Tottenham Hotspur

Tottenham Hotspur

Premier League • England

Tottenham gear up for late January flourish as talks open for €20m striker deal

Mohamed-Ali Cho trying to get away from Presnel Kimpembe

Tottenham Hotspur are making a move for in-demand Angers attacker Mohamed-Ali Cho, reports are revealing.

Cho previously came through the youth ranks at Everton before returning to his country of birth, France, in 2020. The former England youth international, now a France under-21 player, signed for Angers in Ligue 1.

From his first season in the French top flight, Cho failed to find the net from 21 appearances. Nor did he score in two cup outings.

In his defence, only one of those league appearances was a start. He has built up his gametime considerably this season, with 14 starts among 19 Ligue 1 games. Two goals have been the reward.

Still only 18 years old, the talented teen is starting to attract interest in the transfer market. Chelsea have been linked, for example, while there have also been reports of interest from clubs in mainland Europe.

Now, the latest club showing an interest in Cho is Tottenham. According to Football Insider and journalist Pete O’Rourke, Spurs are in talks over his potential transfer.

Football Insider report that talks are ongoing over a deal worth in the region of £16.7m, which equates to around €20m.

Shortly after, O’Rourke confirmed in a tweet: “Tottenham are in talks over signing highly-rated Angers forward Mohamed-Ali Cho who has attracted interest from a number of Premier League clubs.”

Mohamed-Ali Cho playing for Angers

Spurs are yet to make any signings since Antonio Conte took charge, which seems unusual. The former Inter boss usually wants significant backing when it comes to recruitment.

Conte will be keen to add to the Tottenham squad he inherited partway through the season, as Football Insider reiterate. And attack could be one of the areas to invest in.

Tottenham are arguably lacking enough support for main man Harry Kane up front. They never signed a replacement backup after the end of Carlos Vinicius’ loan from Benfica last season.

The likes of Son Heung-min and Steven Bergwijn can adapt their roles in attack. But it may be beneficial to add someone else in the final third.

Wijnaldum ready to leave PSG for Spurs

Wijnaldum ready to leave PSG for Spurs

PSG midfielder Gini Wijnaldum is ready to leave and join Tottenham this January

Having such a strong frontman as Kane means it is hard for Tottenham to find an adequate backup who is willing to stand in his shadows. But a younger prospect like Cho might have fewer expectations.

The former PSG product is also capable of playing as a right winger, which he has done on one occasion this season. Generally, though, his role is at centre-forward.

Mohamed-Ali Cho not only Tottenham target for January

That is one of a number of areas Tottenham could still strengthen in the final week of the January window. As per Football Insider, they are also considering moves for a centre-back and central midfielder, plus potentially a number 10.

All those would be in addition to the expected arrival of Adama Traore from Wolves. Conte is likely to use him as a wing-back.

On the right flank, Spurs have been let down by Emerson Royal and Matt Doherty. Therefore, Traore could give them more quality if he adjusts his role from the one he plays in for Wolves.

Reports have revealed on Monday that Tottenham are still in talks to take Traore. They are hoping to make decisive progress by the end of the day.

Now, the deal is down to the final details and Traore could become the first signing of the Conte era. Tottenham do not have much time to follow him up with other arrivals, but will be working busily to do what they can before February arrives.

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