Tottenham are considering signing speedy midfielder Postecoglou wanted twice at Celtic, completely exhausted but not dead.
Tottenham have had to pause their bid to sign a Bundesliga centre-back who is on their radar, although a January transfer cannot be completely ruled out at this stage.
Borussia Monchenladbach defender Ko Itakura is the player in question, with Ange Postecoglou eager to sign another centre-back after Spurs’ depth in the position was brutally exposed against Wolves on Saturday.
Eric Dier and Ben Davies have to replace banned Cristian Romero and injured Micky van de Ven at Molineux.
Although Welshman Davies was named man of the match, that did not stop Postecoglou’s side from conceding two goals in extra time.
in a demoralizing 2-1 loss.
Former England international Dier has struggled particularly with Wolves’ pacey forward line, but he is likely to continue playing in games against Aston Villa and Manchester City after the international break before Romero’s three-match ban ends.
There were always concerns that Postecoglou was left stretched thin in this position after Japhet Tanganga and Joe Rodon left on loan, and then Davinson Sanchez was sold to Galatasaray after the English transfer window closed.
And now, plans to bring in another centre-back have been actively pushed forward and Itakura is on Postecoglou’s radar, along with a number of other names, as we recently revealed.
The agile Japan international has excelled in Germany, first impressing during his loan spell at Schalke from Manchester City.
Itakura never featured at the Etihad after arriving from his homeland in 2019, but has since become one of the Bundesliga’s most impressive defenders.
Postecoglou’s knowledge of the Japanese market has only fueled interest and he remains on Tottenham’s radar despite currently being sidelined The 26-year-old has scored twice in his first three games first of the season and is in great form as a Spurs scout watches him regularly.
However, Itakura required surgery after a persistent ankle injury late last month and has now missed Gladbach’s last four matches.
However, he will be on the field soon and scouts at the north London club are expected to return with interest.
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The Daily Record said in 2021 that Postecoglou was keen to sign the player for Celtic, while he was still struggling to make his mark at Man City.
And, although other A
Postecoglou then made a second attempt to sign the Japan star in 2022 only to miss out at Gladbach landed him in a bargain €5million deal.
In terms of his qualities, Itakura is renowned for his blistering pace, similar to Van de Ven, and would almost be a like-for-like replacement for the Netherlands star – who is expected to be out until the middle of January with the nasty-looking hamstring injury he picked up against Chelsea.
sian players arrived at Celtic Park, Itakura ended up being loaned out to Schalke instead.
Tottenham will be looking to bounce back from back-to-back defeats after the international break when Aston Villa head to north London.
