This article is part of Football FanCast's Transfer Focus series, which provides opinion and analysis on recent transfer news...

According to a report in The Independent, Tottenham Hotspur head coach Jose Mourinho would like to upgrade every part of his defence apart from Toby Alderweireld – four out of the five positions in his preferred 4-2-3-1 formation – and chairman Daniel Levy must back him.

What's the word, then?

Well, The Independent report that the former Manchester United manager is happy to have Alderweireld in his ranks having wanted to sign him when he was in charge of the Red Devils.

However, the report says that he wants new players in the other four positions in his backline, suggesting that the likes of Paulo Gazzaniga, Hugo Lloris, Danny Rose, Ben Davies, Jan Vertonghen, Davinson Sanchez and Serge Aurier aren't to his tastes.

The report adds that Levy could baulk at the potential transfer demands of the 56-year-old in what would have to be considered as a major rebuild of the defence.

Levy must back him

It may seem like a lot of new players to bring in – and it is unclear whether Mourinho would want them all during the same transfer window for example – but whatever the situation the Spurs chairman must give the Portuguese what he wants.

No clues whatsoever: Which seasons do these iconic Spurs images belong to?

We have seen already how fragile the north London outfit are at the back having conceded exactly two goals in all four of his games in charge so far, with the likes of Sanchez, Rose and Aurier struggling from a defensive point of view at certain points of his early reign.

If Tottenham really want to continue having a chance to appear in Champions League finals and be guaranteed top-four finishers in the Premier League, then it is clear that changes are needed in defence – conceding seven at home to Bayern Munich earlier this season is proof of that.

With Spurs having great attacking options such as Harry Kane and the in-form Dele Alli in their ranks, getting a stronger defence that Mourinho can work his magic with could lead them to exactly where they want to be.

In other Tottenham news, Spurs fans have been discussing Harry Winks in the aftermath of the Manchester United defeat, and have had some strong things to say...