Tottenham Hotspur chief Fabio Paratici could deliver a serious statement to the rest of the Premier League if he were to win the race to sign coveted Croatia sensation Josko Gvardiol...

What's the word?

Several English teams have been mooted with interest in the 20-year-old titan, including Chelsea and Manchester United, whilst more recently, reports have suggested that defending champions Manchester City are lining up a club-record £115m move for him in January.

But according to pundit Frank McAvennie, a former striker for West Ham United, he's better off joining the north Londoners instead of Pep Guardiola's side.

“I can tell you right now that is what Tottenham need,” he said to Football Insider.

“They should spend that money on a centre-half. I think they have been lacking in those positions.

“I do not know if I would want to go to Man City. He will be in and out."

Meanwhile, Fabrizio Romano (via Tribuna) claims that RB Leipzig would be wanting at least £78m to sell him in January.

Statement signing

Indeed, the Leipzig colossus would surely be better off plying his trade at a club where he could garner plenty of minutes and isn't so much at risk for rotation and he'd get just that at Spurs, where manager Antonio Conte very rarely tinkers with is trusted stars.

The Lilywhites could also do with a left-footed centre-back to replace Ben Davies in the long run, featuring alongside World Cup winner Cristian Romero and Eric Dier.

Gvardiol was one of the standout figures in Qatar over the last few weeks as Croatia sealed a third-placed finish. Only against La Seleccion did the 20-year-old gem register a Sofascore rating below 7.00, averaging 7.16 across his seven appearances.

He was part of the Vatreni side that kept two clean sheets, where he averaged 1.6 interceptions, 1.3 tackles and 5.3 clearances per game, which built on his impressive domestic form in Germany, where he currently ranks in a league of his own compared to his positional peers.

As per FBref, he sits amongst the top 1% for dribbles completed and passes attempted, as well as the top 6% for progressive passes per 90, highlighting his suitability to not just the modern game but the way in which Conte likes to play out from the back.

These attributes would clearly be very welcome, given the fact that the Italian does not have a natural left-footed centre-back.

Such form and talent has seen plenty around the game wax lyrical, ranging from Romano dubbing him a "monster" to journalist Zach Lowry describing him as a "Rolls-Royce."

Whilst scout Jacek Kulig has even suggested he was the "Haaland of defenders," which is particularly glowing praise given the impact the monstrous talisman has had on the Premier League already.

Therefore, with Spurs sitting in fourth place, winning the competitive race for his signature would surely signal a massive statement to the rest of the top-flight that Conte is here to win silverware at all costs.

AND in other news, Paratici eyes Spurs swoop for 6 ft “monster”, he's a true heir to £100k-p/w "legend"...