Tottenham are set to begin work on a potential new signing for Ange Postecoglou in the transfer windows to come, it has been reported, as they look to get a headstart on the competition for his services.
Spurs suffer mixed start to the Premier League
In 2023/24, Ange Postecoglou's new-look Tottenham side set Premier League records, with eight wins and two draws in their opening 10 games seeing them take home 26 points, the most of any manager in their first 10 matches in the competition's history. This time around, expectations are higher and they are yet to truly impress in the same way that they did this time 12 months ago.
They sit 10th in the Premier League over the first international break, having lost to Newcastle United at St James' Park to leave them sat on four points from their opening three games, with a draw at Leicester City on the opening day being followed with a win over Everton.
There are concerns over squad depth too, with Spurs having seen a whole host of players leave over the summer and now looking light in some areas beyond the first XI. This is especially true of the defence, where all four of Tottenham's regular starters missed games last season; Radu Dragusin was recruited in January from Genoa, while Djed Spence's return is likely to counteract Emerson Royal's departure for AC Milan.
But left-back remains a concern, with no obvious replacement for Destiny Udogie in the Lilywhites squad and the Italian international having missed 10 games last season through injury and suspension, with Sergio Reguilon deemed surplus to requirements. Now, Spurs are moving to deal with that.
Spurs working to sign "Udogie 2.0"
That comes as Sport Witness relay claims in Italy suggesting that Spurs are "ready to launch an attack" to sign Patrick Dorgu from Lecce this season. The 19-year-old defender was on the Lilywhites radar over the summer as well as Chelsea's, and has enjoyed a strong start to the season for both club and country.
He scored less than a minute into his Denmark debut to help them secure a 2-0 win over Switzerland, before being offered another chance off the bench against Serbia.
Now, the report claims that it could well be "too late" if Tottenham or any other interested club to wait until the end of the campaign to try and sign the defender, and as a result they are ready to start contacts now to try and secure a deal early for a future transfer window, similar to how they negotiated the deal to sign Udogie.
Indeed, Dorgu isn't too different from the Italian defender, with Football Analyst Ben Mattinson dubbing him "Destiny Udogie 2.0" on X and adding that he is "the modern full-back dream" as he "oozes calmness and composure when on the ball".
If Tottenham are serious about their interest, they will have to stump up a hefty fee, with Lecce reportedly holding out for offers in excess of 30m euros (£25m), which is a similar fee to that commanded by Udogie when he was signed. But if Postecoglou's side could pull off the deal, they could well have their left-back role sorted for the next decade.