottenham have made a fast start in the transfer market this summer, having already signed four players.

Last week, they agreed a deal to sign goalkeeper Martin Dubravka on a free transfer once his contract with Burnley expires on 1 July.

The 37-year-old Slovakia keeper was another defensive reinforcement following the signings of Marcos Senesi, Andy Robertson – also on free transfers from Bournemouth and Liverpool – and Netherlands defender Jan Paul van Hecke, who cost £52m from Brighton.

Attention then turned to central midfield but a move for Tonali proved difficult.

The Italian has four years left on his contract after signing an extension to his deal to repay the faith Newcastle showed in him during his 10-month ban for breaching the Football Association’s betting rules.

Fernandes – despite back-to-back Premier League relegations – has been in high demand this summer with Manchester United and Paris St-Germain both showing interest.

Fernandes was understood to have an open mind about where he goes, with his agent Jorge Mendes speaking to both Tottenham and Manchester United.

Manchester United are sticking to their position of only being willing to buy players at what they consider to be right valuation.

They did like Fernandes but felt their stance paid off last season when they believe patience was rewarded with the right players coming in at right price.

United were not convinced Fernandes really wanted to play for the club.

The priority at Old Trafford is strengthening the central midfield area and they have already agreed a £35m deal with Atalanta for Ederson, but his arrival has been delayed by a late call-up to the Brazil World Cup squad.

United’s players are due to return for pre-season training on 9 July and so far, other than out-of-contract duo Casemiro and Tyrell Malacia, Michael Carrick’s squad remains as it was at the end of last season, with no significant departures or arrivals.

The plan to sell Manuel Ugarte will now have to be shelved after his serious injury on World Cup duty with Uruguay. Meanwhile, Netherlands striker Joshua Zirkzee is still at the club, and sources have dismissed rumours around the exit of midfielder Mason Mount.