Younes Ebnoutalib, Roberto De Zerbi with Tottenham badge
Tottenham are hunting a new No.9 in January
Tottenham Hotspur and Italian giants Juventus are reportedly the ‘most likely’ sides to win the race to sign an electric Bundesliga striker in either the January window or next summer.
The north London outfit has finally sparked into life after a disastrous start to the new season, winning their last three Premier League outings to jump up to ninth in the table.
Despite a clear improvement under Roberto De Zerbi, goals have been hard to come by, with only 10 scored from nine games – and only two of those have come from genuine striker options in Dominic Solanke and Omar Marmoush.
To that end, it’s no great surprise that Tottenham are on the hunt for a new No.9 to bolster De Zerbi’s striking options, especially with last season’s leading scorer Richarlison still watching from the stands after falling out with the Italian.
One player who our sources previously revealed is firmly on Spurs’ radar is impressive Eintracht Frankfurt attacker Younes Ebnoutalib, and now a fresh report from Germany has given an update on that particular chase.
According to Sky Deutchland, Tottenham and Juventus are currently the ‘most likely’ sides to sign Ebnoutalib, who has been making headlines in Germany since the start of the season.
The 23-year-old has notched eight goals and two assists in 10 games across all competitions, having found the net 12 times in 17 league appearances for Elversburg last season before joining Frankfurt for £6million in January.
And one man who was wowed by Ebnoutalib at the start of the campaign was Liverpool legend and current Germany coach Jurgen Klopp, who previously stated: “I saw his first game of the season for Eintracht and said to myself, ‘What a player! Where did they find him?’
“There was no discussion among the coaching staff. We all immediately agreed: ‘Yes, we have to include him’, Klopp added, when talking about Ebnoutalib’s subsequent call-up to the Germany national team.
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Tottenham, Juventus leading chase for Ebnoutalib
TEAMtalk revealed in October that Spurs scouts were in attendance during Eintracht Frankfurt’s win over Cologne, in which Ebnoutalib scored the winner, and now Sky Deutchland adds that the Premier League side, along with Juventus, are currently leading the race for his signature.
As things stand, the pacy 6ft 3in frontman is under contract until 2031, and he is said to have been in talks over improved terms. However, those conversations stalled because Frankfurt had a change of sporting director.
But with talks poised to resume, moving for Ebnoutalib in January will be Tottenham’s best route to sealing a favourable deal and giving De Zerbi stronger competition for Solanke and Marmoush.
It’s reported that the Frankfurt star would likely cost in the region of £20m-30m, a deal that would give Frankfurt a sizeable profit after their initial £6m outlay.
One to watch out for then in January, as Spurs look to make another splash in the market after spending over £300m during the summer.
De Zerbi’s men are back in action on Saturday when they head to Leeds United looking to make it four wins in a row.
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