Tottenham Hotspur are now linked with Dries Mertens.
Every Tottenham Hotspur fan and their dog knows that Mauricio Pochettino needs a top-drawer striker this summer.
Fernando Llorente, a £12 million signing [ESPN] from Swansea last summer, promised so much when he arrived, but delivered only five goals across all competitions – and one from 16 Premier League outings.
As for Vincent Janssen, well he is surprisingly popular among many Tottenham fans, but there is no escaping the fact that the Dutchman, a £17 million signing two years ago [BBC Sport], managed a paltry two goals from open play during a very poor first season in North London.
Yep, Pochettino needs a very talented marksman to provide cover and a plan b for Harry Kane, and Dries Mertens is the latest name to be linked.
According to Area Napoli, representatives of the Belgian striker have offered their client to the Lilywhites, who will have to pay a minimum £44 million for him.
Mertens is clearly an upgrade on Llorente and Janssen, but is he really good enough – and young enough – that Tottenham should break their transfer record to sign him?
The Napoli star, who bagged 18 goals from 35 Serie A starts last term, turned 31 in May and it seems incredibly unlikely that chairman Daniel Levy would make him the club’s most expensive-ever signing, eclipsing last summer’s £42 million swoop of Davinson Sanchez.
Considering Mertens would have virtually no re-sale value at all at the end of a three or four-year contract, this doesn’t appear to fit with Levy’s modus operandi in the transfer market and although plenty of Tottenham fans would like to see it happen, chances are it won’t – and definitely not for a club-record fee.
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