Tottenham are moving for Blackburn Rovers defender Christopher Samba after seeing Gary Cahill leave Bolton Wanderers for Chelsea.

Tottenham boss Harry Redknapp now hopes to be in a position to compete with new QPR manager Mark Hughes for Samba, 27, says the Daily Star Sunday.

And as Redknapp needs to sell before bringing in ­reinforcements for his title-challenging squad, Hughes' bid for Spurs winger Steven Pienaar is not dead after a £2m offer was rejected.

Blackburn insist Samba (below) is not for sale but it is understood Indian owners Venky's will change their stance on a player who wants to leave, if the bidding reaches £10m.