Tottenham Hotspur have been active in the January transfer window and may yet strike again, with Ange Postecoglou searching for the formula to secure Champions League qualification come the end of the season.
By and large, the north London outfit have been excellent this season but perch outside the top four, in fifth place, after 21 matches, three points behind Arsenal and Aston Villa.
Postecoglou justifiably felt that the squad's thinness called for reinforcements and he has indeed acted accordingly, with Radu Dragusin and Timo Werner augmenting the ranks earlier this month.
Chelsea midfielder Conor Gallagher has been the priority target for a while now but securing his services will be no easy task for the Lilywhites, with precocious winger Antonio Nusa also being fiercely pursued before the deadline next week.
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While all of this occurs, plans are judiciously being drawn up for the summer transfer window and Postecoglou is pushing for the acquisition of a truly exceptional player.
Spurs' search for a forward
According to Spanish reports, Tottenham are interested in signing Bayern Munich star Leroy Sane in what would be a stunning capture for Postecoglou's project.
That said, Liverpool and Arsenal are both named as suitors and Spurs' hopes of sealing the deal for the £86m-rated winger would inevitably hinge on qualifying for the Champions League.
Out of contract at the end of next season, the Germany international is said to be the perfect fit for the path Spurs are seeking under their manager, and concrete efforts could be made to bring him to the club in the summer.
Why Spurs want Leroy Sane
Sane signed for Bayern Munich in a £55m transfer from Manchester City back in 2020 and has since chalked up 47 goals and 48 assists across 160 fixtures, dazzling from both flanks throughout his trophy-laden time in Bavaria.
Tottenham have their work cut out in convincing the 28-year-old to join Postecoglou's team with vested interest from the likes of Arsenal and Liverpool, but then clinching the likes of James Maddison and Micky van de Ven last summer highlights the allure of making this move.
And what a player Spurs would get their hands on, with Sane heralded as "one of the best wingers in the world" by teammate Jamal Musiala.
As per FBref, the 6-foot phenom ranks among the top 3% of attacking midfielders and wingers across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for assists, the top 10% for shot-creating actions, the top 16% for pass completion, the top 18% for progressive carries and the top 5% for successful take-ons per 90.
Mohamed Salah
Liverpool
Serge Gnabry
Bayern Munich
Diogo Jota
Liverpool
Source: Football Transfers
Such metrics underpin the claim that he is among the pantheon of first-class wingers in the modern game, so effective with his creativity and marrying this technical prowess with raw pace and power that allows him to barge into the danger area.
This season, the £331k-per-week has posted nine goals and 11 assists across 27 outings for the dominant German champions, who do trail Xabi Alonso's Bayer Leverkusen this season, and while he hasn't scored across hisn past nine league matches, Sane has racked up eight assists in this period.
As per Sofascore, Sane has completed 85% of his passes in the Bundesliga this season and has averaged 3.2 key passes, 3.8 ball recoveries and 3.8 dribbles per game, making good on past praise that he is a "world-class" star from talent scout Jacek Kulig.
Sane also offers something that can be so important for teams fighting for success at the forefront of the Premier League: the 59-cap international has enjoyed ample success on English shores in the past, and should be able to transport his qualities to the English capital if Spurs do find success in the race for his services.
While Dejan Kulusevski occupies the right flank and is unerringly excellent in his energy and optimism for Postecoglou's side, Sane could revert to his natural left-sided attacking role at the Tottenham Hotspur Stadium, allowing Heung-min Son to wreak havoc from the spearhead.
This would, of course, make a regular starting berth rather hard to come by for Richarlison, but then Sane would undoubtedly be an upgrade, ruthless as that may be.
How Leroy Sane compares to Richarlison
There is probably a tacit understanding at Tottenham that Richarlison will not be the first-choice at centre-forward over the coming years.
Indeed, it may well be more overt than that, with Spurs named as one of the favourites to sign prolific Feyenoord striker Santiago Gimenez of late.
To his credit, the dynamic Richarlison has been in fine fettle of late and has finally clicked into gear at Tottenham – awful last season, scoring once in the league, after joining from Everton for £60m – and has bagged six goals in the Premier League across as many outings.
But history would suggest that this recent purple patch will not last; the Brazilian has not surpassed 13 goals across any of his seven Premier League campaigns.
That's not to say that he can't play a role in Tottenham's future under Postecoglou's leadership, but the acquisition of Sane would knock him further down the pecking order and perhaps this is necessary to continue the strides that have been taken over the past months.
Few would argue that Son is the superior forward, and while all the data in the world could be collated to corroborate this point, just observe the South Korean in action to recognise his world-class qualities.
They are qualities that could be taken to a new level with Sane plying his trade on the flank beside him, and this is evidently something that Postecoglou has dreamt up as he and Tottenham chairman Daniel Levy assess the best options to propel Tottenham to the front of the European game.