Tottenham Hotspur's interest in Alessandro Bastoni is still very much open, according to transfer guru Fabrizio Romano...

What's the word?

The Italian journalist recently provided an update surrounding the Inter Milan centre-back to GIVEMESPORT, with reports suggesting that manager Antonio Conte is in the market for a new defender.

"At the moment, nothing is going on between Tottenham and Inter or Tottenham and Bastoni’s agents, so it’s still an open situation," he said.

Earlier this week, InterLive.it suggested that the north London side were still keen on the 23-year-old and were one of several Premier League teams keen to submit around €50m (£43m) for his signature.

Conte dream

Given Conte's history with Bastoni, he would surely be something of a dream signing for the 53-year-old head coach.

The pair secured I Nerazzurri's first Serie A title in over a decade back in 2020/21 and the young titan started 33 of their 38 matches.

He looked to have featured in an Eric Dier-type role as the main ball player of the three as he registered a squad-high 4.6 long balls per game and did so with an eye-catching pass success rate of 90.5%, as per WhoScored.

A repeat of such form in N17 would see him currently top the Spurs squad across the board when compared to players that have started at least 80% of their Premier League games this term.

Bastoni offers more than just an outlet from the back as his defensive attributes have seen him earn comparisons to the likes of Leonardo Bonucci and Alessandro Nesta, whilst Italian football expert Conor Clancy once described the 6 foot 3 colossus as a "phenomenon" to Football FanCast.

Also lauded as a "complete" "dominant" and a "tenacious tackler" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Bastoni would be an ideal fit at Tottenham as Conte has brought the same system to north London and he, alongside someone like Cristian Romero, could be a backline for many years to come.

As such, sporting director Fabio Paratici must look to bring Bastoni to Spurs in January. There surely won't be a signing that the manager would want more.

AND in other news, Paratici could sign the next Ozil at Spurs in "special" 17y/o who'll "be a world star"...