After going almost 18 months without signing a player, it seems Tottenham Hotspur are keen to make up for lost time.
Mauricio Pochettino brought Lucas Moura to north London in January 2018, but then decided to keep the chequebook shut until this summer.
After reaching the Champions League final and finally completing a move to their new stadium, the Argentine boss decided to finally splash the cash.
Spurs smashed their record transfer fee by beating a host of top European clubs to the signing of highly-rated Lyon midfielder Tanguy Ndombele.
And it seems as though Pochettino is not yet satisfied with his squad.
With Kieran Trippier and Fernando Llorente having left the club, the Argentine has targeted Paulo Dybala and Giovani Lo Celso to help strengthen his squad before Thursday’s 5pm deadline.
Sky Sports in Italy claim the Premier League side have agreed a fee with Juventus worth £64.4million.
The 25-year-old was moved out of the team to accommodate Cristiano Ronaldo, with Maurizio Sarri keen to ensure the Portugal captain remains as the main man.
It is understood image rights are the only obstacle at this current point in the deal, subject to a medical and personal terms being agreed.
And it seems as though Pochettino is set to land one of his long-standing targets in the capture of Giovani Lo Celso from Real Betis.
After Philippe Coutinho reportedly rejected a move to Tottenham, Daniel Levy instantly focused his attention on Lo Celso and submitted a bid on Wednesday afternoon, which was accepted.
The Argentina midfielder played alongside Dybala at this summer’s Copa America and has attracted attention for his outstanding midfield displays in LaLiga.
Although Christian Eriksen has been linked with Manchester United, talkSPORT understands this is not going to happen.
The Denmark international made no secret of his desire to leave Spurs, with Real Madrid retaining an interest in the midfielder.
Eriksen has made it clear that he would be open to joining the Spanish giants, but he is not the club’s first-choice target as Zinedine Zidane continues to prioritise a move for Man United’s Paul Pogba.
So how on earth would Spurs be able to cram all of their superstar signings into just one team after a huge summer upheaval?
Below, talkSPORT.com has outlined three potential formations Pochettino has used before at Spurs, but we have included both Lo Celso and Dybala.
Darren Gough discusses if Tanguy Ndombele will be a game changer for Tottenham
Option 1: 4-2-3-1
With Dele Alli out for the foreseeable future, Spurs could ease Dybala into their starting XI in the next few weeks.
The Argentine’s best ever goalscoring season came in 2017/18 when, behind Gonzalo Higauin, the forward managed to score 22 times in Serie A. He was able to perfectly exploit the space created by a dangerous poacher up front – a role Harry Kane is perfectly able to play.
Lo Celso plays as a central midfielder, but his real strength lies in going forward. He scored nine times last season, grabbing four assists in the process.
With Ndombele anchoring the midfield in behind and playing a pivot role, the 23-year-old would be afforded license to roam forward and join the attack, taking up positions even as high up as next to Dybala.
This may take some time to implement though with only Moussa Sissoko and Harry Winks used as pivots in pre-season.
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Option 2: 4-4-2 (Diamond)
When Spurs went and battered Manchester United 3-0 in August of last year, the secret of their success was playing Christian Eriksen as a No.10 in a diamond formation.
Although his future is up in the air, Eriksen could quite easily start on Saturday for the visit of Villa as he has taken part in pre-season.
Mousa Dembele started at the base of said diamond, but switched with Eric Dier to deal with United’s press. In this system with the current squad, Spurs, if the deals go through, will have three midfielders capable of paying in that deeper role and inter-changing. Harry Winks, Lo Celso, and Ndombele bring different qualities to the role, be it passing, strength, pressing, and ability to progress the ball.
Up front, Kane and Dybala is the sort of forward line Tottenham fans could have only dreamed about. Not since Robbie Keane and Dimitar Berbatov terrorised defenders a decade ago have the north Londoners been able to call upon such a clinical and classy strike partnership.
It does, though, call into question how Dele Alli will be used going forward.
Option 3: 3-4-1-2
In the 2016/17 season, Spurs were beaten to the Premier League title by a resurgent Chelsea side. But after an incredible four month run, Tottenham looked like worth title contenders.
The change came after Pochettino switched from his usual 4-2-3-1 formation to play three at the back. In turn, this gave Spurs width in attack because of the wing-backs, cover at the back with a holding midfielder and options up front.
In fact, it can be argued this was Alli’s best season so far in professional football. He scored 18 times and got seven assists in the Premier League from midfield that season, largely due to his freedom to drift into attacking areas.
With Dybala up front and Ndombele holding, Alli could experience similar levels of liberty. The Argentine naturally likes to drop deep, causing confusion between opposition defenders and midfielders as to who should be marking him.
With this confusion naturally comes space, something Alli thrives off. His late runs into the box and predatory instincts make him a constant threat and this formation could prove to be the necessary catalyst for Spurs.
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