Tottenham have been urged to sign 'their own Virgil van Dijk' as Antonio Conte looks to bolster his backline in the January transfer window. Spurs have been heavily linked with a number of centre-backs recently, with Daniel Levy eager to solve the club's defensive frailties.
football.london understands that the north Londoners' plan for next summer includes signing two centre-halves; one for the left and another able to play either centrally or on the right. There is no option-to-buy in Clement Lenglet's loan from Barcelona, though if the Frenchman impresses then Tottenham could be inclined to strike a deal in the summer.
The likes of Josko Gvardiol, Milan Skriniar and Alessandro Bastoni, who are valued at a combined £189million, have all reportedly courted the interest of Conte. The latter more so than any other defender, with the Spurs boss said to be a huge admirer of the Inter Milan wonderkid.
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With Cristian Romero enjoying a great vein of form and the Argentine set for a bright future in N17, Gabby Agbonlahor has stressed the importance of signing Conte 'his own Virgil van Dijk' amid doubts over the ability of Ben Davies, Eric Dier and Davinson Sanchez.
"They have to go out and get their own Virgil van Dijk," the former Aston Villa striker told TalkSport via Football Insider. "When they brought in Lenglet, I was surprised – because he’d been found out at Barcelona.
"He doesn’t get into this Spurs team. Ben Davies has got no pace. Eric Dier has no pace, and he’s calamitous. Sanchez is an accident waiting to happen.
"Romero is a top player, good on the ball – but he needs two partners," Agbonlahor added. "Tottenham like to play with a three, but they’ve only got one good defender.
"They need some players in this area if they’re going to be anywhere near the top end of the table, and I think it’s somewhere where you need to spend big. There’s no point bringing in any more players like Lenglet."
In the meantime, football.london understands that Conte's two priorities in the January transfer window are the signing of a new attacking player and a right wing-back. It's believed that Spurs will be looking at both permanent and loan deal in order to grant the Italian his wish.
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