When faced with the torrent of transfer rumour and hearsay thrust upon us in January, it is always important to approach things with a degree of scepticism. For Tottenham fans this is particularly the case, the Premier League club have often been linked with the most bizarre of signings down the years and this is a trend that doesn’t look like changing any time soon.

This month a lot of the rumour-mongers don’t seem to know how to deal with Spurs, a club looking for a marquee signing or maybe something a little bit shrewder? We all know that big money transfers are few and far between in January, so for Spurs fans it is really time to expect the unexpected.

Amongst many others, there have been strong suggestions in recent weeks that Levy will look to plunder Lille for ex-Chelsea man Salomon Kalou. Is this another stab in the dark or could there be something to it?

With Defoe now gone it easy to expect that Spurs will be in for another striker, but more importantly one that is happy to play second fiddle at times and also be content to play in a variety of roles when required. When looking at those available and fit this billing with a degree of continental pedigree you soon realise the pool is relatively sparse. If Spurs aren’t looking at someone like Kalou, you’ve got to really ask why?

The Ivorian is a pacey frontman who will not only offer goals but some much needed flexibility to Sherwood’s side. Spurs may be set on a 442, but that doesn’t stop them incorporating the likes of Kalou into a system that focuses on counter-attacking football, especially away from home. Kalou has often been lauded for his ability to run at defenders, something that would definitely add another dimension and a greater degree of balance to the current attacking department. Whilst Kalou has hardly set the world on fire this term, his 6 goals and 2 assists in Ligue 1 to date represent decent contributions to a side that appear keen on retaining his services.

Owing to the length of his contract Kalou is expected to be relatively cheap, the figure being bandied around is in the region of £2.6m at the moment. This is the kind of prospect to get Levy excited; low risk and cheap, this can only be beneficial to Spurs at the moment.

Spurs fans will be anxious because Kalou doesn’t represent the long-term answer and he isn’t that big name and big money signing they want to rebuild their faith. The reality though is that the Ivorian would represent a good bit of business and an important stopgap for Spurs heading into the second half of the season.

The suggestions at the minute appear a little more than gossip and rumour, with a number of papers already alluding to talks possibly starting as early as today. Having enjoyed an immensely successful spell at Chelsea and indeed England it wouldn’t be outrageous to suggest that the frontman may seek a swift return.

Prophesising transfers happening or not is an incredibly hard business, but to go as far as to say that Spurs would consider this deal isn’t ridiculous. In the end this window is going to be questions like should we buy Berbatov or Kalou, and perhaps not the Costa or Falcao that some fans do aspire towards.

For me personally this will represent a prudent piece of business by Spurs; but satisfying the fans thirst for ambition, I really doubt it.