The transfer window has been open for over two weeks now, and while things have been relatively quiet for Tottenham Hotspur, the links keep coming.
Be it Crystal Palace's Eberechi Eze, Feyenoord's Santiago Gimenez or Bologna centre-back Riccardo Calafiori, Daniel Levy and Co seem to be busy at work looking to bring in the right players to help Ange Postecoglou lead the team back up the Premier League next season.
However, while Calafiori looks like an excellent player, the Lilywhites already have an exciting up-and-coming defender at the heart of their defence, and he's worth considerably more than the Italian.
Micky van de Ven's Tottenham career
The player in question is Dutch defender Micky van de Ven, who, despite only joining Tottenham last summer for £43m from Bundesliga side Wolfsburg, has already become one of the most exciting centre-backs in the league.
In all, he made 29 appearances for Postecoglou's side last season, in which he scored three goals, and had he not suffered two hamstring injuries, he likely would have made far more.
His debut campaign with the club was so impressive that the Official Supporters' Clubs gave him the Player of the Season award.
Alongside his brilliant positioning and quick thinking, one of the Dutchman's biggest assets is his speed.
In a game against Brentford in February, he registered the fastest sprint in Premier League history at 37.38km/h, which really makes talent scout Jacek Kulig's description of the player as a "complete & dominant" centre-back hard to disagree with.
If that wasn't enough, the 23-year-old can also fill in at left-back when required, which is what he did for the final two games of last season against Manchester City and Sheffield United.
In all, Van de Ven is one of the most exciting defenders around, so it shouldn't be a surprise that his valuation is significantly higher than Calafiori's.
Van de Ven's valuation in 2024
Following a brilliant campaign with Serie A side Bologna, in which the club qualified for the Champions League, Italian centre-back Calafiori has been linked to several clubs this summer, including Spurs.
According to reports, the 22-year-old will be available for around €40m, which converts to about £34m.
However, based on his recent performances for the national team at the Euros, that price could rise slightly before the end of the summer.
That said, even if it does increase somewhat, his valuation is unlikely to get close to Van de Ven's.
According to the CIES Football Observatory, the Lilywhites star is worth between €61m and €77m, which converts to £52m and £65m, or at least £18m more than the Bologna ace.
This impressive price tag is likely down to his brilliant displays last season, as mentioned above, and the fact that his £50k-per-week contract is set to run until the summer of 2029.
Ultimately, signing Calafiori looks like a great idea, but the club should be glad that they already have an exceptional player in Van de Ven and a player who could remain among the Premier League's best centre-backs for years to come.