Tottenham are exploring a deal for one of Ligue 1’s most prolific strikers, according to reports, as Thomas Frank looks to bring in competition for Dominic Solanke.
Spurs have tied up permanent deals for Mohammed Kudus, Mathys Tel, Kevin Danso, Luka Vuskovic, and Kota Takai so far this summer, taking their spending to around the £120million mark.
However, Tottenham’s business is far from done. They remain keen to finalise a deal for Morgan Gibbs-White despite an ugly legal dispute with Nottingham Forest, but now they’ve turned their attention to the striker market.
That’s according to French outlet RMC Sport, who claim Tottenham hold concrete interest in talented Rennes striker Arnaud Kalimuendo.
The 23-year-old notched an impressive 17 goals and four assists in Ligue 1 last season, capturing the attention of several Premier League sides.
Indeed, the report claims that along with Tottenham, Nottingham Forest are also keen, while Bundesliga club RB Leipzig and LaLiga side Villarreal also have Kalimuendo on their radar. Leipzig could sign Kalimuendo as a replacement for Benjamin Sesko, who has emerged as a serious target for Newcastle United as Alexander Isak eyes a move to Liverpool.
RMC claim that Rennes will demand a minimum of €30million (£26m / $35m) for Kalimuendo, and the French club are ‘already looking’ for a replacement.
Tottenham exploring move for new striker
Solanke, 27, has generally performed well since his £55million move from Bournemouth to Tottenham last summer.
The England international has notched 16 goals and eight assists in 45 games for Spurs, and looks set to lead the line in the coming campaign.
However, reports suggest that Frank wants more competition for Solanke, with new permanent signing Tel inexperienced at age 20, and other striker option Richarlison heavily linked with moves away from north London.
Kalimuendo could be a solid option for Tottenham so it will be interesting to see whether they, or indeed Nott’m Forest, come forward with a formal bid in the coming days.
In other news, Spurs have been linked with a sensational move for Real Madrid forward Rodrygo, but reliable journalist Florian Plettenberg has insisted that they are NOT in the race.
The Brazilian is far more likely to head to Liverpool if they sell Luis Diaz.
Tottenham, meanwhile, have Manchester United midfielder Kobbie Mainoo on their radar, with Chelsea also keen on the England youngster.
Who is Arnaud Kalimuendo?
Born less than 10 miles from the centre of Paris, Kalimuendo spent eight years learning his trade in the PSG academy until he gained his senior debut in September 2020.
The PSG attack that season contained Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, Moise Kean and Mauro Icardi, while Lionel Messi would join in the summer of 2021. Naturally, it was hard for a teenage Kalimuendo to break through.
Thus, PSG sent him on loan to Lens in October 2020 and then again in August 2021 to further his development. It was over these two loan spells that the attacker began to fulfil his potential, scoring 21 goals from 65 games.
Despite PSG extending his contract prior to that first loan spell, he never played competitively for the club again. Instead, after his second return from Lens, he moved to Rennes for a fee believed to be €25m.
Kalimuendo’s goal tally for Rennes has improved season upon season. He only scored seven times in 2022-23, but set a new career best with 15 in 2023-24 and – after winning silver at the Paris Olympics with France’s U23s – exceeded it with 18 in 2024-25, despite Rennes not being involved in Europe in his third season there.
The caveat is that five of those 18 goals were penalties, and a sixth was scored off a rebound after a penalty.
Standing at 5 ft 9 in, Kalimuendo has found a home for himself as a centre-forward, although he has covered on the wing very occasionally before.
He’s the type of finisher who likes to get shots off quickly, but can also bring others into play.
At 23 years of age, Kalimuendo isn’t the finished article yet and has areas of his game to refine, but he seems to be on an upwards trajectory.