Tottenham shirt numbers available to Souza as 'verbal agreement' reached for £13m transfer

Tottenham Hotspur have reportedly agreed their first signing of the January transfer window, striking a fee with Santos for teenage left-back Souza.

The 2006-born defender was hitherto linked with Chelsea and AC Milan, but Spurs quickly forced their way to the head of the queue for his signature.

Earlier on Friday, it was reported that the Lilywhites were just one step away from completing a deal for Souza, a former Brazil Under-17 international who won the Under-17 South American Championship at that level.

Now, Fabrizio Romano has given Souza to Spurs his trademark 'here we go', revealing that the left-back will join the Europa League winners for £13m after the two clubs struck a verbal agreement over a fee.

The teenager is expected to travel for his medical on Sunday before signing a five-year contract with Tottenham, who will exchange documents with their Brazilian counterparts over the weekend.

Shirt numbers available to Souza at Tottenham ahead of £13m transfer

Souza will leave Santos having registered one goal and four assists in 38 matches for the South American side in all tournaments, including one goal and two helpers from 24 games in the 2025 Brasileiro campaign.

The 19-year-old has sported a variety of numbers for Santos but currently holds their '33' jersey, although that number is currently in Ben Davies's possession at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.

Souza could very well become a long-term successor to fellow left-back Davies - who is expected to leave the club when his contract expires at the end of the season - but he will seemingly have to give up the 33 for now.

Spurs are without a number five following Pierre-Emile Hojbjerg's permanent exit, but it would be a shock to see Souza bestowed with that jersey, but the '12' last worn by Emerson Royal is a viable option.

Tottenham's 16 and 18 shirts are currently vacant thanks to Luka Vuskovic and Yang Min-hyeok's loan exits, while the 22 is also awaiting its next taker after Brennan Johnson's £35m switch to Crystal Palace.

What other transfer business could Spurs do after Souza?

Souza is seen as both a signing for the future and a signing for the present for Tottenham, although the 19-year-old cannot be expected to play a major role for Frank's side in the second half of the season.

In order to claw their way up the Premier League rankings, Spurs will almost certainly have to reinforce their attacking ranks, especially after Mohammed Kudus joined Dejan Kulusevski and James Maddison in the treatment room with a serious thigh problem.

Brentford's Kevin Schade and Club Brugge's Christos Tzolis have both been mentioned as potential wide targets for the Lilywhites, as have Monaco's Maghnes Akliouche and RB Leipzig's Yan Diomande, but the latter is not expected to depart in January.