Tottenham Hotspur have joined Premier League rivals West Ham United and Southampton in the race to sign £20 million-rated Genk striker Paul Onuachu this January, as reported by The Mail.
When claims emerged earlier this week suggesting that Spurs would look to bring in another forward during the winter window, it is safe to assume many in North London were dreaming of Dusan Vlahovic, Lautaro Martinez or even Andrea Belotti.
Onuachu, a 6ft 7ins giant of a centre-forward who has never played at a level above the Belgian and Danish top flights, is not exactly the Harry Kane replacement supporters had been holding out for.
Tottenham fans have been burned in the past, too, by strikers who arrived at the club from a somewhat B-list league. Vincent Janssen did little for the reputation of Eredivisie exports while Carlos Vinicius struggled to bring his Benfica form to English shores.
Furthermore, as Aston Villa discovered when snapping up both Wesley Moraes and Mbwana Samatta in 2019/20, a prolific goal-scoring record in Belgium is no guarantee of success against the Liverpools, Manchester Citys and Chelseas of this world.
The jury, then, will remain very much out on Onuachu, even if his goal-scoring record deserves respect.
Could Paul Onuachu be the striker Tottenham need?
The Nigeria international scored a career-best 35 times last season and has maintained that form in the first few months of the new campaign too. He has scored 11 goals in 15 games, including a hat-trick in the recent 3-0 victory over FC Seraing.
Onuachu has also been the subject of enquiries from Atletico Madrid, Dortmund, Southampton and a West Ham side who opted against meeting his £20 million price-tag over the summer.
Atletico are in pole position, but it is understood that the 27-year-old would be tempted by the prospect of a move to the Premier League.
Tottenham have discovered, however, that trying to sign a new striker brings its own set of challenges. Convincing someone to join a club already boasting Harry Kane as their first-choice number nine is not easy, knowing that game-time is likely to be limited.
Tottenham, though, would represent the biggest move of Onuachu’s career – an opportunity that may be too good to turn down. That is if he can let go of his love for another North London giant of course…
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