Tottenham's rumour mill splurge has continued, with the club reportedly in for Bayer Leverkusen's Piero Hincapie to complete their defensive depth chart.
Much of the talk over the past week has focused on deals for Eberechi Eze and Savinho, with Thomas Frank's squad desperately devoid of creativity amid James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski's absences.
The addition of a No. 10 is the overwhelming priority, but Son Heung-min's exit means there's a gap to fill out wide, too. Directly replacing the South Korean is surely an impossible task, but Frank is a huge admirer of Savinho, and Spurs are working hard to strike a deal with City.
It had also become clear that we were also interested in adding another defender to our ranks, with various reports suggesting a left-sided operator would be targeted. On Friday, it was established who are primary target to fulfil that need is.
Tottenham targeting "difficult" deal for Piero Hincapie
Tottenham insider Paul O'Keefe understands that the club are once again interested in Leverkusen's Hincapie, having failed to sign the Ecuadorian defender while Antonio Conte was at the helm.
O'Keefe writes that Frank regards Hincapie as the "ideal candidate" but says that this is a "difficult" deal to pull off. Leverkusen, amid a summer of change, have no incentive to sell, and they will demand a big fee.
The deal would supposedly have no bearing on our pursuits of Eze and Savinho.
Tottenham have two world-class centre-backs in Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven, and have the likes of Kevin Danso, Kota Takai, Luka Vuskovic, Radu Dragusin (when he returns from injury), and Ben Davies providing depth. The majority of these players are more comfortable off the right, though, with Davies the only recognised left-sided defender.
Given Destiny Udogie's injury woes, there's certainly a need to add one more to Frank's ranks before the window slams shut. A versatile performer capable of playing at left-back would be ideal, and Hincapie does have plenty of experience lining up centrally and out wide. However, if Spurs are willing to splash a big sum to bring the 23-year-old in, then that'd surely point towards a back three, as we saw in the UEFA Super Cup, being used regularly.
Hincapie certainly isn't without flaws, but the 23-year-old is the archetypal modern-day defender whose flexibility means he can perform in a variety of systems. His progressive numbers are off the charts, and he boasts the requisite aggression to excel in Frank's framework, which involves plenty of man-to-man marking and the centre-backs jumping into midfield.
Eze. Savinho. Hincapie. We couldn't, could we?