Tottenham Hotspur have entered talks with the agent of Dusan Vlahovic with the Premier League outfit closing in on a player Fabio Paratici has been trying to sign since his time at Juventus, as reported by Calciomercato.
The Harry Kane saga is not over yet. Not by a long shot. It has merely been postponed, ready to rear its ugly head yet again when 2021 rolls into 2022.
As Kane himself said back in August, when committing his very immediate future to the North London giants: ‘I will be staying at Tottenham this summer’.
The amateur sleuths among you may notice that he said nothing about next summer.
Whether or not Manchester City will still be interested by the time 2022 rolls around remains to be seen. Kane will turn 29 in July and the irrepressible Erling Haaland may be on the market by then too.
Planning for life without their most important player is not only sensible, it is necessary.
While Vlahovic is far from the finished article at the age of just 21, there are obvious similarities between the Fiorentina talisman and Tottenham’s long-serving number ten.
Is Vlahovic the natural replacement for Harry Kane at Tottenham?
Vlahovic, like Kane, is a natural-born goal-poacher, a lethal finisher inside the penalty area who combines fearsome physical power with a velveteen first touch.
He netted 21 Serie A goals for a struggling side last season and has begun the new campaign with six in eight.
Fiorentina owner Rocco Commisso confirmed earlier this week that Vlahovic had turned down a new contract at the Stadio Artemio Franchi, rejecting the chance to become the best-paid player in La Viola history.
Just 48 hours later, Tottenham appear to have opened talks with Vlahovic’s entourage even if, according to CM reporter Enrico Camelio, negotiations with Fiorentina themselves are yet to take place.
It is understood that Fabio Paratici, Spurs’ managing director, came very close to signing the self-professed ‘next Zlatan Ibrahimovic’ for Juventus last year, only for the deal to collapse late on.
According to Gazzetta dello Sport, Fiorentina want a staggering £77 million for Vlahovic – a fee that may be beyond a Spurs side balancing the effects of the COVID pandemic with the absence of Champions League football and debts incurred when building their space-age new stadium.
Then again, selling Kane, for the sort of eye-watering fee Daniel Levy is demanding, would certainly help fund a bid to make the Serbian international their new record signing.
Receive exclusive football transfer news and updates twice a week to your mailbox
