Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly pushing for a deal for Atalanta BC centre-back Cristian Romero ahead of the 2021-22 season.
Nuno Espirito Santo and Fabio Paratici are thought to be prioritising defensive incomings following Toby Alderweireld's exit to Qatar, although Atalanta are prepared to drive a hard bargain for Romero, who is technically still on loan at the club from Juventus.
The Serie A side are understood to be holding out for a fee of £47m for the Argentina international, and while Spurs are supposedly reluctant to hand over that amount of money, they are still expected to push for his signature.
With that in mind, Sports Mole takes a look at how Tottenham could line up next season with Romero on the books.
Romero would undoubtedly slot into the vacant centre-back spot left by Alderweireld's departure, especially with Davinson Sanchez and Eric Dier reportedly being made available for transfer this summer.
Joe Rodon - an ever-present for Wales at Euro 2020 - ought to slot in alongside the South American, shielding fellow new arrival Pierluigi Gollini in between the sticks as the Atalanta loanee seeks to displace Hugo Lloris as Spurs' number one.
Matt Doherty will hope that the arrival of Santo will kickstart his Tottenham career following the duo's successful relationship at Wolverhampton Wanderers, while Sergio Reguilon will continue to bomb down the left-hand side after an impressive first season.
Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg took no time at all to settle into life in North London and is set to provide some midfield stability alongside Tanguy Ndombele, who may drop deeper if Moussa Sissoko and Oliver Skipp both head elsewhere.
The signing of Bryan Gil represents an impressive coup for Spurs, and the 20-year-old - who is capable of featuring on either flank to great effect - could get the nod on the right wing over Lucas Moura and Steven Bergwijn for the new season as Son Heung-min continues on the left.
Dele Alli was handed more opportunities under Ryan Mason last term and will hope that is also the case with Santo, and with Daniel Levy not prepared to relent on his demands for Harry Kane, the England captain could still lead the line for Spurs amid persistent exit talk.
Ben Knapton
