Tottenham Hotspur have been linked with a move for Nikola Milenkovic this week...

What's the word?

According to Florence newspaper La Nazione (via Sport Witness), Spurs are thought to be one of three teams in the mix to sign the Fiorentina centre-back.

Serie A rivals Inter Milan and Juventus are the other teams interested in the 24-year-old.

It's believed that the north London outfit have already made contact for the Serbian in recent weeks and the outlet rates his chances of leaving at 50%.

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Dream for Conte

Lilywhites sporting director Fabio Paratici may have already sealed manager Antonio Conte some strength in depth in the form of Clement Lenglet, who has joined on a loan deal from Barcelona, but it isn't enough.

Spurs will be competing in the Champions League this campaign, so midweek matches and rotation could be key to potential success this season. And in Milenkovic, the Italian head coach would be getting another ruthless colossus who would take no prisoners, very much like Cristian Romero.

Last season, the Serbia international finished the season as La Viola's fifth-best performer in the Serie A, where he averaged a squad-high 2.9 aerial duels and 1.1 interceptions, as well as 1.6 tackles per game, via WhoScored.

This sort of playing style has earned plenty of comparisons to one of the Premier League's best-ever centre-backs - Nemanja Vidic.

"Milenkovic is better than Vidic with the ball at his feet, and he is much calmer on the field," Mozzart journalist Dejan Stankovic once claimed to ESPN. "He is the most talented centre-back Serbia have had since Vidic, and they definitely have one thing in common - [they are] both are fearless."

Also lauded as a "beast" by former Partizan head coach Ivan Tomic, Milenkovic is equally adept with the ball at his feet, managing an 89.8% passing accuracy over the past year, as per FBref.

Reports in Italy suggest that he's available for just €20m (£17m), so it would be wise for Paratici to launch a move for the 6 foot 5 titan as he could well secure Conte another dream defender.

AND in other news, Fabio Paratici can seal Spurs transfer masterclass in cunning swap deal...