Humiliation at Colchester in the Carabao Cup on Tuesday was the latest in a series of setbacks for Tottenham Hotspur.
Last season’s Champions League finalists are lying seventh in the Premier League and are now out of one of the domestic cup competitions.
Manager Maurico Pochettino has promised to splash the cash in the new year in a desperate bid to resurrect the club’s campaign, and that’s led to fevered speculation as to who might be targeted.
Up front
The Daily Express believes that Spurs will make a move for Bournemouth striker Callum Wilson because “he would fit into the Tottenham mould perfectly”.
He was linked to them in the summer and with Harry Kane cutting an increasingly forlorn figure up front, the Express says the arrival of Wilson would “finally take the pressure off his shoulders”.
But talkSPORT says that it’s more likely Spurs will go for Juventus marksman Paulo Dybala. The broadcaster notes that they were close to signing the 25-year-old last month but “were unable to sort out the finer details of a transfer”.
Pochettino is known to be an admirer of the Argentine international and he is expected to have another crack in January.
Football.London agrees, saying that Dybala is likely to seek fresh pastures if “he continues to struggle to get into the Juventus team”.
Middle of the park
One area that urgently needs addressing is in central midfield with Victor Wanyama and Eric Dier struggling, and the Express says that Brescia’s Sandro Tonali is an option although they warn that the 19-year-old is also being tracked by Manchester United.
But talkSPORT adds that the tireless 20-year-old Portuguese wonderkid Florentino Luis is a better option.
Nicknamed “The Octopus” because of his “ability to recover the ball”, Luis would “cost a hefty fee” but is destined for greatness.
At the back
As for shoring up Tottenham’s brittle defence, the Express believes Pochettino should make a play for Leicester City full-back Ricardo Pereira.
Since arriving at the King Power Stadium from Porto in 2018, he’s become an accomplished attacking defender, although he’s likely to cost around £40m.
TalkSPORT, on the other hand, says that Dayot Upamecano of RB Leipzig would be a good buy as a centre-back.
With Toby Alderweireld and Jan Vertonghen on the wane, and Davinson Sanchez increasingly gaffe-prone, the gifted Upamecano is “very much the real deal at just 20-years-old”.
Real raid?
But will Pochettino still be at Spurs in January? According to the Daily Mirror Real Madrid are planning a double swoop on the north London outfit, first for Christian Eriksen and they are “then ready to follow up with a move for Mauricio Pochettino”.
Danish midfielder Eriksen is apparently set to sign a pre-contract deal with the Spanish giants in January prior to joining on a free transfer in June.
As for Poch, Real are ready to ditch Zinedine Zidane and the Spurs boss is their “No.1 target” to replace the fallen French idol.
Kane contract
One player the club will pull out all the stops to keep is Harry Kane, The Daily Telegraph reports, with the paper saying that Spurs chairman Daniel Levy is preparing to “slap a huge £250m valuation on the striker”.
The England captain has spoken of his desire to win silverware and if that doesn’t happen this season the fear at Spurs is that he could be lured to the likes of Barcelona or Manchester City.
Today’s back pages
Real Madrid will target Eriksen then Pochettino
