The Tottenham Hotspur defender has been heavily linked with an exit from the club this summer.
Spurs defender Kevin Wimmer is available for £20 million this summer, according to the Sun, and if he does eventually leave the club, Mauricio Pochettino will obviously have to bolster his defensive ranks before the start of the 2017/18 season.
Tottenham clearly do not have the financial firepower that some of their rivals possess, however, so any centre-back they do sign will most probably have to be made with any money they receive from the Austrian’s sale, if he leaves of course.
With this in mind, a useful option for the Lilywhites could be Inter Milan centre-back Andrea Ranocchia, after the Italian rejected a move to Huddersfield, according to Italian media outlet TuttoMercatoWeb.
Andrea Ranocchia in action during his loan spell with Hull City
But is he good enough for Spurs?
At 29, the Italian is arguably entering his prime for a centre-back, and he proved that he has the physical attributes to cope with the robust nature of the English game during his loan spell with Hull City last season.
Standing at 6ft 5 in tall, the experienced defender would add a certain level of authority to Tottenham’s back-line, and despite the fact that he would by no means be a guaranteed starter, he would provide Pochettino with another option when facing teams who play with a more direct, long-ball style.
Ranocchia still has two years remaining on his current deal at the San Siro, and is believed to be available for between £4.5 million and £5 million, according to the Sun, which obviously would not be a problem for the Lilywhites.
Whether Pochettino would go against the grain by signing someone on the verge of turning 30, however, remains to be seen.
Inter Milan’s Andrea Ranocchia in action
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