Tottenham Hotspur are reportedly keeping tabs on a dynamic Serie A midfielder whose stock is massively on the rise in Italy, with the prospect of a January move growing by the day.
Thomas Frank has struggled to settle on the right balance to his engine room in the first half of the season, with the Joao Palhinha-Rodrigo Bentancur axis proving way too defensive-minded and lacking in creativity as well as mobility.
Archie Gray has been added into that mix in recent outings and impressed, to a point, while Lucas Bergvall is a player who has a massive future, although the Swede is better utilised further forward.
And, with our sources revealing that Tottenham are yet to make a decision on turning Palhinha’s loan into a permanent move, the latest reports coming out of Italy are no great surprise.
While the likes of Adam Wharton, Carlos Baleba, Conor Gallagher and Ruben Neves are all being linked with a switch to north London, journalist Guglielmo Trupo claims that Spurs have been massively impressed by Parma midfielder Mandela Keita this season.
The Belgian talent has seen his stock rise rapidly over the course of his time in Italy, where he’s been since the summer of 2024.
Trupo reports that several Premier League clubs are keen on the 23-year-old, although the only one actually mentioned by name is Tottenham.
He wrote on X: “Mandela Keita, engine of Parma: 150 professional appearances at 23 years old, duels and tackles won 100% against Fiorentina. Cuesta is enjoying him, Tottenham is watching. But he’s not the only one in the Premier League eyeing the Belgian.”
A report in Parma Today has also revealed that Tottenham had scouts at the Ennio Tardini Stadium last Saturday to watch Keita in action, with the midfielder winning 100 per cent of his tackles and aerial duels in a 1-0 Parma win against Fiorentina.
It’s stated that Keita made a big impression on those scouts as he dominated play in the middle of the park, something no Tottenham midfielder has arguably done all season, bar the win at Manchester City very early on.
Want more breaking transfer lines from original sources? Add TEAMtalk as a preferred source on Google to your favourites list for news you can trust.
Latest Tottenham news: Two attacking talents monitored
Tottenham representatives made checks on a top Ligue 1 talent on Saturday, as they ramp up their pursuit of fresh attacking options for Thomas Frank in the January transfer window.
Elsewhere, Spurs’ search for a new left-winger is well underway, and sources have confirmed a surprise top target for Thomas Frank’s side, though he will cost a record-breaking fee.