Independent of how Tottenham Hotspur finish the 2023/24 Premier League campaign, their first under Ange Postecoglou's management, one of the first ports of call during the off-season will be to secure the services of an exciting new striker.
Sure, Heung-min Son has altered between his favoured left-sided attacking role and a more central striking position, scoring 11 goals from 15 matches up front, but the South Korean offers predatory prowess out wide while also better harnessing his elite creativity.
Richarlison, besting the woes of last year after completing a £60m transfer from Everton, enjoyed a brilliant purple patch over the past several months and scored nine goals from ten top-flight fixtures, but he too is probably not the long-term answer as the focal frontman.
Qualifying for the Champions League will open a broader window of opportunity in the market, but it's not the be-all and end-all, and Spurs appear intent on honing in on Feyenoord forward Santiago Gimenez.
Spurs' search for a striker
While there has been much talk surrounding the futures of centre-forwards like Ivan Toney, who is of interest to multiple Premier League outfits, Tottenham have a long-standing admiration for Gimenez and could now accelerate such intrigue.
At least, that's according to Caught Offside, who have revealed that the Mexico star is Daniel Levy's priority target this summer, having proved to be a prolific presence for the defending Eredivisie champions.
Toney, among other top talents, has indeed been named as an alternative but it's clear who the Lilywhites favour, and with a reported price tag of just £30m, it might be the way to go.
Santiago Gimenez's style of play
Feyenoord only acquired Gimenez's services at the start of last season but the talented marksman has already posted 47 goals and eight assists from just 80 appearances.
It's an impressive return, particularly because De club aan de Maas clinched the Eredivisie title last year, with Gimenez bagging a considerable haul of 15 goals from just 21 starting appearances.
It seems unlikely that second-place Feyenoord will complete a successful defence of their title given that PSV Eindhoven are undefeated and ten points clear heading into the final stretch of the season, but Arne Slot's side can hardly place blame on Gimenez's shoulders, the talisman taking his game to the next level this season.
Dubbed the "Mexican machine" by talent scout Jacek Kulig, Gimenez is still only 22 years old and if he enjoyed success through innate striking ability last term, he has now started to wreak havoc in the final third with a kind of mechanical efficiency that only the game's superlative goalscorers are capable of achieving.
Taking that rich vein of form and lifting his striking prowess to the next level throughout the current campaign, Gimenez has plundered 21 goals and four assists from just 25 matches in the Dutch top-flight, adjusting and improving on his overall performance too.
Matches played
32
25
Matches started
21
25
Goals
15
21
Assists
2
4
Pass completion
70%
69%
Key passes per game
0.6
0.8
Dribbles per game
0.4
0.9
Tackles per game
0.3
0.3
Duels won per game
2.7
4.0
As per FBref, the Argentina-born ace ranks among the top 1% of forwards across divisions similar to the Dutch Eredivisie over the past year for goals scored and touches in the attacking penalty area and the top 17% for progressive carries per 90.
All this highlights his instinctive finishing ability and, moreover, a constant presence in the danger area, with spatial awareness and deft movement that makes him perfect as the spearhead for a fluid and progressive Tottenham system under Postecoglou's management.
His skill and efficiency in attacking sequences bring a certain Manchester City sharpshooter to mind, with Gimenez indeed bearing a semblance to the world-class Erling Haaland – as has been noted by the aforementioned Kulig.
Spurs' answer to Haaland
When referring to the division's finest goalscorers, Haaland is undoubtedly the cream of the crop in the Premier League right now.
Signed from Borussia Dortmund for a base fee of £51m, the 23-year-old Norway international arrived with a weight of expectation after staggering levels of prolific success in Germany and the Champions League.
Some might have predicted Haaland to have found a different kettle of fish on English shores, the defences tougher, more industrious, and the finances spread throughout surpassing that in Germany, Spain, Italy, and so on.
1.
Erling Haaland
48
2.
Andy Cole
65
3.
Alan Shearer
66
4.
Ruud van Nistelrooy
68
5.
Mohamed Salah
72
5.
Fernando Torres
72
It took him no time at all to find his feet, with Haaland instrumental in Manchester City's Treble-winning 2022/23 campaign and now standing with a record of 81 goals and 15 assists from 87 matches for the Cityzens, with one pundit remarking that "he's a cyborg, he's a superhuman, he's an absolute gem of a football player."
To emphasise his stunning offensive ability, FBref presents Haaland's ranking among the top 8% of centre-forwards across Europe's top five leagues over the past year for goals, the top 14% for assists and the top 10% for touches in the attacking penalty area per 90.
Like Haaland, Gimenez has that natural confidence and swagger in the final third, and while the Mexico international doesn't offer the kind of fluidity and dynamism that one such as Son brings to the team, his presence would open up a new dimension and ensure that the Lilywhites have the requisite of firepower to unleash their fury on opposition next season with success.
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Spurs are fifth in the Premier League, and as yet are uncertain whether they will ply their trade in Europe's elite club competition next year, though it's almost a certainty that football will be contested on the continent, in some regard.
Signing Gimenez will be key, with the clinical striker exactly what is needed to continue the rebuild down N17.
