Tottenham Hotspur are eyeing a move for one of Antonio Conte's former players, as the Lilywhites look to plug a few of the gaps that have become obvious of late.
The north Londoners have had a patchy run of form of late, beating the likes of Manchester City while losing to the likes of Burnley. Conte has stressed that he wants his vision to be backed, however, and has threatened to walk away.
With Tottenham potentially losing Harry Kane this summer after another trophyless campaign, there has been talk that the club will be investing heavily in the weaknesses of Conte's squad – and even reducing the age profile of their targets.
Now, Stefan De Vrij has been linked with transfer insider Dean Jones touting the defender on FootballFanCast. The Dutchman has previously worked with Conte at Inter Milan and could easily slot into one of the spots in Spurs' three-man defence.
“If they can get De Vrij, I think that would be an unbelievable signing and would fit perfectly for where they want to go in the next couple of years,” Jones said. At 30 years old, the centre-back might be a little older than many of the targets that Spurs have been looking at – but could equally supply winning experience that has been lacking in the squad.
Tottenham are also said to be interested in youngsters such as Alex Scott of Bristol City and Keane Lewis-Potter of Hull City. Both would be unpolished gems for Conte to work with, similarly to how he has recently gotten a tune out of Ryan Sessegnon playing at left wing-back.
De Vrij is valued at around £40m by Transfermarkt.
More Tottenham stories
TRANSFER NEWS Harry Potter star announces Bryan Gil's loan to Valencia
RICH JOLLY Can Dele Alli rediscover his scoring ability under Frank Lampard at Everton?
RUMOURS Gareth Bale to return on free deal to Tottenham Hotspur this summer
‘Pallister had a cracking voice, but Parker, Keane and Irwin were hating it. All of the other lads were shuffling to the back, so I took the pressure off them’: Lee Sharpe recalls recording Man United's No.1 single
‘He instantly popped into our ratings as one of the best U21 midfielders in Europe. The impressive thing is Slot has made him into more of a no.6' Inside Ryan Gravenberch's transformation at Liverpool
