Thomas Frank could target his Premier League rivals and Serie A in the January transfer window
Sign up to our newsletter for the most distinctive football content delivered direct to your inbox
Sign up
Thank you for signing up!
Did you know with an ad-lite subscription to 3 Added Minutes, you get 70% fewer ads while viewing the news that matters to you.
Submitting...
Few Premier League teams had more question marks entering the 2025/26 season than Tottenham Hotspur, but Thomas Frank’s side have so far answered all the major ones in resounding fashion.
The Frank reign looked like it was shaping up to be a short one when former darling Harry Kane was among the scorers as Bayern Munich thrashed Spurs 4-0 in pre-season after frustrations in the transfer market, but they produced a rousing response against Paris Saint-Germain in the UEFA Super Cup and it’s only been upwards since then.
After leading for almost an hour against the all-conquering European champions, Tottenham agonisingly lost out on penalties following a 94th-minute PSG equaliser but have responded with four wins in their opening six games of the Premier League and Champions League, including a 2-0 triumph over Manchester City.
Including the Super Cup, Tottenham have notched 13 goals this season, more than any other Premier League club except Liverpool while Guglielmo Vicario has shaken off his nervy start as Spurs’ number one to keep four clean sheets.
Mohammed Kudus has been one of the signings of the season so far in England’s top flight, assisting four goals and very unfortunate not to net himself yet for his new club, while after the embarrassment of being snubbed by Morgan Gibbs-White and Eberechi Eze, Frank may have landed an even better number 10 in the shape of Xavi Simons.
Indeed, the only real requirement in the January transfer window for Tottenham will be adding more quality depth particularly in central defence and midfield, so with that in mind we asked Grok what Spurs’ 2026 January transfer window could look like.
Lookman and Murillo strengthen starting side
Ademola Lookman - £40 million from Atalanta - Lookman hasn’t failed to hit double-figures in the league since… his last stint in England.
The London-born striker was unable to make an impact with Leicester City, Everton or Fulham but has blossomed in Serie A, netting 52 times for Atalanta in three full seasons and 119 games, including a memorable hat-trick in the Europa League final. So it looks like the time could be right for another crack at the Premier League and he’d bring the versatility that Frank values so highly - able to play on either flank, in place of Solanke or supporting him up front.
Murillo - £45m from Nottingham Forest - What a coup this would be for Tottenham. Murillo was one of the best defenders in the Premier League and would certainly shore up Frank’s central defence. Cristian Romero and Micky van de Ven have played well so far this season but the options behind them are thin with Radu Dragusin’s injury-hit Spurs career yet to ignite. Jan Paul van Hecke was another option listed by Grok, for £20m.
Youssouf Fofana - £25m from AC Milan - Tottenham’s midfield has been transformed this season, partially through the temporary addition of Joao Palhinha but largely by Frank’s tactical tweaks that have allowed Lucas Bergvall in particular to shine.
Of Spurs’ midfield starters this season, 23-year-old Pape Matar Sarr is the second-oldest so adding more experience wouldn’t be a bad thing and aged 26, Fofana has racked up over 16,000 minutes of top-flight football in France and Italy. A deep-lying player that can push up on occasion, Fofana has scored in every season since 2021 and would provide quality cover for Palhinha.
Saudi Pro League to the rescue for Tottenham
Yves Bissouma - £15m to Al-Ahli - With more depth arriving in midfield, cashing in on the Malian during the final year of his contract makes sense. Bissouma has previously attracted interest from the Saudi Pro League and it’s probably his only chance of avoiding a wage cut.
Manor Soloman - £8m to Fulham - Solomon’s in a strange position as a 26-year-old who’s had nearly as many loan spells as Tottenham Hotspur starts, and is currently 23 minutes into another temporary stint at Villarreal.
The Israeli netted five times with Fulham in 2022/23 and made 22 goal contributions last season on loan at Leeds so has pedigree in England, if not actually with his parent club. And with the Cottagers’ squad looking light despite a strong start to the season, this would be a sensible switch.
AI-predicted 2026 Tottenham starting XI: It’s in vogue now to give a club’s strongest starting side only after making a point of stipulating that strongest XIs are an outdated concept and that anyone who still trades in them is a neanderthal.
However, that is particularly true of Tottenham under Frank, the ultimate pragmatist, who has already shown the same versatility as he displayed at Brentford depending on the opponent. With that being said, this 4-3-3 is what Grok landed on as Spurs’ best starting XI if this January transfer window production comes true - not taking into account injuries: Vicario; Porro, Murillo, Van de Ven, Udogie; Palhinha, Fofana, Lookman; Kudus, Solanke, Simons.