Tottenham’s bid to strengthen their forward line is gathering pace after a �10.3million bid for Brazil striker Leandro Damiao was rejected by Internacional.

Damiao, 21, made his debut for Brazil in a friendly with Scotland at The Emirates in March, having scored 22 goals in 24 games for his club in the 2011 campaign.

Barcelona and Arsenal have also been tracking the hard-working 6ft 2ins forward, but Spurs have stolen a march on their rivals with the first formal approach.

“It was the first concrete offer we’ve had,” said Internacional president Giovanni Luigi.

“I said I didn’t want to sell now, but I think they will come back with another attempt. I warned that he’ll only leave at the end of the year and for more money.”

Spurs’ hopes of securing Damiao are boosted by the fact that the Lilywhites already have a partnership with Internacional, “for the purposes of working together to develop players for both the club [Tottenham] and other European leagues.”

Tottenham signed Sandro from Inter last summer, and the Spurs midfielder believes that Damiao would be a big hit if his former team-mate joins him at White Hart Lane.

“He is a very strong guy, he is the perfect size for English football, he can do very well here,” said Sandro.

”Not only do Spurs want him, we read that other sides are also interested in Leandro Damiao. Damiao is a guy who is globally known. He’s got quality.

“The [Tottenham] directors always talks to me about Brazilian players. They asked me about Leandro Damiao and I told them he’s a fantastic guy of high quality.”