Nottingham Forest are reportedly interested in signing Tottenham Hotspur defender Japhet Tanganga before the transfer window shuts later this month.

What's the word?

According to The Athletic, Steve Cooper's side are keen on bringing the 23-year-old defender to the City Ground and are exploring the possibility of a permanent deal.

Bournemouth, AC Milan and Napoli are also credited with an interest in the Englishman, who has been available for transfer by the north London side this summer, after struggling for game time since Antonio Conte's arrival.

They suggest that any permanent deal for the versatile defender would set Forest back around £16.8m, which would see Forest add to their impressive spending spree so far this summer, which has seen them bring in 16 new players after promotion to the Premier League.

Cooper needs him

While Tanganga has struggled for regular game time at Spurs, making just 43 senior appearances in his career thus far, he has shown in cameos as a centre-back and a right-back that he could be a quality addition to Cooper's squad.

The Forest boss has already worked with Tanganga at England U17 level so knows the qualities that he can bring, while the recent injury suffered by Moussa Niakhate suggests that the Forest boss needs another defensive option in his ranks

Although he has seen his game time limited under Conte, previous impressive performances against Liverpool on his senior debut and against Manchester City last season emphasise Tanganga's quality.

Gary Neville was full of praise for the young defender after he helped Spurs to a 1-0 win against Pep Guardiola's side last season, as he shut out some of the Premier League's best offensive players.

He said: “He handled Raheem Sterling and Jack Grealish in that channel, with Sanchez and Højbjerg, brilliantly. I couldn’t have done that on my own 20 years ago – and I was a good full-back, played for Manchester United, played for England. But what that kid did out there today was really special from a one-on-one defending point of view."

Tanganga's versatility, age and homegrown status all suggest that he could be a quality addition at the City Ground, and given his ability as a right-back, he could present a much more physical and defensive option than the attack-minded Neco Williams, which could well be needed for Forest's more difficult fixtures.

Therefore, Cooper should definitely look at bringing in the Spurs man this summer. He has already proven he can dominate the Premier League's best and for a team lacking players with top-flight experience, he could be vital to their cause. It's a deal the Garibaldi simply have to complete before 1st September.