Spurs will have to shell out a full €70m (£59.8m) to sign Dusan Vlahovic from Fiorentina in January, according to La Nazione (via Sport Witness).

The lowdown

The 21-year-old's contract is up at the end of next season and he has rejected an offer which would have made him the highest-paid player in the Italian club's history.

The striker has been in devastating form since the start of the 2020/21 season, bagging 29 goals in 46 Serie A starts in that time (via WhoScored).

Conor Clancy, the editor-in-chief at Forza Italian Football, has hailed Vlahovic as 'incredible' and a 'complete number nine'.

The latest

According to La Nazione (via Sport Witness), Fiorentina want to retain Vlahovic until the end of the season and will only consider letting him leave in January if they're offered at least €70m (£59.8m).

Among his suitors, Spurs are said to be in the 'front row', along with their arch-rivals Arsenal, while Fiorentina have already begun drawing up a list of possible replacements for Vlahovic.

The verdict

If you go by Transfermarkt figures, a £59.8m outlay on Vlahovic would make him the most expensive signing in Tottenham's history, eclipsing the £54m they paid for Tanguy Ndombele.

If they wait until the summer, his price tag may drop. The pressure will be on Fiorentina to cash in, and there won't be any mid-season premium.

The flip side, though, is that his stock will only continue to rise if he continues to play like he has been for the last few months, potentially bringing more competitors into the equation. You could then argue that it's better for Spurs to pay up now and strike a fateful blow to other prospective suitors by landing the 2020 Golden Boy nominee.

Considering Harry Kane's loss of form this season, along with summer reports of him pining for an exit from the club and the lack of natural centre-forward alternatives, Spurs cannot afford to let Vlahovic slip through their fingers easily.

In other news, Spurs have held a meeting over this reported transfer target