Tottenham manager Antonio Conte on the touchline against Leeds United
Dharmesh Sheth has been speaking about Tottenham Hotspur’s interest in Piero Hincapie as Antonio Conte looks for more defensive options.
The Lowdown: Defensive recruits a priority
After managing to score four goals in their last Premier League outing, Tottenham may not need new attacking reinforcements as desperately as their previous results may have suggested.
However, given that Spurs have shipped 25 goals this season – which is the most out of teams currently occupying a spot in the top six – one or two new defenders could well be near the top of Conte’s priority list this winter.
They’ve been linked to players such as Pedro Porro and Hincapie, so it looks as though Tottenham want new defenders, but they are also aiming to recruit younger players to help them in the long term.
The Latest: Hincapie a top target for Spurs
Sheth has admitted that Spurs are looking at Hincapie, but has revealed on the Sky Sports transfer blog that they aren’t alone in their pursuit with Napoli holding an interest.
“A player Tottenham are looking at is Bayer Leverkusen’s Piero Hincapie, who is an Ecuador international, but Napoli are also keen on the 20-year-old.”
The Verdict: Levy must listen to Conte
It’s quite clear that if Conte doesn’t want a player, he simply won’t use them – something he made obvious when revealing he didn’t sign off the arrival of young star Djed Spence over the summer – while he has been restricted to just seven minutes of league action.
Therefore, Daniel Levy can’t be forcing players onto the Italian boss and must listen to what he wants, and if that isn’t Hincapie, it would be a pretty pointless signing for Tottenham to make this month.
That is unless Levy believes Conte won’t be staying for the long term and is instead ensuring the club have good talents in their squad for whoever takes over from the Italian in the not-so-distant future.
However, according to German outlet Bild, it looks as if Hincapie would be ‘really expensive’, which could be something that puts off the Spurs chairman.
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