Tottenham Hotspur have added a third name into contention for the attacking midfield role alongside Savinho and Maghnes Akliouche, according to a transfer reporter – and it’s someone Arsenal were reportedly in recent contact for.
Spurs are still reeling from their failure to win the race for Eberechi Eze, who’s set to sign for their rivals Arsenal from Crystal Palace. A deal was thought to be in the bag for Eze to arrive at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, but he has instead formalised a return to Arsenal, where he played as a youngster.
It’s a major blow for Spurs, who also missed out on the signing of Morgan Gibbs-White from Nottingham Forest earlier this summer. Despite the addition of Mohammed Kudus, injuries to James Maddison and Dejan Kulusevski have heightened their need for another attack-minded midfielder who can also play on the wing, like Eze.
The dream target that Spurs would be willing to break their transfer record on is Manchester City’s Savinho, but there would be resistance from his current club.
And after the players they’ve missed out on this summer, Spurs would be wise to have a wider shortlist.
That has led to them being linked with other attacking midfielders, with journalist Duncan Castles now revealing their interest in Paris Saint-Germain winger Lee Kang-in.
Not only would Lee be an exciting signing on the pitch, Castles explains, but he would also help Spurs retain their appeal to the South Korean market even after the sale of Son Heung-min to LAFC.
“If it isn’t Savinho, who will be expensive, there’s also interest in Maghnes Akliouche at Monaco,” Castles said on The Transfers Podcast. “He’s a 23-year-old, very skilful and quick left-footed forward, who tends to play off the right wing, but can also play centrally. Like Eze, he’s an excellent dribbler of the ball.
“Complications in that deal are the agent, who has a reputation of being extremely difficult to deal with, and the asking price of Monaco, which was set at €70 million this summer.
“Another player that they’ve definitely had talks over signing is Lee Kang-in at Paris Saint-Germain. This dates back to earlier in the summer – conversations asking about what the cost would be to extract him from PSG, where he was one of the bench players last season.
“He is one of the players in PSG’s squad they are happy to retain, but they are conscious that if the player receives an offer that is appealing and the financial terms of the transfer fee are correct, they would be ready to sell assuming they have enough time to buy a replacement.
“You can understand why Daniel Levy is interested in signing Lee, having allowed Son Heung-min to move to LAFC. That was a significant commercial loss in terms of interest they built up among Koreans.
“To have another star name Korean player in the squad, as a replacement immediately after Son left, makes sense. I understand the asking price is €50m, meaning he would be a cheaper option than either Akliouche or Savinho.
“I think it’s pretty clear that Tottenham will do something in this area of the field before the window concludes.”
Just last week, there were claims Arsenal had made ‘direct contact’ about Lee, so signing him for a fee equivalent to £43m could be an act of revenge – but not spite – by Spurs.
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Frank ‘very clear’ on who he wants at Spurs
With Eze set to be confirmed as a new Arsenal player, Spurs head coach Thomas Frank insisted on Friday he only wants players with full buy-in to their project.
“There has been a lot of links,” Frank said at a press conference. “There’ll be a lot of links in the future. And just to generalise that … to make it very, very clear … I don’t want any players that don’t want to come to the club. Who don’t want to wear this fantastic badge. We don’t want them here.
“That’s very clear and I’m also pretty sure that the fans will feel the same. If they don’t want to put the fantastic shirt over their head, play for the badge, play for the club, really enjoy it, no problem. We don’t want them. I think that’s a key message.”
One player who has justified his reason not to join Spurs is Gibbs-White, who surprisingly signed a new contract with Nottingham Forest despite rumours of his release clause being activated.
The former Wolves star has now explained how family reasons played a part in his decision not to move.
“Every footballer has personal goals and personal ambitions that they want to achieve,” he told talkSPORT. “Mine is winning trophies, playing in the World Cup, playing in the Euros, playing Champions League football, just to be able to reach the maximum that I’m able to reach.
“Obviously in the summer, everybody’s seen what was going on and whatever.
“But away from that, it was a really difficult period for me and my fiancee. Having my second child, but there were a few complications with all of that.
“I believed in being professional, showing up every day and letting everything else take care of what it needs to do. I’m a firm believer that everything happens for a reason. I’m delighted with my decision, more than happy. I think my fiancee is even more happy because she didn’t get to carry on with all the stress.”
While rumours continue about alternative targets, TEAMtalk understands that Spurs are ready to break their transfer record with a bid for Savinho.
The Brazilian winger is pushing for a move to north London and his agents are working hard to persuade City to sell him.
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Who is Kang-in Lee?
Born in Incheon, South Korea in January 2001, Lee underwent trials in Spain with Villarreal and Valencia as a 10-year-old. Ultimately, it was the latter who added him to their academy.
He made his debut for Valencia’s reserves in December 2017, at the age of 16 years and 10 months. Less than a year later, he made his first-team bow in the Copa del Rey, becoming the youngest South Korean player to make a professional debut in European football.
A couple more seasons with Valencia followed for the attacking midfielder, but there was friction between the board and staff about his usage, before he moved to Mallorca in 2021. There, he made 73 appearances and scored seven goals.
It caught the attention of PSG, who bought him in 2023 for €22m. He opened his account for his new club with his first Champions League goal that October.
Lee’s first trophy was the Trophee des Champions in January 2024, the French equivalent of the Community Shield. Scoring the opening goal, he earned the man of the match prize.
Last season, he started 26 games for PSG, but was an unused substitute in both legs of the Champions League quarter-finals and semi-finals, as well as the final.
He has featured in a range of positions, usually either being deployed on the right wing or in an attacking midfield role, but also covering as a striker, midfielder, left winger or even once as a right-back.
In truth, he is best operating in the half spaces between the wings and the central attacking areas. Lee crosses the ball well, but has playmaker traits which are best expressed nearer the box.
Statistically, Fbref points out his similarities to players like Isco, Xavi Simons and Giovani Lo Celso, and noted he was in the 99th percentile for pass completion among Ligue 1 attacking midfielders and wingers in 2024-25. Furthermore, he was in the 92nd percentile for shot-creating actions per 90 minutes, with 5.25.
Still only 24, Lee is on his way to fulfilling the potential that has been evident ever since he featured in a football reality show as a six-year-old.