Tottenham Hotspur manager Thomas Frank has done an admirable job with what he's inherited, all things being equal, because he took the position of a team that finished 17th in the Premier League and lost its most important players to either exit (Son Heung-min) or serious injuries (Dejan Kulusevski, Dominic Solanke, and James Maddison).
Spurs attack already had holes in it coming into the 2025/26 season, but the attack had been ravaged further, with only Mohammed Kudus standing out as a true star up front. Mathys Tel and Wilson Odobert have potential, but they are too young to be entrusted as stars of the team.
So Tottenham are fully expected to be active in the winter and summer 2026 transfer windows when it comes to bolstering both the left wing and even striker positions, as new loan signing Randal Kolo Muani has yet to make the desired impact.
Kolo Muani was a standout for Juventus last season, and Spurs have been linked back to Fabio Paratici's favorite well for a less impressive 2024/25 striker performer in Dusan Vlahovic, who, on paper, is a prime bounce back candidate when looking at his physical tools and past track record before joining the Bianconeri.
Tottenham doesn't want Fabio Paratici's guy
But despite Vlahovic's obvious upside and minuscule price tag on an expiring contract, it appears Thomas Frank is disinterested in taking a gamble on the Serbian international. According to a report from TEAMtalk's Dean Jones, Frank wants to move in a different direction on the striker transfer market than Vlahovic, leaving the 25-year-old open to join another club, such as London rivals Chelsea and West Ham.
Juventus are amidst another sea of change this season with the legendary Luciano Spalletti stepping in to spell the, quite frankly, entirely overmatched Igor Tudor. Vlahovic has shown signs of returning to stardom this season in spurts, but, by and large, the striker looks like a man who wants a change of scenery to wash away the sourness of a move to Turin that he so desperately envisioned turning out differently.
As for Tottenham, Vlahovic has been the only even loose link to a striker transfer target, and it is entirely unclear which direction Spurs want to move in under Frank. Paratici will do as Frank bids, but with Vlahovic not on his mind and Ivan Toney entirely unrealistic as a reunion from the Saudi Pro League, it's anyone's guess now as to what Frank wants.