Twice in the space of 30 days, Tottenham Hotspur have been denied the marquee signing of a Premier League proven star. The Morgan Gibbs-White disaster left a sour taste in the mouth but for a similar situation to unfold with Eberechi Eze as well, is extremely brutal.
Despite swiftly moving for the Nottingham Forest captain's signature, there was, seemingly, nothing at all the Lilywhites could do to prevent him from staying at the City Ground.
Tottenham, seemingly, tried the opposite approach with Eze by taking their sweet time in negotiations, despite clear need for a No.10, and that has ultimately cost them.
Had it not been for James Maddison's injury, it is very unlikely Eze would have even been pursued and yet when Arsenal were put in a similar situation - with Kai Havertz picking up an issue - they acted very quickly. After just a few days, a formal approach was made and Palace's asking price met.
Spurs wasting time over the intricacies of negotiations has seen their biggest rivals swoop in and sign Eze. Despite a striker getting injured, the Gunners have signed someone capable of playing in an attacking midfield role, and off the left, which raises an interesting question over where he will play and how many minutes he will be given.
None of that will overly matter to Thomas Frank, though, as the Spurs boss prepares for another game without a No.10. It is unlikely one would have been needed for their upcoming clash against Manchester City, but Spurs still have just 11 days to fix things and therefore at the very least, must sign two players.
Savinho has been pursued already and Tottenham must now do everything possible to sign him up, even if that means making him their club-record transfer which is what a bid of £70million, as Man City's asking price, will do.
However, just the Brazilian arriving is not enough, as he is not an attacking midfielder. There are several options available on the market with Xavi Simons and Bilal El Khannouss among those that have been linked to the club.
There is one option of interest that stands above the rest, though, and that is AS Monaco's Maghnes Akliouche.
The 23-year-old could - as an expert passer - provide the perfect balance for Frank with Mohammed Kudus and Wilson Odobert more focused on making ground through successful dribbles
Apart from Maddison, Spurs do not have a natural creator in the final third of the pitch. Pedro Porro is - of course - certainly capable of threading deliveries from deep but that will not always be an option. There have been varying updates on his future in France, but it looks as though £60.6m (€70m) may enough to get the job done.
It is clear, through Eze and Savinho being targeted in separate deals, that those funds are available which means Spurs simply have to bring in both before deadline day.