Tottenham have reportedly made room in their budget to sign a centre-back in January, possibly due to Real Madrid's interest in Cristian Romero.
The Spanish giants are known to be huge admirers of the Argentina World Cup winner and have been linked with a move for Romero ever since Lionel Messi lifted the trophy in Doha back in 2022.
Spurs have so far resisted any attempts to seize the 26-year-old away from north London, with the latest reports suggesting Daniel Levy will rebuff any offers for the central defender in the new year.
However, there are growing concerns that the player himself has had his head turned by the Spanish giants and would entertain the opportunity of swapping Tottenham for the Santiago Bernabeu.
And now Football Insider reports that Spurs have freed up funds to bring in a quality centre-back to compete with the likes of Romero, Mickey van de Ven and Radu Dragusin. However, just how much money has been freed up will depend on the quality of defender they are chasing and whether it's just a squad-strengthening move or a replacing Romero one.
Van de Ven is currently on the sidelines with another hamstring injury while Dragusin has been a mixed bag as his replacement so far, impressing in wins over Manchester City and Aston Villa but struggling in the Europa League loss at Galatasaray and the shock home loss to Ipswich.
Romero remains the only constant but Tottenham's fourth-choice option is left-back Ben Davies after they allowed Eric Dier, Joe Rodon and Japhet Tanganga to all move on over the summer.
In terms of who that potential signing could be, a pacy right-sided centre-back to mirror Van de Ven would make the most sense and allow Postecoglou to have greater confidence in playing his preferred high line.
While Ange Postecoglou's focus in January is expected to be on landing another back-up goalkeeeper, a full-back and another central midfielder, landing a centre-back certainly makes plenty of sense.
There is a drop off when Romero and Van de Ven are missing, with Dragusin still adapting to English football after limited opportunities last season and Davies better as a left-sided centre-back in a three than he is centrally in a back four.
Tottenham have been strongly linked with the likes of Crystal Palace's Marc Guehi and Everton star Jarrad Branthwaite in the past, but they are more likely to head to Liverpool and Manchester United respectively at some point in 2025.
Former sporting director Fabio Paratici continues to monitor players in Serie A, which has been a happy hunting ground for Spurs in recent times, with Alessandro Buongiorno heavily linked over the summer.
However, the Italy international moved to Napoli over the summer and is no longer an option.
Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy has no immediate plans to sack Ange Postecoglou but has been set a target for the season, which if he fails to meet could put his position in jeopardy.
