Filling the enormous boots left by Harry Kane's emotional exit to Bayern Munich last summer, Bournemouth striker Dominic Solanke has supposedly been earmarked as the chosen one by the Tottenham Hotspur hierarchy.
The former Chelsea and Liverpool man is believed to be on the brink of joining the Lilywhites in a deal worth up to £65m from the Cherries, who will receive £55m upfront and a further £10m in add-ons.
While the £55m fee will represent Bournemouth's all-time record sale straight away, Tottenham will smash their transfer record should they fork out the full amount for the 26-year-old, who netted an eye-catching 19 Premier League goals last season.
While Ange Postecoglou feels that Solanke has all the attributes to thrive in a Tottenham strip, a string of players to have broken the Lilywhites' transfer record have failed to justify their price tags down the years.
Here, Sports Mole takes a closer look at previous Tottenham players to have broken the club's transfer record and how they performed in North London.
Tanguy Ndombele (£55m | Lyon | 2019)
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Tottenham appearances: 91
Tottenham goals: 10
Tottenham assists: 9
The man whose record Solanke is about to break, Tanguy Ndombele commanded a whopping £55m to leave Lyon for Spurs in the summer of 2019, but his adaptation to life in England was not helped by the sacking of Mauricio Pochettino a few months later.
However, the Frenchman did not cut the mustard under Jose Mourinho, Nuno Espirito Santo or Antonio Conte either, culminating in three loan spells to Lyon, Napoli - whom he won the 2022-23 Serie A title with - and Galatasaray.
Five years on from his club-record transfer, Tottenham cut their losses to the extreme and terminated the contract of the under-performing midfielder, who has since secured a return to his homeland with Ligue 1 outfit Nice.
Davinson Sanchez (£42m | Ajax | 2017)
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Tottenham appearances: 207
Tottenham goals: 5
Tottenham assists: 1
Two years before Ndombele touched down in North London, Colombian defender Davinson Sanchez held the honour of being Spurs' most expensive signing, having joined in a £42m switch from Ajax in the summer of 2017.
Despite racking up over 200 appearances for the North London giants, the consensus was that Sanchez never truly fulfilled the potential he showed as a 21-year-old, and the lowest ebb came when he was booed by his own fans after coming on as a substitute in a home loss to Bournemouth in 2023.
A few months on from that painful April afternoon, Sanchez packed his bags and left for Galatasaray for just £8.1m, representing another significant financial loss for Tottenham's money men.
Moussa Sissoko (£30m | Newcastle United | 2016)
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Tottenham appearances: 202
Tottenham goals: 5
Tottenham assists: 16
After failing in his bid to keep Newcastle United afloat in the top flight, Moussa Sissoko was the subject of a successful £30m bid from Tottenham Hotspur in the summer of 2016, although his start to life in North London was mixed.
Even in his otherwise successful 2018-19 season, where he won the Tottenham Hotspur Legends' Player of the Season award, Sissoko's most memorable contribution was perhaps his questionable handball in the Champions League final, which sent Liverpool on their way to a 2-0 success.
Another heavy financial loss for the North London giants, Sissoko joined Watford for a paltry £3m in the summer of 2021 and has since rejoined the Hornets on a free transfer from Nantes.
Erik Lamela (£30m | Roma | 2013)
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Tottenham appearances: 257
Tottenham goals: 37
Tottenham assists: 44
Only a matter of weeks after Tottenham had smashed their transfer record for the second time that year, Erik Lamela arrived in a £30m switch from Roma in 2013, having struck a terrific 15 Serie A goals during his final season with the Giallorossi.
The Argentine's Tottenham career was respectable without ever entering remarkable territory in terms of overall numbers, although he will always have that Puskas-winning rabona against North London rivals Arsenal to look back on incredibly fondly.
That exquisite effort was the last-ever goal that Lamela scored for the North London titans, and after helping Sevilla to yet another Europa League crown in 2023, the winger is now representing Greek outfit AEK Athens.
Roberto Soldado (£26m | Valencia | 2013)
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Tottenham appearances: 76
Tottenham goals: 16
Tottenham assists: 11
The second player to break the Tottenham transfer record in the summer of 2013, as Spurs splashed the Gareth Bale cash, Roberto Soldado ended his prolific Valencia spell to sign for Tottenham in a £26m transaction.
However, after netting just six times in his debut Premier League campaign, the Spaniard was soon outshone by the emerging Harry Kane, netting just once in 24 top-flight appearances in 2014-15.
That campaign marked Soldado's last in a Tottenham jersey, although the Lilywhites still recouped a respectable amount for the now-retired marksman, selling him to Villarreal for £13.7m.
Paulinho (Corinthians | £17m | 2013)
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Tottenham appearances: 67
Tottenham goals: 10
Tottenham assists: 7
Arriving for just £500,000 more than Darren Bent and Luka Modric, £17m midfielder Paulinho was the first of seven marquee signings Tottenham made before the 2013-14 season, earning his Premier League switch after bursting onto the scene in Brazil.
Despite being a regular in his first season in English football, Paulinho's influence waned in 2014-15, and he was offloaded to Chinese side Guangzhou Evergrande for a little under £10m that same summer.
The Brazilian blossomed into a prolific goalscoring midfielder during his time in China - even earning a brief move to Barcelona in 2017 and impressing at Camp Nou - before returning to his old home Corinthians for the last knockings of his career.
