An experienced centre-forward, who has been a mooted target for Tottenham since the start of the summer, is on the cusp of completing a move to Besiktas instead.
One of the burning questions on the minds of Spurs fans over the last couple of weeks has been which, if any, number nine the Lilywhites will prioritise a move for in the final weeks of the transfer window.
It was reported that Spurs were monitoring the likes of Fisnik Asllani, Nicolo Tresoldi and Ferran Torres following the injury to their top target, Eli Junior Kroupi.
Tottenham now look to miss out on Torres, who is edging close to a move to PSG, and it has now emerged that they will also miss out on another centre-forward who has been on their radar for a long time.
Tottenham target Dusan Vlahovic is on the verge of joining Besiktas
Earlier this summer, it was reported that Tottenham are one of the leading contenders to land Dusan Vlahovic on a free transfer after his contract at Juventus ran out.
TEAMtalk have now claimed that the Serbian international has been on Spurs’ radar since Antonio Conte’s time in charge of the club, and they claim that De Zerbi is also a fan of the 26-year-old.
However, Tottenham are now set to miss out on Vlahovic, who has given the green light to complete a switch to Besiktas.
The Turkish club have now reportedly verbally agreed a contract worth €10m (£8.5m) per season with the centre-forward, who is now waiting for the paperwork to be approved before flying to Istanbul to complete the transfer.
The report says that the former Fiorentina star’s move to Besiktas is ‘virtually done’ and the deal is expected to be completed in the next 48 hours.
Spurs accelerating efforts to sign Folarin Balogun instead
This Vlahovic news may not concern Tottenham as they appear to have finally settled on their top striker target.
According to reports over the last 24 hours, Spurs are now accelerating talks with Monaco over a deal to sign Folarin Balogun, who netted 19 times for the Ligue 1 club last season.
It has been alleged that the Lilywhites are laying the groundwork to complete a €60m (£51m) deal for the USA international.